In this tutorial, I will show you how to create that effect we saw on the screen at the Macworld San Francisco. It's basically some lighting effects with blurs and blend modes, but the effect is awesome.
Step 1
Create a new document. On the Background layer, double-click to open the Layer Style dialog box and apply the Gradient Overlay with black and green (#9dc5c7).
Step 2
Create a new layer. Set white for the foreground and black for the background color. After that, go to Filter>Render>Clouds. Rename the layer to "Clouds."
Step 3
Change the Blend Mode of the clouds layer to Multiply 60%. Duplicate the layer and rename it to "radial blur." After that, go to Filter>Blur>Radial Blur.
Step 4
Duplicate the background layer and move it up in front of the other layers. Rename it to "Gradient Light" and go to the Layer Styles dialog box. Change the Fill Opacity to 0% under the Advanced Blending settings. After that in the Gradient Overlay settings, change the Blend Mode to Color Dodge and the scale to 70%.
Step 5
Place your logo in the center of the image and change the Layer Styles. First change the Color Overlay to black and then add a Bevel and Emboss as shown in the image below.
Step 6
Create a new Folder and call it "lights" and move it behind the logo layer. Inside that folder, select the Ellipse Tool (U) and create a circle that will be almost entirely behind the logo. Using the Pen Tool (P), create some shapes that will be the lights. Use the image below for reference. Make sure that all of these objects are inside the "lights" folder.
Step 7
If you are using the CS3 version of Photoshop, you can convert the layers to Smart Objects in order to use the non-destructive filters feature.
Apply a Gaussian Blur to the layers. Each one will have a different value because of their sizes.
Step 8
Select the lights folder and change the Blend Mode to Color Dodge. Duplicate the two bottom lights and move them to the center.
Step 9
Using the Ellipse Tool (U), again create a small circle but this time in front of the logo. This circle will be a reflection on the logo.
Conclusion
Now you can add some text—I've used Myriad Pro Light. Although this effect looks very cool and sort of complicated to achieve, it's really easy and can be done pretty quickly. Using Render Clouds, blurs, and blend modes, we can create really amazing lighting effects.
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User Comments
( ADD YOURS )Jim February 5th
Very cool as usual.
( )Fire G February 5th
Very amazing, very amazing. A fantastic effect as always.
( )Drew February 5th
Nice. Looks very much like the Apple image.
( )PSDer December 5th
nnnnoooooooo wwaayyyy.. lol
( )JoDo February 5th
Nice, but the reflection (small circle on the UL of the logo) is somewhat distracting.
( )god056 February 5th
nice effect. now i’ve an idea how those eerie moods can be duplicated
( )Elite By Design February 5th
Another great tutorial. I like the “mood” it sets, especially with the cloudy background.
( )Web Major February 5th
I like the technique used for the beams of light. Different from how I would have done it– so I learned a new method here.
( )dS February 5th
Very cool indeed!
( )KING NOTHING February 5th
VERY FANTASTIC EFFECT…..THKS…
( )Kim Dolleris February 5th
Beautiful!
( )GeminiArt February 5th
great Fabio …nice work … i will try this tut
thanks
( )Andrei Constantin February 5th
another quality design tut.
( )i wish i had the vision and inspiration like you do, Fabio.
nice work
SnakeJake February 5th
Nice, but it’s almost completely the same as all his other (abduzeedo) tutorials. It’s always lighting with clouds in the background.
( )Constantin Potorac February 5th
) great tutorial. Thank you.
( )Shane February 5th
Another fantastic tutorial – they’re coming thick and fast now
A couple of things:
i) #9dc5c7 isn’t green is it? I see blue
ii) I agree with JoDo that the reflection is a little distracting.
I’m really starting to get a feel for the power of blending modes, effects and brushes in photoshop!
Thanks Fabio.
( )Sarath Raj February 5th
Good Work!!!
( )giackop February 5th
I use this wonderful free plugin (http://amicoperry.altervista.org/luce/main.html) for the lighting effect..
