This tutorial will teach you how to create a Spiral Galaxy in Photoshop using nothing but filters and simple transformation tools. The tutorial is aimed at beginners and you’ll learn techniques involving different transformation modes, the clouds filter, selection option and using blending modes. Should you run into any trouble feel free to leave a comment to enquire about it. So lets get started.

1. Document Setup

Open a new document, 1920px by 1200px and fill the background with a dark grey #131313.

2. Render Clouds

Create a new layer. Select the Elliptical Marquee Tool and set Feather to 50px. Draw a circular selection as shown below making sure there’s some space from the top and bottom. Hold down Shift to make a perfect circle.

Press “D” to set Foreground and Background colours to Black & White. Go to Filter > Render > Clouds. Set the new layer’s Blending Mode to Soft Light.

3. Create Spiral

Hit Cmd + T (Ctrl + T) to enter the Free Transform Mode. Switch to Warp Modes and choose Twist. Set the Bend to -100%.

Duplicate the layer (Cmd/Ctrl + J). With the new layer selected repeat the twist transformation (using the same settings) 2 times. Your image should look similar to the one below.

Select the bottom layer (Galaxy Spiral BG) and reduce the scale it down from the centre to about 87%.

4. Add Colours

Create a new layer on top and set its Blending Mode to Soft Light. Use a large, circular brush with hardness set to 0 to add some colour to the galaxy. Use the Ereaser to delete any colours outside the galaxy.

5. Give it some Perspective

Select both Spiral layers (hold down Cmd while selecting) and enter the Free Transform mode (Cmd/Ctrl + T). Hold Cmd/Ctrl and select the anchor points to distort the galaxy. Use the image as guideline.

6. Extra Bit: Add Pattern Texture

To finish off we’re gonna add pattern texture to the design. Create a new layer on top. Use a simple Black & White checkered pattern. (Mine can be downloaded here. Open the jpg in Photoshop and go to Edit>Define Patter). Fill the new layer with the pattern and set it to Multiply at 70% opacity. That’s it.

7. Final image

I hope you enjoyed the tutorial! I encourage you to play around with different colours and patterens as well as applying these techniques to different designs.

This set of 11 Free Scaffolding Grunge Vectors was specifically created with large print designs in mind, but they can be used in web projects too. It’s a common technique to slightly destroy large type in ads and other print campaigns. Using vectors for this purpose is ideal as they can be scaled to any size without loss of quality. All vectors were made using images of scaffolding which were then traced in Illustrator. I’ve also included a short tutorial on how to make the most of these excellent freebies to grunge up type.
Don’t stop there though. Let your imagination wander and get creative. As always these freebies are free for use in both personal and commercial projects.

Close-Up Previews:

How to Destroy Type with Grunge Scaffolding Vectors:

While this tutorial uses Photoshop the same techniques can be used in Illustrator too. As always we start by opening a new document (white background) and using a bold font write the text “Grunge me up” in solid black.

Next step is to import one of the Scaffolding Grunge Vectors into the document. The easiest way is to simply drag it from Illustrator into Photoshop. Place it as a Smart Object on a layer above the text layer.

Using the layer styles of the Smart Object use a Color Overlay with the background’s colour (white).

Your text should now look similar to the image below. However the text is now too destroyed and barely readable for my taste.

In order to tone down the grunge effect copy the Smart Object and place it above all layers. Change the color overlay to the text’s colour (black).

Select both Smart Object layers, right-click and select “Create Clipping Mask”. This will confine the scaffolding images to only the text.

Select the top layer Smart Object (black colour overlay) and choose Free Transform (Cmd+T). Move, Rotate and Scale the Smart Object until you’re happy with the level of grunge.

This is the finished text. I hope you enjoyed this short tutorial.

Download Scaffolding Grunge Vectors:

contains 1 .eps file – 25.2 Mb

Preview:

This is a cutout of the final design that will be created in 10 easy steps. So let’s get started.

Step 1: Create document

Start by creating a new document of 2400px by 1600px. Fill the background with a dark grey. I used #191919.

Step 2: Add Textures

Now we’re gonna add some nice Old Grunge Paper Textures which have been released on Fudgegraphics earlier. They can be downloaded here and we’re only going to need the textures number 3 and 4. First open Paper Texture 4 and place it on top of the background layer. You might want to scale it so that it fits the document. It’s a good practice to always convert images to smart object when scaling them down. This way you won’t compromise the quality should you decide to increase the dimensions of the design later on.
Duplicate the Paper Texture 4 Layer, change the blending mode to Multiply and set the Opacity to 50%.

