Tabbed Navigation Bar

In this tutorial, we’re going to create a simple, tabbed navigation bar for use on a website. This is an effect that’s very easy to achieve and looks great, so let’s get started.

Create a new document, and then make a new layer (call it “bar”. Now grab the rectangular marquee tool and create a selection the length of your nav bar and 25px in height. Fill it with the color of your choice. I’m using #9e005d.

Adobe Photoshop Tutorial - Tabbed Navigation Bar - Fig. 1

Now Ctrl+Click to load the selection and create another new layer called “bar highlight.” Fill the selection with white and hit Ctrl+D to release the selection. In the Layers palette, set the layer mode to ‘Overlay” and then hit Ctrl+Shift+Up Arrow to move the layer up 10px. Finally, Alt+Click between the two layers in the layers palette to group them.

Adobe Photoshop Tutorial - Tabbed Navigation Bar - Fig. 2

Next, create another new layer called “tabs” and grab your Rounded Rectangle Tool. Make sure that you have the tool set to create a path, not a filled shape or shape layer and then set the tool options as shown below.

Adobe Photoshop Tutorial - Tabbed Navigation Bar - Fig. 3

Now click anywhere on the canvas, preferably somewhere that’s not obscured by the nav bar) to create a shape for our tab.

Adobe Photoshop Tutorial - Tabbed Navigation Bar - Fig. 4

Go to the Paths palette and Ctrl+Click on the path to load its selection, then fill that selection with any color you like.

Adobe Photoshop Tutorial - Tabbed Navigation Bar - Fig. 5

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Added Thursday, September 14th, 2006 at 10:48 pm under Interface Elements.