How to Use a Mock-up to Enhance Your Work!

In this tutorial you will learn how to use a mock-up to display your artwork in a real world scenario, and make it pop! These will look great in any portfolio, and hopefully help you snag that dream design job!

Supplies

- Adobe Photoshop

- A .jpg/.png file

- The Internet

Step 1: Step 1: Creating Your Design

First, you need to make something!

What do you want to create?

It can be a business card, poster, candle, greeting card, beer label, etc. The options are limitless! You can create this design by using various programs from Microsoft Paint to Adobe Illustrator (I definitely recommend this one more). Make sure to use standard sizes and dimensions based on what you're designing. For example; if you are creating a deck of cards then make sure your artwork is 2.5" x 3.5" (or something divisible by it), you don't want to have stretch your artwork to fit awkward dimensions.

Once you have created your piece, export it as a .jpg/png (you can also save it as an .ai file if you are using Adobe Illustrator).

Step 2: Step 2: Choosing the Right Mock-up

Once you have your design created, you then need to choose the appropriate mock-up to use. In some cases, you should create the design based on the mock-up (if you don't know the size already).

You can use various websites to find good mock-ups, mockupworld.co is a good place to start. Once you find the perfect file simply download it and proceed to open it up in Adobe Photoshop.

Don't always go with the first mock-up you see. Sometimes it'll take time to find an image that displays a perspective or size.

Step 3: Step 3: Adding Your Image to the Mock-up

Once you have your mock-up open in Photoshop, open the layers panel. Proceed to find the layers where you can insert your images. In this example, the original creator named the layers "Your Card Here copy x". Most creators will mark the layers you edit, but they are fairly easy to spot due to the symbol at the corner of the preview square.

Once you find the layer you would like to edit, double click the preview square and you will be brought to a new document. Then you select File > Place Embedded... (you can choose Place Linked... if you created an Illustrator file and would like to go back and edit it at a later point). Then resize your image to the dimensions of the mock-up and save the file (ctrl + s).

Once saved, you can switch back to the original mock-up tab and see your image in place!

After you've replaced the layer(s), File > Export > Export as... and save your file as a .jpg/.png.

Now you can use your new mock-up on your website or portfolio and blow everyone away!