How to Create Realistic Shadows in Fireworks

One of the first effects beginning digital artists want to try is shadowing. Many people assume they need a full-fledged graphics program like Photoshop to create realistic shadows, but even less expensive graphic applications for web development can do the trick. If you need to add shadows to a graphic for a web site, you can add them in an instant with Fireworks.

Instructions

1. Select the object you want to cast the shadow. Copy and paste. Your object will appear in a new layer above the background layer.

2. Make a selection from the object you pasted into the top layer. The easiest method is to click in the transparent area with the Magic Wand tool and choose "Select Inverse" from the Select Menu.

3. Add an empty layer between the background layer and the layer you just created. You can click on the "New Bitmap Image" icon next to the trashcan icon in the Layers palette. The empty bitmap will become the active layer.

4. Move and feather the selection. The arrow keys move the selection one pixel at a time to help you position the shadow area precisely. Choose "Feather..." from the Select menu and feather 2 to 10 pixels (depending on the distance of the shadow from the source.)

5. Fill the selection with black. The feathered edges will soften the selection.

6. Blend the shadow with the background. Choose "Multiply" from the Layers palette Blend Modes menu. Lower the layer opacity by 25 to 50 percent.

7. Add shadows to additional selections. Always keep the shadow in the layer immediately below the selection casting the shadow. The shadows from the higher layers will blend with the shadows on the lower layers to make your effect even more realistic.

Tips & Warnings

• Work with original PNG or PSD files, not the compressed JPEG or GIF files used in web pages. Compressed files achieve their small size by throwing away the original pixel information, and it can never be recovered. But you still have to recompress edited files to squeeze them back to web size, which can result in serious image degradation.

• You can't create a realistic shadow if you haven't examined shadows in photographs and art. Pay attention to shadow edges, colors, and how shadows from different objects overlap.

• When positioning shadows, imagine the location of your light source. Place the shadow on an opposing diagonal from the light source (for example, light source top left, shadow bottom right.)