Tutorial: Antique/ Distressed Paper and Custom Shading in Photoshop CS

Level: Intermediate

Gives an aged feel with realistic shading to paper, or add these effects to
any virtual surface, even text, to antique it.

In this tutorial we'll learn to use Quick Mask Mode and Layer Masks.

1. Open a new document, at least 200 dpi for good printing, and make a new
layer.

2. Use rectangular marquee to create paper shape.
a. Optional Steps: use the lasso to remove parts of the selection to create
torn, jagged edges
b. Use Transform>Skew (Ctrl-T, right click Skew) to make the paper slightly
less rectangular

3. Fill with color; tans and earth tones make the most believable antique
paper.

4. With selection still active, type Q to enter Quick Mask Mode, or click
the Edit in Quick Mask Mode icon at the bottom of the tools palette.
a. Quick Mask Mode allows you to change the shape of a selection by running
filters or other effects on it. It doesn't change the actual object, just
the selection shape!
b. You will see a pink overlay so you know you are in Quick Mask Mode.

5. Apply Filters>Pixellate>Crystalize. Lower the magnification and use the
hand to find the edge of you selection. Choose a cell size: the larger cell
size you use, the larger the bites from your paper edges will be. Click OK.

6. If needed, Ctrl-T to resize your Quick Mask, or click Selection>Contract
and choose several pixels smaller. Do this if too much of the crystallized
shape is hanging off the paper edges. Especially if you're using a small
cell size and it's hanging off the paper edges, there won't be much change.
The more it's hanging off, the less the effect will be.

7. Exit Quick Mask Mode by typing Q or clicking on the Edit in Standard Mode
icon next the Edit in Quick Mask Mode.

8. With your Paper layer selected in the Layers Palette, click the Add Layer
Mask icon or Layers>Add Layer Mask>Reveal Selection. This will mask off the
edges of the paper.

9. If you don't like the effect, go back in the History Palette and repeat
step 5 or 6, changing the cell size or changing the size of the Quick Mask
differently. Remember, you can always change the shape and size of the mask
at any point by clicking the link icon next to it to unlink it from the
layer and using Ctrl-T to change it.

10. Optional: use the Smudge tool to gently smudge the edges of the paper to
look slightly torn. See Simple Torn Paper PS tutorial for instructions.

11. Double click on the Paper icon in the layers palette to bring up the
Layer Styles Dialog box. Make a very large, dark, soft drop shadow.

12. In the Layers Palette, right click on the drop shadow layer style name,
and click Create New Layer. This will put the drop shadow on its own layer
so you can customize it to be more realistic.

13. Add a Layer Mask to the Drop Shadow layer.

14. Choose the Brush tool with a large, soft airbrush 300, color black, make
sure the Drop Shadow layer mask is active in the Layers Palette, and begin
brushing over the shadow to cover parts of it.

15. Remember that shadows for the paper closest to the desk will be dark,
defined, and close to the paper. For parts of the paper higher up, the
shadow will fade to lighter, softer, and farther from the paper.

16. In the Brushes menu, increase the Hardness of the brush to get more
defined edges, or lower it to get softer edges. In the tool bar at the top
of the page lower the opacity to get softer shadows, raise it to get darker
shadows. Use a white color brush to put back any parts where you've removed
too much.

17. To make more shadows, click the layer thumbnail for the Drop Shadow
layer and use a dark, soft brush to add shadows. Remember to go back to the
layer mask to remove more shadows! To make shadows vary in texture, try
some dark browns with a textured brush. Here, I use a large fresco brush
from www.truly-sarah.com, but you can use whatever suits you. Add
Filter>Blur>Gaussian Blur if needed, and lower layer opacity if needed.

18. This takes practice! You choose which parts of the paper are farther
from the desk and make the shadows match. The best way to do this is to
look at something for reference: a slightly crumpled piece of paper or
similar, so you can see how real shadows look. Don't worry if it's not very
good, the layer mask lets you put back whatever you removed by using the
brush with a white color.

19. Once the shadow is customized, we need to add shading and highlights to
the paper itself. Highlights go where the paper is higher and correspond
with the larger, soft shadows. Shading goes where the paper is lowest and
correspond with the small, defined shadows.

20. Right click on the Paper layer mask and click Set Selection to Mask.
This will make sure the painting for the highlights stays just on the paper
itself.

21. Create a new layer above Paper layer and name it Shading.

22. Use a 300 soft airbrush, black, with very low opacity and flow to brush
on shadows crossing the paper from starting from one small shadow
underneath, across to another small shadow. Do the same for the highlights
with a white color on the brush.

23. Click on the opacity slider in the Layer Palette to lower the layer
opacity to suit you. How much depends on how excessively dark the shading
is.

24. Apply Filter>Blur>Gaussian blur if needed. Also brush on more shading
or highlights and blur again if needed.

25. Add optional texture effects like Filter>Texture>Texturizer or a light
pattern overlay in Layer Styles. Here I've added a Canvas Texturizer filter
and a Hard Charcoal Light pattern overlay on low opacity.

26. You're done! Keep practicing making custom shading and soon your
elements will start jumping off the page!

For a printable version of this quick class, click here