90s Rave Poster in Affinity Photo

In this tutorial, you’ll learn how to create a 90s rave poster in Affinity Photo.

Before you begin, go to the following links to download the resources used in this tutorial.

• Man
• Smiley face
• Consolas font
• Punk Kid font
• Plastic texture

Step 1

First, go to File > New. Go to Print and select the A4 document. Change the Document Units to Inches. Then, set the DPI to 300. Turn on Snapping in the Toolbar.

Step 2

Next, grab the Ellipse Tool from the Tools Panel. Press CTRL + Shift and draw an ellipse in the center of the document. I made the ellipse 6 in x 6 in. Go to the Swatches Panel. Double click on the fill color to bring up the Color Chooser. Enter the following hex code # for the ellipse #EEF60E.

Step 3

Now, grab the Artistic Text Tool. Click in the circle and type the word Live. Next, press CTRL + Shift and drag a copy of the text below the original one. Type the word More. Go to the Font Family and select a font for the text. I’m using Consolas Bold. Then, go to the Swatches Panel and set the color of the text layers to white.

Step 4

Grab the Move Tool. Select both text layers. Press CTRL + Shift, then drag a copy of the text layers beneath the original. Now, press CTRL + J three times or until the text reaches the bottom of the ellipse.

Step 5

Next, select a copy of the two text layers. Press CTRL + Shift and drag a copy onto the left side of the text. Then, do the same thing and drag a copy of the text layers onto the right side.

Step 6

After that, select all the text layers. Next, go to the Boolean Operations Panel and click Add. With the layer still selected, go to the Swatches Panel and set the color back to white. Right-click on this layer in the Layers Panel and click Rasterize.

Step 7

In the Swatches Panel, set the fill color to black. Grab the Flood Fill Tool from the Tools Panel. Make sure no layers are selected in the Layers Panel. Now, take the Flood Fill Tool and click on the document. Drag this layer to the bottom. Turn the ellipse layer off.

Step 8

Now, select the pixel layer with the text. Click on the Liquify Persona. Select the Liquify Push Forward Tool. Take the tool and start moving the text around. Once you’ve done that, click Apply.

Step 9

With this layer still selected, press CTRL + J to duplicate the layer. In the Layers Panel, turn both of these layers off.

Step 10

Now, turn the ellipse layer back on. Press CTRL + J to duplicate it. Select the duplicated ellipse and make it slightly smaller. Then, select the original ellipse. Resize it making it smaller and place the ellipse the way you see it on the screen. Set the color of the original ellipse to the following hex code #CED7BC.

Step 11

Turn the two warped pixel layers back on. Select the first one and drag it inside of the yellow ellipse. Next, select the other warped layer and drag it inside of the other ellipse. Resize and rearrange the warped layers so that they cover the inside of the ellipses. Right-click on the ellipse and select Rasterize.

Step 12

Now, grab the Ellipse Tool from the Tools Panel. Draw a small ellipse that’s about .2 in x .2 in. Set the color of the ellipse to white and place it in the top left corner of the poster. Press CTRL + Shift and drag a copy of the ellipse next to the original one. Then, with that duplicate ellipse selected, press CTRL + J two times.

Step 13

Select the four ellipses. Next, press CTRL + Shift and drag a copy of the ellipses below the original ones. Then, with the ellipses still selected, press CTRL + J two more times to make two additional rows of ellipses. Select all the ellipses and press CTRL + G to group them together. Or right-click on them and select Group. After that, press CTRL + J to duplicate the group and place the duplicate in the bottom right corner of the poster.

Step 14

In the Layers Panel, select the black-filled pixel layer. Grab the Gradient Tool from the Tools Panel. Press Shift. Then, take the tool, click on the left side in the middle and drag the gradient to the right side. Click on the white color stop. Go to the Swatches Panel and double-click on the fill color. Enter the following hex code #6FFF98.

Step 15

Now, click on the gradient line to add another point. With the Color Chooser still open, enter the following color code #FF6FEE. After that, click on the middle part of the gradient to add another point. Enter this color code #6F8AFF. Next, click and add a point between the point we just added in the middle and the black point on the right. Then, enter the following hex code #FF6F6F.

Step 16

Once you’ve done that, click the black color stop and enter this hex code #6FFFF4. Go to the Context Toolbar and set the Type to Radial. Then, arrange the gradient tool the way you see it on the screen.

Step 17

After that, go to the Liquify Persona. Make sure the gradient layer is selected first. Select the Liquify Push Forward Tool and start moving the gradient colors around. Click Apply when you’re finished.

