RazorianFly

Lately, we’ve been focusing on Apple and iPhone’s a lot, and although we do tend to primarily focus on Apple and App Store activity here (heck – this article is Apple related, sort of ..), we also like to cover other topics such as Design, Photography, Nature and Film. I’ve had a few requests recently from readers asking how I create the ‘reflection’ look we use on some of our RF marketing images. Today I thought I’d briefly take you through the steps to achieving this effect …

[Tutorial 002] – NOW AVAILABLE HERE.

If done correctly, this effect can dramatically enhance the attractiveness of your images. It’s important to understand the effect should only be used in certain circumstances, of which I’ll get into a bit later. We’re looking to finish with your created object looking as if it’s sitting on top of a glossy, polished surface. Lets lay down our foundations …

First things, First
Before we start, your going to want to download Adobe Photoshop. If your already own Photoshop, great! – If not, no worries – a 30-day trial version of CS3 is still available here. CS4 (the latest version) is currently not available to trial. In order to access these pages properly, you’ll need to sign in with your Adobe account, or if you don’t yet have one,you can create one free of charge.

As I generally use Mac, the keyboard controls in this tutorial are going to be Mac-orientated.
Windows users, all you need to know is; CMD means CTL, Option means ALT and Backspace means DEL.

Step 1 – Create your Document
We’re going to create a new document. To do this, hold down CMD + Option + N. You can create this at whatever size that suits your needs. For the purpose of this tutorial, I’m going to create a document sized 535 x 240 (the average size of our post headers) with a resolution of 72.

Step 2 – Adding your Object
Next we’re going to create an object. This can either be a self created object made by yourself, a photo or some text. We’re going to create some simple text. For this step we’re going to use the text tool on the left toolbar. This is marked by a large ‘T’ in a Times New Roman type font. Once selected, drag out your text selection from the leftmost wall of your canvas, all the way to the rightmost wall (or visa versa). You’ll notice in your layers panel (Window > Layers / F7) that PS has created a new layer for you, entitled with your text. You’ll also notice at the very top of Photoshop, the toolbar has changed to reveal font and sizing options.

For the purpose of this tutorial, I’m just going to create some ordinary black text which reads ‘RazorianFly Tut 1′:

Tip: it’s always best to have the ‘anti-aliasing’ settings set to ‘Smooth’ up top.

Step 3 – Duplication
In order create the effect of your object’s reflection being symmetrical, we need to duplicate the layer we’ve just created. To do this simply select the layer in the ‘Layers’ panel (Window > Layers / F7), right click and select ‘Duplicate’. Don’t worry if you cant see the duplication just yet, as it’s sitting directly on top of your previous layer. To move the layer you just created, make sure your on the duplicated layer in the layers panel, Select the ‘move’ tool which you’ll find right at the top of the left toolbar, hold SHFT and the direction key you want to move it to. At this point we’re going to want to move it directly underneath our first layer ‘RazorianFly Tut 1′. You should now be able to visibly see two text layers on your canvas, both the same in content.

Something like this:

But, it looks nothing like a reflection, right? – Not yet it doesn’t, that’s because we want to flip this baby 180 degrees vertical. To do this navigate to Edit > Transform > Vertical.

Step 4 – Getting rid of the Excess
Now, the second layer reading ‘RazorianFly Tut 1′ we just moved, we’re not going to use all of that text. Instead, we’re going to slice through it and remove the waste. As reflections only tend to show a bit of the object being reflected we only actually need to use the bottom segment. Grab your rectangular marquee tool (second icon on the left toolbar), and draw a as if you were going to cut off the top segment of the duplicated layer, like so:

In order to edit a text layer, we have to turn it into a jpeg. This process is called ‘rasterizing’ and is performed by selecting the layer form the layers panel, right clicking and selecting ‘Rasterize Type’.
Once you’ve rasterized the layer, and with your marquee selection still marching round, hit the backspace to delete the selection. You should now be left with the bottom half of your text only.

Like this:

Step 5 – Adding the final touches
So I suppose your wondering how to make what you’ve just done look like a reflection? – Reflection effects are created by the clever use of gradients. Select your rasterized text layer and navigate to Layer > Layer Style > Gradient Overlay. Your going to want to create a gradient running from pure white #FFFFFF to pure white (transparent).

Like this:

We want this set at 100% Opacity, using a scale setting of roughly 114 – then hit Ok. Lower the overall opacity of this layer on the layers panel to around 20-35%.

That’s basically it. I encourage you to mess around yourself with these effects and others. I learnt how to use Adobe Photoshop within 8 months simply by teaching myself. It’s incredible what dabbling by yourself can do for you.

This effect is best used on large font types and images. When using this effect, I’ve always found it best to keep it in the background. Making it part of the foreground, by making the reflection too prominent, will serve to make your graphic look tacky and unprofessional.

Here’s the final result:

Hope you enjoyed following me through this tutorial, and look out for more in the future weeks and months to come. Feel free to leave a comment, or send us your reflection attempts!