Using Layers - update on artistic effects query

[honeyrose]

Hi everyone, I am new here so please be gentle with me. What I want to do is to take an image I have cut out from its background using paint (so hopefully with a transparent background) and paste it onto another background (in this case a cliff) and then render the whole thing to look like a drawing or painting. Then add some wording in the sky. Any suggestions? Honeyrose

Edited April 6, 2010 by honeyrose

[pdnnoob]

I think he means he wants to remove a background from an image so that he can paste the desired object somewhere else. You got the paste somewhere else part. Here's the remove background part.

So...if you had an image like this:

there are two ways you can cut out the bird. Both are tutorials on this forum.

and

When you're done...

Edited April 6, 2010 by pdnnoob

[honeyrose]

Phew a lot to take in especially for someone struggling to get their head around layer handling. Still I"ll give it a go and report back.

[david.atwell]

The Tutorials+ forum is for publishing tutorials only, as the title suggests. I realize this is a new forum for you (it is for all of us), but please make sure to read the rules before you post.

[honeyrose]

sorry have i been posting in the wrong place? i just followed the links as advised when the tutorial i selected turned out to be a dead link. this is general discussions isn\'t it? did my query start out somewhere else and get moved here?

Edited April 6, 2010 by pyrochild
STOP SHOUTING! READ THE RULES!

[honeyrose]

I hope this is the right place to post this - apologies if it is not. I only still a newbie at this.

I was advised in an earlier posting to "Removing Tricky Backgrounds" for a technique on removing tricky backgrounds and superimposing images. I went to the link given which starts with instructions to duplicate the image I want to superimpse and then says to uncheck the original background so it is not longer visible. The instructions then display a table called Layers which shows three layers, called Theshold, BG Delete and Background, with the first two ticked.

How do I find and manipulate this table for layers? I cannot find any option on my version of Paint.Net except one which displays only the properties of the current layer? Do I need to load the advanced version of Paint.Net or install a Plug in? If so can someone point me towards it.

Thanks

Honeyrose

[BoltBait]

Just press F7. This will toggle the visibility of the layers window.

[APShredder]

I think you may have just hidden the Layers window. Just press F7 or go to Window --> Layers.

Edit: Beaten.

Edited April 6, 2010 by APShredder

[honeyrose]

I think he means he wants to remove a background from an image so that he can paste the desired object somewhere else. You got the paste somewhere else part. Here's the remove background part.

So...if you had an image like this:

there are two ways you can cut out the bird. Both are tutorials on this forum.

http://forums.getpai...ing-out-images/

and

http://forums.getpai...ky-backgrounds/

When you're done...

[honeyrose]

sorry i updated this above but my pc crashed while I was doing it and I thought it had failed and posted question again here. Have now deleted it.

Edited April 6, 2010 by honeyrose

[honeyrose]

sorry have i been posting in the wrong place? i just followed the links as advised when the tutorial i selected turned out to be a dead link. this is general discussions isn\'t it? did my query start out somewhere else and get moved here?

Pyrochild: what did i do am I being shouted at. I am only a newbie.

[david.atwell]

Yes, it was originally in the Tutorials forum. I moved it.

[david.atwell]

All right, you only need one thread. I'm merging them.

[honeyrose]

Back again./

Thanks for the tip on using F7 to expose the layers pull down panel. I have another related question, I have been following a video tutorial on cutting and pasting images onto another background. The tutorial demonstrates using icons in a tool bar along the bottom of the screen - for example an icon which is two small squares, one above the other linked by a +. I don't have any of these icons on my screen. Do I need to tweek my version of paint.net to get more of these icons visible. I just downloaded the main recommended option of paint.Net.

The Removing Tricky Backgrounds tut recommends using the Threshold plug in. Where would I find this?

Honeyrose J

[Sarkut]

honeyrose,

That sounds like the Add New Layer icon.

Bottom-left in the Layers window.

If the tutorial was made using an earlier version

of Paint.NET, the icons may look slightly different.

Layers Window

Threshold is part of Ed Harvey's plugin pack,

which is pinned on the first page of the

Plugins - Publishing Only forum.

Once installed, it will show up in Paint.NET here:

Effects > Color > Threshold

================================================

Any time you have a question relating to a specific tutorial

its best to include a link to the tutorial.

That will help people to give the best advice/suggestions.

Edited April 7, 2010 by Sarkut

[pdnnoob]

The Removing Tricky Backgrounds tut recommends using the Threshold plug in. Where would I find this?

[honeyrose]

Struggling a bit with drawing round a curve (my cut out object has several curves). I am using the line/curve tool but can't seem to quite get the hang of creating and manipulating points on a stretch of line to make it into a curve. Instead I am getting a series of small steps. Is there another tool or technique I should be using?

[pdnnoob]

No, you're doing it the right way. If you want, you could zoom in and try using the brush tool. It gives you more control over exactly where you want to draw, but is a little more difficult to use.

[someone93]

Try using the line tool then right-click and drag the handles. It'll then become a bezier curve which is much, much easier to handle.