Rainstorm Tutorial, Based on my SOTW 3 Sig

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Rainstorm Tutorial
I’m writing this tutorial in regard to my recent Sig of the Week #3 entry. This tutorial will teach you how to create the lightning and rainstorm effect featured in that sig. I will assume that you know just some basics about photoshop before I begin, in order to shorten the length of this tutorial.

NOTE: You will need Adobe Imageready to follow this tutorial.

To begin, create a New Document, whatever size you like, but I prefer 400x125 for most sigs. Fill the document with black.

Next, create a New Layer. You can also do this quickly by hitting Ctrl-N. For this part, you may use any pictures of lightning, brushes, or other effects. To learn how to create a lightning bolt, click here. Place the lightning in an area to the left or right of the document. Apply these settings. Create another layer and put it behind that layer. Reset your colors to default by pressing D. Go to Filter-Render-Clouds. You may go to Filter-Render-Difference Clouds if you prefer.

Next, create a layer mask by clicking this button at the bottom of the layers palette. Take the Gradient Tool and drag across until the clouds are only behind the lightning.

Merge the layers into one. Repeat the process until you have several layers with a lightning strike. Next, add a new text layer in the center of the document. Make sure the text is black. Give it these settings.

Then, create another layer on top, and fill it with white. Make a series of three layers, each with the following effect, or download my new Brush Pack. If you're using the brushes, just click once on a transparent layer. Otherwise, fill each layer with black. Filter-Noise-Add Noise at 43% for each. Then, Filter-Blur-Motion Blur. Angle-57, Amout-34 pixels. Use a large, soft eraser brush to get rid of the top and bottom edge where it's too white. Go to Image-Adjustments-Brightness/Contrast. Brightness-22, Contrast+71. Got to Layer-New Adjustment Layer- Color Balance. Change the boxes at the top to the following, from left to right, for shadows, midtones, and highlights. -49, 0, 44. Set the blending mode of each of these layers to Screen.

Jump to Adobe Imageready. In your animation frame, make sure all layers are disabled. Make a new frame. Enable the white layer. Make one more frame, and enable one of the lightning layers and the text layer. Make one last frame and disable the lightning and text layer. Tween the two frames with these settings. After that, go back to the frames in which the lightning layer is visible, and enable one of the three rain frames in no particular order. Repeat the process to each of the different lightning frames. You should end up with an effect similar to the one in my sig.
Use one of the following links due to bandwidth usage.
Link 1
Link 2
Link 3
Link 4
I hope you enjoyed this tutorial. If you have any questions, post them either here or under the help section of the FGfx Forums. Thank you and happy photoshoppin'!

This post has been edited by Trigger863 on Sep 1 2005, 12:08 AM

yay! great job on making it to good-tutorials!

this whole section is really confusing to me...

is this series of 3 layers including the white layer?
are they on top of the white layer?

for some reason, I cant get passed this last part... could you clarify the instructions a lil more?....


I'm a newb


thanks

What you do is you create 3 separate layers, not including the white layer. It doesn't matter whether or not they're over the white layer or not, because if you follow the instructions, the white layer will never be enabled at the same time as the rain layers. You use the effects mentioned on each of the three layers that you create. I like to create them one at a time.

This post has been edited by Trigger863 on Jul 6 2005, 06:07 AM

aight thanks a lot,

Ok, so I've created my new sig using PS then imageready, now what do I need to do in order to put it in my signature on a forum?

do I need to convert the image? with what program?
where can I host it?


thanks

host it using a site such as photobucket.com or imagshack.com. then, you put it in your sing using the control panel.

Very neat tutorial. As you can tell by my name I would love that sig!!

But I can't get it to work

I get to this part:

Make a series of three layers, each with the following effect. Filter-Noise-Add Noise at 43%. Then, Filter-Blur-Motion Blur. Angle-57, Amout-34 pixels. Use a large, soft eraser brush to get rid of the top and bottom edge where it's too white.

I don't get it? It won't let me add noise to the empty layer. I get a message saying: Could not complete the add noise command because the selected area is empty


What am I doing wrong?

I'm sorry I forgot to tell you. You're supposed to fill in the document with black. Then add noise.

nice job..almost 6000 views you brought to Fgfx.

Hi I did everything you said in the tutorial up to imageready but when I tween 2 frames from the last frame those 2 tween frames are transparent but with some lightning coming throught.

I can't seem to fix that,I did try lowering the opacity of one lightning frame and then making the opacity higher on another frame,to see if i could achieve the flash effect but it doesnt look as good.

Btw awesome tutorial.

thanks


edit*** sorry but I had discovered I had a transparent layer which was causing the problem..I added a render on transparent instead of black background.but I got the animation working fine now.
thanks.

This post has been edited by infernus on Jul 23 2005, 06:11 PM

Yeah . . . I don't understand the animation part at all. Can you explain what I did wrong? I don't understand how you make new frames . . . All I see is the 'duplicates current frame' option in the animation window. Also, do you have to go back and deactivate the layers selected for the last frame? Or is that even how you do it?

Yeah, I tried again. But again, I don't know how you make the animation frames. The only way I can make new frames is with the 'Duplicates current frame' button, and then I have to go back and deselect all the layers I used for the duplicated frame. This is obviously not how it's done. The tutorial says:

It sounds like there should be a new frame button somewhere. It also sounds like after you enable a layer in the layer pallete, the animation frame copies the layer. Are you talking about enabling the layers in the layers pallete or enabling the frames in the animation window? I am really confused.

This is what I got the second time. As I said, I couldn't follow the animation part of the tutorial:

I'm sorry for the misunderstanding. There's actually a new frame button that you can use. All of the layers in the selected frame will be copied in the new frame that you create. Therefore, when you make the first frame, you will have to disable the white layer and enable the text and lightning layer. After that, just make a new frame and disable both lightning and text layer. Hit tween and make sure opacity is checked, with 2 frames and you'll be good to go!

Here is the new frame button:

Hey Nice tutorial but i have a question... i have used imageready for about a year now, and it may seem newbish but how many black frames did you put between to make it advance slower. I added maybe 5 extra black frames to slow down the animation. and also, how did you get your text and lightning to sorta "hang" there longer, this is the best i could get, without it looking weird. i added a .1 sec delay on the point when my text and lightning were fully tweened in.

Please let me know

Thanks

--IoNiZeD

Just so you know, i didn't add any extra black frames. I changed the length of the frames to anywhere between 2 and 5 seconds. Also, in your animation Ionized, It looks like the white is fading in; you should have it 'flash' on and fade off. Don't tween between the black and white frame. Also, to have your text hang there for a little longer, tween with more than just 2 frames. 2 is how many frames i used in my sig, but you should probably use more on a smaller piece of work.

Very nice Job!