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ABDZ Constellation - Photoshop Tutorials
This weekend I went to the movies to watch Interstellar in IMAX 70mm. This movie was for me the most anticipated one this year and I left the theater in awe. The movie is visually stunning and as expected from Nolan, a mind-bending experience in terms of storytelling. Still blown away, I decided to create an image in Photoshop inspired by my experience watching this incredible film. So in this little tutorial or case study, I will walk you through my process from Illustrator to Photoshop. I won't provide a lot of details because I think it's better for you to try and not follow instruction, but I think you can have a good idea of how the end result was achieved. Step 1 In Illustrator, create a new document and then with the Polygon Tool create a polygon with more than 8 sides. Step 2 With the Line Segment Tool start creating lines and connecting them to create the polygonal effect we want to achieve. Step 3 Once you finish the full sphere, delete some areas in the center like the image below. After that with the Ellipse Tool, create a circle for each intersection of lines. Step 4 I repated the same process for the Abduzeedo symbol. Step 5 In Photoshop, create a black circle in the center of the document. Step 6 Import the design you created in Illustrator to Photoshop. Step 7 To add stars in the background, an easy techinque is to create a new layer, fill it with black and then go to Filter>Noise>Add Noise. Use around 10% for the amount. Then go to Image>Adjustments>Levels. Adjust the black and the white leves until you have just a few white dots. Step 8 Add the text you would like to add to your design. I am using a quote from the Interstellar movie. Step 9 Using Google Image search I searched for a light leak image. Then with the Adjustments>Hue and Saturation I changed the colors to a cool, blue/purple palette. After that change the Blend Mode to Linear Dodge (add). That will make the image only visible over the dark areas of the composition and invisible over white. Conclusion The process behind this image is quite simple and it was something I used to do a lot in the beginning of the blog, just playing with Blend Modes and the space theme. With vectors and the white area the composition got simpler and more refined. It would work really well for a poster as well. Now it's up to you to come up with your own design, but first, got to the movies to watch Interstellar and get some inspiration.
ABDZ Paper - Photoshop Tutorials
I've recently written about Google's newly launched visual design language called Material Design. The goal of this new design is to create a visual language that synthesizes classic principles of good design with the innovation and possibility of technology and science. The idea is to create a UI that has the best of both worlds, digital and physical. Some of the imagery they presented in the spec share some common characteristics, like depth, paper style effects and vibrant colors. I decided to take a pass and try to create an image inspired by the Material Design styleguide. So in this tutorial I will show you how to create a simple composition in Photoshop inspired by the Material Design styleguide. The whole process will take over one hour or even more if you get into the details. Step 1 Open Photoshop and create a new document. I am using 2880x1800 pixels, the resolution of my Macbook Pro. Step 2 With the Rectangle Tool (U) create a rectangle and rotate it. For the colors I am using the Material Design color palette called Blue Grey (http://www.google.com/design/spec/style/color.html#color-ui-color-palet…). The colors I will use will come from the palette, the only different one will be the accent color. //--> Step 3 Again with the Rectangle Tool (U) add another rectangle and rotate it again to create the outer part of the A. Step 3 Duplicate the rectangle from the previous step and move it a little bit to the right to create a second pane for the left part of the A. Step 4 Do the same for the right part, but this time use pink for the accent color. Step 5 Keep adding rectangles until you have the form you like. Remember to keep the idea of pieces of paper stacked. Step 6 For the textures I used to different techinques. The first one is by using images and clip masking. The other one is by using patterns and layer styles. For this step we will use clip masking. Search for paper textures you want to use and paste in the document. Step 7 Change the Blend Mode to Color Burn and move the order of the layers. Step 8 For the Layer Styles, I used Bevel and Emboss, Pattern Overlay and Drop Shadow. Use the values below to see how I did. The biggest change for the other layers will be the Drop Shadow values. Step 9 Here's the first sheet of paper with the effects. Step 10 Repeat the same process for the other sheets of paper. The main difference will be the drop shadow values. Conclusion After all these steps you will end up with something similar to the image below. It's important to play with some values for shadow, bevel and also blend modes depending on the colors you choose. The palette I chose is not super vibrant so it's a bit different than if I used a more vibrant and saturated tone. The shadows also make a huge difference. Some will have to be more subtle while one or two will be long and strong. Those details will create the depth you want for the composition. Now it's up to you. I will keep playing with mine trying to improve the realism of the shadows and edges of the paper. I hope you have fun creating your own version. I also would like to thank Shutterstock for some of the textures I used in this tutorial.
