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In order to achieve the most professional appearing logo, sometimes you will need to know how to create a reflection from text. This is necessary because for some projects, you will want to create the illusion of depth, three dimensionality, or just to give the impression that your text is placed on something reflective, like glass, or water. Either way, it is important to know how to manipulate text and to create a reflective text, because you never know when you might need it. This tutorial is quick, easy to follow, and will give you an idea of how to give depth to your typography, along with a review of tutorials from other websites that create tutorials based on creating reflective texts. Today, we will show you how to create reflection text for your logo design, and review some great tutorials with different perspectives and approaches to the same concept.
Step 1
When opening a new file on photoshop, make sure you select the correct size for your logo. For the purposes of this tutorial, 7 inches wide by 3 inches in height will be sufficient. Type the name of your logo, or whatever word you choose to add a reflection to. Place the text in the top third of the space. Make sure the text is bold, and the size is 48 to 72. Next, choose Type, and Rasterize Type Layer.
Step 2
Now, click on Select, then Load Selection. The text should be selected by each individual letter. Next, click on the icon for create new fill or adjustment layer (pictured), and select gradient.
Step 3
With the gradient fill pop up window, choose whatever gradient you would like (I chose copper from the metals preset gradients), and make sure that the style is reflected. You can choose any angle you want. This is so that you can give the impression that the reflected style of the text actually reflects, which is what gives it the illusion that it has depth.
Step 4
After you choose you gradient fill, make sure the text is still selected. Click on the fx icon to reveal Blending Options (pictured). Choose Bevel and Emboss, and add any other necessary Blending Options as you wish. This allows for the eye to be tricked when viewing the text, as it adds more depth to it.
Step 5
Merge down the layers found on the menu for the layer panel, until you only have one layer and the background layer. Then, find Select on the top bar options, and click on Load Selection, taking care that your layer is selected.
Step 6
With the text selected, click on Layer from the top menu icons, then click on New, then Layer via Copy (pictured). Take your copy and click on Edit, then Transform, then Flip Vertical. You can now use the move tool to adjust the copy, and move it close, yet not completely overlapping the original text. This allows for a more natural look.
Step 7
In the top menu icons, choose Edit, then Transform, then Skew. This allows the reflection to look more real and distorted, like a natural reflection would have. You can now lower the opacity of the reflection layer to whatever you desire, and any further Blending Options you prefer. You’re done! Now you know how to make reflective text that looks great and can be used in future logos, graphic designs, or web designs.
Other Great Reflective Text Photoshop Tutorials
There are a lot of different approaches to things like reflective text. Even if you aren’t specifically looking for a reflective text, there is most likely a tutorial for whatever it is you want to accomplish. If you are an expert at Photoshop and don’t necessarily need the tutorials, then you should consider making some of your own to spread the knowledge! If you are a beginner or intermediate with Photoshop, then these tutorials are the way to go. There are always going to be different approaches to the same result, yet these different approaches can appear different according to what you need when creating a design. Some designs might need a more settle approach, while others would benefit from a more intricate design. Either way, whatever project you are faced with, whether it is for a logo, a website, or simply a Facebook banner, you want your work to reflect you as a person or your company in a positive light, and these tutorials can help you discover different ways to approach this.
Photoshop Essentials
Photoshop Essentials has a tutorial for reflective text, and it is extremely well done and professional in looks and design. If ever you need to create a banner or a web design, this might be something to look up and create. In just fourteen easy steps, photoshop essentials offers clear and easy-to-follow steps to create this look yourself. When viewing this tutorial, it may seem like a long process, but really they just broke it down in the easiest way possible in order to make it easy to grasp to anyone, especially photoshop beginners.
Photoshop CAFE
This tutorial is for a reflective text that somewhat resembles the technique for the previous tutorial, yet instead of a black background, they use a gradient. This type of design would most likely be good for something like a logo or web design that has a similar color palette, so as to stay on brand. This means that most of the website design should resemble somewhat how colorful this design is, and if not, maybe the previous tutorial would be more sufficient for the task at hand. Of course, you could always change the colors to match, but it comes down to what type of text you want to work with, and what style is best for the brand you are trying to create for.
