Text Gradient

[vmars316]

Greetings;

I am trying to recreate this button 'free ware'

First i create a bg layer (how do I make bg transparent?)

then create layer2 transparent

then create layer3 transparent

Right here, i don't understand why all layers show as blue background,

except (if i uncheck bg) bg shows as blue checkerboard

Then set primary color #E9E7C0 (for text)

and also set secondary color #8C8038

Then back to layer3 and create text 'free ware'

Then select/run GradientTool across text layer3.

layer3 gets covered with gradient.

I was expecting to see the GradientText (only) with gradient.

Can someone pls show me how to do this properly.

Thanks.. vmars

I uploaded an image file, but I dont see it yet.

Here is the image i am trying to reproduce:

http://home.hccnet.nl/s.j.francke/software/software.htm

Top of page.

Edited July 22, 2010 by vmars316

[Sarkut]

(how do I make bg transparent?)

With the background the active working layer,

Press:

Ctrl A

Delete

Right here, i don't understand why all layers show as blue background,

except (if i uncheck bg) bg shows as blue checkerboard

Sounds like the canvas is all selected.

Press Esc to deselect.

layer3 gets covered with gradient.

I was expecting to see the GradientText (only) with gradient.

Use the Magic Wand on the text with the Shift key held down

to select the text before running the gradient.

Edited July 22, 2010 by Sarkut

[vmars316]

How to make this:

look like this (gradient wise):

This is as close as i get,

cant get the gradient to work for me.

I click on theWand and drag it across the image.

Do i have to drag the gradient across the image too?

I have tried it both ways.

Could someone rattle this off for me,

and either post results or send an email to me,

so I can see the steps to take?

Thanks.. vmars

ps: another thing that throws me off is

once i type in some text

and go do a diff function

I cant get back into same TEXT stuff (what ever its called), that i just created, to change font etc...

As you can probably tell i am VERY frustrated.

[barbieq25]

Gradients are frustrating, I agree.

When you make a gradient, you should see two small blinking circles. These "nubs" can be moved by holding down the mouse button or if you right click on one of the nubs it will reverse the gradients. So if you have black & white & you want the black bit to be white, right click.

Also if you are working on text with gradients, you may have to move the nubs close to one another.

Once you have made your text & you use a different function, yes, you cannot go back to change it. There is an editable text plugin (I think) but have not used it.

Once you have written your text & the cursor is till blinking, you can go to the font box & use the up/down arrows to scroll through the fonts to see how the text would look. You may have to zoom out & move the canvas a bit so that the text is not covered by the drop-down font box. It is only while the cursor is blinking that you can edit the text - e.g. backspace to correct spelling.

Another suggestion is to make the image 4 times the size of the finished size. You will get a more polished look. You can then resize the image when you are done. Saving the original file as a .PDN means you can go back to change things on layers & saving the finished image as a .PNG gives the best results since .PNG is lossless. However if you are using it on a webpage you may have to use a different file format. Not so sure on that one.

I hope this has helped. Feel free to ask more questions or Private Message (PM) me if you prefer.

[Sarkut]

It will definitely make things easier to work with an

oversize image and resize down as a final step.

Magic Wand:

Hold the Shift key down and click one of the letters once.

This selects all of the text.

Gradient tool:

In the toolbar in the top header choose Radial gradient.

Click in the center of the text and drag out past the ends.

Press Esc to deselect.

[barbieq25]

It will definitely make things easier to work with an

oversize image and resize down as a final step.

Magic Wand:

Hold the Shift key down and click one of the letters once.

This selects all of the text.

Gradient tool:

In the toolbar in the top header choose Radial gradient.

Click in the center of the text and drag out past the ends.

Press Esc to deselect.

I knew there was something else I needed to add. Thanks Sarkut!

If the text is on its own layer & I recommend this: once you have selected the Magic Wand, set the flood mode, click outside the text (leave it at 50%) & then press CTRL + I. This inverts the selection so that all of the text is selected including the "holes" for letters such as e, o, p etc. This method works better when the text or object is many shades of colours.

One more hint: If you need to move anything, try not to use the Magic Wand to select it & then the Move Selected Pixels because it leaves a tiny trace behind. That is why it is good to work on many layers.

[Sarkut]

Steps with pictures:

http://a.imageshack.us/img413/7353/ts01.png

http://a.imageshack.us/img713/7421/ts02.png

http://a.imageshack.us/img225/8338/ts03.png

Once you get the basics, you can add more effects if you want to.

http://a.imageshack.us/img441/1271/ts04.png

[vmars316]

Thanks barbieq25, very helpful !

[vmars316]

Thanks Sarkut

for taking the time to do all that.

What a great bite-size Tutorial !

Wish there were more like this.

Thanks.. vmars

[vmars316]

Hold the Shift key down and click one of the letters once. This selects all of the text.[/color]]

Ah, that's great!

Btw:

Sarkut

What did you use to capture those pics(ts01.png, etc)?

They are really crisp and clear.

Here's what I came up with :

By accident (while trying your bite-tut) I stumbled upon this:

Thanks All !

.. vmars

[Sarkut]

Re: Screenshots

I use Gadwin PrintScreen 4.3 freeware.

http://www.gadwin.com/download/

It can be configured easily to save as PNG

and will auto-save/auto-name by hitting Enter

twice after taking the screenshot.

[vmars316]

Re: Screenshots

I use Gadwin PrintScreen 4.3 freeware.

http://www.gadwin.com/download/

Thanks,

yes, thats pretty cool!

.. vmars