Vector Polygonal Background - Illustrator Tutorials
A couple of weeks ago I posted an image with a polygonal background that I discovered on the Pattern Library website and got some requests to recreate so herein lies my attempt. So in this tutorial I will show you how to create a vector polygonal pattern using Illustrator and the Pattern make feature. The process is quite simple but there are some details that are very important to make sure your pattern is tileable. Step 1 Open Illustrator and create a new document. With the Rectangle Tool create a square like the image below. Step 2 Duplicate the square by holding Option+Shift. Make sure they snap with no space between them. //--> Step 3 Create a grid by repeating the step 2 process. Step 4 With the Direct Selection Tool (A) select the top and bottom points on the same column. Them move them to any direction. It's very important to do that for these points because that will make sure that the illustration will be tillable. Step 5 Here's the outside points that will connect when you create the pattern. Step 6 For the internal points you can do whatever you want. If you want smooth polygons don't move them too much. Also if you want to add more square to your grid that will allow you to give more details to your background. Step 7 Add some colors, I used greyscale because I can change the hues in Photoshop later on. Step 8 Select polygons that have the same color and duplicate them in place. Then go to Window>Swatch Libraries>Patterns>Basic_Graphics_Lines. Use one of the horizontal lines presets. Step 9 Select the image you created and go to Object>Expand. After that group the shapes and go to Object>Pattern>Make. Select Size Tile to Art and Move Tile with Art. After that change the H and V spacing until you have no space between the tiles. Step 10 Click done and you will have a nice poliygonal pattern to play with. Step 11 In Photoshop, create a new document. I am using 2880x1800 pixels. Copy a big rectangle with the pattern in Illustrator and paste it in Photoshop. Step 12 Add a new layer on top and change the color. After that change the Blend Mode to Overlay. You can try as many colors you want by doing that. You can also play with the Levels to reduce the contrast . Conclusion Add your logo and you are good to go. The process is quite simple, it's just about paying attention to the details and you will have a nice wallpaper for your laptop or new iPhone ;) Download Illustrator File Download the Illustrator file used for this tutorial
Playing with Ligatures - Photoshop Tutorials
Last week I posted a couple articles on typography, more precisely ligatures, and despite the fact I have never been a huge fan of this style it is extremely popular. With that in mind I decided to practice and learn more about it. For this first image, I've created a simple composition in Illustrator using a popular quote. The process is quite simple, I just played with text sizes and tried to connect the ligatures albeit in different rows. So for this post I will walk you through my process very briefly though I must admit it took me quite some time to achieve a work that satisfied. Step 1 Create a new document in Illustrator and with the Horizontal Type Tool add the text you want to use for the composition. I am using a quote that was said to be Mark Twain's but there are controversies. The font I am using is PF Champion Script and it can be purchased at https://www.myfonts.com/fonts/parachute/pf-champion-script-pro/ Step 2 Reorganize the words and try to connect them by the ligatures. //--> Step 3 The font comes with fantastic glyphs and they are perfect to fill some areas between words. Step 4 For the "The" I used to glypch, one connected with the "T" and the other with the "e". Step 5 Here's the final text composition. Step 6 Now let's start adding some subtle shadows. I used this effect for letters that have crossing segments and any looping form. Step 7 The final colors I used were #242529 for the background and #D4EA61 for the text. Conclusion The final composition is fairly simple, the goal is to drive all the attention to the text and ligatures. I also added the Abduzeedo logo using #FF4240 to create some contrast. Besides that I also created another version with a super cool pattern from The Pattenr Library titled Shattered Island (http://thepatternlibrary.com/#shattered-island). You can try different variations, but now it's up to you, meanwhile I will keep playing and trying to refine my ligature skills.
