Event Flyer

This chapter is from the book

Learn Adobe Photoshop CC for Visual Design: Adobe Certified Associate Exam Preparation, 2nd Edition

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This chapter is from the book

This chapter is from the book 

Learn Adobe Photoshop CC for Visual Design: Adobe Certified Associate Exam Preparation, 2nd Edition

Learn More Buy

Enhance Designs Using Creative Tools

ACA Objective 2.6

ACA Objective 3.1

ACA Objective 4.6

This is where we move into the things that make Photoshop designs so spectacular. You’re going to learn a few great tricks that I’ve either learned or developed over the last 20 years of working with digital design. These tricks are simple but uncommon ways to use a couple of the tools I’m about to share with you, and they all came from experimenting, exploring the application, and trying to solve problems. I’ve failed more than any other designer I know—but I count that as a victory! I fail because I try and experiment—and because I fail so often, I succeed often as well.

As we explore, remember that these are not answers to design problems but a possible solution to a specific design problem. As we explore these tools, think about how the settings we use might be changed and how that might create a different look in your design. It is all about trying and experimenting.

Solve design problems with styles

ACA Objective 4.6

One of the most obvious problems in your current project is that the name of the venue—which happens to be “The Venue”—is difficult to read. Because this project is in support of an event, the location is critical, and the client’s desire to format the text like the sign at the location is essential.

Unfortunately, though most of the image is fairly dark, the lower-right corner that includes the text happens to be one of the brightest areas in the photo. You could try to mask the left edge of the document, but that would create a strange light-streak look on the photo. Fortunately, you can add a style to the text layer so that any effects apply to everything on the layer.

To create a layer style:

1. Select the layer to which you want to add the effect. Select the vertical text layer that reads “The Venue.”

2. At the bottom of the Layers panel, click the Add A Layer Style icon (Figure 4.25).

   

   Figure 4.25 Creating a layer style

   An effects menu displays (Figure 4.26).

   

   Figure 4.26 The effects menu on the Layers panel

3. From the menu, choose Outer Glow.

4. In the Outer Glow panel of the Layer Style dialog box, specify the following (Figure 4.27):

   • Blend Mode: Normal

   • Opacity: 81%

   • Color: Black

   • Spread: 28%

   • Size: 76px

   

   Figure 4.27 The Outer Glow panel of the Layer Style dialog box

   You will almost always evaluate and tweak these settings visually, so select Preview to see how the settings affect your layer. Because each project is different, you’ll find that these settings will need to be fine-tuned for every new project.

5. Click OK to apply the layer style to the layer (Figure 4.28).

   

   Figure 4.28 The black outer glow effect helps distinguish the text from a highly contrasting background image without being too clumsy or obvious.

You can see that placing the dark area just around the letters made the text much easier to read by creating a strong contrast with the background. The softer edge doesn’t look as cheap as a solid stroked outline might. By styling the text as somewhat transparent and fading, you minimize the visual distraction that a sharp border could cause.

Save styles for repeated use

Styles sometimes take a while to set up. Even though this one is relatively simple, we should still save it so that you can use it again on another layer or another project. With a style, the effect is applied consistently, and you can make global changes easily.

1. Select the layer with the style you want to save. In this case, select the vertical text layer that reads “The Venue.”

2. In the Styles panel, click the Create New Style button (Figure 4.29).

   

   Figure 4.29 The New Style button at the bottom of the Styles panel

3. In the New Style dialog box, enter BlackGlow Title in the Name field.

4. Select Include Layer Effects and Add To My Current Library, and then click OK (Figure 4.30).

   

   Figure 4.30 Enter the style name in the New Style dialog box.

The advantage of saving styles is obvious: you can reuse them at any time! Building a customized set of styles can save you much time on future projects. Furthermore, custom styles will enhance your projects and add a personal design touch to your work.

Figure 4.31 A style name shown in a tooltip

Manage styles

Sometimes a style must be changed, hidden, or removed. All these are accomplished easily in just a few steps.

• To edit a style on a layer, double-click the style to edit the style settings.

• To hide a style from a layer, click the visibility icon next to the layer style.

