Designing layouts is an excellent marketing tool, especially when you want to show your work to potential clients. They allow the client to see your products “live” and show what the final result will look like. In this tutorial, I will explain how to create a business card layout from scratch using Adobe Photoshop smart objects. Let’s start!
The author used Adobe Photoshop CS6 Extended
1. Set up the document
Step 1
Create a document in Photoshop size 900x600 px. Fill the background in light gray (# c8c8c8). Select the background layer, right click on it and select Overlay options (Blending Options). Add a Gradient overlay (Gradient Overlay) – Black White (Black to White) by setting Opacity (Opacity) on thirty%.
Step 2
Choose a tool Rectangle (Rectangle Tool) and click on the canvas. In the dialog box that opens, create a white rectangle of size 1050x600 px. This is the size of a standard US business card. Right-click on the created layer and select Convert to smart object (Convert to Smart Object). Call it Front card.
Create a duplicate of our layer. To do this, right-click on the original layer and select Create a smart object by copying (New Smart Object via Copy). Name the second layer Back card. To distinguish between smart objects, add text to them. Write Front for one layer, Back for another.
Step 3
Click Ctrl + T, to perform Free transform (Free Transform) layer, which we will use to create a pack of business cards. To begin, right-click to rotate the business card, then select Perspective (Perspective) to “put” a card. If necessary, read more about perspective.
Step 4
Now let’s create a pack of business cards! Go to Overlay options (Blending Options) and add effect Shadow (Drop Shadow) with such parameters: Opacity (Opacity) thirty%, Bias (Distance) 0px, Swipe (Spread) four%, The size (Size) 5px. Click Ctrl + J, to copy a business card. Slide the copy up a bit. Continue to duplicate and slightly reposition each subsequent copy to create a burst effect. Try to vary the position of each business card for a more realistic look.
Step 5
Now select the layer Front and with the tool Free transform (Free Transform) adjust its perspective by “laying” the layer on the remaining business cards. Move the card a little higher so that the cards overlap each other.
2. Create a business card design.
Step 1
You can use this layout for any ready-made design business cards. Just click on the thumbnail of the smart object, and then copy and paste your new design into the window that opens. If you do not have a finished business card, let’s create it. Let’s start from the back. Click on Smart object thumbnail (Smart Object Thumbnail) to select the business card on top of the pack.
Step 2
Delete (hide) the text, copy and paste the image from the lesson materials. Duplicate the picture, scale the original so that the effect of the picture is obtained from a near distance, and make a copy a bit distant. Use the tool Eraser (Eraser Tool) to remove the white color that may appear when overlapping images. Save the changes in the smart object so that they appear in the original document.
This is how our layout looks like with the finished back part of the business card.
Step 3
To create the front side is very simple. First, select a rectangle, then create a gradient that changes from light gray to white. Use the tool Rectangle (Rectangle Tool) to create a bright pink strip at the bottom of the business card. It should be the same color as pink in our picture (# cd0079). Copy and paste the model’s sketch into the card; change the blending mode to Multiplication (Muliply). Then apply Free transform (Free Transform) (Ctrl + T) to scale the picture. Choose any font you like and write important contact information. For the lesson I used fonts. Rage italic, and Baskerville Old Face.
Step 4
Let’s go back to the layout. Finish the composition by adding a soft shadow under the top business card. Use the tool Eraser (Eraser Tool) to soften the corners of the shadow.
That’s all! Something like this should look like a finished layout. I hope you can use these techniques to create business cards that impress any customer!
