Create a Realistic Page Curl in Photoshop
Following on from the Torn Paper tutorial, the page curl is also commonly used in creating the distressed and collage looks. This simple walkthrough can be applied to any photo to add an extra bit of detail.
Open up the original image into Photoshop
Duplicate the layer by dragging the background layer into the New Layer icon, then fill the original background layer with white.
Drag a square selection across the bottom section of the image.
With the selection active, press CTRL/CMD + T to Transform, right click and select Warp from the menu.
Drag the lower corner point inwards to bend the edge of the image upwards to simulate a page curl.
Zoom into the area and draw around the folded corner with the pen tool.
Right click on the path and choose Make Selection. Fill the selection with white on a new layer.
Double click on the new layer and add a Gradient Overlay angled across the curl to add depth.
Add a slight drop shadow to the curl to give the impression that the curl is lifted from the background slightly. Keeping the effects subtle is the key.
Click back onto the image layer and add another slight drop shadow to the lower edge.
An additional tip:
When using this technique with a plain white or flat coloured image, it can be difficult to see the warp transformation. To get around this, take a screen shot of the transform tool settings.
Then, after applying the settings, paste in the screenshot and use it as a guide to draw the outline with the pen tool. Delete the screenshot from the document and continue with the steps above.
Users with Photoshop version <CS2 without the Warp option, copy the above image to use as a template in your document!
January 23rd, 2008 at 9:58 pm
great tut
January 24th, 2008 at 5:37 am
Very nice. Great tutorial.
January 24th, 2008 at 6:25 am
Very nice outcome, but I recommend one thing: You should write that the Warp transform feature won’t be available for Photoshop 7 users. I don’t think so anyway.
January 24th, 2008 at 10:34 am
Good point Eli, that’s right, the Warp filter wasn’t introduced until CS2.
The workaround would just mean getting jiggy with the pen tool and drawing the outline of the page curl from scratch, instead of tracing the Warp transformation.
Or,
Users could copy the second to last image and paste it into their document to use as a guide.
Chris
January 24th, 2008 at 1:41 pm
Definitely, the easiest tutorial on doing a page curl that I have ever seen. Good job and thanks!
January 25th, 2008 at 9:36 pm
Very well done. I can see myself coming back to this tutorial sometime in the near future. Thanks.
January 26th, 2008 at 11:21 pm
I see myself coming back as well. This kind of style can add depth to website graphics. I was working on a design this week that would have benefited from that. Thanks.
January 28th, 2008 at 2:26 am
NICE tutorial! And easy too, I’ve see a lot of page curling techniques and this is a sweet one.
January 29th, 2008 at 6:50 am
It is a really a good tutorial for starters in photoshop.
The step-by-step process really helps us a lot.
Thannks for everything.
January 29th, 2008 at 11:53 am
Hey!! i was just designing a menu and thank you for publishing this effect..one question though..i have no idea about how you take a screen shot in a windows….for Macintosh it’s easy..but i don’t know for windows….
Anyways..thanx for that enlightenment.
T@Z
January 29th, 2008 at 12:16 pm
Hey tashinorden
For Windows it depends on your keyboard, there should be a ‘Print Screen’ button somewhere, it differs between manufacturers.
Chris
February 1st, 2008 at 5:37 pm
I am stuck
I selected a section, done the ctrl+t and right clicked, but i dont get the warp option.
Does this not work in PSE6?
Help pleeeeeaaaassseeeee
February 17th, 2008 at 5:40 am
wow! amazing!!
February 20th, 2008 at 6:39 pm
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February 23rd, 2008 at 2:12 am
thanks, its nice and very important
June 9th, 2008 at 6:04 pm
wow, thats some talent right there. very kewl.
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June 11th, 2008 at 4:33 pm
nice tutorial!
June 18th, 2008 at 4:45 pm
sweet site.
July 22nd, 2008 at 2:07 am
ill be sure to try this out and see what it can really do.
August 22nd, 2008 at 10:04 am
Thanks for your tutor friend, nice artikel. May be tonight i will try, but please help me if i can’t do it…
August 26th, 2008 at 4:46 am
so real, it must be real.
August 27th, 2008 at 10:24 am
Thx for your tutorial. You rescued me.
September 24th, 2008 at 7:46 pm
Nice work. I’m using this effect for a catalog cover…can’t wait to see the final product!
September 26th, 2008 at 3:40 pm
A++ thanks for sharing.
September 30th, 2008 at 9:59 pm
Ah very nice tut !
October 3rd, 2008 at 7:55 pm
Thanks a lot for the tutorial.
Very useful indeed, i shall put it into place right now!
October 10th, 2008 at 4:35 pm
Thank you for sharing this awesome “trick” with us. I specially appriciate your easy to follow guide. I think now i have some photoediting to do!
October 11th, 2008 at 2:31 pm
A+ tutorial
October 12th, 2008 at 6:23 am
Very nice photoshop tutorial! It is easy to follow your guide here, thanks for sharing
October 12th, 2008 at 7:37 am
It is a really a good tutorial for starters in photoshop.
The step-by-step process really helps us a lot.
Thannks for everything.