Note: This technique works best on light or white background images
Start out by making a new 400x400 image. Using your color picker choose blue tones. I used an RGB of R0 G51 B222 for the main text and R31 G82 B255 for the lighter blue color. I also used the "arsis" font at a 400 size. Make your text (the aqua technique works best when you do one letter at a time at a large size).
Now Ctrl+Click on your text layer to select it, and make a new layer above it. Go to select/modify/contract and use a value of 5. With the selection still active fill the layer with the lighter blue color (name this layer multiply). Now hit Ctrl+D to deselect the layer and then drag this layer into the create new layer box
to
duplicate this layer (name this layer gel). You should now have a
total of 4 layers including your background.
3.
Now make
sure you are working on your gel layer and it is NOT selected and go
to Filter/Blur/Guassian Blur and use a value of 5. Now go to
layer/effects/bevel and emboss and use the following settings. Or
click
here for a screen shot of the
settings.
Highlight:
Mode: Normal with white as
your color
Opacity: 100%
Shadow:
Mode: Color
Dodge with white as your color
Opacity: 40%
Style:
Emboss
Angle: 120
Depth:15
Blur:10
_UP: Checked
While still on the gel layer now go to Image/Adjust/Curves and use a similar method as I have here or you can download the curves file here. (right click and save as to download)
Now go back to your multiply layer and change the layer mode to multiply. Go back to your original text layer and add a dark blue drop shadow and now you have that famous aqua text look.