trouble with layers

[wilton]

New to the program, but can u correct what I must be doing wrong? I am starting to colour some old line art (cartoons) but can't get any (eraser, brush etc) tools to work on the non background layer. I could just auto fill on the background but that is too finicky, too many open shapes that end up filling the whole page in that colour! I want so that I can colour in indiscriminately w/o worrying about covering my lines.

IOW How come I can't get so that when I erase, I don't get the transparency checkerboard underneath? I put the BG layer on top then the erase tool does not work! What fundamental thing did I forget?

Thx

Wilt

[nitenurse79]

Any new layer is transparent Wilt. you need to erase on your background layer (the bottom one) in order to see the transparancy show through. hope this helps. also Welcome to the forum btw.

Oh.. one more thing, always edit a copy of your picture. Keep the original safe from harm

Edited December 5, 2011 by nitenurse79

[wilton]

New to the program, but can u correct what I must be doing wrong? I am starting to colour some old line art (cartoons) but can't get any (eraser, brush etc) tools to work on the non background layer. I could just auto fill on the background but that is too finicky, too many open shapes that end up filling the whole page in that colour! I want so that I can colour in indiscriminately w/o worrying about covering my lines.

IOW How come I can't get so that when I erase, I don't get the transparency checkerboard underneath? I put the BG layer on top then the erase tool does not work! What fundamental thing did I forget?

Thx

Wilt

Thx for speedy reply & welcome! At the risk of sounding stupid, aw who am I kidding, my question might have taken care of that (self deprecating laugh)! My mission right now: I have a lot of b&w strips that I need to colour. Best and most efficient way to do that? Like I said, autofill too time consuming cuz i have to go thru the artwork and close up all the open shapes etc.

Can I not somehow have a layer BENEATH the BG layer and colour THAT layer? It seems that I can't do that (i've tried by moving layer 2 ABOVE the BG layer). This way the black line art does not get obscured by the colour. Ah I want to get past this insanely fundamental thing and get creating!!!!!!!!!! (and yeah i save the original artwork thx)

Cheers

Wilt

[Ego Eram Reputo]

Hey Wilt,

Welcome to the forum!

As this is not a troubleshooting issue, I'll move this to the Paint.net Discussion & Questions section for you.

[jim100361]

Thx for speedy reply & welcome! At the risk of sounding stupid, aw who am I kidding, my question might have taken care of that (self deprecating laugh)! My mission right now: I have a lot of b&w strips that I need to colour. Best and most efficient way to do that? Like I said, autofill too time consuming cuz i have to go thru the artwork and close up all the open shapes etc.

Can I not somehow have a layer BENEATH the BG layer and colour THAT layer? It seems that I can't do that (i've tried by moving layer 2 ABOVE the BG layer). This way the black line art does not get obscured by the colour. Ah I want to get past this insanely fundamental thing and get creating!!!!!!!!!! (and yeah i save the original artwork thx)

Cheers

Wilt

It seems to me that if you use the paintbucket fill it shouldn't overfill on your lines, it'll just fill the white areas (unless the lines themselves maybe are too thin). I don't know how you can accomplish the same thing using layers without going through much more work. For instance, in order for the lower (colored) layer to show through, the upper layer would need to be transparent, and you'll want to do it without affecting your lines. Also, the lower colored level wouldn't have the boundaries to contain the paint like the line art drawing would.

Here's an example I did using the paintbucket fill:

The only thing you'll need to worry about are opened lines that could cause the fill to spill-out onto the rest. Close it off with the intended color using the brush first.

[wilton]

It seems to me that if you use the paintbucket fill it shouldn't overfill on your lines, it'll just fill the white areas (unless the lines themselves maybe are too thin). I don't know how you can accomplish the same thing using layers without going through much more work. For instance, in order for the lower (colored) layer to show through, the upper layer would need to be transparent, and you'll want to do it without affecting your lines. Also, the lower colored level wouldn't have the boundaries to contain the paint like the line art drawing would.

Here's an example I did using the paintbucket fill:

The only thing you'll need to worry about are opened lines that could cause the fill to spill-out onto the rest. Close it off with the intended color using the brush first.

thx for the help