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Paintstroke Tip for Photoshop and PSE

May 19, 2011 By 7 Comments

Paint strokes, splatters and other painty elements are great for adding depth and texture to a layout.  However, depending on the design of the element, sometimes simply dropping the element on your layout obstructs  some of the layering effects.  Take a look at the close up below.

I want the page to look as if I’ve ‘painted’ over the corrugated background, scrollwork matting and one other paper layer.  If I had actually run a paint brush over this page, the paint would be slightly textured by the corrugated background and you’d still be able to see some of the layering.  Here is a quick tip for getting some the layering effects back, while keeping the paint stroke.

Begin by duplicating your paint element once for each layer the paint will cover.  In my case, I need three paint strokes.  To copy your paint layer, click on the paint layer in the Layers Palette, and go to Layer>Duplicate Layer or drag the layer to the New Layer Icon at the bottom of the Layers Palette.

Now click and drag your paint layers in the Layers Palette and move them around so the one sits directly above each layers to be ‘painted’.

Clip the paint strokes to the layers directly below.

To do this in Photoshop, click on the paint stroke in the Layers Palette and keystroke, Alt+Ctrl+G.

To do this PSE, click on the paint stroke in the Layers Palette and keystroke, Ctrl+G.

Repeat for each paint stroke.

Click on one of the paint strokes in the Layers Palette and use the opacity slider to lower the opacity so some of the layer below shows through.  Repeat for each paint stroke layer.

Here is my completed layout.

Credits: Friends by Choice by Misty Cato and Meredith Cardall, SSD, Date Bits 33, Timeless Frames and Painted Backdrops by Misty Cato, Fonts – Lullaby and Birch Std

 

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Adding a Frame to the Interior of a Photo

April 14, 2011 By 9 Comments

SUBJECT: Create a thin line frame around the interior of a photo for digital scrapbooking.

PROGRAM: PSE8 (can be adapted for other versions of PSE and/or Photoshop)

PREREQUISITES: Basic understanding of the layers palette and the selection, text tools and color picker.

This tutorial walks you through the steps of creating framing and text like this …

Start by opening in your photograph in PSE (or Photoshop).

Create a new layer on top of your photo by going to Layer>New>Layer or Shift+Ctrl+N.  Name your layer ‘Shape’ and click ‘OK’.

If there are not rulers visible at the top and left of your working canvas, activate them by going to View>Rulers (Shift+Ctrl+R).

Click on the ruler along the left and drag inward onto your photo.  You should find yourself moving a blue line across the canvas.  This blue line is called a guide. Using the ruler as a gauge, set the guide inside your photo 1/4 of an inch (more or less depending on how far inside the photo you want your frame).  Repeat this process to set a guide 1/4 of an inch inward on the opposing side.  Then pull two guides down from the top ruler setting them 1/4 of an inch from the top and bottom of your photo.

Now go to View>Snap to and make sure ‘Guides’ is checked.

Click on the Shape Tool in the Tools Palette and select the Rounded Rectangle Tool (or the Rectangle Tool if you want sharp corners).

In the Options Toolbar near the top of the screen, set the radius as desired, usually somewhere between 20 and 90px.  The larger the radius, the more rounded the corners. I am using 60px in this example.

Click on the canvas where the guides meet at the upper left and drag downward and right creating a rectangle in the empty layer on top of your photo.

Hold down the control key and click on the thumbnail of the shape in the Layers Palette to select the shape.  There should now be ‘marching ants’ around the perimeter of your rectangle. See arrow below.

Click on the eye to the left of the shape in the Layers Palette to hide the rectangle.  See arrow below.

Create a new layer;  Layer>New>Layer or Shift+Ctrl+N. Name your layer ‘Stroke’ and click ‘OK’.

Go to View>Clear Guides to get rid of the blue lines.

Go to Edit>Stroke (Outline) Selection.

In the Stroke Dialogue box …

Width: Set as desired. The higher the number the wider the line.

Color: Set as desired. I used white in this example.

Location: Center

Blending: Normal

Opacity: 100%

Click OK.

Click on the Text Tool in the Tools Palette.

Click on your canvas and type your text.  Change the font, size and text color as desired.

 

To integrate your text with the frame perimeter.  Click on the Move Tool in the Tools palette and click and drag your text so it sits along your frame.  Select the Rectangular Marquee Tool from the Tools Palette.

Click and drag over your text to create a rectangular selection around your text.

Click on the Stroke layer in the Layers Palette and hit delete.

You are done.  To collapse your image into a single layer, go to Layer>Flatten Image.

Go to File>Save As and name and save your altered photo.

Adding a Frame to the Interior of a Photo Summary

  1. Create a layer above your photo. Layer>New>Layer or Shift+Ctrl+N
  2. Set up Guides around the perimeter of your photo by dragging them from the ruler.
  3. Draw a rectangle in the layer above your photo, filling the space between the guides.
  4. Hold down the control key and click on the thumbnail of the shape in the Layers Palette to select the rectangle.
  5. Hide the shape layer and clear the guides.
  6. Create a new layer. Layer>New>Layer or Shift+Ctrl+N
  7. In the new layer create a stroke around your selection; Edit>Stroke (Outline) Selection.
  8. Type your text and move it to the desired location.
  9. Erase any portion of the frame overlapping the text.
  10. Flatten and save.
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Resizing and Saving Layouts for Web in PSE

March 31, 2011 By 1 Comment

There are lots of online digital scrapbooking communities where digiscrappers can show off their pages and browse for inspiration.  Most of these galleries have limits on the size of file that can be uploaded.  The limit will vary from site to site, but usually falls in the 125-200KB range.  In order to post digital scrapbook pages to these galleries, users create smaller ‘web-sized’ versions of their layouts.  Here is a run down on how to resize your pages for the web in PSE8.  It will be very similar in other versions of PSE.

Start by opening your original layout in PSE.  Go to Image>Resize>Image Size.

Make sure the ‘Resample Image Size’ box is checked at the bottom of the Image Size dialogue box and adjust the following settings.

Width: 600 (you may choose to go as low as 550 or even 500).  I usually start at 600.

Height: 600 (with same comment as width)

Resolution: 72

Set the drop down menu at the bottom of the dialogue box to Bicubic Sharper, then click OK.

Go to File>Save for Web.

In the Save for Web dialogue box, adjust the Quality Slider until the adjusted file size is at or below your target file size (usually around 150KB for most galleries).

If you have to loose too much quality to achieve the desired file size, you may need to go back to the image resize step and try resizing to 500px instead of 600px.  When you are at the file size you need, click OK, give your file a new name and save.

Credits: Sunbleached by Misty Cato, Art and Soul Alphas by Julie Billingsley (recolored), Date Bits 16 by Misty Cato, Bad Sewing Machine XVIII by Traci Reed, Fonts – Traveling Typewriter

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Align and Distribute in PSE

January 15, 2011 By Leave a Comment

SUBJECT: Using the Align and Distribute Tools

PROGRAM: PSE8 (can be adapted for other versions of PSE).  A Photoshop tutorial for this topic is available here.

PREREQUISITES: Basic understanding of layers, be able to open a document in PSE/Photoshop, be able to use the move tool to place items on a canvas

Photoshop and PSE have a one click process for aligning items along a straight line.  Begin by selecting the move tool from the tools palette.

Hold down the control key and click on each item you want to align in the Layers Palette (see below).

2

The align and distribute tools will be available in the Options Toolbar.  Click on the small down arrow to the right of ‘Align’ to see the align menu items.

3

You can choose to align them horizontally by bottom edge, top edge or center and/or vertically by right edge, left edge or center.  In the image below I’ve aligned mine horizontally by center.

4

You can center items one on top of the other by clicking the center horizontal option followed by the center vertical option. This comes in particularly handy if you are trying to center a photograph on a mat or frame.

In my case, I want my flowers evenly spaced.  To do this, click on the small down arrow to the right of ‘Distribute’ and select the ‘horizontal centers’ option.

5

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Making Waves in PSE

December 30, 2010 By Leave a Comment

 

 

SUBJECT: Creating a Wave Shape

PROGRAM: PSE8 (can be adapted for PS and/or other versions of PSE)

This tutorial walks you through the steps of use the Wave Filter to create a wave shape in Photoshop Element. This shape can then be used as a clipping mask or template shape in a digital layout.

Open Photoshop Element (or Photoshop). Open a new document; File>New>Blank File (Keystroke Ctrl+N).

1

Enter the size of your new canvas in the dialogue box. Typically digital scrappers use the following settings to work with a 12×12 inch page.

