Expert: Scott Valentine - 10/5/2008

Question
QUESTION: I am not sure if Photoshop is the correct software application to use to accomplish this task, but I had a co-worker ask me to create a light grey watermark image using our college logo...which I had never done before. After looking up some online resources, I found a resource that would allow me to create the watermark logo but I had to create it using Microsoft Word 2007. How would I accomplish the same task in Adobe Photoshop. My "guess" is that I would put a light grey image mask over the original logo, but I don't know the steps and/or can't find a tutorial to accomplish this task.

ANSWER: Hi Dennis,

There are many variations on what you want to do, and each starts with knowing what you actually need. Will your watermark go behind text in a typed document or over an image?

If you are placing it in the background of a document, you need to create a solid-color version of the logo in an application like Photoshop, typically as a solid black image with a transparent background. Then save that as a JPG, GIF or PNG file that your word processor can use. If your word processor does not have a feature for watermarks, then you will need to use another application for putting the two together.

For overlaying the mark on images, simply take the solid shape described above and make the shapes white by selecting then filling with white. Copy that to a new layer in your image document and position it where you want. Then lower the opacity until it looks right to you.

There are many other ways to do this, but they take much more time, and each look is slightly different. If you can follow up with more details about the kind of logo you have, what format it's in, and what you want to use the watermark on, I can provide much better information.

Cheers,

-Scott

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Scott - The image is located at the following web address (http://bardwellscholarships.org/webhw.gif). I found a way to create the watermark using a tutorial located at (http://grok.lsu.edu/article.aspx?articleid=4716), and the result I was able to come up with is located at (http://bardwellscholarships.org/HWC_Watermark.doc), which I created using Microsoft Word 2007. The problem according to the person who needs this watermark (which will go behind text in a typed document), is that when you photocopy of the MS Word 2007 document the watermark loses it's clarity and resolution...which we want to avoid.

Answer
Hmm... the only way I know of to avoid resolution problems when photocopying is to use a higher-quality photocopier. There's really no way around this. If the printed file looks good, then that's the best you can hope for, given the limitations of photocopiers.

Have you considered removing the gray areas and leaving just the black? That might help some. The logo is also fairly detailed, so will suffer a bit when shrunk down. If there's any possibility of removing the lower type or simplifying the graphic, that's what I'd recommend.

I wish I had better news for you!

-Scott