Create a Metallic Look with Adobe Illustrator CS2

CATEGORIES: Illustrator, Tutorials | Michael Hamm | May 24, 2006

Heavy Metal Tutorial

Over the years, I’ve seen a lot of Photoshop tutorials on how to create metallic lettering. Being a big fan of Illustrator, I sought to create the same type of lettering in an all-vector environment. While vector tutorials already exist for making text look metallic, they just weren’t up to the level I was looking for.

Using Illustrator CS2, we’ll create realistic metallic lettering. While gradients are used to create the metallic letter outlines, an opacity mask makes color changes to the letters themselves quick and painless. In doing research, I realized there are a number of different types of metallic effects one could reproduce. For my interpretation, I looked back in time a few decades to the amazing effects created by airbrushing.

STEP 1 Change Units to Points and Set Type
In a new RGB document, double-click the default layer in the Layers palette and name it “TEXT” in the Layer Options dialog. This tutorial uses points as the unit of measurement. To ensure you use the same measurements, select Illustrator (PC: Edit)>Preferences>Units & Display Performance from the menu bar. Set all Units to Points and click OK.

Select the Type tool (T) from the Toolbox and set some type. I recommend using a fairly thick, sans-serif typeface. I chose Univers Extra Black Oblique set at 85 pt. In the Character palette (Window>Type>Character), set the Tracking value to 100 to allow for space between letters.

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STEP 2 Create Outlines and Offset Path
Select the text with the Selection tool and create text outlines by choosing Type>Create Outlines. With the text still selected, choose Object>Path>Offset Path. In the dialog, enter 3 pt in the Offset field and select Round from the Joins drop-down menu. Click OK. Cut (Edit>Cut) the selected offset paths.
Command-Option-click (PC: Control-Alt-click) the Create New Layer icon in the Layers palette. Name this layer “BACKGROUND.” Paste into this layer using Edit>Paste in Front. To ensure you paste into the correct layer, click the hollow circle (Target icon) to the right of the layer’s name in the Layers palette to target it.

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STEP 3 Apply Gradient Fill to Offset Path
Apply a gradient fill to the offset paths using the settings shown. To change colors within the Gradient palette, double-click one of the two color stops below the color ramp. The Color palette should appear. If you see only one color slider, open the palette’s flyout menu (click the small circled arrow in the upper-right corner) and select RGB. The color stop on the left uses values of R:230, G:230, and B:230 while the color stop on the right uses R:80, G:80, and B:80. In the Gradient palette, set the Angle value to 90.

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STEP 4 Stroke Offset Path; Cut-and-Paste into New Layer
From the Stroke palette, apply a 2 pt stroke to the offset paths. Select Round Join from the palette’s Join options.

Select Object>Path>Outline Stroke to convert the strokes to regular objects. Once outlined, cut the strokes from the layer using Edit>Cut. Create a new layer above BACKGROUND (and below TEXT) named “OUTLINES” and paste the converted strokes into it using Edit>Paste in Front. The outlines will provide more definition for the metallic letters.

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STEP 5 Apply Gradient and Outer Glow to Outlines
With the outlines selected, apply a gradient fill to them using the settings shown above. Note the gradient Angle is set to 270.

The last thing to do with the outlines is to apply an Outer Glow effect. With the outlines still selected, choose Effect>Stylize>Outer Glow. Use the settings shown above. This effect will soften the edges of the outlines and provide contrast when the metallic text is used on background colors other than white.
As we head to the next step, lock both the OUTLINES and BACKGROUND layers by clicking in the second column of each layer in the Layers palette.

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STEP 6 Copy TEXT Paths into New Layer; Reverse Stroke and Fill
Select all of the paths on the TEXT layer and make a copy using Edit>Copy. Create a new layer, named “STROKE,” above the TEXT layer. Click the Target icon on the STROKE layer and use Edit>Paste in Front to paste the paths in the layer. Keep the paths selected and reverse the Fill and Stroke colors in the Toolbox by pressing Shift-X. This will leave you with a 1-point black stroke.
In the Stroke palette, select the Round Join option. Select Align Stroke to Inside from the palette’s Align Stroke options. The black stroke will give more definition to the letter shapes.