Illuminating Motherboard - Photoshop Tutorials
For this week's tutorial I will extend the Chrome Effect in Photoshop tutorial and add a super cool light effect simulation featuring a fan hole in a computer. We will use some images and Photoshop's layer styles for the whole tutorial. The process is quite straightforward but it is a little time consuming, roughly one hour to create your own image. Step 1 Open Photoshop and create a new document, as usual I am using 2880x1800 pixels for the dimensions so I can use it as a desktop wallpaper. Using the Paint Bucket Tool, fill the bakcground with #201E1E for the color. Step 2 Add a new layer and fill with with black. After that go to Filter>Noise>Add Noise. Use 15% for the Amount, Uniform for the Distribution and Monochromatic. This is pretty much the same process we did to create the plastic texture in our previous tutorials. //--> Step 3 Duplicate the noise layer and then just flip it horizontally. After that group the 2 layers and apply a layer style for the group. Go to Layer>Layer Style>Gradient Overlay. Use Radial from mid grey to dark grey. Step 4 For the internal part of our speaker or computer search on Google Images for some videocards, they usually are super cool in terms of design. I also used an image with light effect I did a lont time ago for the Abduzeedo Book. You can use anything you want for the light effect. Merge both images and then go to Image>Image Adjustments>Hue/Saturation. Select Colorize with 40 for Hue, 50 for Saturation and -13 for Lightness. Step 5 Time to mask everything. For my design I used a vector I found online with the circles like a round phone speaker. Create a marquee selection of the shape and mask the internals. Step 6 This is what you will have after the masking. Step 7 With the shape you used to create the mask go to Layer>Layer Style>Blending Mode. Change the Fill Opacity to 0. Select Bevel & Emboss and then use the values below, after that select Contour and use 56% for the Range. In the end duplicate this layer and change the opacity to 10%. Step 8 Add a new layer on top of the other layers and fill it with black. With the Brush Tool (B) paint a circle with a dark grey like the image below. After that change the Blend Mode to Color Dodge. Step 9 Go to Layer>New Layer Style>Photo Filter. Use Warming Filter at 30% Density. Step 10 Select all layers and duplicate them. Merge the new layers and with the new layer selected go to Filter>Blur>Gaussian Blur. Use 15 pixels for the Radius. Change the Blend Mode to Screen at 70% Opacity. Conclusion Now to finish the design just add your logo with the same nice chrome effect we created in our previous tutorial, Chrome Effect in Photoshop and your design will be done. Now it's up to you to come up with your own. I hope you have fun. Download Photoshop File Download the Photoshop file used for this tutorial
Chrome Effect - Photoshop Tutorials
A couple of weeks back we featured an image for the wallpaper of the week that was the Abduzeedo symbol with a chrome effect. Quite a few people asked me how it was composed so this weekend I decided to write a simple tutorial on how to achieve a cool chrome effect using Photoshop. I am using the Photoshop CC but you can create a similar effect with pretty much any new version of Photoshop. So, in this tutorial I will show you how to create a chrome effect in Photoshop using just layer styles. The whole process is very simple but it might require some tweaking and a little bit of time. Step 1 In Photoshop create a new document. I am using 2880x1800 for the size so I can use it as a desktop wallpaper for my laptop. After that put the logo/symbol you want to apply the chrome style. //--> Step 2 Add a new layer and fill with with black with the Paint Bucket Tool. After that go to Filter>Noise>Add Noise. Use 12.5% for the Amount, Gaussian and Monochromativ. Step 3 Duplicate the layer and for the one on top go to Edit>Transform>Flip Horizontal. After that change the Blend Mode to Screenat 40%. Step 4 Group the 2 layers with noise and then for the group apply a layer style. Select Gradient Overlay and use Radial with a light grey in the middle and black for the edges. Step 5 Select the symbol and then go to Layer>Layer Style>Blending Options. Use the settings like the images below. Note: The settings might vary depending on the type and size of you symbol, so play with the values until you find the best result. These are the best settings for the Abduzeedo symbol. Step 6 Here I added the logotype and apply similar chrome effect. Step 7 Select all layers and duplicate them. Merge all the new duplicated layers onto one layer and then go to Filter>Blur>Gaussian Blur. Use 15 for the amount. After that change the Blend Mode to Screen at 50% and go to Layer>Add Layer Mask. With the Brush Tool make only the symbol area visible so this layer will create a sort of glow effect. Conclusion Here is the final result. As you can see the last step add a nice shine and glow to the image making the chrome look more realistic. I mentioned before, but it's important to play with the settings because they might have different results depending on the form of your symbol. Now it's up to you, just have fun and start creating nice wallpapers as well. Download Photoshop file Download the Photoshop file used for this tutorial
Playing with Triangles in Photoshop
