Making a Photoshop Shield!

In this tutorial, we're going to use the Path Tools in Photoshop to draw a shield-like shape. Then using some gradients, we're going to give it a metallic edge and shiny center. I actually made this tutorial when making the default icons for some posts here on PSDtuts, so if you go to the main listing on the site you'll see them in action.

Author: Collis

Hello! I started Psdtuts+ because years ago reading Photoshop tutorials was how I got into design. You can find me on Twitter or on my blog theNetsetter.

Step 1:

We begin with a dark grey to black gradient. I drew this with the Radial Gradient, which long-time PSDtuts readers will know is my favorite gradient tool. Anyhow don't worry too much about these colors, because midway through the tutorial, I decided they were too dark and changed them!

Step 2:

Now press Ctrl-R to switch on your rulers and drag some guides out. You do this by clicking on the ruler and then keeping your mouse down and dragging out to where you want them to be. I set up my guides as shown below. Because I'm drawing a triangle, I want to make sure that it's symmetric and not wonky - hence the guides.

Note that at any time you can press Ctrl+' and the guides will switch on and off. This is useful because otherwise they get in the way of what you're trying to do sometimes.

Also with the rulers you can right-click on the rulers and you'll see the different measurements they work in. For Web graphics it's probably easiest to work in pixels (though for print you'd want something larger probably). Anyhow because my canvas is 500x500, I put the guides at 100px, 250px, and 400px and then 100px and 250px downwards.

Step 3:

Next grab the Pen Tool (P) and draw a triangle as shown. You can do this with three dots (yes all the high school math is worthwhile after all!). Note that if you hold the mouse down when you place dots you'll get into the curvy pen thing (it's technical name is bezier curves) and we're not interested in those today, so just click once to get nice angled points.

Also if you hold down Shift you'll find you get the Pen Tool snapping to lines which are in multiples of 45 degrees. This can be good particularly if you want to draw the dead straight line at the top (and not accidentally place a mark a few pixels off). Alternately I suppose you could make sure you have snapping on which is under View > Snap To > Guides. Either way should get you the right result. As always Photoshop gives you a zillion ways to do everything.

Step 4:

Now we want a variant of the Pen Tool called the Add Anchor Point tool. You can see it in the picture below.

Step 5:

With the Add Anchor Tool selected and your guides still up, go through and add extra points in the positions shown below (note that I've switched off the guides with CTRL+' so that I could screenshot it properly).

You may be wondering why we didn't just add all these points in the beginning rather than after we'd drawn the triangle. The answer is simply that it's hard to get everything looking nice and symmetrical. This is just an easier way.

Step 6:

Now we are going to change to the Direct Selection Tool (A) which is the arrow shown. There are actually three Arrow tools in Photoshop, this one, it's alternate which is called the Path Selection Tool and our regular arrow also called the Move Tool. What's the difference?

Well basically the Move Tool (the regular one) is for moving objects around as you do normally. These other two are for paths. The Direct Selection tool is for selecting either points or edges (the lines between the points). While the Path Selection tool is for moving the entire path around all together (without it losing shape).

The best way to understand them, of course, is to click on each one in turn and see what it does! But for now we just want the Direct Selection Tool.

Step 7:

So using the Direct Selection Tool, first click on the top middle point to select it. Now hold down Shift and press the Up arrow a couple of times and you'll see the point move up. Next do the same with the left and right midpoints to make them move about.

We hold down Shift because it makes movement faster (I think SHIFT+Arrow is the same as 10xArrow with no Shift).

Anyhow, move the points about until you have something like shown...

Step 8:

It's up to you how you make your final path turn out, I made mine kinda quirky by just moving points about until they kinda looked like a shield. I saved the path in the PSD file for download in case you want that exact path. You can find it by clicking on the Paths tab and then you'll see a path marked Shield Path.

Any time you have a path you think you might want later, click to the Paths tab and then click on that little arrow pointing to the right and choose Save Path. This is particularly handy if you've spent a long time deep-etching a person out of a photograph and you want to make sure you don't accidentally lose your path work.

Step 9:

Next create a New Layer. Click on the Pen Tool and then right click anywhere on the canvas and choose Make Selection. You'll get a little dialog box asking if you want to feather your selection, make sure it's set to 0 (the default) and press OK.

