Here is the link to my Facebook profile which is updated everyday – I answer ...]]>

A brief update : Here are some changes

1. No Ads

As you may have noticed there are no ads – on the sidebar – they are being replaced with more useful content for now. This is partly because we recently got accepted onto buy sell ads and are making sure the prep is done properly; and Partly because they weren’t generating enough revenue to be justified.

2. Facebook

Here is the link to my Facebook profile which is updated everyday – I answer every email and love to network.

There is also the  Face Book Fan Page which is massive amongst social media gurus .

3. Frequent Posts

There are more frequent posts here on Digital Art Empire, some of my regular readers will have noticed I’m posting every week day. This is set to continue for the whole of 2010 and beyond. Please ask either in comments or by email ( contact page ) what you would like to read more of . I know you enjoy tuts so I’m going to do at least one a week, increasing as I have the time.

We also ran a succesful competition last week and are running another one this week. This should become a regular occurance here .

4. Success and Popularity

In terms of our popularity it looks set to grow steadily again this year. I’m writing for My Ink Blog again this month so I’ll post that link when it’s up. This guest post helps to bring in readers and boost the overall exposure of Digital Art Empire.

Last week I featured a tut on good tutorials which was an overwhelming success, bringing in a whopping 2043 visits in ONE day. This helped to show me clearly the way Digital Art Empire should go – more tuts. This will be easy as I love the creativity of making them.

5. Twitter

The twitter followers are at 849 and there are some really good tweets going on there so check it out.

6. RSS

If you know about RSS please sign up, if not read this and then sign up here.

Thanks to Bruno Maia, for the twitter icon, Arturo de Albornoz for the Ad & woodleywonderworks for the earth.

Introduction:

To start off 2010 I wanted to create a slightly grungy, retro futuristic sci-fi poster. I basically wanted an image that could represent the feeling 2010 seems like the future to some of us. If you know what I mean, good, I’m sure this poster will be plenty of fun.

To create an image like this I like to look through some stock and brainstorm. A really excellent place to help with this is a site called Compfight. It’s ...]]>

Introduction:

To start off 2010 I wanted to create a slightly grungy, retro futuristic sci-fi poster. I basically wanted an image that could represent the feeling 2010 seems like the future to some of us. If you know what I mean, good, I’m sure this poster will be plenty of fun.

To create an image like this I like to look through some stock and brainstorm. A really excellent place to help with this is a site called Compfight. It’s a search engine for flickr photos that allows you to search for creative commons images.

Once I have a few images in Photoshop Ill come back to the project 2 or three times with new ideas and get them down. If I’m stuck for ideas looking through the art magazines and websites which usually gets the creative juices flowing again.

As usual the PSD file is available for download free at the end.

Time to complete 2 hrs .

Note:

Create the doc according to the dimensions of your screen if you want to use this as desktop wallpaper.

Resources used   :Sea by  visualpanic /Moon by luc.viatour/ Infinity font

Thank you to the artists who provided the materials ,please remember to follow these artists rules and credit them where appropriate.

Step 1

Create a document at 800 x 950 at 72 DPI Then bring in this image of the sea , press C do get the crop tool and select only the sea portion ignoring the people.

Step 2

Select the gradient tool, choose the radial gradient (second from the top) Draw a radial gradient using this red colour ff0000 halfway down the left hand side. Then change the blend mode to multiply and reduce the opacity to 79%.

Step 3

With the background setup we can bring in this image of the moon resize and position the moon like this image, and then reduce the layer’s opacity to 76%.

Step 4

Choose this purple colour 271642 for the foreground colour and black for the background colour. Then in a new layer go to filter render clouds. Drop the layers opacity to 73 %. Usually to create stars we can use the noise filter but this time well we’ll use a different technique. Create a new layer above the clouds and fill it with white, change its blend mode to dissolve and reduce its opacity to 1 to 2 %. Finally do a gaussian blur at around 0.7 and voila very quick stars.

Step 5

White rectangle: Now well create the white rectangle shapes that make up the background. Create a rectangle like in the following image and fill it with white, then reduce the opacity to 10 %.

Step 6

Now well add a layer mask by clicking the circle in a square at the bottom of the layers palette. With the gradient on linear and set to black to white click and drag a gradient. Make sure you are on the layer mask and hold shift to get a good fade.

Step 7

Now duplicate this layer with CTRL + J and rotate it with Ctrl + T to free transform. You should end up with something like this.

Step 8

Keep duplicating the layer and rotating it until you have this kind of effect.

Step 9

Your layers palette should look like this:

Step 10

Now using shift select all the rectangles in the layers palette and merge them Ctrl + E. (To work non – destructively you can duplicate the layers ). Then add a layer mask and using a black to white gradient on the layer mask fade the bottom part of the rectangles.

