Please tell us what PSP Tutorials you'd like to see...

[AnnaKirsten]

So that we can try and ensure the most helpful tutorials are included here in the future, it would be really helpful if you could tell us what you would like to know about PSP.

We all have to begin somewhere, so please just fire away with questions, or suggestions. :nod:

[ARTICE]

Please Tell Me How To Size A Pisture In This Program-so I Can Up Load It To This Site As I Am A New Member And 100 Pixals By 100 Seems So Tiny To Me..help Please -artice

[AnnaKirsten]

First off, the 100x100 pixels is only for the Avatar. Other than that, a good size for a picture for uploading into the gallery is somewhere in the region of 1000x800, but there is no rule about that, as you can if you wish, upload larger pictures than that. There is no actual limit on the file-size for uploading into the gallery either, although we need to remember some people are only on dial up, so somewhere around 512k - 700k is what I usually stick to.

Here's how to Resize.

With your image on your screen inside PSP, click on Image in the tool-bar (I am working in PSP8 so your layout may or may not be the same but you need to find Image and click on it in any case) then Resize.

A dialogue box comes up, and there you can tell it the size you want it to be - make sure the Keep Ratio box is ticked so it doesn't go all pearshaped. Click OK, and the image is then automatically sized to your specifications.

When saving

Save as a jpeg, click on Options (which automatically shows up at this stage) and then you can control the file-size your final image will be. Obviously the higher, the better the quality of the picture. With my images set at 1000x800 pix, they are usually OK set at 1, which gives me the file sizes as above, or sometimes even less than 512k.

I hope this helps?

[ARTICE]

Thank You Very Much For The Info And How To Use It..I Will Be Back For More-I Am New At Some Of This And Still A Working My Way Around How To Use And Do Every Thing-Thank You Agian..k :)

[AnnaKirsten]

You're very welcome, and I just hope I know the answers! lol! (If I don't, I find someone who does, so no worries!)

[patpawz]

Anything to do with the Layers under the blend modes. Most tuts for PSP do not go into this. I found the one tut you have under the tutorials so fantastic. I never played around with the Diference mode before and found this to be fasinating. My imagination is running wild.

[AnnaKirsten]

Hi patpawz, if you're referring to making your first picture using layers that I did, thanks for the compliment - I wasn't at all sure I had done a very good job of the tut as it was the very first time I had attempted to write one! lol!

When it comes to layering and using their properties, quite honestly it's all there as a basis. From there on, it's a case of experimenting with different combinations, different colour use and so on.

Another good trick is to add a layer on top of your finished picture and fill it with a gradient (experiment with various colours), and sometimes add a pattern to it as well if you wish, or create some textures (or download them off the internet; look at the links we have in this forum and you'll find some), and then go into layer properties and choose overlay, or multiply, or any of the different ones to see what you like, then merge down so that your original picture shows through in different ways. It's amazing what results you can get for yourself, but it takes a lot of time just making these discoveries. It's fun though!

If there's something specific that you meant in your reply, do let me know, but otherwise I think I've covered it.

At some point I'll try and remember to do a tut on one of my pictures where I've done a lot of special effects - but remembering exactly what I did is something else!!! With the one I did here, I did it specifically for this forum and wrote it all out in notepad as I went along.

A very good program to get which is a plugin for either PS or PSP is Filters Unlimited at www.icnet.de . This adds a whole new dimension to what you already have in PSP!

[wile1]

Nicky I've experimented in layering on occasion but not very good with it. I use psp6 which I love as you know. Have you ever thought about doing a picture tutorial to help us old yotes with the process of learning to do layering? Thanks.

[AnnaKirsten]

Hi Lou-Ann, there is a tut I did for PSP8 HERE (http://www.innertraveler.com/messagecenter/showthread.php?t=1182) which has loads about layering in it. I don't know whether you saw that or not?

I made a discovery only yesterday too about layering, and that is that on the right hand side of the layers palette, it actually tells you what you did with that layer properties!!!!!!!! I've been using PSP for the past 10 years, and only just discovered that! LOL!LOL! Unbelievable! Well that means there's no need to change the name of each layer so you'll recognise what it is! (Not that I ever did that..) The only thing is, I have no idea whether PSP6 has that facility or not - I can't even remember its layout any more, as once we got onto 8 and upwards that all changed somewhat. (I started out with version 5 originally.)

