New glass tutorial - your thoughts?

[Atmo]

I'm preparing a few medium-advanced graphics tutorials, but i'll start off by showing a simple glass one first.

You can see it here: http://www.atmodigitaldesign.com/board/viewtopic.php?t=20

I'm posting them at my forum rather than here so i can edit and make changes whenever necessary.

Two questions.

Firstly, should i add screenshots of the settings in psp i used to achieve the look? Or is the description i gave enough? I'm guessing most people that read them will already have a fair idea of how to work with their chosen paint program.

And secondly, would you like to see more (including advanced glass effects, 3d shapes without using bevells etc.)?

[BlueBalls]

very nice, in fast i think this would sort of be an ok tutorial for PS cos the layer blends and such are quite the same, plus the 2 art programs arent much different, so i think ill try this, and i think i might start a skin soon with the new winamp :)

great tutorial atmo, itll help lots of people :)

:up::up:

[binary hero]

i'd like to see some of your shapes without bevels, they look different (read: good) compared to many others.

[Krynis]

nice u would be my hero if u did a few metal tuts i need to learn some good metal stuff :)

[Mr_Tough_Guy]

Pretty sweet Atmo, keep em coming

[FooMonkey]

nice tut:up:

[evil_oj]

doubleplus good

[not in santiago]

I remember you mentioning awhile back you were thinking about making a glass tutorial. I'm so glad you followed up on that!

Great tutorial and easy to follow. I have PS6 and had no problems with the instructions. I don't think you need screenshots of the settings because the words are clear enough. (And besides, I find too many ss a pain because I'm constantly scrolling up and down between steps just to make sure I'm not missing anything.)

Because I'm self-taught, I know nothing about channels. (I've never had to use them... yet.) Why is it important to save layers to an alpha channel, if you don't mind me asking?

The very beginning of the tutorial was a little unclear to me in regards to layers. Do you begin with three layers (the entire background image, the glass covered area, and a duplicate of the glass covered area)? Does it matter?

Sorry if I sound ignorant. It's because I am. But if you wanted feedback from rank novices, well here you go! :D

I would definitely like to see more tutorials of this type, especially more glass ones (because it's seriously underepresented in most online tutes. I swear, if I see another metal, chrome or "blue pill" tute....) and 3D without beveling. I'm overdependent on effects and I don't like that. If you could do a tutorial on that 3D, round, white plastic shape of yours (with the nice drop shadow), that'd be keen. :up: :up:

[skinme!]

It's not very easy to follow which layers you mena (specifically for the dodge mode). Perhaps you could include a ss of just the layer pallette each time, with the relevant layers selected and properly named.

[Atmo]

Because I'm self-taught, I know nothing about channels. (I've never had to use them... yet.) Why is it important to save layers to an alpha channel, if you don't mind me asking?

You dont save layers to an alpha channel, you save selections. It allows you to reload them in no time compared with trying to use the selection tool to get the same sized selection.

The very beginning of the tutorial was a little unclear to me in regards to layers. Do you begin with three layers (the entire background image, the glass covered area, and a duplicate of the glass covered area)? Does it matter?

You just start with the background image, you add layers as you go.

It's not very easy to follow which layers you mena (specifically for the dodge mode). Perhaps you could include a ss of just the layer pallette each time, with the relevant layers selected and properly named.

When im talking about making changes to the blend mode, i mean the layer i was talking about last. But i will consider adding screenshots of the layer pallete.

I've almost finished the advanced glass tutorial (with background reflections and a window reflection), it'll be up in an hour or so.

[Atmo]

Glass tutorial 2 - advanced is up.

http://www.atmodigitaldesign.com/board/viewtopic.php?t=21

I've added a layer palette screenshot at the end, hopefully that'll help a bit.

[Krynis]

awsome

[Atmo]

3d shapes tutorial is up :)

http://www.atmodigitaldesign.com/board/viewtopic.php?t=22

This one could be a little bit harder to follow, so let me know if you have any difficulties and i'll make the appropriate changes.

[Cleanup]

Lovin' it. Looks shockingly realistic, especially for PSP :p.

Even I could understand it. Sorta. Kinda. One day.

Nice logo, too. Looks oriental.

[garetjax]

Photoshop is much easier, but the tut you show atmo rox....

[Xerxes]

Now if only good design and placement could be taught in 20 easy steps.

[binary hero]

maybe you should write some tutorials rex. i bet you could make a really good metal texture one... :)

[immortal]

wow atmo, i use ps but them look simple, get ps so u can teach me! lol

[not in santiago]

Not sure if I should be posting here or in your forum...

Thanks for the clearing up the bit about the alpha selections. When I actually tried using them, their purpose suddenly became clear to me. (Why didn't I try that in the first place?)

I tried the second glass tutorial and got it right on my second try, though I went a little crazy near the end and started making mistakes. Good mistakes, it turns out, and I like the result.

Here's what I did, if you care to have a look. I find it difficult to make a good "setting" for it, though. I can never get a good, solid depression and my attempts look like a glass sphere pushed into playdough. Oh well...

