
Creating a realistic T-shirt mockup can be a useful skill for designers, especially when it comes to design competitions or advertising printed shirts. It can help enhance a design and give customers a more accurate image of the final product. There are several tools available to create these mockups, including Photoshop, Photopea, and Pixelmator Pro. These tools allow designers to add logos, designs, and images onto T-shirts, creating realistic mockups that showcase how the final product will look.
What You'll Learn
Using Photoshop
To create a realistic T-shirt mockup in Photoshop, you'll need to start with a base image of a T-shirt. Preferably, use a white shirt, as it will be easier to work with when adding your desired design.
First, enhance the details on the shirt by pressing Ctrl+L on your keyboard and adjusting the input level sliders. The wrinkles on the shirt are important, as they will add realism to your final design. Next, go to "Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur" and adjust the blur radius to remove minor details while keeping the shadows on the wrinkled cloth recognisable. Save this file as a PSD document, as you will need it later.
Now, reopen your original shirt image and adjust the levels again, this time revealing slightly fewer details. Unlock the layer by double-clicking on the background layer to allow for further alterations. Use the Pen Tool to trace the outline of the shirt, creating a path around it. Right-click on the "Work Path" in the "Paths" tab and select "Make Selection".
With the shirt now selected, right-click on it and choose "Layer Via Copy" to create a new layer with the selection. Hide Layer 0 (the original shirt layer) by clicking on the checkbox next to the eye icon. Right-click on the thumbnail of Layer 1 and select "Select Pixels". Then, click on the contrast icon below the layer toolbar to generate a colour fill of the current selection. Choose white as the fill colour.
Ensure that Layer 1 is above the colour fill mask. If needed, drag and drop the layer to reposition it within the layer toolbar. Change the Blending Option to "Multiply". Now, copy your desired image design (either locally or from the web) and paste it into your workspace. Position the layer of your image design between the Shirt Layer and the Colour Fill Layer.
The final step is to distort your design to wrap it around the folds and wrinkles of the shirt. With the image design layer selected, go to "Filter > Distort > Displace". Click "OK" and locate the PSD file you created earlier. You will now see your design distorted to fit the wrinkles and folds of the shirt, adding a sense of realism to your mockup.
You can further customise your mockup by changing the shirt colour or replacing the design. To change the shirt colour, double-click on the colour fill layer thumbnail and select your desired colour, shade, and hue from the Colour Picker window. To change the shirt design, simply replace the original design and re-execute the displace command.
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Adjusting levels and shadows
When creating a realistic T-shirt mockup, adjusting the levels and shadows is a crucial step to achieving a sense of depth and realism in your design. Here's a detailed guide on how to tackle this process:
Adjusting Levels for Detail Enhancement:
Start by pressing Ctrl+L on your keyboard to bring up the level sliders. Make subtle adjustments to the input level sliders to enhance the details on the T-shirt, especially the wrinkles. These wrinkles and creases will add texture and a sense of realism to your mockup. Be careful not to overdo it, as you want to strike a balance between enhancing details and retaining the natural look of the fabric.
Gaussian Blur for Shadow Retention:
Click on Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur. Adjust the blur radius carefully. The goal here is to gently erase minor details and imperfections on the shirt while ensuring that most of the shadows on the wrinkled fabric remain recognisable. This step is important because these shadows will influence the effectiveness of the Displace command that you'll use later in the process.
Fine-Tuning Levels for Layer Creation:
Now, reopen your original shirt image and adjust the levels again. This time, aim to reveal slightly fewer details compared to the first file. This step is important for creating a new layer that will serve as the foundation for your design. By reducing the details, you're essentially creating a base that allows your design to take centre stage while still benefiting from the subtle texture of the fabric.
Unlocking Layers for Customisation:
Double-click on the background layer to unlock it. This simple action opens up a world of customisation options, allowing you to make further alterations to the image and prepare it for the next steps in your mockup creation process. With the layer unlocked, you can now freely modify it to your liking.
Tracing the Outline for Selection:
Using the pen tool (either click on the pen icon in the left toolbar or simply press P), carefully trace the outline of the shirt. This step is crucial for creating a precise selection that will enable you to work specifically within the boundaries of the shirt. It ensures that your design fits perfectly onto the T-shirt without any unwanted overlaps or gaps.
Creating a Selection Path:
After you've created a path around the shirt, navigate to the Paths tab located in the same row as the Layer tab on the right toolbar. Right-click on "Work Path" and then select "Make Selection". At this point, the shirt itself becomes the current selection, allowing you to work exclusively within its boundaries.
By following these steps, you'll be able to create a realistic T-shirt mockup with well-adjusted levels and shadows. Remember to experiment and fine-tune the settings to suit your specific design and image. With careful adjustments, you can achieve a professional and convincing mockup that showcases your T-shirt design in the best possible light.
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Tracing the outline
Once you have found a suitable shirt image, you will need to edit the input level sliders to enhance the details on the shirt. This can be done by pressing Ctrl+L on your keyboard and making adjustments. The wrinkles on the shirt are important as they add realism to the mockup. Next, you will need to apply a Gaussian Blur to the image to remove minor details while retaining the shadows on the wrinkled cloth. Adjust the blur radius carefully to achieve this.
