If you want to do a lot of customizations, try starting with a gradient from the “Basics” folder at the top.
Click the bottom-left stop, and then select a color from the “Color” drop-down. Click the bottom-right stop and select another color. Drag the stops to the desired locations until the gradient colors appear how you’d like. Another stop will appear in the middle, which adjusts the location of where the colors blend together. Drag that stop until the gradient looks the way you want it to. Want to add more colors? Click below the gradient where you’d like to add a color to create another stop, then select the color. To delete a stop, just select it and click “Delete. "
If you’d prefer a rougher gradient, click the “Gradient type” menu and select Noise. You can then adjust the “Roughness” slider to control the noise amount. A “rough” gradient picks random colors for each spot that have similar values to your two end colors. The result looks a bit like a bookshelf, with slots of each color instead of one smooth, unbroken transition.
Type a name for your gradient into the “Name” box. Click the New button to add it to the current folder under “Presets. " You can drag the gradient to a different folder if the one it saved to isn’t applicable. Or, if you want to create a brand new group, right-click anywhere on the list of presets and select New Gradient Group.
If you want to fill the entire layer or image with a gradient, you don’t have to select anything first. You can make gradients any shape, as long as you can create the selection or shape.
Linear: The classic gradient, like an evening sky. Just a gradual transition between two colors along a straight line. Radial: One color starts in the middle, then blooms out in a sphere, gradually changing into the next color. Like looking into the sun. The first color is the “sun” and the second the “sky. " Angular: More specific, this sweeps the colors in a counterclockwise arc around your starting point. Often leads to two solid colors with gradation around the edges. Reflected: Makes a mirror image of a normal linear gradient on both sides of the starting point. Basically, if you draw your “line” to the right, it will repeat the gradient to the left. Diamond: Like the radial gradient, only you have a diamond or square in the middle, not a circle.
The “Mode” drop-down lets you choose a blending mode, such as Dissolve or Color Burn. You can adjust the overall opacity of the gradient using the “Opacity” menu. To reverse the gradient pattern, check the box next to “Reverse. " To make the gradient even smoother with less banding, check the box next to “Dither. " To fill a transparency mask with the gradient, check the box next to “Transparency. "
You don’t even have to click in your selection area or layer. If you want the fade to start “off-screen,” click off-screen. This can lead to more subtle fades. [2] X Research source Don’t release the mouse button until you’re ready to set the gradient.
Longer lines will create more gradual transitions, while shorter lines will cause more abrupt changes between the two colors. [3] X Research source If you hold the Shift key down as you drag, the line angle will be constrained to 45 degrees.
Apply a gradient to text or shape layers as a layer effect or shape fill: Drag the desired gradient from the Gradients panel (on the right side of Photoshop) to a layer in the Layers panel. Apply a gradient to text or shape layers as a fill layer: Hold Cmd (Mac) or Alt (Win) as you drag a gradient from the Gradients panel to the desired layer.
