Due to popular demand, another shadowing tutorial!! I used to have Photoshop Elements and was so excited when I upgraded to Photoshop CS4 earlier this year. The added benefits were well worth the upgrade (and I got a ridiculous student discount so I didn’t spend a fortune)! I absolutely LOVE the advanced shadowing options that CS4 offers over PSE.
So, first I’d love to give you all a set of SHADOW STYLES I just saved!! 
FOR FREE!!!
You can snag them here.
Please feel free to use them on your scrapbook pages/projects and you may use them for commercial use in the following ways: to create pre-shadowed elements for your kits, on quick pages, and on your shop previews!! You absolutely may not sell them as styles or distribute them. K? Cool. I have no idea what versions of PS these will work in… I’m betting AT LEAST CS3 and CS4… not sure about the others but feel free to try them if you have a different version and let me know how they work!
So, the set has 6 different shadow options: (1) Low shadow for non-bulky items like paper layers, (2) higher, larger shadow for bulky/large elements, (3) shadow for smaller elements, (4) shadow for string or other such thin elements, (5) shadow for transparent/acrylic items, and (6) very low shadow for slight definition on the opposite edges (I’ll explain later…lol).
I set the lighting angle around -44 degrees because I like when the shadows are cast toward the upper left. Most of the time, I set my shadow’s blending mode to LINEAR BURN. I like this setting because the shadow will pick up the color of the layer(s) beneath it. Shadows in real life are not all black. Linear burn does not always work well though. You’ll notice that on very dark shades (like black or navy blue), the shadow will be really strong. You can change the blend mode to find something that works better or take the opacity of the shadow way down. Other colors can be a little tricky too (like pastel yellow). So, just use these styles as a starting point and tweak them as needed for each page you do. There is no “one size fits all” when it comes to shadows!
So, here are some elements that I applied these styles to. I used the bulky style for the flower and the shell, the paper/low style for the paper waves, the string shadow on the string, and the “smaller elements” shadow on the sea star. (some of the screenshots are clickable to give you a better view!)
Lookin’ pretty good… but let’s take this further. String is really popular right now, so I’ll show you how I do string shadows. So, I have the drop shadow style applied to the string element. Next I’m going to put the shadow on its own layer. Simply right click on the fx icon next to the layer in the layers palette and select “Create layer.” The shadow will now be on the layer below the element.
Now I want to warp the shadow so the string looks like it’s lifting off the page in some areas, but keep some of the string close to the page. Select the element’s shadow and hit CTRL+T to put it in Transform mode. Then click the Warp Tool icon along the toolbar at the top (see screenshot below) or go to EDIT>TRANSFORM>WARP.
You will notice that the shadow now has a different bounding box that is split into 9 sections. You can pull at the lines and points to warp the shadow the way you like it. Play with it to see how it affects your shadow.. in particular, play with the ends of the string’s shadow where you want the string ends to look like they’re lifting off the page.
I also wanted parts of the bow to look like they were lifting off the page so I played there too. Notice in this screenshot below how LINEAR BURN affects the shadow’s color. When it overlaps the orange, the shadow is orange… when it overlaps the blue, the shadow is blue! This is why I like to play with the blend mode of my shadows.
Once you’re done warping, hit enter to commit. I’ve also noticed that with real shadows, as an item gets farther away, the shadow gets softer. So, on the ends of the string where the shadow creates the illusion that the string is lifting up, I took an eraser set as a very soft, fuzzy brush with a low opacity (around 25%) and lightened up the shadow on those areas by brushing over those parts of the shadow layer. This step is completely optional.
Here’s the warping I did on the flower…. remember to put the shadow on its own layer first! 
For this last step, I have to credit my CT member, Suzann, for giving me the idea. She noticed that in real life, the edges opposite the shadowed sides still have a little bit of definition to them. Look at the shell below. Notice that the bottom right edge just blends into the page and has no shading definition….
So, to add some definition to that other edge, I put the shadow on its own layer and then applied my “slight definition” shadow style to the shell element. Unlike the other styles in this set (which are at -44 degrees) this one is around 120 degrees so a small, light shadow is cast in the other direction. I like the little teeny bit of oomph it adds to my elements…
I especially love to do this on paper mats…
I hope this was helpful! I love playing with shadows… they make such a big difference on your pages! I hope you find the shadow styles helpful too.
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Great tut Megan… and thanks for the shadows!!!
Great tutorial, Megan! I especially like the slight definition shadow!! I always try to pull things around but having a style that does that is certainly a bonus. Thanks!
You rock, woman! I already knew a couple of these tricks, but I’m super excited to try out your styles, especially that slight definition one, that’s something that drives me mad! So, YAY! See, now my layouts for you will be even better! WOO HOO!