I'll see if I can work on taking some screen shots as I do an image showing it bit by bit as I go - very hard to do and I'm not a natural at recording stuff like that, but I'll try..

[ARTICE]

Please Tell Me How To Do Layering Over A Made Flame. Thank You K (artice).

[AnnaKirsten]

What I usually do is to export a flame that I like in both PNG (*will explain further down about this) and Jpeg formats, at 1024 pixels on the highest settings (100 for a Jpeg) from Apophysis. I also ensure that my screen in Apophysis itself is set at about 30 for clarity, as this does IMO make quite a difference to the eventual outcome!

Then I open the Jpeg up in PSP and, as in the case of my Magnetic Storm (in the MM challenge gallery HERE (http://www.innertraveler.com/publicgallery/showphoto.php?photo=21965&cat=625&page=1) ).

I then open up another suitable picture or photo, paste it into a new layer over the flame, make it slightly transparentfor now, in Layer Properties, in order to see where it is in relation to the flame, then I use the Mover tool to move the image to the right position.

Next, proceed to shape up the edges so that they are looking as though that's where they are supposed to finish (such as, if there are trees at the top, then obviously you don't want a straight cut edge above them, so I erase what I don't want, then use the push tool to roughly outline the edging.

Next, I try different layer properties, such as Multiply, Luminance, Hard Light, Overlay, or whatever will give the best colour results for blending the picture into the flame - difference and exclusion, or burn are also very interesting for different effects!

Having done that, the next step is to use the paint tool on a very fine setting, (pressure sensitive for the pen-mouse if you have one), and start using the colours in the image to paint in extra detail. (Get the colours you want by using the eye-dropper tool and press Control at the same time.)

Sometimes I follow this up by using the push tool on size 2 just to blend where I've painted, but this isn't always necessary.

Having got the effect I want, I then save the file as a TIFF (this gives IMO the best quality image to go on working with) which is merged flat, but I also save it as a PSP imgage too, in case I want to go back to any of the preliminary stuff.

You can then proceed to use filters, paper textures, whatever else you want to do, add a frame, signture, and so on. You might even want to add other flames, or other images onto what you already have, blending them in similar manner, just generally experimenting!

*PNG files, as you may know, are transparent. This means you can use the PNG flame you originally made over another flame or image, or even sandwitch something between the original jpeg file and the PNG form of it - but be aware that this immediately gives the effect of thickening the original flame! Also you must make sure that they are both saved in exactly the same size, or you will get fuzzy edges! Again, though, you can get interesting results by using the original jpeg and png, by changing the layer properties of the overlaid png flame!

Experiment and have loads of fun!

REMEMBER to change your image to jpeg format for uploading!

I hope this was what you were wanting?

P.S. I have put this tut also into a separate string under its own heading!

[wile1]

I never name my layers! lol I never have! Seems a waste of time. Theres so much to learn about PSP I can do a lot with PSP6 but not everything. I've dabbled in layering off and on like I said but simple stuff. I use the transparent means and it seams to work for me, I've done some pretty things with it. But not like you or doriano do. Im never gonna be that good! :) Thanks for the heads up on the tut though. .... Watch out psp here I come!! :D

Oh gosh Nicky I just thought! should send you to my website let you take a look at the snowglobes I did on PSP6 :D take a look when you have time.. This was all done before I started doing a lot of my own work so the pics are from other places but they are good ! http://www.heartcreators.net/wile1 Have several pages of them. :D Also a few buttons. *sorry for the shameless self permotion! :D NOT!

[AnnaKirsten]

Hi Lou-Ann, no I don't name my layers either! Never did, but as you saw, I made that discovery! Made me laugh when I realised how dumb I'd been all this time! lol!

I did take a look at your site, including the sow-globes. Interestingly, a lot of your work in that particular section is very similar to stuff I used to do at Signature Sensations, i.e. using parts of other artist's pictures (with their permission of course) and animating them, then putting whatever signature would be requested on them. Sometimes I used to tube aspects of the artwork, put them into a different background and so on first.

