Today we are going to be doing a tutorial on one of my favorite subjects – sneakers! We will take an awesome vector image I have created in Illustrator and turn it into a fresh and modern design. We will be exploring various blending mode and lighting techniques so fire up Photoshop and let’s get started!
· Nike_Be_True_Start.psd
· Deep Space by Static Ghost on DeviantArt
· Watercolor Brushes by Sandy on Brusheezy
· Sparkle Brushes by Obsidian Dawn
· Nike_Be_True_Complete.psd
source files>jpg>preview.jpg
First and foremost we are going to open up the ‘Nike_Be_True_Start.psd’ file in Photoshop. You will notice after opening the file that there are only two layers – a background, and a folder called ‘Nike Shoe Layers’. The folder contains all of the various pieces that make up the sneaker. Before beginning this tutorial I had traced a Nike Dunk in Illustrator and separated all of the parts onto different layers so that they could be exported as a Photoshop file.
For the purposes of this tutorial I did not include that process, mostly because I didn’t want to start off by showing you how to export layers out of Illustrator or use the Pen Tool. For that reason I have assumed that you have a basic understanding of this tool and how to go about tracing an image with Illustrator.
(step01_open_up_the_psd.jpg)
Click on the small arrow next to the folder icon to expand the folder and reveal all of the layers. Double click on the first layer to bring up the Layer Style box. Next, check off ‘Color Overlay’ and for your color select a solid white (#FFFFFF). After you have done this, click ‘OK’ to accept the changes.
(step02_color_overlay.jpg)
Hold down the Control Key and click on this layer before selecting ‘Copy Layer Style’ from the dropdown menu. Make sure that this layer is highlighted and while holding down the Shift Key scroll down and select the very bottom layer inside of the folder which should be called ‘Loop Mid’. You should now have all of the layers inside of the folder selected. Again, hold down the Control Key and click on any of these selected layers to activate the dropdown menu. This time, we are going to select ‘Paste Layer Style’ which will now apply the white Color Overlay to all of the layers within the folder.
(step02_copy_layer_style.jpg)
Now the entire canvas will appear to be white – don’t be alarmed! We haven’t lost anything here, we simply cannot see the shoe because all of the parts happen to be the same color as the background but we are going to change that.
Double click on the ‘Background’ layer and check off ‘Color Overlay’ only this time instead of choosing a solid white color we are going to use black (#000000).
(step03_fill_in_the_background.jpg)
For the next step, double click on the first layer inside of the shoe folder, which is the ‘Stitching’ layer. Once the Layer Style box is open, check off ‘Outer Glow’ and apply the following settings:
Blend Mode: Normal
Opacity: 50%
Noise: 0%
Fill: #FFFFFF
Technique: Softer
Spread: 1%
Size: 56 px
(step04_outer_glow_settings.jpg)
Click ‘OK’ to accept the changes. We are now going to click on this layer while holding the Control Key and select ‘Copy Layer Style’ from the dropdown menu. Now select the layer just below the ‘Stitching’ layer called ‘Large Stitching’ and click on this layer while holding the Control Key before choosing ‘Paste Layer Style’. This will apply the same settings we just set for the outer glow to this layer.
(step04_copy_the_glow.jpg)
Working our way down the layers in the folder, we are now going to double click on the ’Shoelaces’ and check off the ‘Outer Glow’ effect and apply the following settings:
Blend Mode: Screen
Opacity: 75%
Fill: #23DBF1
Spread: 0%
Size: 50%
(step05_glowing_laces.jpg)
Click ‘OK’ to accept these changes and apply the effect to the laces.
We are going to jump down a few layers and focus on the ‘Underneath Shoe Padding’ layer. Double click this layer to bring up the Layer Styles dialog box. This time we are going to apply a ‘Drop Shadow’ effect and apply the following settings:
Fill: #00FF1E
Angle: 0 (Check off Global Light)
Distance: 0 px
Spread: 17%
Size: 40%
Click ‘OK’ to accept the changes.
