Born of the Dragon – Create this Symbolic Gothic Composite in Photoshop

Mar 19, 2025

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If you don’t have pen tablet, you can use pen tool. Set brush, like in step 18. Use pen tool to project desired shape. Then, click RMB, choose stroke path and check simulate brush pressure. You don’t have to project whole lines at once. You can do this on other layers, then merge it.

Step 19

Cool! For make created layer more realistic click on it with RMB. Then, choose blending mode from menu. Go to “Outer glow” settings.

Step 20

Duplicate created layer. Choose and drag it on new layer symbol. Then, set “Fill” to 0%. If you decrease “Fill” like here, layer will be transparent, but her effects (here: Outer glow) will be still visible.

Step 21

Now from top menu choose Filter > Blur > Gaussian blur. Set it as is shown.

Step 22

Create new layer (Shift+Ctrl+N, Layer > New > Layer…, or shortcut). Pick 1px soft round orange brush. Draw lights on branches. Just follow its line.

Step 23

Light also goes on doors and column at left side. You should mark it. Add new layer (Shift+Ctrl+N, Layer > New > Layer…, or shortcut). Pick 17 px soft brush. Use the same color as before.

Step 24

Add mask to created layer. Pick bigger brush and mask unwanted lights.

Step 25

Again create new layer. With the same brush settings as in step 22 draw lights on doors and column. Follow the edges of those things.

Step 26

Now you’ll make sparks. Just add new layer and draw randomly dots near the light source. Also, for this, you can use any kind of “debris” or “dust” brushes, or just use preset brush from Photoshop – as shown.

Step 27

If you like effect, you created, click with RMB on this layer. From menu choose Blending options. Go to “Outer glow”.

Step 28

For creating hair, add new layer. Pick 1 px soft brush and draw hair strands. Try to flow with your image. I used colors from light orange (right side) to light blue (left side).

Step 29

Drag and place to your file crack texture. From transform menu (top bar) click on “Warp mode”. Transform it as shown.

Change blending mode of this layer to “Multiply”.

Step 30

Add mask to this layer by shortcut. Use soft brush to erase rough edges.

Step 31

You’ll adjust this texture. It is beige and really don’t fit to whole picture. Add adjustment layer with Hue/Saturation (shortcut or Layer > New Adjustment Layer > Hue/Saturation). Then, click on this layer with RMB. Click “Create clipping mask”.

16 responses to “Born of the Dragon – Create this Symbolic Gothic Composite in Photoshop”

AbstractAmatuer

October 28, 2017

Hi, this tutorial helped me learn things, and was cool. The only 3 things about it made me frustrated.

1. You only used one specific color code and the rest of the colors were hard to get right.

2. The 1px soft brush for the hair strands did not work for me. It was too big and pixelated and I wasn’t sure what effects you used..? Maybe I missed it.

3. I couldn’t use trees. it was hard to follow the tutorial properly. I use a different door. One you used not available.

thank you for this tuorial and keep up the good work.

Reply
AbstractAmatuer

October 28, 2017

This tutorial was cool, but frustrating for me because it was hard to find the exact colors, because you only gave one specific color code. Also I’m not sure exactly how you did the hair, mine wasn’t working well at all. I was using a soft round 1px brush and it was too pix-elated and it was too big . Here is what I came up with . I didn’t use the trees because It didn’t go well
with the door (because the one you used wasn’t available) . Thank you for making this tutorial. Keep it up.

Reply
Lima

October 23, 2017

Amazing tutorial!

Reply
David

June 4, 2017

Great tutorial, I tried to make Something like that. Thanks

Reply
notonurnelly

March 3, 2016

nice tut, just lost a bit in translation, if you know what i mean.
But thanks anyway !!!!

Reply
Maidul Islam

October 17, 2014

This is really fantastic. The unlimited access makes it even better 

Reply
Aditya

September 26, 2014

Great tutorial. Thanks!

Reply
Una

September 23, 2014

Looks amazing. Thank you, I want to try this and have read through the tutorial. Can you please tell me what you mean by click RMB. I know all the tools in Photoshop (using CS5) but RMB is new to me. thank you.

Reply
1. Anonymous
  
  September 23, 2014
  
  RMB = right mouse button
2. VoTas
  
  September 24, 2014
  
  I think RMB = right mouse button :)
  Great tutorial, thank you. I tried it, but I got some trouble with the orange color, it isn’t like yours. Can you tell me the color-code? It looks really dark and it is not “shining” on my manipulation.
  Thank you for this tut :)
Sev’n DigitalArt

September 14, 2014

very nice

Reply
ben

September 13, 2014

(y) Thanks

Reply
Maidul Islam

September 12, 2014

Very nice article. I will learn from this a huge resource. Thanks for share.

Reply
memer de la meme

September 12, 2014

lel

Reply
orlando

September 11, 2014

so nice thanq i learned a lot of the tutorial love al your work on this site

Reply
ccmpp

September 8, 2014

so cool.Thanks for your tutorials

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