GIMP Version: 2.10.11
Operating System: Windows
GIMP Experience: New User

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I'm not happy with the way I've tried to make a gradient drop shadow around a selection and there must be another way to do it for a better result ...
My method:
I make Selection / Border by choosing the size a little randomly
then I fill it with the color black (or other)
then I go back to the initial selection, I reverse it and Filters / Gaussian Blur

Something I tried was to use the actual object to make it's own shadow.
There is an example here:https://gfycat.com/grimenchantingamurratsnake

In this case I pasted the object (series of objects) to the right of where the object was going. Then used monochrome , Gaussian blur etc to turn it into a shadow.
Finally I pasted the series of objets to the left of the series of shadows.
Maybe this will give you some ideas

Tas_mania
thank you for this way of proceeding.I will test with what I think because it is not to apply to objects but to selections.

For what I want to do, it does not work or so I did not know how to do it.
I just smear a background to explain it better. I made a selection of the word "hello" (then I cut and pasted as a new layer):

As we do not see well on the screenshot, I have dark (but I would like to make a gradient shadow without darken the word "hello")


so how to make a gradient shadow that starts from the outline of this word?

Is this what you are looking for?

I used Drop Shadow (legacy) on the upper layer. The Drop Shadow layer can be moved to suit your needs.

Not sure what you mean by gradient shadow. Is it something like this?



Just a note: Your downloaded images (png's) are in indexed mode. I hope you are working in RGB mode

I did this real quick.



What I do is make a new image > Add Alpha Channel > Select by color > Edit -clear Then Paste your selection into it.
Go back to first image > Desaturate, Curves, Blur etc to make it look a shadow.
Then just 'copy visible' from the second image and place above the shadow.
That's how I make shadows using the original image

(make sure your image mode is RGB)

Made this one using LayerFX > bevel + dropshadow.

Looks like a bump map?

thank you to all of you
I'm still in RGB mode ... but my screenshots were made with Faststone Capture portable software.

BlightyII: Your shadow is in and gives an impression of hollow but I should have said that I wanted a shadow outside the word.
I was trying to get an intermediate effect between that of Tas_mania, that of rich2005 and that of racer_x, ie dark near the edge and becoming progressively clearer, ie an effect harder than tas_mania but softer than racer-x.

How about this one?
Look at the layer names to see what I did. It can be varied to suit.

Thank you BlightyII, I'll watch!

Maybe something like this. Not straight forward when the text shape is a cut-out. Too much blur and lose the edges.



2 minute video: https://youtu.be/kPBpjApAnZw

Thanks rich2005,I'll watch!

With Blighyy's method:



With rich2005 method:



With racer-x method:
I have never used layerfx. So I just tried "bevel and emboss" with some random values and it created 2 empty layers (Visible # 2-highlight and Visible # 2-shadow) so I did not keep on going.

So unresolved problem ...

I had to give it a try.
Mine is pretty easy.
I made the text layer and then the text layer to image size.
I used Layer Effects > Bevel and Emboss and used the defaults on the text layer.
When it was done I made the text layer invisible.
Have you tried Filters > Long Shadows ?
Under Composition on the filter you can select Shadow minus image.
It might work for you.

I was going to suggest making more than one shadow each on a separate layer with different amounts of blur and opacity. I used two here:



but I prefer your long shadow tips SeriousTom and rich2005, I hadn't noticed that filter before.

SeriousTom teapot

Thank you all, I really appreciated your help.

TomSerious, thanks for the xcf file and your screenshot because I did not see the option "fading (fixed lengh)



one last thing, I do not remember how to give a name to the setting of the long shadow (or other) ...
edit: I found!