Transformation

So this is my first photoshop posting. Just a few notes up-front:

1. I use a wacom tablet to create almost everything I do in photoshop. If you attempt to perform the following task without a tablet - no matter the brand - you may just lose your mind.
   Get with the times.
   Get a tablet if you're going to use photoshop.
2. I'm using Photoshop CS3 to make these, and am providing the steps I used in that program. The steps you use may vary depending on the version and/or brand of program you're currently using.
3. I hope you enjoyed the tip. I'll be posting more - at least two a week if I try really really hard.

What gave me the idea for this posting was a tutorial I saw on one of the photoshop blogs I'm subscribed to through Google Reader (which is an AWESOME little webapp, by the way. If you don't have Google Reader, and you enjoy reading other people's blogs, you should get it. nuff said).

The tutorial was talking about the rising popularity of the hand-drawn or hand-written designs sweeping across the web. I think it's an amazing look, and anyone who would like to incorporate a similar look should also consider what I'm about to show you.

What this all boils down to is your Layer Blending Options. These will become your friends in times of great strife. Well, great strife when you're using Photoshop, anyways.

Layer Blending Options are accessible through right-clicking the layer you wish to toy with and clicking - *gasp* - Blending Options. The best way to get to know this handy feature is to play with it. Today, we're focusing on the inner shadow option (screenshot shown below).



Check out the difference Inner Shadow makes with a simple, handwritten message - Flat 2D Handwriting vs. Not-flat 3D Handwriting:


So play with your options, like the light angle, contour options, depth, size, jitter... all of it. Also, look at the screenshot of the Layer Blending Options again (above). I used the inner shadow, tweaked to the look I wanted, and voila! A nifty screenshot that blends into my background.

Easy, but useful (I hope).

K