First pathetic attempt at a Breakout

[AngelicKim]

Hi all, with everyone posting breakout and asking about them I tried it. Pretty poorly I might ad. Its kind of hard to using a touch pad on a laptop to outline with the select tool. With any luck my Wacom tablet will be Friday and I can get it better. Plus my computer was going slow and it wasn't letting me ad to or subtract from my selection. Thought I would share any way.

[URL=http://www.pixentral.com/show.php?picture=1AXlJVLYzxor0SSsYIyEVZtPFiUd0][IMG]]

[AngelicKim]

I messed it up again
http://www.pixentral.com/hosted/1AXlJVLYzxor0SSsYIyEVZtPFiUd0_thumb.jpg (http://www.pixentral.com/show.php?picture=1AXlJVLYzxor0SSsYIyEVZtPFiUd0)

[GaryK]

Kim

Looks like you got it anyway. :)

[mom to 4]

Kim .....stop beating yourself up......My only sugguestion would be to move the top two corners to make it look like that is lying flat, but that is not an easy thing to accomplish! You did a great job with the selection! Very neat and clean. A breakout is not easy and getting that picture that it is breaking out from right is a bit tough......that's the reason I only have one breakout in my gallery!!!!

You did a great job, stop beating yourself up!

[mom to 4]

Oh, add a shadow under the blue photo....that will do wonders!

[AngelicKim]

Thanks Gary and Colleen.

Colleen, you may only have that one breakout but remember last night I told you I liked it.

[AngelicKim]

Colleen, I ddi plan on adding a drop shadow but I didn't think it would show up with the gray background. I was trying to make it white but can't get it to change. I thought I picked white. The pallette layer shows white and then a second box in the layer gray. Any help from anyone would be great.

[kayser]

Kim- I thought the breakout was one of the hardest things to try. I remember seeing these great ones in the galleries and trying it and ending up with a mess. You're just the only brave one to post their first attempt. I think I deleted my first several... Good luck with the tablet, I am sure you will really like it!

[mom to 4]

How about taking the paint bucket and dumping white onto that grey layer???? If that doesn't work, maybe create a new layer above the gray one and dump the white paint onto that. You can always turn off the visibility of the gray layer ..... Is that considered your background layer?

[AngelicKim]

Thanks Kay. I don't know how brave it was, I was thinking stupid but what did I have to lose. I also figured the only way I would learn to fix it would be to post it and take in the suggestions if I got any.

Here it is again, I figured out how to get rid of the gray and added the shadow.

http://www.pixentral.com/hosted/1zv6orVuBLQ9rzPyvjhmV3N6F1Tj570_thumb.jpg (http://www.pixentral.com/show.php?picture=1zv6orVuBLQ9rzPyvjhmV3N6F1Tj570)

[mom to 4]

Looks better, how do YOU like it? Now, all I think you need to do is figure out which way to pull those top two corners down to make that piece look like it is flat. You use the free transform tool, if I remember correctly, and I think you would pull the corners out, but this is where it gets a bit fuzzy for me.....You may be better off waiting for someone more knowledgeable than myself to come along......Wendy, of course, comes to mind!

[mom to 4]

didn't see your post about my duck tonight when I wrote the last post....I am glad you like my duck.....getting that layer to lay flat was tough! Have faith, anything that I can do YOU can do.....I am not good at this stuff......

[AngelicKim]

Colleen, I am not sure what you mean about the corners but like you said, maybe someone else can explain better.

On your duck breakout, last night you said it was an old photo you had to scan in. It was right before your son chased you off the computer, :)

Thanks for the help and suggestions.

[mom to 4]

Yes I remember!

lets see if I can do a better job of explaining this....You want that blue layer to look as if it is laying flat, right? So try going to the layer and Ctrl T for the freetransform. If you play with tugging the two top corners, I think you will get the desired effect. I THINK that if you pull those corners out, it will make it look like it is laying DOWN flat. Right now, yours looks like it is standing up, which is ok, if that if what you are going for......All a matter of presonal preferences......

Maybe go back and watch that section of the tutorial and watch what he does to make it lay flat. It is all a matter of tugging it the right way.

[AngelicKim]

Colleen, I'll try the corners and see if I understand what your saying. The tutorial I used wasn't Dave Cross's video. It was in a thread by Kevq. I have yet to do the paid subscriber. I keep meaning to and then I get reading all the different post and forget to do it.

I'll try the corners tomorrow morning. My eyes are getting to tired to focus to do more tonight. I will post it again if I can get the flat look. Thanks again.

[mom to 4]

I understand, at some point the eyes glaze over! Just remember if you play with it and you don't like the way it looks you can hit ctrl-Z and it will take you back one step. I must have done that 50 times before I got it where I was OK with it! You know, I think I got the breakaway instructions from another site and printed them out.....I just remembered that! I will have to see if I can find it for you tomorrow. I think it was of whales......anyone else remember that???????? I know I have it. I'll get back to you!

