Create Professional Banners for Your Website – Photoshop Lesson

In the past, creating a company banner for your website usually meant you had to hire a graphic design artist, but now it is possible to create a banner for your website by using Photoshop.

The easiest way to create a website banner is in layers.

Step 1

Before you start creating the banner, you should think about how you want the banner to look. The more you plan ahead, the less time you are going to have to spend putting the banner together.

Step 2

Open up a new file with Adobe Photoshop. Adjust the size of the file until it is the same size as the banner you are going to place on your website. Most webmasters prefer banners that are 780px wide with a height of 120px, but you are free to choose any size you like.

Step 3

Create a layer named bgcolor. This is going to be the base of your banner. Go to your tool bar and locate the Paint Bucket Tool. Clicking the icon will cause a canvas full of color choices to appear on your computer screen. Clicking on your favorite color will cause your banner to fill with the same hue.

Step 4

Your next layer, which should be called insidecolor, will be the interior color of your banner. This is the color that will be used for text. Creating the inside color for your banner is actually a two step process. The first step involves you returning to your tool bar and clicking on the Rectangular Marquee Tool icon. This will cause a rectangle to appear on your banner. The second step is to utilize the Paint Bucket Tool in order to select the inside color. Since this is going to be the color that your business name and slogan will have, make sure you select a color that contrasts with your base layer.

Step 5

The third layer is called logobkg. This is when you are going to add your company logo to the banner. Use the Rectangular Marquee Tool to create a rectangle of space where you would like the logo to appear. Adjust the size of the rectangle so that your logo will be easy to spot.

Step 6

The fourth layer is going to be called logo. For this layer you will have to use custom shape tool. When you click this application you will be given access to Shape drop down menu, you are going to select the ornament option. Drag the ornament to your banner and place it directly in the middle of the layer you reserved for your company logo. Once you have selected a location for the logo, you can import the logo.

Step 7

The only thing left to do is adding your text. This is done by using the Horizontal Type Tool. After activating the Type Tool you type in your text and place it on your banner.

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