To finish of with the textures we’re gonna add Paper Texture 3 on top of the layers. Again use Multiply as blending mode and set the Opacity to 50%.

Step 3: Adjust the Background

Now add a Black&White Adjustment Layer to desaturate the background. Again this is the most inobtrusive way of doing it. Alternatively you could merge all of the layers and desaturate them using the shortcut Cmd+Shift+U.
Next we’re going to add a Curves Adjustment Layer using the settings shown below. This will darken the backgound which should now look like this:

Once you’ve completed all these steps you should put all the layers in a group and name it “background”. This will help you keep things organized.

Step 4: Adding the Shapes

Now that we’ve prepared the background we can finally start to add our geometric shapes. Select the Rectangle Tool and make sure you have selected the “Shape Layer” option. The fill colour is not important as we are going to alter it through the Layer Style anyways. Draw a rectangle like shown below (roughly 1700px by 180px).

Step 5: Changing the Layer Style of Shape

Open up the Layer Style for the rectangle shape and set the Fill Opacity to 0%. Then add a simple Black to White gradient at an angle of 90º  and change the Blending Mode to Soft Light.

Step 6: Warp Rectangle into Arch

With the rectangle shape layer still selected choose Edit > Transform Path > Warp. Use the Arch Preset and set the Bend to 25%. Hit Enter.

Step 7: Duplicate and Move Arch

Hold Alt+Shift and move the shape downwards. This will duplicate the layer (Alt key) while keeping it inline with the original layer (Shift key). Repeat this step until you have for instances of the Arch layer. Select all 4 layers and choose “distribute vertical centers” from the distribute palette.

Now group the 4 layers and duplicate the group. Select the group copy and again while holding Alt+Shift drag the layers downwards. Align the 2 groups vertically and distribute them to your liking. It should look similar to this.

Step 8: Adding Colours

Now that we have the basic layout of our design it’s time to add some colours to it. Create a new layer on top and select the Gradient tool. Define a nice colourful rainbow gradient and apply it horizontally to the blank layer.

Change the layer blending mode to Soft Light. Choose a dark blue and paint over the non-rainbow areas with a large soft brush.

In normal blending mode the rainbow layer should look similar to the picture below.

Step 9: Enhancing Colours:

As the “soft light” blending mode suggests its effect is not very strong. Hence we’re gonna duplicate the rainbow layer to get more vibrant colours. Keep the soft light setting but change the Layer Opacity to 40%. Choose an even darker blue and paint over the non-rainbow areas as before.
Now create a new layer and fill it with a dark grey colour. Set the blending mode to Multiply and change the Layer Opacity to 85%. Add a layer mask and with a large soft brush (same as we used before) hide the rainbow part. This is done by choosing Black as fill colour and painting over the rainbow. The beauty of layer masks is that if you masked too much simply switch too White and paint over the areas you want to be visible again. Your design should look similar to this.

Step 10: Adding Stars

As finishing touch we’re gonna add some star clusters to our design. Go to Flickr and download the Chritmas Tree Cluster photo by Luca Argalia aka Skywalker79 in its original size. Place it on top of all the layers. Set the Blending Mode to Screen. Scale and place it to your liking. Again I converted the photo to a Smart Object before scaling.

Add a Layer Mask to the star cluster layer and hide the edges of the photo as well as the parts you don’t want. I also added a Black/White Adjustment layer to the stars to get rid of all the colours.

Final Image

That’s it. The design can be finished of with a rounded border and dark vignette. Here’s the final retro cosmic design that we have created today.

The Possibilities are endless

Here’s another piece designed using the same techniques.

I encourage you to play with different shapes, angles and gradients. Go nuts, have fun and don’t forget to post your images in the Fudgegraphics User Showcase on Flickr for us to see.
Please leave a comment if you run into any trouble completing this tutorial.

iPhone Wallpapers:

As a special bonus I made these 2 designs into iPhone/iPod Touch Wallpapers. I hope you like them.

Download:

contains 1 .zip file – 2 Wallpapers, 359 Kb

Self-Blending:

The first series shows the effect of the blending modes when you use it on the same image as the background. All you have to do is duplicate the background layer and change the modes of the top layer image. Here’s the results. You can click on the images to view them in original size.

Solid Color Blending:

These effects are achieved when stacking a solid color layer on top of a background image and changing the blending modes. In this case the difference are quite sublte for most modes from the same “family”.

Gradient Clouds Blending:

For this last example I used a colorful clouds image to blend. The different colors and brightness/darkness variations allow us to see what the different blending modes are really about.

Final Words:

Use this article as reference or sort of like a Photoshop Cheat Sheet. I encourage you to discover the power of blending modes by yourself. Take two images and blend them together. Vary the layer opacities and try different blending modes on top of each other. The possibilities are endless.

