Creating a Simple 3D Text Effect

First start with a blank canvas, and fill it with a nice gradient, like so:



Now add some text, like so:



Duplicate the text layer and drag the duplicate underneath the original, then change the color of text to Black. Right-click the duplicate layer and choose Rasterize Type (or Rasterize Layer), and hide the original text layer. With the duplicate layer selected, goto Filter > Blur > Motion Blur. Choose an angle 45 and a distance of around 10-15. We should have something like this:



Now unhide the original text layer and reposition it to fit in the topright of the motion blur, so that the blur looks like a projected shadow, like so:



Next, open up the Layer Styles of the original text layer and choose Bevel and Emboss. We will want Inner Bevel and Chisel Hard. Change Depth and Size to 1. We should end up with something like this: