Overlay's

[JoJo]

Hi Corey,
Hope you can help me i would love to know how to make an overlay, like the ones Moonbeam did on her personalized layouts for other people.
If you have a tuturial or some instruction's i'd be over the moon, but they need to be in laymens language, not real good with the puter lingo.
Thanks
JoJo

[Corey]

Hi Jojo. Sure I can help. Let's start by making sure I have a clear idea of what you want. Please find one of Moonbeam's project posts which really exemplifies the overlay you seek to create and post a link. Then I'll download it, take a look, and let you know the easiest way to recreate the item in question. Piece of cake! Hokey pokey! Put your right foot in! Shake it all about!

P.S. if you aren't sure how to post a link let me know and I'll post instructions.

[JoJo]

thanks for your help Corey,
the template i am refering to is in Template & layouts: wordart for children: & it's the third thread with the name Kiara in it.
I'm not sure on how to post it, sorry to be a bother.
JoJo

[Corey]

OK you mean something like this? (attached)

To create an overlay like this:

1. Open your chosen image editing software and start a new file with a transparent background. (make it 200DPI if you plan to print) If you need a free image editor look into these titles:

http://graphicssoft.about.com/cs/imageediting/tp/freephotoedw.htm

2. Using the text tool, choose a font and type in the word you wish to use.

3. Adjust the size and color of your text to suit.

4. Using the export or "save for web" feature in your image editor export the file as a PNG 24 format image, making sure to check the "transparency" option.

That's it, your PNG is ready to use in Scrapbook MAX!. Once you do it once it's a breeze. After getting confident with creating basic overlays like this take the technique further by applying styles such as bevel/emboss, gradient, and strokes to your text before exporting to PNG.

Give it a shot, if you are having any trouble at all let me know and we'll work through the steps until success be yours.

[JoJo]

Great Corey, i did it you are a master teacher,
Now i have another query if i want to put a wavy back ground the same as Moonbeams , do i go about it in the same way.
I did try earlier but not very well , i imported a pattern sheet & i used the magic extractor to get the edge i wanted, but when it came to putting in text i got lost totally.
Hope you can understand what i am trying to say if not let me know & i will try to explain again
Thanks a Bunch
JoJo

[Corey]

Awesome.

OK for the wavy bit:

1. Create a new file in your image editor with a transparent background. Make it 1600 X 1600.

2. Every image editor has a tool for drawing smooth curves, generally it's a "pen" tool. Using this tool, or even a brush tool, draw a wavy line where you want the top of your wave to be. Extend past both the left and right edges of the canvas so your wavy line is wider than your image.

3. Create a new layer and fill it with white.

4. Using your free selection tool, usually called a "wand", select the contents of your wavy line layer, then choose the white fill layer and press DELETE.

5. You can now delete the wavy line layer.

6. You should now be left with just a white fill layer which is split in half along that wavy line. Using your free selection tool, i.e. "magic wand" select the top chunk from this layer and press DELETE leaving behind just the bottom chunk. You may have to clean up the odd pixel but you should basically be left now with just the complete shape for your wavy overlay. If not, doublecheck back across steps 1-5.

7. Apply whatever style(s) or color you wish to this layer. Depending on which image editor you are using, you may have a "style" palette included with cool presets which you can click-to-apply. When you have it looking groovy, export is as a PNG24 with transparency. (just as you did with your overlay)

8. Drag this finished PNG into a Scrapbook MAX! project, arrange it above/below your other objects to suit, and then reduce the opacity slightly. Bingo!

Put your left foot in and shake it all about! I know I'm moving fast but you seem quite capable. If you have any questions just let me know, I'll slow it down and elaborate as needed.

Example attached...

[JoJo]

Sorry Corey,
Apparently not capable enough,
I have photoshop element 4 & i can get as far as drawing the line, but then i get lost, when i draw the line it comes up with this moving line i think they call it the marching ants, then i create a new layer but the ants are still there& i don't know how to fill it, down in the right hand corner it is showing me i have 2 layers,but i can't do anything with it, mm feeling very lost,
JoJo

[Corey]

OK no problem, give me til later and I'll whip up a tutorial.

[JoJo]

Ok, thanks a bunch Corey, will wait for the tutorial, thanks again
JoJo

[Corey]

Well the bad news is that Elements doesn't have a pen tool, I just checked it out. The only other way I know to make really good curves is an old trick we used to use back in the 90's. The gist is that we blend black with white, blur it, then use the levels filter to re-focus it, eliminating any "jaggies" in the process. Anyhow I'm not sure how much help it will be but I just recorded a video tutorial. No sound because I don't have time to get the mic set up, it's just video. Hopefully after watching it a few times you will be able to pick up on how it works. Other than that I'm afraid I don't have much to offer so I really hope it helps. If you have any questions just let me know.

The basic gist is that I create a new layer, hand paint the wavy area in black, merge that layer down into a white fill layer, blur the merged layer, and then refocus the edge using the levels filter and extract the black area with the magic wand. Voila! Please note that to view the attached video you must have the Techsmith video codec installed, it's free, you can get it here if you need it:

http://download.techsmith.com/tscc/tscc.exe

The Techsmith codec is harmless to install, all it does is decode Camtasia videos.

[JoJo]

Hi Corey, thanks for your patience, i have got as far as the Gussian layer, but when i go to image, i have no adjustment or level, could it be called something else?
JoJo

[Corey]

In Photoshop it's IMAGE > ADJUST > LEVELS, maybe Elements doesn't have that. Argh. OK one more idea, do you have a wave filter in Elements? If so, you could just take a big rectangle and apply that, leaving yourself with a smooth wave on the edge. In Photoshop the wave filter is found under FILTER > DISTORT > WAVE.

[JoJo]

Hi Corey, yep that is better , found that, but what about the levels, what would i put them on
number generator:
Wave lenght:
Amplitude:
Scale:
And after that would i follow your Tutorial for the rest?
thanks
JoJo

[Corey]

Yes, you follow the rest of the tutorial, this is basically just the bit about dealing with creating a smooth wave shape. Apparently that's a bit tricky in Elements. Anyhow see the attached screencap for a good starting point in the wave dialog, experiment though and see what suits your fancy. Hopefully you will get a smooth enough curve to make this work for you...

[JoJo]

Thank you so much Corey, i did it, & i also put it in my shapes in scrapmax files so i can put any pattern i want to it. So easy when you know how,& when you have someone behind you like yourself to show you the way.
I'm going to have another go see you later, & thanks again.
JoJo