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This lesson demonstrates how to create an animated diamond signature, and the usefulness of alpha channels. To work along, you can download the assets Here.
Unzip the file, and open the contents onto Photoshop’s workspace.
Alpha Fully Channels Explained Here
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. 
Activate The Hand Tool by tapping the Spacebar, keeping the Spacebar pressed, pan your image in the usual way. 
Note
My oblong diamond image is the correct size to fill type that is the same size as this tutorial, if you use larger type, it will not fill it, unless your resize it to make it larger.
Note
There are different ways of creating animations, my tutorial Here explains how to create animation (image-frames) created from layers - thereby leaving the workspace relatively free of clutter. This (diamond signature) lesson, utilises individual (duplicated) images, and does require a little organisation to keep the workspace neat and tidy.
Alpha Channels
Think of Alpha channels as a place to store (and retrieve) selection marquees.
Once saved, (as a PSD file), you can reuse stored selections - even after Photoshop has been closed - and load them into images.
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It is worth knowing that alpha channels can be altered using Photoshop’s editing tools. This lesson demonstrates how to save, then retrieve, selection marquees from alpha channels, which is a straightforward - and painless - procedure.
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Open a New (Transparent) document, and set the following attributes.
Note
The canvas size is large, however, you can resize this later, prior to animating.
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Your workspace will now resemble the following.
Minimise the diamond image,  ready to utilise later.
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Then click the highlighted swatch, and set your Foreground Colour to White. Lesson.
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Now, click the Horizontal Type Tool.  Lesson.
And set the following attributes into its Options bar - clear the type size and type in 200.
Apply your name and reposition it with the Move Tool.
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From the top menu, choose Layer then choose New then choose Layer - there is no need to name this layer, click OK. Now, from the Layers palette, click to activate (highlight) your type layer.
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From the top menu, choose Layer then choose Rasterise then choose Type.
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Activate the Magic Wand Tool. 
And left-click once inside the first letter, then click inside each consecutive letter, your name will then be surrounded by a selection marquee.
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From the top menu, choose Select then choose Modify then choose Contract. In the subsequent Contract Selection dialogue box, change the Contract by setting to 5. This shrinks the marquee, as demonstrated below.
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Now from your keyboard, press the Delete key, then from the top menu, choose Select then choose Deselect.
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Activate the Magic Wand Tool and left-click once inside each (white) letter, and they will be surrounded with a selection marquee. Ensure all of the white is surrounded by a marquee. If you make an error, from the top menu, choose Edit then choose Step Backwards.
Note
You may find it helpful to zoom into work, from the top menu, choose View then choose Zoom in.
Tip
Don’t forget to click inside (the whites) of the apertures of the letters i, and e.
Your type will resemble the following and is ready for the metallic effect - I am using Super Blade Pro, however, choose your favourite metallic effect.
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To apply the gold effect, from the top menu, choose Filter then select the plugin of your choice. I am applying Super Blade Pro’s (default) gold effect, (a screen capture of the settings can be found Here). This changed my outlined type to the following.
Note: Flaming Pear’s (Free) Primus filter has a similar gold effect.
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From the top menu, choose Select then choose Deselect and your type will resemble the following.
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Now, activate the Move Tool. 
And drag the ruby gem onto the dot of the letter i, (if you have one), and resize the gem to fit the aperture using the Free Transformation command. From the top menu, choose Edit then choose Free Transform. My lesson Here demonstrates how to use this tool. Alternatively, move the gem layer to below the gold type layer and remove parts of the gem that transcends the gold using the Eraser Tool.
Tip
If you feel your image will be too large (remember the final animation contains three images), now is the time to resize it. From the top menu, choose Edit then choose Free Transform and reduce its size.
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When the red gem is placed inside the dot of the i, activate the Magic Wand Tool and click inside the transparent areas within each gold letter.
Important
Be very careful to place the marquee inside the gold, it must not touch the gold type, apart from the very edges, of course.
Tip
You will find it useful to zoom in (from the top menu choose View then choose Zoom in.
Important
Before continuing, please ensure the inside (transparent) areas of your name are fully surrounded by a marquee.
Your selected type should resemble the following.
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It is time to save your selection to an alpha channel. From the top menu, choose Select then choose Save Selection. You will see the following Save Selection dialogue box.
Set the default settings, (above) and add a name in the Name menu, I have chosen diamond. Then click OK. Now, as long as you don’t close Photoshop, this selection is permanently saved. If you wish to close down Photoshop, (and apply your selection later), save your image as a PSD image, and ensure there is a tick in the Alpha Channel tick box as displayed Here.
Your selection marquee is now safely placed in an alpha channel, and we will retrieve it later - however, don’t close Photoshop - if you haven’t saved it to a PSD file, it will be forever lost.
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We need to duplicate this image twice, so we have three identical images - therefore, activate your original image, right-click its upper menu then click Duplicate from the drop-down menu - there is no need to name this layer, click OK. Repeat this, and you will have three identical images, with just the first (original) image, retaining its selection marquee.
Now, activate the second image and from the top menu choose Select then choose Load Selection. The following Load Selection dialogue box will
appear.
Click open the Channel tab and locate your newly saved (diamond) channel, and ensure just New Selection is active - then click OK. Providing you are working on the image intended for the selection (for example, a copy of the original type with the marquee inside it) a marquee will be placed inside your type. Activate the third image and apply the selection marquee in exactly the same way. You now have three images, each containing (identical) selection marquees.
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It is time to apply the diamond effect inside the type - therefore, activate the diamond oblong, and from the top menu choose Select then choose All. The diamond oblong is now surround by a marquee, the presence of this marquee is very important.
From the top menu choose Edit, then choose Copy. Now, activate the first (top) type image, (it must have its marquee), then from the top menu, choose Edit then choose Paste Into. Because of the selection marquee, the diamond image has been pasted inside the selection of the first type image.
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Again, activate the diamond oblong image, then from the top menu, choose Edit then choose Transform then choose Flip Horizontal. You will notice the oblong has been flipped. From the top menu, choose Edit, then choose Copy. Now activate the second type image and choose Edit, then choose Paste Into. The flipped diamond oblong has been pasted into your second type image. Activate the diamond oblong then from the top menu choose Edit then choose Transform then choose Flip then choose Vertical, then from the top menu, choose Copy. Now, activate the third (empty) type, and from the top menu, choose Edit then choose Paste Into. You now have three signature images each filled with slightly different (positioned) diamonds, (the original, flipped horizontal and flipped vertical images). Look carefully to check that the diamonds are slightly different, as this is crucial for a successful animation.
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Activate each image (individually) then from the top menu, choose Layers then choose Merge Visible. To apply a drop shadow, activate each image and apply identical drop shadows to each, by clicking the f - fx, icon at the bottom of the Layers palette and choosing Drop Shadow.
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Now, activate The Move Tool. 
Then press and hold down the Shift arrow key of your keyboard, then grab the second image and drag it onto the first. Because the Shift arrow key is pressed, the second image is placed exactly over the first. Repeat the same instructions and (Shift) drag the third image onto the first, then discard images two and three. You now have one image (the original image) which has three layers.
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Ensure each image has its Layers merged (visible) and each selection marquee has been removed, then click the following link to complete your animation.
General optimising/saving animations lesson - CS, CS2, CS3 & Extended - Here
Wendi E M Scarth. Top of Page - Home.
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