[flatmatt]

Hmmm, looks more like... well... a breast implant... to me. Mostly because of the inner texture, though. Couldn't think of anything else that looks like that that I knew the name of... :confused: Cool, but yeah.

[ryan]

Wish I had found this sooner. good work atmo! :)

[not in santiago]

Originally posted by flatmatt
Hmmm, looks more like... well... a breast implant... to me. Mostly because of the inner texture, though. Couldn't think of anything else that looks like that that I knew the name of... :confused: Cool, but yeah.

Good grief! What do they stuff fake breasts with on your planet?! :confused: :p :D

Alright, alright. I know it doesn't look like glass. Marble-ish, perhaps. I kinda like it anyway. Maybe I'll get it right on my third try (or fourth, or fifth, or sixth, or seventh...)

[flatmatt]

Well, obviously the color's different, but I still think it looks like a silicone breast implant! Just generally! A little.

[Atmo]

3d shapes 2 (without using gradients or bevells) is up. :)

This ones pretty simple (easier than the gradients one).

http://www.atmodigitaldesign.com/board/viewtopic.php?t=30

[flatmatt]

Cool tutorials, one of these days I'm gonna have to try 'em out. I'm too lazy to fire up PSP and try it out. :D

[FooMonkey]

I feel stupid...I'd been trying to do the things in that second 3d shape tutorial just like that, except I was trying to do it with feathers. never even ocurred to me to use Gblur, even though I use it for everything else

anyway, nice tuts:up:

[Xerxes]

Originally posted by binary hero
maybe you should write some tutorials rex. i bet you could make a really good metal texture one... :)

/me takes a blue imac "plastic bubble", shatters it, and throws the shards of cliche interface at BH's jugular. :)

[skinme!]

Originally posted by FooMonkey
anyway, nice tits:up:
hehehe. oh I'm still a little boy at heart :D

These are great tutorials BH. Well worth the effort!

SHOCK AND AWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!

[Jellby]

The tutorials are very useful and clear to me. Just another way (a "thought experiment):

Instead of inverting the selection and deleting the "outside" of each layer, couldn't it be done with some sort of masking (grouping layers in PS, I think)? That way you can blur first and move after, and change it until you're satisfied.

And an annoyance: there's a hideous popup saying that the forums are optimized for this crap and that crap... I see them fine, with no problems, I don't think anyone needs a popup like that. (I'm using opera, no IE and no Netscape).

[FooMonkey]

Originally posted by skinme!
These are great tutorials BH. Well worth the effort!
:weird::igor:




:o

:p

:D



a Smilie is worth a thousand words

[Atmo]

Originally posted by Jellby
And an annoyance: there's a hideous popup saying that the forums are optimized for this crap and that crap... I see them fine, with no problems, I don't think anyone needs a popup like that. (I'm using opera, no IE and no Netscape).

I know about it, it happens with netscape/mozilla also. Unfortunately im not sure how to remove it.

[binary hero]

Originally posted by skinme!
hehehe. oh I'm still a little boy at heart :D

These are great tutorials BH. Well worth the effort!

SHOCK AND AWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!
what can i say? i am a god :)

[immortal]

all hale BH! http://www.davidmear.com/smilies/bow.gif

[binary hero]

Originally posted by rean
all hale BH! http://www.davidmear.com/smilies/bow.gif
dammit, if you are going to worship me, at least use a REAL smilie:
http://www.davidmear.com/smilies/bigbow.gif

[immortal]

i was gonna use that 1...

http://www.davidmear.com/smilies/bigbow.gif

sorry bh teh god...

[Krynis]

ur forum seems to dislike the system im on at my friends does it have problems with winXP pro?

[immortal]

i run winXP pro and its fine...

[Krynis]

Hey Atmo this is ez stuff thanks dude ur great more tuts! :D

[binary hero]

all of these tutorials could very easily be photoshopified if anyone had 5 mins...

[immortal]

... go on bh...

[Krynis]

oh god im having a field day with these tuts :D

[MikeHunt79]

Umm, does someone have a mirror or zip with these tutorials in? I kinda need the glass one, if possible. Thanks.

[StillWater]

They used to be at Atmo's website, but I just had a look there and it doesn't seem to exist anymore.

But if you want glass tutes, there are loads at Deviantart. I found these, and many more:

http://www.deviantart.com/view/6046458/
http://www.deviantart.com/view/9108316/
http://www.deviantart.com/view/1309978/
http://www.deviantart.com/view/3965662/

They're all Photoshop tutes, but if you use PSP then I'm sure you can still make use of them. And if you can't then you can always browse DeviantArt - in the PSP tute section.

[MikeHunt79]

Thanks, those tutorals are great. I'm a PS user, and I had a quick browse of deviantart, and theres tons of tutorials there. I always thought they just had wallpapers. :o

[StillWater]

No way. They've got the broadest range of categories of any digital art site I've seen. The amount of programs they support in the skins&themes section is what impresses me the most :)