[emkayess65]

Hi Colleen, I think what you are looking for is "Perspective".
It's under Image >> Transform >> Perspective.
Hope this helps.
Marie S

[mom to 4]

Marie:

Yup, you're right!

[Wendy]

Hi ...

You can't really use distort on a breakout once it is finished as it would simply distort the object that is breaking out too.

To make the photo (the blue layer) look like it is lying flat you have to cut the image to that shape before you do the breakout. The shape is an optical illusion.

Its difficult to describe how to do it so it really is better to take a look at Dave's Video (come to think of it I'm pretty sure he did the Video because we were having all sorts of problems trying to describe how to do it :) )

... it is well worth subscribing as there are all sorts of great tutorials in there :)

Wendy

[mom to 4]

You know......I just looked at the Editors Choice photos again and Kimboo has a breakout with what would be your blue layer standing up. I guess it is more about getting that shadow right. Check out her breakout, it is terrific......

[AngelicKim]

Not sure if this really looks any different. I think the one corner looks flatter but the other doesn't because of the drop shadow. I guess I should have done the drop shadow as a seperate layer so I could move it but can't figure out how to change it now.

Colleen, thanks for the taking the time to find the instructions you sent.

http://www.pixentral.com/hosted/1zeeVWCRSMA0NRpy4DlOh20AngTcoq_thumb.jpg (http://www.pixentral.com/show.php?picture=1zeeVWCRSMA0NRpy4DlOh20AngTcoq)

[Wendy]

Hi Kim ...

Is the drop shadow a layer style? If so then just click on the layer and do Layer>Layer Style>Clear Layer Style ... :)

Wendy

[AngelicKim]

Thanks Wendy, that worked. Now when I create the layer for the drop shadow do I put that layer above the blue layer in the pallete or below it? My guess would be below it above the border layer which is on the bottom.

[Wendy]

Hi Kim ...

You need to put the new shadow just above the background layer ... and here is a mini tut I did on making the shadow :)

http://www.photoshopelementsuser.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1784

Wendy

[AngelicKim]

Thanks for the mini tut. I had already made the new layer and couldn't get anything on it. You saved me. Here is yet another version.

http://www.pixentral.com/hosted/1v8MRtwg5RpwUqS25thDesF6P1g_thumb.jpg (http://www.pixentral.com/show.php?picture=1v8MRtwg5RpwUqS25thDesF6P1g)

[Elemobe]

Hi Kim

Thank you for sharing this. As a newbie this is so useful and I think your first attempt is anything but pathetic. I am learning along with you! I have been looking forward to having a go at one of these. I think I will wait until I have the basics under my belt though :-)

Linda

[mom to 4]

Kim:

I think that looks much better. I really like the shadow, adds some depth to it! You really did a great job for a beginner on a difficult project. Your blimb was really cut away very well too! Give yourself a great big pat on the back!!! There is soooooooo much to try!!!!!!

[AngelicKim]

Thanks Colleen. The next breakout will be much better. I recieved an e-mail today with the UPS tracking number and it said my Wacom tablet is being delivered tomorrow. Is will be so much easier to do with the pen than on the laptop touch pad.

Thanks to all for your suggestions and compliments. Everyone here really knows how to make a Newbie welcome. I am so addicted to this forum. If I am not on the computer, I always check for new post every time I walk past it.:D

[mom to 4]

Kim:

My computer is in the kitchen, and I do the exact same thing!

Where did you get your tablet from? I think I may ask for one for my birthday, and just buy it tomorrow. Didn't someone have them on sale this week???

Oh, try Kay's tutorial. I just posted one that I did in my "some vacation pics" thread. It was fun!

[AngelicKim]

Colleen, I was going to get the Graphire 4 4x5 that is on sale at Best Buy this week but Monday I won an ebay auction for a brand new Graphire 4 6x8 Bluetooth. I think several people on here went and got the one at Best Buy this week as early birthday presents to themselves. Thats what mine is. Best Buy has it on sale for $69.99 (the 4x5)

Which tutorial by Kay are you referring to. You have so many great pictures in your gallery I don't know which one to look for.

[AngelicKim]

Colleen, are you referring to the one that you used for the New Hampshire Sunset? If so, I copied the tutorial to try it. I am trying to find a particular photo to try that on. My husband was on a fishing trip in Canada and took a beautiful photo of a rainbow over the lake they were fishing on. I have it printed and framed on my living room wall but can't find the CD that I saved the pictures on. He must have it at work when he took it to show all the guys he was with the pictures from the trip. He is male after all and forgot to bring it home and probably has no idea where it is in his office. I'll probably have to go clean his office to find it.:eek: :D