How to create realistic drop shadow with Photoshop

What is realistic drop shadow?

Realistic Drop shadow is a visual effect generated by any photo editing software so that it would appear that the subject of the photo has a shadow underneath it. It is also known as natural shadow effect. It is created in the same way as the drop shadow. The difference between drop shadow and the realistic drop shadow is the former just creates a simple and single gradient shadow figure. But realistic drop shadow is a bit more complex in the creation and the result also a lot closer to a natural shadow with its multiple gradients.

The goal of applying realistic drop shadow is to give a bit more realism to the object as if there is a light source nearby and the shadow has been created due to that source.

Due to many reasons, we need to cut out the subject of the photo and place it on a new surface. It is usual that the subject will not look 100% natural on the new surface. Adding a realistic drop shadow can solve this problem.

About creating realistic drop shadow in Photoshop

Realistic drop shadow is, after all, a Photoshop shadow effect that will make you believe that the person/object has a shadow of its own. So we must try our best to make it as much natural as possible. The key to do that is to use multiple layers of shadows. Realistic drop shadows are not just a simple blackish effect. It is rather complex and different than normal drop shadows. To create realistic drop shadow we need to use many different gradients and combine them together to achieve the natural effect. For this, we need to use different layers.

 Understanding the nature of realistic drop shadow in real life

Before creating a realistic drop shadow you must think and understand how shadows are created and appeared in real life. There are different types of shadows. Hard shadows, soft shadows, shadows from above, bellow or side and so on. The first thing you need to focus on is the supposed source of light. If the light is sharp then you need to make hard shadows. If the light is soft as a cloudy day then the shadows will be softer. So shadow types will differ from image to image and to create the perfect realistic drop shadow you must study the image very carefully. Also, there will be different shadow types in the same image. Shadows will be deeper in the places where it touches the ground. In places where the subject has a distance from the surface, the shadows will be bit lighter in those areas.

How to create realistic drop shadow in Photoshop

Today we will create realistic drop shadow effect on this image. The subject is already cut out from the background. And usually, it is not looking natural enough. So we will add some shadow effects to it using Photoshop.

Some points to focus on before starting to create the realistic drop shadow: 

• First, you need to think and make plans about the shadow types. For this image, we need to create three types of shadows.
• Identify the areas that are touching the surface. We need to apply dark shadows to there areas.
• Identify the places where there is a gap between the subject and the surface. We will apply lighter shadows there.
• There will be a very light shadow all over the area where the subject is touching the surface. This one will cover up the whole area.

Using Gradient

To create the realistic shadow effect, we will use the Photoshop gradient tool. Press G on the keyboard to launch the gradient tool. Click on the gradient editor on the top left corner of Photoshop window. Select Foreground To Transparent from the available options. Make sure that the foreground color is set to invisible or transparent. Press ok when you are done.

Now we need to select the gradient type we need to use to create our realistic drop shadow effect. On the top left side, under the Photoshop menu bar you will see number of gradient options. There is linear gradient, radial gradient and more. Select radial gradient from them.

Selecting Shadow Color

It is time to select the shadow color. Realistic drop shadow will appear black but they are not actually that. Mostly they have some blue tint. If you have some example of shadow color in your image then you can go ahead and sample that color. That will be the best idea since the shadow colors will match each other. In our photo we have an example of shadow. That is between the gap of the feet and the shoe. So we can sample it. Press and hold Alt/Option key and eye dropper tool will appear. You can sample the shadow color with this eye dropper. Or alternatively you can use a sample shadow color code which is 0e081b. Make it a bit deeper or lighter according to your image.

Creating and placing the shadows

Now we are ready to create our shadow. Click anywhere in the image and the gradient tool will generate a blur of our shadow color. Basically that is our shadow. You can click anywhere in the image to create this since you can move this with the Move tool. Use the move tool (press V in keyboard) to move it and place it where you want. We are going to start with front portion of the right foot that is touching the ground. Place it underneath the front part of the foot area. Now press Ctrl/Command + T for Transformed. This will allow you to resize the shadow so it can fit to particular area properly. After activating Transformed, you will see a square boundary created around the shadow. Press and hold Alt/Option key and you will be able to shrink the shadow with the help of these boundary.

