PDN Fanatics

Related Links:

basic-alpha-masking-for-beginners-t753.html

http://forums.getpaint.net/index.php?/t ... y-2-steps/

http://forums.getpaint.net/index.php?/t ... -a-ribbon/

http://forums.getpaint.net/index.php?/t ... pha-masks/

post19684.html#p19684

alpha-masking-101-community-tutorial-t531.html

tutorial-making-a-glass-pane-t596.html?hilit=%20alpha

alpha-mask-tut-t508.html

Ok so anything that is black, or slightly black is kept & white turns clear.

I finally get it! I have used it before with tutes but never really got my head around on how to use it & when I did try on my own, I could not see the difference between alpha masking & cutting out.

There have been quite a number of tutes that explain it but this is definitely the clearest explanation on how & why it works.

So relating it back to doing the real lion over the top of the stone one (the tute I requested which Goonie did), if we were to use the piece of the lion we wanted & on a new layer above, paint all the bits we want to keep black, possibly blurring it to blend better, & then use the mask on the real lion below, we could then further blur, un-invert the mask & cut out the stone bit which would mean the transition between fur & stone would be much more subtle.

I've saved your tute into a Word doc for future reference.

Sarkut, you are so right - it is hard to explain something to someone when you yourself have a clear understanding of how things work or how to do something. Understanding what the other person might not be understanding is the key to teaching excellence & you have done that for me. Your tute explains the concepts & how it works. I didn't know what the heck alpha was but now I do!

You have helped me a great deal. So now there is one more person who knows when & how to use alpha masking, & how & why it works. Many, many thanks!

great job on the comprehensive tut mate. Alas it tis in the wrong forum i cannot move it but it shall be moved soon.


best regards,
chad

Thanks for the feedback barbieq.
If you have any thoughts on how it can be improved, pls. let me know.


chad-

I posted this here because it is a WIP, I'm hoping for some feedback from
first time Alpha Mask users if there are any on this forum.

Interesting glimpse through.

I've got to admit I've never Alpha Masked anything or scaled my work down, basically what you see with mine is how it was made, so I'm always interested in anything that helps improvement.

Also happy to admit I've never understood Alpha Masking, but hopefully my work isn't too shabby for lack of ... the same as I can strip and re-build anything mechanical but struggle to set a VCR or Sky+ box.
Will read this more thoroughly when I get a few spare hours 2moro

I have occasionally used Alpha Mask but, like Bbq, I had never properly understood it. I think knowing when to use it to get the best effect is just as important as knowing how to use it. This is one of my biggest problems. Not knowing when means I end up using other means to get the outcome I`m after when I could probably have saved time and got a better result from using AM. I think a `When to use' section would be helpful as well if that`s possible.
I do agree with the others though that this is one of the best explanations of Alpha Masking so far. I love your quote from Yoda. Thanks very much Sarkut for taking the time.

~WelshBlue~

Your work, as well as that of many others on this forum is clear indication that
Alpha Mask is not necessary to produce high quality work with Paint.NET.

It is a worthy addition to the toolkit, however.

If you find that this tutorial doesn't give a basic working understanding,
then that's what I need some specifics on so that I know what needs fixing.


Goonfella

"When to use" is important to understanding the value of the effect.

I'll wade thru some of my .pdn files and put together some examples.


Adding a "When to use" section to this tutorial is probably not on.
This is meant to be as simple and bare-boned as possible to avoid
information overload in beginners, while still being effective at getting
them launched.

Here's one example I was working on last night:



To get a decent result I needed to match the curve of the base paper
to the shape and position of the triangular (sort of) paper fold.

Micro-adjusting three round end lines and merging them as the mask basis worked pretty well.
It may be possible to get as good a result by other means, but I simply don't know how.



Having the mask made it simple to trim the blurred highlight and shadows also.

I use Alpha Masking everyday, all the time and I find more uses continually.
Sarkut: Your tut is very good but a little too technical for beginners. In other words, we don't need to understand the principle of internal combustion engines to drive a car. You did a great job however, just a little too advanced. That's not to say that someone won't learn from it as some already have. I just get the feeling that someone else may feel a little left behind.

Cool. Can you give some specifics as to what should be eliminated or further simplified?

I should probably clarify that I'm not expecting to have total beginners to Paint.NET
(as in someone who installed the program an hour ago) be able to follow this.

But more for someone who has learned most of the basic tools and is starting to use plugins.

Also, for helping people in the GD&Q on the main board.
Being able to give a link and subsequently having a
common frame of reference for continued discussion.

Well, maybe all the explanation before step 1 may not've been necessary. Barbieq thinks that "anything that is black, or slightly black is kept & white turns clear." While this is true in this case, it is not always true. With different settings the opposite is also true but you didn't explain that. This is one of those topics where the technique is easy to use but complicated to explain. I understand that this is a WIP and maybe you're going to go into other masking techniques. If that's the case then I'll step aside and let you do your thing. I'd like to help you somehow but not sure how. Maybe I can send you something in a PM? Not sure.

I'd be happy to receive info by PM. Thanks.

===========================================

"anything that is black, or slightly black is kept & white turns clear." While this is true in this case, it is not always true. With different settings the opposite is also true but you didn't explain that.

Yes, I didn't explain that. That was by design rather than inadvertence.

Although it isn't explained, it is dealt with in the final part of the tutorial.

"If it looks right, click OK."

"If it's the opposite of what you wanted, remove the top checkmark, then click OK."

From my perspective this is an example of showing them how to drive the car
and letting them learn auto-mechanics at a later date.

I've reduced the decisions they need to make when actually using the effect to one.

Top checkbox checked or unchecked?

====================================================

I'm very willing to share what I've learned of masking techniques,
if there is interest in that. But not in this tutorial.

In this thread? Sure.

====================================================

Again, this is meant to be ultra-basic, not comprehensive.
The hope is that a user who is new to Alpha Mask can have
initial success rather than giving up in frustration.

====================================================

I'll re-examine the stuff before Step 1, to see what can be discarded or restated more clearly.

====================================================

I appreciate your having taken the time to consider and respond.

Thanks Sarkut for your openness. I have an idea but instead of posting it I'll bounce off of you first. You're doing good though.

Great tutorial!

I've moved this to the right forum.

I think this is going to be a very important addition to our compositions from now on! I'm now printing this off and will try to digest it all. I do recall doing it once, for some text tut, and being amazed at how it worked, but didn't understand how. Thanks so much Sarkut for this