Graphics Tips

Adobe Photoshop Tip: Matrix Code Retooled

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NEO: Whoa. Deja vu.
TRINITY: What did you just say?
NEO: Nothing. Just had a little deja vu.
TRINITY: What happened? What did you see?
NEO: A Matrix Code Tutorial on MacMerc.com and then I saw another that looked just like it.
TRINITY: How much like it? Was it the same tutorial?
NEO: It might have been. I'm not sure. What is it?
TRINITY: A deja vu is usually a glitch in the Tutorial. It happens when they change something.

NEO: Hm, upgrades.

Make Green Rain... Unlike the Andy and Larry Wachowski, I prefer that sequels be an improvement upon the original. So in this Matrix code tutorial, unlike its predecessor, the code will consist entirely of actual text.

1. Download the Matrix Code Pattern unstuff it and remember where it is on your hard drive. (Full credit goes to Thomas W.Otto who developed the cut of the Matrix Code font that I used to make this pattern. Good job, TWO!!)

2. Start a new document (Command-N) in Adobe Photoshop: 5.25 x 7 inches, 300 pixels/inch, RGB, White Background. (Is there a significance to the 5.25 x 7 inch dimension? Not really. But it will be easier to follow along if you do what I do all the way through.)

3. Create a new layer and title it "Live Matrix Code"

4. Go Edit>Fill... and set the Content to Use Pattern, the Blending to Normal, the Opacity to 100% and uncheck the Preserve Transparency check box. Now click the thumbnail beside Custom Pattern. You should now see your entire collection of patterns...except the one you just downloaded. Click the button in the top right hand corner of this window to open the flyout menu and choose Load Patterns... This will open up a Load dialog box. Now just navigate to where the Matrix Code Pattern.pat file you unstuffed resides to load it. Once it's loaded, select it in the collection (it will be the last one on the list ... hover the pointing finger cursor over the thumbnails to find the one titled "Matrix Code" if you want to be extra sure). Click OK.

5. Under the View menu choose Show>Grid and then under the same menu choose both Snap and Snap to>Grid. If your grid is set to the default, you should see that each character of the Matrix code fall in its own cell in the grid. Now go into your Guides, Grid and Slices Preferences (Photoshop>Preferences>Guides, Grid and Slices) and change your Grid to Gridline every 0.16383 inches with 2 subdivisions. Now you'll still see every character in its own cell, but that cell with be divided into 4 smaller cells by lighter lines.

6. Fill the Background Layer with black and turn off the Live Matrix Code layer by clicking in the eye next to it in the Layers palette.

7. Create a new layer between the Background layer and the Live Matrix Code layer called "Bright White Glow"

8. With Bright White Glow selected, Command-Click the Live Matrix Code layer to make a selection in the shape of the code. Fill that selection with white.

9. With the code shape selection still live and the Bright White Glow layer active, hit Shift-Command-I to inverse the selection and then apply a 3 pixel Gaussian Blur (Filter>Blur>Gaussian Blur). You can deselect now.

10. Now go to the Layer menu and choose Add Layer Mask>Hide All. Bye bye! Don't worry, we'll bring it back in a minute.

11. Select the Background layer in the Layers palette and with the Rectangular Marquee tool make a selection anywhere on your image that follows the bold lines in the grid and envelopes a 2 x 2 group of cells. Now go Edit>Define Brush... and name your brush "Square". Deselect.

12. Select the Brush tool and open the Brushes palette. Scroll down and select your newly created brush from the Brush Presets. Click "Brush Tip Shape" in the Brushes palette and reduce the Spacing to 1%. Click Color Dynamics and set the Foreground/Background Jitter Control to "Fade" at a value of 1200. In the Option bar, set the Painting Mode to Lighten

13. Click Bright White Glow's layer mask in the Layers palette to make it active. Hit the D key to reset your foreground and background colors also.

14. Now you are going to place your brush onto the canvas and start painting the streams of falling code, one by one. But before you do, you need to perfect this sequence: Click...Shift...Push...Release...Release

• Click and hold the brush in the center of one of the bold boxes of the grid where you want the lowest code character to be
• Hold down the Shift button.
• Push your mouse upward until the fade is complete
• Release the mouse button
• Release the Shift key.

Now try it. If you make a mistake, hit Command-Z. But make sure you get the pattern downóit's the key to getting straight streams of code.

15. Code away! Repeat step 14 and toggle the grid on and off to see what it looks like between strokes. (make sure the grid is visible and that Photoshop is set to snap to the grid when you actually paint the strokes though)

As a guideline try to put a string of code in almost every available column. Avoid starting too many strings on or near the same row and, similarly, try not to have more than 3 strings in the same column. Go for an even but random dispersion of code.

Once you are satisfied with the code coverage proceed to Step 16.

16. Create a new layer above the Bright White Glow and name it Green Rain. (Keep the grid visible. I know it's ugly, but hold tight.)

17. Change the foreground color to R:22, G:255, B:113. Command-Click the Live Matrix Code layer and the hit Option-Delete to fill the code shaped selection with green pixels on the Green Rain layer. Deselect.

18. Group the Green Rain layer to the Bright White Glow layer by hitting Command-G.

19. Now, with the Green Rain layer still active, Command-Click the layer mask of the Bright White Glow layer. Take the Rectangular Marquee tool and Shift-drag the selection upward. The grid will make the selection snap up to the next grid line. Let it snap up until it has moved up 2 small cells to the next bold gridline. Go Layer>Add Layer Mask>Reveal Selection.

20. You can turn the grid off now.