How to Create a Water Ripple Effect in Adobe Photoshop

Last Updated: June 29, 2021 Tested

Photoshop is great tool for creating beautiful effects with very simple techniques. In this Photoshop tutorial we will learn a simple technique for creating water ripple by using only one filter. You will need Photoshop CS.

Steps

1
Create a new document with 1024 width and 768 height.
2
Apply a linear gradient. Apply color #0054A6. Set color midpoint at 59% and click OK.

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3
Apply gradient diagonally on your document.
4
Have fun creating water ripples. Select filter->distort->zigzag.
5
In the zigzag dialogue box select options: amount=100, ridges=10, style=pond ripple. Click OK.
6
You will get the following water ripple effect in the image.
7
A simple trick to give your image more depth and a glossy effect as if the water is reflecting light: Apply the same effect you applied in step 4 again on your image.
8
Learn that you have your very own water ripple. You can experiment with different gradients and colors to create your own water ripple image series.