I was thinking to share my knowledge of ikoni making using Adobe Photoshop to my Marafiki here in Fanpop. So I decided to write it down.

First of all, although every in Adobe Photoshop the tools placement are different, but the tools I'm using are common and I hope wewe already know them. But don't worry, I also include the tools' shortcut. In this article, I'm using Adobe Photoshop CS5.

Let's begin!



STEP 1: Choose a picture wewe want.



How to open an image: click 'File' and then click 'Open' au a shortcut CTRL+O. wewe can use any image from your computer.

STEP 2: Adjust the image wewe use.



In order to make your ikoni zaidi beautiful, add your image's brightness au contrast kwa clicking 'Image' then click 'Adjustment' and click 'Brightness/Contrast'. It is up to wewe whether wewe want your ikoni to be light au dark, contrast au less contrast.

Now, the colour of the image. wewe can adjust it kwa clicking 'Image' then 'Adjustment' and 'Hue/Saturation (CTRL+U)' au 'Color Balance (CTRL+B)'. wewe can adjust it into whatever wewe like.

STEP 3: Crop the image using 'Crop Tool (C)'



Next, wewe have adjusted your image, it's time for wewe to crop it square. Click the box besides 'Width' then write down '200 px'. Do exactly the same thing to the right box besides 'Height'. wewe can write any size wewe want actually, but we are making an ikoni now and I usually create a 200x200 px sized icon.



Drag your panya, kipanya au mousepad to crop it. wewe can use the keypad too to songesha the cropped area.




STEP 4: Decorate your icon!



Add a new layer kwa clicking 'Create a new layer'. Click 'Layer 1'. That means wewe are going to fill that layer.



Then click 'Brush Tool (B). wewe are able to change the brush's size/hardness and even into other shape. wewe can download new brushes in the internet. Don't get mistaken with 'Eraser Tool (E)'.



Change the brush colour too into any colour kwa clicking 'Set foreground color' as wewe like au even the brush's shape into other form.



Then click the left button of your panya, kipanya au mousepad to add colour on your icon. wewe can change the mode of the layer into 'Overlay', 'Hard Light', au anything wewe like.



wewe can add another layer, add brush into your icon, and also change it's mode. If wewe don't like it, wewe can futa the layer kwa clicking the 'dustbin' button besides the 'Create a new layer' button.



Save your icon. It's format will automatically turn into PSD.

STEP 5: Flatten your ikoni and change it into JPG au PNG format.




After wewe have satisfied with your decoration, flatten your ikoni kwa clicking 'Layer' then 'Flatten Image. Then click 'File' and then click 'Save as... (SHIFT+CTRL+S)'. Change it's format. wewe can change it into any format that are available in your Photoshop. picha are usually formatted JPG au PNG.



Do NOT save your ikoni after wewe have flattened it. au else, wewe will lose your added layers and it will be harder to re-edit in case wewe want to.

*note: I added 'Vibrance' in my icon. Older versions from Adobe Photoshop CS5 have no 'Vibrance'. But that's no big deal to make your ikoni lovely.

So, that is my secret on how to make a lovely ikoni in an easy way! Try it and be as creative as wewe can!