Repeating Patterns - Adding Colors and Gradients

8/6/2019 Repeating Patterns - Adding Colors and Gradients

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This Photoshop Tutorial 2011 Steve Patterson, Photoshop Essentials.com.

Not To Be Reproduced Or Redistributed Without Permission.2

Phshp Bascs: Repeang Paerns - Ang Clrs An Graens By Seve Paersn, Phshp Essenals.cm

Select Sl Clrfrom the top of the list of ll and adjustment layers that appears:

Choose Solid Color from

the top of the list.

As soon as you choose Solid Color from the list, Photoshop wil

pop open the Clr Pckerso we can choose the color we want to

use. This is the color that will become the new background color fo

the design. Im going to choose a medium blue. Of course, you can

choose any color you like, but if you want to use the same colors

Im using, look for the R, G and B options (which stand for Red

Green and Blue) near the bottom center of the Color Picker and

enter98 for the R value, 175 forG, and 200 forB:

Choose a color from the color pic ker to use

as the background color for the design.

Click OK when youre done to close out of the Color Picker, and if we look a

the design in the document window, we see that weve easily replaced the

white background with the new color:

The white background has

been replaced with blue.

If we look in the Layers panel, we can see whats happened. Photoshop has added a

solid color ll layer, which it named Color Fill 1, between the white-lled Background

layer and the black circle pattern on Layer 1. The reason we selected the Background

layer before adding the ll layer was because Photoshop adds new layers directly

above the layer thats currently selected and we needed the ll layer to appear abovethe Background layer but below the circle pattern. The circles remain black in our

document because theyre on a layer above the ll layer, which means theyre no

being affected by it:

A solid color ll layer now blocks the white

Background layer from view in the document.


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Wait a minute, what happened? Where did our circles go? Wheres the background color

we just added? Why is everything now light blue? If we look in the Layers panel, we see

the problem, and the problem is that Photoshop did exactly what we asked it to do. It

added a solid color ll layer named Color Fill 2, lled with the light blue color we chose in

the Color Picker, above the circles pattern on Layer 1:

We can use another ll layer to add a different color to the circle pattern itself. This time

we need Photoshop to add the ll layer above the circle pattern, so click on Layer 1 to

select it:

Click on Layer 1 in the Layers

panel to make it active.

The new ll layer appears

above the other layers.

Then once again click on the New Fll r Ajusmen Layericon

at the bottom of the Layers panel and choose Sl Clr from

the top of the list, just as we did before. Photoshop will again open

the Clr Pckerso we can choose the color we want to use. Il

choose a very light blue this time by entering 216 for the R value

231 forG and 239 forB:

Choose a light blue, or a

different color if you prefer.

Click OK to close out of the Color Picker, and just like that, our repeating circles

now appear in the new light blue color:

The document after adding

a solid color ll layer above

the circles pattern.


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Unfortunately, since the ll layer is sitting above all the other layers in the Layers panel, its blocking everything else from

view in the document, which is why all we see is light blue. We need a way to tell Photoshop that we want our new ll laye

to affect only the circles pattern on Layer 1 below it, and we can do that using whats called a clppng mask.

Make sure the Clr Fll 2 layer is active in the Layers panel (active layers are

highlighted in blue. Click on it to select it if for some reason its not active). Go up

to the Layermenu in the Menu Bar along the top of the screen and choose Creae

Clppng Mask:

Go to Layer > Create

Clipping Mask.

Double-click directly on the

thumbnail for the Color Fill 1 layer.

The Color Fill 2 layer will appear indented to the right in the Layers panel, telling

us that its now clipped to the contents of the layer below it, meaning that its now

affecting only the circle pattern on Layer 1:

An indented layer means

its clipped to the layer

directly below it.

And in the document window, we see the results we were expecting when

we added the ll layer. The black circles now appear light blue against the

darker blue background:

The same black and white

pattern, now in color.

Earlier I mentioned that ll layers give us more exibility than if we were to ll a

layer with Photoshops Fill command, and the reason is because we can change

a ll layers color any time we want! To change the color of a ll layer, simply

uble-clck directly on its humbnal in the Layers panel. Lets change the

color of our background. Double-click on the thumbnail for the Color Fill 1 layer,

which is sitting above the Background layer:

Changng Clrs


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This re-opens the Color Picker, allowing us to choose a different

color. Ill choose a cherry color this time by entering 204 for my R

value, 32 forG and 130 forB:

Choosing a new color

for the background.

Click OK to close out of the Color Picker, and the document is instantly updated

with our new background color:

The background color has

been easily changed.

Changing the color of the circles is just as easy. Simply double-click directly on the

thumbnail for the Color Fill 2 layer:

Double-click on Color

Fill 2s thumbnail.

This again re-opens the Color Picker. Ill choose a lighter pink by

entering 218 for my R value, 144 forG and 161 forB:

Choosing a new color

for the circle pattern.


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Click OK to close out of the Color Picker, and once again, the document is

instantly updated, this time with the new color for the circles:

Both the background

and circle pattern colors

have been changed.

Click on each of the two

ll layers and drag them

down onto the trash bin.

We can also add gradients to our pattern designs, and the steps are very similar. In fact

the only real difference is that instead of adding a Solid Color ll layer, we add a Graenll layer! Ill delete the two Solid Color ll layers Ive added by clicking on each one and

dragging it down onto the rash bn at the bottom of the Layers panel:

With the ll layers gone, the pattern reverts back to its original black and

white:

Lets colorize the circles with a gradient. First, click on Layer 1 to select it so the Gradient ll layer were about to add will

be placed above it (next page):

Ang Graens t Repeang Paerns

Black circles in front of a white

background once again.


