Blind Sided Signature
Open transparent canvas 500 X 500.
Flood fill with white and rename background.
Select your text tool.
On your material palette set your foreground/stroke color to black.
Set your background/fill color to the color, gradient or pattern of your choice. I used a gradient.
Select your font.
I recommend a thick/fat font. I used the font "Plump MT" with the following settings....
***NOTE***
Your font settings may vary depending on which font you use and the size of your text message.
Using your 'object selection tool', you can change your font size and shape....
object selection tool
When satisfied, right click on your text layer and convert to raster layer, rename text.
Click on your text layer.
Go to Selection Select All, Float, Defloat. You should have 'marching ants' surrounding your text.
Go to Selection, Modify, Contract by 2.
*NOTE*
This # will depend on the outline size you used with your font. If you used 1 as your outline contract by 1, if you used 3 for your outline, contract by 3 and so on....
DO NOT DESELECT
On your layer palette, right click on your text layer, duplicate and rename text 2.
On your text 2 layer palette, right click and duplicate, rename text 3.
You should have THREE text layers.
Text 3
Text 2
Text
DO NOT DESELECT
On your layer palette, X out (toggle visibility eye) text 3 layer. Click on text 2 layer.
Go to Effects, Texture Effects, Blinds - use the following settings....
X out text layer 2. Click on text 3 layer, make it visible. Go to Effects, Texture Effects, Blinds, use the following setting...
Be sure this is checked.
Deselect
Remove all visible X's. Click on your text layer.
Go to Adjust, Blur, Gaussian Blur. Use the following settings...
You can skip this step and delete this text layer if you don't like the blurred text effect.
Click on your text 2 layer. Go to Effects, 3D Effects, Drop Shadow. Use the following settings.
Be sure "Shadow on new layer" is checked.
Rename text 2 shadow layer.
Click on your text 2 shadow layer, move the opacity slider to between 16-24. Go to Adjust, Blur, Gaussian Blur, Radius 4.
Your layer palette should look like this...
Your text should look like this...
That's it!
You're done!
You are ready to animate.
Wait!
How about sprucing up your text? Add a tube or two?
Add your tubes, any copyright info and your watermark.
Be sure you arrange your layers with all the tubes below the text or all the tubes above the text in the layer palette.
Here's what my layer palette looks like for the above graphic...
When satisfied with your graphic, click on the background layer, X it out.
Click on your crop tool. Click on the "merge opaque". Then click on the check mark to apply. This will remove the excess background from your image.
Merge Opaque
Click to Apply
Remove the X from your background layer.
*NOTE*
If you wish to change your background color to something other than white, Go to your Material Palette and change the Foreground/Stroke color to your color of choice and Flood Fill your background layer.
We are now ready to animate!
X out your text 3 layer.
Click on your text 2 layer.
Go to Edit, Copy Merged.
Return to PSP.
Click on the text 3 layer.
Remove the X from text 3 layer.
X out text 2 layer.
Go to Edit, Copy Merged.
Go to AS
Go to Edit, Paste, AFTER current frame.
Go to Edit.
Select All.
Go to Animation, Frame Properties. Use the following setting...
Click on View Animation...see below
If you are satisfied...you are ready to optimize and save your image.
Go to File
Optimization Wizard...do as follows.
Click Next
Click Customize
Click OK
Click NEXT on the following 4 screens.
Save your image as a .gif
This tut was created in PSP 9, but I'm sure other versions can be used with some revisions. This tut is my own creation, any resemblance to other tuts is coincidental.
This layer will NOT be here if you removed the blurred text--------->
Go to the Animation Shop (AS)
Go to Edit, Paste as NEW animation
Use this to slow down or speed up the animation - try 30-50 range
I hope you enjoyed this tut...
If you have any questions, feel free to email me.
Thanks to Frankie for all her hard work making this tut "doable"!!!
Here's her example...
