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General discussion

Setting up for silhouettes or as clipping paths from a scan.

Dec 24, 2005 1:41PM PST

Please bear with me. I am not a technical writer.
I would need (John, mousoroma) or Grim to help me on this one.
This is a semi-totorial.

I saw a recent request on the Graphics forum from Tony and I was really late to post on. The group did a good job.
However, here is a way from the getgo to concider also:

Select scan from your software, such as Adobe Photoshop to your imaging scanner software.
Select to scan a color image with millions of colors while scanning a printed color image. Usually one and a half times the original. If you have a good photo to scan, select sharp millions of colors.
If using a printed image choose millions of colors
(not sharp.)
Select after the original image set and marquey the image and set zoom. After that, scan the final.
(This is a two-part scan, which is the best way to scan in more detail.)

The image will open in Photoshop.
Select Image/adjust/auto levels. If you are proficient at levels in Photoshop, do command l and adjust the black, white and mid levels.
You can also go to mid-tones and adjust them using the command/m. That adjustment may be left up to the pros as well as color adjustment on your files. Another one to adjust is brightness/contrast: command b.

If your scan had a cast shadow from the scan, such as a piece of artwork, click on the eraser tool and eliminate the cast show on the edge of the paper or from idiots that like to scotch tape every thing down for you.
One of my favorites is to have a customer or dumb-*** sales rep circle the art with a pen that needs to be scanned and indicates: scan this!
Did these idiots really graduate from Phoenix University?

If you are a practitioner of Photoshop and know benzier curves, just do your thing. (Too hard to explain here. Go to Adobe.com and download their tutorials. Just wonderful and free.) Thank goodness for Adobe!!! :

Discussion is locked

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Did anyone find this post helpful?
Dec 29, 2005 1:16PM PST

Hi, Wanted to find out if my post was helpful to a few?
There are tutorials to show how to do a clipping path. I just cited one example that is easy for the beginner.
Unfortunately, this method leaves hundreds of points on the curve and it is not the best way to limit the size of the file at all.
Go to adobe.com and look up a tutorial using clipping paths.

I felt lonely and that's why I am posting again.
Waiting for a post back?

-Kevin

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Actually...
Jan 5, 2006 1:30AM PST

I prefer to make paths manually using the Pen tool. That gives you more accurate paths with far fewer points.

One thing I should mention is that you don't need a Clipping Path for most things such as making selections; a saved Path will do. Clipping Paths are specifically used for placing graphics in other applications such as Quark where they are required to achieve transparency.

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Right On!
Jan 5, 2006 5:24AM PST

EdH, Agree with you. I make clipping paths with the pen tool. Kind of hard to describe on a post, so I left the how-to out..
Want to post a how to on this with examples linked to your text? Or just suggest Adobe Photoshop Tutorials from Adobe.com?
Thanks,
Kevin.

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The easiest way to make clipping paths is not to do them!
Jan 9, 2006 1:43PM PST

I know quite a few people who simply do not do clipping paths because it is time consuming. They simply send a picture to www.lazymask.com and they do it for them. It is suppose to be quick and cheap.

Maybe this is a better solution instead of all that extra work. Check it out: www.LazyMask.com

Cheers Happy

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Clipping paths?
Jan 22, 2006 12:34PM PST

?are easy to do for the most part. Rectangular images are the easiest amd will take less than a minute. Automotive shapes will take a few minutes. A human form will take a few extra minutes also, and around the hair.
Why go to a source and be charged for this when you can do it yourself in a matter of minutes?
A good quality high-res image is easy. A low-res is difficult to accomplish.

-Kevin