Pro Thumbnail Design with Free Software GIMP

Use GIMP to easily create trendy thumbnails for your KZbin videos. Your subject will have a white outline and a glowing effect behind it. I see this sort of style being utilized quite often, and by really large KZbinrs. With this tutorial, you'll be able to use it as well, and without having to spend money on Adobe Photoshop.
Model image: pixabay.com/en...
GIMP: www.gimp.org/
This tutorial is for GIMP version 2.8 and is intended to teach beginners how to use the software. GIMP is a great free alternative to Adobe Photoshop.
Need a logo made? Request a design at: www.logosbynic...
If you feel compelled to support my work here on KZbin in any way, a one-time purchase of my $17 online course outlining how to design a logo from start to finish would be greatly appreciated, and you may learn a thing or two about logo design as well. You can check it out here: logosbynick.co...
Dark theme & updated icon for GIMP: • GIMP Tutorial: Dark Th...
Facebook: / logosbynick
Twitter: @logosbynick
Instagram: @itslogosbynick
My design setup: logosbynick.co...
Intro song: "In Da Mood" by Combustibles, used with written permission

[@amichayr3418]

in 15 minute ive learned more then five hours of gimp toturials thanks man!!

[@realmrx1232]

bruh i see you commented on two different videos and I just noticed!

[@Russman]

I've watched this video over 100 times. I've watched it until I memorized it. This is an absolute gem, and the value it creates, honestly I don't think is outdone anywhere on KZbin.

[@Thomas-px2lh]

Haha same. I think I've finally memorised it after many, many views 😃

[@Prettycutedrawings]

I’m editing my thumbnail while I’m watching this, you are the best! I am saving this video for future reference. Thank you 😊

[@awesomedaysgaming739]

Is it offline to use plz Answer

[@cristiop2151]

Its offline to use. @Awesome Days Gaming

[@mano7636]

One of the best Gimp tutorials I've seen, you really managed to portray it in a simple yet comprehensive way. Thanks man 👍

[@FractalWorkshop]

2 years later and you're still saving lives with this video!

[@ty_thejeepguy]

5 years later and this video still helps me out every time, thank you for creating such a helpful step by step video. I've used it tons of times!

[@pawaapu5493]

I just want to say this. I watched this video at least 20 times every time I made a thumbnail for each of my youtube videos. Until I finally had it retained into my brain. Thank you for putting out such a clear and concise tutorial on how to make thumbnails. Now that I have these basics I would like to get into some more advanced things techniques. If you have a more advanced technique video LMK. Thanks again Nick!

[@LogosByNick]

Glad to hear that. There's hundreds of other GIMP tutorials on the channel if you want to check them out.

[@silentj624]

I was ready to pay someone to make thumbnails for me. So happy I found this!

[@GrowYourWealth101]

I cant stress enough how much you helped me with this. Thanks a thousand times! :)

[@N3rdRag3]

I was struggling and getting so frustrated with trying to make thumbnails and blending images etc, thank you so so so much for this I made my first good looking thumbnail today. You are the best. Thank you Nick!

[@dadhackersbecomingthemengo2263]

This is GREAT! I'm just getting started with thumbnail design as well as with GIMP and you really break it down in an understandable fashion.

[@RyRobio]

BRO! YOU'RE LEGENDARY! I thought I knew all of the tips and tricks for gimp, but you just helped me SO MUCH. THANK YOU! Couldn't help, but subscribe. I know this video is old, but keep up the good work mate

[@colerequiem9849]

Sometimes i do forget what I'm doing but I always come back here for help. Thank you so much for the guide

[@jaydeedye84]

2 years later and the information is still super helpful on the current version! Thank you so much! I feel like this alone has amped up my thumbnail game. I am super excited to post my next video with my new and improved thumbnails! I am going to shout out your channel in my next video as well as a thank you even though my channel is tiny. Thank you thank you thank you!!!

[@spartanido]

LITERALLY ONE OF THE BEST VIDEOS out there for editing thumbnails. God bless you, and thank you so much!

[@vijayart]

Trueeeeeeee

[@Ewok8080]

This video is an absolute god send, followed along the first time and then re-watched while creating my own thumbnail

[@vazeango5891]

Thanks man!!! I have Been watching this video for a year now. I downloaded it on my device when youtube had 720p download option. It really helps me a lot and I like your accent very much its so audible and understandable. Please make more tutorials on GIMP

[@ThriftyAV]

I learned some GIMP basics using one of your other videos, but this one taught me A LOT more. I already subscribe to you, but this particular vid has been bookmarked so I can go back to it. Now it's time to go back and UPDATE my 50something thumbnails to make them POP a little better. This may take a little time! Hopefully better thumbnails will help with my click-through analytics. Thank you for this tutorial.

thanks brother, I had downloaded photoshop to do this, and I saw your video, downloaded gimp immediately and I did, and it worked perfect for me. Thank you!