 

Width: 12 inches

Height: 12 inches

Resolution: 300 pixels/inch

Color Mode: RGB Color

Background Contents: White

 

 

2

Select the rectangle tool from the tools palette (see large arrow below).

 

4

Click and drag on your canvas to draw a large rectangle across the page. Exact size and dimensions are not critical, but it should span the entire canvas.

5

Go to Filter>Distort>Wave.

6

A dialogue box may appear notifying you that the shape must be simplified. Click ‘OK’.

7

Now use the Wave dialogue box to set up the wave parameters. Use the following settings.

Number of Generators: 2

Wavelength Min: 999

Wavelength Max: 999

Amplitude Min: 70

Amplitude Max: 71

Scale: 100% (Both Horizontal and Vertical)

Type: Sine

Undefined Areas: Repeat Edge Pixels

Then click ‘OK’.

8b

You should now have a wavy rectangle. You can further distort your rectangle. Click on the Move tool in the tools palette (Keystroke V). Hold the Control key (Ctrl) and click and drag on any of the bounding box handles (see small arrows below) to manipulate the wave. When you are satisfied with the result click on the green check mark on the lower right of the bounding box.

9

You can see below that my wave shape exceeds the size of my canvas. To crop the shape go to Image>Crop and then click on the green check mark to the lower right of the bounding box.

10

Your wave shape is complete.

Further Application

  • Experiment with different size rectangles or even other shapes
  • Experiment with other settings in the Wave dialogue box
  • Make a ricrac shape: Start with a 1/4 inch high rectangle and use the following settings in the Wave dialogue box. Number of Generators 5, Wavelength Min 100, Wavelength Max 100, Amplitude Min 1, Amplitude Max 20, Scale 100, Type Sine

Here’s a sample of some waves put to use in a layout.

HardKnockLife

Credits: Most items from Rainy Days and Mondays, white papers from Backdrop Papers, bracket journal bit from Shabby Orchard, glitter edging on perimeter created for this page, Font: FO Howie’s Stamps Lowfat, Love Ya Like a Sister and LDJ Go All Out

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Using Layered Templates in PSE

December 30, 2010 By 4 Comments

SUBJECT: Using a Layered .PSD template

PROGRAM: PSE8 (can be adapted for PS and/or other versions of PSE)

PREREQUISITES: Basic understanding of layers, be able to open a document in PSE/Photoshop, be able to use the move tool to drag and drop, rotate and resize items

RELATED DOWNLOAD: Layered Template

A layered template is a stack of shapes each in their own layer. Digital scrappers use each shape layer as a clipping mask to ‘clip’ their photos and papers to the shapes. This tutorial covers the basics of using a layered template.

Open PSE (or Photoshop). Open a layered template. You can download the template shown in this tutorial here. Go to File>Save As and save this project under a new name so you don’t accidentally save over your original template.

1

Open a photo.

2

Use the move tool to drag your photo onto the template canvas. Position the photo so that it covers the spot for the photo in the template.

3

Go to Layer>Create Clipping Mask (Keystroke Ctrl+G in PSE, Shft+Ctrl+G in PS).

4

With the photo layer active, use the move tool to resize and rotate the photo until the desired portion is visible.

5

Right click on the photo layer in the Layers Palette and select “Merge Down” from the drop down menu to merge your photo into the template layer (see red arrow below). Alternatively go to Layer>Merge Down or Keystroke Ctrl+E.

6

Open a paper from any of your digital scrapping supplies.

7

Click and drag your paper onto the template canvas.

8

Click on the paper layer in the Layers Palette and drag down until it is directly above the template layer you want to clip it to (see red arrow below).

9

Go to Layer>Create Clipping Mask (Keystroke Ctrl+G in PSE, Shft+Ctrl+G in PS).

10

Right click on the photo layer in the Layers Palette and select “Merge Down” from the drop down menu to merge your paper into the template layer (see red arrow below). Alternatively go to Layer>Merge Down or Keystroke Ctrl+E.

Continue this process with photos and/or papers until you have used all the pieces in the template.

11

Some templates come with drop shadows already set, others don’t. Either way add or delete drop shadows as desired. Templates are a good starting foundation for any layout. Add your own personal touches to finish off your page.

Further Application

  • Alter templates to fit your needs, rotate them, move shape layers or delete layers you don’t want.
  • The clipping technique described in the tutorial can also be applied to photo masks.

