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This lesson demonstrates how to create navigation buttons - or circular badges, from scratch. After you have learned the basic principles, you will be able to create personalised navigation buttons using a shape of your choice; for example - oval, rectangular, or square. Be prepared to experiment with different gradients, shapes and highlights, to create buttons that suit your needs.
My tutorial here demonstrates how to create transparent navigation buttons from scratch.
My tutorial here demonstrates how to create navigation buttons from Styles.
Tip
Study a navigation button you like, (from the web, perhaps), and reproduce its glossiness on your button.
Undo and Navigation Steps
Two ways of undoing steps are from the top menu, Edit then Step Backwards. Alternatively, click a previous snapshot in the History Palette.
Navigate (zoom in and pan) your image using the Navigator Palette, or the Zoom Tool.
Alternatively, activate The Hand Tool by tapping the Spacebar, keeping the Spacebar pressed, pan your image in the usual way. 
1/ Create Oblong Navigation Buttons - Circular Navigation Buttons/Badges Here
Open a New document and set following attributes.
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Then set your Foreground and Background colours to a lighter and darker shade of blue - or colours you prefer.  Lesson.
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Activate the Rounded Rectangle Tool.
And set the following attributes into its Options Bar.
Now, drag a button shape onto your canvas. I am making my button purposely large.
 
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Then activate the Magic Wand Tool  - and with a Tolerance of 255, left-click inside the button to surround it with a selection marquee.
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Now, activate the Gradient Tool. 
Then click the Reset Gradients tab (illustrated below), and double-left-click to set the following Foreground to Background gradient.
Your gradient colour-bar will resemble the following - or two colours of your choice.
Now, press the Shift key - and keeping it pressed, stretch a gradient line over the
button, in an upwards - or downwards - motion, as illustrated below.
Important Note
It is important to experiment with the gradient line - by this I mean the gradient line does not have to be stretched over the full depth of the button; stop half up, (or a quarter way) up or down, and create a gradient you prefer.
After you have applied the gradient, press Ctrl then D to remove the marquee - and you are ready for the next step.
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From the top menu, choose Layer then choose New then choose Layer, and name this layer Highlight.
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Now, there are different ways of creating the highlight shape; you can either draw a shape with the Polygonal Lasso or Lasso Tools - or Pen Tool. Or apply a Custom Shape and modify (remove areas with the Eraser Tool), so the shape resembles a highlight. Alternatively, you can paint a highlight with the Paint Brush Tool. You are looking to apply a (horizontal) rectangular shape, that represents a highlight, to the top of your button - and I am demonstrating this with the Polygonal Lasso Tool.
Therefore, activate the Polygonal Lasso Tool. 
And set the following attributes into its Options bar.
Tip
You will find this easier if you Zoom into your image.
Now, (working with the Highlight layer), click-and-stretch a lasso line over the button, as demonstrated below.
Tip
Draw a larger highlight, if you wish.
Apply the lasso line in a complete circuit, and pass your cursor over the exact area where you began, and left-click. The lasso line will immediately change to a selection marquee.
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Now, press your keyboard’s D key. This sets the default black and white Foreground and Background colours. 
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Press Ctrl then Backspace and the selection will be filled with White. Press Ctrl then D to remove the marquee. You have created your upper highlight, as demonstrated below.
Note: If you need to fade the highlight - from the top menu, choose Filter then choose Blur then choose Gaussian Blur, and experiment with the Radius setting. I am happy with my highlight, as it is.
Tip
For a whiter highlight, right-click the Highlight layer, and choose Duplicate Layer from the drop-down list.
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From the top menu, choose Layer then choose New then choose Layer; and name this layer Lower Highlight.
Important Note
Steps 11 to 14 are not required for my gel/glass example buttons - therefore, proceed to Chapter 15 to apply your text, Here!
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Now, swap the Foreground and Background colours, so the Background is set to Black, you do this by pressing your keyboard’s X key.
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Then activate the Polygonal Lasso Tool, and this time, change the Feather to 0.
Now, create a rectangular selection marquee over the bottom of the button, as demonstrated below.
Remember, you can drag the marquee to a different position if New Selection is active.
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Now, press Ctrl then press your Backspace key. This fills the marquee with black. Press Ctrl then D to remove the marquee.
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Now, (ensure you are working on the Lower Highlight layer), then from the top menu, choose Filter then choose Blur then choose Gaussian Blur. I set a Radius of 5 - however, for personal results, experiment.
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Activate the Horizontal Type Tool.  Lesson!
And apply the type of your choice - the font I am utilising is Arial Black.
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Now, activate the button layer.
Then click the Add a layer style (f - fx) icon) - at the bottom of the Layers palette; and apply a Drop Shadow to your button - note, I applied the default settings. To enhance the bevelled effect, apply a Bevel and Emboss filter to your button. I applied the following Bevel and Emboss settings.
Tip
Experiment with different Layer Styles, and see if you can improve the button’s appearance. The button below, was created by utilising the following Bevel and Emboss settings - Screen Capture Here!
And this button  Utilised this setting here!
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If you feel your button needs it, apply more highlights to it, with either the Polygonal Lasso Tool, or the Brush Tool. If you choose to apply more highlights, apply them to a new layer, and set a Basic Soft Brush, with a low Opacity. If you are utilising the Polygonal Lasso Tool, set a Feather of 2, and ensure Add to selection is active.
Then fill the selection (s) with white, and fade them with the Gaussian Blur filter.
Tip
To smooth the jagged corners of the button, activate the Blur Tool, and set the Strength to 3. Now very carefully smooth the jagged corners.
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Apply a sharpening filter to the button if you wish; I applied a Smart Sharpen filter. When you are happy with your button, crop away wasted transparent areas. 
Then from the top menu, choose Layer then choose Merge Visible.
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To finish, fill the transparent background with a Solid Colour, Pattern or Gradient of your choice - as explained here! Play with different button shapes, (for example round), and experiment with different Gradients, and highlights.
Note
I finished by applying Custom Shapes to the button, I then changed the Custom Shape’s Blend Mode - additionally, experiment with different Gradients, coloured type, and
fonts.
Additionally, I created the following pink Downloads button.
 