( )Anyway the tutorial is cool.. Thanks..
kitune February 5th
Awesome!
( )Markus February 5th
Nice tutorial!
They are coming fast! 
Thanks! :´)
( )Mr_LeE February 6th
nice clean tutorials as usual
( )Chad February 6th
WOW, great tutorial. Thanks for posting it. I like your aesthetic, it is graphic but clean and contemporary as well. I use photoshop mostly for photo-retouching and just told a friend that I had never found a use for the color dodge layer type. It is really great to see what other people do with photoshop since there are really no limits!
-Chad
( )Terry February 6th
this is pretty cool. beteen this the and the lighting effects/ glow effects tuts, i have some aweome ideas.
keep it fabulous, Fabio!!!
( )nacho February 6th
MagnÃfico tutorial! Me ha encantado!
( )Bubbila February 6th
Sweet tutorial, just what I have been looking for! Well Pleased…
( )mahalie February 6th
Great tutorial. I blogged it. Was hoping to figure out how to do that rainbow vertical lighting effect seen at MSNBC and others.
( )Aloke Pillai February 6th
Awesome effect!
Keep Rocking!
Aloke Pillai
( )Ignacio February 6th
Yes!
( )Alberto February 6th
Nice tutorial as always.
Mahalie: I managed to reproduce the MSNBC “vertical rainbow” effect.
First layer is a rainbow gradient. You can use a layer style with gradient overlay.
Second layer is a motion blurred black and white fibers (filter>render>fibers) – blending color opacity 20%;
Third layer is the same motion blurred black and white fibers – blending multiply opacity 50%;
Fourth layer is a black vertical motion blurred brush stripes for the dark areas – blending multiply opacity 70%;
Fifth layer is a white vertical motion blurred brush stripes for the light areas – blending luminosity opacity 20%.
Probably there’s a better way (there’s always one) but I did it in 5 mins and its quite close tothe target.
( )Check a quick example:
http://img98.imageshack.us/img98/8387/gradientfibersmm9.jpg
Pascal February 6th
I have one question, or remark as you wish!
I always learned to make my stuff in CMYK, for printing reasons…
Many times I see that the stuff you guys at PSDtuts make, is in RGB.
That’s why my results (and maybe of other people) are never the same.
Like the pen-drawn radials are totally scr*wed when made in CMYK and ofcourse the blending modes are not the same.
Anyway, what does anyone have to say? Or do you guys make everything in RGB? I know it somethimes looks better but when it comes to printing the stuff for magazines or flyers, CMYK get the better result (or so I was told…)
Pls comment!
cheers!
Pascal
( )Anselmo February 7th
Nice, very nice:)
( )Ben Gribbin February 7th
not bad, very simmalair to the rock star one
( )Mike February 7th
What is the font you used to mimic the apple font.
( )Alberto February 8th
Pascal, maybe I’m wrong, but:
if you plan to use your artwork for printing, cmyk is the best choice, of course.
if you have to produce something for screen view, for example a website, you definitely need to use rgb.
Moreover, when you “save for web” from photoshop, colors generally seem brighter and images seem to have lower contrast. Thats because the color profile for web is sRGB (not only a general RGB), while photoshop generally applies a different profile. So you’ll have to “edit > convert to profile” them. With a calibrated screen they’ll look exactly the same.
Hope that helps.
( )kojie February 8th
weeeee!!
its cool!!!
tnx alot…
( )bratwurst February 9th
fabio- you are a master of all elements of good design. take a bow!
( )Inspiration Up February 9th
Bookmarked!
( )Braintrove.com February 13th
Rock on! Great job!
