Text as Design pg 4: Production Graphics with Wendy Peck at webreference.com

Text as Design 4: Mix it Up PhotoShop/PS Pro

You can add an artistic touch to text by adding variety in the size, position and color of text, even within one word. With many compound domain names presented as business logos, this technique is used a lot on the Web. Enlarging the font on the initial character of the second word creates separation, yet leaves no doubt as to the domain address. Reducing font size can leave room for words that expand on the name, forming an attractive variety that meets the eye as graphics, but carries a message.

All graphic programs have the capability to vary text characteristics. All accomplish the task in a different way. Again we will tart with PhotoShop and PaintShop Pro here, with CorelDraw and Fireworks on the next page.

Varied text size and color created in PhotoShop

Use guides to help you position sections of text

PhotoShop
PhotoShop does not provide automatic text variations, but there are tricks to make this operation fast and smooth. You must first do a little planning. Decide which characters in your word will be the same. We must enter each group separately. In this sample, I had one entry for each of the following: in; bus; i; ness; for life. Don't worry about working with many layers for one word set. We will get to a solution soon.

Enter your text for each group and choose your font, size and color. Make all of your adjustments as text. DO NOT render the text layers. Working with text in this way can be an exacting process, and we want to maintain the ability to edit our text until we are completely satisfied (and beyond).

Choosing each layer in turn, position the text segments. You will probably find that you are making adjustments in color and size, perhaps even font many times before you are satisfied. Choose View>Rulers from the Main Menu and pull down guides to help you place the sections of text quickly and accurately.

Without rendering the layers and merging, you can connect the segments of text into one unit for positioning. In the Layers window, select the first layer (any will do but logical steps pay off in the long run). Move your cursor to the next layer containing a text section and click in the square immediately to the left of the layer (see hand cursor in illustration at left). Click and a link symbol will appear for that layer. Continue until you have selected all sections of text. Your layers menu should resemble the illustration to the right, with all linked layers displaying the link symbol. You can now move all the layers as a unit. To edit, simply click on the link symbol to break the link, edit and re-link.

Initial entry in two separate lines with font and size changes made to one word in each entry

Color changes to individual words

Vector text converted to individual characters to move letters in each word independently.

PaintShop Pro
With PaintShop Pro, we have to do some planning ahead, but you can create a lot of variation with the initial text. You can adjust color, font and size from the Edit Text window.

Type your text. In the first sample we have our initial text entered as two separate vector text entries. The words "options" from the first and and "more" from the second entry have been changed to a different font and size. Note how just the word "more" is highlighted in the Edit Text window. You can also apply color to one or several characters in this way.

Finally, for this example, I want to move the word "options" closer to the word "more in the first line, and move the word "more" in the second line closer to the top line. To do this, I will have to convert the text entries to characters. With the Vector Selection Tool, select the text. Right click and choose Convert Text to Curves>As Character Shapes. With the Vector Selection Tool, marquee select the characters you wish to move. Position.

Next page

Text as Design Tutorial Index

Text as Design Start
Outline:PShop/PS Pro
Outline: CorelDraw/Fireworks
Mix: PShop/PS Pro
Mix: CorelDraw/Fireworks
Seeing Through
Mix: Flash
Flash Outlines/Graduated Fills
Text Resources