(step06_bottom_of_the_shoes.jpg)
Hold down the Control Key and click on the layer from the previous step that we applied the ‘Drop Shadow’ effect to and select ‘Copy Layer Style’. Next, while holding down the Command Key, select both the ‘Underneath Tongue’ and ‘Top Layer’ before pressing the Control Key and clicking on either of these two layers to initiate the dropdown menu. We will now choose ‘Paste Layer Style’ to apply the green glow/shadow effect to both of these layers.
(step07_green_with_envy.jpg)
We will continue to apply Layer Styles to various pieces of the sneaker by next selecting and double clicking on the ‘Side Colourway’ layer. When the dialog box appears, check off ‘Outer Glow’ and apply the following settings:
Fill: #F8B45C
Spread: 10%
Size: 57 px
Click ‘OK’ to accept the changes and close out of the Layer Style dialog box.
(step08_side_colourway.jpg)
Next, copy the Layer Style from the previous step just as we have done before. This time, select the layer named ‘Colourway Front’ and paste the style. All of the settings here will remain the same except for the fill color. Open the Layer Style box and under ‘Outer Glow’ we want to change the color from the previous step to a shade of yellow (#F1E41C) and click ‘OK’ to accept the changes.
(step09_mellow_yellow_glow.jpg)
Now we are going to switch over to the ‘Nike Check’ layer where we are going to double click to open up the Layer Style dialog box. For this layer we want to make it pop and have the contrast be pretty high so I have selected a vibrant magenta color that we are going to apply on the ‘Outer Glow’ layer with the following settings selected:
Fill: #FD0083
Size: 76 px
(step10_check_check_glow.jpg)
Before we close out of this box we are going to change one additional setting – the ‘Stroke’ option all the way at the bottom of the dialog box. Apply the following settings:
Size: 2 px
Position: Outside
Opacity: 100%
Now we can click ‘OK’ to apply the settings to the ‘Nike Check’ layer.
(step10_check_check_stroke.jpg)
Next, double click on the ‘Side Material’ layer and check off ‘Outer Glow’ once you are prompted with the Layer Style dialog box. Apply the following settings:
Fill: 3232F5
Spread: 8%
Size: 84 px
(step11_mo_styles.jpg)
Select the ‘Rubber Material’ layer that is the bottom part of the shoe just above the treads or the grip of the sole. Again, double click this layer and check off the ‘Outer Glow’ effect before inputting the following values:
Opacity: 55%
Fill: 00FFC6
Spread: 13%
Size: 43 px
(step12_sole_power.jpg)
Double click on the ‘Tongue’ layer to pull up the Layer Styles and what we are going to do here is apply another glow that we can copy to the next part of the sneaker, but before we can do that we need to input the settings into the ‘Outer Glow’ panel:
Fill: E1BF6D
Spread: 6%
Size: 21 px
(step13_light_it_up.jpg)
Select ‘OK’ to accept the changes and copy the Layer Style from this layer. Next, select the ‘Front Shoe Piece’ layer and while holding down the Control Key, click on this layer to initiate the dropdown menu. From here, we can simply paste the layer style to apply the same effects that we just set up for the tongue of the sneaker.
Now we will continue to repeat this process for the ‘Underneath Nike Check’ layer. This may not be the most specific name for this part of the shoe but with so many different pieces I just try to name them something that will give me a clue as to what it might be based on its proximity to the other parts.
Double click on this layer and apply the following settings to the ‘Outer Glow’ panel:
Fill: #FFFF00
Size: 16 px
(step14_glow_back.jpg)
Once you have applied the settings above click ‘OK’ once again to accept the changes we have just made.
We have now applied glow effects to almost every part of the shoe with the exception of a few smaller pieces. Hopefully you are still with me - I know that part can be a bit repetitive. Now that it is complete, however, we can move along.
Click on the small arrow next to the folder icon to collapse the entire ‘Nike Shoe Layers’ folder. Once you have done that, click and drag the folder down to the ‘New Layer’ icon just to the left of the little garbage icon at the bottom of the layers palette to copy the folder and its contents.
