Create Fantastic Stone Textures in Photoshop
In this tutorial, I will show you a quick and easy way to make a realistic stone texture with the help of the Liquify Filter. This tutorial is written for users who have a basic understanding of the tools and techniques commonly used in Photoshop. Enjoy!
Quick Nav:
The Final Image
This is what we will be creating:
Step 1: Setting Up the Document
Create a new Photoshop Document (File>New) at any size with a black background. For this tutorial, I created one 550px x 300px (72 dpi).
Step 2: Making Dots
Make sure your foreground color is set to white. Now, select a nice-sized brush and set its hardness to 100% (To find the hardness slider, just open the Brush Preset picker by clicking on the brush icon at the top of the screen, right below the main menu bar). Start making dots.
Step 3: Creating More Dots
Use the ‘[' and ']‘ keys to change the brush size up or down and continue to fill in the dots until they take up the entire document.
Keep Going…
Watch where you put those dots!
It is important that no dot overlaps another. There must be black showing through all the way around every dot.
Step 4: Preparing to Liquify
In the main menu, select Filter>Liquify. In this window, you will use the preset brush type (which should be the Forward Warp Tool). All you need to do is change the size by adjusting the slider on the right. Adjust the size to 95.
Step 5: Liquifying
On all the large dots, click inside the white space and drag your brush slightly over thier edges to ‘warp’ their shapes.
Doing it right!
It is important that you use a brush size smaller than the dot you are working on and that your brush is entirely within the dot before you click tp warp the shape. This limits any unwanted blurring of the edges.
Step 6: More Liquifying
Continue with the rest of the dots, adjusting the size of the brush to fit that dot. Ultimately, you’ll want to ‘push’ the dots closer together until the black in-between becomes just a thin line. Click ‘OK’ when you’re done.
Step 7: Naming Layers
Double Click the ‘Background’ layer in the Layers panel to bring up the Layer Properties and rename it ‘Stone’.
Step 8: Duplicating the Layer
Duplicate the ‘Stone’ layer (Ctrl⁄Cmd + J). Rename the new layer ‘Shadow’ and set it to Multiply.
Step 9: Adding a Guassian Blur
In the main menu, go to Filter>Blur>Guassian Blur. Set the Guassian Blur to 3.5 and hit OK.
Your image should now resemble this:
Step 10: Adding Layer Styles
Double click the ‘Stone’ layer to open up it’s Layer Styles. Add a Color Overlay and a Pattern Overlay with the following settings.
What’s That Pattern?
The pattern used is called ‘Shredded Plastic’. If you cannot find it, then, in the texture selection drop down, click the arrow and append the Texture Fill 2 set.
Your image should now resemble this:
Step 11: Adding Highlights
Create a New Layer, name it ‘Highlights’. Use a small, white brush with 0% hardness to add some highlights.
Here are the brush strokes on a black background (for illustrative purposes).
Here is the image with the highlights added:
Step 12: Adjusting the Highlights
Set the transparency to 70%.
Step 13: Adding Low Lights
Create another New Layer and name it ‘Low Lights’. This time, use the color black with a 90% hardness to add low lights.
Here are the brush strokes on a white background (for illustrative purposes).
Sloppiness Counts
Dont try to be neat. Be more jagged in your strokes to simulated that coarse stone contours.
Here is the image with the low lights added:
Step 14: Adjusting the Low Lights
Set the ‘Low Lights’ layer to 20%.
85 Comments
nice tutorial, just what I was looking for. thanks.
Flag as inappropriatePhotoshop tutorials, from beginner to advanced. photo manipulation, icon design, text effects, interface, layout, painting, photo effects, psd tuts, maxon cinema 4d, designing.
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good. very good.
Flag as inappropriatevist for basic training of photoshop
Flag as inappropriatehttp://training4free.co.cc/Basic%20training/Basic%20training.html
Nice tutorial. Now I can try to use these techniques in other textures as well.
Flag as inappropriateawesome tutorial, specially for a beginer, thanks
Flag as inappropriateI like it .. thanks
Flag as inappropriateHow do I change the transparency??
Flag as inappropriateVery Cool. I learned a lot about some things I didn’t even know that I needed to know. Everyday you learn something new and it is awesome. Thank you for taking the time to do it
Flag as inappropriateAwesome tut. , now i can make my own textures!
