How to Do Perspective in Photoshop

Use a vanishing point on the horizon, like the one at the end of these tracks, to draw perspective.

Adobe Photoshop comes with several useful tools for drawing in 3-D, but they are not always suitable for every project. Drawing your own perspective lines on a background layer before starting a project makes it easy to create your own perspective. When the work is complete, you can delete the layer containing the perspective lines or use it again for your next project.

Instructions

1. Launch Photoshop and create a new document by pressing “Ctrl” and “N” together on your keyboard. Make the document about 50 percent larger than the size of the final drawing.

2. Select the “Line Tool” from the Toolbox. Type “1” in the Weight menu, which is located on the Options bar at the top of the screen. Select “Normal” in the Mode menu and select “100” in the Opacity menu.

3. Click the “Foreground Color” icon on the toolbar to open the Color Picker. Select “black” from the palette and click “OK.”

4. Decide where you want the horizon to be and then drag the Line tool across the canvas to draw a horizontal line on the horizon. Hold down the “Shift” key to make the line completely horizontal.

5. Select a vanishing point on the horizon. Click the tool on that point and drag to the bottom-right corner of the canvas. Draw another line from the vanishing point to the other corners, and then draw at least three more lines from the vanishing point to the edge of the canvas – these are the perspective lines.

6. Draw a second vanishing point on the horizon if you require two vanishing points. This is important, for example, if you are drawing the corner of a building.

7. Decide where your drawing will be placed in the perspective lines. It is not necessary that your drawing be framed within the vanishing point or the horizon.

8. Select the “Rectangular Marquee Tool” from the Toolbox. Drag the tool across the canvas to select the frame for your drawing. Press “Ctrl” and “C” simultaneously to copy the selection to your system clipboard.

9. Press “Ctrl” and “N” to create a new document. Click “OK.” The dimensions are already preset for the contents in the clipboard. Press “Ctrl” and “V” to paste the perspective lines in the drawing.

10. Locate the “Layers” panel. If you can’t see it, press “F7.” Click the “Lock” icon on the top of the Layers panel to lock the layer with the perspective lines so you don’t accidentally draw on it.

11. Click the “New Layer” button at the bottom of the Layers panel. Draw on this layer, following the perspective lines for your shapes and objects.

12. Select the locked “Layer 1” with the perspective lines in the Layers panel when your drawing is finished. Press the “Delete” key to delete the layer from your drawing.

References

• Envato: How to Draw With Perspective
• Adobe Systems: Photoshop CS5 – Shape Tool Options
• Adobe Systems: Photoshop CS5 – Delete a Layer or Group