By utilising a pink to white gradient found in the Simple Gradients Library. However, this time, I filled the lower selection marquee with White instead of black in Chapters 12 and 13. Play with the shadows and highlights (black and white) to create a look you like!
Semitransparent Navigation Buttons
To create semitransparent buttons, simply lower the Layer Opacity of the button layer - naturally, this needs to be carried out prior to merging the layers.
To complete the transparent effect, create a New Fill Layer. Then fill it with (either), a Solid Colour, Pattern or Gradient, that matches your website’s background the closest - as I did with my following example.
Circular Navigation Buttons - or Badges  
I created my circular button using the Elliptical Marquee Tool, keeping the Shift key pressed to create a circle. I then changed the Foreground and Background colours to the following.
The Gradient’s orientation was changed from Linear to Radial - as demonstrated
above. I then dragged a Gradient line over the circular marquee, in the following direction; however, experiment with different gradient directions!
 
I removed the marquee, (Ctrl then D), then with the Polygonal Lasso Tool, with a Feather of 2, I drew a highlight (on it’s own layer), exactly as I did with my oblong button - and filled it with white. I then applied a Gaussian Blur filter to the highlight.
Remember to Experiment with different highlight positions!
For depth, activate the Burn Tool, and using Highlights, (with an Exposure of around 30%), carefully darken the outer contours of the button.
Tip
Ragged edges can be smoothed using a very low Strength of the Blur Tool. Alternatively, with a Feather of 1 or 2, draw a circular marquee over your button, making it marginally smaller - then Invert the marquee, and press your keyboard’s Delete key. This smoothes the ragged edges.
You can take this further by creating lighter areas using the Dodge Tool. Creating highlights and shadows will bring your button to life. When you are happy with the result, apply a Drop Shadow, and Type, merge its layers, and save it in the usual way.
Wendi E M Scarth. Top of Page - Home.
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