Supplies Needed:
PaintShop Pro
A Cute or Pretty Tube. You can find lots of fun tubes at http://www.knuddelkids.com
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This is a beginner's tut, but its one that
anyone can do and enjoy.
Every tut has a trick or a tip that someone can
use.
I'm going to explain a couple of simple techniques that you will use throughout your entire lifetime of PSPing:
You'll learn to read the numbers at the bottom of your screen, use Inner Bevel and Drop Shadows, and how to do simple text in a graphic.
I'll also show you how to Export a File so that it is smaller and easier to send by mail. |
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Open your tube in PSP. Duplicate your file by pressing Shift + D.
Close the original. Make it a habit to work with a copy so you don't accidently overwrite and ruin your original.
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Do a quick information check on your image size before you decide how to start your new tag.
(This takes longer to read than it does to do!)
Look at the sets of numbers at the bottom righthand side of your screen.
You will see two sets of numbers. 
The first set (in parenthesis) changes as you move your mouse around the screen. This set of number reads the cursor position of any window you pass your mouse over without selecting any other window to be active.
In PSP, the pixel count starts at the top left corner.
X is the horizontal position. X : 0 is at the left edge and increases from left to right.
Y represents the vertical position. It starts at the top of the graphic and ncreases from top to bottom.
When reading and recording X:Y positions and sizes, X is always read first, Y is read second.
In the illustration, if you imagine that the cursor is positioned in the center of the green  , the reading tells you that the position is X:136, Y:178. Although you don't need to know this information for this tutorial, eventually there will be a need to find an exact position in a graphic. This information will come in handy.
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The second set of numbers tells you abit of information about your image and today, this information is relevant to the tutorial. This set of numbers tells you the actual pixel size of your image, and what color mode you are working in.
Although there is no X to tell you the horizontal reading, horizontal is read first, vertical second. This tells me that my graphic is 204 pixels wide X 244 high. It also tells me that I am working in 16 million colors. That means that I am working in a mode that is compatible with PSP formats. I am working on a raster layer, and can use most PSP tools available. If I were to change the color mode, ie. to 256 colors to work with the limits of gif files and masks, I would severely limit the number of tools I could use, including layers. So, I'm right where I wanna be.
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Now, the numbers are heaping up and there's a whole lot of gobbledygook down at the bottom of the screen, and I know you are thinking you will never need this stuff and it looks absolutely evil and you don't wanna know about it. But it's very simple and useful information as you begin to need accurate sizes and distances.
I used my rectangle tool to draw a rectangle around the fairy troll. All these numbers are telling me is 1) my starting point - 2)the finishing point 3) the size of the rectangle 4) approximately what percent of the whole image the rectangle covers. 85.1% or thereabouts. This is all calculated in the millisecond and each pixel moved changes the mathmatic outcome so I find these scrolling numbers fascinating.
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You just gleaned the information that your image is a certain size in relation to the size of the canvas you have to work on. You can look at your tube and tell if it needs to be resized in order to work. I like to work with a large canvas with lots of room to move around and larger images so I can see what I am doing. This tag will end up between 300 and 350 pixels wide, but I want ROOM to work. I want a canvas size of 500 or more. (Since we duplicated the tube, there is no need to open a new image as we already have the image in front of us.) Your tube should take up 1/4 to 1/2 of your canvas.
If your tube is like mine, small with a small canvas to work on, enlarge the canvas. Click Image in the Menu and Choose Canvas Size. Change the width and height to 500 X 500 pixels.
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Grab the Move Tool  on
your toolbar and drag your fairy troll up to the top left hand corner.  
Now, there's too much canvas for the size of
tag we want to make, so grab the crop tool and drag it in a square around the
fairy troll - over to the edge of the canvas. Double click with the tool in place
and your picture is cropped to a workable size.
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 INNER BEVEL
Let's select the fairy troll and give her a fluffier, more 3D look.
Click Selections > Select All.
Then click Selections >
Float.
And finally Selections> Defloat.
There should be a row of marching ants all around the fairy troll now.
Click on Effects > 3D Effects > Inner
Bevel
Use these settings to give her a little fluffy look and not distort the
picture too much. This is a preset I've kept over time to use for different
things like this. When you have all the numbers set the same as in this
window, you can click on the little save icon next to the presets box and give
it a name. I named mine: Pillow.
(Hint! You can drag the pictures of the settings into your PSP workspace so that you don't have to click back and forth when trying to copy settings. Move the picture off to the side before you select the feature you are going to use, and drag the settings window over so you can read the image while you choose your settings. Click OK. [You'll probably apply the settings to the picture, but it doesn't matter. ] Click back on the tag you're working on and choose the setting you want to apply. PSP brings up the last used setting. Click OK. ) |
 DROP SHADOW
While the marching ants are still marching
around the fairy troll, let's add a drop shadow.
Click on Effects > 3D Effects
>Drop Shadow. I want a very soft drop shadow behind this fairy troll, not one
that shows much shadow, just a little blur. Use the settings in this box. You
can make a pre-set for this if you want and call it something like
"Fluffy" |
ADDING TEXT
Before we add our text, time to pick our text
colors and get to know your material palette. It usually sits on the right
hand corner of your screen. I have chosen two colors from the fairy troll picture for
my text colors. To change your FOREGROUND COLOR - the upper box - in my example
it is Gold, click once on it. It will bring up a color palette and you can
choose the color from any open graphic on your screen. I clicked on the gold in
the fairy troll picture.
I also clicked on the BACKGROUND COLOR BOX and
chose a dark blue from the fairy troll picture. |
 Next Click on your Text tool. I
used very simple settings for this example. Set your text to the same as mine
if you are just beginning to use the Text Tools.
When you have your settings prepared, click on
the picture approximately where you want to place your text. It doesn't have to
be perfect. That's what the mover tool is for. Type in whatever text you want
to add to your tag. I used my name.
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  Click apply. A box will come up that lets you
move the text around if you click on the node in the very middle. You can move
it around and place the text where you want it. I didn't like the settings I
used so I want to change the size without having to redo it all. I keep my
layer palette visible and open all the time. Text is created on a different
layer, above the bottom fairy troll Layer. It was done on a Vector Layer that allows
you to manipulate it even more than if it were done on a regular Raster layer.
We're not going to do much with it except to change the size and color a
little. I click on the + box next to vector to open the dropdown - and that
shows me the text layer. Right click on the text layer box and then on Edit
Text in the flyout window that opens up.  |
The text box will open with your text
Highlighted. Now you can easily change the size and the colors and anything
else you want to change.
FINISHING TOUCHES
OK... we got our text and everything else in position and
ready to go. Time to add the finishing touches. Right click on the vector
layer box and click on Convert To Raster Layer.
Select all the text by clicking Selections > Select All,
Selections > Float , Selections > Defloat Your text should be outlined
in marching ants.
Add the same inner bevel as you put on the fairy troll... And do the
same with the drop shadow. Select none.
Look at your layer palette. You still have two layers. If
you want, you can still move the text or the fairy troll around using the mover
tool. When you have your text and picture in place, right click on one of the layers in the layer pallet and select Merge> Merge All (Flatten).
Your tag will now show up with a white background.
Now, your fairy troll, the text and the background are all one
layer. You can use the crop tool to trim some of the white space. |
Click on File > Export > JPEG Optimizer. Set it to
about an 8 or 9 Compression setting and click OK. Save it to a place where you
will find it easily. I save mine to my desktop and when I'm finished with it,
move it to a folder on my "graphics drive".
 
Celebrate your first or most recent tag with a Hooray and a big pat on the back!
vetch |
