Creating Illustrated 1980s Vintage Tees in Photoshop
Summary
TLDRIn this creative Photoshop tutorial, Brady from Texture Labs guides viewers through the process of achieving an 80s retro rock and roll screen print look. The tutorial focuses on mimicking the technical constraints of traditional screen printing, using a limited color palette, no anti-aliasing, and no color blending. Brady demonstrates how to work with a small, blurry image, enhance it with filters, and apply a hard mix blending mode to create a four-value color scheme. He then introduces color to the image, adds elements like typography and stars, and shows how to create a t-shirt mock-up. The result is a vintage-inspired design that captures the spirit of a bygone era in screen printing.
Takeaways
- 🎨 Emulate the 80s screen print look in Photoshop to capture the spirit of a golden age of screen printing.
- 🖌️ Work with a limited color palette, no anti-aliasing, and no blending of colors to maintain the retro style.
- 📏 Start with a large canvas size suitable for t-shirt printing, like 11x10 inches at 355 pixels per inch.
- 🌈 Remove color from the image and work with four values: black, dark gray, light gray, and white.
- 🔴 Use a 'hard mix' blending mode with a solid fill layer of a specific color (between red and yellow) to limit the image colors.
- ⚫️ Apply a black and white adjustment layer to assign gray values to the colors red and yellow in the image.
- 🖼️ Enhance the image with filters and adjustments like shadows and highlights, noise reduction, and unsharp mask.
- 🎭 Reintroduce noise and grain using filters like add noise and gaussian blur to achieve a chunky grainy texture.
- 🌈 Colorize the image by replacing the gray values with chosen colors, using blend if sliders to target specific gray levels.
- 🎨 Add additional colors and elements like alternate shadow and highlight colors, and use clipping masks to control their application.
- 👕 Create a mock-up of the design on a t-shirt using select color range and smart object techniques for flexibility.
Q & A
What is the main theme of the Photoshop tutorial?
-The main theme of the Photoshop tutorial is to create a retro 80s rock and roll screen print look, capturing the spirit of the golden age of screen printing with limited colors, no anti-aliasing, and no blending of colors.
What is the initial canvas size used in the tutorial?
-The initial canvas size used in the tutorial is 39.05 by 35.5 inches at 355 pixels per inch, which translates to 11 by 10 inches.
How does the presenter handle the challenge of working with a low-resolution image?
-The presenter acknowledges the challenge of working with a low-resolution, blurry, and grainy image. They decide to work with it and see if they can make it work, converting the layer to a Smart Object for further manipulation.
What is the purpose of using a 'hard mix' blending mode in the tutorial?
-The 'hard mix' blending mode is used to limit the image to just four values: black, white, red, and yellow. This helps in capturing the essence of the 80s screen print look while working under specific constraints.
How does the presenter adjust the color balance in the image?
-The presenter adjusts the color balance by changing the color of the 'hard mix' layer, which allows them to control the balance between the four values (black, white, red, and yellow) intuitively.
What filters and adjustments are used to enhance the image details?
-The presenter uses a combination of Shadows and Highlights adjustment to bring out detail in the shadows, Camera Raw filter for noise reduction, Unsharp Mask for adding sharp details, and additional Shadows and Highlights adjustment for further image flattening.
How are noise and grain reintroduced into the image?
-Noise and grain are reintroduced by adding a layer of uniform noise set to monochromatic at about 15%, followed by a Gaussian Blur with a one-pixel radius. This transforms the sharp detailed noise into a chunky grain.
What is the process for colorizing the image?
-The process for colorizing the image involves replacing the gray values with specific colors. The presenter creates new solid layers for darker gray, lighter gray, and bright whites, and uses blend if sliders to target and replace the gray values with chosen colors.
How does the presenter add additional colors and elements to the design?
-The presenter adds additional colors by creating new solid layers for alternate shadow and highlight colors, and uses clipping masks to apply these colors where needed. They also add elements like typography, stars, and a gray Radiance at the bottom of the design.
How is the final design transferred onto a t-shirt blank?
-The final design is transferred onto a t-shirt blank using the Select Color Range tool to select non-black pixels, and then copying and pasting the selection onto a t-shirt blank. The presenter also uses a high-resolution texture and blend if to add a grungy texture to the t-shirt design.
What resources are available for further learning and implementing the techniques shown in the tutorial?
-The presenter mentions that the textures used in the video and a t-shirt blank are available for free on the Texture Labs site, which is linked in the video description for viewers to access.