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Select Layer 1.

Click on the New Fill or Adjustment Layer icon.

Remember what happened when we added the Solid Color ll layer above the circle

pattern? The entire document became lled with the color we chose until we xed the

problem using a clipping mask. Were going to need a clipping mask for our Gradien

ll layer as well, but this time, lets take a shortcut. With Layer 1 selected, hold down

yourAl (Win) / opn (Mac) key and click on the New Fll r Ajusmen Layericon

Choose Gradient from the list.

Choose a Graen ll layer from the list that appears:

Select the Use Previous Layer to

Create Clipping Mask option.

Holding down the Alt (Win) / Option (Mac) key while clicking the New Fill or Adjustment Layer icon tells Photoshop to pop

open the New Layerdialog box where we can set some options for our Gradient ll layer before its added. The option

were interested in is the one that says Use Prevus Layer Creae Clppng Mask. Click inside its checkbox to selecit. With this option selected, the Gradient ll layer will automatically be clipped to Layer 1 below it, saving us from having

to do it ourselves later:

Click on the gradient preview thumbnail.

Click OK to close out of the New Layer dialog box. The Graen Fll dialog

box will open, which is where we can choose the gradient we want to useClick on the gradient prevew humbnal:


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This opens Photoshops Graen Er. At the top of the dialog

box, in the Preses section, is a set of thumbnails showing previews

of the ready-made gradients we can choose from. Simply click on a

thumbnail to select the gradient. Each time you click on a thumbnail

youll see a preview of how the gradient will look in the documen

window. For example, if you want something really bright and colorful

you can try the Specrum gradient by clicking on its thumbnail:

Clicking on the Spectrum gradients

thumbnail to select it.

In the document window, we can see what the Spectrum gradient will look

like. Notice that only the circles themselves are being affected by the gradient

thanks to that Use Previous Layer to Create Clipping Mask option we selected

a moment ago in the New Layer dialog box:

The Spectrum gradient turns the black

circles into a rainbow of color.

By default, Photoshop doesnt give us many gradients to choose from

but there are other gradient sets available. To nd them, click on the

small arrw icon above the gradient thumbnails:

Click on the small arrow icon.

Clicking on the arrow opens a menu containing a list of additional gradient sets we can load in

Obviously we wont go through each one of them here since you can easily experiment with them

on your own, but as an example, Ill select the Clr Harmnes 2 set from the list:

Selecting the Color Harmonies

2 gradient set.

Once youve chosen a gradient set, Photoshop will ask if you want to

replace the current gradients with the new set or if you just want to

append them, which will keep the current gradients and add the new

ones to them. Choose Appen:

Add the new gradients in with the

current ones by choosing Append.


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The new gradients will appear after the original gradients in the

Presets area of the Gradient Editor. Just as with the originals, you

can select and preview any of the new gradients by clicking on their

thumbnail. Ill click on the Blue, Yellw, Pnk gradient to select it:

Clicking on the Blue, Yellow,

Pink gradients thumbnail.

The circle pattern is now colorized with the softer colors of the new gradient:

Once youve found a gradient you like for your repeating pattern, click OK to

close out of the Gradient Editor, then click OK to close out of the Gradient l

dialog box.

The new gradient gives the pattern

a softer, less intense look.

Double-click on the Gradient

ll layers thumbnail.

Just like we saw with the Solid Color ll layer, we can go back and change our

gradient at any time. If we look in the Layers panel, we see our Gradient ll layer

which Photoshop named Gradient Fill 1, sitting above the circles pattern on Layer 1Notice that its indented to the right, telling us that its clipped to Layer 1 below it. To

change to a different gradient, simply uble-clck directly on the Gradient ll layers

humbnal:

Changng the Graen

Click again on the gradient

preview thumbnail.

This re-opens the Gradient Fill dialog box. To change the gradient, click as

we did before on the gradient prevew humbnal:


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This will re-open the Gradient Editor, where you can either choose from any of the other currently

available gradients or you can load in a different gradient set. Ill click on the small arrow icon to

open the menu listing the other gradient sets and this time, Ill choose the Pasels set from the

list:

Selecting the Pastels gradient set.

Ill add these new gradients in with the others by selecting Appen when

Photoshop asks me, and the new gradient thumbnails appear in the

Presets area of the Gradient Editor. Ill select the Green, Purple, Blue

gradient this time:

Clicking on the Green,

Purple, Blue gradients

thumbnail to select it.

With my new gradient selected, Ill click OK to close out of the Gradient

Editor, then Ill click OK to close out of the Gradient Fill dialog box. The

circles have now changed to the new gradients colors:

Its easy to switch gradients at

any time with Gradient ll layers.

Of course, we dont have to stick with a white background. Here, Ive used the steps

we covered in the rst part of the tutorial to add a Solid Color ll layer above the

Background layer. I chose a medium purple from the Color Picker as the new color

for my background (R:85, G:80, B:129):

A Gradient ll layer colorizes the pattern while a

Solid Color ll layer now lls the background.


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And there we have it! Thats how easy it is to colorize repeating patterns with colors and gradients! Up next, well look at

how to create fun and interesting repeating patterns with Photoshops custom shapes!

And here, we see the combined efforts of the Gradient ll layer on the

circle pattern and the Solid Color ll layer on the background:

The nal result.

Fr mre Abe Phshp urals, vs Phshp Essenals.cm @ www.phshpessenals.cm !
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Repeating Patterns - Adding Colors and Gradients