How to create text with shadows?

Question

This question led to a new package:
shadowtext

I used the following code:

\documentclass{article}

%\usepackage{pst-all}
\usepackage{pstricks}
\usepackage{pst-3d,pst-text}
\usepackage{soul}

\begin{document}

\pscharpath[
   shadow=true,
   shadowsize=5pt,
   shadowangle=-40,
   shadowcolor=blue,
   fillstyle=solid,
   fillcolor=black,
   linestyle=none,
   linecolor=black,
   linewidth=0pt]{\Huge SHADOW TEXT}

\end{document}

Problem is, there doesn't appear any shadow next to the text. Any idea how to setup shadows to a string on a way that really works?

Answer 1

Sorry for the shameless self-advertising, but I once wrote a small package for drop shadows which is now available on CTAN; it's called shadowbox. This package works with pdflatex.

A somewhat long MWE:

\documentclass{article}
\usepackage{shadowbox}
\usepackage{multicol}
%
\begin{document}
%
\setshadowoffset{1pt}
\begin{minipage}{\textwidth}
\begin{multicols*}{2}
{\footnotesize
\begin{verbatim}
\shadowbox{This is a shadowbox}
\end{verbatim}}
\shadowbox{This is a shadowbox}
\end{multicols*}
\end{minipage}
%
\section{Changing the position of the shadow}
%
\begin{minipage}{\textwidth}
\begin{multicols*}{2}
{\footnotesize
\begin{verbatim}
\setshadowoffset{2pt}
\shadowbox{This is a shadowbox}
\end{verbatim}}
%
\setshadowoffset{2pt}
\shadowbox{This is a shadowbox}
\end{multicols*}
\end{minipage}
%
\begin{minipage}{\textwidth}
\begin{multicols*}{2}
{\footnotesize
\begin{verbatim}
\shadowoffsetx=1pt
\shadowoffsety=4pt
\shadowbox{This is a shadowbox}
\end{verbatim}}
%
\shadowoffsetx=1pt
\shadowoffsety=4pt
\shadowbox{This is a shadowbox}\\
\phantom{}
\end{multicols*}
\end{minipage}
%
\section{Changing the color of the shadow}
%
\begin{minipage}{\textwidth}
\begin{multicols*}{2}
{\footnotesize
\begin{verbatim}
\setshadowoffset{2pt}
\setshadowcolor{0.66, 0.66, 1}
\shadowbox{This is a shadowbox}
\end{verbatim}}
%
\setshadowoffset{2pt}
\setshadowcolor{0.66, 0.66, 1}
\shadowbox{This is a shadowbox}\\
\phantom{}
\end{multicols*}
\end{minipage}
%
\section{More examples}
The following code illustrates how to use shadowbox in more interesting settings:
%
\definecolor{navy}{rgb}{0,0,0.5}
%
\begin{minipage}{\textwidth}
\begin{multicols*}{2}
{\footnotesize
\begin{verbatim}
\definecolor{navy}{rgb}{0,0,0.5}
\color{navy}
\setshadowoffset{1pt}
\shadowbox{
   \fontsize{16}{16}\selectfont
   Large!}
\end{verbatim}}
%
\color{navy}
\setshadowcolor{0.8, 0.8, 1}
\setshadowoffset{2pt}
\shadowbox{\fontsize{16}{16}\selectfont \textbf{Large!}}\\
\phantom{}\\
\phantom{}
\end{multicols*}
\end{minipage}
%
\color{black}
\begin{minipage}{\textwidth}
\begin{multicols*}{2}
{\footnotesize
\begin{verbatim}
\setshadowoffset{1pt}
\color{black}
\shadowbox{%
   \begin{tabular}{|l|l|}
   \hline
   1 & 2 \\
   3 & 4 \\
   \hline
   \end{tabular}
}
\end{verbatim}}
%
\setshadowoffset{1pt}
\shadowbox{%
   \begin{tabular}{|l|l|}
   \hline
   1 & 2 \\
   3 & 4 \\
   \hline
   \end{tabular}
}
\phantom{}\\
\phantom{}\\
\phantom{}\\
\phantom{}\\
\phantom{}\\
\phantom{}
\end{multicols*}
(Notice the percent sign right after the shadowbox command. This is necessary!)
\end{minipage}
%    
\begin{minipage}{\textwidth}
\begin{multicols*}{2}
{\footnotesize
\begin{verbatim}
\setshadowoffset{1pt}
\shadowbox{$\sqrt{2\pi}e^{-n}$}
\end{verbatim}}

\setshadowoffset{1pt}
\shadowbox{$\sqrt{2\pi}e^{-n}$}\\
\phantom{}
\end{multicols*}
\end{minipage}
%
\color{black}
%
\begin{minipage}{\textwidth}
\begin{multicols*}{2}
{\footnotesize
\begin{verbatim}
\color{navy}
\setshadowoffset{2pt}
\shadowbox{%
   \fontencoding{T1}%
   \fontfamily{pag}%
   \fontseries{b}%
   \fontsize{32}{32}%
   \selectfont%
   Section \arabic{section}%
}
\end{verbatim}}
%
\color{navy}%
\setshadowoffset{2pt}%
\shadowbox{%
   \fontencoding{T1}%
   \fontfamily{pag}%
   \fontseries{b}%
   \fontsize{32}{32}%
   \selectfont%
   Section \arabic{section}%
}
\phantom{}\\
\phantom{}\\
\phantom{}\\
\phantom{}\\
\end{multicols*}
\end{minipage}
%
\end{document}

Answer 2

The reason your code doesn't compile is because it uses PSTricks and you are trying to compile it with pdflatex. PSTricks code uses Postcript commands that cannot be interpreted by pdflatex, so you need to compile it using the sequence of latex + dvips + ps2pdf.

