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step 1
Make a new document (Ctrl-N (win)/Cmnd-N (mac)) of 1000 by 730px with a white background and call it “MacBook Air”.
Of course you can pick whatever size you like but keep in mind it will be easier to follow if you use the same sizes.
step 2
Before we start we are going to set up our document with guides. Make sure the rulers are visible (Ctrl-R/Cmnd-R) and set the measurements to pixels.
You can set up guides manually using the info pallette (F8) or simply by typing in the numbers in the New Guide window (View > New Guide).
Vertical guides: 40 - 100 - 220 - 430 - 570 - 780 - 900 - 960px
Horizontal guides: 40 - 185 - 280 — 690px
Tip: Being consecuent in setting up your documents and naming your layers will make your workflow much easier.
step 3
Now we’ve set up our document we are going to draw the black rectangle.
Pick the Rounded Rectangle Tool (U), set the radius on 10 and drag a nice rectangle in between the guides we’ve just set up. Call this layer “Rectangle”.
step 4
In this step we’ll draw the basic shape.
Make a new layer (Ctrl-Shift-N/Cmnd-Shift-N), select the Rectangular Marque Tool (M) and drag a selection around the yellow square as shown below.
Next, go to Selection > Transform Selection & Transform > Perspective and drag the top inwards to the guides we’ve previously set up.
Now we still need to smoothen the corners of our selection; Select > Modify > Smooth and choose a radius between 10 - 15.
The last step is to Fill our selection with white (shift-F5) and dragging the edges back to the guides so it lines up nicely. Call this layer “Top”.
step 5
Now that we have our basic shape we can hide our Guides and start with the actual design; this is where the fun begins.
First we are going to apply an Inner Glow. See the images below for the settings.
Tip: When you’re working on a project it can be usefull to save your Layer Styles into a new set!
step 6
To achieve a metal look we will use a gradient overlay. Go back to the layer styles and use the following settings.
Note: All locations are for color stops. No color midpoints has to be changed if not mentioned!
step 7
Result.
step 8
In this step we’ll create the shiny edge of the topplate.
Duplicate layer “Top”, clair all Layer Styles and drag it beneath the original shape. Now tapp the down arrow twice. Call this layer “Edge”.
step 9
Now to make the edge nice and shiny we need our Layer Styles. Again we will use a Gradient Overlay.
step 10
Result.
step 11
Now we’ve finished the top we’re going to make the middle part of the laptop.
As in step 8, duplicate layer “Edge”, clair the Layer Styles and drag it below the original layer.
Next, press Ctrl-T/Cmnd-T to go in Free Transform and tap the down arrow once.
Now we’ll repeat this step 4 times using the same distance (”Step And Repeat”) with the following keyboard shortcut: Control-Alt-Shift-T/Shift-option-Cmnd-T. Merge all copies and call it “Middle”.
Note: Step And Repeat will only work if you repositioned a layer in Free transform mode.
step 12
Let’s make the middle part shiny too. Go to the Layer Styles and use the following settings.
step 13
Result.
step 14
In this step we’ll create the “magnetic latch”.
Let’s bring our guides back to see where we have to draw the rectangle. Use the Rectangle Tool (U) and call this layer “Latch”.
step 15
Of course this doesn’t look like anything like it yet, so go to your Layer Styles and let’s fix this!
step 16
Result.
step 17
The bottem of the laptop needs to be darker too.
Duplicate layer “Edge”, Clair all Layer Styles, and drag it behind layer “Middle”.
Now start tapping the down arrow key until you see the layer appear (1px is enough). Call this layer “Bottem”.
Next we’ll give it a nice dark color in the Layer Styles menu.
Of course you don’t see any change yet, but when we’ll ad the spotlight it’ll make a big difference!
step 18
In this step well create the details.
Grab yourself the Apple Logo (or draw it) and transform until it fit. Be sure the logo is horizontal in the middle of the laptop.
As a final touch, we give it a little Bevel And Emboss & Satin (see the settings below).
Don’t forget to draw the light sensor in the right too.
step 19
Result.
step 20
Let’s make a new layer above our black rectangle in the back (we called this layer “Rectangle”) and call it “Spotlight”.
We’re going to make the light with a Radial Gradient. Select your Gradient Tool and click on the preview in the left corner to make a new Custom Gradient. Use the settings below or choose another color.
Drag a gradient across the image and transform it until you have a nice looking oval.
Because we don’t need the spotlight to be outside the black rectangle we are going to use a Clipping Mask.
With the “Spotlight” Layer selected, go to Layer > Create Layer Mask. This will hide the part we don’t need.
step 21
Result.
step 22
Now we have a nice spotlight we can make the MacBook float. This doesn’t involve magic but just a simple drop shadow.
Select layer “Top” and go to the Layer Styles to ad a drop shadow.
step 23
Result.
step 24
The final step is to put in some text and we’re done!
Apple always use Myriad Pro in their advertising but when they introduced the MacBook Air they placed “Air” in Myriad Pro Ultralight; simply brilliant!
step 25
Ta-da! This is our final result!
step 26
Here are two more examples of what you can achieve with these techniques!
I hope you had as much fun I did and keep on chopping!
K3v.