(step15_copy_the_folder.jpg)
Next, hold down the Control Key and click on the new copy of the folder that we have just made. You should then see a dropdown menu where we are going to choose ‘Merge Group’ towards the bottom of this menu.
(step15_merge_group.jpg)
There should now be a flattened copy of the entire sneaker sitting on top of the layers palette. Because we have done this we can now change the Blending Mode to ‘Overlay’ and save your work in case you haven’t already. Setting this duplicate layer to ‘Overlay’ ’will intensify the colors of the various glow effects that we have applied in the previous steps. Feel free to play around and try some of the other modes as well – ‘Hard Light’ looks pretty nice as well, it’s just a bit more vibrant and extreme than the ‘Overlay’.
Open up the space image from the resources folder and drag it into your document. Press Command/Ctrl + T to do a Free Transform and while holding the Shift Key drag one of the corners to constrain the proportions of the image as you stretch it out to span across the canvas. Place the image just above the ‘Background’ layer and set the Blending Mode to ‘Screen’.
(step16_deep_space.jpg)
Next, press Command/Ctrl + Option + U to bring up the Hue/Saturation box and drag the Saturation slider all the way to the left to desaturate the space image.
(step16_desaturated_space.jpg)
Once the image has been desaturated, click on the black and white icon at the bottom of the layers palette as indicated in the image. You will then see a menu with quite a few options for different Adjustment Layers and we are going to want to choose ‘Levels’ from this menu.
(step16_levels_adjustment_layer.jpg)
When the histogram appears, slide the middle gray slider to the right so that it is set to ‘0.57’ or so. This will darken up the image and bring out some of the contrast. We don’t want the background image to dominate the piece, and we are going to be adding additional elements on top of this layer to bring some color back in shortly.
Before we continue I just want to clean up a few of the layers. This step isn’t absolutely necessary but keeping things grouped together will make it easier later on should you need to make any further changes. To do this, select the ‘Background’ layer and then press and hold the Shift Key before selecting the ‘Levels Adjustment Layer’ that we have created in the previous step. You should now have these three background layers selected. Press Command/Ctrl + G to put these layers into a folder and rename it ‘Background’.
Now that we have grouped our background we are going to make a new layer above this folder. On this new layer select the Gradient Tool (G) and make sure that you have the Radial Gradient option selected and that it fades from solid to transparent.
(step18_radial_gradient_settings.jpg)
This part is more subjective as you can decide which colors and where you wish to place them, but I will give you the basic technique that will allow you to add color to the desaturated background. With the Gradient Tool selected pick a color to start off with, preferably some more rich and saturated colors. On the new layer create a mid-sized radial gradient and set the Blending Mode to ‘Color’ before positioning the gradient where you think it will look best. Create another new layer and select a different color before repeating the steps where you create a gradient and set the Blending Mode to ‘Color’. Each of these gradients should be on their own layers so that you can move them around to see how the colors blend together.
(step18_adding_color_to_the_background.jpg)
Once you are happy with the background colors, select all of the layers with radial gradients and press Command/Ctrl + G to put them all into a folder. You can now name this folder whatever you would like, but name it something that will make it easy for you to identify such as ‘BG Color’.
