Creating an “old paper” effect with Fireworks
Create an “old paper” effect
To create an image with an “old paper” effect:
- Create a new document that is 500 x 160 pixels.
- Draw a rectangle the size of the canvas.
- Give the rectangle a solid color fill (#D9C48D).
- Clone the rectangle (Edit > Clone).
- Apply a custom texture (available at fireworkszone.com) to the cloned rectangle (Extensions > Textures).
- Fill the cloned rectangle with #BD8E64 and apply a Subtractive Blend mode at 50% opacity.
- Add a Sharpen Live Filter to the cloned rectangle to make the textures more visible.
- Select both rectangle objects and flatten them (Modify > Flatten Selection) so that there’s only one bitmap (required for the following steps).
- Select the Dodge tool and start to dodge the middle of the bitmap. The following image shows the settings I used for the Dodge tool:
After using the Dodge tool, your image should look like this:
- Now, its time to scan in some old paper or find old paper image stock (or, try a brush from the VBrush site at http://veredgf.fredfarm.com/vbrush/main.html).
- Select the old paper bitmap and apply the Convert to Alpha Live Filter from the Property Inspector ([+] Live Filter > Other > Convert to Alpha). The image should now look like this:
- Now position the old paper image above the rectangle object with the texture.
- Once it’s positioned above the other artwork, change the blend mode to Fuzzy Light and apply the Sharpen Live Filter about three times (doing so will result in more detail than applying the Sharpen Live Filter just once). Your image should now look like this:
- To add more detail, use a script font to make it look old like the image below:
Where to go from here
For more information about Fireworks and the Convert To Alpha filter used in this article, see the following:
- Convert to Alpha filter: http://livedocs.macromedia.com/fireworks/8/fwhelp/03_bit31.htm
- Image editing tricks with Fireworks, by Jose Olarte 3
- Creating lens flares using Fireworks, by Alan Musselman
