Custom Lines in PSCS2

[JulesT]

I'm a PSP 9 user and am learning PSCS2 right now.

To create a custom line e.g. with dots or diamonds or dashes etc. I use the pen tool in PSP.

Which tool in PSCS2 and how do you do it - I really am looking for the idiots guide here.
Some things I can work out in PSCS2 but not this!!

Any help much appreciated.

Jules:confused:

[Nevermore]

I'm a PSP 9 user and am learning PSCS2 right now.

To create a custom line e.g. with dots or diamonds or dashes etc. I use the pen tool in PSP.

Which tool in PSCS2 and how do you do it - I really am looking for the idiots guide here.
Some things I can work out in PSCS2 but not this!!

Any help much appreciated.

Jules:confused:
Jules, I am not sure if this is what you mean but you pick your brush (ie. dot or diamond) beforehand so it is up and loaded. You use the pen tool and make sure that "path" is selected (you don't want to fill pixels or create shape. You want to create what is called a work path). This is the middle icon on the options bar at the top once pen is selected. The pen tool looks like a pen nib.

You can then "stroke" that path with the brush. It may take some tweaking of the brush size and shaping to get it exactly as you want. How you do that is to have the path window open. It will show you the line you have drawn. If you hover your cursor over the bottom of that palette it has many option such as fill, stroke, selection etcetera. You want to stroke. One thing to look out for is that after you have drawn your line and you can see it in your thumbnail in the paths window, you must select your brush tool and then indicate that you want to stroke with that.

Sorry this is so long, it is hard to explain verbally but it is very few clicks to do in the program. Maybe someone more coherent can explain more concisely. Please feel free to post again or PM me if this doesn't make sense, doens't work or isn't what you want.

[JulesT]

Thanks Nevermore, this is what I am looking for. I'd never have worked that out on my own! It is easier in PSP but doesn't have the endless possibilities of PSCS2.

Copied these instructions and will try this evening!

Thanks again,

Jules

[JulesT]

Woo Hoo, I got it to work first time! (normally it takes me several attempts)

Thanks for the help.

Jules

[Mandy30]

I tried this today, too because I didnt know how to do it! But it worked!
Awesome little tut. Thanks!:D

[Nevermore]

I am best pleased that you were able to follow it and it worked. Now, the time to get really excited is when you begin to play with some of the following:

1. You can stroke with many things such as the eraser or art history brush. Just select the tool you want and then stroke.
2. You can make any selection a path. If I'm lying, I'm dying. Try it. Use the lasso and draw a crazy selection. Now view the Paths window and on the bottom of the palette hover until you see "make selection a path". Once it is a path, you can stroke it.
3. If you want to start to make yourself insane, you can actually make selections on your masks and stroke them. The interplay of this action with the actual image (throw in a few blend modes for good measure) is so totally cool you may not come up for air for ages.

[JulesT]

Hey Nevermore,

I am already struggling for air here!! Have been having fun with just stroking the paths and now you've gone and added more possibilities! Guess I'll have to stay on 'puter for a while longer - btw does anyone know how to add some hours to your day?

Keeping in mind that I have only touched the edges of PSCS2 (still scrap with PSP9 at times) WHAT does the art history brush do?

Thanks for all the tips,

Jules

[Nevermore]

Hey Nevermore,

I am already struggling for air here!! Have been having fun with just stroking the paths and now you've gone and added more possibilities! Guess I'll have to stay on 'puter for a while longer - btw does anyone know how to add some hours to your day?

Keeping in mind that I have only touched the edges of PSCS2 (still scrap with PSP9 at times) WHAT does the art history brush do?

Thanks for all the tips,

Jules
The Art History Brush tool paints with stylized strokes, using the source data from a specified history state or snapshot. By experimenting with different paint style, size, and tolerance options, you can simulate the texture of painting with different colors and artistic styles.
Like the History Brush tool, the Art History Brush tool uses a specified history state or snapshot as the source data. The History Brush tool, however, paints by recreating the specified source data, while the Art History Brush tool uses that data along with the options you set to create different colors and artistic styles.
For a variety of visual effects, experiment with applying filters or filling an image with a solid color before painting with the Art History Brush tool. Also try increasing the size of the image by a factor of 4 to soften the details.
Jules, this is straight from Help but reminds me that you could also stroke using history brush if your image has been changed by blending or filters. A quick example. You have an apple. You have tweaked it significantly using a paint filter so it is now smudged and looks like it has been painted with a palette brush. You could select it and then stroke with the history brush which would leave a border around it of the original real apple. You could do the inverse of this (have real apple. Filter it. Save a snapshot of filtered apple. Go back to real apple. Select it. Stroke it with history brush with the filtered snapshot of the apple being snapshot date source. This would give you a real looking apple with a filtered border). Sorry to ramble. I love experimenting!

[JulesT]

Again, thanks for explaining this Nevermore, I've copied the instructions to Notepad and will try playing with it!

Jules