Gradient Button

Gradient Button

This tutorial is more about the gradient tool and some of the effects that can be achieved with it than the button I created. While you can use various layer blending effects to achieve the same look as the button on the right has, once learned this is an easier method. This button only has 4 objects.

1) I'm starting with a project 250 pixels x 150 pixels. To make the button stand out better I created a rectangle the same size and colored it R = 128 / G = 128 / B = 128 for the background.

2) Grab the Rectangle Tool and draw a 200 x 40 pixel rectangle. Go to the Property Panel and Set the Corner Radius to 20. Set the Stroke to 1 and color it R = 64 / G = 64 B = 64.

3) Click on the Fill Tab and select Gradient for Fill and Linear for Gradient type. Before we get started use the Gradient Transform Tool and run your gradient from 6 o'clock to 12 o'clock.

4) Select the left gradient node and set it to R = 175 / G = 175 / B = 175. Now select the right gradient node and set it to R = 128 / G = 128 / B = 128. It doesn't look too good at the moment but trust me the fun is about to begin.

5) Go to the gradient panel and click inside the gradient to produce a new gradient node like mine to the right. If you notice, when you hover over your gradient node it will give you the color value and it's position in percentage. To the top right in my image to the right, you see a window where you can manually enter the color value. Just click in it and type the value I have in mine. 6) For the next few steps you'll see images. To the left will be the progress of our button, to the right will be the gradient node settings. Make sure you use my settings from the top right window for your color values I'm not sure why there is a difference between the hover value and the window value so use my window value.

Now it's time to dress our button up.

7) Use the ellipse tool and draw a 24 x 24 pixel circle. Stroke = 0 / stroke color = none / fill = linear gradient and place it to the left like mine. We certainly don't need such a wild gradient for these purposes so select all the nodes but the end ones, one by one drag them down to delete them.

I'll keep using the hex mode for the end of this tutorial so folks don't get confused.

8) Select the left node and color it #343434, now select the right node and enter #F3F3F3.

9) Grab the gradient transform tool and run you gradient from top to bottom.

10) Now draw another circle 20 x 20 pixels and center it over our circle above.

11) Set the fill to gradient and the gradient type to radial. Set the left node color value to #00FF00, set the right node to #025F02.

12) For a finishing touch go to effects / effects / outer glow. Use the eyedropper tool to sample the left gradient node for color. Now set size to .2 and set noise to 0.

Something still doesn't match so we are going to do a couple things to our green orb.

13) Set the zoom to 300 and draw an oval half the height of our orb. For fill use gradient, for gradient type use linear. Set both the left and right node colors to #FFFFFF. Now select the right node and set the alpha to 0.

14) Grab the gradient transform tool and run your gradient from top to bottom.

I'm still not happy with my orb so I am going to do one more thing.

15) With your green orb selected go to the properties panel and select the Move, Skew and Rotate Fill tool. Select the Reset button and then set Y to 5 pixels. By doing this we matched more closely the dark band on the button. For a finishing touch add whatever text you want for your button and export or save it for a future project.