Light
Burst
by Hypnotoad
:: 22 February 2004
Ever wanted to create those space warp/ light
bursts that you see in banners and wallpapers all over the
web? If you haven't, the following image is an example of
such a graphic:
Now, I am sure you are interested in
creating this effect. It's simple - here's how:
- Create a new document, any size, with a black
background.
- Using the freehand lasso tool, draw a random, roughly
round shape in the approximate centre of the image.
- Create a new layer, then fill this shape with white,
using the Fill tool.
- Press Ctrl+D to de-select, and then open the Filter
menu. Choose Blur>Gaussian Blur. Set the amount to 9
pixels and click OK.
- Now open the Filter menu again and choose
Distort>Ripple. Set the amount to maximum and the size to
medium. Click OK.
- Now press Ctrl + F twice, to repeat the filter twice.
- You should now have a nice ripply shape. This is the
basis for your light burst.
- Open the Filter menu yet again, and choose Blur>Radial
Blur. Set the amount to 100, the Type to Zoom and the
Quality to Best. Click OK.
- Depending on the size of the image and the speed of
your machine, the speed at which PS will process will
vary. When it's finished, you should have a white light
burst.
- You may notice some odd rings of noise around the
burst. To fix this, apply a gaussian blur, experimenting
with the amount.
- To make it a bit more interesting, try colorizing the
burst (Ctrl+U, tick colorize, and play around), and maybe
even adding a bit of lens flare.
That's it! Your image should look
identical or similar to the image at the top of this
tutorial. If you need any help, please post in the
Drawing and Design forums.
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Ben |
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