How To Create Realistic Neon Light Effect In Adobe Illustrator Tutorial Part. 2
Realistic Neon Light Effect in Adobe Illustrator EPS. 2
Welcome back in another LADALIDI’s tutorial, in today’s tutorial I’m gonna show you how to make this:
How To Create Realistic Neon Light Effect In Adobe Illustrator Tutorial
In the previous tutorial How To Create Realistic Neon Light Effect In Adobe Illustrator Tutorial Part. 1 I promised to show you how to use Color Dodge on another level.
Without any further ado let open the Adobe Illustrator.
Remember to set color mode to RGB first like I said in the previous tutorials because this Color Dodge only works well in RGB Mode. Actually you can just use CMYK but the end result will be different from what I'm going to do here.
In this Adobe Illustrator Tutorial I no longer need to explain how the Color Dodge works. if you don't know about it then you can just read the previews tutorial How To Create Realistic Neon Light Effect In Adobe Illustrator Tutorial Part. 1. All you need to know is that the final result depends on the background color we made and the important thing is never to use solid black because this technique will not work at all.
To make the background or Base Color in 3 color we just need to apply gradient color to it. But first, make the rectangle using Rectangle Tool. Remove the line because we don't need it, just select the stroke box on the toolbar and click the none button below it or press the slash on the keyboard to get rid of it. And reactivate the fill color by clicking the fill box or you can switch from stroke to fill box by pressing X key on the keyboard.
To apply a Gradient Color you only need to open the Gradient Panel.
By default the gradient panel only gives a black to white gradient. But we need three colors to add to the Gradient Slider or Gradient Annotator. Now all we need to do is add one Color Stop right in the middle and change the color of the existing Color Stop.
To add a Color Stop to the Gradient Annotator, you just have to click in the middle of the Gradient Annotator. If you see a plus sign on a cursor, you can just click on it. Change the location to 50% to fit it in the middle.
The base color is done, now we are going to make the neon.
For neon that I want to create this time is different from the neon I showed in the previous tutorial. In the previous tutorial How To Create Realistic Neon Light Effect In Adobe Illustrator Tutorial Part. 1. I just create a very simple straight neon using two techniques, the first is purely using only the Gradient Color and the second is using the Blend Tool to create a black and white transition.
And unfortunately we can't create curvy neon like I show above using only a simple gradient because basically I've used a gradient just to show you how it works which basically requires a color transition from white to black to create a light impression.
So to create a neon effect like geometric shape we have to use the second method by using the Blend Tool to make a gradient from white to black.
Go to the Object Menu > Expand. On the Expand Panel Uncheck the Fill cause we don’t need the Fill.
After our line circle turns into a path then go to the Menu Object again > Path > Offset Path, set the Offset to 120 pixel, then just click the OK button.
Now, we have 2 bold circles. because these two circles are in the same group it would be better if we separated them for convenience. Right Click > Ungroup to separate them. For the thinner circle we give white and the thicker circle we give black.
Now we are going to blend them using the Blend Tool on the Toolbar. Select the thinner one using Blend Tool then the thicker to blend them.
As you can see that the result of a gradient using the blend tool is the same as a gradient using the Gradient Panel. The difference is we can make it into any shape but it depends on the basic shape of the path that you make.
And the last step, you just need to change the blend mode from normal to color dodge to get that neon effect.
Now, we got the circular neon effect.
Now we have got a Realistic Neon Effect and finally if you want to change the neon color you can try changing the background color.
Now it's time for you to try it. You can also experiment with other shapes using this technique. This technique can work on several shapes as I show here as long as it is a geometric shape.
Sample Realistic Neon Effect With Geometric Shape
For several shapes such as free shapes, text, wavy lines, and several other shapes we can't use this technique because it doesn't work perfectly.
But we can still make it happen by using other techniques For example to make neon text like bellow. I'll show you how, in the next Tutorial.
Without any further ado let open the Adobe Illustrator.
Remember to set color mode to RGB first like I said in the previous tutorials because this Color Dodge only works well in RGB Mode. Actually you can just use CMYK but the end result will be different from what I'm going to do here.
In this Adobe Illustrator Tutorial I no longer need to explain how the Color Dodge works. if you don't know about it then you can just read the previews tutorial How To Create Realistic Neon Light Effect In Adobe Illustrator Tutorial Part. 1. All you need to know is that the final result depends on the background color we made and the important thing is never to use solid black because this technique will not work at all.