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STEP 7 Copy Text Paths; Fill with White; Cut with Knife
For this step, create a new layer below STROKE labeled “MASK.” Copy the text paths from the TEXT layer and paste, using Paste in Front, into the new layer. Change the Fill color of the paths to white. Lock all but the MASK layer for the following: In the Toolbox, select the Knife tool and cut completely across the middle of the letters. Due to the nature of the Knife tool, the cut path will not be straight and this is desirable for a more random appearance further on.

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STEP 8 Delete Lower Path; Add Gradient to Top Path
Target the MASK layer to select the cut paths and choose Object>Ungroup. Use the Selection tool to delete the lower portions of the text paths.

Select the remaining upper paths and regroup them using Object>Group. Make a copy using Edit>Copy. Paste the copy in front of the original paths using Paste in Front. Apply a standard white-to-black gradient fill to the copied paths only. This standard gradient can be found in the Swatches palette and is labeled “White, Black.” On the Gradient palette, enter a value of 90 in the Angle field.

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STEP 9 Make MASK Layer an Opacity Mask
Deselect all paths by clicking on an empty area of the Artboard. Next, choose Select>All from the menu bar. Open the palette flyout menu on the Transparency palette by clicking the circled arrow in the upper-right corner, and choose Make Opacity Mask.

While it may appear as though nothing changed, an opacity mask was created that will allow for easy color changes to the text later on. An opacity mask allows color to show through a white-and-black gradient. Black becomes transparent while white remains opaque. The Transparency palette reflects the change.

Lock the MASK layer before moving on.

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STEP 10 Create Highlights
Unlock the TEXT layer and select all of the paths. Make a copy using Edit>Copy.
Create a new layer named HIGHLIGHTS directly above the STROKE layer. Target this layer and paste, using Paste in Front, the copied paths into this layer. Lock the TEXT layer.

With the paths selected, choose Object>Path>Offset Path. Enter a value of –3 pt in the Offset field. Select Round from the Joins menu and click OK. Remove the original paths by choosing Select>Inverse, then press the Delete (PC: Backspace) key. This will leave only the offset paths.

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STEP 11 Copy Offset Paths; Nudge and Use Pathfinder Palette
Select the offset paths and choose Object>Compound Path>Make. Apply a white fill to the result. Next, make a copy of the paths and then paste using Paste in Front. Use either the keyboard arrow keys or the Selection tool to move the copied paths down and to the right from the original by a small margin.

Click the Target icon on the HIGHLIGHTS layer to select both the copied paths and the original paths. Open the Pathfinder palette, hold down the Option key (PC: Alt key), and click the Subtract from Shape Area command. The result creates highlights for the metallic lettering.

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STEP 12 Taper Blunt Ends of Highlights
This step is optional but I believe it makes for a stronger visual. Taper the blunt ends of the highlights using the Direct Selection tool (see above). Enable Smart Guides (View>Smart Guides) to make alignment of anchor points on the highlights easier.

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STEP 13 Create and Add Glints to Highlights
The finishing touch for the lettering is to add sparkle elements to the highlights. To create, select the Star tool in the Toolbox and click once on the Artboard. Enter the values shown above and click OK.

Extend and shorten some of the points using the Direct Selection tool to randomize its appearance. Reduce the sparkle element by double-clicking on the Scale tool. Enter a value of 5 under Scale in the Uniform section. Click OK. Apply a white fill to the sparkle. Place copies of the shape over the highlights. Rotate some of the shapes for further randomization.

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STEP 14 Color Customization
While the black metallic appearance is striking, you’ll probably want to change the color. The techniques incorporated throughout this tutorial make this quite easy.

To change the color, unlock both the TEXT and MASK layers. Target the TEXT layer by clicking the Target icon. Select a medium to dark color from the Swatches or Color palette. Next, target the MASK layer and select a related, but lighter color. In the example, I chose a dark red color for the text color and a lighter red color for the mask.

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