Chain Links
Summary:
Creating chain links are great for web interface designs. You can use them as a way to hold up banners or other web elements in your website content. In this tutorial, we'll learn how to create intersecting chain links with a 3D appearance.
Step-By-Step Instructions:
1. Open a new document in Photoshop. Set the height/width to 500x500 px for a good size workable canvas.
2. Create a new layer, name it "Link 1".
3. Select the Eliptical Marquee tool and create an oval selection. Use the Paint Bucket tool and fill the selection with black.
4. Create another oval selection within the black oval you just created. Offset the oval selection to give a little perspective.
5. Click the Delete key. Click Ctrl+D to deselect. You should now have your link outline.
6. Repeat "Step 2" through "Step 5" to create additional links on separate layers.
7. After creating 3 links, you should have 3 separate layers in your layers palette for each link. "Link 1", "Link 2", and "Link 3".
8. Select the move tool and position each link so that they form a chain.
15. Right click the "Link 1" layer from the layers palette. Choose "Blending Options" from the pop-up list.
16. Set the properties for "Bevel and Emboss" to the following:
17. Set the properties for "Gradient Overlay" to the following:
18. Click OK to accept changes in Blending Options.
19. Create a new layer below "Link 1". Select the "Link 1" layer so that it is active, then click Ctrl+E to merge "Link 1" with the new layer below. (This removes the Blending Option settings that you applied to the link image).
20. Repeat "Step 15" through "Step 19" for the other two links.
21. You should now have three links that are 3 dimensional.
22. Click "Link 1" so that it is the active layer. Lower the opacity for that layer so you can see "Link 2".
23. Select the Eraser tool and erase the portion of "Link 1" so that the two links appear to be interconnected.
24. Set the opacity back to 100% after you are done erasing.
25. Repeat "Step 22" through "Step 24" with the other links and you should have your Intersecting Chain Link.
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