Gimp for beginners? Tut/guide to resizing, blending, colouring and text.

[Mrs Gordo]

Make sure you have a layer mask added to whichever layer is taking up most space on the banner, in order to blend. Also make sure the layer mask is selected when you are using your brush. Layer mask should be white, and your brush should be black. Does that make sense?

lol I feel like a moron, I'm so sorry!

I don't know if I have black selected is that the black square at the bottom of the tool area? Do my settings look right? I have the layer mask... I think.

 

[GwenRaiden]

That all looks good. You want to erase/blend from the top image, so that is the one that should have the layer mask. Add a layer mask to the amends looking pic and use the black brush on the layer mask on that image. Alternatively you can click and drag the long shot pic on the layers panel to the top, above the looking pic, and use the layer mask you already have. You have everything right Just that whichever image is on top will the one you blend from/erase.

 

[Mrs Gordo]

Finished product from your tutelage @GwenRaiden , thank you for your patience. I think it looks pretty good for my first attempt except I ended up with a white space on the left and Idk how to crop it out lol.

 

[GwenRaiden]

Awk! I am so proud!! It is gorgeous and seriously amazing for your first go! Don't worry about the white edge, it works!

 

[Mrs Gordo]

@Mr. Pole - Thanks! Gwen was patient with me. She didn't throw things at me or anything.

 

[Spanky]

I think it looks pretty good

Just imagine how much better it would have looked if you had chugged. If you had chugged you would have been like **hiccup** white line? where? **hiccup**

 

[GwenRaiden]

@dcai0830 you've caught the art bug now! Time to start your very own art thread.

 

[Mrs Gordo]

Fixed it! What aspects do you use for avatars @GwenRaiden ?

 

[Spanky]

Wow. Gimp really does look a lot like PS doesn't it? I never realized how closely it resembled it. @GwenRaiden can you save gimp files as PSDs? Can you open PSDs in gimp?

 

[GwenRaiden]

For icons I use 100x100. For an avatar on the board I think the size can be up to 200x200 though.

@Mr. Pole I think you can save gimp files as PSD files, I've done that in the past before, and open them in PS as layers. Don't think it works vice versa though.

 

[Mrs Gordo]

I know on PS there are ways to select parts of an image and crop it and place it on a different background. Is there a way to do this on GIMP? Maybe I’ll just buy PS... this is fun!
 
Thanks @Puppet - can I ask, how did you get the special effects on your avi? Was it on GIMP?

 

[Puppet]

Thanks @Puppet - can I ask, how did you get the special effects on your avi? Was it on GIMP?

I'm gonna guess that you mean my old banner with the animated snow? Alas, I cheated, and had @Mr. Pole do it for me, I'm guessing he used Photoshop.

Edit: wait, avi? What special effects?

 

[Mrs Gordo]

I'm gonna guess that you mean my old banner with the animated snow? Alas, I cheated, and had @Mr. Pole do it for me, I'm guessing he used Photoshop.

Edit: wait, avi? What special effects?

I mean your icon right now, the sparkly stuff on it. It looks like snow.

 

[Puppet]

I mean your icon right now, the sparkly stuff on it.

Now that you've got Gimp, my advice is to download free Gimp Brushes. That's what I used on the photo, basically a brush of sparkly snowflakes that I add on top of the photo. Brushes makes a huge difference, in every fashion. I find and download mine on Deviant Art, but maybe Gwen has a better place, I don't know.

 

[Priceless]

I was doing ok until Step 3

"With the second Charisma image highlighted in the Layers Panel (the one that is covering most of the banner), I'm going to right-click and select Add Layer Mask, like so. Just go ahead and select White and click Add"

I got my brushes sorted and started masking, but it was masking the big picture, not the little picture. So if possible could you describe the 'Layers Panel' in more detail because I've obviously picked the wrong layer, though I'm not sure how I managed to pick any layer

 

[GwenRaiden]

It's possible you've added the layer mask to the wrong layer? The layers panel is just the panel on the right that says Layers - Gradients. Try selecting the other Cordy layer and add layer mask to that, and try masking from there.

Let me know if that works?

 

[Priceless]

It's possible you've added the layer mask to the wrong layer? The layers panel is just the panel on the right that says Layers - Gradients. Try selecting the other Cordy layer and add layer mask to that, and try masking from there.

Let me know if that works?

That's where I'm going wrong, because my panel on the right is titled Paths - Brushes / Layers - Brushes. Do you know where I can find the Layers - Gradients Panel? No worries if it's not possible

 

[GwenRaiden]

Does it look like this? Sorry, me saying Layer - Gradients is just my default settings, to get back to Layers click on Layers at the top of the panel, instead of Paths, like this. With your top image selected, you add a layer mask to that, like this, to blend away the image. Does that make sense?

Basically, whichever image you want to erase from, should be the top layer, with layer mask.

 

[Priceless]

Thank you so much It took me two hours but I've managed to make a banner! The blending is awful and I couldn't see any colours, but I'm still really proud of it lol.

 

[Spanky]

Thank you so much It took me two hours but I've managed to make a banner!

Is it an invisible banner? I don't see it.