How to Create Speech Bubbles in Photoshop

What You'll Be Creating

In the following steps, you will learn how to how to create speech bubbles in Photoshop. Add the essential element to your comic book and cartoon illustrations and photo effects.

What You Will Learn in This Adobe Photoshop Tutorial

• How to create add a speech bubble in Photoshop
• How to add an action speech bubble in Photoshop
• How to add a thought bubble in Photoshop

Follow along with us over on our Envato Tuts+ YouTube channel:

Want to cut out the hassle of learning how to create speech bubbles in Photoshop?

This pack of custom shapes is the quickest solution and comes with all the elements that you would need for a comic book design: talk bubbles, speech bubbles, action speech bubbles, and thought bubbles. You can use the outlined or filled version for any of these speech bubbles, and keep in mind that you can easily adjust and stylize the designs.

For more inspiration on how to adjust or improve your final Photoshop speech balloon, you can find plenty of resources at Envato Elements.

What You Will Need

You will need the following resources in order to create a Photoshop talk bubble:

1. How to Create a New Document and Set Up Grid

Hit Control-N to create a new document. Select Pixels from the Units drop-down menu, and set the Width to 850 and the Height to 700. Select RGB for the Color Mode and then click the Create button.

Enable the Grid (View > Show > Grid) and Snap to Grid (View > Snap to > Grid). You will need a grid every 5 px, so let's go to Edit > Preferences > Guides, Grid & Slices, and enter 5 in the Gridline every box and 1 in the Subdivisions box. Try not to get discouraged by all that grid—it will make your work easier, and keep in mind that you can easily enable or disable it using the Control-" keyboard shortcut.

Now that you're set, let's start by learning how to add a speech bubble in Photoshop.

2. How to Add a Speech Bubble in Photoshop

Step 1

Pick the Ellipse Tool (U) from your toolbar and create a 180 x 140 px shape. Remove the Stroke color applied to this shape and keep the Fill color set to black.

Step 2

Make sure that your shape stays selected and that the Ellipse Tool (U) is still active. Hold down the Alt key and draw a 140 px circle, exactly as shown in the following image.

Step 3

Make sure that your shape stays selected and switch to the Rectangle Tool (U). Hold down the Alt key and create a 190 x 100 px shape, exactly as shown in the following image.

Step 4

Select the Ellipse Tool (U), create a 205 x 150 px shape, and place it as shown below.

Step 5

Focus on the Layers panel (Window > Layers) and select the two shapes made so far. Right-click on one of these selected shapes and go to Merge Shapes.

Drag this illustration inside your Photoshop document and place your Photoshop speech bubble roughly as shown in the second image.

Step 6

Make sure that your Photoshop talk bubble is selected and focus on the control panel. Change the Fill color to R=254 G=244 B=225 and the Stroke color to R=63 G=95 B=4.

Step 7

Select the Horizontal Type Tool (T) and type in your text. Use the Childo Rounded font for your text, set the size to 40 pt, and change the leading and tracking to 30.

Step 8

Change the color of your text to white (R=255 G=255 B=255) and then double-click your text (in the Layers panel) to open the Layer Style window.

Activate the Stroke and enter the settings shown below.

Activate the Drop Shadow and enter the settings shown below. Click OK and move to the next step to learn how to create an action talk bubble in Photoshop.

3. How to Create an Action Talk Bubble in Photoshop

Step 1

Select the Polygon Tool (U) and focus on the control panel. Enter 12 in the Sides box and then click the Path Options button.

Make sure that you have the Unconstrained box checked and set the Star Ratio to 70%. Create a 275 x 165 px shape.

Step 2

Drag this illustration inside your Photoshop document and place your action speech bubble roughly as shown below.

Step 3

Make sure that your action speech bubble is selected and pick the Direct Selection Tool (A). Select the anchor point highlighted in the first image and drag it a few pixels down and to the left.

Step 4

Make sure that your action speech bubble is still selected and focus on the control panel. Change the Fill color to R=227 G=203 B=226 and the Stroke color to R=58 G=57 B=100.

Step 5

Select the Horizontal Type Tool (T) and type in your text. Use the Best Friends font for your text, set the size to 60 pt, increase the leading and tracking to 50, and don't forget to change the text color to R=254 G=205 B=8.

Once you're done, move to the Layers panel and double-click this new piece of text to open the Layer Style window.

Activate the Stroke and enter the settings shown below.

Activate the Drop Shadow and enter the settings shown below. Click OK and move to the next step to learn how to add a thought bubble in Photoshop.

4. How to Add a Thought Bubble in Photoshop

Step 1

Select the Ellipse Tool (U) and make a 70 px circle. Using the same tool, create a 90 px circle and place it as shown in the second image.

Step 2

Using the Ellipse Tool (U), create a 110 px circle, a 75 px circle, a 115 px circle, and a 60 px circle. Place these new shapes as shown in the following images.

Step 3

Using the Ellipse Tool (U), create a 25 px circle and a 15 px circle. Place these new shapes as shown in the following images.

Step 4

Select all the circles made in the last three shapes and merge them (Merge Shapes). Drag this illustration inside your Photoshop document and place your thought bubble roughly as shown in the second image.

Step 5

Make sure that your thought bubble is still selected and focus on the control panel. Change the Fill color to R=247 G=223 B=235 and the Stroke color to R=201 G=61 B=127.

Step 6

Select the Horizontal Type Tool (T) and type in your text. Use the More Sugar font for your text, set the size to 70 pt, and don't forget to change the text color to white. Once you're done, go to the Layer Style window for this new piece of text.

Activate the Stroke and enter the settings shown below.

Activate the Drop Shadow and enter the settings shown below.

Congratulations! You're Done!

Now you know how to create speech bubbles in Photoshop and how to add a speech bubble in Photoshop. I hope you've enjoyed this tutorial and can apply these techniques in your future projects. Don't hesitate to share your Photoshop speech balloon in the comments section.

Feel free to adjust the final Photoshop talk bubble and make it your own. You can find some great sources of inspiration at Envato Elements, with interesting solutions to improve your Photoshop speech balloon.

Popular Comic Book Fonts From Envato Elements

Envato Elements is an excellent resource for comic book fonts. Here's a short list of some of the most popular comic book fonts that you can use for any type of Photoshop speech bubble.

Fun Kids Font

Now that you know how to add a thought bubble in Photoshop, you can play with different fonts to make your design stand out. This Fun Kids font is one of the many options.

Little Rascal Font

This awesome font will look amazing on any Photoshop speech balloon. Combine it with some vivid colors and effects and your Photoshop speech bubble will be one of a kind.

North Boys Font

This playful and layered font is perfect for any type of Photoshop speech bubble or Photoshop speech balloon.

Sticky Notes Font

Considering that now you know how to create speech bubbles in Photoshop, a catchy font is the final touch that you need to perfect your Photoshop speech bubble. This slim font can be the perfect solution to add sleek text for any Photoshop speech bubble.

Comic Sidekick Font

Knowing how to add a speech bubble in Photoshop, you can now take your design to the next level using this bold and bright font.

Want to Learn More?

We have loads of tutorials on Envato Tuts+, from beginner to intermediate level. Take a look!