Next get a light grey to dark grey and draw a gradient in your new layer as shown.

Step 10:

Now with that layer still selected, create a New Layer and go to Select > Modify > Contract and put in 10 pixels.

Next draw a gradient going the OTHER way with the same two light grey and dark grey colors. So the first one should be from top-left to bottom-right. This new layer should be bottom-right to top-left. You can see the effect of the two gradients in the picture for the next step.

Step 11:

Next while your second layer is still selected, go to Select > Modify > Contract again and use 10pixels again. Then create a new layer, and this time with a Radial Gradient, draw in a nice orange gradient with the lighter part in the top left as shown.

Step 12:

Now go back to the middle layer and press Ctrl and click on the layer to select its pixels as shown. Create a New Layer above that one and fill it with white.

Then go to Select > Modify > Contract and use a value of 1 pixel and then hit Delete. This will leave a one pixel thin white line between the two metallic gradients. It will look like the top of a ridge of metal (sort of ...)

Step 13:

Ok, so here's what we have so far. You can see that by using the two gradients going in opposite directions, we've created a sort of 3D effect which looks like light is coming from the top left and creating a highlight and shadow on the "metal."

Step 14:

Now we add a simple Drop Shadow and Inner Shadow to the orange layer. You can see these in the sample PSD file for download, but basically it's just an inner shadow with distance of 0 so that the shadow is even around the edges, and similarly with a drop shadow. We want the inner shadow as it makes it look a little more three dimensional because the edges are curving away from the viewer's perspective. The drop shadow is just to make the orange layer react a little more with the metal frame.

Step 15:

Here's what we have now... It's starting to look pretty cool. At this point I've also lightened the background (though it's hard to tell now that I look at it). So here it's a very dark grey, as opposed to black. Also I've added a drop shadow to the very first grey metal layer, though it's pretty faint.

Step 16:

Now in a new layer at the very top, draw an ellipse with the Elliptical Marquee Tool (M) and fill it with white as shown.

Step 17:

Now the only reason we've actually filled this with white is so that we can now press Ctrl-T and rotate the ellipse as shown.

Step 18:

Once you've rotated the ellipse hold down Ctrl and click on that layer to select the ellipse and then delete the layer itself so you are left with just a selection shaped as an ellipse on an angle.

Then create a new layer and draw a Radial Gradient going from white to transparent as shown.

Step 19:

Now hold down Ctrl and click on the orange layer to select its pixels and then press Ctrl+Shift+I to invert the selection (i.e. you'll be selecting everything except the orange layer's pixels) and then click on the very top layer, which has that white-transparent radial gradient from the last step, and press Delete. You should now have a highlight as shown.

Step 20:

Now set that highlight layer to a blending mode of Overlay and an Opacity of 60%. It should give a nice golden yellow as shown.

Step 21:

Now in create a new layer and then again hold down Ctrl and click on the orange layer to select its pixels. Then in the new layer draw a Linear Gradient downwards from black to transparent as shown.

Step 22:

Set this new black layer to a blending mode of Soft Light and then hold down Ctrl and click on the orange layer yet again then hold down Shift and press the down arrow a few times to move the selection down. Next go back to that black layer and hit Delete to leave just a bar running along the top as shown.

Step 23:

At this point, I decided to brush the metal up a bit. To do this, click on either of the two grey layers and with the Burn Tool (O) selected and a soft brush, just darken the parts that are darker and lighten the parts that are lighter as you see fit. I did this just to get a bit more contrast as shown. Don't forget if you hold down Alt while using the Burn Tool it changes to the Dodge Tool (which lightens instead of darkening) so you don't need to keep switching between them.

Step 24:

OK now for the radial burst in the background. Choose the Custom Shape Tool (U) and select the shape shown below.

Step 25:

Create a new layer just above the dark grey background and, using white as your foreground color, draw a very large version of that shape as shown. This makes a kind of vector starburst effect.

Step 26:

Now set that layer to Overlay and 30% opacity so it's much fainter. Finally in a layer at the very top, I added a giant S in a darkish red color and set it to Multiply at 20%. Then I wrote a word over the top and we're finished! A bit of a strange effect, but a fun one nonetheless!