[@Ajedrez_90]

This video is just gold. Thank you very much, I think it is one of the best introductions to Gimp 😊

[@squirrelsoflondon9356]

Just downloaded Gimp and your tutorial is the first one i've watched. Great video, picked up some of the basics of Gimp and in a position to use it to make some thumbnails! Thanks.

[@_shumba]

A++ video. I like how you kept your thought patterns unedited within the video and explained the intricacies of what you were doing on the screen.

[@DamonDiaries81]

This is awesome. Thanks for the no nonsense approach to thumbnails and GIMP. cheers dude!

[@ellemenopy]

I really wanted to do something creative during the lockdown so i opened this channel and i was just wondering how to make a thumbnail when this popped up, THIS REALLY HELPED A LOT BRO Thank you 10000!!

[@noelarios9410]

This is the best thumbnail tutorial I've come across. Even tho I'm hiring a VA to do these for me, I still want to learn a few techniques to do it myself. Thank you for sharing Nick. Great vid

[@ThePointsofArticulation]

Recently I had to download Gimp to make future thumbnails, and this video was very helpful in teaching me some of these techniques I needed to know. Thank you sir!

[@pablokbs]

Just wanted to stop by and say thank you. I suck at design and this tutorial was really easy to follow and understand. Thank you very much!!

[@KonsumerLauris]

Thanks Nick! Finally ditched Canvas for Gimp and found this vid instantly helpful.

[@BlazeGamerMC]

me too

[@jaymoto4980]

It's 1am.... and I'm up learning from the master. Nick I can't thank you enough man. You should have ten million subs!!

[@LindaLawton]

I know this is an old video but i would just like to say thank you. You make me look like i know what i'm doing.

[@queendopamine2940]

Yess! I’m just getting started on KZbin and I recognize the importance of thumbnails. But most tutorials are for Photoshop. Thanks so much! Definitely saving this for future use.

[@MarvinDore]

Great Video!! I will use these tricks to edit my next KZbin video thumbnail! When I had access to the adobe suite I got used to the photoshop way of editing which feels so much easier than Gimp to me. But your tutorial helped me realize Gimp’s style, and how certain things that are pre-packaged effects like color overlays and drop shadows in photoshop, Gimp makes you manually do it by manipulating layers. Finally makes more sense to me now. Thank You!

[@MattMcGurk]

Brilliant. Needed thumbnail for my new KZbin channel. I'm amazed how great these look. You're a fantastic teacher, thanks so much Nick!

[@lilodoms]

Thank you so much for this! I’ve started my youtube career and I needed a good tutorial on how to make thumbnails. Great job!

[@queendopamine2940]

Nice! Hope it’s going well. I gave you a sub 👍

[@syberyah]

This was a really really great tutorial. I will definitely use GIMP for my thumbnails. Great video.

[@MyStutteringLife]

Thank you for this great informational video!!! I was using canva and was having difficulty with congruency but now I'm going to use GIMP and I'm going to use your video to change all my thumbnails.

[@thecupola7908]

This video is AMAZING!!!!!!!!!! I had my first usable thumbnail going side by side on my other monitor. This taught an old dog a new trick. My only suggestion would be some sort of widget that makes your mouse easier to see. I had to repeat sections several times to see how you got to the next step, but having a pause button made your pace doable for this old guy. Subbed.

[@prajwal_bagewadi]

thank you sir for guiding us on this topic and for inspiring all the new creators on this platforn

[@FarissimoID]

Nick, i know you already have a job, but i think people won't mind if you put an ad or two in your videos. You're my new hero and i'll watch those ads just so i can support you :) Great tutorial man, i learned a lot about GIMP already.

[@Jesus_Wept]

Thank you Logos By Nick. I found the video highly informative and practical for what I am looking to do. Thanks again!

[@lemonjuice4422]

Awesome video man super fast and to the point but really informative and easy to follow along! I made a super cool thumbnail of my own with these cool tricks and I can't wait to use it. Thanks man keep up awesome content!

[@CaliradoKid]

This helped me so much! Thanks for putting this together!

[@MrTimRS]

I always come back to this video to do my new thumbnails! you're the man thank you.

[@freshnick6684]

Finally a tutorial that explains everything and what they do. Thanks a lot Nick. Best tutorial ever.

[@miragePTBR]

THANKS! JUST MADE MY FIRST ONE USING YOUR TUTORIAL, AND I AM SUPER HAPPY WITH THE RESULT!

[@GingerTV]

I usually don't comment on videos, but had to for this one! Hats off to you Nick! Amazing Video! Thank you so much!

[@hello7027]

I really appreciate this tutorial, I come back to it regularly!

[@theworldofsnarf8033]

This was so helpful oh my gosh! Thank you for posting this! I have no graphic design experience and following along step by step has helped me so much! Thank you!!

[@hyper_3D]

Thank you VERY MUCH!!! It helped me a lot for designing thumbnails for my channel: Facts From Data. Thanks again! Happy to be a part of your Channel.

[@tnrbrown6793]

Nick thanks for another great tutorial! You are sharing an incredible wealth of knowledge with those of us who don't have th money or inclination to do photoshop.

[@LogosByNick]

Thank you, glad to hear that. That's the exact position I was in when I first wanted to learn design back in 2009 - I couldn't afford Illustrator at the time, so I learned Inkscape. Glad that I'm able to pass along what I've learned and help contribute to the community in some way.

[@tnrbrown6793]

While I enjoy learning so much for free have you considered teaching on a paying platform such as skillshare? Your videos definitely have the quality and hearty content to qualify in my opinion.

[@tomboydru9692]

This videoooo was like sweet lemonade on a summer day! So refreshing and exactly what I needed. Thanx you.

[@DHunt3r]

Thanks, I never Heard of Gimp until I saw this video. Now I'm going to do new thumbnails. Again thanks.

[@dzilx2622]

best review ever i was goona download photoshp and then i saw this and then i just tried and its just like photoshop

[@TeamNEO]

OMG!!!!! I use gimp 4 designing my programs and making the textures then program it in eclipes BUT using it 4 thumbnails never thought of that 😲😲😲😲

[@rerunrescue8904]

Other than my previous comment about the tool name, really great video. I'm trying to do a thumbnail for a new youtube channel I'm planning to do within a month. Your video is extremely helpful. Thank you.

[@BeKind1Love]

Didnt know about this program but its up on the search results so yea thanks

[@Chrono88]

I just want to say thank you so much. I started my youtube channel 5 years ago and eventually had to give up on it. Recently been trying to give it another go. My old thumbnails were brutal and basic. I'm not saying to check out channel as a pitch or publicity stunt. But thanks to your videos my day 1 (early april 2020) to even now (april 16th) have improved greatly. Every time I create a new video I reference your thumbnail and text guides. If you ever do take a peek at my channel you will see the difference from my first video thumb to most recent. So again thank you for your explainations. Everything was so easy to follow and explaining why your clicking where and when made understanding gimp so easy, when originally even doing basic things seemed so complicated.

[@LogosByNick]

Nice work!

[@MiteshShah07]

This is an awesome video! I've been doing a few of these techniques for my thumbnails so far, but this is probably the best tutorial I've seen on how to do this. Thanks!

[@RecklessRuin]

Great video man, love how you explain keyboard shortcuts as you go

[@b4dtv717]

I finally worked out why my gaussian blurs never looked right, I wasn't hitting Selection -> None before applying, GIMP is so powerful but definitely not intuitive. Great tutorial though, I keep coming back to it.

[@MaximeTanti]

bro, you just saved me so much time. Thank you for commenting this.

[@b4dtv717]

Maxime Tanti happy to help a bro out!

[@Renevil2023]

Hi Nick. First I wanted to thank you for this tutorial. It helped me a lot in making thumbnails on my channel and if you look at it you will notice that the thumbnails in my recent videos are very similar to the thumbnail you made in this video.

[@desktopcarpet]

This helped me SO MUCH! Even though I use the updated version now, I still pretty much understood EVERYTHING! This is very very helpful, and I would love to help other people by sharing this! I have quite a few KZbin friends, that can't seem to find a good and free thumbnail and photo editing program. Thank you!

[@ychrome4872]

Hey did the invert work?

[@desktopcarpet]

@@ychrome4872 surprising enough, yes! You can look on my channel. A video will be uploaded either today or tomorrow, and the thumbnail was made with GIMP. And I did almost exactly what he did in the video

[@b.a.cairsoft1063]

Great job! You really make this easy to understand and apply.

[@pranjal_sambhare]

As always this amazing tutorial. You explain everything beautifully. I was wondering if we could create this in inkscape, if so, please make a tutorial on it.

[@fregus.]