I want to make this piece more dynamic so that it isn’t just a sneaker sitting on a horizontal plane. To start, we are going to do a Free Transform to both the ‘Nike Shoe Layers’ folder and the duplicated merged layer on top. Select both of these layers while holding down the Shift Key and then press Command/Ctrl + T to initiate the Free Transorm. Hold the Shift Key again and rotate one of the corners so that the shoe will be at more of an angle as seen in the image below:
(step19_walk_in_my_shoes.jpg)
Now we are going to create a new layer at the top of our layers palette which you can do quickly by pressing Command/Ctrl + Alt/Option + N. On this new layer we want to use the Marquee Selection Tool (M) to create a tall, vertical selection. Select the Gradient Tool (G) while this selection is still active and set the options to a Linear Gradient rather than the Radial Gradient we had been using earlier. With a vibrant blue color selected (#08AFFD) hold down the Shift Key and drag across the active selection as shown in the image below:
(step20_dynamic_light_streak_first_step.jpg)
Next we are going to do a Free Transform and while holding down the Shift Key we will rotate the gradient counter clockwise and position it to the left and underneath the shoe as shown here:
(step20_dynamic_light_streak_second_step.jpg)
The last step for the light streak is to then change the Blending Mode to ‘Overlay’ and duplicate the layer by pressing Command/Ctrl + J. By duplicating this layer it will intensify the effect and make it appear brighter. We can now select both of these layers while holding the Shift Key and then press Command/Ctr + E to merge the two together. You should now have something like the image below:
(step20_dynamic_light_streak_third_step.jpg)
We have now added just a single light streak underneath the shoe in the bottom left corner. What we want to do next is duplicate this layer several times and each time we do that we are going to change the angle and/or positioning of the light streak. The goal here is to move them around the design and see where they work best, but also by doing this we are making our image even more dynamic by introducing diagonal lines. After doing this about 8 times here is what I have come up with:
(step21_duplicate_and_position.jpg)
Once you are happy with the positioning of these duplicated line layers, hold the Shift Key to select them all and press Command/Ctrl + G to throw them all into a folder and name it ‘Light Streaks’ before saving your work. I have learned from my own mistakes that you really can NEVER save too much! There is nothing worse than having Photoshop crap out on you after spending a lot of time and effort on your work.
Next, we want to load the Watercolor Brushes from the resources folder into Photoshop. Once you have done that, create a new layer above the ‘BG Color’ layer so that it is underneath both the ‘Nike Shoes Layer’ folder and the duplicated image as well.
Using the largest brush size (2500 px) select a solid white color and paint on this new layer using one of the watercolor brushes. Change the Blending Mode to ‘Overlay’ and move or rotate the brush to a position that works well within the image. Continue to create new layers and paint a single watercolor splash before changing the blending mode to ‘Overlay’ and playing around with the positioning of the image. There is no right way to do this part as it is up to the reader to decide what looks best for them. The goal is to add texture to the piece, and that can be achieved in a variety of ways. I have only used three layers here but you can see that it adds a nice aesthetic to the design. Once you are happy with the results, select the top-most layer that contains your watercolor brushwork and hold the Shift Key before selecting the bottom watercolor layer. Press Command/Ctrl + G to put these layers into a folder and name it ‘Watercolor Brushes’.
(step22_watercolor_brushes.jpg)
At this point it is a good idea to take a step back and observe the work that we have done up to this point. Looking at the design I really want to make the diagonal lines more apparent and kind of play this up even more so than we have done. To do this I have found a nice set of Photoshop Brushes from Obsidian Dawn. These brushes are provided in the resources folder with the tutorial files.
We are going to go ahead and load these up in Photoshop and create a new layer on the top of our layers palette. Using a solid white color (#FFFFFF) we want to select one of these fantasy brushes that consist of a variety of diagonal lines with stars which I think will work perfectly for our design. Enlarge the size of the brush to the largest diameter (2500 px) and paint one of these shapes on the new layer. Change the Blending Mode of this layer to ‘Overlay’ and duplicate the layer by pressing Command/Ctrl + J. Select both of these layers together by holding the Shift Key and position the lines so that they overlap the shoe and fall somewhere in the area of the colorful space background.
Repeat this step a few more times using different brushes to add even more variation and remember to change the Blending Mode to ‘Overlay’ and duplicate them before positioning them in the image. After doing this a few times and playing around with some of the different brushes in this pack I have come to a final result which I am very happy with. Hopefully you will also be happy with the end result as we can now save all of our hard work and stick a fork in this one because this baby is done! Thank you for following along with me and I hope you have enjoyed this tutorial.
(step23_final_preview.jpg...
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