This is what you should end up with :

Step 11

Now find a quote you like or a group of words you think will work well in this graphic. Go to Wordle paste in your favourite quote and select go. This is a brilliant little website that puts the words you enter into a new layout font and colour. After hitting randomise play around with the font layout and colour. Once you are happy with the image if on windows: hold down Alt and then the print screen (Prt Sc) button, hit Ctrl + V to paste into Photoshop. On a Mac press command and shift then press 3 to capture to your desktop.

Step 12

Once the image you like is in Photoshop crop any extra bits away then resize and position the text like in the following image. I set the image to screen which gets rid of the dark area. Depending on the colour of your background and text you may need to choose overlay or multiply, just have a scroll through the blend modes until your happy.

Step 13

Download these brilliant cloud brushes .After loading them create a new layer then brush some clouds in like the following image.

Step 14

Duplicate the cloud layer add a colour overly layer style with colour set to 83b2e7. Then lower the opacity to 83%.

Step 15

Download the infinity font from here and once installed type out the words ‘TWENTY TEN’. Now position this at the top use the align buttons to get it in the middle.

Step 16

Rasterize the type and add a gradient overlay layer style, with default settings from black to white.

Step 17

Download these Kinetic brushes and brush with white behind the Twenty ten letters ( so in a layer below them ) . When done we’ll add a gradient overlay from7fe0f8 to cef8ff. Finally lower the opacity to 39 %.

Step 18

Finally create a layer below the cloud brushes and Wordle letters but above the white rectangle shapes. Then fill it with white and go to filter, render lighting effects and choose ‘RGB lights’, leave all the other settings as default. 

Then use a Gaussian blur at 31.7 image.

For the final steps change the blend mode to soft light and reduce the opacity to 60 %

Conclusion

That’s a wrap for now having gone through the tutorial you will now know how to use layer masks a neat little way of putting words together with different layouts and how to create a rounded retro futuristic poster . Hopefully you had fun and learnt something new.

Free PSD

The PSD file is available for download free from here.

Mediafire Download (6.49 mb Zip File)

1

Photoshop & Illustrator Tutorial: Create mile-high type art

In this tutorial, Fabio Sasso shows you how to achieve that glossy, detailed ...]]>

Today I collected 25 of the most awesome Photoshop tutorials I could find from around the web.

These include a broad range of concepts  including manipulations , character design, UI design and some 3D effects.

There were a lot of good tutorials written last year so this list will save you from missing them, bookmark this and promote it on your favourite network.

1

Photoshop & Illustrator Tutorial: Create mile-high type art

In this tutorial, Fabio Sasso shows you how to achieve that glossy, detailed fantasy look through careful compositing, and control of layers and blending modes. You’ll extrude type in Illustrator and then composite on textures and other details in Photoshop.

2

Create an Abstract Sea on Land Illusion

I’m sure we can all agree we love new tutorials, I created this tutorial initially thinking I could create the effect of a destroyed landscape through glasses as a kind of alternate view of nature in the future after global warming.

I settled on an animal landscape and decided the best contrast is between sea and land . The viewer is supposed to be looking through the glasses in first person but I think it can look like a reflection in the lenses.

3

How to Create a Photo Manipulation of a Flooded City Scene

In this tutorial, we will learn how to manipulate a simple photo into a flooding torrent of a scene. We’ll use some relatively simple techniques to give this image a semi-realistic, stylized feel. Let’s get started!

4

Easy Star Light in Photoshop

The light effect we created here is nothing new, I’ve shown you how to create this quite a few times. However this time we played with patterns and the warp transform to add a very nice effect to the image. Once again I was inspired by a skateboard deck design and wanted to reproduce that in Photoshop. The whole idea of this tutorials is that we can play with the tool and learn at least something new.

5

How to Create a 3D Leaf from a Texture Photograph

In this beginners level tutorial, you will learn how to create a vibrant 3D leaf compilation from a single 2D photograph. You will be able to manipulate the object however you prefer. Let’s have fun with this display of greenery.

6

Create a Slick Business Card Design with Stunning Typography

Whatever profession you’re in, there’ll come a time when you’ll need your own business card. This graphic design tutorial will show you a way to create a standard two-sided business card design in Adobe Photoshop that you can take to your printer.

7

How to Create a Surreal Scene of Flying Bombs on Fire

In this tutorial, we’ll make a scene with flaming bombs pouring from the sky. This tut is made to show some down and dirty Photoshop tricks that beginners can quickly pick up. It also includes some relatively advanced techniques to help budding designers enhance their workflow. Let’s get started!

