Liquid Metal Text
Created by: Jaci

Now we will enter our text: Click on the Text tool and then into your image to open the Text dialog box. Use the following settings:
– Name = Arial (or any other font)
– Size = 28
– Kerning = 0
– Text effects = Bold
– Floating = checked
– Antialias = checked

Enter your text and click on OK to insert it into your image. You can change its position on the canvas by clicking and dragging.

Go to Selections || Select None (Ctrl+D) to deselect the text.

Now we'll add a bevel to the text which is essential for the liquid metal effect. Go to Effects || 3D Effects || Inner Bevel and change the settings as follows:
– Bevel = the round one (1st row, 2nd column)
– Width = 10
– Smoothness = 35
– Depth = 10
– Ambience = 0
– Shininess = 75
– Color = white
– Angle = 315
– Intensity = 35
– Elevation = 40

Click on OK to apply the Inner Bevel effect.

And now the real trick ... Curves!

Go to Colors || Adjust || Curves, and in the "Curves" dialog box, set Channel = RGB.

On the Input / Output grid we will be working with four nodes. If you have less than four nodes, place your mouse pointer on top of the curve line until you see the +ADD sign and click to add a new node; if you have more than four nodes, click on the extra node and drag it off the grid.

Now that you have four nodes to work with, you will be clicking on each one of them (to make it active) and on the Input and Output boxes you will be entering the settings as follows:

Node #1 (bottom left corner of the grid):
– Input = 0
– Output = 0
Node #2 (1st column, near the top):
– Input = 48
– Output = 242
Node #3 (3rd column):
– Input = 164
– Output = 192
Node #4 (top right corner of the grid):
– Input = 255
– Output = 255

Click on OK to apply the adjustment. If you wish, you can go to Edit || Repeat Adjust Curves to apply it once again.

Finally, will give some emphasis to the text by adding a drop shadow: Go to Effects || 3D Effects || Drop Shadow and change the settings as follows:
– Vertical offset = 1
– Horizontal offset = 1
– Opacity = 100
– Blur = 5
– Color = black

Click on OK to apply the Drop Shadow effect.

From this point you can either merge all the layers or keep working on your image. For this example I merged the layers: Go to Layers || Merge || Merge All (flatten).