In this tutorial you will learn how make a tech style metal border. This effect is well suited to tech style avatars or forum sig pics (signature pictures).

 

On an open image make a new layer {Shft+Ctrl+N}. Name it Border and give it the following settings:

Press 'D' to set the colour palette to defualt, then select the 'Paint Bucket Tool'. With the "Border" layer selected, click inside your image to fill the layer with black. Now select the 'Polygonal Lasso Tool'. On the "Border" layer with the Polygonal Lasso Tool selected, draw the shape you want for your border. You can be as creative as you like with the shape. Once your happy with the shape, cut the selection {Ctrl+X}. You can also make use of the 'Rectangular Marqee Tool' and/or 'Ellipse Tool'. You should end-up with something like the image below:

At this point our border looks pretty plane, so lets give it that metal look:

In the layers palette, right-click the "Border" layer, select 'Blending Options' and give it these settings:

Drop Shadow:

Inner Shadow:

Outer Glow:

Inner Glow:

Bevel and Emboss:

Color Overlay:

Gradient Overlay:

Stroke:

If having all the effects showing in the layers palette bugs you just right-click the little triangle on the "Border" layer (in the layers palette).

Hopefully, you should now have something similar to this:

That's all there is to it!. Below I have put together a slightly more elaborate version using the same technique. I have added some content in the image to give an idea what you might expect from a final image:

I hope some of you budding Photoshopers find this tutorial useful.

Cache.

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