• To remove a style from a layer, drag the style to the trash can in the Layers panel. Or right-click the style and choose Clear Layer Style from the context menu (Control-click in macOS).

• To copy a style from one layer to another, right-click the layer that has the style you want to copy, and choose Copy Layer Style. Then right-click the destination layer, and choose Paste Layer Style (Control-click in macOS).

Format the flyer headline

Your flyer looks okay at this point, but let’s bring a little more attention to the headlining band. The client says they’re a crowd favorite for locals, and they also think the flyer could use a little more “pop.” (Clients always say it could use more “pop.”) I’m also going to share one of the tricks I’ve developed over the years that I call the “glowing ghost” effect.

1. In the Layers panel, select the layer that you want to alter. In this case, select the vertical text layer that reads “Gasoline Heart.”

2. Click the Layer Styles icon and choose Outer Glow from the menu (Figure 4.32).

   

   Figure 4.32 Choosing Outer Glow

3. In the Outer Glow panel of the Layer Style dialog box, specify what works for your image. We used the following (Figure 4.33):

   • Blend Mode: Normal

   • Opacity: 100%

   • Color: White

   • Spread: 6%

   • Size: 40px

   

   Figure 4.33 Adding a glow to the headline

   TIP

   If your settings get out of control, click Reset To Default to restore them to their defaults.

   Remember to select Preview to see how the changes affect the layer.

4. Click OK to create the layer style for the layer.

5. In the Layers panel, enter 0 in the Fill field (Figure 4.34).

   

   Figure 4.34 The Fill percentage for the layer

   The text becomes transparent, but the white, Outer Glow layer style remains (Figure 4.35).

   

   Figure 4.35 Using an effect to distinguish text from the background

   This pronounced effect can often be used to help text stand out in your designs without introducing colors or exaggerating the design elements. I also like using these tricks because they represent a slightly unusual use of the Outer Glow effect and show the flexibility of these tools in Photoshop.

   NOTE

   Changing the Fill percentage changes the opacity of the layer contents but does not alter the layer effects. However, changing the opacity value alters both the layer and the effects.

Save your work!

ACA Objective 5.2

You’ve done a lot of work, and you’re about to shift gears again. Quickly save your work before moving on. I also want to teach you a quick habit that you should acquire. Although some believe this habit is redundant and unnecessary, it’s saved me from disaster more than once.

After saving the file, save it again using a different filename. That is, after you’ve saved the current file as ShowFlyer.psd, choose File > Save As and save it as ShowFlyer-v2.psd and then continue working.

These steps will create two files: one saved at this point and another that you will continue working on. This is not a foolproof solution, but it can save you in the event that a file gets corrupted. Drive space is cheap; your time is expensive. Develop good habits to help protect your work now to save yourself headaches later.

For now, your flyer looks good. If this were a rush job, I’d even call it acceptable to present to the client. But you can still perform a few more, nonessential refinements to improve the design.

Working with filters

ACA Objective 3.3

ACA Objective 4.6

Just as you applied effects (through layer styles) to improve the visibility of your text, you can often use filters to improve images. Filters, like effects, change the look of the image.

Although you can apply both styles and filters to layers, styles are best applied to text and shape layers, whereas filters lend themselves more readily to photos. Filters also generally can perform much more complex adjustments and manipulations to the image. Because your photo layer is a Smart Object, in this exercise you will create Smart Filters that are filters applied to a Smart Object layer. This technique lends the most flexibility and ease of editing to your project.

Add Smart Filters

To add a Smart Filter to a layer:

1. Select the layer containing the Smart Object. In this case, select the layer with the bass player.

   If the layer is not a Smart Object, you can convert it into one by choosing Filter > Convert For Smart Filters (Figure 4.36).

   

   Figure 4.36 Preparing a layer for a Smart Filter

2. From the Filter menu, choose the filter you want to use on the image. For this exercise, choose Filter > Blur > Surface Blur.

   FILTER GALLERY

   In the Filter menu you’ll find an option called Filter Gallery that enables you to quickly preview a number of filters (Figure 4.37). You’re not going to be using them in this project, but take some time to explore them for future use. These include the categories of Artistic, Brush Strokes, Distort, Sketch, Stylize, and Texture.

