3 simple tricks that will save you hours and headaches
So you can navigate your way around Photoshop but are frustrated by all the things you can't do? Here are 3 simple tricks to help you design better logos more quickly and easily.
1. Learn to duplicate. Many logos require duplicate images or shapes. Maybe you just need two arrows pointing back to back. Drawing them twice and trying to size them is time consuming and imperfect. To duplicate an image you can right click on the layer in the layer navigation menu and choose duplicate image. The image will appear exactly under itself and will only show once you try and drag it to a different place on the page. My favorite way to duplicate and image, however, is to hold the alt key and click to drag the image. You should see a little white duplicate mouse arrow under the normal black arrow if you are in duplication mode. You can create copies as fast as you can click with this neat little trick.
2. Make custom shapes. Most people don't know that you don't need to be able to draw to create great looking art. If you want to create say, a perfect head shape, you can simply borrow an image you want to imitate from a Google image search. Once you have opened the file and dragged it onto your existing pdf you can create a mask over the image like a paint by number. Go to your pen tool and click once at your starting point to create a little black dot called an anchor point. If the image is a polygon with all straight lines than you can click at every angle until you end up at the original point. Once you have clicked on the original anchor point you can right click to create a mask and fill your new shape with any color you wish. If your shape has round edges make 3 anchor points. One at the beginning of the curve one directly in the middle and one at the end of the curve, then click on your original point to close the shape. Now find the convert point tool that looks like a less than math symbol and click on the middle point and drag your mouse up and down until the line bends like the image underneath.
3. Save for web - It is a good rule of thumb to always create logos in 300 dpi (dots per inch) or better quality but when you want to save them for use on the internet it is best to use the option "save for web" in the file tab. Save for web automatically converts pixel ratio and colors to standard web preferences and does it all smartly for you. There is also a huge preview screen for you to see what your option choices are doing to your image before you save it for good.
So you can navigate your way around Photoshop but are frustrated by all the things you can't do? Here are 3 simple tricks to help you design better logos more quickly and easily.
1. Learn to duplicate. Many logos require duplicate images or shapes. Maybe you just need two arrows pointing back to back. Drawing them twice and trying to size them is time consuming and imperfect. To duplicate an image you can right click on the layer in the layer navigation menu and choose duplicate image. The image will appear exactly under itself and will only show once you try and drag it to a different place on the page. My favorite way to duplicate and image, however, is to hold the alt key and click to drag the image. You should see a little white duplicate mouse arrow under the normal black arrow if you are in duplication mode. You can create copies as fast as you can click with this neat little trick.
2. Make custom shapes. Most people don't know that you don't need to be able to draw to create great looking art. If you want to create say, a perfect head shape, you can simply borrow an image you want to imitate from a Google image search. Once you have opened the file and dragged it onto your existing pdf you can create a mask over the image like a paint by number. Go to your pen tool and click once at your starting point to create a little black dot called an anchor point. If the image is a polygon with all straight lines than you can click at every angle until you end up at the original point. Once you have clicked on the original anchor point you can right click to create a mask and fill your new shape with any color you wish. If your shape has round edges make 3 anchor points. One at the beginning of the curve one directly in the middle and one at the end of the curve, then click on your original point to close the shape. Now find the convert point tool that looks like a less than math symbol and click on the middle point and drag your mouse up and down until the line bends like the image underneath.
3. Save for web - It is a good rule of thumb to always create logos in 300 dpi (dots per inch) or better quality but when you want to save them for use on the internet it is best to use the option "save for web" in the file tab. Save for web automatically converts pixel ratio and colors to standard web preferences and does it all smartly for you. There is also a huge preview screen for you to see what your option choices are doing to your image before you save it for good.