It's been quite some time since I've experimented with new ideas. Today, I decided to go through my personal library of inspiration, likes on Pinterest, etc and found some really good images from various artists, in particular the work of Sarah Mick. I am also still in love with the game Monument Valley, so this post also has much inspiration drawn from that visual language. Let's get to it. In this tutorial I will show you how to create a super simple wallpaper using Photoshop and Illustrator. The process is very straightforward but the result is quite good in my opinion. Step 1 Create a new document in Illustrator and then create 2 squares like the image below. The smallest one in black and the bigger one in medium grey. Step 2 With the Blend Options select both squares and them create a blend with 3 Specified Steps. Step 3 Add another rectangle for the background with a light grey, like the image below. Step 4 Copy the image from Illustrator and paste it in Photoshop. Step 5 Go to Filter>Blur Gallery>Tilt-Shift. Use 15 pixels for the Tilt-Shift and 0 distortion. Step 6 Let's add an image for the background. I am using a sky image in grey scale that I found on Google Images. After that I masked it to make sure it wasn't overlapping the triangles. Step 7 Go to Layer>New Adjustment Layer>Hue and Saturation. Use 195 for Hue and 43 for Saturation. Step 8 Now select all layers and then merge them into a new layer. After that go to Filter>Noise>Add Noise. Use 2% for the Amount and Gaussian for the Distribution. Conclusion Now just add your text and logo and you are good to go. It's a simple artwork but has some strong visual appeal because of the triangles and since I saw some posters on Behance and the game The Monument Valley I fell in love with this concept. Now it's up to you, just go and have some fun! Download Download the Photoshop file
2014 FIFA World Cup Poster
The 2014 FIFA World Cup is about to begin in Brazil this week and I couldn't be more excited. Brazil hasn't hosted what is considered the biggest sporting event in the world since 1950. To celebrate the return of Brazil as host country, I decided to create a little artwork inspired by this momentous event on the horizon. Instead of using the organic forms seen in the official logo I went with an old school, modernist and geometric style. So in this little post I will walk you through the creative process behind this poster. I am using Adobe Illustrator and Adobe Photoshop for this tutorial. Step 1 In Illustrator I started with a simple representation of the Brazilian flag. Just using the Ellipse Tool (E), Polygon Tool and Rectangle Tool. Step 2 With the Rectangle Tool I created one 2 rectangles with different heights. With the Blend Tool I created the interpolation of lines between the 2 rectangles. Thats' the base for the whole design. Step 3 With the triangle I clipped the blend object. Step 4 I repeated the same thing for the top part, this time with green. Step 5 All elements together, with text and different colors. Step 6 Here's some color explorations with color palettes from Kuler. Conclusion Here's the final result, heavily inspired by the modernist style that was used in most of the Brazilian brands I grew up seeing, very geometric and solid colors.
Impossible ABDZ in Illustrator
Last Friday I bought the game Monument Valley and got hooked an an instant. The art direction is fantastic, full of beautifully designed puzzles playing with impossible forms, you feel it could be a game designed by M.C Escher. A few hours playing and I was inspired to create an artwork for Abduzeedo, just to have some fun. The end result, and some quality time in Illustrator and Photoshop, I ended up with an outline style artwork for a poster and wallpaper. So in this little case study/tutorial I will show you the process behind my impossible ABDZ symbol using Illustrator and Photoshop. Step 1 In Illustrator start creating a basic triangle using the Rectangle Tool and then the Direct Selection Tool. Create the front face, the one with the lighter grey and then the back face on the left with a darker grey and the top face on the right with a mid grey. Step 2 Add the bottom part with the same grey as the back face part in step one. Step 3 Add the top face of the bottom part using the same grey as the top face in step one. Connect them by extending the right top face. Make some adjustments to make sure the vertices are aligned. Step 4 Here I decided to edit my penrose triangle to have a little bit of the Abduzeedo Symbol form. Step 5 Here I decided to play with some shadows to add some depth, the first idea was to follow a nice rendering with greys and gradients. Step 6 This was my first outcome, it was heavily inspired by the game Monument Valley. It was nice but I wanted something simpler. Step 7 I decided to to use just the outlines, it is a quite common style but I realised I haven't done something like that for Abduzeedo. The first thing was to remove the fill colors and just add a stroke. After that I used Pathfinder to make sure the shapes are not overlapping on another. Conclusion Here's the final result, just increase the weight of the strokes and added a few more details in Illustrator. You can add textures or more elements if you want, but for now I am pretty happy with the outcome, especially using as my desktop wallpaper.
