Which Software to Use?

[Asharad]

layer masks are very important to me

[jfrazierjr]

layer masks are very important to me

layer masks are VITAL to me. Would spend way to much time screwing with changing things without them.

[Bohunk]

layer masks are very important to me

layer masks are VITAL to me. Would spend way to much time screwing with changing things without them.

This works fine for me.

http://www.photoshopessentials.com/b...ask/page-2.php

I toyed with the idea of getting ps for the $700 ($400 on ebay, but that makes me nervous), but in the end I decided that I really didn't need all that. Getting pse and premier elements (combined on bestbuy.com) for $80 was fine. If you buy ps for maps that is like using a hand grenade to kill a bee.

[voidgere]

...i like hand grenades.

And a friend of mine (who is a professional photographer), gave me his copy of PS 7 when he upgraded recently.

So I got 700 dollar software for free? hmmm, maybe a case of beer wasn't payment enough....next stop, liquor store!!

layer masks, ive seen them but never toyed with them. CYKM? never even heard of that but i might have seen that in the same menu that i use to change between RGB and Indexed colors.

[jfrazierjr]

layer masks, ive seen them but never toyed with them.

That should be your first goal to learn then. It just so happens that I have a GIMP tutorial that goes over the basics of layer masks and pretty much all of the ideas can be transferred to PS. Also, Del. made one just for PS since it has some layer mask options GIMP does not have. Check my sig for the link to mine...

[voidgere]

Holy smokes!!!

That is the damnedest tutorial ive read so far. It gave me several ideas alone. I think with a few more days of these tutorials, I will have enough to actually begin my first map.

[jfrazierjr]

Holy smokes!!!

That is the damnedest tutorial ive read so far. It gave me several ideas alone. I think with a few more days of these tutorials, I will have enough to actually begin my first map.

ummmm is that a good thing or a bad thing?

[Midgardsormr]

CYKM? never even heard of that but i might have seen that in the same menu that i use to change between RGB and Indexed colors.

CMYK stands for Cyan Magenta Yellow and Black. Those are what are known as the process colors and are used for subtractive color mixing, like paint or ink. Yellow and Blue make Green.

Since your monitor works in the RGB additive color space, most of the time there is no reason to work on a document in CMYK. The only time you'd need to do that is if you had print samples you were working from and wanted to precisely match colors. Otherwise, even if you're working toward print, most printers can easily convert from RGB to CMYK. The colors won't match precisely, but they never will unless you use a colorimeter to calibrate your monitor. The only reason to need that, though, is if you're doing serious professional graphic design work.

Ahem. /color theory lesson.

[voidgere]

ummmm is that a good thing or a bad thing?

That is a very good thing. Thank you for the information. And the same to you, Midgardsormr. I like knowledge for the sake of knowing.

[CRasterImage]

The colors won't match precisely, but they never will unless you use a colorimeter to calibrate your monitor.

Actually, CMYK has a smaller color range than RGB. Meaning, RGB can depict some colors that CMYK cannot. Notably the vibrant edges of the RGB range near pure red, pure blue and pure green. When those colors are reproduced in ink, they are not as vibrant. They have to allow some white to show through, (low K) in order to get the brightness needed. Which tends to make the color more pastel. Rather than vibrant. (vibrant = high saturation + brightness)