How to make ice text in Photoshop

Hi!! In this tutorial I'm gonna show you how to make a very nice ice effect to a text. Here the sources used: http://www.sxc.hu/photo/1090203 http://www.sxc.hu/photo/900443 Thanks to: gnmills and dlritter from sxc.hu

End result:

step 1

Open a new document 500 x 500 pixels, resolution 300

Fill the white background with black (double click on the background layer then press Ctrl+I) then type text.
I used a font called "you're gone" you can find it here: http://www.dafont.com/search.php?psize=m&q=YOU

step 2

Go to the blending options of the text then apply these settings for the inner glow.
Apply also a red "color overlay": later we're going to remove it but is useful while making the ice effect (to see what we're doing better)

step 3

Open this source in a new document(and reduce the size is too big for our task).
Then go to edit -> define brush preset

step 4

Open this source and reduce the size of this one too.

step 5

Click on the channels palette. Copy the green channel (supposing we're working in RGB) dragging it to the "create new channel" icon.
Then press Crl+L to open the levels and apply these settings.

step 6

Press Ctrl+I to invert it, then Ctrl+Click on the channel's thumbnail to select the whites.
Now click on the RGB channel icon and return on the layers menu.

step 7

Press Ctrl+J: we have just copied only what we had previously selected. Press Ctrl+Shift+U to destaurate this level and again Ctrl+L to and apply these settings. Fill the background in white going to Edit->fill and choosing "white".

step 8

Select with the lasso tool the tree on the left, press Ctrl+C and then Ctrl+V to copy and paste. Do the same with the tree on the right. Erase with the eraser tool aventual parts of the ground.
Save them as brushes: hide the one on the left and go to Edit->define brush preset. Do the same with the other tree.

Ok now we have three new brushes

step 9

Create a new layer. Playing with these three brushes draw the ice effect using the white color.
Use the "angle" in the brush window to turn the brushes.
The trees' branches have to stay on the font, don't worry about what's going on out of the font...later we'll mask it.

step 10

Do this to all the letters

step 11

Only now we can remove the red "color overlay" of the text layer, and change the colore of the "inner glow" from black to white.
Check the text is like mine.

step 12

1 Ctrl+Click on the layer's thumbnail of the text.
2click on the "ice" layer and then "add a layer mask".

All the stuff out from the text is gone!
Finally reduce the "fill" of the layer to 25% (not the opacity!!)

step 13

Time to change some settings on the text layer: add some noise to the inner glow and reduce the choke of it.

step 14

Right click-> convert to smart oblect, then right click again -> rasteryze layer.
Finally Ctrl+Click on the text layer thumbnail to select it completely.

step 15

Then go to select -> modify-> contract-> set to 12 and click ok.
Click on "add layer mask" and you have something like that.

step 16

Press Ctrl+I on the layer mask to invert it. Then go to filter-> blur->gaussian->2,5.
Then noise->add noise->0,5

step 17

Create a new layer.
Filter->render->clouds.
Finally Ctrl+U and apply these settings. Check the colorize!!

step 18

Right click-> create clipping mask.
Set to pin light, opacity 20.
This gives a cool soft light blue color to the ice.

step 19

Create a new layer, fill it in black, then go to filter-> render-> lens flare.
Choose the 105mm Prime and place it like that

step 20

Set the blending mode to overlay and the opacity to 65%

step 21

Now select the three layers: the text, the ice and the clouds and copy them. Finally merge this three layers

step 22

We're creating the reflection. So:
Edit->transform->flip vertical
Pressing the shift and the down key on your keyboard move it down.
Then click on add layer mask, select a black to transparent gradient and create this simple effect .
I added some noise to the mask, is really fitting for this situation.

step 23

create a new layer and pick up a brush of 1 pixel. Apply these settings...

step 24

...and these settings.
We're going to make some snow!!

step 25

So on this new layer paint the snow! Play with size of the brush (a simple rounded brush) from 1px to 5 px so the snow don't looks flat but looks very cool and pretty realistic

step 26

Duplicate the snow layer. Then Edit->transform->flip vertical.

step 27

Add a layer mask and again with a black to transparent gradient we hide some of the snow.
Reduce the opacity of the reflection layer to 90%

step 28

Previously I've hidden the layer with the lens flare for comfort...let's reveal it

step 29

Create a new layer. With a rounded brush, opacity 100% flow 50% let's paint some snow on the letters.

step 30

And here it is the snow!! Create the reflection also for this layer...as we did in steps 22 or 26-27

step 31

Now I also cropped the image because there was some blanck space...
Finally press Ctrl+A to select everything, Ctrl+Shift+C to copy merged and then Ctrl+V to paste. Ctrl+J to copy this merged layer, apply a Gaussian Blur of 5, and set the layer to Lighter color and opacity to 60%.

step 32

And here it is!! This technique with the dead trees to create ice effect is made up by me, I hope you enjoied it and learnt something new.
The PST Christmas logo at www.photoshoptalent.com was made with this process.
Thanks for reading!!

Posted in: Photoshop,Tutorials