This tutorial demonstrates a really cool effect you can use on your text or other "stuff" to make it appear 3D.
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1.
Open a new document a make it the appropriate size for the text you will be working with. Click on the color picker and choose a color that is the same color as your text will be, only brighter (for this example, our final text will be a medium blue, so we will use a light blue).
2.
Now, click on the arrows to switch to your background color and again go to the color picker. Choose a darker shade than you choose for the foreground color (in the example we will use a dark blue).
3.
Now, select the Type Tool and type the word(s) you wish to include in your graphic. Hold CTRL and click on your text layer to create a selection of the text, and then hide or delete the original text layer.
4.
Create a new layer and then press Alt+Delete to fill the text selection with the foreground color (light blue in this case). Then create another layer (while the text is still selected) and fill the selection with a seamless texture — you can download one of the many free textures available here, or use one of your own. To fill a selection with a texture, open the texture image in Photoshop, press Ctrl+A to select all, and choose Edit » Define Pattern... then fill the selection by going to Edit » Fill and choosing your texture, which should now appear there.
5.
With the top layer still selected, drag the Opacity Slider in the Layers Palette down to about 50% or 60% (depending on how dark or light you want your final product to be).
6.
Create a new layer and select the Gradient Tool. Drag within the text selection to make a gradient from top to bottom — then drag the opacity slider down until you can see some of the texture behind the gradient.
7.
Now add a drop shadow to your text — have a look at the Drop Shadows tutorial if you need help with that.
8.
You could stop right there if you want, but you can keep adding on if you'd like. Here's an example with a bevel applied (check out Layer » Layer Style to create your own effects).