Now, you are ready to begin tracing the outline of the shirt. For this step, you will use the pen tool, which can be accessed by clicking the pen icon in the left toolbar or simply pressing "P" on your keyboard. Carefully trace the outline of the shirt, creating a path around it. Once you have completed the path, navigate to the Paths tab located in the same row as the Layer tab on the right toolbar. Right-click on "Work Path" and select "Make Selection" from the menu.
At this point, you will have the shirt as your current selection. Right-click on the shirt and select "Layer Via Copy" to create a new layer containing the selection. You can now turn off the visibility of Layer 0, which contains the shirt with the background, by clicking the checkbox indicated by an eye icon. This will allow you to focus solely on the shirt outline.
With Layer 1 active, right-click on the thumbnail and select "Select Pixels". This will allow you to generate a colour fill for the selection. Choose white as the fill colour by clicking the contrast icon below the layer toolbar. Ensure that Layer 1 is positioned over the colour fill mask. If needed, you can move the layer by dragging it within the layer toolbar. Finally, change the Blending Option to "Multiply" to complete the process of tracing the outline.
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Layering
Start by unlocking the layer you're working on to enable further image alterations. You can do this by double-clicking on the background layer. This will give you more flexibility in editing the image and adding elements.
Utilize the Pen Tool to precisely trace the outline of the T-shirt. This tool is usually represented by a pen icon in the left toolbar or can be accessed by pressing "P" on your keyboard. By creating a path around the shirt, you establish a clear boundary for your design elements.
After creating the path, navigate to the Paths tab located in the same row as the Layer tab on the right toolbar. From here, right-click on "Work Path" and select "Make Selection." This will ensure that your T-shirt is the current selection, allowing you to work specifically within this area.
Now, you can create a new layer containing your T-shirt selection. Right-click on the shirt and choose "Layer Via Copy." This will generate a separate layer that includes the T-shirt outline you traced earlier.
Turn off the visibility of Layer 0, which contains the shirt with the background, by clicking on the checkbox indicated by an eye icon. This step ensures that you're working solely on the new layer with the T-shirt outline.
Select the pixels of the T-shirt on Layer 1 by right-clicking on the thumbnail of this layer and choosing "Select Pixels." Once the selection is made, click on the contrast icon below the layer toolbar to generate a color fill of your selection. Choose white as the fill color to create a solid base for your design.
Position Layer 1 over the color fill mask. You can move a layer by simply dragging and placing it where you want it within the layer toolbar. Then, change the Blending Option to "Multiply" to seamlessly integrate the layers.
Now, you can add your design elements. Copy an image or logo locally or from the web, and paste it into your workspace area. Ensure that the layer of your design element is positioned between the Shirt Layer (Layer 1) and the Color Fill Layer. This ensures that your design appears naturally on the shirt while retaining the ability to edit it independently.
By following these layering steps, you can effectively integrate your design onto the T-shirt mockup, creating a realistic and visually appealing representation of your artwork.
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Adding logos and images
Firstly, you will need to find a suitable shirt image to use as your base. It is recommended to use a white shirt, as it provides a blank canvas for your design. Once you have selected your shirt image, make any necessary adjustments to enhance the details, such as the wrinkles, which will add depth to your final design. You can do this by adjusting the input level sliders and applying a Gaussian Blur to remove minor details while retaining the shadows on the wrinkled fabric.
Next, you will want to prepare your workspace by unlocking the layer and tracing the outline of the shirt using the pen tool. This will allow you to create a path around the shirt, which is necessary for placing your logo or image. After creating the path, right-click on the Work Path and select "Make Selection". At this point, you will have the shirt as your current selection, and you can create a new layer by right-clicking and selecting "Layer Via Copy".
Now, you are ready to add your desired logo or image. Copy and paste your chosen design into the workspace, ensuring that the layer of your image is positioned between the Shirt Layer and the Color Fill Layer. With your design image selected, go to "Filter > Distort > Displace" and locate the PSD file you created earlier. You will now see your logo or image distort to wrap around the folds and wrinkles of the shirt, giving it a realistic, three-dimensional appearance.
Feel free to experiment with different logos, images, and shirt designs to find the perfect combination. You can also change the shirt's colour by navigating to the colour fill layer and using the Colour Picker tool to select your desired shade.
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Frequently asked questions
Using a platform such as Pixelmator Pro or Photoshop, you can easily add logos, designs, and images onto a T-shirt to create a realistic mockup.
It is recommended to use a white T-shirt as this will allow you to easily alter the colour and add your desired design.
Once you have added your design, you can change the shirt's colour by navigating to the colour fill layer and double-clicking on the colour fill layer thumbnail. This will bring up a Colour Picker window where you can choose your desired colour, shade, and hue.
Copy your image design and paste it into the workspace area, ensuring that the layer of the image is positioned between the Shirt Layer and the Colour Fill Layer.
Creating a T-shirt mockup can help designers gain an extra edge in design competitions or advertisements for selling printed shirts. It can enhance a design and provide customers with a more accurate image of the final product.