_________________________________________________

First and foremost you need these three programs:
Adobe Photoshop
Toribash and
Pov-Ray (Optional)

And you'll also need some sort of Flame rendering programme for certain special effects but I'm hopeless at using it plus I don't have it anymore, so go find a tutorial for that somewhere else =)

Step 1.) Now, before we start we need to find a nice screenshot that you will use for this tutorial. And once we have this screenshot we need to first render it in Pov-Ray. If you actually manage to understand Pov-Ray and want to tweak your images a bit for example make the small boxes look green instead of blue and red, be my guest.. Then you need to remove it's remove its background. (unless you like it that way) To do this we need to open it with photoshop. Once it has loaded click on the 'Magic Wand Tool' . With this tool start clicking on the background and pressing delete untill all the background has turned into grey and white boxes. At this point if you prefer it you can also remove the reflection..


Step 2.) So we have the main image ready, now let's work on some layers. By pressing Ctrl+Shift+N a window pops up asking you to name the layer you just created. (Don't forget to right click on the layer with the main image in it and press layer properties to give it a name) This isn't really necessary but it will definitely help as you won't get too confused. So apart from the main layer we have two (2) other layers which I like to call 'Gradient' and 'Brushing'. Now it's imporant that the layers are in the right order, which according to the screenshot below should be 'Main Image', 'Brushing' then 'Gradient. Please also note, if you do not have a small layer window you can get it by going on Window>Layers. If you find it necessary you can use the move tool to move the image on the 'Main Image' layer to the side. I prefer this as it gives me some space for the text we will incorportae later, and also an empty space for my desktop icons.


Step 3.) Now that we have the layers sorted we can start working on the gradient. Select the gradient layer by clicking on it and click the eye next to the 'Main Image' and 'Brushing' layers. This should make them invisible. Now use the gradient tool to create a gradient on this layer. Make sure you select the colours you want the gradient to be before you start. Note if you cannot find the gradient tool, look for the paint bucket , right click it and select the gradient tool. Now, move your mouse over the canvas, click, and drag to create the gradient. Depending on where you click, how long the drag line is, and which direction the drag is going, the gradient will be different, so keep experimenting.


Step 4.) Right, now that we have the gradient and the main image, let's work on the brushing layer. Make the 'Brushing' layer visible and hide the other two layers. Revert back to black and white colours (or you can click the Default Foreground and Background Box ) And use the brush tool . If you cannot find the brush tool look for the pencil tool, right click it and select the brush tool. Now photoshop comes with a nice set of brushes, but if you're not satisfied with the ones you have you can always check www.deviantart.com for some nice sets. Once you have a set you're happy with start putting them in certain ares of your canvas. I like creating a heavy border and then a light piece in the center, but it's up to you.


Of course like this it might not look much, but if you make all the layers visible again you should have something along these lines, depending on what colours for the gradient you used, the brush set you used and of course the screenshot you used.


Step 5.) Right, now that we have the basic layout covered, it's time for those special 3D effects I seem to be famous for now. It's nothing special really. If you have some sort of Flame renderer you can make what I'm about to show you. If you want to find others there are tons of them at www.planetrenders.net. Now press Ctrl+O and find where you saved these images and open them. Sometimes they can be a bit coloured but we don't want that, so you press Ctrl+Shift+U. Once you've done that use the move tool and drag the render to the main image. Now the render should be a new layer on your image. You can keep using the move tool to move it around. Okay, it might no look too good but here's where all the magic comes in. From your layer window select the render layer and from the drop down menu in the layer window, select colour dodge, and watch.


Keep adding different ones and experiment with the different effects. In these cases 'Overlay' and 'Soft Light' can be a good choice. When you think you're finished you'll have something similiar to this.


But we're not done yet. You can also add some other things. For example, you can duplicate the layer with the Toribash image and try out Filters>Blur>Motion Blur for some different effects. Just don't be afraid to test things out.


Step 6.) The image is practically ready. You can reveal it to people like this. But sometimes it is required for you to put certain words on your graphic. For this, you need to use the font tool . Click an area that you want your text to be in and type it out. You can highlight the text and change it's colours, font and size. I'm keeping the font I like to use a secret so don't bother asking me about it. And that's about it! You can right click the font in the layers menu and select 'Blending Options' for some nice effects, but other than that, we're done!


And here's the finished product! I'm attached a higher res version for you to see.


_________________________________________________

So wait... you mean all those 3D things are... pen tool or something?

Pen tool? I hate that tool...

Please tell me I don't have to use the pen tool...

Of course it's not the pen tool! I'm not that good

I'm working on step 2 right now so if you comment I might not be able to reply so quickly.

If you dont want the reflection, you can make POV-Ray insert a constant background (green for example) so that you can select it all with one click. I can't remember the code to do it, but it is fairly simple.

Ooh and everyone, if you notice any silly grammar or spelling mistakes, please let me know.

C&C would be appreciated. :o

Step 4 is done, and Ill be working on step 5.

There was an issue with the link to planet renders (you had .com) so I changed it for you

Thanks about that, I realised while I was modifying, but you beat me to it =)

Edit: The Tutorial's finished! You can all start loving me now

Wow.

It's that easy?

...why couldn't I think of that?

Well, what were you expecting? ;)

I... don't know. Maybe something stupidly difficult in Autodesk Inventor Professional or something, multiply subimposed on a gradient with a shine effect painstakingly added by hand... or something.

Something harder.