Sample PSD

Download the PSD for this tutorial

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User Comments

( ADD YOURS )

Headshot October 6th

Awesome Tutorial!! Well Explained!!
Keep it up!
( Reply )
Josh Buckley October 6th

Thanks! Another great tutorial from you guys I can’t wait for more.
( Reply )
Eli October 6th

Preeety.
( Reply )
Colix October 6th

Looks good.
( Reply )
Robbeh October 6th

Excellent! Now I can equip my Spartans with sexier shields! Thank you Collis!
( Reply )
Collis October 6th

hehe you’re welcome Robbeh! THIS IS SPARTA I couldn’t resist
( Reply )
1. Josh September 16th
  
  im using cs4. step 9 wont work for me. it keeps selecting the whole thing and not the shield so it fills the whole thing with an orange gradient and not just the shield.
  ( Reply )
Chris October 6th

Very nice tutorial. This inspired me to make a Wallpaper out of it.
Keep it up!
( Reply )
lawton chiles October 7th

Thank you! This is just what I need for a new branding and marketing campaign that I am doing for greensteelhomes.com
Also, the glowing text was awesome- my client loved my version which can be seen at
http://flickr.com/photos/lawtonchiles/1490657423/
Thanks!
( Reply )
Andrew October 7th

Does anyone know where I can find that symbol?
( Reply )
Rao October 7th

Oh cant wait to try this
thank you Dear Collis
:rose:
( Reply )
Scott October 7th

Where did you get those custom shapes from ?
A great tutorial as always!
( Reply )
j-man October 7th

For the step 16-19 stuff, I’d probably create an elipse path using the shape tool then rotate and fill the path as needed. I’d probably clip the reflection layer with the shield color layer instead of selecting and deleting the inverse just for the sake of making it easier to move and adjust the reflections later if need be. Great tutorial and great site!
( Reply )
Guneri Eren October 7th

Good tutorial, congratulations…
( Reply )
Matt October 7th

Hey,
Great tutorials you’ve got here. I stumbled upon your page and immediately fell in love with it. I did quite well on the glow effect tutorial (that was actually the first time I used Photoshop), however, I have a problem. I noticed that on your shield, the edges are very smooth. When I do it, the edges are jagged and not nice to look at at all. How do you make them so smooth?
Thanks for the great tutorial!
( Reply )
TheFatMan October 7th

awesome tut, keep doing what you do, I got much respect for people like you.
( Reply )
Froosh October 7th

http://www.photoshophouse.com/designing-shield-style-multipurpose-logo-element/
Looks the same, wonder who posted it first.
( Reply )
Ø§Ù„Ù‡Ù†ÙˆÙ October 7th

thankss … .
( Reply )
handx October 7th

What i can said..YOUR tutorial really2x STUNNING!..FRESH!!
( Reply )
Livingston Samuel October 8th

Wonderful Tutorial!
You are doing a great work, very professional and neat.
I’ll definitely try my hands on this.
( Reply )
dSung October 8th

I am thanking you again. And more is to come, I believe.
( Reply )
LTheSen October 8th

Big up from Norway for xtremely well taught stuff all the way through=)
( Reply )
Dave October 8th

Awesome tutorial! Keep up the great work!
( Reply )
Joefrey Mahusay October 8th

Your doing great tutorials. Thanks for sharing.
( Reply )
brejko October 8th

Great tutorial !!!
( Reply )
Boris October 8th

You are my men. Thanks
( Reply )
MrMuhKuh October 9th

These are simple tricks with stunning effects! really like ur work, guys!
keep on this way! *thumbs up*
( Reply )
evertt de sousa October 9th

very good
congratulations
( Reply )
eraj October 9th

Collis– thanks for leaving certain aspects of the tut open ended (i.e. shield shape); It makes the self-exploration of the projects that much more fun.
Keep em coming!
( Reply )
Chris October 9th

These are helping me out a lot man. Thanks for the great work and keep em comin!
( Reply )
Delta1135 October 10th

Wow, Thats AMAZING! I Dont Have Time To Try It Out Now. Nut Trust Me I WILL!
( Reply )
Gopinath October 10th

