The Magical Crystal Ball Designing with Grungy Effects of Black and White

In this tutorial we will learn how to create some cool effects, really easy and simple to do it. We will create an Magic Crystal Ball on the hands.


Let’s create a new file (File>New) of 1280×1024 px and 72 dpi, applying there the Paint Bucket Tool (G) to give it black color.



Next we’ll download a set of brushes for Adobe Photoshop, named: Brushset_VI_by_mystcART and Vector_Flower_Brushes_by_Yasny_chan. Create a new layer and use here the brushes that we have to represent an ornament. The color chosen in this case is #89C5DF





Click several times more to repeat the same ornament:



Select then the Brush Tool (B) (Opacity 50%) to dark out the picture’s borders, applying black color.





Find in Internet a picture having represented on it the human hands. For this tutorial, I used this picture from SXC. I would like to thank the author of this picture.



Cut them out and insert the element on our picture:



Make a mouse click on the bottom part of the layers’ panel on the selection Create new fill or adjustment layer>Hue/Saturation




Press Alt button and make a mouse click between the effect’s layers Hue/Saturation and the hands’ layer (on the layers’ panel).





Create a new layer and use there a standard brush with the Opacity of 20% to represent a kind of luminescence. Apply the brush above the fingers and between them. The brush’s color is #37698C





The layer’s parameters: Blending mode-Color Dodge



Press Alt button while clicking between the luminescence layers and the previous layer on the layers’ panel:





Next we’ll choose the Ellipse Tool (U) to represent a circle which must be placed under the hands’ layer:



Set the next shown parameters by making a mouse click on the layer we work with, on the layers’ panel: Fill 0%, Blending Options>Outer Glow


Blending Options>Inner Glow



Blending Options>Gradient Overlay



Gradient’s parameters:



Blending Options>Pattern Overlay (select the pattern out of the set, entitled Texture Fill 2)



Create again a new layer (Create new layer) where we’ll use the brushes out of the downloaded set Vector_Flower_Brushes_by_Yasny_chan and the color #476974. This new layer should be situated lower than the layer containing the circle and the hands (on the layers’ panel).





The layer’s parameters: Blending mode-Multiply



Create a new layer and use there the Rectangular Marquee Tool (M) to represent a cross element of white color. Firstly we’ll represent a line and then press SHIFT button while creating the second one with the same instrument. The marked zone will be filled with white color, applying the Paint Bucket Tool (G) for this operation. This layer needs to be placed lower than the hands’ layer, but above the ball’s layer:



Select for the layer containing the white cross the option Filter>Distort>Twirl



…and Filter>Blur>Motion Blur





Make a mouse click on the same layer on the bottom part of the layers’ panel on Add a Mask selection and select there the Brush Tool (B) of black color to erase the ball’s coming out parts of the ornament.



Select the next indicated parameters for the same layer: Blending mode-Overlay
Blending Options>Color Overlay




Make a copy of the recently made layer and select the Free Transform option to displace a little the copy to the right side and turn it around by its axe. Select different parameters this time, those demonstrated below: Blending Options>Color Overlay




Next we’ll try to represent several highlights on the ball, using this time the Ellipse Tool (U). This layer will be situated above the previous layers, but lower than the layer containing the human hands:



The layer’s parameters: Fill 0%, Blending Options>Gradient Overlay



Gradient’s parameters:





Create a new layer and select the Elliptical Marquee Tool (M) to mark out that part of the circle which will be processed with the Paint Bucket Tool (G) and the color #89C5DF



Choose for this layer the selection from here: Filter>Blur>Motion Blur





Make a mouse click on the same layer on the lowest part of the layers’ panel on Add a Mask selection and then choose the Brush Tool (B) of black color to erase several zones, belonging to the hands and the ball.
The layer’s parameters: Blending mode-Screen



On the last stage we’ll represent a new layer (Create new layer) to apply there the standard brush of black color, with the Opacity of 20% to dark out the hands on their left and right sides.





Finished!