Content

• To step
• Tips
• Warnings
• Necessities

With this article, you can learn how to create a simple shadow with Photoshop CS3.

To step

1. Open your photo. Make sure your photo is cropped and over a transparent layer.
2. Copy the image layer. Copy the image layer. Open a new layer and fill it with white and drag the layer below the image layer.
3. Set the foreground color to black. Fill the image layer by pressing CTRL + Shift + delete. Go to Filters - Blur - Gaussian blur and set the blur between three or five.
4. Distort the shadow. Check if the shadow layer is activated and press CTRL + T. You will see a bounding box with 8 small squares, you can also distort the image by holding CTRL and clicking the squares, see where the light falls on your image and move the arrows to the right place opposite the image. Then move the shadow so that it aligns with the image. When you are done, hit enter or apply.
5. Activate the shadow layer. and lower the opacity so that the layer comes gray. Copy the shadow layer.
6. Activate the copy of the shadow. Put the transparency low you will see that a gradient is formed that goes from black to gray.
7. Enlarge the copy of the shadow layer. Make it just a little bit bigger.
8. Save. Save the image as PNG or GIF and enjoy your hard work. Saving with transparency allows you to import your image.

Tips

• If the opacity moves in the shadow layer, play around with the values ​​until you find the right value for your image.
• You can blur the shadow again if you have done all the steps for a better effect.
• You can merge the two shadow layers and blur them again.
• If you see something in the shade that shouldn't be there, you can always remove it with a soft eraser.

Warnings

• Do not forget to remove the white background, otherwise you will not be able to import the image correctly.
• Preferably do not save in JPG, this removes the transparency.

Necessities

• Photoshop CS3
• A photo of your choice