Step 18

Click the gradient background layer in the Layers Panel. Now, grab the Rectangle Tool from the Tools Panel. Get rid of the fill color. Select the stroke color and set it to the following hex code #6FFF98. Go to the Stroke Panel and set the Stroke Width to 5 pt. Then, draw a rectangle. Place it where you see it on the screen, and make sure it’s behind the two big ellipses.

We’ll now add some text to the 90s rave poster.

Step 19

Grab the Artistic Text Tool from the Tools Panel. Take the tool and click in the top right area of the poster. Type the word One in ALL CAPS.  Select the text. Then, go to the Font Family and set the text to the Punk Kid font. Set the color of the text to white.

Step 20

With the text layer still selected. Press CTRL + Shift and drag a copy of the text to the bottom-left part of the poster. Select the text and type SIDED in ALL CAPS.

Step 21

Grab the Artistic Text Tool. Go to the Font Family and set the font to Consolas Regular. Take the tool and click on the document. Type the word SMILE in ALL CAPS. Select the text. Then, go to the Swatches Panel and set the color of the text to the following hex code #EDEC08.

Step 22

Take the Move Tool and rotate the text 90 degrees. Then, place the text where you see it on the screen. With the text still selected, press the text layer to the right side of the poster. Then, take the Move Tool and rotate the text layer -90 degrees.

Step 23

Select the green-stroked rectangle. Click the Mask Layer icon in the Layers Panel. Grab the Paintbrush Tool from the Tools Panel. Set the fill color to black. Now, go to the Brushes Panel and select one of the Round Light Brushes. In the Context Toolbar, lower the Opacity to 30%. Make sure the mask layer is selected. Take the brush and remove the rectangle part that’s by the smile text.

Step 24

Now, grab the Artistic Text Tool. Click in the rectangle in the top left corner. Type the letter R in CAPS. Set the color to whiter. Select the text layer still selected., Press CTRL + Shift and drag a copy of the letter onto the right side. Type the letter A in CAPS.

Step 25

Select the R text layer. Then, press CTRL + Shift and drag a copy of the text down to the bottom left corner of the rectangle. Type the letter V. After that, press CTRL + Shift and drag a copy of the V text layer over to the bottom right corner of the rectangle. Type the letter E.

Step 26

Next, go to the File menu and click Open. Select the image of the man you downloaded. Grab the Selection Brush Tool from the Tools Panel. In the Context Toolbar, set the Mode to Add and check the Snap to Edges box. Take the brush and select the man. Don’t include the man’s head in the selection. Select from the man’s neck, down to his feet.

Step 27

After making the selection, press CTRL + J. Then, press CTRL + D to deselect. Now, copy the new layer and paste it onto the poster. Resize the man and place him where you see him on the screen.

Step 28

Press CTRL and click the thumbnail of the man. Now, click the Adjustments icon in the Layers Panel and select Black and White. Drag this layer into the man layer. Increase the Yellow, Green, Cyan, and Blue. I set the Yellow to 125%, Green to 128%, Cyan to 200%, and Blue to 150%. Lower the Opacity to 60%.

Step 29

Now, click the Adjustments icon. Select the Curves adjustment. Drag the adjustment inside of the man layer. Click and add a point slightly above the point on the left. Next, add a pint further up the curve and drag it up. Press CTRL + D to deselect.

Step 30

Next, go to File > Open. Select the smiley face image and drag it onto the poster. Resize the smiley face and place it on top of the man’s neck area in place of his head.

Step 31

Once you’ve done that, grab the Ellipse Tool from the Tools Panel. In the Swatches Panel, get rid of the fill color. Select the stroke color and set the color to the following hex code #6FFF98. Then, draw an ellipse. Rotate the ellipse -135 degrees.

Step 32

With the ellipse still selected, press CTRL + J to duplicate the ellipse. Then, rotate the duplicated ellipse -30 degrees and arrange it the way you see it on the screen. Select both ellipses. Press CTRL + G to group them together.

Step 33

Now, select all the layers in the Layers Panel. Press CTRL + ALT + Shift + E to merge the layers together. Or right-click on the selected layers and click Merge Visible.

Step 34

Select the merged layer. Go to the Filters menu. Then, select Noise > Add Noise. Set the Intensity to 40%. Select Uniform and uncheck the Monochromatic box.

Step 35

Next, go to the link for the plastic textures. Click Download Now. Go to the downloaded file and extract it. Then, choose the plastic texture you want to use and drag it onto the poster. I chose the #2 plastic texture. Place the texture on top of everything. Then, change the Blend Mode to Reflect and lower the Opacity to 50%.

Congratulations, this tutorial is complete, you now know how to create a 90s rave poster in Affinity Photo. For more Affinity Photo tutorials, check out this article on how to create a movie poster.