Outlines
🎨 Introduction to Retro 80s Screen Print Design
In this segment, Brady from Texture Labs introduces the viewer to a Photoshop project focused on creating an 80s retro rock and roll screen print look. The aim is to capture the essence of a golden era in screen printing, marked by significant innovation and experimentation in both artwork and the technical process. Brady explains the constraints of the physical screen printing process, such as limited color palette, no anti-aliasing, and no blending of colors, which will be mimicked in the Photoshop work. The video begins with Brady setting up a large canvas suitable for t-shirt printing and discussing the challenge of working with a small, blurry image that will be scaled up. He also covers the conversion of the image layer to a Smart Object for further manipulation and the application of filters.
🌈 Color Limitation and Image Adjustment
This paragraph details the process of limiting the image to four values: black, dark gray, light gray, and white. Brady uses the Hue/Saturation adjustment to remove color and then introduces a solid fill layer with an orange tone to set the base for the hard mix blending mode. The hard mix blending mode is explained as a way to restrict the image to red and yellow, in addition to black and white. Adjustment layers are used to assign gray values to the red and yellow, allowing for control over the balance of the four color values. The paragraph also covers the use of Shadows and Highlights adjustment to bring out detail in the image and the use of the Camera Raw filter for noise reduction and sharpening. The goal is to clean up the image while retaining sharp details, and the process of reintroducing noise and grain for a more illustrated look is discussed.
🎨 Colorization and Layering Techniques
In this part, Brady focuses on colorizing the image by replacing the gray values with specific colors. He creates new solid layers for different color tones, such as dark red for shadows and lighter orange for mid-tones, and uses blend if sliders to target and replace the specific gray values. The process involves adjusting the colors and using clipping masks to apply the new colors to desired areas of the image. Brady also introduces alternate colors for shadows and highlights, and uses the pencil tool to apply these colors precisely, avoiding anti-aliased edges for a crisp, pure color effect. The paragraph concludes with the addition of more elements and colors to the design, including a gray Radiance layer, a blurry version of the main subject, and typographical elements, all while adhering to the limited color palette.
👕 Creating a T-shirt Mock-up and Final Touches
The final paragraph covers the process of transferring the completed design onto a t-shirt mock-up. Brady uses the Select Color Range tool to isolate non-black pixels and invert the selection to copy the design onto a t-shirt blank. He discusses the use of blend if masks to apply grungy textures and the importance of keeping the texture as a live smart object for flexibility. The paragraph concludes with Brady offering to share the textures and t-shirt blank used in the video, and he encourages viewers to fine-tune the final image with additional adjustments and layers as needed. The video ends with a thank you note and a teaser for the next episode.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Photoshop
💡Screen printing
💡Retro
💡Palette
💡Smart object
💡Hard mix blending mode
💡Noise reduction
💡Unsharp mask
💡Colorization
💡Masking
💡Mock-up
Highlights
Introduction to creating retro 80s rock and roll screen print looks in Photoshop.
Capturing the spirit of the golden age of screen printing with innovation and experimentation.
Working with specific constraints in Photoshop similar to physical screen printing limitations.
Using a limited color palette, no anti-aliasing, and no blending of colors to mimic screen printing.
Starting with a large canvas size suitable for t-shirt screen printing.
Transforming a small, blurry image into a workable piece by scaling it up and applying filters.
Utilizing the 'hard mix' blending mode to limit the image to four values: black, white, red, and yellow.
Adjusting gray values of the image using a combination of adjustment layers and blending modes.
Applying filters and adjustments to enhance details and reduce noise while maintaining the desired aesthetic.
Reintroducing noise and grain to the image for a more authentic screen-printed look.
Colorizing the image by replacing gray values with chosen colors, using a specific blending if slider technique.
Adding secondary colors to shadows and mid-tones for more depth and variety.
Creating a mock-up of the final design on a t-shirt using select color range and blending techniques.
Using high-resolution textures and smart objects to add a grungy texture to the t-shirt design without baking it into a mask.
Finalizing the 80s rock t-shirt design and offering resources for further customization and exploration.
