Step 1
Create a new document and fill it with a
Radial Gradient. Use a
dark gray(#161616) and White. The white will be the main light.
Step 2
With the
Rectangle Tool (U), create a rectangle with half of the height of the screen. It will serve as the floor. Use a very
dark red (#180a06).
Step 3
Add a new layer and create a marquee selection from the floor layer. You can do that by clicking with the right button of the mouse over the layers thumbnail. Then choose
Select Pixels. After that, select a
blue (#113e4b) for the foreground color and
black for the background. Then go to
Filter>Render>Clouds.
Step 4
Go to
Edit>Transform>Distort. Use this command to apply perspective to the clouds. Just move the vertices, as in the image below.
Step 5
Next add a bit of blur by going to
Filter>Blur>Gaussian Blur. Use
8 pixels for the Radius. You can even change the
opacity to 70%. If you want to make it darker, use the
Eraser Tool (E) and set the tools brush size to a
0 Hardness. Then erase some parts of the layer.
Step 6
Now it's necessary to repeat the steps we used to create the floor with the
Render Clouds. However, instead of using blue for the color, use a
dark pink (#552a58).
Tip: If you duplicate the blue layer it won't work because we need to use different clouds.
Step 7
Create a new layer exactly like the previous one, and make it the same height. Then select Black and White for the colors. With the
Gradient Tool (G) fill the layer with a
Radial Gradient. The white has to be in the center. Then change the
Blend Mode to Color Dodge.
Step 8
Now we create a new layer. Then select the
Lasso Tool (L). Next let's change the
Feather to 20px. Then create a selection, as shown below. Keep in mind that this element will be the light as well. After that, select
Black and White for the Background and Foreground colors. Then go to
Filter>Render>Clouds.
Step 9
Now lets add more blur. To do that go to
Filter>Blur>Gaussian Blur, and use
35 pixels for the
Radius. After that, the most important thing, change the
Blend Mode to Color Dodge. Then delete the part of the cloud that is not exactly on the floor, as I marked in the image below.
Step 10
Next we will create the background's light. First create a new layer. Then use
Black and a 50% gray for the colors. Then go to
Filter>Render>Clouds.
Let's add a Layer Style next by going to
Layer>Layer Style. First add a
Color Overlay with
(#84a7b8) for the color. Then change the
Blend Mode to Overlay. After that, select the
Gradient Overlay. Change the
Blend Mode again to
Overlay and use a gradient with these colors:
orange (#fba46f), pink (#cb8cd4), green (#346777). Use Linear for the Style and 180º for the Angle.
Step 11
Create a new layer on top of the others. Then with the
Lasso Tool (L) and a 20px Feather, create a selection, as shown below. Then using the same
Black and a 50% gray for the colors, go to
Filter>Render>Clouds. Then using the
Blur Tool, add a blur to some areas. After that, change the
Blend Mode to Color Dodge.
Step 12
Place a photo on the document. Then cut out the background and leave just the person. Use the tools you feel more comfortable with to accomplish this. I used the
Pen Tool (P).
Step 13
Create a new layer on top of the layer named "
dude." Fill it with
Black. Then go to
Layer>Create Clipping Mask. Next select the
Eraser Tool (E), and pick a
100px Master Diameter Brush with 0% Hardness. Then erase some parts of the layer, to add some highlights to the guy.
Step 14
Now let's add some lights in front of the guy. To do that create a new layer. Then choose a
regular brush (the circle one), use a big size like 200px, and use a 50% opacity. Then choose first
Orange and Brush where I marked
(1) in the image.
After that, choose a
Pink color. Then paint where the number
(2) is marked. Then change the
Blend Mode of this layer to Overlay. You can even add another layer with
Clouds. Then with the
Erase Tool delete almost everything. Be sure to leave some smoke details in front of him
( 3, 4, and 5).
Step 15
Create a new Folder and rename it to "
sparks and rays." Then change its
Blend Mode to Color Dodge. Now the layers we create will be placed inside this folder.
Next we create a new layer and choose the
Brush Tool (B). For the
color use white and select a regular brush with a Master Diameter of 13px and a Hardness of 0%. Then create
3 lines, as shown in the image below.
Tip: Press once, then hold the SHIFT Key and press where you want to be the end point of the line. That will create a straight line.
Step 16
You can create another layer or use the same layer, but I recommend you create a layer for each group of effects based on brush diameters sizes. So now use a smaller diameter, like
4px. Then create a few more rays of light, as in the image below.
Step 17
Create more rays of light using different brush diameters and opacities. Again, I recommend you create a new layer based on each new brush size used. This will keep the file organized.
Step 18
It's fairly simple to create some curved rays. First, add a new layer. Then create some lines. Be sure to use different
Brush Sizes, as I did. Then go to
Filter>Distort>Wave. Use
1 for the Number of Generators. Then set the Wavelength to Min 1 and Max 500. Then set the Amplitude to Min 5 and Max 200. Lastly, change the layer's
opacity to 50%.
Step 19
Next let's make the
Sparks in the image. First, create a new layer. Then select the
Brush Tool (B). Then go to
Window>Brushes to open the Brush Engine. For the
Brush Tip Shape use 100% for the Spacing. For the
diameter, start with
9px, though note that you can change that to create bigger sparks. Over the
Shape Dynamics use a
Size Jitter of 100%,
Min Diameter of 5%, and Minimum Roundness of 25%. Over the
Scattering, use 1000% for the Scatter and mark Both Axes. Then select
Other Dynamics and change the
Opacity Jitter to 50%.
Now select white for the color and paint some sparks in the image, as shown below.
Tip: Use the left and right Brackets on your keyboard to decrease and increase the Brush Diameter quickly.
Conclusion
Add more sparks to the image. You can place some really big sparks and some smaller sparks in front of the main figure. Many sparks are placed across the figures chest in the final image below. Although it might look like a complicated effect to create, it's actually quite simple. We use the same technique with the Clouds almost every time. Actually, that's the technique to create all sort of lighting effects.