( )Jared February 13th
I cannot get step 6 to go correctly…. I can create a new folder but it will not let me do the ellipse tool, it gives me an error message…. i can create a layer in that folder and move it behind the logo, but when i use the ellipse tool, you can see it on the heart, it’s white right above the heart, and then sort of transparent on the heart (the rest of the circle)… i have tried figuring it out myself, searching help and even google… it’s frustrating me and i just thought i would ask for some assistance.. thanks to whomever responds…
( )HELP!!!!!! February 20th
you make people pay to download the psd…….. you evil b**thead. i didnt want to have to do this but…
*charges up a kamehameha*
*launches it with full force at you whole lunch table*
yeah…. now you learned your lesson creep
( >_
( )zwenkwiel March 11th
i’m using PS 2
( )and when I set the light rays to color dodge they go all screwy on me.
any ideas???
st elmo March 27th
wow.. you’re amazing on photoshop =D
i have CS3 and i am able to follow all of your tutorials but i can never get the clouds right?
what page size do you use for your graphics as i think this might be the case…
keep going =]
( )kash March 30th
hi
( )very nice tutorial
satish nishad May 21st
excellent site for tutorial i liked so much
( )Karl Hardisty July 8th
Again, my hat is off to you, sir.
( )Mansoor July 24th
Thanks for Posting.
( )Great Tut.
clf4rd July 26th
nice one tut.
( )shrawan kumar August 5th
Nice work,
( )I love it
Thank,s
Phil August 22nd
When I select color dodge on the folder the lights dont look anything like the example. I did the whole tutorial twice and a photoshop pro I know did it as well and had the same problem. This was in CS2. Any ideas why?
( )Hannah August 27th
i used this technique on a project i’m doing and for some reason the rays of light dont look anythin glike yours.. i did it step for steptoo. Yours are brighter towards the center and darker and more transparent toward the outside, when i put the color dodge on mine it made the edges of the rays of light glow bright green the same as the vivid or hard light would do, what do you think?
( )Kshitij Parajuli November 17th
How Do You Guys Come up with so creative images????
( )Ron November 25th
I have the same problem as Phil above…when i select the lights folder and put it to color dodge, it looks nothing like yours. I also have CS2. It makes it look very choppy and bad.
( )Lee December 3rd
Nice effect. Wow.
( )Md. Manik February 26th
Thanks
( )yong March 26th
A great guide.
( )but Im stuck at guide #7,
can I have the video of it ?
ajeshmohan March 26th
coool and more better !!!
( )alberth June 15th
Abduzeedo siempre crea los mejores diseño
( )STAR June 17th
Can anybody give me this lovely heart? A link or something else. Tks.
( )STAR June 18th
Sorry, I foun a better heart. When I try to make the lights I don’t succeed with pen tool. Can anybody give me some indications? Tks a lot.
( )uuno June 21st
This is a complete shit, did everything as said and it’s just a blue ring
( )Bav July 6th
Yeah I agree when it came to step 8 the blend mode was already on pass through not normal as indicated and the light rays ended up looking too bright.
And I thought tuts+ members were supposed to be able to download psds of the tutoria? Where is the tutorial on the tutsplus area it can;t be found?
Load of rubbish.
( )andre August 19th
nice good
( )zebing August 23rd
Ok, I agree too. Problems at step 8. It seems color dodge is not the right blend mode. I’ve experimented with others and using the “soft light” blend mode is working a thousand times better for me, and duplicating the layer can also help. Almost seems like he wrote the wrong blend mode on that step.
( )Brian September 13th
Awesome techniques, as always, Fabio. Love your tuts.
I’m having trouble duplicating the look you achieve in this one. In the screen shots you provide, I notice there’s a big difference in the appearance of the background “cloud” layers between Step 4 & Step 5. But there is no mention of anything being done to those layers.
Can anyone give me some guidance as to what was done in Step 5 to make the background clouds more vibrant?
( )Rhys September 19th
hey man good tutorial
( )i need a bit of help though u said to make a new folder in part of it but i cant find the folder button anyware on photoshop can u help plz
thanks
karli October 26th
so confusing. couldnt do it at all
( )hey February 4th
this tutorial sux!!!
( )fillion February 5th
In step 8 You’ve got grat light effect, but I cant make in? How did you do it?
( )