Low Poly Illustrations in Photoshop by Breno Bitencourt
We have seen quite a few illustrations with the low poly style, it looks like a very difficult technique but Breno Bitencourt put together a very complete Photoshop tutorial showing the process, including a video. I will really give it a try and now you have the chance to try to, check it out. Here I'll show you step-by-step how to create a stylish low-poly portrait in Illustrator and Photoshop. The secret to creating works in this style is working from the best reference photos – and first off Breno reveals how to capture these (using himself as a model). He then reveals how to work these up in Photoshop, then create a vector version in Illustrator. Video Breno Bitencourt is a graphic designer from Brazil specialized at logo design, as well as corporate identity that works with clients globally. For more information about Breno visit https://www.behance.net/Bitencourt
San Francisco Skyline in Illustrator
A couple of weeks ago I decided to practice my Illustrator skills to create a simple skyline of San Francisco for a print material I am working on. I loved the style that Ryan Putnam explored on some of his illustrations of city skylines so I decided to give it a try. I have to say, I didn't have that much fun doing illustrations since I was in high school I think. So in this short post I will walk you through my basic creative process behind the San Francisco Skyline illustration. I used Adobe Illustration for this project but it can be done with any vector tool. Step 1 - References The first step was to get references of some iconic buildings in the San Francisco skyline. San Francisco is a beautiful city and it was very easy to get a few landmarks. The ones I picked was, Transamerica Pyramid, Ferry Building, Embarcadero Center, Alcatraz, Cable Car, the fog and of course the Golden Gate Bridge. Below you can see some references. Step 2 To create the buildings I used basic shapes and the Blend Tool to make the windows. Below you can see the process behind the Transamerica Pyramid. Step 3 The Embarcadero Center I used the rectangle tool to create half of the building. For the windows, I just used a dotted stroke line. After the first half was done, I just duplicated it and there it was, another building. Step 4 The Ferry Building took more time because of its architecture style. But again, just basic forms and a lot of repetition. The secret is to capture the most important features, it doesn't have to be perfect. Step 5 Putting everything together was a lot of fun. I started adding some placeholder buildings to fill the space. For the Golden Gate Bridge I used the Blend Tool and also created the fog with a bunch of circles that later on I united them with the pathfinder tool. The cool thing about this type of illustration is that you can create it quite easily, it just require time. Another important tip is to make the outer stroke of the buildings bigger than the inner. Conclusion The final print is done but not ready to be shown yet. Soon I will have more details, but below you can see two explorations, one in a print mockup and another one a simple animated gif.
Playing with type and images in Photoshop
Following our new series of positive thinking wallpapers today we will show you how to create a simple and soothing image using Photoshop. The author we feature today is Confucius and the quote is "Everything has beauty, but not everyone can sees it". We will also use a stock photo from Unsplash. So in this little case study/tutorial we will show you how to play to some basic masking, photography and typography to create a beautiful wallpaper. The process won't take more than 45 minutes but I am sure you will have a lot of fun. Step 1 Open Photoshop and create a new document. I am using 2880x1800 pixels, the standard retina display Macbook Pro resolution. After that let's start playing with our positive quote from Confucius. Add the word BEAUTY. The font I am using is called Liberator. Step 2 With the Rectangle Tool, create a rectangle with a 10pt stroke. Step 3 Now add the rest of the text. The first part using the same font and the last using a smaller font. In my case I used Orator St. Step 4 For the background I am using a photo from http://unsplash.com/ - I wanted an image with a cold/calm feel and I found this one with some trees and the fog. I liked the mood of it. Step 7 Change the color of the text from white to a purpleish extracted from the image. I apply a Layer Style>Color Overlay to a folder with the typography elements. Step 8 With the Magic Wand Tool (W) select the tree. Then mask the text and rectangle so you can make some branches going in front and behind the symbol. Step 9 Here's a zoom version to see how I played with the branches and the typography. Step 10 Go to Layer>New Adjustment Layer>Photo Filter. Use the Warming 85 at 33%. Conclusion Add your logo and you are good to go. The design is simple and soothing, exactly the mood I wanted to have for this particular design. So as Confucius sad "Everything has beauty, but not everyone can sees it" - maybe that's why I will probably be the only one who can see the beauty on this wallpaper.
