Nothing To Lose

• Start with a small blank gimp canvas.
• Using the Elliptical Select Tool, select a oval region and fill it with some dark color. This color represents the ink which is used to the finger print mark. You should get something similar to IMAGE 1
• Run the Noise - Pick (Filters — Noise — Pick) filter on the select oval area. This removes some pixels from here and there, converting your oval to a distorted one. See IMAGE 2
• Next run the filter Erase Every Other Row (Filters — Distort — Erase every other row) on your image. Make sure you have selected the rows/cols option to rows. You should get something similar to IMAGE 3.
• Now select the oval area again using the elliptical select tool.
• Use filter Iwarp on this. (Filters — Distort — Iwarp).
• Play around will different values and options of Iwarp, I used small Deform Radius and small amount of Deform Amount. and opted for Deform mode as Swirl CCW and Swirl CW. You just have to move the mouse across the image shown in the upper left corner of the dialogue box. And best part is the changes are not immediate, it has a reset button which restores the image back to its basic state.
• Iwarp dialogue box



• Play around with the image, once you are happy with your finger print, click on ok to finally apply on the original image.

Step One

Take your basic image. I have taken a moon shot which I had taken recently.

I will be using IMAGE 1 as my base.

Step Two

On the image use the canvas filter: Filters => Artistc => Apply Canvas.

You should now have your image having a similar effect as in IMAGE 2.

Step 3

And finally apply cubism filter.: Filters => Artistc => Cubism.

In the cubism dialogue box: select  smaller tile size and smaller value of tile saturation

I have use tile size 0.8 and tile saturation 1.8

• Start with a blank canvas. Add the required text. (preferably use a bigger canvas size, its easier to move text around for placement. later you can crop the image to required size,..)
• Add some text to it.
• You should get something like IMAGE 1
• Select the text (try using the fuzzy select tool if required), press ^c to copy the selection.
• Paste this selection on the canvas, a bit away from the original image. IMAGE 2
• Do not click the mouse any where, here press ctrl+l, this should give you layer dialogue box  see IMAGE 3.
• You should see one of the layers as floating selection, click on button of the lower left corner of this dialogue box.() You will have a new layer.
• Here select the original layer, (the one with the white background), select the original text using the fuzzy select tool (you will probably need to invert selection by pressing ctrl+i)
• Now from resize the text i.e stretch it from the tools — transform tools — scale. Only scale it vertically. See IMAGE 4.
• After you have applied scaling, Shear the text in similar manner to give it a slant. tools — transform tools — shear.
• You should have something similar to IMAGE 5.
• To make it look a bit realistic preform a Gausian blur on the shadow. Filters — Blur — Gausian Blur.
  
• From the layer dialogue box, reduce the opacity of this layer, because the shadow has to go behind the text. IMAGE 6
• Now place this final text with the base line behind the original text. IMAGE 7
• Save your image. Your text with shadow behind is ready.

• Start with a blank canvas
• Add some text to it see IMAGE 1
• Select the text (try using the fuzzy select tool if required), press ^c to copy the selection.
• Paste this selection on the canvas. IMAGE 2
• Move the newly pasted selection below the original text. Do not click the mouse any where, keep your new text selected. (you should see dashed lines all around selected text)
• Perform — Layer — Transform — flip vertically. You should get inverted text below the original text. else move it below the original text. IMAGE 3
• Next preform a – Tools — Transform Tools — Shear (Shift+S). In the dialogue box — Put a value -25 for “x magnitude”
• Your text will be displaced again, align it back again to the original text’s base.
• If you want the shadow to be a bit lighter. From the layer dialogue box — lighten the opacity of the layer containing the shadow text.
• Merge all the layers.( if you need )
• Your Basic Drop shadow is ready IMAGE 4
• Of before I forget to tell you… GIMP has a nice filter for creating shadows of the selected object. you can find them under the tools — light and shaodow.