Transcripts
hey everyone Brady from texture Labs
here working in Photoshop today and
we're getting into some retro rock and
roll 80s screen print looks we're going
to try to capture a little bit of the
spirit of a certain golden age of screen
printing where there was a lot of
innovation a lot of experimentation both
with the artwork but also with the
technical process of screen printing it
screen printing of course a physical
process with certain technical
constraints so we're going to get into
Photoshop and we're gonna work under
some very specific kind of similar
constraints we're going to use a very
limited palette of colors no
anti-aliasing no blending of colors and
we'll see if we can capture a little bit
of that rock and roll Spirit let's get
into Photoshop and get started
all right I'm here in Photoshop and I'm
starting off with a fairly large canvas
size it's 39.05 by 3550 which basically
translates to 11 by 10 inches at 355
pixels per inch a pretty reasonable size
for a t-shirt screen print but I'm
starting off with a little bit of a
challenge I've got an image here that
was really tiny and I clipped it out and
scaled it way up so it's a little bit
blurry a little bit grainy but we'll see
if we can make it work I'm going to
right click and convert this layer to a
Smart object so we can apply some
filters and things and keep all those
settings live all right let's get
started with part one and here we're
going to limit the image to just four
values black then dark gray light gray
and white so I'm going to start by
removing all the color from this image
I'll just use Hue saturation bring the
saturation all the way down then I'm
going to create a solid fill layer I'm
going to set this to be somewhere in the
oranges with kind of a middle of the
road brightness and saturation to get
started alright then by the way I have
this pet peeve about unused mask so this
isn't necessary but unless I need a mask
I'm just going to right click and delete
it anyways I'm going to call this layer
hard mix and I'm going to set the
blending mode to hard mix if you haven't
already heard me talk about hard mix a
million times I'll link to a video that
gets into a little bit more detail but
the important part is that as long as
this solid is somewhere between red and
yellow the hard mix blending mode is
going to limit the image to just black
white red and yellow okay then I'm going
to follow up this hard mix layer with an
adjustment layer a black and white
adjustment layer and that's going to
assign gray values to the yellow and the
red so I'm going to change the Reds to
be 33 gray and the yellows to be 66 just
so they're a little bit more evenly
spaced out so the nice thing about the
setup is that by changing the color of
this hard mix layer we have all kinds of
control over the balance between these
four values it's pretty intuitive
shifting this around but obviously we
can change kind of the overall
brightness but then the more saturation
there is the more the mid tones we get
at if we introduce more red it's going
to shift the balance toward that darker
gray moving toward yellow is going to
bring out more of the lighter gray so
for now I'm just going to kind of
eyeball this and we will move on to part
two and here I'm going to go back to the
image layer and give it some treatment
some filters and things but it's nice to
do this once these layers are set up so
that I can treat the image in a way that
works well under these kind of minimal
conditions so there's not necessarily a
one size fits all treatment for images
but I'm going to walk through kind of a
cocktail of adjustments and filters that
generally do a pretty good job first of
all I'm almost always going to use these
shadows and highlights adjustment to
bring out lots of detail in the shadows
and kind of flatten out the image I'm
not using the highlights option at all
but I've got Shadows cranked all the way
up to 100. all right after that even
though I like some of the grunginess
that's kind of built into this image I'd
rather clean it up as much as I can and
then introduce any noise or grunge as a
more controlled deliberate effect so I'm
going to use camera raw filter to clean
up the image and I'm not messing with
any of the color or exposure settings
I'm just going into the detail section
and using the noise reduction settings
I've got noise reduction here all the
way up at 100 and then kind of just
pushing around the detail and even some
of these sharpening options to try to
get rid of all the noise and grunge but
leave as much of the sharp detail as I
can okay next up is unsharp mask and
when unsharp mask is purposely cranked
up really high it can give you all these
little outlines and sharp details that
create almost more of an illustrated
look next we're going to reintroduce
some of that noise and grain first by
adding some noise I'm going to use
uniform noise at about 15 and set to
monochromatic I'm going to follow that
with gaussian blur with the radius it's
just one pixel that's going to take that
sharp detailed noise and turn it into
more of a large chunky grain
and finally I'm going to double down on
the shadows and highlights adjustment
I'm going to use that again to flatten
out the image even a little bit more
sometimes this additional shadows and
highlights can be a little bit too much
but on this image I think it's working
pretty well okay we're ready for part
three and here we're gonna colorize the
image replacing these gray values with
colors so I'm going to leave the black
as black but let's replace this darker
gray value what I'm going to do is
create a new solid and for now I'm
thinking about skin tone so I'm going to
go with kind of a dark red then to make
this red basically replace that dark
gray I'm going to double click the layer
and in the blend if slider the very
bottom one for underlying layer I'm
going to drag the blacks up and the
whites down and find that very very
narrow spot in the Spectrum where the
dark gray is remember that darker gray
is 33 gray so it makes sense that it
would be right around here so now
whatever this solid color is it's
basically going to replace that darker
Shadow color all right then let's create
another color to replace the lighter
gray again I'm thinking about skin tones
so I'm going to do a lighter orange
color then I'm going to double click for
the blending options and Target the
lighter gray which was 66 gray so that's
