Wheel of Edits #1: YouTube Thumbnail

Hey jammers! Panda here...

So, I've decided to start a new series called "Wheel of Edits" where I spin a random wheel picker thingy, which picks a specific type of edit. I'll then show you step-by-step how I would complete that edit, so that you can learn how to make them yourself! Also, it'll just be a fun little challenge. :)

If you have any other types of edits that aren't listed on the wheel below, make sure to leave them in the comments down below! I'd like to include some trickier ones (like, create a header using only shades of blue) so leave all of your ideas below!

Without any further ado, let's spin the Wheel of Edits!!!

Looks like we got "YouTube thumbnail." Hmm...

(Sidenote: I'll be making the edits as little gifts for some of my buddies, just so that I have some information to create the edit off of. It would be hard to make an edit for a nameless person I didn't know, right? :P)

I'll make a YouTube thumbnail for my good friend CosmicCheetah! You can check out her YouTube channel here!

So, I'll be making a thumbnail for her video called "Giveaway Results!" that she posted awhile ago! :D

First, let's open up a blank document in Photoshop with the dimensions of a YouTube thumbnail:

Now, it's time to decide which background to pick...

Alright! We're making some good progress! :P

Now, to make the text (which we'll be adding later) a bit easier to see, I'm going to lower the opacity of the background.

And since Cosmic has a purple theme on her channel, I'll be adding a purple undertone to the image as well.

Time to add the text! I like to add the text in separate layers for each word so that they are easier to reposition later on.

Now it's time to edit the text!

I always like to leave room for graphics and emojis when I make thumbnails, so that's why there's that weird empty space in the bottom left corner.

Time for my favorite part--adding the emojis! My favorite site to get photos of emojis for thumbnails is Emoji Stickers. Their emojis have a white border around them, making them perfect for edits!

Once I added the emoji, I played around with the text a bit more, moved it around, changed the fonts a bit, and came up with this final product:

It's not the greatest, but I have to go right now and had to cut my editing short. >.< I hope to do a better job with some of the other edits! :D

Ciao jammers! Make sure to comment down below your Wheel of Edits ideas, and also if you'd like to be featured in the next one! :D (Consider it a free commission! :P)

-Panda