Want to update your Facebook profile design? In this tutorial, we will create with you a seamless design of the profile photo and cover, which after installation will be one whole image. We will achieve this effect by superimposing one picture on another. Many try to create the same effect, but due to size problems, not everyone succeeds. Let’s see if we can do it.
1. Create a design template
Step 1
Create a new document with the following parameters:
- Width (Width) and Height (Height): is responsible for the dimensions of the document. We enter 1630 pixels for width and 734 pixels for height.
- Orentation (Orientation): responsible for the orientation of the page. Choose Landscape (Landscape).
- Color Mode (Color Mode): is responsible for the color mode of the document. Choose RGB.
- Resolution (Resolution): is responsible for the quality of the details on the raster image and is measured in pixels / inch or pixels / centimeter. Since our image is designed for the web, this parameter is not so important, so we leave the standard value of 72 pixels / inch (for printing, as a rule, 300 pixels / inch is used).
- Background Content (Background content): responsible for the background color. Choose White (White).
Step 2
Take Rectangle Tool
(U) (Rectangle), click the left mouse button anywhere on the canvas. In the window that appears, enter the size of 1630 x 605 pixels and click OK to create a rectangle.
Open the panel Window – Properties (Window – Properties) and set the X and Y axes to 0 pixels. Then install Stroke (Stroke) and Fill (Fill) on None (Not).
On the layers panel, double click on the layer name and call it “Cover Photo”.
Step 3
Again take Rectangle Tool (U) (Rectangle) and click anywhere on the canvas to create a rectangle with a size of 307 x 307 pixels. On the panel Properties (Properties) set the position along the X axis to 38, along the Y axis – to 341. Then the parameters Stroke (Stroke) and Fill (Fill) set to None (Not).
On the layers panel, double-click on a new layer with a rectangle and call it “Profile photo”.
Step 4
Right click on the “Profile photo” layer and select Duplicate Layer (Create a duplicate layer) (or press Ctrl + J) and click OK. Call the copy “Frame”.
Step 5
Double-click on the “Frame” layer (NOT on the name or thumbnail of the layer) to open the window Layer Style (Layer style).
Apply style Stroke (Stroke). With it, you can create a stroke of any object using a color, gradient or pattern.
Install Size (Size) by 8 pixels, Position (Position) on Outside (Outside), Fill Type (Stroke type) – to white color. Opacity (Opacity) leave at 100%, and Blend Mode (Blend Mode) – on Normal (Normal).
Now add Drop Shadow (Shadow). This style will add a shadow under the contents of the layer. Install Blend Mode (Blend Mode) on Normal (Normal), color to black, Opacity (Opacity) – by 22 pixels, Distance (Offset) – to 0, Spread (Swipe) – 100%, Size (Size) – 10 pixels. The remaining parameters are set as shown below.
Step 6
Select the layer “Profile photo”, take Rectangle Tool (U) (Rectangle) and click anywhere on the canvas to create a rectangle with a size of 1630 x 129 pixels. On the panel Properties (Properties) set the position along the X axis to 0, and along the Y axis – to 605. Then Fill (Fill) set to white, and Stroke (Stroke) – on None (Not).
Name this layer “Foundation”.
Step 7
Select the layer “Profile photo” and in the top menu go to Layer – New Fill Layer – Solid Color (Layer – New fill layer – Color). Click OK and select the fill color. Call this layer “Fill”.
Step 8
Next, in order to edit the shape of the rectangle, we will add additional anchor points for it.
To do this, select the layer “Base” on the layers panel. Take the tool Path Selection Tool
(A) (Contour selection) and click on the rectangle on this layer to activate the outline.
After selecting a contour, all existing reference points will appear on it. The selected reference point looks like a square completely filled with color, and a non-highlighted one looks like an empty square.
Activate Add Anchor Point Tool
(Pen + (add anchor point))
To add a new reference point, place the tool on the contour and click the left mouse button. Add four new points, as shown below:
Step 9
Since when adding a pivot point it appears with guiding antennae, and we do not need them, we must get rid of them. For this we take Convert Point Tool
(Angle) and click on all four points.
Step 10
Take Direct Selection Tool
(A) (Partial selection).
