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From YourSITE.com *NEW One of the easiest ways to create and manipulate a drop shadow is to create the drop shadow on a layer of its own.  I personally change very little of the default settings, sometimes the color I like to pick something a little more brownish tinted. If the shadow is suppose to be a slight shadow (ex: a photo, flat ribbon or sticker) I will turn down the Blur amount. In my screen shot you can see where to check the box to create Shadow on new layer is. The other thing that happens when you create a shadow on a new layer; is the two layers are now “Linked”, see the Number 1 and the blue chain links in my layers palette. Unlink these layers by clicking on the number 1 until it goes to “None”, now you can move the shadow around separately from the element. (Note: when you are satisfied with your final drop shadow, re-link these layers and then they will move as one again.)  This ability makes it very easy to adjust how much of your drop shadow shows and on which side of your element the shadow will fall.  Here I positioned my drop shadow just down to the right lower side of my flower and adjusted the Opacity to 30. This next step is how I adjust the Default Blur of the Drop Shadow. I use Gaussian Blur instead. This will give the outer edges of your shadow a blur that you have more control over, which you can undo over and over until you get it how you wish without having to reapply the drop shadow effect every time.  I have duplicated the shadow layer and applied the Gaussian blur to the tan shadow. The dark brown shadow is the one we began with.  By locking the layer transparency you can easily bucket fill your shadows with any color to suit your needs and blend modes to adjust for either light or dark background papers. Shadows are not solid black some times they are shades of dark colors. In this screen shot I position the two drop shadows so that the dark brown one is basically in the default position that we started with, then I moved the Gaussian blurred drop shadow down and to the lower right. By adjusting the blend modes of the layers you are able to create a darker shadow directly around your element and a drop shadow that shows the height/distance of the element from the paper. Note: your settings and shadow colors will vary depending on your background paper you use.  Final image with Drop Shadow applied  This is not the only way to do shadows or the only way to alter your shadows. I just want you to get comfortable with creating your own. Once you do it this way for just a few short weeks you will always create your own shadows and do it within minutes. © Copyright by YourSITE.com |