Create Abstract Eye-Catching Typography

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This tutorial goes through creating an abstract “inner image” within text. It’s fast to do and the payoff was well worth the time spent on it.

Prepare your canvas

Make a new canvas about 1200×600 or higher, double click the ‘background’ layer to unlock it, and create a new layer.

Go Crazy

Seriously. Just use a soft round brush and do what you can to make it a nice collage of color. Use any colors you’d like. Change the size of the brushes and use opacity to darken / lighten some of the areas.

Add a background

I added a dark gray background gradient with a subtle fade to have a better idea how it’s going to turn out in the end. Select the background layer, select your foreground and background color, then use the gradient tool to add a simple background.

Liquify the colors

Photoshop’s liquify tool will manipulate lines by bending them a certain direction, unlike the smudge tool which directly mixes the colors. Select the layer with all of the colors, and click Filter -> Liquify. You are taken to the realm of liquification.

I set my brush size around 130, and varied the density and pressure. I also changed the brush size to a lower one to acquire more detail afterward. Your goal is to use the forward warp tool and the twirl clockwise tool to get a form that you like and one that mixes the colors to a detailed degree. Simply make strokes with the brush in different directions.Try to keep it somewhat rectangular to be able to fit it inside the letters in the next steps.

I acquired this effect by using a smaller brush and continued to make loops. Uh, groovy!

Make your type

Choose a font. When you’re done typing what you want, drag the type layer below your color layer, hold down alt on the line between the two layers, and move it until you see cursor turns into a stamp-like thing, and click. The colors will now be a layer mask that exists within the positive space of the type.

You can do anything from here. I changed the hue (Command + U or CTRL + U) to a different color and discarded the hippie colors (yet they will forever live on inside of me). You can go back into the liquify filter, and now see what areas overlap the text.

Adding More Background Detail

I created a new layer above the background and used a large soft round brush with a low opacity to lighten up around “prana”. I also played around with the hue in search of one that I like, and added a 3px black stroke with 30% opacity.

I then created a new layer, rendered clouds (using black and white) and set the opacity to a lower percentage. I also settled on turning the text black and white.

Adding Stars

Add a new layer, and use small soft round brushes set at 50% with a white color to create a starry effect. By changing the opacity and size it makes them have depth. You can also get star brushes here.

Adding a Reflection

Finally, flatten the “color” layer with the text layer by selecting both with Command (or CTRL on Windows) and pressing Command + E (or CTRL + E) to merge them.

Pressed Command + J to duplicate it, and Command + T to transform the duplicated layer. Right click and select “flip vertically” and drag the layer just under your text, and press enter.

At the bottom of the Layers window, select “create vector mask. Select your gradient tool (use black and white) and drag until you find a reflection that you like.

You can also add more text to appear subtly in the background by writing it and lowering the opacity to 4 or 5 percent. I did this to the top and bottom of mine.

Results

Robin Bastien
Howdy! I'd the head of Ocular Harmony. I spend most of my time designing, reading beatnick literature, and pounding sound waves of experimental pulsation into my brain's frontal lobes. Contact me if you have any questions!