Oct

Design a Punctuation Collage by using Photoshop

Punctuation is one of those highly valuable but often under appreciated things in life. But this graphic serves as a tribute to the very helpful marks that make our sentences make sense.

Steps

1. Open a canvas size 500 by 400 with a black background. Double click the layer and click ok when a window pops up (this makes the background into a regular layer) and then double click it again for layer styles. Add a white diagonal line pattern overlay (if you use our patterns, you’ll have to fill it in white with the paint bucket tool) at opacity 15%.

2. Add a new layer and click the gradient tool. Change the gradient to black and white and check reverse. Click on the radial gradient button at the top and then draw a diagonal line from the center to one of the four corners. You should have a nice white circle in the middle. Lower the opacity to 40%.

3. Make a new layer at opacity 5% and use grungy brushes of some kind to make a splat in the center.

4. For all the punctuation marks we’re going to use the font Georgia (but if you want you can use something else). Make a new text layer with an asterisk * in size 500pt color pink (ff188b) bold. Move it somewhat to the side so that we can make a burst of punctuation marks trailing from this one like a starburst. Add these layer styles to it and save the layer style (click the New Style… button):

You should now have something like this:

5. Make a new layer with a size 200pt brace } in yellow (ffdc2d). Go to Edit- Free Transform, and tilt it to whatever angle looks best to you. Go to Window and Check Styles, then drag the new style you created onto the brace so it applies the layer style. It should now look like this:

6. You’re just going to do the same as above. Make a new layer with a 300pt semicolon ; in lime green (d3ff47). Drag on the layer style and move it so it overlaps the asterisk on the left like so.

7. One more color to go- blue (4cb4ff). Make a 300pt asterisk on a new layer and overlap the other marks. Do the same for a plus sign + (I tilted that one with the free transform tool).

8. Repeat making punctuation marks, changing the color (just switch between the 4 provided colors so it keeps uniformity), and using different marks. I also added in some quotes and colons. Since it’s supposed to resemble a collage/starburst, make the punctuation marks overlap in the front and get smaller and farther apart as they go back, as seen here.

9. Now all that’s left is to add some lines that connect the parts to put the picture together. Make a new layer under all the marks (but above the background and gradient stuff), change your color to white, and your brush to the size 5 circle.

Click on the pen tool. Change the setting at the top (with the three boxes) to the middle one with a pen over a box (Paths). Click a point on the canvas (a tad bit away from the edge) and then click another point on the other side of the canvas so you make a horizontal line. Click a point on one side of the line (about an inch away from the edge) and then hold down control as you drag the point down. Then click a point on the opposite side and hold down control as you drag it up.

10. Now right click the line, click stroke path, and check stimulate pressure and make sure it is on brush. Click ok and then hit enter on your keyboard. Use free transform to roughly match the tilt of the general picture, then change the layer style to soft light. Duplicate the layer several times (I have 6 curved lines) and tilt it slightly differently each time so it makes the flow of the piece natural.

Take a 300px soft eraser tool and click once or twice in the middle, where it overlaps the shapes. You basically only want the lines to stick out at the end to give it some pizazz but not distract from the focus. This is our final piece: