Star Shapes for Photoshop and Elements

Tutorial / loading star custom shapes in Photoshop (and Elements)

The star custom shapes are loaded either via the file > open command OR, as above, you can use the side menu 'replace shapes' command.

Once loaded, the star shapes can be applied either as a star shape (vector) / path (vector) / fill pixels (raster). The shapes can be set to another color (they don't have to be black as displayed in the palette) via the foreground color in the Photoshop toolbox.

If you use the design as a star shape layer or path, you can also fill the design with a gradient or pattern. In some cases, if the shape allows, the shape can be broken apart and different parts filled with different colors.

An alternative to the custom shape would be the vector shapes sets available on graphicxtras, they feature vector designs that are filled with multiple colors for more complex shapes / designs.

example of the replace command and star designs accessed in Photoshop

Star shapes - star fields in Photoshop

The star custom shapes can be used once and they can be used twice - they can also be used countless times in Photoshop to create an entire background or star field. You can apply the star shapes as a layer but the easiest way to create the star field is by using the fill pixel option. You can create all the stars the same size by using the custom shapes options (fixed size) but to create a more realistic star field, apply using the default settings of 'unconstrained'.

The shapes used for this star field come from the star shapes set pack 7 (one of the earliest shapes sets I created for use in photoshop and Photoshop Elements).

The shapes are stored in standard CSH format, load the pack 7 shapes via the file open command (or via the custom shapes palette). Set the color via the foreground color of the Photoshop toolbox (it would be wonderful if there was a random color feature attached to the shapes so each shape could be jittered - a quick way to get around this is to just create a set of colors in the swatches palette and apply those colors by a quick click to the swatch).

Create a blank document and then fill the document with a gradient. The gradient being black at the top and lighter blue at the bottom. Set the color for the stars to white or yellow etc and then apply the stars in random positions and random colors across the design as well as changing the stars as required. Added: December 28th 2011

example - star field created using star custom shapes applied multiple times across a backdrop of a blue gradient in Photoshop Elements

Cartoon / sketched star in Photoshop using star custom shapes

The star shape used will be one from the star shapes pack 7. The star shape is applied via the custom shape tool.

The shape is selected via the shapes palette and applied as a path (the second option on the option bar along the top of Photoshop). Go to the window menu and select the path palette. Go to the right side menu of the path palette and use the fill option (fill with white). Now go to the brush tool (paint) and display the brush palette and set the shape dynamics on and the size jitter to 60%, the roundness jitter to 10% etc (the settings can vary and these will result in a different cartoon sketched star) and set the color of the brush via the foreground color in the toolbox to black.

Go to the path palette again and now apply the right side menu option to the current selected star shape path in Photoshop - the result will be a more realistic edge / stroke / cartoon-like effect added to the star. Added: December 28th 2011

example of a star custom shape applied as a path in Photoshop and a black paint brush applied via the path menu

Manipulating star points in Photoshop for sketched effects

The star shapes are vector designs and the vector designs can be edited inside Photoshop (though many better applications for vector editing come to mind such as Illustrator).

You can use the editing tools such as the convert point tool and direct selection tool (found in the Photoshop toolbox) to change the shape of the star. You can combine the modification of the path with the path palette and the stroke path by changing the color of the brush (white, gray etc as required) and re-applying the star path stroke with a new color and subtle new shapes - this creates a more sketched / cartoon / hand drawn effect.

This approach can be used over and over with different sets of color and path point shifts. Added: December 28th 2011

example star custom shape applied as a path and then multiple brush strokes applied to slight changes of the path shape in Photoshop