Grab the second point on the left and move it below the first one. Do the same with the third point on the right. As a result, we cut out a part of the rectangle under the profile photo. Now this rectangle should look like this:
Step 11
Double-click on the layer “Base” (NOT on the name or thumbnail of the layer) to add a layer style Drop Shadow (Shadow). Install Blend Mode (Blend Mode) on Normal (Normal), Opacity (Opacity) – 35%, color to black, Angle (Angle) – 90 degrees, Distance (Offset) – by 0 pixels, Spread (Swipe) – 40% and Size (Size) – 200 pixels.
Step 12
Now we need to edit the styles of the “Foundation” layer separately from the layer itself. To do this, we must transfer this style to a separate layer. Click on the “Base” layer, then right-click on the layer style Drop Shadow (Shadow) and in the context menu select Create Layers (Form layers). As a result, the style should appear as a separate layer under the main one.
If as a result you get the message “Some aspects of the Effects cannot be reproduced with layers”(Some components of the effects are not reproduced when using layers), then ignore it and click OK.
Step 13
On the layers panel, select the layer with the shadow created above. In the English version of Photoshop, it will be called “Base’s Drop Shadow”, in Russian – “Shadow Base”. Without switching from this layer, hold down the Ctrl key and click on the thumbnail of the “Frame” layer to load its selection.
Step 14
Our task is to remove the shadow inside the selection. Move on Edit – Cut (Edit – Cut) (Ctrl + X), then deselect Select – Deselect (Selection – Deselect Selection) (Ctrl + D).
Step 15
Select the layers “Shadow Base”, “Base” and “Frame”. To select several layers at once, we first click on the “Frame” layer, then hold down the Shift key and click on the “Shadow Base” layer.
Next, click the right mouse button on one of the selected layers and select Merge Layers (Merge layers) (Ctrl + E).
Step 16
It’s time to save the current result. Move on File – Save As (File – Save As). In the drop-down list, select the PSD format. Enter the file name (for example, Design profile.psd), select the save location and press the button Save (Save).
Facebook profile design template is ready! Next, I will tell you how to add a picture and save files ready for download.
2. How to add a picture to a template
Step 1
Go to the layers panel on the right side of the program and look at the current layers:
- “Frame”: this layer is a template for this page on Facebook, with its help we will achieve the perfect placement of photos and immediately see what result awaits us after installing graphics on Facebook.
- Fill: This layer contains a color fill and is a temporary placeholder for the profile and cover photo. We will post a picture above this layer.
- Profile Picture: With this layer we will cut out the photo for the avatar and save it.
- “Cover Photo”: using this layer we will cut out the image for the page header and save it.
Step 2
Choose any snapshot that we want to insert into the template. Alternatively, you can take this (https://www.pexels.com/photo/architecture-bridge-buildings-business-422870/). Open it in Photoshop.
Try to find a large enough photo, at least 2000 pixels wide, so that it clearly fits the size of the template without loss of quality.
Take a photo with proper attention. The avatar will be in the lower left corner of the image. In the picture from the lesson, the person is in the lower left corner of the composition, which facilitates our positioning. In a good photo, the main object of the composition should be small or be at a distance. The ideal option would be a picture with a landscape in the background.
Step 3
In Photoshop go to the tab with an open photo. Using the command Select – All (Selection – All) (Ctrl + A) select the entire document. Then press Ctrl + C to copy the selected area.
At the top of the program switch to the tab with the design template. On the layers panel, select the “Fill” layer so that it is active, and press Ctrl + V. As a result, we paste the copied image under the “Frame” layer.
Step 4
Click on the layer with the inserted image to make it active.
Move on Edit – Free Transform (Edit – Free transform) (Ctrl + T). As a result, a special transformation frame will appear at the edges of the photo.
To change the scale of the picture, pull the anchor points of the frame. Holding down the Shift key, we will proportionally change the scale. If you move the cursor to the nodal point, it will turn into a double arrow.
To move the object to the transformation mode, simply click with the mouse inside the frame and, without releasing the button, move it.
To rotate, move the cursor outside of the transformation frame so that it becomes a double curved arrow, and click to rotate the object. If you hold down the Shift key, then the pitch will be 15 degrees.
