Brynehall and the Barony of Northcliffe

[aeshnidae]

Oh! What a lovely individual style you have!

Further to ChickPea's suggestion about the halo around your text, here is just one of any number of different techniques you might try to make a slither of clear space around each letter and lift the labels out of the line work, without using a coloured halo at all - in other words an invisible halo that simply fades the line work around each letter to reveal the parchment instead:

1. Add a layer mask to all your line work layers (mountains, trees, coastline etc) - that's a mask that lets you paint the visibility on or of in black and white for that layer
2. Make an alpha mask of your text layer
3. Expand the alpha mask by a few pixels and feather it the same amount
4. Select the line work layers one by one and paint the layer mask (not the layer!) to make the line work invisible in a small halo around each letter of the text on that layer.

Thanks, Mouse! I am still a newbie in Photoshop (my wife is an amazing Photoshop expert, but for fine art portraiture so she doesn't always know how to help out with fantasy cartography). Thanks to everyone here, I've got a couple different options to fix that outer glow.

[Mouse]

I would think that since I've never used PS, but was speaking in GIMP terms (in the hope it would be understandable), the instructions are actually pretty useless then

Give Robulous's method a try. He's a PS pro

EDIT: PS - you can multiple quote everyone in a single comment by clicking the quote marks button at the end of each of their comments and then hitting Reply to Thread

[aeshnidae]

I'm really digging this map! The map just like that would already do an RP session proud. Nice on you. And high-five for drawing and finishing in digital! It's fun, ain't it?

Thank you! It's been a ton of fun! I am really happy with this map as my first overall attempt in this style (all of it, from the initial hand-drawn sketch to the digital finishing). As it turns out, we're going to use this and other maps in our next D&D campaign. Our current DM told me I could create the northern part of the realm, although it would just be background. After he saw the rough draft of this map, he asked me to flesh out the whole realm and DM the next campaign so that he can have a go as a player.

[XCali]

Thank you! It's been a ton of fun! I am really happy with this map as my first overall attempt in this style (all of it, from the initial hand-drawn sketch to the digital finishing). As it turns out, we're going to use this and other maps in our next D&D campaign. Our current DM told me I could create the northern part of the realm, although it would just be background. After he saw the rough draft of this map, he asked me to flesh out the whole realm and DM the next campaign so that he can have a go as a player.

Wow, that's awesome!! Well done. Now it's on to world building, which is an interesting but fulfilling challenge.

[aeshnidae]

Okay, made some edits based on everyone's feedback (hand drawn compass, changed outer glow on names) plus adjusted a couple of minor details that I had overlooked. I really appreciate all the input and constructive criticism, so thank you. Hopefully this is mostly final now. ;-)

Brynehall area map v3 (final)(smaller).jpg

[Mouse]

All those little things you've done have made a whole load of difference.

It's now a very cool map

[aeshnidae]

Wow, that's awesome!! Well done. Now it's on to world building, which is an interesting but fulfilling challenge.

I haven't engaged in a good world building since college so it's very fulfilling to get back into it. I've been working on the Brynehall area for a while, mostly letting it develop in my head but lately I've been getting it down on paper. I could spend days on end thinking and refining. Too bad that doesn't pay the bills, at least not for me!

All those little things you've done have made a whole load of difference.

It's now a very cool map

Thank you!

[Robulous]

Nice.

Just FYI: in England Beaulieu is pronounced BYOO (like few) LEE, just to keep things interesting

[aeshnidae]

Nice.

Just FYI: in England Beaulieu is pronounced BYOO (like few) LEE, just to keep things interesting

In the US, it's pronounced in all manner of messed up ways. Generally I hear BOW (like the ranger weapon) LOW. In my home state, we have a town called Havre de Grace. It's pronounced "HAVE-err duh grace." Used to drive my French teacher nuts.