Design eye-catching neon typography that looks like illuminated signage. We'll use outer glow, inner glow, and Color Dodge blending to achieve that authentic electric glow.

Step 1: Document and Background

Create 800×500px document. Fill background with dark navy (#0a0a1a). Add a subtle radial gradient from center (#1a1a3e) to edges (#0a0a1a).

Step 2: Type the Text

Select the Type Tool (T). Use a bold sans-serif font like Arial Black or Impact at 96pt. Type your word in white (#FFFFFF). Center it on the canvas.

Step 3: Neon Layer Styles

Double-click the text layer. Add Outer Glow: color #00ffff, blend mode Color Dodge, size 20px, spread 5%. Add Inner Glow: color #ff00ff, size 10px. Add Stroke: 2px, color #ffffff, position Inside.

Step 4: Duplicate for Intensity

Duplicate the text layer twice. Set top duplicate to Color Dodge, opacity 50%. Set middle duplicate to Overlay, opacity 70%. This builds the neon bloom effect.

Step 5: Background Reflection

Duplicate all text layers, merge duplicates, flip vertical (Edit > Transform > Flip Vertical). Move below original. Add layer mask with linear gradient fade. Reduce opacity to 25%.

Step 6: Final Color Grade

Add a Color Balance adjustment layer: increase Cyan/Red toward Cyan +15, increase Blue/Yellow toward Blue +10. Your neon text effect is complete!

That's it! You've completed this tutorial. Experiment with the techniques and share your results with the Designstacks community.