Positive Thinking Wallpaper in Illustrator
I am always change the wallpaper of my computer, not so much on my mobile devices, I don't know why. The only think I know is that I look at my wallpaper quite a lot because of the second monitor. In order to get some inspiration I decided to start a series of wallpapers with positive thinking quotes. The first one is from Mark Twain and the theme is inspired by an ad from the 80s, my favorite decade for sure. In terms of tools, for this one I will use Illustrator and Photoshop but my goal is to use Sketch and other apps as well. This is not a tutorial per se, it's just a little case study or behind the scene of how I create this wallpaper and the future ones. There won't be a lot of details, but it's an opportunity for me to explore more Illustrator, Photoshop, Sketch or any tool that comes to my mind. Step 1 Open Illustrator and create a new document. For wallpapers I used 2880x1800 pixels. After that with the Line Segment Tool (\) create 2 lines. I am using the same angle of the Abduzeedo logo. Step 2 With the Blend Tool create 8 steps from the two lines. Step 3 Now using the color spectrum, change the colors of the lines going from yellow to green. Step 4 The idea for this future wallpapers is to use a positive thinking quote. The first one is from Mark Twain, and it says "I've had a lot of horries in my life, most of which never happened". Step 5 With the Direct Selection Tool (A) edit the text box to have the same angle of the lines. Step 6 To finish this first wallpaper I just placed the Abduzeedo logo in the center. Conclusion I am not fan of pure vectors, I don't know why but I always like to add a little texture. So in Photoshop I added a simple paper texture to make it less "vector". The whole idea of this first wallpaper was to explore my favorite theme, 80s with a simple and elegant wallpaper. I hope you had fun and let's see what comes next week. Download Photoshop Download Photoshop file
Reader Tutorial: The Voyager Artwork by Moe Pike Soe
The Voyager artwork was created as a Ten Dollar Fonts showcase for a brilliant font designed by Maarten Van’t Wout. I used Cinema 4D and Photoshop to create the atmospheric photo manipulation. The technique is to use different blend modes and adjustment layers as combo to create dynamic lighting for each elements in the composition. I will be showing you these simple techniques to create the artwork. The tutorial includes a part of Cinema 4D but I’ve also included the already rendered pictures for people without C4D to follow. Step 1 We are going to create the 3D text in Cinema 4D first. Create a new motext using the font, type in desired words and change the horizontal spacing to 85 cm with the depth of 35 cm. Step 2 There are two lights being given to the type. The first one is directly above the type at 100% intensity and another light is in front of the type with only 50% intensity. Also make sure you change the shadow mode to area as well. Step 3 Create a new material and change the color to R: 23 G: 23 B: 23 and assign it to the motext. Step 4 Create a new camera and place it along centre of the type. Change the focal length to 76 mm. Step 5 Open up Render Settings > Output and change the resolution to 4500 pixels wide and 3000 pixels high. Also change the saving format to PNG with straight alpha and separate alpha checked. Last of all, add Global Illumination from Effects menu. Step 6 We will be exporting two different renders. One is the full 3D render and another is flat type layer. To get the flat render, change the depth of the type to 0 cm and then render it. Step 7 Open Photoshop and create a new document with 4500 pixels width and 3000 pixels height then fill the background with black color. Place the stars.jpg and change the opacity to 50%. Step 8 Import the two renders and make sure you have the flat type layer on top of the 3D type layer. Also name flat layer Flat and 3D layer 3D. Step 9 As you can see the type is not that popped out enough yet and we need more rim light on the type. To do that, create a new layer above the Flat layer and clip mask it. Then grab a soft brush with white color and paint along the sides of the type. Step 10 Repeat the step 9 again but this time it’s for the 3D layer. Step 11 Group all the type layers and name it Title. Create a level adjustment layer with a clipping mask to the group. Change the values to 0 : 0.83 : 131 . And now we have a pretty dramatic looking type. Step 12 Import the astronaut.jpg and mask out all the white background so that you will be left with the astronaut only. Place the layer below the Title group and move the astronaut so that he looks like he’s hanging on to the ‘A’. Step 13 The astronaut is too bright compared to the type and it needs darker shadows. Create a new Levels adjustment layers and change the value to 63: 0.37 : 