Flag as inappropriateThat’s great! I love finding ways of creating natural objects without the need for stockphotos! Many thanks for this tut
Flag as inappropriateone of the most detailed tutorial i’ve seen, thx
Flag as inappropriatei love photoshop
Flag as inappropriateSo wonderfully simple and beautiful… Thanks for that tutorial!
Flag as inappropriateGreat tutorial man…was even more simple….Definately gona visit Tutorial9 more often…
Flag as inappropriateVery nice tutorial.
Flag as inappropriateI like it .. thanks
Flag as inappropriateThis was really nice and not so complicated to do. My question now is how to make this letters with this rocks background that we have made?
Flag as inappropriatethanks a lot!
Excellent post. Thanks25
Flag as inappropriateExcellent post. Thanks18
Flag as inappropriateamazing !!!! look so real, and as sample like that…
Flag as inappropriategreat job. good tip. thx.
Excellent post. Thanks13
Flag as inappropriateits very nice. Great post
Flag as inappropriateNice tutorial. Learned about liquifying and more techniques.
Flag as inappropriateGreat work, and very useful. Thank you for sharing!
Flag as inappropriatethank for tutorial
Flag as inappropriatenice tutorial!
Flag as inappropriateit took me much time getting it right~
it was great
Flag as inappropriate..
Flag as inappropriateI like how the stones are semi-realistic. This technique could easily be incorporated into an illustration. For example, I could really see Humpty Dumpty sitting on top of a wall made with this stone texture.
Flag as inappropriateLearned a great harvest
Flag as inappropriateLike it!
Flag as inappropriateTHAT was AWESOME… very simple, very effective! I actually used your technique to design a coffee cup that looks like a stone well for a logo conceptual drawing! Wish I could post it for you.
Flag as inappropriateTHANKS!
(I WILL be visiting this site more often!!)
It’s really really great !
Flag as inappropriatethanks,this is very useful,
Flag as inappropriatethx, super tutorial. i´ll try it ;)
Flag as inappropriateCongratulation ! vary good, simple idea
Flag as inappropriateThanks for the tut. Was really easy to do :)
Flag as inappropriateI love the technique. thanks!
Flag as inappropriateI am not sure my reply got posted, so I try again. Someone asked on how to put the image into the text. I wrote a quick tutorial just for this one. Have a look @ http://websitelesson.com/tutor
Flag as inappropriateJ.
Thankful!
Flag as inappropriateCool tutorial. Thanks, Love this site!
Flag as inappropriateWow, thanks a lot man, awesome tutorial!!!
Flag as inappropriatesweet, just replicated this one, it works well!
Flag as inappropriateWell thought!! I must say cool techniques and a very simple and easy to understand tutorial. Cheers :)
Flag as inappropriateawesome,Thanks!
Flag as inappropriatethis looks fantastic man i’ve learn alot from it bye
Flag as inappropriateHow did you get the font to have the stones on it? Thats the only part I dont get when I make it a texture it doesn’t work right
Flag as inappropriatenice ‘n simple. Thx
Flag as inappropriateWhat is the font you used banner with the stones you overlayed? Thanks.
Flag as inappropriateAmazing
Flag as inappropriateFantastic tutorial. I love this web! Thanks
Flag as inappropriateNice. :)
Flag as inappropriateBrill! Just one little thing though. You have ‘Download’ spelled incorrectly on the big green download button. :)
Flag as inappropriateThanks, cool techniques.
Flag as inappropriatereally latest work here with some new techniques. thanks
Flag as inappropriateNice and easy tutorial. Thanks! ;)
Flag as inappropriatenice way to create stones ;) i’ve never thought of it !
Flag as inappropriateI thought the preview image used a picture of real stones! Amazing tutorial! ;)
Flag as inappropriateGood idea! But I think you could have spent more time on creating a more realistic texture on the stones.
Flag as inappropriateThis tut. is very useful. It’s so easy yet implementable.
Flag as inappropriateGreat simple tutorial :)
Flag as inappropriateDamn, that looks relatively easy! I love tuts like these, simple to use and easy to implement.
Flag as inappropriate