icon tutorial
I had some requests for a tutorial for this icon:
This is made in Photoshop 7 but the steps can be used in PSP also.
First, I looked for a good example of polaroid stock (you can use brushes, if you prefer) - google and places as found in my resources come in very useful here e.g. this set. Once you find something like this you can really start.
1. Resize until you get a base image of height 100 pixels
You can start big and leave resizing until the very end, but in this case 100x85 pixels was what I wanted. Sometimes fiddly works for me.
2. Next, find an image you like, in this case I used a scan from Entertainment Weekly - this is, of course, cropped. Paying close attention to how you want to crop the image further, do so, you can leave a little bigger so you can play with repositioning if you like. Resize the image so that it fits perfectly into the dark space of your polaroid base. Cropping and positioning are important to have a visually appealing icon. Using a hot picture also helps.
In this case 80x80 pixels was the right size. Alternately, you can paste the image and then use the free transform tool (ctrl+t) to adjust. Free transform rocks.
3. Sharpen this layer (usually necessary) and then set it to "lighten" at 100% so that only the dark area shows the picture, any other part that overlaps the frame below will not be seen. Here you can adjust positioning easily, always seeing the frame below. Use the selection tool or the eraser brush to remove any areas you don't need. You'll know if you need to or not.
4. Make a copy of the picture layer and set this layer to "overlay", I set it at 21% but you can adjust to your preferred level. You'll know what you like the look of best. At this stage your icons should look something like this:
5. Make another copy of the picture layer and set it to "multiply" at 22%
6. Next, I took a brush, picked out a paleish colour this one, and highlighted just over the face and shoulder area and set the layer to "overlay" at 60% - this makes the picture really pop:
7. Now, we're almost near the end, the last steps are:
at "color burn" at 42%
8.
at "color" 10%
Pinnnnnnk. Good colour, and on top of the blue means purple in the shadows, and that give you some nice dimension.
The finished icon:
Not a complicated icon, so it's a nice change to not need 20 layers every time, but you can absolutely add more to it. This is just a guide, I'd encourage anyone to play around with colours, gradients, and layers as much as you want, that way you can add your own touches to the process and learn as you go.
There you go, easy.
This is made in Photoshop 7 but the steps can be used in PSP also.
First, I looked for a good example of polaroid stock (you can use brushes, if you prefer) - google and places as found in my resources come in very useful here e.g. this set. Once you find something like this you can really start.
1. Resize until you get a base image of height 100 pixels
You can start big and leave resizing until the very end, but in this case 100x85 pixels was what I wanted. Sometimes fiddly works for me.
2. Next, find an image you like, in this case I used a scan from Entertainment Weekly - this is, of course, cropped. Paying close attention to how you want to crop the image further, do so, you can leave a little bigger so you can play with repositioning if you like. Resize the image so that it fits perfectly into the dark space of your polaroid base. Cropping and positioning are important to have a visually appealing icon. Using a hot picture also helps.
In this case 80x80 pixels was the right size. Alternately, you can paste the image and then use the free transform tool (ctrl+t) to adjust. Free transform rocks.
3. Sharpen this layer (usually necessary) and then set it to "lighten" at 100% so that only the dark area shows the picture, any other part that overlaps the frame below will not be seen. Here you can adjust positioning easily, always seeing the frame below. Use the selection tool or the eraser brush to remove any areas you don't need. You'll know if you need to or not.
4. Make a copy of the picture layer and set this layer to "overlay", I set it at 21% but you can adjust to your preferred level. You'll know what you like the look of best. At this stage your icons should look something like this:
5. Make another copy of the picture layer and set it to "multiply" at 22%
6. Next, I took a brush, picked out a paleish colour this one, and highlighted just over the face and shoulder area and set the layer to "overlay" at 60% - this makes the picture really pop:
7. Now, we're almost near the end, the last steps are:
at "color burn" at 42%
8.
at "color" 10%
Pinnnnnnk. Good colour, and on top of the blue means purple in the shadows, and that give you some nice dimension.
The finished icon:
Not a complicated icon, so it's a nice change to not need 20 layers every time, but you can absolutely add more to it. This is just a guide, I'd encourage anyone to play around with colours, gradients, and layers as much as you want, that way you can add your own touches to the process and learn as you go.
There you go, easy.