225 and clip mask it to the astronaut layer. Step 14 Create a new layer above the astronaut layer and name it Highlight. Make sure to put the highlight layer between astronaut and the adjustment layers. Grab a soft brush with white color and paint into the sides of the astronaut. And change the layer blend mode to Soft Light. Step 15 Create another layer below the highlight area and name it Shadow. Paint inside of the astronaut with a black soft brush with the opacity of 10%. Step 16 Make a group of all the layers except the Title group and name it astronaut. Create a new vibrance adjustment layer. Change the value of vibrance to 100% and the value of saturation to 0%. Step 17 Import earth.png and place the layer above the stars layer. Move the earth to the center aligned with the background. Step 18 Create a new layer and clip mask onto the earth layer. Change the blending mode to Soft Light. And paint in shadows to the bottom part of the earth. Step 19 On the same layer, paint on the top of earth with a white soft brush to lighten up the top half of the earth. Step 20 Create a new layer beneath the Earth layer. Paint along the contour of top half of the earth with a soft white brush. This will create a glow behind the earth. Step 21 Import moon.png. We’re going to repeat Step 18 and 19 to create the similar effect but instead of on top, we’re going to paint it on the left side. Step 22 Group the moon layers and the earth layers. Create a new exposure adjustment layer and a vibrance adjustment layer. Change the value as shown below. Step 23 Now we’ve got a pretty cool atmosphere now but the elements are not cohesive yet. Create a new color balance adjustment layer and a vibrance adjustment layer. Change the values as shown below. Step 24 Create a new layer and name it Top Light. Select a soft brush with the biggest size and change the color to #6d7595 . Paint it along the top of canvas and change the opacity to 40% Step 25 Import flare.jpg and change the blend mode to Linear Dodge. Adjust the position of the flare to the top and centre of the earth. Create a new levels adjustment layer and change the values as shown. Step 26 Find any unwanted highlights or areas that need more shadows and paint above on it by creating a new layer with soft light blend mode. Create a new layer and press shift+cmd+E (shift+ctrl+E) to merge all layers into one. Choose Filter>Sharpen>Unsharp Mask and change the values as below. Conclusion The techniques I’ve shown are simple but they do take time to fine tune depending on the source light in anyway artworks. I hope you’ve learned some new techniques from the tutorial. For more information about me and my work, please visit http://thebeaststudio.com Source Files Download Source Files
ABDZ Weave Pattern in Illustrator
I have been taking a lot of pictures since I decided to do a photo a day project this year. I got a good camera and started taking pictures of pretty much everything that inspired me. I was in Bloomington, Indiana and I was really amazed by the pattern of the bathroom floor. I took a photo and decided to recreate it as pattern in Illustrator. So in this little tutorial I will show you how to create vector patterns in Illustrator. The process is quite simple but you will be able to create really amazing patterns for future projects. Step 1 Using the photo I took for inspiration and reference I imported it to Illustrator. Step 2 Using the Rectangle Tool, start recreating the basics of that pattern. Step 3 Once you have the basic shapes right, start playing with colors and shadows. For the colors I used Adobe Kuler (https://kuler.adobe.com/create/color-wheel/) for reference. Note that at this step you are still creating the basic title. Step 4 Now in order to make the pattern you have to make sure that your artwork is tile-able. Below you can see the final form I ended up getting to make sure that the pattern will be scaleable. Step 5 Select your design and go to Object>Pattern>Make. Use the default settings and click Done. Your patter will be added to the Swatch pane. You can always double click to edit it. You can change colors and pretty much everything. Conclusion Here's the final design. The hard shadows and the vector style give it a really nice feel. The form is the same as the photo I took, but just with a more modern feel and it does look really cool as a wallpaper for your computer, tablet and phone. Now it's up to you. Take pictures of patterns you see on the streets, you never know when you might need some references. Illustrator source file Download Illustrator file
Typographic Logo in Illustrator and Photoshop
I have been playing more with simple stencil style logos in my spare time, especially because it requires a lot of practice and attention to detail. I surely have a lot to improve upon and that's why I have been spending time trying to recreate this style using Illustrator and Photoshop. For this tutorial I will show you how to use simple Illustrator tools to create a very trendy logo. The process is quite simple and can be applied to all sorts of logos and illustrations for your future projects. Step 1 In Illustrator create a simple stencil using basic shapes and different fonts. The fonts I used here can be found at the Lost Type http://losttype.com/browse/ - Step 2 Let's start adding some effects. The first one is the Blend effect. Select the word New York and duplicate it. Change the color of the duplicated word to white and make sure it's underneath the black one. After that go to Object>Blend - Use 4 pixels for the Spacing with Specified Distance. Step 3 Repeat the same thing to create a simple effect of diagonal lines for the top horizontal dividers. Step 4 Select the first text and go to Object>Envelope Distort>Envelope with Warp. Use Arc for the Style with 30% for the Bend. Step 5 Repeat the same thing for the text at the bottom. Step 6 Select the rectangles and text used to create the ribbon and go again to Object>Envelope Distort>Envelop with Warp... - Use -30% for the Bend with Arc for the Style. Step 7 Here's the final result of the stencil. Step 8 Now in Photoshop, I used one of the photos I took while I was in New York. Import it to Photoshop and crop it to fit the canvas size you are working on. In my case, 2880x1800 pixels. Step 9 Add a new layer and fill it with a simple grey/green color. After that change the opacity to 60%. Step 10 Add another layer and fill it with a gradient from black to white in the center. After that change the Blend Mode to Multiply at 80%. Step 11 Copy the logo from Illustrator and paste it in Photoshop. Step 12 Go to Image>Adjustments>Invert. After that change the Blend Mode to Lighten. Step 13 Go to Layer>New Adjustment Layer>Photo Filter. Use Cooling Filter with 25% for Density. Conclusion After over one hour you can have something similar to the result I got. This was a simple exercise to try to recreate some of the awesome logos I see in most of the design sites out there. I know there's a lot to refine, but this was as I said, a simple playing time with Illustrator and Photoshop trying to learn more about this very trendy and I'd say hipster style. I hope you have fun creating your own version. Download .AI file
Offset Path Effect
Last week Adobe release some new updates in the Creative Cloud apps, including Photoshop and Illustrator. The best new feature for me was the live corner effects in Illustrator. It is a simple little feature but it will make my job so much easier, especially when creating logos, icons and symbols. To give you a little overview I decided to create a new Abduzeedo wallpaper using Illustrator and Photoshop applying some offset path effects and of course the live corner. So in this tutorial I will show you how to create a simple wallpaper mixing vectors and photos. We will play with Offset Path, Live Corners and some other effects in Illustrator and Photoshop. Step 1 Create a simple path in Illustrator. I am using the Abduzeedo symbol for this tutorial. Step 2 One of the newest features in Illustrator is the Live Corners. The cool thing about this feature is that you can make round corners much easier. To do that, with the Direct Selection Tool (A), select the corner you want to edit and notice there's blue circle with a dot in the center. Step 3 Drag that circle down to start editing the corner. Step 4 Here's the Abduzeedo symbol with some better rounded corners done with live corners. Step 5 Select the path and go to Object>Path>Offset Path. Use 10px Offset and keep the default values for the rest. Make sure you check Preview so you can see the effect. Step 6 Repeat the effect again. You can increase the stroke weight to make it more visible. Tip. If you want to have rounded edges like the one on the bottom right, expand the first path. Step 7 Repeat the process a few more times. Step 8 Now in Photoshop, find a nice photo to use in the background. The one I am using is from one of the links in this really cool post at Medium: Stock photos that don’t suck https://medium.com/design-ux/62ae4bcbe01b Step 9 Copy the vector in Illustrator and paste it in Photoshop. Step 10 Select the vector and go to Image>Adjustments>Invert. After that change the blend mode to Color Dodge at 60% Step 11 Go to Layer>New Adjustment Layer>Photo Filter. Select Warming Filter(85), use 25% Density. Conclusion You can apply some brushes to make the symbol sort of old and with that distressed effect and your composition will be done. I love how simple features can make some processes much easier. The live corner effect and the offset path allowed me to create this composition and less than 30 minutes. Of course before that I spent quite a long time looking for inspiration ;)