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Monday, February 20, 2012

Make Text Look Like Chrome

Using nothing more than a gradient swatch in InDesign, you can change text from a flat and boring object to a shiny metallic material that reflects the surfaces around it.

A highly reflective chrome effect may look like it was tricky to create, but in reality, all you need is a simple gradient fill, using as few as three color stops to create a convincing chrome effect in InDesign.
The key is to create a point somewhere in the gradient where the colors abruptly shift. When you have contrast, you have chrome.
I'll show you five different chrome examples, from basic to elaborate. You'll see how I set up each of them and how they change the look of text when I apply the gradients.



Watch the video below to learn how to bring text to life, changing it from plain, flat white to something that's made out of shiny metal that reflects things.
If you're not sure how to create gradients in the first place, read this primer from Adobe.