Step 1: Draw Lines in Illustrator

We’re starting off in Illustrator to draw the lines. Create a new document with the dimensions 1920×1200. The other settings don’t really matter since the vectors will be imported into Photoshop anyway. Draw a nice smooth curve with a 4px black stroke. Draw another curve, this time with a 1px black stroke.

Step 2: Blending the curves

Go to Object > Blend > Blend Options and set the Blending Steps to 12. Now select the two curves and hit Object > Blend > Make.

REPEAT STEP 1 and 2 to make another set of curves. Play with the settings until you’re happy with the outcome.

Step 3: Importing the curves into Photoshop

Create a new document in Photoshop. Make it 1920×1200 large and fill the background with a dark grey (I used #161616). Go to Illustrator and drag-and-drop the curves into your Photoshop document. There’s no need to expand the curves. Photoshop will do it for you.

Step 4: Applying Gradient and Glow Effect

Select one of the layers containing the curves and go to the Layer Style Menu. Start of with setting Fill to 0% (Blending Options: Custom). Apply the settings shown below. Don’t worry too much about the gradient colours at the moment. We will adjust the overall colour scheme of the design at a later step.

Right-Click on the layer in the layers palette and choose “Copy Layer Style”. Select the second curves layer and select “Paste Layer Style”. Your image should look similar to the one below.

Step 5: Copy the Curves + Composition

Select the first curves layer and copy it a couple times. Then move the individual layers like I did in the picture below. Group the layers.

Repeat Step 5 with the second curves layer. As you can see I moved the around a bit to get a nicer composition.

To get a smoother cut-off I decided to use a gradient layer mask (on the whole group). Set the gradient to black-to-white and apply it on the mask.

Step 6: Clouds and Colours

Create a new layer on top of everyting. Make sure that Foreground and Background colours are set to Black and White respectively by pressing “D”. Go to Filter > Render > Clouds. Set the Blending Mode to Hue and enter the Layer Style menu. Go to the gradient option and select a colour scheme you like. Set the angle to 135 degrees and make sure to set the Blend Mode to Overlay.

Step 7: Add Textures

Open 2 concrete texures and place them on top of the Background layer. I used textures from the Free Urban Texture Pack. Set one blending mode to Multiply and the other to Overlay.

Step 8: Add Circles

Create a new layer and draw some different sized circles using the Ellipse Tool. Make sure to use the “Shape Layer” mode and select “Add to shape layer” from the menu. Hold down the Shift-key while drawing to get perfect circles.

Step 9: Make Layer Masks

Cmd-Click on the circle layer  it in the layers palette to make a selection, then hide the layer. Now select the first Texture layer and hit the mask button. With your selection still intact go to Selection > Inverse. Activate the second Texture layer and hit the mask button again.

Step 10: Final Image and Tweaks

That’s all there is to making a wallpaper like the one for December 08. Add a bit of text if you want to. For other colour schemes you can always add a Hue Adjustment layer.

In this tutorial you’ll learn how to create a realistic looking outer space image with your own home made galaxy. Without using any stock photos or any material at all besides Photoshopís filters, effects, and blending modes you will create a vibrant and lifelike creation you can use for numerous applications. Let’s begin!

Step 1:

Create a new document, this one was done at 1280p x 800p. Start by adding a subtle Circular Gradient for the Background. Keep in mind that wherever you place the center of the Gradient will be the center of your design (Note: When making things in outer space I always fade to absolute black in the background, after all it is outer space right?). For mine I used a dark grey color for the center and black for the outer color. I then placed it in the bottom right corner of the image.

Step 2:

Create a new layer. Make sure your foreground/background are set to black/white. Go to Filter>Render>Clouds. Now to add some color! On the new cloud layer you created go to the layer styles dialogue box. Select Gradient Overlay, when in the Gradient Overlay settings choose a colorful gradient that you enjoy. Next put a slight angle on the gradient effect, I used 100º for mine and scaled it slightly to taste. Though the scaling is not necessary you’ll find it fun to mess with later in this project. The last but most crucial part of this step is to set the blending mode within the gradient overlay settings to Overlay. After this last part you should see that we basically “colored” the clouds with a gradient, while preserving their texture.

Step 3:

In the Layers Palette make sure you have the Cloud Layer still selected. Set the Blending Mode at the top of the Layers Palette to Overlay. This will drastically darken your image but fear not, we’re not even close to done yet.

