Creating Insets with Photoshop 7.0

Summary: Create random shapes and fill; rotate canvas; apply wind; rotate canvas and apply motion blur; apply wave and ocean ripple filters; expand canvas; apply polar coordinates; rotate canvas; select "central" portion of image; apply polar coordinates again.  Add more images and flatten.

General
This is basic tutorial for Inset lines. The lines are are often used on bar separators, as a detailing effect or as an add-on effect for interfaces. These lines appear best when the lines you use are horizontal, vertical or diagonal lines. The graphic above is based on the same "principles" described below.

1. Create a new file.
Create a new file (Ctrl+N) in RGB mode with a resolution of  72 a color background of your choice. Set the colors for the foreground and background. Select colors the contrast well. I used the black and white respectively on a Green (#387A14) background. Using the pencil tool set at 2-4 px's*¹ draw two black lines as the first image shown on the right. (NOTE: The smaller line images show a 2x "magnified" swatch of the lines.)  Shift while moving the pencil will keep the line straight, but you must release it to start the second line, then hold the shift again OR you could just duplicate the single line layer > move the second black line and merge the layers.  Remember its good to save your selections and save your file frequently.

2. Duplicate Layer apply filters.
Now you should have two black lines on one layer. Duplicate the layer > Shift click that layer and fill selection with white. Now select the move tool and move the white lines down and to the right by one or two px. Use the up, down, left or right arrow keys on you keyboard to make single px. movements of your lines. The amount you what to move the white image depends upon your initial pencil px. line widths.  For e.g. if your pencil lines are only 2px wide than the movement should be only 1px. down and to the right. For wider pencil line widths you can move the white layer say 2px.

4. Enlarge & apply more effects.
Enlarge the canvas. To prepare for the next step increase the size of your canvas. Choose Image > Canvas size add about 150 or more pixels to both the horizontal and the vertical. Choose filter > Distort > Polar Coordinates. Select the Polar to Rectangular button and watch the inside out effect amaze you. Choose Image > Rotate Canvas > Flip Vertical. The image now is "turned upside down". Use the marquee select tools and select the central part of the image. Feathering about 12 pixels. Leave about 50 pixels few on top and bottom and 100 pixels on either side. (Merge layers) Apply Polar coordinates again.  Add another image to your liking as seen in the largest image at the top.

px.'s - abreviation for pixel(s)