What they said!
Your shadows rock (obviously you do a lot to make them so cool!) They are perfection! Thanks!
thank you for responding to our feedback, Megan! this is so helpful. i have PSE, so I’ll let you in on how they work on my computer. :0)
thanks Megan! I LOOVE your shadow work so this is just fab!
Oh man! This makes me want to go out and buy CS4 NOW!
We got the student deal with CS2.. so NICE!!! But now we’re not students anymore
Thanks for the shadow helps. I can always use more help!!
you rock! thank you so much!!!
Awesome tutorial Meeegan! Thank you!
Thank you so much for this Freebie. I want to let you know that I posted a link to your blog in Creative Busy Hands Scrapbook Freebies Search List, under the Page 11 post on Aug. 01, 2009. Thanks again.
Awesome - love the linear burn tip! Thanks! …wish I had CS4…
I really wish I had this program! I’ve been wanting to be able to put a little edge on the opposite side of where the shadowing is but my program will not let me do it! This looks great! =)
Hi Megan!!
Thank you so much for these shadow actions! I installed them to use with my PSE 5.0 and they work great … I will use them EVERY time I make a layout now! Woo Hoo! I used them the other day and the string one really looks great!! Thanks again,
Missy
Thanks so much Meeeeegan!
Thank you so much Megan:)
Hi Megan!
This shadow tutorial really makes a difference to scrap elements. Super! Thanks ever so much!!
Janette, Netherlands
Thanks so much!
Super hints & tuturial thanks for sharing!!
thank you so much!
This is an awesome tutorial and I can’t wait to try out your styles in PS. I knew there was a lot more control in PS but I haven’t had a chance to really dig into CS3. This really helped me out! Thanks a lot!
[...] Meghan Turnidge – Ok, so this is where I come clean. Meghan has created not only a great tutorial about using shadow layer styles, but she also has a great set of shadow layer styles FOR FREE. They are well crafted, and work excellently. I use Meghan’s shadows 99% of the time now. Seriously, check them out. [...]
WOW….I never knew that you could right click the fx and make it its own layer!!! Thank you so much!
Wow, thank you! Your styles are great (and fast!) and you really explained how to play with them.
These styles are fantastic! And the tutorial is wonderful, too…I never knew that about creating a new layer! I’m so excited now!!! Thanks !
Thanks for the great styles and tut!! xxx
Thank You so much for this tutorial Megan. It was awesome…have bookmarked this page and will refer to it again and again.
Thanks, Megan! I’m switching to CS3 after years of scrapping with another program, so this is perfect! I’ll be able to use your styles for now while I’m trying to learn so many other things at once, and I’ll be back for the tutorial when I’m ready to focus on improving my shadows.
I LOVE YOU, MEGAN
Honest, this is the greatest tut online, and thanks for the freebie, sweetie!!
xoxo
This is amazing! Thanks so much for sharing the shadow styles and tutorial with us!
I just found this tutorial. Thanks so much, it helps a bunch. Also, thanks for the shadow styles. I’m off to try them out.
Awesome shadows! Thanks!
love the shadows. thank you!
Thanks so much, Megan!! Love adding the slight shadow on the opposite edge.
Thank you for the free shadows and help! I’m printing this one off for my help book!!
Great tut & thanks for the styles. You certainly gave me some things to think about!
Wow. I’ve been doing all this using masks, dodge and burn tools. Thanks so much for the tips (and the styles).
Thank you!! You rock!
I was just searching for info on shadowing at The Daily Digi and found a link to your styles/tutorial. I have been looking closely at lots of layouts that have very realistic shadows, and I’ve noticed that most of the ones that I think look like real paper have the shadows going up and to the left a bit. I was so excited to see that you do it that way, too! Adding the extra shadow on the opposite side makes a huge difference also! Thanks so much!
So lovely ! Thanks so much !
Thank you VERY much, and thank you for leaving the link active!
Awesome tutorial and great shadows! Thank you so much! And I also wanted to let you know, that work wonderfully in PSE5 also.
Hi Megan,
Thank you for this great shadow set! I just wanted to let you know that this set works in old school Photoshop 7.0 version
Thank you so much, Megan! Amanda Heimann just recommended these to me on Facebook, and I just used them for the first time. LOVE them! I just switched from PSE to CS5, so I have quite the learning curve. Your styles and tutorial are MUCH appreciated!!
Love the tutorial - and the extra little definition shadow. Awesome stuff - I read this on Kelleigh’s post on FB! Will be trying out the styles today. Thank you!
[...] Shadows in Photoshop (CS4) __________________ Hugs, Jami PROUD Mommy to twin boys! My DST Gallery ************Mar & Apr 2008************ [...]