8

How to Create a 3D Text Photo Manipulation

In this intermediate-level graphic design tutorial, you’ll learn how to realistically superimpose a beautiful three-dimensional text object onto a living room scene with the help of Illustrator and Photoshop

9

How to Create Furry Text in Photoshop

In this tutorial we’ll be creating furry text using layer masks and some shadow effects for a 3D look. It’s pretty simple and fun to create and looks pretty cool. You can use this effect to learn new techniques in Photoshop, add to your portfolio or simply for fun. Let’s begin.

10

Photoshop: Hand Drawn Design

In case you haven’t noticed yet, the hand drawn style is one of the hottest design trends. Here is a quick tutorial to show you how to create a hand drawn design in Photoshop using the blending mode and alpha channel.

11

How to Create a Flying Land Illustration On Fire

This tutorial is a collaboration with a good friend of mine with Ciursa Ionut. This tutorial is about creating a fantasy illustration using some dragon images and a few cliffs for creating the land. We also add lava and fiery effects. So, let’s get fired-up for this one!

12

iPhone Gift Ribbon

This effect can be easily achieved with Photoshop Warp transform tool. Christmas is around the corner and I hope you may find this tutorial useful for upcoming projects.

13

How to Make a Dark, Post-Apocalyptic City Illustration

In this tutorial, we’ll change a full of sunshine, ordinary photograph into a gloomy image of the world after destruction of mankind. Using simple tools, we’ll turn lively streets into abandoned ruins overgrown with weeds. A number of stock images and a few little tricks will let us optimize our work and make this job more interesting and spectacular. So let’s go!

14

How to Create Remarkable 3D Text in Photoshop

In this quick and easy graphic design tutorial, you’ll discover a handy process for generating eye-grabbing three-dimensional typography with the help of Photoshop and some creative techniques.

15

How to Combine Digital Painting and Photo Manipulation to Create a Platform Environment

In this tutorial, you will learn how to combine digital painting and photo manipulation to create polished fantasy art. The process of combining digital painting and photo manipulation is a great mix. It truly allows you conquer the world with beautiful illustrations. Let’s get started!

16

Create a Simple Vibrant Light Effect in Photoshop

Starting away from the computer, we’ll use a few household objects to create some photographic resources. Then follow this Adobe Photoshop tutorial to manipulate the images with various tools and techiques to produce a vibrant design made up of intense light streams effect.

17

Cartoon Character in Photoshop

I have been thinking of doing a cartoon version of one of my favorite characters, Agatha Christies’ Detective Hercule Poirot, always portrayed as a strong willed and serious man. Doing such an intellectual and grumpy looking character in a cartoon fashion sounded like a funny idea to me. So I got my pencil and drew and colored it entirely on Photoshop CS3.

18

How To Create a Sleek Audio Player Interface in Photoshop

In this tutorial you’ll learn how to design a sleek audio player interface in Adobe Photoshop.

19

How to Create a Fantasy “Mother Nature” Scene

This tutorial is about creating a fantasy scene called “Mother Nature.” We will use well chosen images, brushes and most off all our imagination in combination with Photoshop techniques to create an outstanding image.

20

Photo Strip (Photoshop Tutorial)

This is a Photoshop tutorial on how to create a beautiful photo film strip, as seen in Apple’s iLife package design (’06 version) and DigitalMash website. The warp tool will be used to create the twisting effect (so, you need Photoshop CS2 or above to complete this tutorial). With the completion of this tutorial, you will be able build a photo strip with your own photos or artwork.

21

Create a Realistic Space Scene from Scratch with Photoshop

In this intermediate-to-advanced-level design tutorial, we are going to create a stunning space scene that has realistic-looking planets, stars, and lighting effects using a few innovative Photoshop techniques and some textures.

22

Combine Photo Elements to Create a Surreal Photo Manipulation

This Photoshop tutorial, you will learn how to use a variety of color, lighting, and cut and paste techniques to create a surreal photo manipulation. Combine your creativity with these Photoshop techniques to create your own photo manipulation artworks.

23

How to Make an Impressive Blog Layout in Photoshop

In this easy to follow web design tutorial, you will learn how to construct a beautiful, sleek, and professional-level weblog design using Adobe Photoshop that you can later use for your very own blog theme.

24

Patterned Line Photo Effect

A photo effect like this one is rather popular to make movie poster or something like that. I actually don’t know what is this effect name, so I just call it Line Patterned Photo Effect; base on the step of how to make it, the basic of this effect is a random line that blended in to the photo.

25

Beautiful Xmas Wallpaper in Cinema 4D and Photoshop

I decided to try and design my own candy cane typeface. I also used Photoshop to create the background and the whole composition.