Wow !! amazing. I just love your site and your photoshop works. Keep the good work going.
( Reply )
Gopinath October 10th

The shape you created can be found in the default photoshop shapes. This way you can reduce the no. of steps used to create the shield.
( Reply )
Ripcordless October 10th

Absolutely clean, professional, stylish designs — just the way I like them. Perfectly presented, on an easy to read palette. Bravo!
( Reply )
Scott October 10th

Awesome tutorial. I’ve tried some shield tutorials in the past, but none have been this easy. Thank you!
( Reply )
Chibone October 11th

Man that tutorial is cool, I’m gonna post the ones that I learnt and put it into my site. Thanks!! ^^
( Reply )
Shay October 11th

Not only is the finished product great, but the techniques you used taught me a few things about Photoshop I didn’t know before. Thanks!
( Reply )
derbeman October 11th

Very nice tutorial, it makes fun to learn by this tutorial(s).
Make more of such tutorials .
Greatings from Germany, derbeman
( Reply )
Robert October 11th

awsome tutorial, used it for a school project! ThnX!!!
( Reply )
Alex October 12th

Another good tutorial, nice and clear. I just did it and it came out great, that means you did a good job, haha.
( Reply )
Harry Roberts October 13th

Nice one. Great result too!
( Reply )
Bull3t October 13th

This is a truly amazing tutorial. I will be following this and putting it to good use, thanks for sharing it.
( Reply )
Gabriel October 14th

Great Tutorial! But can you please make it possible to download this as a PDF-file. When I try to print it, it looks like crap.
( Reply )
zgq October 15th

thanks! well!
( Reply )
Adriaan October 16th

Congrats on a great tutorial! I’ve gotta say, PSDtuts.com has become one of my favourite sites on the net…keep up the good work!
( Reply )
Lyndsey October 16th

hehe I’m so happy thank you psdtuts x
( Reply )
henster October 19th

Thansk
( Reply )
Saif October 20th

Ø§ÙŠØ§ Ø§Ø¨Ù† Ø§Ù„ÙƒØØ¨Ø© ÙˆØ§Ù„Ù„Ù‡ ØªØ¨Ø¯Ø¹ Ù‡Ù„ÙƒØ¯ Ù…Ø§ Ø§Ù…Ùƒ ØªÙ†ÙŠØ¬
Ø§Ù†ØªØ© ØªØ¨Ø¯Ø¹ Ù…Ùˆ Ø§Ø® Ø§Ù„ÙƒØØ¨Ø©
Ø¹ÙŠØ±Ø±Ø±Ø±Ø±Ø±Ø±Ø±Ø±Ø±Ø±Ø±ÙŠ Ø¨Ø£Ù…Ùƒ
Ø§Ø¨Ùˆ Ø·ÙŠØ² !!
( Reply )
Peter October 22nd

great!
( Reply )
Azeem October 22nd

Very Nice Tutorial………….
Great Job….
( Reply )
Tommy P October 23rd

Thanks very much – well explained
( Reply )
SniperFox October 24th

Froosh: No they aren’t. The only similarities is that they are both shields, that’s all. Other than that, they are nothing alike.
Webmaster: Great tutorial, will definitely try this one out soon ( Still working on the “Mac Style Wallpaper” one right now )
( Reply )
Jens MÃ¥nsson October 27th

great tutorial! I used it to make a icon for “services” app on the iPhone http://img510.imageshack.us/img510/4953/iconjc3.png
( Reply )
Dane -Touchdreams October 29th

Very nice, I like the overall look a lot, it seems U have quite the eye for the best colour/light combinations! Just wondering why you use selections so often and paths so much less? Thanx again
( Reply )
neha October 30th

good. Thankx
( Reply )
rayden October 30th

awesome tutorial , put some more i ll like to see some more tutorials . i really like this tutorial. very nice. work.
excellent.
( Reply )
Marv October 30th

Great tutorial! Really clear and really effective use of photoshop tools, appreciate you adding this tut.
( Reply )
IBK November 2nd

Nice drawing, good luck
( Reply )
mykdotcom November 4th

great! thanks and more tutorials from you guys!
i’ll try to share some too.
( Reply )
Chris November 5th