You can also reflect the photo by going to the menu. Edit – Transform – Flip Horizontal (Editing – Transforming – Flip Horizontally).
After each transformation of the raster image (as opposed to vector), the image becomes less clear. We can minimize the loss of quality if we perform all the necessary transformation at a time, that is, first adjust the scale, rotation, etc., to get the final result, and only then confirm the changes by pressing the Enter key.
Make sure the picture fills in both the profile photo and the cover photo.
Step 5
When finished with the placement of the picture, click on the small eye icon to the left of the name of the layer “Frame” to hide it.
3. Save profile photo and cover.
Step 1
Hold down the Ctrl key and click on the thumbnail of the “Profile Picture” layer on the layers panel. As a result, a selection of a square area with a size of 307 x 307 pixels will appear, where we will insert the avatar.
Move on Image – Crop (Image – Crop) to cut the image to the shape of the selection.
Step 2
Then go File – Export – Save for Web (File – Export – Save for Web) (for Photoshop CC 2015 and higher) or File – Save for Web Device (File – Save for web and devices) (for older versions of the program).
In dropdown menu Format (Optimized image format) choose JPEG. On the menu Quality (Compression quality) choose Very High (Very high).
When finished, press the button Save (Save). Enter the name for the profile photo and click OK.
Step 3
Go to the panel Window – History (Window – History). In this panel, select the previous action to go back one step. Instead, you can use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + Alt + Z.
Step 4
Hold down the Ctrl key and on the layers panel click on the thumbnail of the “Cover Photo” layer. As a result, a rectangular area of 1630 x 605 pixels will be selected. Move on Image – Crop (Image – Crop) to cut the picture.
Step 5
After cropping go File – Export – Save for Web (File – Export – Save for Web) (for Photoshop CC 2015 and higher) or File – Save for Web Device (File – Save for web and devices) (for older versions of the program).
In dropdown menu Format (Optimized image format) choose JPEG. On the menu Quality (Compression quality) choose Very High (Very high).
When finished, press the button Save (Save). Enter the name for the profile photo and click OK.
4. Install Facebook Graphics
Step 1
To add or change a profile photo, do the following:
Go to the page and direct the avatar area. Push Update Profile Picture (Update profile photo). Now you can:
- Upload a photo from your computer.
- Make a new photo.
- Select uploaded or tagged photo.
Choose Upload a photo from your computer (Upload photo) and find the saved profile photo. Do not crop your photo on Facebook! Bottom left click Skip Cropping (Skip pruning) and save the result.
Step 2
To add or change a cover photo, do the following:
- Go to the page.
- Aim at the area with the cover.
- Next, click on the button Update Cover Photo (Update cover photo) or Add Cover Photo (Add a cover photo) if there is none.
- Choose Choose from my photo (Choose from my photos) and find the desired picture on the computer.
- By selecting a photo, you will have the opportunity to change its position by pulling the picture with the mouse. In no case do not move the picture at this stage!
- Push Save Changes (Save changes).
Remember that the size of the pictures created in this lesson is proportional to the size of the cap and avatar in Facebook, so there is no need to trim or change the position of the pictures.
Facebook pages and mobile version
Unfortunately, Facebook has changed the structure of the pages, so the pictures created in the lesson will not work on the pages. Now the profile photo is displayed to the left of the cover. At the moment, create a seamless design only for a personal profile.
The same problem with the mobile version of the site. If you go to any Facebook page from iPhone, you will see that the cover is displayed differently from the computer — only the central area is visible on the smartphone, and the profile photo is in the center.
Nevertheless, we can modify our images so that they look good on mobile devices.
To avoid problems with the picture, do not post important information to the right of the profile photo, especially if the majority of your visitors use the mobile version of the site.
Congratulations, we are done!
Great job! Seamless design for Facebook is ready. Try experimenting and add interesting details to make the final result look even brighter and more attractive. I hope you have learned something new for yourself and take advantage of the knowledge gained in future projects. Feel free to share your result below in the comments!
Do not want to spend time on the lesson? I propose to see my plugin for Photoshop (paid), with which you can achieve the same effect in seconds. Seamless Identity Action for Facebook – plug-in for Photoshop to create an effective profile design on Facebook.