Depending on your editor, there are different ways to do this. Since you are using a Mac, I'll outline how to do it in both TeXShop and TeXworks.

TeXworks

TeXworks is not set up to be able to compile with latex+dvips by default, so you first need to add to its preferences to create a "latex" compilation command. See this question for how to do that:

configure latexmk in Texworks 0.2.3

Once you've done this, you can choose "latex" instead of "pdfLaTeX" from the dropdown menu in the document window.

Alternatively, you can put

% !TeX program = latex

as the first line of your file.

TeXShop

In TeXShop, you need to choose "TeX and DVI" from the Typeset menu instead of "pdfTeX".

Alternatively, you can put

% !TEX TS-program = latex

as the first line of your file.

Answer 3

Another option, if you are looking for multiline shadow text is to use the textpos package to create a textblock of the main text and then offset the box slightly to create the 'shadow' portion. Note, the 'gray' text needs to be created first so the black text can overlay it.

\documentclass{article}

\usepackage[absolute]{textpos}
\TPGrid{100}{100}

\usepackage[usenames,dvipsnames]{xcolor}
\usepackage{lipsum}

\begin{document}


\begin{textblock}{70}(10.2,4.1)
\Huge{\color{Gray}\lipsum[66]}
\end{textblock}

\begin{textblock}{70}(10,4)
\Huge\lipsum[66]
\end{textblock}

\end{document}

This works great for multiline titles on reports, etc.

Here's an example:

Answer 4

Unlike some other answers, the result is not in a box, and so it can work across line-breaks, paragraph breaks, and page breaks.

In that sense, it is somewhat like Karl's answer. But unlike Karl's answer, it can be interspersed with normal text on a word by word basis. Ligatures are, however, lost.

The settable options are:

\setlength\shadowHoffset{.3pt}
\setlength\shadowVoffset{-.2pt}
\def\primarycolor{white}
\def\secondarycolor{black}

Here is the MWE:

\documentclass{article}
\usepackage{stackengine,xcolor}

\newcommand\shadowfy[1]{\expandafter\shadowfypars#1\par\relax\relax}
\long\def\shadowfypars#1\par#2\relax{%
  \ifx#1\relax\else
    \shadowfywords#1 \relax\relax%
  \fi%
  \ifx\relax#2\else\par\shadowfypars#2\relax\fi%
}
\def\shadowfywords#1 #2\relax{%
  \ifx#1\relax\else
    \shadowfyletters#1\relax\relax%
  \fi%
  \ifx\relax#2\else\ \shadowfywords#2\relax\fi%
}
\def\shadowfyletters#1#2\relax{%
  \shadow{#1}%
  \ifx\relax#2\else\shadowfyletters#2\relax\fi}

\newlength\shadowHoffset
\newlength\shadowVoffset
\setlength\shadowHoffset{.3pt}
\setlength\shadowVoffset{-.2pt}
\def\primarycolor{white}
\def\secondarycolor{black}

\def\shadow#1{\kern\shadowHoffset%
  \raisebox{\shadowVoffset}{%
  \stackinset{c}{-\shadowHoffset}{c}{-\shadowVoffset}%
  {\textcolor{\primarycolor}{#1}}{\textcolor{\secondarycolor}{#1}}}%
  \kern-\shadowHoffset}

\begin{document}
\def\mytext{%
Problem is, there doesn't appear any shadow next to the text. Any idea how to 
setup shadows to a string on a way that really works?

And for my second paragraph, the problem is, there doesn't appear any shadow 
next to the text. Any idea how to setup shadows to a string on a way that 
really works?
}%
\shadowfy{\mytext}

\def\primarycolor{black}%
\def\secondarycolor{black!30}%
\setlength\shadowHoffset{.3pt}
\setlength\shadowVoffset{-.3pt}
\shadowfy{\mytext}

\def\shadowVoffset{-1pt}%
And it should line up with text: \shadowfy{\mytext}

\LARGE\sffamily%
\def\primarycolor{blue!70!black}%
\def\secondarycolor{cyan!25}%
\def\shadowHoffset{.5pt}%
\def\shadowVoffset{-.8pt}%
And color: \shadowfy{\mytext}
\end{document}

Here is somewhat of a zoom on the result:

Here I demonstrate line and paragraph breaking.

Here is a mid-line transition from normal to shadow text, exaggerated shadowing to demonstrate that the primary baselines line up.

And here is color: