How to Make a Flyer for My Band in Photoshop
Use Adobe Photoshop to craft a promo flyer for your band's next gig, to promote your group's identity or to help you assemble an identity package to send to booking agents. Look through music and musician magazines for design ideas. Audition the typeface software on your system for viable choices that combine style with easy readability. After you craft your design, look at it from a distance to see if it conveys the essence of your band's image. From start to finish, Photoshop can help you create a flyer that can communicate with existing fans and attract new ones.
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Instructions
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Create a new 300-ppi Photoshop document whose dimensions match the size of the paper on which you plan to print your flyer, minus 1/2 inch in height and in width. Unless you want to print your document on larger paper and cut out your finished size from bigger sheets, the way a printing company would do, you'll need to leave a margin to make your finished file printable on a desktop printer or color copier. Set the color mode of your document to match the best choice for your intended output device.
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Open an image file that contains a photograph of your band. Use the Photoshop Move tool to drag and drop the photo from its original file into the document you just created. Close the original photo file after you've duplicated the image.
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Move the photo around inside the boundaries of your document until you're pleased with the way it's cropped within the file dimensions. If the image is too large to show as much of the photo as you want, open the "Edit" menu, navigate to the "Transform" submenu and choose "Scale." Click on the "Maintain Aspect Ratio" link button between the width and height fields in the Options Bar to assure that your image scales proportionally. Enter a width or height, or scale the image interactively using the transform handles. Click on the "Commit Transform" button when you're satisfied with your scaling operation.
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Place a file that contains your band's logo, if you have one. Open the "File" menu and choose "Place." When the logo comes into your file, you'll see transformation handles around its image area. Use them to scale the logo appropriately for the size of your document.
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If you don't have a logo, or if your logo doesn't clearly state your band name, typeset the name in large type. Activate the Type tool in the Adobe Photoshop toolbox. Set the typeface, style, size, anti-aliasing method, alignment and color in the Options Bar. Make sure your typeface choice coordinates well with -- or matches -- the typography in your logo, if you have one, and that your type color balances with the colors in your photo. After you've set your type, switch to the Move tool and position the headline where you want it.
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Set smaller type to present event-specific information, if you're preparing your flyer to promote an upcoming gig or CD release party. Once you complete this flyer design, you'll be able to customize new versions of for future needs and events, so leave your type layers unflattened.
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Save your file in Photoshop's native PSD format. Save another copy in PDF format so you can email it to your bandmates for review. Make sure you print your final version from a full-resolution document, not a downloaded sampled, compressed JPEG file.
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Tips & Warnings
To establish a recognizable identity for your band, create a flyer style that you can customize with event-specific details for each gig and that includes enough space for type to allow for other uses.
To create an alternate take on your flyer, try adding an "Invert" adjustment layer at the top of your file.
Use a band photo that shows each member with an instrument, or part of one, to help build recognition for each member's contribution.
To create a holiday version of your flyer, experiment with the Photoshop Brush tool to add graffiti-style ornaments or costume details.
If your band has a website, harmonize your flyer design with your online identity.
Save each version of your flyer under a new name so you don't accidentally overwrite your original or a favorite interim version.
References
Resources
- The Photoshop CS3/CS4 WOW! Book; Linnea Dayton and Cristen Gillespie
- The Photoshop CS/CS2 WOW! Book; Linnea Dayton and Cristen Gillespie
- Photoshop Masking and Compositing; Katrin Eismann
- Photoshop Restoration and Retouching, Third Edition; Katrin Eismann and Wayne Palmer
- Photo Credit Thinkstock/Comstock/Getty Images
