Image editing for the rest of us
In this tutorial, I will show you how to use Pixelmator to create a nice light and smoke effect in just a few steps. We will play with the brush engine and blending tools to achieve this effect.
Step 1
Create a new document in Pixelmator. I used a document of 1440×900 pixels.
Step 2
Fill the background layer with a very dark blue color, using the image below for reference.
Step 3
Select the Type Tool (T) and type the word you want; below, I have typed smoke. Then add another background layer and fill it with black. This black layer will be beneath the word you have typed. After you have done this, select the black layer and the type layer and go to Layer>Merge Layer. Change the Blending option to Color Dodge.
Step 4
Go to Filter>Distortion>Twirl. Enter in “365” for Radius and “20” for Angle. Use the image below for reference.
Step 5
After the Twirl filter step, go to Filter>Blur>Gaussian Blur. Use “22” for the Radius. You will notice that the edges of your text will blend with the background, creating the desired light effect.
Step 6
Download and open the Smoke Brushes application in Pixelmator. Importing brushes in Pixelmator is extremely easy – just click with the right button of your mouse over the .abr file and select “Open With Pixelmator.” That’s it! The brushes will be automatically imported to the Brush Panel.
Before you start painting, add a new layer and fill it with black, then change the Blending option to Color Dodge. Then, select the Brush Tool (B), and using white as the color and the smoke brush you previously downloaded, paint once. Use the image below for reference.
Step 7
Again, add a new layer, fill it with black and change the Blending option to Color Dodge. Then, with the Brush Tool (B) in the color white, use another smoke brush and paint once again.
Step 8
Repeat the same step to add another smoke effect. Tip: If the smoke is not visible, click twice, and the brush effect will be stronger.
Step 9
Add a new layer on top of the previous layers, and go to Filter>Generators>Clouds. Use black and white for the colors and click OK. After that, change the Blending type to Color Dodge.
Step 10
With the Eraser Tool (E), select a regular and very soft brush. Make it very big, using the [ and ] keys. Then, erase some areas, leaving only some parts of the smoke visible close to certain letters.
Step 11
Select the type of layer and go to Filter>Distortion>Circle Splash. Change the Radius to “150” and move the controller to see how the filter works. Try to find a result that is not too strong. You will need to play with the values because this filter generates unique results, depending on the size of the layer.
Step 12
Add another layer on top of the others and fill it with black. Then go to Filter>Stylize>Noise. Make sure you have selected black and white for the background and foreground colors, respectively. Use “5” for the amount and click OK.
Step 13
Now, go to Filter>Blur>Motion Blur. Use “20” for the Radius and keep “0” for the angle. After that, change the Blending option to Color Dodge. The idea is to create a nice texture over the whole composition. You can go to Image>Levels and increase the white to brighten this texture.
Step 14
Select all layers and duplicate them. Then, go to Layer>Merge Layer. The whole composition will be merged into one layer. Go to Filter>Blur>Gaussian Blur. Use “20” for the amount and press OK. Now, change the Blending type to Overlay and the Opacity to 50%. Duplicate this layer and change the Blending type to Screen.
Conclusion
Now you can add your logo, and the effect is pretty much completed! In addition, you can try different background colors to create different styles, or even add a gradient over the composition with Multiply for the Blending option to create another interesting effect.
Another Example
Select all the layers and merge them. Then go to Image>Invert. Instead of a light effect, you will create an impressive burned paper effect or something similar.
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June 4th, 2009 at 3:36 am
Great Tutorial, helped me alot to know some more techniques in Pixelmator.
June 4th, 2009 at 8:54 pm
tried downloading the brushes but i get text telling me where to find fallen brushes instead. am i doing something wrong/
June 6th, 2009 at 10:17 am
Try this…
http://Qbrushes.com/wp-content/plugins/download-monitor/download.php?id=smoke_brushes.zip
June 20th, 2009 at 3:33 am
Weighing up whether or not to buy this product and tried this tutorial to give the product a stretch. I couldn’t get past step 5. Most like because the ordering of something was wrong. i.e the precedence of layers. Would be more complete to show small screen shots of the layers window…
My results either ended up in the text going completely blue or blurred beyond readability
June 24th, 2009 at 3:29 pm
Select the Type Tool (T) and type the word you want; below, I have typed smoke. Then add another background layer and fill it with black. This black layer will be beneath the word you have typed. After you have done this, select the black layer and the type layer and go to Layer>Merge Layer. Change the Blending option to Color Dodge.
this i dont understand.. how do i add a other background layer ? just add new layer and make a black but when i do that i cant merge layer
July 9th, 2009 at 9:08 pm
Whenever I download brushes from websites that you put in your tutorials when they show up in pixelmator they’re always mirrored opposite of what yours are.
July 20th, 2009 at 9:15 am
I have the same problem.
After adding the new layer, filling it with black, merging it with the Text layer and then changing the Blending to Color Dodge, the results are blue. The “white” text dodges with the “very dark blue background” on the 1st Layer.
What am I missing here?
July 22nd, 2009 at 10:52 am
@Martin and @jesper
If you want to create the light effect using color dodge, it’s necessary to have the transition of tones from black to white, the grey tones will create the light effect. That’s why it’s important to add a black layer then merge it with the white layer.
About the color problem. The background has to be dark and not a more towards the grey. Just try different colors and you will see the result.
Thanks a lot.
September 21st, 2009 at 3:41 pm
[...] Smoke Effect in Pixelmator [...]
September 27th, 2009 at 4:44 am
How do i download the smoke brush? i go to the link but no link is given to me to download it! HELP ME!
October 3rd, 2009 at 11:27 am
The brushes I downladed from your link are not the same as the one you are using…
October 15th, 2009 at 4:15 am
PLEASE HELP! I feel like an idiot. The software is all new to me but I can’t make it past step three. When I add a new layer and fill it with black I then arrange the type layer on top of it, I check those two layers in the layers box, go to the layers menu but the “merge layers” option is not highlighted and can’t be selected. What am I doing wrong?
November 11th, 2009 at 6:48 pm
Thx! Worked great Except I couldn’t get the last effect, the inverted one. Here’s mine :p
http://imgur.com/rkDw6.jpg
January 18th, 2010 at 3:54 pm
I CANT DOWNLOAD THE BRUSHES SOMEONE HELP!!!!!!!!
January 22nd, 2010 at 2:49 pm
Just a note at the end you have to choose “color invert” not “invert”
February 28th, 2010 at 7:25 pm
Same problem… I’d love to do this tutorial, but I feel there is a step missing, I can’t get the step 6 effect, I can’t undersand step 5. Maybe there is a screen shot missing?
March 10th, 2010 at 6:19 am
Can’t get past step 14. When I duplicate and then merge all layers, I lose the text, smoke and other
effects. Did I miss something?
April 4th, 2010 at 9:59 am
I’m lost like a few of you out here. I cant’t get my words to stay white. They want to turn blue so I am stuck on merging the layer in step 4. Help, cause I want to do this effect. What am I missing?