We will start off with a blank canvas, add a gradient for the background. You may already have a background in mind.
For this example, we will add a Custom Shape and make that look metallic, so we'll add the custom shape to the canvas and rasterize it:
Now we can jump straight into our Layer Styles for the custom shape. First, we'll add a Stroke with Fill Type Gradient. The gradient will go from White, to light Gray, back to White, back to light Gray, and back to White:
We can click the New button to add this gradient to our presets to use it again. Next, choose Gradient Overlay and choose the same gradient we just used. It should be at the bottom of the presets if you clicked the New button earlier. We should have something like this:
Next, goto Bevel and Emboss and choose the maximum Depth and maximum Size. This may be different on your image, depending on the size, etc. so it is wise to experiment with the sliders and the contours of the bevel. For this example, I used the following settings:
The above settings result in the following effect:
As with everything in PhotoShop, experimentation is definitely the key. Try changing values around to see what outcomes you get.
