10 Replies Latest reply: Oct 22, 2014 4:28 PM by taylorjkeen RSS

    Making 3D text appear shiny/glossy

    taylorjkeen

      What would be the easiest and quickest way to make text as well as a 3D ellipse appear glossy/shiny? I've tried playing with the gradients and transparencies but can't seem to get it right. What I'm looking for is an ellipse (no fill) to be 3D (lets just say extrude of 25) and inside of there 3D text that is also extruded (same...25). Then I need it all to appear shiny/glossy so it really pops out of the page and looks 3D. Attached is a picture of current logo for reference. Just really need the ellipse and letters for now. So a 3D ellipse and "TDC" 3D as well. Same colors as below.

      T. Daniels Consulting, Inc..png

        • 1. Re: Making 3D text appear shiny/glossy
          Mylenium CommunityMVP

          This is not a technical question, this is simply a matter of understanding traditional painting techniques and applying the methodologies to the tools available in AI. Gradients looks "glossy" when their different colors are close together, they look silky/ flat when they are far apart. That's all there is to it, meaning that the perception of shininess is solely determined by how dense your gradient meshes or blends are and what colors you use in them Anyway, before any of that I would really work on your design. Red overpowers everything and is a b*tch to make look good and just the same so is pure black. You really need to tone down your colors for any shading to even per perceptible.

           

          Mylenium

          • 2. Re: Making 3D text appear shiny/glossy
            Steve Fairbairn Community Member

            Mylenium is right up to a point. But as well as using gradients you might like to consider using an opacity mask. An opacity mask combined with a gradient (or gradient mesh) allows you to manipulate inner shapes and control the reflections in the gloss.

            Here’s a very simple button example that I had stashed away. The gloss effect is on the upper layer. A white circle where the masked area is just an ellipse with a white-to-grey gradient fill.

            Picture 5.png

            • 3. Re: Making 3D text appear shiny/glossy
              taylorjkeen Community Member

              Ok, so just throwing something together. Here's the 3 letters with a darker gray to lighter gray gradient coming from the top to the bottom. To get the real effect do you expand the appearance and then do separate gradients for each part? What should my next steps be? I'm self taught with Illustrator so I haven't worked as much with 3D and gradients.

              des.JPG

              • 4. Re: Making 3D text appear shiny/glossy
                Steve Fairbairn Community Member

                Best do the gradients after expanding. Ungroup the whole thing and make a compound path of the front surfaces to make sure that they all behave in the same way vis-à-vis the gradient.

                Put a gradient fill on the compound but not just a smooth grey-to-grey. Modulate it with in-between stops to increase the contrast. Use the Gradient tool to get the angle right.

                • 5. Re: Making 3D text appear shiny/glossy
                  taylorjkeen Community Member

                  Thank you...then go through and create compound paths for the other sides of the text or no?

                  des.JPG

                  • 6. Re: Making 3D text appear shiny/glossy
                    taylorjkeen Community Member

                    Ok. Is there any way to break the inside of the circle so that I can apply different gradients instead of just one for the whole thing...or does it look fine how it is? I tried cutting it using anchor points but that just got rid of it and exposed the red. I've only done gradient for the outside (bottom left) and just started the inside part but am stuck.

                     

                    Thanks

                    Untitled-4.png

                    • 7. Re: Making 3D text appear shiny/glossy
                      Steve Fairbairn Community Member

                      Post #5: NO. The whole point of the compound path is to make what is basically a single object out of multiple paths. That’s what you want for the fronts of the letters but not for the sides.

                      Post #6: Presumably the inside of the circle is a single object? Assuming that it is, there is probably no need to physically split it up. What you have done so far is pretty much o.k. but you might experiment with adding further stops to the gradients. And then use the Gradient tool to adjust the angles precisely as you wish. Personally I fend those grey gradients a bit dull – they are so smooth and mechanical – somehow predictable. You can make then more exciting (unexpected-looking) by adding stops. Closely spaced stops with very different tonality give a sudden change of tone that might help to make the whole thing look more alive. Give it a try.

                      • 8. Re: Making 3D text appear shiny/glossy
                        taylorjkeen Community Member

                        Still messing around...havent done much with the font.

                        Untitled-4.png

                        • 9. Re: Making 3D text appear shiny/glossy
                          Steve Fairbairn Community Member

                          See what that white DING does for the red circle! But I reckon that you ought to have the same gradient in the front of the letters too.

                          Try making a compound of the circle and the fronts of the letters and colouring it with the same gradient as the circle.

                          Best do it on a copy so as not to mess up what you’ve got so far.

                          • 10. Re: Making 3D text appear shiny/glossy
                            taylorjkeen Community Member

                            Yeah...I'll just keep messing around with it.

                            Untitled-7.png