I have used Photoshop Elements 6 for these instructions, but this technique should work in older versions as well. If you are using an older version, your Effects palette may be arranged a little differently than what is shown here.
Let's begin:
Open the image you'd like to add see-through text to in Photoshop Elements Full Edit mode. For simplicity, I'm using one of the free patterns offered on this site.
Choose the Type Tool from the toolbox.
In the options bar, choose a bold font. I'm using Playbill.
Tip: You can adjust the size of the font menu previews by going to Edit > Preferences > Type and setting the Font Preview Size.
In the options bar, set the font size to 72, the alignment to centered, and the font color to 50% gray.