1stteacher

Credits: ABC & 123 by Misty Cato, Font – Last Words

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Creating Your First Page in PSE

December 30, 2010 By 4 Comments

SUBJECT: Creating Your First Digital Scrapbook Page in PSE

PROGRAM: PSE8 (can be adapted for PS and/or other versions of PSE)

PREREQUISITES: None

RELATED DOWNLOAD: Shabby Orchard Quick Page

This tutorial is written to help the beginning digital scrapper create their first page in Photoshop Elements. This tutorial will use a quick page as a starting point. If you’ve opened up Photoshop Elements gotten frustrated or felt overwhelmed, I invite you try one more time with this tutorial.

Before you begin, download, unzip and save the following file to your computer; Shabby Orchard Quick Page. All you need is Photoshop Elements, the quick page from the download file and one photograph.

Start by opening Photoshop Elements. The screenshots are from Photoshop Elements 8, but you should be able to follow along in other versions.

On the left side of the screen you’ll see a set of icons. Each of these represents a tool available to you in PSE. This section is referred to as the Tools Palette. On the right side of the screen is the Layers Palette. At the top of the screen is your main menu (File, Edit, etc.) and just below it is the Options Toolbar.

starter

We’ll start by opening the quick page. In the Main Menu Bar go to Edit>Open.

a

Navigate to the quick page you’ve saved on your computer and click Open.

b

Now open the photo you want to use on your page, File>Open (keystroke Ctrl+O).

c

Navigate to the photo and click Open.

d

Click on the Move Tool in the Tools Palette.

e

Click on your photo and drag it onto the quick page.

Look in the layers palette and you’ll see you now have two layers in the quick page document. The top one is your photo and the bottom is your quick page. Think of layers much like a paper scrapping page. A traditional paper scrap page is comprised of many layers; a background paper, photos, embellishments, lettering, etc. Digital scrapping is much the same and you will track each layer via the layers palette. In this case you only have two layers – the quick page and the photo. We will be adding a title layer as we move through the tutorial. In order to manipulate a specific layer, it must be ‘active’. You can set any layer as the active layer by clicking on it in the layers palette.

f

Now we need to switch the order of the layers so the photograph is sitting under the quick page. To do this click on the photo layer in the layers palette and drag it to below the quick page layer.

g

Note that even though my photo is bigger than the hole there is a dashed line indicating where the edges of the photo are. This is called the bounding box. To resize your photo select the move tool from the Tools Palette and click and drag any corner of the bounding box. If you are working in Photoshop (as opposed to PSE) hold down the shift key to assure your photograph stays in proportion.

h

You can also rotate you photograph using the move tool. To do so, move your cursor just outside a corner of the bounding box until the cursor becomes a bent two-headed arrow. Now click and drag your cursor to rotate the photo.

i

Continue to experiment with the move tool to move, rotate and resize your photo until you are satisfied with its position. When you are satisfied with the size and position of your photo, click the green check mark that appears at the lower right of the bounding box.

Now click on the text tool in the tools palette. The text tool looks like a capital ‘T’.

j

Click once on your canvas near the title strip at the top left of the photo and type a title for your page. For now, don’t worry about exact placement, size or font. Chances are you won’t be able to see what you just typed. If so, take a look at the layers palette. There is now a text layer, but it is likely under the quick page layer. To fix this click on the text layer in the layers palette and drag to the top spot, just above the quick page layer.

k

l

Click and drag across your text to highlight it. Now look at the options bar near the top of your workspace. You’ll see drop down menus for selecting your font style and size. Use these to choose a font for your title and select a size. If you don’t like any of the sizes in the drop down menu, you can type in a number of your choice.

m

With your text still highlighted click on the colored box in the Options Toolbar to open the color picker. You can use the color picker to select a color for your text. If you want to match a color on the quick page click once on the quick page on the color your want to use and the color picker will select that color for you. When you are satisfied with your color choice, click ‘OK’ to close the color picker and change the color of your text.

n

You can adjust the placement of your text as needed by clicking on the move tool in the tools palette and moving, rotating or resizing the text just as you did the photograph.

o

Optional: Use the text tool to add a subtitle, information or date just below the photo.

p

When you are happy with the final results of your layouts, save your page (File-> Save).

