saving also... >:) thanks dan
On 10/24/12, Steve Kinney <ad...@pilobilus.net> wrote: > On 10/24/2012 01:44 PM, Jim Clark wrote: >> Wow-- >> >> I will save this. Incredibly clear and detailed--I have never rally >> understood those masks. Still don't, but am sure closer! > > Hey Jim, > > Glad it makes sense to you! I have saved it and I will probably do > an illustrated version for my website sometime soon. > > Figuring out how to use layer masks is one of the real > "breakthroughs" that make the GIMP a powerful tool. I have been > using the GIMP for around 10 years, but I still remember how > difficult it was for me to wrap my brain around what masks can do. > > You can: > > * Make templates that enable you to quickly and easily create lots > of different versions of an image, i.e. with different colorization > as in the present example, or as frames that smaller images will > appear in, etc. > > * "Remove" part of a layer, spend a half hour working on the image, > then "undo" an error you just found in your removal by painting a > little white on the corresponding part of the layer's mask. I > almost never use the "Eraser" tool - if you have to go back and undo > it, you lose all the work you did after using the Eraser. > > * You can "paint with any filter" by applying filters and effects to > a copied layer, adding a black mask to make the altered layer > vanish, then painting the mask with white to make the changes come > back only where you want them in the visible image. (Or vice versa: > Paint black on a white mask to wipe away the filter effect where > you don't want to see it.) I find this method especially useful > when working on portrait shots. > > * Isolate under-exposed elements from over-exposed elements in > photographs, by making a layer copy and masking out the under- > exposed part of the top layer. Then you can adjust the brightness > and colors of the bright and dark parts of the picture separately. > If the contrast between over- and under-exposed areas is strong > enough, you can use the Threshold tool on a throw-away layer to > create a nearly perfect mask in seconds, that would have taken a > LONG time to paint by hand - some call this "finding the natural mask." > > * Use a black/white gradient on a layer mask to give the layer a > smooth transition from visible to invisible. This sometimes comes > in handy when processing flash photographs, i.e. a line of people on > a stage where those at the near end are fully exposed and those at > the far end are under-exposed. > > ... and a whole lot more. > > :o) > > Steve > > > > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > gimp-user-list mailing list > gimp-user-list@gnome.org > https://mail.gnome.org/mailman/listinfo/gimp-user-list > _______________________________________________ gimp-user-list mailing list gimp-user-list@gnome.org https://mail.gnome.org/mailman/listinfo/gimp-user-list
