This tutorial will walk you through how to create worn and torn text using Photoshop. This is a beginner to intermediate tutorial and we may be using shortcuts that are a little advanced. You can always refer to the beginner tutorials if you need some help on a certain task we cover here.
Step 1) Creating the background
For the purpose of this tutorial we used the default settings for a web template. 640 x 480. We then set the background to black by filling it. Press D to set black as your foreground color, then simply press Alt + Backspace to fill in the layer.
Step 2) Adding the text
From here make sure you set your foreground color to white by pressing X and then select your type tool by using (T). From here simply type out the word you want to transform and then if it needs to be adjusted to fit on the canvas you can use the free transform tool Ctrl + T to size if back into the canvas.
Step 3) Rasterizing the text
Once you have chosen the phrase you will want to be working with we will need to rasterize the font so we will be able to work with it. To do this right click on your layer and you will see an option to rasterize the text layer. Do this and we will now be able to work with the text.
Step 4) Making your cracks
For this next step we will be creating the cracks in our text. Select the polygonal lasso tool from the toolbar. Draw a line through the first letter like we did in the image below, and then just draw the rest of the shape around the word.
Step 5) Cutting the selection onto a new letter
Once you are happy with your selection make sure to put it on a new layer. You can easily do this by pressing Ctrl + Shift + J.
Step 6) Rotating the letters
We are going to create the first crack in our letters now, to do this select the free transform tool ( Ctrl + T ) and change the anchor point to the top left corner of the box like in the images below. Once you have moved this center point you can simply rotate the box to create the separation which will make the appearance of a crack
Do this for the rest of the letters in your word till they give you the appearance you are looking for
Step 7) Merge the layers into one
We will need to merge the layers into 1 layer before continuing with this tutorial. To do so, you can shift + click the original layer right above the background layer. This will select all the text layers at once; with all of those layers selected simply press Ctrl + E to merge them into one layer
Step 8) Adding a layer mask
We are now going to add a layer mask so we can manipulate the text more, to do this you can simply add it from the layers palette icon at the bottom. (It looks like a camera) You should now see the mask appear to the right on your current layer
Step 9) Applying the spatter filter
With your new layer selected go to the filter menu at the top of the screen and choose brush strokes and then choose spatter. You are only presented with 2 options, and for the sake of time in this tutorial I set them both to 25px for the effect I was going for
Step 10) Applying a stroke
To finish things off we will need a stroke around the text layer, to do this double click your layer to bring up the layer styles box. From here we will be adding a gradient stroke. You can follow the images below to duplicate the stroke we made.
Congratulations you have successfully completed this tutorial. As always the source files will be available for download to help you along the way.
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