Showing Off III

[crljean]

Okay. Maybe I'm just dimwitted. I've been working on part III of this video for an hour. In the first place, when I "crop" my photo and add the canvas, my photo moves and takes away the vignetting effect. Then when I press enter to get the "transparent" canvas, nothing happens. I've rewound and replayed the video until I'm sick of it! Does anybody understand what I'm doing wrong? Matt makes it so easy and I'm sure I'm just missing a step. Thanks! Oh, I'm using PSE3.

[cathy]

sorry , i can't help you i just wanted to let you know i watched the break out video until i was sick of it to. btw, i still can't do it. i gave up for now. :)
but don't you give up, keep trying and i am sure someone will come along and help you.

[Wendy]

Hi there ...

OK now about the extending of the canvas using the crop tool ...

Does your layers palette look like Matt's before you do it?

Is you bottom layer called Layer 2 ... or does it say background layer ?? If it says background layer then you won't get a transparent layer ..

Just go back to the Video and check that your layers palette is the same as Matts ...

... and do let us know how you go on :)

Wendy

[Wendy]

Cathy ...

If you are having problems with the breakout Video then do post it in another thread and one of us will talk you through it ..

... most of us have already done the effect so it should be easy enough to talk you through it :)

Wendy

[ATR]

crljean

I have Photoshop Elements 3.0, so, when I saw your Thread, I thought I would see if I could simulate what happened to you. I got it to happen to me. As per Part 3, I had Layer 4 Vignette active throughout this extending the canvas procedure. I strongly suspect that somehow your Move Tool was active and not your Crop Tool. Also, when you go to extend those cropping boundaries, make sure that you have the view of the photo that is just photo, no title bar/no Window resizer at bottom right.

I had a step by step written out ready to go when I discovered the Move/Crop Tool possibility. If that is not the answer, I would be happy to submit the step by step for your review.

Although the videos were very interesting, at times they were a bit confusing. I suspect that he used two different pre-existing files in his three presentations to save time. What challenged me for the longest time was how he was getting that transparency border in Layer 2, the White Background layer. That is when I discovered that Background (locked) Layers and Regular Layers behave differently to this extending the canvas business. If you have time check it out.

Foreground color White, Background color Black.
With Background (locked) Layer at bottom filled with White
Layer 2 above filled with Green
Extend canvas of Layer 2 (active Layer)
Result: Layer 2 has transparent border around green image; but, Background (locked) Layer has Black border around white image. The Background (locked) Layer's extended border takes on the color of the Background color.

If both are Regular Layers, the extended borders of both are transparent. So, it would suggest that you need to watch out for any complications resulting from these happenings.

Hope this has been helpful.

ATR

[crljean]

ATR
I think you're probably right, but I'm still not "getting it." Somehow, I don't have the same layers that Matt has in the video! If you wouldn't mind to send the step-by-step that you worked out, I'd sure appreciate it! Thanks!

[ATR]

crljean,

I used the Forum's Private Message system tonight for the first time to send you my step by step suggestions for the Showing Off Videos.

I clicked on your name in the Thread and the the private message designation, then copied pasted from Microsoft Word, and submitted it. I am not quite sure if there is anything else I was should do or you should do.

If you know all about that system great, if not, maybe one of the pros looking in can offer advice for sending and receiving this type of message.

ATR