Mike Chaney's Tech Corner

There are plenty of free high resolution background images on the internet.
http://www.demilked.com/free-paper-textures-backgrounds/ (http://www.demilked.com/free-paper-textures-backgrounds/)
and
http://www.deviantart.com/morelikethis/120090912 (http://www.deviantart.com/morelikethis/120090912)

Terry

Here is my effort from some time ago.

Basic business card which I hand out when I ask if I can photograph a pretty girl, some time saves a black eye.

No fancy background because I am mean with ink

Jeff
 

We are very sorry, but that offering does not meet the criterion.
We do need a background as that is what makes the challenge.  (Terry supplied links to help)
You don't have to print it, so (the "I'm mean with ink" excuse ranks with "The dog ate my homework", excuse .

Also, when you accomplish the task, please include your method as concisely as possible.
(Terry wanted you to sit in the corner, but I reminded him that I promised, no dunce caps)

Good start!
Fred and Terry

Nice background Fred.
Did you make it?

You shoud share how to make and use a background like you did for me.

Ya Me

I really didn't make a background as in making a pattern. I just took a swatch image that you sent me and used it as a background.

That's the point of the "Challenge"  Use anything, or use a downloaded background, and make the results comply with the challenge!
Fred

Jeff,
I found this neat background...
If you seek, you shall find!
Fred

Just realized the time differential!


So here are some hints to get you started...  Realizing this might be really new for many, here's some tips.

1) Assume at this point you have placed your background on the page as 8 x 10 with crop on... but have been stymied because anything you do goes to page two.

TIP!!   There's a tiny red "F" at the upper right corner of the preview panel. Clicking it, offers FREEHAND MODE. Say YES!

TIP) Now click the Print Property button, the main one below the big preview panel!  See screen snap!
Set the size for the next images.

Tip ***   You MUST DRAG the thumb of the image you want onto the background image.

TIP.   See snap... Use the arrow keys and place the background image at the top position.. Now you see the new image on top of the background. **

** That tip was courtesy of Terry.
I had a different method, but his is easier.

That's enough to get you started.

C'mon. Don't be shy... have some fun!

Fred and Terry

Hi Folks,
Here's my effort, ready to print.
I did the stained glass background as suggested.
Added three photos which have frames with things growing out of them.
Added straight text, drop shadow text and rotated text.
 Good fun, thanks for the idea,
  John

Terrific Job!


Now do Print to File, set page to 8 x 10 RGB. In Page Editor, make sure the background is centered... (depends on printer), back to main screen, and click PRINT!

Hi John,
Thank you for showing us your solution to the challenge, very good, I especially like the stained glass background  :)
Would you tell us in simple terms, the steps you took to make this. Include any tips that would be useful to others; eg. how you made sure the stained glass image did not obscure the flower images. Also, were there any difficulties you encountered?
Terry

I used Paintshop Pro to make a frame round a grey background, using frame tool and added that to the background as Fred explained.
The photos I had already made, I had copied the flower, overlapped them with a frame then pasted the hidden petal, bee etc on the frame to give the 3D effect.
I hadn't used the print feature so I played with drop shadow and rotation.
I only use the Edit page to make templates, which I save as Jobs and fetch using recall. I have separate templates for each size/paper/printer profile
eg A4/glossy/Epsonglossy.icm
I use Profile Prism for each make/type of paper I use.
I print cards using templates with my logo on the back and template space on the front.
I use Word for printing inside cards with various size/font/messages saved.
I usually work in metric so had to switch for 10" x8".
I often wished for an Undo button.
Never used Print to file before, hope it gets better quality than my screen grab and used Qimage to resize it.
Good fun, John

Good try, but that is the Grange.

Our residence is hidden from road and Google could not get an image of it,  only the refuse bin!!  Photographing day being a Wednesday - bin day.

Jeff

fred.

Does this qualify?

A good title would be "The Life, Works and Follies of Grumpy"

All that you can see on the background photo is self created, buildings, sheds, trees & land scape - the lot since 1960

Jeff

 

I just ad that all was created within QUltimate.

PhiMatrix  -   http://www.phimatrix.com/
Design and Analysis Software inspired by PHi, the Golden Ratio

was used to align images and text.

The yacht image is a low quality scan of a 1983 film medium format shot.

Jeff 

Hi Jeff,
Sure does, and interesting too.
I'm puzzled by this comment; do you mean that program used to decide the position of images? Otherwise it contradicts ???

All image and text alignment can be doe in the QU Page Editor of course.
Terry

Fred

No.  PhiMatrix just overlays a variable grid and is useful for composing and lining up anything, images/text, according to PHi 1.618

See -   http://ejdigitalimages.blogspot.co.uk/p/page-02.html

Jeff

Jeff,
I remember now  ::), you mentioned this app some time ago.
Well here is my effort attached with the steps I used - to encourage others to have a go if they were not quite sure what to do.
This is of a local landmark and a sack-cloth background I thought was appropriate for a subject that was once used to used to make flour
The steps used were:
•   Set Page size and place the background image in queue at size “fit to page”
•   Set page the Freehand Mode, use icon top right of page preview
•   Make sure background image is de-selected, hold right mouse button down to open Print Properties
•   Choose size for images that will be added onto background
•   Drag thumbnails to page to approximate position; NB. At this stage they may not appear on top of the background.
•   Click Queue tab, select background image and move to top of queue with arrow key. This will make sure the background is behind the other images.
        This can also be achieved in the Page Editor by using the right click menu and Send to Back.
•   Open Page Editor and adjust position of images as required using the Size/Location tab or by dragging. Add text as required. Close Page editor
•   Set Print to File and choose Set Current Printer Stats and Monitor/Web. Set resolution to obtain the desired image pixel size. OK and Print.

Terry

Terry

That is a very good effort.

And a useful MO.  I had no idea I had done all that ;) I just jump in and drag images over background and sort out size and position later.

That's just how I work, - shed building, house building, boat building, marriage what ever.

Jeff

Hello

I know you have created Challenge 2 but I have not finished No. one yet!

I am struggling with an aspect of cut outs.

How do I get say an oval cut out to have a transparent background so that when placed on top of background image the background can be seen through the cut off area, I can get only black or white.

Yes, I have read all the manual and help files and have fiddled with the cut out file names, but I just do not get it.

Jeff

 

Whoever wants to pursue challenge one may do so until he wishes to move on. There's no time constraint.
Maybe I should have waited, but my thinking was that maybe that topic didn't appeal to all, and a second could be introduced.

On your question, I would wait for Terry on that. He makes cutouts easily, and perhaps can make a semi opaque or semi transparent one for you..... and then share it with anyone too.

Fred

Hi Jeff,
You cannot fade to a background image but you can fade (with a blurred type cutout) to the page colour which is set with the 3rd icon from the right under the page preview.
I don't know if fading to a background image is something that Mike can easily do or not, we could ask.
You can also fade from the image to a specific colour within the cutout by adding the colour RGB values, in square brackets to the cutout file name. Eg. fade-oval_3[231,227,210].tif.
Full details are in Help under Cutouts.
Terry

Thanks Terry.

That sums up what I could manage, I just thought there must be a way to get the outside of a cut out to be transparent.  I did manage to get various colours and had previously used a black page background.

Two previous efforts attached so all can see what I am after.

Jeff

Just messing about

Jeff