   

   Figure 4.37 The Filter Gallery is great for experimenting with various filters.

3. In the Surface Blur dialog box, specify the following (Figure 4.38):

   • Radius: 40 Pixels

   • Threshold: 200 Levels

   

   Figure 4.38 The Surface Blur dialog box

4. Select Preview to view your settings on the image, and then click OK.

The Smart Filter appears in your layer stack under the layer that it affects (Figure 4.39).

Figure 4.39 The Smart Filters appear in the Layers panel directly under the layer they affect.

Though this doesn’t look so great right now, it’s okay because you were just prepping for the next step. You’re going to cut holes into the filter to hide the filter’s effects in certain areas of our image.

Adjust Smart Filters

ACA Objective 4.5

Although you can preview the results of a Smart Filter in the Filter dialog box, sometimes you’ll later want to adjust the filter settings. When you’re not working with a Smart Filter, you can undo your steps by choosing Edit > Step Backward. You can easily adjust Smart Filter layer settings in the Layers panel.

1. In the Layers panel, double-click the name of a Smart Filter layer.

2. In the Smart Filter dialog box, adjust the filter settings as necessary.

3. Click OK to apply the changes to your Smart Filter layer.

4. To adjust the way a Smart Filter blends with a smart layer, double-click the Filter Blending Option icon next to the Smart Filter you want to adjust.

   The Blending Options dialog box appears for that filter (Figure 4.40).

   

   Figure 4.40 The Blending Options dialog box

5. Select a different blending mode from the Mode menu and enter a different value in the Opacity field to modify the effect.

6. Select Preview to compare the edited and unedited settings, and then click OK to apply the changes to the Smart Filter layer.

Smart Filter masks

ACA Objective 3.2

ACA Objective 4.3

Similar to masks used on layers, Smart Filters always include a mask that allows you to control the visibility of the effect on that layer. Previously, you faded a layer using a gradient; now you will just cut holes in a mask to allow the unfiltered image to show through.

You’re going to cut through this mask using the Selection tool and then fill in that area on the mask with black. This method introduces a couple of new concepts, but they’re pretty simple.

To hide a Smart Filter in sections of your image:

1. Click the mask for the Smart Filter.

   White corners appear around the mask to indicate that it is selected (Figure 4.41).

   

   Figure 4.41 In the Layers panel, white corners display around the active mask.

   TIP

   Press X to reverse the foreground and background colors.

2. Press the D key to be sure you are using the default colors of a white foreground and a black background.

3. In the Tools panel, select the Rectangle Selection tool .

   The pointer turns into a crosshair.

4. In the Options bar, verify that Feather is set to 0 px and the style is Normal (Figure 4.42).

   

   Figure 4.42 The Options bar for the Rectangle Selection tool

5. Select areas of the image and fill them with black to hide them, or fill them with white to reveal the underlying Smart Filter effect (Figure 4.43).

   

   Figure 4.43 Note that the mask corresponds to the affected areas of the image: black hides, white reveals.

   TIP

   You can use keyboard shortcuts to fill your selections. Press Alt+Backspace (Windows) or Option+Delete (macOS) to fill the mask with the foreground color, and press Ctrl+Backspace (Windows) or Command+Delete (macOS) to fill with the background color.

With this method, it is easy to modify an effect that you applied to your image. The beauty of using Smart Filters is that they are nondestructive; you can always alter or remove an effect later by using a mask.

Explore further

ACA Objective 4.6

Teaching filters, styles, and other effects is a difficult process because if we simply dictate the values to put into the fields, you won’t be creating your own design. Following instructions by rote is not how you’ll get great at Photoshop. In the real world of design, you have to personally experience plenty of experimentation, failure, and guesswork. This is a critical part of the process. You’ll need to explore and experiment so that you can stumble onto your own design styles and tricks.

The projects here are pretty simple and easy to follow because they have to be, but I want to make sure that you feel comfortable trying new things. You can always duplicate a layer and do something wild! It doesn’t cost anything, and it’s easy to trash an experimental layer that doesn’t work.