Prior to printing your page, you’ll want to save a flattened version. Go to Layer-> Flatten Image. Flattening the image combines all your layers into one.

q

Congratulations! You’ve completed your page.

JustTwoTeethCredits: Shabby Orchard by Misty Cato, Fonts – Cookies and 1942 Report.

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Align and Distribute in Photoshop

December 30, 2010 By Leave a Comment

SUBJECT: Using the Align and Distribute Tools

PROGRAM: PSCS3 (can be adapted for other versions of Photoshop). A PSE tutorial on the topic is available here.

PREREQUISITES: Basic understanding of layers, be able to open a document in Photoshop, be able to use the move tool to place items on a canvas

Photoshop and PSE have a one click process for aligning items along a straight line. Begin by selecting the move tool from the tools palette.

Hold down the shift key and click on each item you want to align in the Layers Palette (see below).

a

The align and distribute icons will be available in the Options Toolbar. The first three icons are horizontal icons (align by top edge, center or bottom edge) and the next set of three are vertical alignment (align by left edge, center or right edge). In the image below I’ve aligned mine horizontally by center by clicking the second icon from the left.

b

You can center items one on top of the other by clicking the center horizontal icon followed by the center vertical icon. This comes in particularly handy if you are trying to center a photograph on a mat or frame.

The next set of icons are the distribute options (first 3 are the horizontal set, next 3 vertical). In my case, I want my flowers evenly spaced so I’ve selected the second, or ‘horizontal centers’ icon.

c

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Text Box Tip for PSE

December 30, 2010 By 1 Comment
SUBJECT: Creating a square or rectangular bounding box for text
PROGRAM: PSE8
PREREQUISITES: Be able to open a document in Photoshop and use the type tool to create text
One of the most common complaints I hear about PSE is that it doesn’t have the option of creating paths for texts and text fills. Alas I don’t have a magic trick. However, if you want to create text in square or rectangle, there is no need to put ‘returns’ at the end of each line of text. Selecting your text tool and clicking and dragging on your canvas before you begin typing will assure your text stays neatly in the preassigned area. Here are the step-by-step details.
Select the text tool from the Tools Palette.

2

Click and drag on your canvas where you want your text to go. There should now be ‘marching ants’ around your selections.

3

Type your text and you are done. Of course you can edit your text, size, font, etc.

4

My finished page.

JaminsHolidayTreats-LargeBlogCredits: Santa’s Bake Shoppe by Misty Cato and Julie Billingsley, Fonts -HVD Poster and Courier New

mistysignature

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Recoloring Elements in PSE

December 30, 2010 By 1 Comment

SUBJECT: Using the Replace Color Tools to Recolor Elements

PROGRAM: PSE8 (can be adapted for other versions of PSE, notes provided for Photoshop)

PREREQUISITES: Be able to open a document in PSE/PS, basic understanding of the eye dropper tool

The starting point for this tutorial is any digital scrapbooking element. This technique will work best on elements with distinct color areas. You can practice on the same alpha used in this tutorial. Click here to download.

Go to Enhance>Adjust Color>Replace Color. (Note to Photoshop Users – in PSCS4 the tool is found at Image>Adjustments>Replace Color)

Make sure the ‘Selection’ circle is selected and click on the eye-dropper tool in the Replace Color dialogue box. On your canvas, click on the color in the element you want to adjust. In my case, I want to change the blue in the alpha, while leaving the off-white lettering and cardboard backing unchanged.

Take a look at the black and white image of my element in the dialogue box above. The white area indicates the area selected for color change. You’ll see there is still some black ‘fuzzy’ areas in the white. This is because the blue has texturing and slightly varied shades that weren’t selected in my single click with the eye dropper tool. I want to add to my selection until all the blue has been selected. To do this, click on the ‘Add to Sample’ eye-dropper tool, directly to the right of the eye-dropper tool in the dialogue box. Click on the various blues on the element (or whatever color you want to change) until the entire area you want to change is showing white in the dialogue box. Adjusting the Fuzziness slider may also help you refine your selection.

Next adjust the Replacement Color Sliders until you have changed the original color to your desired color. The Hue slider moves the color along color spectrum. Saturation controls the level of pigment in the color and Lightness controls the lightness/darkness. Click ‘ok’ once you are satisfied with your new color.

Remember to do a ‘Save As’ of your recolored element to avoid saving over of the original.

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