But then people began to get very tetchy about copyrights being breached - not by the likes of you and me, where permission had been specifically granted, but by other people who would then use the same things themselves, remove all original credits, and make them out to be their own work! It became mandatory, by the way, to put the original copyright to the original artist on the actual image. Many artists have since withdrawn all permissions for use of their work!

Then I got fed up with all the work this involved, never creating anything original of my own, and half the time after making hundreds of signatures for people, lots of them were never collected! Worra waste of time that was! The other animators all found the same!

Interesting site you have there, Lou-Ann. One problem I kept finding was that when I clicked on your images, they went to a page cannot be found? Are you in the process of reconstructing? You have some interesting looking Poser ones, for example, but I couldn't get to any larger pictures to view them properly until I reached your new galleries. WOW! Some of those are really impressive! Well done!

[wile1]

Oh yeah I've been working on my poser galleries. I took off the first few pages large pics to make room for more of the newer ones. And I haven't gone in yet to remove the links. I will have to get around to that soon lol. Thank for viewing Nicky.. I haven't done snowglobes in sometime. I used to love to do them, think I will have to start making some with my own work and replacing the ones that are there. :)

[AnnaKirsten]

Lou-Ann, my thoughts exactly that it would be good if you could make your own globes, since you have far more talent than is displayed in some of the ones there! A lot of those ones have been from art that's been around for a while now, and I think you have a golden opportunity of having your own work exclusively on there now!

Yes go for it!

What browser and what software are you using for your site btw? I've noticed that a lot of it goes off to the left of my screen, rather than centrally, and wondered if it was intended that way in order to still see the castle on the right in the background, or whether there might be a browser incompatibility.. Not a criticism, but a question.. Also on the first page where you have your index, one of those tables is off to the left in my screen whereas the others are central. Anyway, I'm sure you'll deal with it all in time! lol! Keep up the good work!

[wile1]

I use avant browser to work with. The site is a self owned site of a group of basically graphic style artists that I belong to. I have no idea why it would go way off. I try to do it on an 800 setting. I use that because I can see it.

I notice here on this site when I post on these threads my posts seem way off to the right while everyone elses is in the center. So Im guessing its me and my settings that are causing the problems. And I sure wish i knew what to do...

Right now I can't think at all got a headache! Stupid weather can't make up its mind so its giving me a headache instead! bleh!

[AnnaKirsten]

How wierd, Lou-Ann! If I hadn't mentioned it, you might never have known I guess, and for all the stuff here to be showing the opposite way for you, well yes, it has to be your particular browser or the way you have your pooter set up. (I haven't heard of an avant browser.)

I used to be constantly sent to look at a site belonging to someone who did everything via TV, and OMGoodness the way some of those things showed, it was really odd! lol! She couldn't do anything about it until she herself got a pc.

Settings for 800 is also actually not right, when it comes to the web. It should be at 1024x768. Sounds as though you have a very small screen or you wouldn't see it well on the higher setting? Well all things considered, I think you are doing really well!

I'm going to try and figure out how to get all this latest stuff here into a separate string, Lou-Ann, because we've completely gone off the subject of PSP tut requests! lol! Now how the heck do I do that?? I know how to merge, but I've not tried moving separate posts into a new string...

[AnnaKirsten]

I'm bumping this up in case anyone else wants to ask for something specifically PSP!

[kansas]

This possibly should be a new thread, but maybe someone can help me out.
I recently bought a new computer which has XP as the operating system.
My old computer was Windows 2000.
I use PSP 7 and am in the process of reinstalling it.
One of the filters I liked and used was Paint Engine.
In the install directions it says to leave pe.8bf in the Paint Engine folder.
Then it says to move fmachine.ini into my main Window Directory.
Now my problem is I can't find where Windows Directory is. Is it called something else?
Thanks in advance for any help you can give me.
Marion

[AnnaKirsten]

Hi, the windows directory is directly on the C drive (or whichever is your main drive on which everything is installed). When you click on Explore, look down the list, below Program files, temp, and then you should have WINDOWS in capitals. Click on this, and it will probably come up with a grey screen saying these files are hidden. Click where it says See Contents of this Folder, and then they will all appear.

I hope this is what you were looking for?

[kansas]

Thanks Anna, Got the problem solved.
Marion

[AnnaKirsten]

Up to the top in case anyone would like some help of this kind..