Help with Photoshop Elements 2.0 (Full Version)

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RickP -> Help with Photoshop Elements 2.0 (4/23/2005 9:35:21)

I am trying out this programme with a view to buying photoshop maybe. I am currently stuck at something quite basic! I just want to add a thin coloured border to my image - how do I do it?

Thanks



Mike54 -> RE: Help with Photoshop Elements 2.0 (4/23/2005 10:31:43)

Hi Rick,

I normally use PSP and there may be an easier way in PSE2 but try this. Open your image in PSE and set the background color to match that you want for the border. From the menu select Image > Resize > Canvas Size, change the New Size setting to show in pixels and increase the dimensions of the canvas to suit the border thickness you want.[;)]
[image]http://www.direb.familyqwest.com/outfront/angelc.jpg[/image]
<edit>hmmm, seems slightly off center but no correction option provided.[:(]</edit>

Well I hope it helps anyway.



RickP -> RE: Help with Photoshop Elements 2.0 (4/23/2005 17:05:53)

Thanks Mike

Now... I did try that - honest! but what happened was that the colour change (btw it seems to be the 'foreground' you need to change for some reason...) affected other bits (corners) of the image. That was with a gif but I just tried again with a jpg and it works fine for that. Anyone offer any other methods for adding a simple border on a gif image using pse 2?



Mike54 -> RE: Help with Photoshop Elements 2.0 (4/23/2005 18:21:16)

Odd that bit about foreground vs background, on mine it's definitely background.[&:]
[image]http://www.direb.familyqwest.com/outfront/background.jpg[/image]
Now if you were "down under" it might be understandable.[8D]

Sorry, I didn't try a gif.[&o]

<edit>Tried it with a gif file.<<edit>>
It does use the foreground color for a gif file, go figure.[:(] I used roughly the same procedure but it won't work with a transparent gif. Can you post your gif so I can play with it?[:-]
[image]http://www.direb.familyqwest.com/outfront/odie.gif[/image]



RickP -> RE: Help with Photoshop Elements 2.0 (4/24/2005 5:37:00)

Ah, so it's..
JPG set backgnd
GIF set Foregnd
Yes?

Now, 'transparency' - that must be the key to the problem here. My gif is a simple square but with a faded corner - using transparency (done in another program). One atempt at putting a simple border round it totally destroyed it! Here is the original, see what you can do with it - thanks.

(Maybe there is a way of adding this faded corner effect using PSE, which will allow the border to then be aded without upsetting the original - the original is just a plain square of colour initially)

[image]local://upfiles/13862/88348685B2554A188C3BD491514823EB.gif[/image]



Mike54 -> RE: Help with Photoshop Elements 2.0 (4/24/2005 7:27:30)

Assuming that you're fading to white [8|] I just filled in the corner (with white), increased the canvas size (from 50 px to 54 px) and filled in the extra canvas as black.


[image]local://upfiles/2876/0F03B29651CB485AB1ACD9AC513D3AF6.gif[/image]



RickP -> RE: Help with Photoshop Elements 2.0 (4/24/2005 9:15:49)

I don't get the 'fill with white' bit - does this rqr a new 'layer'? I have since done the task by creating the fade effect with PSE using:

Layer > New fill Layer > Gradient

and using PSP to add the border using the simple 'border' option.
I'm just trialing both of these programmes - it's hard to choose between them from what I can see.

Anyhow, Thanks for your help Mike

[image]local://upfiles/13862/06FDC653D5B44280B0E81AEB27D11ADB.gif[/image]



Mike54 -> RE: Help with Photoshop Elements 2.0 (4/24/2005 10:27:52)

quote:

I don't get the 'fill with white' bit - does this rqr a new 'layer'?

Nope, just used the paintbrush to fill it in.[;)]
quote:

I'm just trialing both of these programmes - it's hard to choose between them from what I can see.

Personally I found it easier to get a handle on PSP than PSE2 but that's just me.[:D]



_gail -> RE: Help with Photoshop Elements 2.0 (4/24/2005 16:14:35)

quote:

ORIGINAL: RickP

I am trying out this programme with a view to buying photoshop maybe. I am currently stuck at something quite basic! I just want to add a thin coloured border to my image - how do I do it?



In Photoshop, adding a line around the border an image is called a Stroke. Don't know for sure, but perhaps it's the same in Photoshop Elements. If you have a solid background, the line will appear around the perimeter of the layer. If you have an image with no background, the line will appear around the image itself.

From the layers palette, double click on the layer and the Styles palette will come up. Double click on Stroke, and select the size, position and color. You can also change the opacity of the stroke. This only works on standard layers and not locked background layers, so if it's locked, duplicate the background or use the "Make Layer from Background" command (New>Layer> Layer from....) and add the stroke to that layer.

gail



RickP -> RE: Help with Photoshop Elements 2.0 (4/25/2005 6:09:42)

Thanks Gail

I searched for "stroke" in the help but all it gave was a definition but no direction.

There is a 'layer styles' option with lots of lovely edge effects but would you believe no option for a simple plain thin border!

I did play with the layers and managed to obtain something there by extending the underlayer by 2 pixels and centering the image on it but it wasn't sharp - most probably because my gif image has a gradient effect and therefore not a clear defined 'edge' all round.

Anyhow... I'm now into PSP again - it adds a nice sharp border no trouble but... I can only choose from black, white or the shades of colour in the image (which is just one colour, albeit a gradient). I opened the safety colour palette so I could choose other colours for my border and straight away my image went berserk and became patterned instead of the one simple colour I had!

Any more help on either of these editors would be welcomed

If this carries on I might have to read the whole tutorial[image]http://www.frontpagewebmaster.com/image/s8.gif[/image] - but then usually it never answers the particular question in mind at the time does it!



RickP -> RE: Help with Photoshop Elements 2.0 (4/25/2005 6:32:10)

Cor...  ! That's amazing -  finally got there [image]http://www.frontpagewebmaster.com/image/s13.gif[/image]

It was just a case of EDIT > STROKE ! 
(no doubt the layer question has to be right first though)

er... thanks all  [image]http://www.frontpagewebmaster.com/image/s1.gif[/image]

[image]local://upfiles/13862/060D3C05ACA347F6AE61FAB30711F0F8.gif[/image]



_gail -> RE: Help with Photoshop Elements 2.0 (4/25/2005 8:27:01)

quote:

ORIGINAL: RickP

It was just a case of EDIT > STROKE ! 



LOL! In all the years I've been using Photoshop, I never even noticed the stroke command in the Edit menu! I use the Styles palette so much.

Live and learn. Glad you found it and glad I learned something new.

gail



RickP -> RE: Help with Photoshop Elements 2.0 (4/25/2005 14:02:38)

Glad I was able to give a lesson to someone else on my first tour of Photoshop[image]http://www.frontpagewebmaster.com/image/s2.gif[/image]

Thanks again... Ooh... btw... next issue...

If I am working on a transparent gif is there some way to set the background to a 'temporary' colour so I can see how my gif will look on a particular bgnd? Besides, that chequerboard bgnd hurts my eyes[image]http://www.frontpagewebmaster.com/image/s7.gif[/image]



_gail -> RE: Help with Photoshop Elements 2.0 (4/25/2005 15:00:59)

Yes, make another layer then fill it with the color you want. Edit > Fill**

Then just make sure the filled layer is under the layer with the gif on a transparent background. Before you use the fill, set the color as shown below.

**When the Fill dialog box comes up, select the foreground or background color, whichever the case may be. Play around with it as there are other options.



RickP -> RE: Help with Photoshop Elements 2.0 (4/25/2005 15:18:17)

Ok, thanks, presumably I delete the extra layer prior to saving - ?



_gail -> RE: Help with Photoshop Elements 2.0 (4/25/2005 15:32:19)

Delete, or turn it off via the little eye on the layers palette.

If you're going to use a transparent gif on a colored background other than white, learn how to use the Matte feature when you do a Save for the Web. Very useful, very needed sometimes.



Nigel -> RE: Help with Photoshop Elements 2.0 (4/25/2005 15:32:24)

Bit slow on this one - stroke is one of those tools you find after a while when you've created borders by alsorts of other means. When you see how easy it is to use it's as if someone just turned the light on in a darkened room. Unfortunately photoshop has loads of tools like that.

Here's a great one I discovered about 18 months ago:

FILTER/OTHER/OFFSET

It moves the focal point of image left or right and then repositions the rest of the image accordingly. You can imagine how useful this is for my 360 degree images.

Nigel



RickP -> RE: Help with Photoshop Elements 2.0 (4/26/2005 7:27:02)

Good stuff - thanks again



RickP -> RE: Help with Photoshop Elements 2.0 (4/27/2005 18:31:01)

I don't see many special text effect options in pse2 - is there a way to make text look engraven into in image, or to stand out (relief)?



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