: How do I create a custom gradient pattern in Photoshop CS5? Is it possible to start a gradient (in a layer mask) from, for example, a bent shape. So that the "fade" itself will not be straight

@Jessie844

This doesn't fully apply to my original question but it helped me solve the situation that the question arised from. Also, I might add pictures when I have time to make it easier to understand.

The problem:
What I originally wanted to do was to take an image and make it "fade" out into transparency. That is easy enough to do when working with the gradient tool and layer masks. You simply draw a black and white color gradient inside the layer mask.

The problem here, however, was that, using the linear gradient tool, I could not control the way the gradient would "progress", it would always end up cutting things off in a straight line, something that I thought made the resulting image look a bit wierd.

So I wanted to "curve" the gradient, to make it look nice and smooth.

However, this was not possible with the gradient tool. Which leads me to my solution.

The solution:
Reading Rob's answer I realized that I could probably achieve the desired effect by simply using the lasso to make my "path" (the way I want the gradient to be shaped), then refine the edge to give it a nice feather and ultimately delete that selection from the layer mask. I realized that this would do pretty much exactly what I wanted.

So that's about it. It turned out to be alot easier than I'd thought.

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@Kristi927

This isn't precisely what you're looking for (I'm not sure it's possible in Photoshop; perhaps in Illustrator where you have more control over shapes and paths).

Try playing around with the "inner glow" layer effect. I don't have enough of a rating to post pics here yet, so I'll try to describe it. This is an example of a freehand shape - you can use any shape you wish.


Create a new layer.
Using the Lasso, draw a freehand shape (make it nice and big to see this effect).
Fill the shape with any color (it doesn't matter which color - the Layer Effect needs it to be filled).
Press CTRL-D to deselect your shape.
From the Layer menu, select Layer -> Layer Style -> Inner Glow.
Change the Blend Mode from Screen to Normal, and the Opacity to 100 (to hide the original color).
For the purposes of illustrating this technique, click on the gradient shown to choose any two-color gradient.
Now, the first setting to change is to increase the Size. You'll see the effect immediately as you do this.
To change the effect, try playing with the Technique (Softer or Precise) while twiddling with the Size and Choke.


Does that do sort-of what you want?

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