Create Background as Base Color
First make the Base Color. I’m gonna make the background as Base Color in 3 colors with Linier Gradient Color.To make the background or Base Color in 3 color we just need to apply gradient color to it. But first, make the rectangle using Rectangle Tool. Remove the line because we don't need it, just select the stroke box on the toolbar and click the none button below it or press the slash on the keyboard to get rid of it. And reactivate the fill color by clicking the fill box or you can switch from stroke to fill box by pressing X key on the keyboard.
To apply a Gradient Color you only need to open the Gradient Panel.
By default the gradient panel only gives a black to white gradient. But we need three colors to add to the Gradient Slider or Gradient Annotator. Now all we need to do is add one Color Stop right in the middle and change the color of the existing Color Stop.
To add a Color Stop to the Gradient Annotator, you just have to click in the middle of the Gradient Annotator. If you see a plus sign on a cursor, you can just click on it. Change the location to 50% to fit it in the middle.
Gradient Panel with The Background Result
The base color is done, now we are going to make the neon.
Create the Neon Effect
I suggest to create a new layer on the layer panel to place our next work and lock the previous layer so that we can work freely without having to be disturbed by background objects.For neon that I want to create this time is different from the neon I showed in the previous tutorial. In the previous tutorial How To Create Realistic Neon Light Effect In Adobe Illustrator Tutorial Part. 1. I just create a very simple straight neon using two techniques, the first is purely using only the Gradient Color and the second is using the Blend Tool to create a black and white transition.
And unfortunately we can't create curvy neon like I show above using only a simple gradient because basically I've used a gradient just to show you how it works which basically requires a color transition from white to black to create a light impression.
So to create a neon effect like geometric shape we have to use the second method by using the Blend Tool to make a gradient from white to black.
Another Part:
Create the Circular Neon
Now let's create the neon. For the first neon that I'm going to create is circular neon. Use Ellipse Tool and Place the cursor in the middle of the artboard and let the smart guides guide you until you find a point in the middle of the artboard.
Just click and drag to draw a circle, Press SHIFT key on the keyboard to create a perfect circle and press the ALT key at the same time to make the center of the circle at the starting point we place the cursor.
Set the Stroke to 12 point and remove the fill. The higher the stroke we make the thicker the neon effect will be.
Just click and drag to draw a circle, Press SHIFT key on the keyboard to create a perfect circle and press the ALT key at the same time to make the center of the circle at the starting point we place the cursor.
Set the Stroke to 12 point and remove the fill. The higher the stroke we make the thicker the neon effect will be.
Create Circle With 12 Point Stroke
Go to the Object Menu > Expand. On the Expand Panel Uncheck the Fill cause we don’t need the Fill.
Expand Panel
After our line circle turns into a path then go to the Menu Object again > Path > Offset Path, set the Offset to 120 pixel, then just click the OK button.
Offset Path Panel
Now, we have 2 bold circles. because these two circles are in the same group it would be better if we separated them for convenience. Right Click > Ungroup to separate them. For the thinner circle we give white and the thicker circle we give black.
Two Bold Black And White Circle
Now we are going to blend them using the Blend Tool on the Toolbar. Select the thinner one using Blend Tool then the thicker to blend them.
Blend Result
As you can see that the result of a gradient using the blend tool is the same as a gradient using the Gradient Panel. The difference is we can make it into any shape but it depends on the basic shape of the path that you make.
And the last step, you just need to change the blend mode from normal to color dodge to get that neon effect.
After Applying Color Dodge
Now, we got the circular neon effect.
Another Part:
Create Light Reflection
For the final touch, I'll add a light reflection to the floor. Still the on same way, create a circle but this time without a stroke. For the fill give it the default black white gradient in the Swatches. Change the type to radial and go back to the Gradient Panel to modify it a bit. Don't use pure white on this white color stop. This will give the impression of being a light source, rather than reflected light. Lastly change the Blending Mode to Color Dodge. Edit the circle into a long ellipse.
Light Reflection
Now we have got a Realistic Neon Effect and finally if you want to change the neon color you can try changing the background color.
Now it's time for you to try it. You can also experiment with other shapes using this technique. This technique can work on several shapes as I show here as long as it is a geometric shape.
Sample Realistic Neon Effect With Geometric Shape
Sample Realistic Neon Effect With Geometric Shape
Sample Realistic Neon Effect With Geometric ShapeFor several shapes such as free shapes, text, wavy lines, and several other shapes we can't use this technique because it doesn't work perfectly.
Sample Realistic Neon Effect With Text
But we can still make it happen by using other techniques For example to make neon text like bellow. I'll show you how, in the next Tutorial.
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