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From time to time you'll see them used in designs: tentacles, stalagtites (or stalagmites) or simply cool-looking wavy things. It doesn't matter what you call them, as long as you know how to make them easily.
For this tutorial I'll be using Adobe Photoshop CS3, but this should be possible in other programs or older version of Adobe Photoshop as well.
Shortcuts used:
- duplicate layer: Ctrl + J
- new layer: Ctrl + Alt + Shift + N
- deselect: Ctrl + D
- free transform mode: Ctrl + T
Start with a blank canvas.
Create a new layer ( ) and select the Rectangular Marquee Tool ( ), then draw a rectangle on the new layer.
Select the Gradient tool  and pick the "copper" preset
Draw, while holding shift, the gradient from the left edge of the selection to the right (or vice versa) to fill the selection with the gradient.
Press Ctrl + D to deselect, then press Ctrl + T to go into Free Transform mode.
While pressing Ctrl + Alt + Shift, drag one of the top corner handles towards the other to transform the rectangle into a triangle.
Press Enter to confirm the transformation, then rename the layer (I'm calling it "tentacle" because I'm original like that).
Duplicate the tentacle layer (Ctrl + J), then go to Filter > Distort > Shear.
Click on the vertical line to add an anchor point and then drag it off to the left or right to distort the "cone" in the same direction.
Add another couple anchor points and drag them off to the sides to get a nice wavy look.
When you're happy with your distortion, click OK to apply it.
Repeat by making new duplicates of the "tentacle" layer and adjusting the Shear line for every new tentacle.
If you've found your distortion line is messed up, click the Defaults button to revert back to the straight vertical line, or hold Alt to turn the Cancel button into a Reset button to return to the line as it was when you first opened the Shear dialog.
Now hide the original "tentacle" layer. Don't delete it in case you need to use it later to add another tentacle.
Select one of the tentacles' layer, go into Free Transform mode (Ctrl + T) and move the tentacle to the side, optionally scaling it down or reducing the width a little.
Repeat this for every tentacle until you like the composition.
To give the file a bit more of a futuristic look, add some layer effects ( ) like a color overlay (blend mode: color) and an outer glow.
 
Optionally, you can add a Plastic Wrap (Filter > Artistic > Plastic Wrap) to each of the tentacles, or use curves adjustment layers to increase the contrast between the highlights and dark parts.
In the image below I applied the plastic wrap, then added a contrast increasing Curves adjustment layer to each of the tentacles, then set the Curves adjustment layer's blend mode to Color Burn and made the background layer black.
This last image is the same as the last one, only the layer styles adjusted to orange and red for (resp.) the Color Overlay, Outer Glow and Inner Glow.
Be sure to experiment with the various gradient options to fill the selection with at the start, and don't be afraid to try different layer adjustment settings and blend modes. Experimentation is the best way to learn new tricks :) |