Really useful, in-depth tutorial! I have a suggestion for a video: how to make a gif animated logo :D

[@AayushMishra14]

you can use an editing software for this

[@Raptskelleon]

@@AayushMishra14 ok but what software and how. Ofc it’s a software

[@chrismorrish6139]

WOW!!!! Thank you so much! this took my thumbnail design to the next level and I learned so much!!! Thank you!!!!!!!

[@himmelundholz4893]

What a great video. I will definitely use your techniques for my channel!! THX

[@litesnacksgaming8689]

thanks Nick, now my videos will have thumbnails. This video is very helpful to me.

[@maxdeniel]

Thank you very much for you tutorial, it really help me a lot and I finally made my first thumbnail. Good job.

[@ReneeIsReborn]

Thank you SO much for this awesome tutorial. Perfect pace... not too fast or slow. You're so good at this! I feel like I'm a gimp PRO now. LOL

[@Henryvonehren]

Bro I was looking for this exact type of video - thanks so much! You've got yourself a a like

[@TribuGalactica]

I have started to take KZbin seriously and this video has helped greatly. Thank you!

[@zepphit]

Wow. Just mesmerizing. Thanks for all the tips and the thorough walkthrough. Keep up the good work. Cheers from Brazil :)

[@HanieBCreations]

This tutorial is awesome. Well explained too. I paid for a course to give me a run down on using gimp for various tasks. Could have saved $ had I found this channel first. Really helpful! Thanks.

[@TheMarceldasilva]

Thank you for help mate, best Tutorial out here. Thanks for the confidence and tipps :)

[@millennialwealth7722]

Just created a new thumbnail using these tips for my latest video! Thank you!!

[@tonykoos5986]

You're a legend. I just learned a ton and got a thumbnail I can use in the process. Many thanks!

[@LogosByNick]

Glad I could help!

[@pandarouge21]

cant thank you enough for this, been struggling to practice making thumbnails with gimp, but this really helped

[@mordicai9867]

This is such a great tutorial! This, for sure, deserves more views; thank you for such a wonderful tutorial!

[@linuxblogger9257]

Thank you sir for this video. It helped me a lot. I tried to copy the method you showed me and I got the result I was looking for. Although my work was a little bit off.

[@littleponyboii521]

Thank you so much! Great vid. Please make more toturials w/ other programs

[@antwonrough]

Super helpful, definitely gave me some really good ideas! Such a good program, but it can get overwhelming lol.

[@DrJanis]

Great tutorial, very easy to follow along! Thanks!

[@platinumpatience5307]

Really helpful! I'm still trying to wrap my head around Photoshop, editing, having crystal clear gameplay, making sure you can't hear background noise from mic.

[@sohrabjafari4989]

Great video man for somebody like me with 0 photoshop experience i just learned so much Thnak u brother

[@rafhmto6746]

Thanks man was about to buy photo shop but you changed my mind

[@BernardoPrates]

Thank you so much for your videos! They are really helpful and teach me how to use Inkscape and now, GIMP! From Brazil here! :D

[@remysantos]

Thank you for this YOU ARE AN ABSOLUTE GOD! I have mastered your amazing skills, but i still need to watch this video everytime I make a thumbnail lol.

[@laithhaitham5955]

one of the best editing tut. I have ever seen

[@Raptskelleon]

This looks a hell of a lot easier than MS Paint. Might use this next time.

[@joechristieartstudio7751]

Seriously one of the best gimp tutorials I've ever seen.... Great job bro!

[@beardedbroker]

Great stuff. Thank you for sharing. Nice, quick and easy.

[@bhgemini]

So good and looks like it would only take 20-30 minutes. Really appreciate this. Two Thumbs Way Up!

[@natedizzy4939]

DUUUUUUDE!! Thank you soooooo much for this video!!! My thumbnails were SSOOOO Trash before i found this video bro. I really cant thank you enough!!!

[@KashSheikh786]

Hey at the 12:15 minute mark, the white Background color, fills as light blue for me, I have tried everything! How can I fix this? Please help

[@chesswithgerhard]

Using this video every time im making new thmubnails! You earned yourself a new sub!

[@Frederick-pt7yn]

you really save me from this video editing software and tutorial.. thank you and more power

[@Aodan]

I just want to say, thank you! This was exactly what I was looking for to make better thumbnails for both YT and Twitch. I greatly appreciate this video!

[@InstantRyPlay]

This is exactly what I needed. Can't wait to start making better thumbnails! Awesome tutorial!!!

[@jetblade89]

Third time watching, everytime i forget something i come back