Now drag it and place it under the front part of the foot where it fits perfectly. Resize if necessary. Move left or right with the arrow keys if needed. Press Enter when you are satisfied. If you need to shrink it even more then again press Ctrl/Command + T and shrink it. Now lower the opacity of this layer to more or less 30%.

Repeat process

Basically this is the process behind creating realistic drop shadow. Now we need to do it a number of times because shadows are not the same every where. In the areas closer to the surface, we need to create hard shadows. And the shadow will keep getting softer with a lower visibility as the subject keeps moving far away from the surface. So we need to add different gradients.

Create another layer. This time we will apply hard shadow to the place where the shoe is actually touching the surface. Follow the same method of creating the shadow as we did before by using gradient tool. Then place it to the right area using the Move tool. Shrink it to fit the area using Transform tool (Ctrl/Command + T). Change the opacity of this layer to 70%. Note that we are setting different opacity to different layers. This is because the depths of the shadows are different. We need to set high opacity for hard shadows and low opacity for soft shadows.

Create another layer and once again repeat the process as we did to add our third gradient to the same portion of the image where the subject is touching the surface. This time keep the layer opacity at 100%.

Now we have finished creating realistic drop shadow for the part that is touching the surface. We needed three different gradients to create the shadow for the area that is touching the surface. Now we need the fourth. We will create and apply a larger gradient that will cover the whole area of the shoe. Naturally the parts that are touching the surface will have a harder shadow. But the other parts will also generate a shadow which will be very light. So after creating and placing the gradient we need to lower the opacity of this layer significantly. We will make it 20%. That will make this gradient slightly visible and we need that effect.

Working on the heel

After completing the front part, let us start working on the heel part. This part is rather small in radius so we need to apply gradients of that size. Follow the same method of creating the shadow then shrink it to match the size of the heel. Set the opacity of the layer to 30% for the first gradient.

Create another layer and apply another gradient to the heel area. As the heel is a small object so the shadow needs to be perfectly matching. Anything bigger will look unnatural. If the shadow gets bigger than the size you want then use the shrink option to make it small. While working with small shadows, the Transform tool boundaries might create some problems. Often you will not be able to see the little shadows due to the presence of the boundaries. In that case press Ctrl/Cmd + H to hide those boundaries. You can still shrink and move them because the boundaries are actually hidden, not deactivated.

Alternatively you can use the eraser tool (press E in keyboard) to erase off the extra areas. Use a soft edge brush to do this. Keep the flow as low as 10%.

We need to add another gradient. So just as before, create another layer and add the shadow. This time change the layer opacity to around 10-20%. The repeated process of creating layers and gradients may seem a bit boring. But that is the way to achieve a realistic drop shadow effect. As we created different layers for each gradient so we will be able to work on them later if we want. You will see there is already a number of layers have been created. You can group them to be more organized by pressing Ctrl/Command + G.

Recap

The process is really simple. All you have to do is to repeat the process with patience. Now use the same method and you can create the shadow for the other shoe. With that we are done with creating our realistic drop shadows. Now let us recap the key points once again:

• The first step is to cut out the object and place it on a new background. Then you have to think real deep about the photo. You have to analyze the light source, light types and the nature of the shadow for the particular image.
• Create new layers for each gradient you apply. Use radial gradients.
• Use move tool to move the gradient and transform tool to resize the gradient.
• Apply multiple gradients (at least 3) for each shadow.
• Hard shadows for the parts that touches the surface. Soft shadows for the parts those are away from the surface.
• Set the opacity high for hard shadows. For soft shadows, reduce opacity.

Photoshop drop shadow Video tutorial

Simply repeat these steps and you will be able to create the realistic drop shadow for your images. Thank you for reading and I hope it helped you. If you have any questions just let me know in the comment section below.