Wow. Amazing tutorial with perfect explanations. Just wondering, where did you get your font from. The URL and Font Name will do just fine. Once again, thanks for the Tut. -Chris
( Reply )
Popemiester November 5th

Awesome tutorial my friend. I’ve been trying to make something like this (emblemish) and so far this tutorial is the best I’ve seen. Top notch. By the way, although I feel awkward doing this, if you could look at some of my work, that would be awesome. Most of it is at http://s224.photobucket.com/albums/dd301/DSPS_Rock/ If you could, that would be fantastic. Great work man, keep it up.
( Reply )
Dave November 9th

After following and completing this awesome tutorial I filed it away in the recesses of my brain and thought nothing more of it.
Until today. I was with a client. She came up with a really nice idea for a website header using sunbeams. In about 3 seconds we had a rough design in Photoshop and she loved it.
Sometimes it’s the simplest things that make you look like a legend in the eyes of clients. Thanks for the great tutorial.
( Reply )
Paz November 15th

wonderful. Thank you so much
( Reply )
Yurie November 17th

well done great tutorial… but how do you get all the auto shapes??? please tell me
( Reply )
Pravin Potdar November 21st

Very Nice Tutorial
( Reply )
Orion Star November 22nd

I just completed this tutorial. I’m looking forward to applying some of these concepts. Thanks again!
( Reply )
Sunny December 6th

Simply amazing. Thank you very very much for kindly sharing. Wonderful.
( Reply )
Steve December 8th

Step 12 isn’t working for me. Am I missing something?
( Reply )
fabio December 24th

great i have modify the simple file for game goalunited. THANKS great work
( Reply )
Mohammed December 25th

wonderful
( Reply )
Paul Bradley January 8th

Loved this so much… Its great to learn all the tools when your new to photoshop! X
( Reply )
andy stewart January 15th

http://www.andystewart-design.com
( Reply )
2wal February 6th

thanx! finally smne put it straight anough 4me ;_)
easy ways to fo nice things
pure art
( Reply )
rikky February 7th

Thanks
( Reply )
kev February 26th

loved the tut… more like it..but you should of just used the auto shapes to make it easier to follow, at least thats what i did lol
( Reply )
Mark February 27th

http://campusmashups.com/
Digital Plageurism? That shield looks awfully familiar.
( Reply )
IMS May 13th

VERY NICE tutorial ..
u inspired me ..thx
( Reply )
Kirkland July 20th

very cool – my first project in photoshop that i was able to complet (YES, I AM A N00B.)
( Reply )
Mr. Tunes July 31st

i too want to know how to match the font on that giant letter in the background. otherwise i was quite proud to finish this tutorial with something almost identical.
for the person who asked about the custom shapes, you go to the top where the shape pallette exists, then click the little arrow next to it. make sure all shapes are loaded, go to small thumbnails, and expand the window so you can see a lot of them. you should find it there.
thanks for the tutorial
( Reply )
paul barris August 7th

Hi!
Thanks for the Great tutorials!
the best tutorial site available
Might you write a tutorial on how to create the page curl
you have on the banner for the plus membership?
Thanks!
Paul
( Reply )
Kevin August 15th

How do I download that path of the shield?
( Reply )
Photoshop Brushes September 19th

I will use this idea for one of my logos. Thanks!
( Reply )
low cost home insurance September 24th

Not bad at all, but this topic is rather little of interest. Please do not disappoint your readership.
( Reply )
fantasmo October 31st

GREAT Tutorial!
But what do you mean with “Throw in a gradient”?
I did Layer>New Fll Layer>Gradient… this worked very well, but when I want to delete a part of the gradient (e.g. in step 22) i don’t get a hard edge, my gradient just becomes smaller.
What have i done wrong? In my Layer panel this gradient layer consists of a gradient and a path (in the sample psd it’s just one ordinary layer…maybe I did something wrong).
Thank you very much, Fantasmo
( Reply )
MikeM January 16th

I thought this was going to be a lame tutorial but the shield looks great. Thanks again.
-chicago web design
( Reply )
7th Ruin January 19th

