In this tutorial I will show you how to make that cool aqua text that is on my header. In the end you text will look like the O below. (based on the look of a text created by robouk.mchost.net )

The fist step is to make your text. I chose the font : Times New Roman, with a size 450, and a light blue color.

With your text tool selected. right click on your picture and choose "rasterize layer" Now duplicate your layer, by pressing the arrow on the layers panel and selecting "duplicate layer"

Set your new layer mode to screen.

Position your new layer so that the light colord O is like the one below

Now set the opasity of this layer to around 30%

Now, select the outline of the original O. To do this, hold the control button, and click on your original text's layer. Now go to select, invers to inverse your selection. Now go to your top layer, and press delete. What we just did was deleted the part of your duplicated that was sticking outside your original text's boundires. Now go to your top layer, and press control + e to merge your two text layers together. To make sure you did this part right, hold control and click on your merged layer. If you did it correctly you should have a perfect outline of your O.

Now, take out your doudge tool. We are going to lighten some of your text to give it that aqua feel. So, lighten the areas that are marked below. If you are having trouble making it look right, then lower the exposer of your douge tool to around 50%

You should now have an image like this, with a total of 2 layers in your picture.

Now again, hold control and click on your top layer, this should give you an outline of your text again. Now that we have things situated, we are going to save this selection for later use. So, while you have your text selected. go to select> save selection and save it as whatever you want. Now, load your selection. If you did it correctly, you should still have an outline of your big O text.

Now that we have that taken care of, while you have your text selected make a new layer. On your new layer, go to edit> stroke. We are goin to outline our O with a nice dark blue. Use the settings below, with a color close to mine.

You should now have an image like the one below: