Sample
or Preset files are available at the main index Mastering
Brushes for Photoshop. |
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| Dover Art can be a great resource for creating brushes. |
| 1.) Go to the Samples folder for this CD and Open it. Locate the image named Dover.psd, then Double-Click it to open in Photoshop. (This file has already been converted to RGB mode.) |
| Note: When working with Dover Clip Art, it generally is supplied as a TIFF file format and will need to be converted to RGB mode which was the case here. All you have to do is go to Select > All. (This places a Selection around the entire image) then go to Edit > Copy. Go to File > New and Create a New Document same Size and Width but change the Mode to RGB on a Transparent Background then click OK to Create. Follow with Edit > Paste. You may then close the Original TIFF file. |
| The image is quite large at 1484 X 1994 pixels at a resolution of 600. It should load roughly at 25% on screen. |
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| Notice above, I have closed the Layers palette and Opened the Navigator palette.To Open the Navigator palette go to Window > Navigator. (You can position it anywhere you like by Dragging the blue bar Top of palette.) |
| 2.) First things first! It's always a good idea to examine the image first for quality. A bad image will create a poor looking brush. Simple as that. Go to the Navigator palette and use the slider to Enlarge the image to where any defects in the image will be easy to find. |
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| You can grab the Red box in the picture window to Move about the image while examining. I decided to start at the Bottom and work Upward. Below shows defects located in red circles. |
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| You can toggle the palettes OFF and ON by hitting the Tab key on the keyboard, in this way, it will give you 100% viewing area while you paint. |
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| 3.) Press B on the keyboard to Select the Brush tool. Now, Right-Click over the work area to Open the Brush-Picker. Select the Hard Round 19 pixels brush, then start painting in the defects. (Library will close with first Stroke.) Paint in any Black area's first, then Select the Foreground Color swatch and paint with White if needed as well. If you make a mistake, just press Ctrl+Z to Undo the last Step. |
| (If the Library is different, click the blue arrow (Top Right corner) and a pop-out menu will appear. Select Reset brushes. A dialog box will appear, just click OK and the correct library will load.) |
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| 4.) Once the image is repaired, it's time to Resize the image to the Scale of the brush you would like to Create. Go to Image > Image Size. When the dialog box appears, change the Height to 500 px and let Photoshop convert the Width. (Anytime you Resize an image, you may loose some edge sharpness.) To fix this, simply go to Filter > Sharpen > Sharpen Edges. The finished image is shown on the Right, ready to be made into a brush. (Notice, the cleaner detail in her hair now.) |
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| 5.) Go to Edit > Define Brush preset. Name it as you wish, then click OK to Create. |
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| The New Brush Preset will be included into the present library and added at the end. Always test the performance of the New brush. Create a New Document in RGB mode on a White Background. Make it always Larger than the brush itself. Press D on the keyboard (if necessary) to return the Foreground Color to Black. Return to the Brushes Library and Select the New brush. Position it over the work area and click once to stamp the image. Ask yourself... Does it meet your expectations? |
| Taking this fair maiden one Step further... I painted in Color. (*See Coloring a Brush - Technique 2), then added a Black background (at the Bottom of the Layers palette) to knock out any transparency in the stamp of the brush (this also made the black patch behind her disappear!). Looking at the revised image I noticed some of the branches in the Top area of the image still missing as shown on the Right. |
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| A New clear layer was created and placed at the Top of the Layers palette, then I painted the rest of the image. This file can be found in the Samples folder for this CD and is named Lady_with_Rose.psd. A look at the Layers palette will show the construction of the file. |
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| With the finished image... One can Create all kinds of things like the business card below. |
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| The image was Flattened, Copied and Pasted into a New Document on a Black Background. I then Duplicated the layer and Transformed it Horizontally and spread the two images apart. Adding Text finished the card. |
Copyright © 2006-2007 Glenn Schemenauer - Spacific
Designs™ - All rights reserved. |
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