going to be somewhere right around here
and I will call this layer mid-tones
color one then I'm going to create a
solid that will replace those bright
whites so kind of a light peach sort of
color and since this is replacing the
whites the blend if slider is going to
be all the way up here at the top so now
I've got these three colors and I'm
going to push them around a little bit
in relationship to one another but I'm
still not too worried about the exact
colors it's a little hard to get a sense
of when you're only looking at these
three colors and there's nothing for
them to be in a relationship to so let's
introduce some more colors first of all
I want to create an alternate Shadow
color maybe in some of these areas I
don't want the Shadows to be red I want
them to be more of a blue so what I'll
do is right over the Shadows color
create another solid sort of a bluish
color and it doesn't need any kind of
special blend diff settings or anything
all I need to do is alt or option click
between these layers to create a
clipping mask so this blue is now
sitting on top of the red and basically
filling it in with blue instead now I
actually do want to keep the mask on
this blue layer because I can use this
mask to decide where I want the blue
shadows and where I want the red Shadows
here's an important note though if I use
the paint brush tool in this mask even
at its hardest setting a paintbrush
still has these slightly anti-aliased
smoothed edges and that creates just a
little bit of a soft transition between
the colors and I don't want that I want
absolutely crunchy pure colors so
instead of the paint brush tool in The
Mask I'm going to use the pencil tool
it's basically the same as the paint
brush but it has no anti-aliasing it's
nice and sharp All or nothing and this
way I'm only introducing one color no
soft edges no purplish in between colors
so what I'm going to do is fill this
mask with black and then I'll just go
through the image and use this mask to
determine where I want this alternate
Shadow color to be then we'll do the
same thing for the mid-tones introduce a
secondary mid-tones color so this should
probably be a yellowish color that I can
use for the blonde hair I'll use a
clipping mask to put this on top of the
mid-tones color and then I'm going to
fill this mask with black and then just
use the pencil tool to decide where I
just want these yellow mid-tones finally
an alternate highlight color a pure
white so this is going to sit on top of
the highlights color solid and then I'll
use the pencil tool to decide where I
want these white highlights Okay so
we've now got two shadow colors two
mid-tones and two highlights and there's
nothing wrong with going back in and
adjusting these colors as you go maybe
you've got a reference image of an old
screen print that you could pull samples
from or you can just eyeball it like I'm
doing here in any case that's the
overall structure of this setup and that
brings us to part four where I can
continue to add elements underneath all
these adjustments and colors so first
I'm going to add a gray Radiance at the
bottom here to create kind of a fade out
I'll just set this layer to multiply and
then maybe we can create a big blurry
glowing version of Randy and I'm going
to give this some noise and a little bit
of blur to give it kind of a grainy look
I'll add some typography in here and
it's really just a matter of getting
into these masks and painting or filling
in with a pencil where and which one of
these colors you want to apply to each
element I'm going to drop some stars in
the backgrounds and give these kind of a
soft mask around the edges I can get
back into that highlights mask and make
some of these Stars pop out as white and
then after pushing things around and I
think I've established that these are my
six colors we can go to another step
where we start to move these colors
around and what I mean is we've got our
six colors and they're kind of paired
with the shadows and the mid-tones and
the highlights but there's no reason why
I can't decide well maybe I want to
reuse this blue in some of the
highlights so by duplicating this blue
solid and applying it in the highlights
I can make some of these Bright Stars
blue and I can copy this red into the
highlights and make some of the Stars
red additionally everything we've done
so far has been underneath these colors
and hard mix layers but of course we can
put things on top of these layers we
just have to make sure they're
restricted to this color palette so this
lightning bolt is going to sit on top
but I'm using a little bit of noise and
blur and then adding a threshold to make
sure it's just pure white since white is
one of our colors we're still good all
right finally let's take this design and
create a mock-up I'm going to copy this
over to a t-shirt blank and the way I'm
going to copy this is by using select
color range I'm going to set it to
select Shadows with the fuzziness and
the range at zero and then selecting
invert so that's going to select every
pixel that is not black then I'm going
to use command shift C to make a merged
copy paste this onto a t-shirt blank and
this would probably make a whole
separate video in and of itself but
we'll do kind of the rapid fire version
I'm going to use a little bit of blend
if to let through some of the blacks in
the background and then I want to use a
mask for some grungy texture here but if
you'll indulge me for a second I really
almost never use masks for this and I
feel like I should do this the way I
actually do this which is dragging in a
high resolution texture then using blend
if to knock out the blacks on that
texture then putting it in a folder and
setting the folder to zero fill and
knock out shallow what's the point of
that well it means we can use this
texture as a mask but we get to keep it
as a live smart object and avoid baking
it into a mask where you get one shot to
place it and get the contrast or the
scale just right you can also try out
different mask textures by putting them
in this folder in any case that's it our
80s rock t-shirt is done we can always
dial in this final image with camera raw
filter or some adjustment layers you can
grab any of the textures I've used in
this video or this t-shirt blank those
are free on the texture lab site which I
will link to below thanks for watching
and I will see you next time
thank you
[Music]
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