This was awesome! Some of the shields I have been designing in my head have finally come to fruition!
If you would like I can show you the finished products and such. I have been going a bit further then what you have shown in the tutorials, adding about 2-3 layers to each section of the shield (which if I counted correctly consist of 3-5 layers per section, so around 12-15 layers per shield creation) and then I go into further detail on various aspects of the shields.
( Reply )
preetham January 21st

it’s excellant….. the gradient effect on the opposite giving 3d effect is ultimate….
( Reply )
Gio January 30th

This tutorial is great but I’m stuck on step 19, after i press ctrl + shift + I and then delete the top layer that has the white-transperent gradient, it just disapears the whole top layer with the white transperent gradient.
help please
( Reply )
Lucy Curtis February 17th

this is great but on your web it wouldn’t hurt to put something interactive on for people like me needing a shield for a homework assignment
( Reply )
royal_jelly February 22nd

wow…very cooooolll…..
( Reply )
يوتيوب March 9th

thanks for this tutorial
( Reply )
Camus March 21st

Donde puedo encontrar esos pinceles? Where can found the brushes?
( Reply )
Norma April 3rd

I almost break my computer is so frustrating , I can’t do step 12, I don’t get it….. I wish to be a geek!!!!
( Reply )
norma April 3rd

hahahahaha see what I meant….”I wish I were I geek”
( Reply )
Wally L. June 6th

I love the fancy, shiny shield graphic! I came across this tutorial for the background radial effect, and found along with it a downright amazing shiny metallic graphic. Thank you so much!
( Reply )
DC June 17th

the cntrl + click doesnt highlight the layers pixels…
( Reply )
DC June 17th

nvm, i got it…i had to click the picture
( Reply )
Brandon June 26th

How does Step 12 work. Ctrl and click the layer? I don’t get that. Whenever I try it, it doesn’t do anything. Is it different on CS3?
( Reply )
1. Silver Firefly November 8th
  
  Do you see a thumbnail on the layer? CTRL and click on the thumbnail on the layer.
  ( Reply )
hitesh July 8th

cool tut but here you were making a custom shape with the help of pen but i did it with the custom shapes tool an selecting a shield shape which was there to select the path of that custom shape go to the paths tab and at the down there are three round with different lines select the dotted line one and you will get the selection of the custom shape heard from many of them that are not able to select the path try this might help you
( Reply )
hitesh July 8th

please don’t forget to select the layer in which the custom shape is made other wise you would be not able to select the path
( Reply )
Michael August 4th

Fantastic tutorial! Well done!
( Reply )
EA August 20th

Thanks it really helped!… GREAT TUTORIAL
( Reply )
Axe August 21st

cool) thanks
( Reply )
jhupp September 11th

new to photoshop –> can’t complete step 9 b/c am not able to select ‘make selection’… any help?
( Reply )
Josh September 16th

on step 9, mine keeps on selecting the whole thing instead of just the shield so when i go to make the shield orange with the gradient it makes the whole thing. how do make just the shield selected and filled with a gradient?
( Reply )
Hossam September 23rd

Great work , we hope more
( Reply )
Kevin November 3rd

I know this sounds silly, but on step seven the whole triangle is selected, Its on direct selection tool and I click on the points that I’ve made, but It moves the whole triangle. Thanks for the tutorial, though.
( Reply )
Grumdrum November 3rd

I cannot get Step 12 down. “Then go to Select > Modify > Contract and use a value of 1 pixel and then hit Delete. This will leave a one pixel thin white line between the two metallic gradients. It will look like the top of a ridge of metal (sort of …)”
I’ve tried 100 times, I still can’t get the white line
( Reply )
1. Guest November 19th
  
  The white line is very small so it wouldnt matter.
  ( Reply )
Denis December 13th

Very nice guide! Very easy to follow Just one little error. To turn off guides you click: Ctrl + ; not Ctrl + ‘ as you stated (see: http://help.adobe.com/en_US/Photoshop/11.0/WSfd1234e1c4b69f30ea53e41001031ab64-74baa.html)
But very very nice guide!
( Reply )
Adamos December 19th

VERY NICE tutorial
( Reply )
Ayaz January 14th

i just love this website man !! awesome tutorials thanks a lot for sharing its a great help for learners, please keep writing more tuts
( Reply )
lolli January 21st

thx psd!!!!!
very nice job
( Reply )