Step 4:

Duplicate the Cloud Layer you made in Step 2. Bring up the Layer Styles Dialogue Box and in the Gradient Overlay settings of the your copied cloud layer set the angle to something different, I used -140º for mine. What this does it divide the color a little more unevenly so the colors aren’t just divided into straight lines which will make our galaxy look authentic.

Step 5:

Now we’ll create some space dust. On a new layer, fill the entire image with black. Select Filter>Noise>Add Noise. In the Add Noise Dialogue Box choose something between 12% and 17% and make sure that Distribution is set to Gaussian, also select Monochromatic. If it’s not dusty enough for you at this point, bring up the Level Adjustment Dialogue Box and play with the settings until you achieve the dust effect you desire. Set this layers Blending Mode to Color Dodge.

Step 6:

This step is similar to the last one, yet in this one we’re making distant stars as apposed to dust. Follow Step 5 just as you had before, but this time add more Noise and mess with the Levels a lot. I used 115, 1.00, 150 for the setting on my own levels adjustments. Set this layers Blending Mode to Color Dodge.

Step 7:

In this step use a hard edged brush and erase away the stars in the darker areas of the image. Don’t be too uniform though because weíre trying to maintain the randomness and authenticity of the galaxy. You can also take this time to clear away any cloudy areas you may not desire in you image.

Step 8:

On a new layer, create some clouds like we did in Step 2 but without any color or layer styles. Set this layers Blending Mode to Color Dodge. This should intensify the colors and light of your galaxy and you should see it taking form. You can repeat this layer to furthermore intensify the effect if you want. Feel free to trim up this layer as desired. But only in the spots where you want more black void and less galactic dust!

Step 9:

Find a somewhat brightened spot in your galaxy. I usually aim for where I think the center or “sun” of the galaxy will be. Create a new layer, fill it with black, adjust the opacity to you can see through to the galaxy, mark a tiny white spot where you want your sun to originate, create a lens flare centered on this white spot. For galaxies I always use the 105mm Type of Lens Flare because it looks more white than the others, and looks more realistic in an outer space image. A key element to this is setting the Layers Blending Mode to Linear Dodge. This will make our flare dazzle up our image very nicely. Place this Layer right underneath the Cloud Layer you made in Step 8.

Step 10:

Now we’ll create some real stars. In another image on a black background add a tiny Lens Flare. Make it the size of the largest star that you want. Set this layers Blending Mode to Screen. Duplicate the layer and scale it a down a little. Repeat this process a few times scattering different sized stars around your new image. Try and keep the ratios of stars natural, make lots of small stars and only a few big ones. As the size decreases the amount of them should increase. Merge all the layers, then duplicate that layer. Set it’s Blending Mode to Screen. Now scale and rotate it to make it less similar then the copy. Merge Layers. Now you have made some stars!

Step 11:

Copy this stars image to your galaxy and set it’s Blending Mode to Linear Dodge, this will make them glow.  Move the image around a little until it suits your eye. You can add more stars or less depending on how complex you want it to be. Feel free to trim it up a bit in the areas you don’t want stars to appear.

Step 12:

At this point the galaxy is done. You can now add your own touches to make it unique! Enjoy!

Final Image:

The second shortcut is what makes it interesting. Clicking “apple+shift+4” gives you a little crosshair which lets you draw a rectangle of the screen portion you want grab. It works exactly like the Marquee tool in Photoshop. Once you’ve started your selection you can release the keys (not the mouse click) and

• hold ALT to draw from center
• hold SHIFT to constrain height or width (depending on your next mouse movement)
• hold SPACE to move the current selection

Once you’ve released the mouse you’ve got a perfectly cropped picture. This technique saved me already quite some time and we all know how precious time is in a designer’s life.

this is the photograph I got from flickr with nice warm colours which I want to use in a vector design. The first step is to open it in Photoshop.

For CS3 users only: make a duplicate and convert the picture into a smart object. This way you can edit the mosaic effect without messing up the original photo.

Go to filters > Pixelate > Mosaic and vary the cell size until you’re happy with the result. In my case 113 did the job. This is it for the Photoshop part.

The next step is to import our mosaic grid into Illustrator. If you’ve got an Ai file (preferably with the same, or larger dimensions) open you can simply drag an drop the layer from Photoshop.

This is were the magic happens. Making sure you have the content selected hit “Live Trace”.

Choose the “Photo High Fidelity” Preset from the Live Trace options. The default setting of 64 for Max Colours should be enough. Change it if you used a smaller cell size for the Mosaic filter. Now hit Expand.

With the expanded mosaic still selected open the Swatches palette and from the option menu choose “Add Selected Colors”. That’s it. Now you’ve imported the colours from your intial photograph into the swatches gallery in Illustrator. Save it so you can use it for different projects.