Create 3D type art using Photoshop CS5

The new 3D tools in Photoshop CS5 are more advanced than ever. In this tutorial we will use the new Repoussé tool to extrude some text in a way previously only possible in a full 3D application.As well as exploring the capabilities of this exciting new feature, we will explore the traditional 3D settings to get the most out of the different material and rendering options.By using Photoshop’s blending modes and masks we can quickly build up different effects and play with colours in a way that would be far fiddlier and more time-consuming in a 3D program.To bring the colours of the composition together, we will also have a quick look at using...

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Create fireballs and explosions

Fabio Sasso uses custom brushes and layers to create an explosive scene in Photoshop.In this tutorial, you’ll learn how to transform a fairly typical road-trip image – with a big blue sky and wide-open spaces – into an apocalyptic battle scene, complete with tanks, guns, parachutists and a hail of incoming missiles.Of course, changing the colour of the sky and pasting in tanks and other elements is the easy bit: things get trickier when it comes to creating the smoke and explosions.Here, Fabio Sasso shows you how to create custom brushes that recreate smoke and fireballs convincingly. You can use a background image of your own, or if you want...

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Facebook Like Button Plugin

Facebook recently rolled out quite a few new features for social media interaction and my favorite of these updates is the New Facebook Like Button. Unfortunately Facebook overlooked the millions of Wordpress users out there and developed the functionality for this Like Feature into Typepad. I have developed the Facebook Like Button functionality into a Wordpress Plugin that can be downloaded here.Installation of this plugin is a snap1. Download facebook-like-button-plugin.zip2. Unpack and upload file ‘facebook-like-button-plugin.php’ to ‘/wp-content/plugins/’.3. Head to your dashboard and activate the plugin.4. That is all, the plugin is ready...

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Master Photoshop's Liquify filter

The Liquify palette offers all sorts of ways to distort an image: you can twist and pull specific sections through the Warp tool, expand them so that they look like they’ve been inflated using the Bloat tool, or squish up sections using Pucker.As with all Photoshop filters, the Liquify tools are usually best used sparingly. However, for this tutorial Sasso whacks all the settings up high and gets stuck in with creating disturbing and distorted Liquify filter effects.Step 1Create a new A4 document in Photoshop, then import a suitable photo of a cat – it’s quite important that it’s in a similar pose to this one and that the face is clear – and...

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Create lush, glossy vector images

It’s easy to associate vectors with flat shapes – but creating Illustrator images with real depth needn’t be a headache. In this tutorial, Thomas Burden (who works under the name ...There Will Be Unicorns) shows how you can create striking, vibrant work in Illustrator using a simple colour palette and basic blur effects – particularly Illustrator’s built-in Gaussian Blur effects.Along the way, you’ll also learn how to bring simple shapes to life, and how to create charming characters and elements, using only basic Illustrator and Photoshop.Shading elements in Illustrator with the Gaussian Blur leaves your objects completely editable. Once you’ve...

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