Example: A Simple Vector Drawing

[ LiB ]

Example: A Simple Vector Drawing

Let's work through a simple example, the butterfly image shown in Figure 6.27. This example makes use of node transformations and a cutout .

Figure 6.27. A butterfly made with vectors.

graphic/06fig27.gif


Here are the steps:

  1. Open a new image with Vector Background selected.

  2. Create the head, thorax, and abdomen of the butterfly with the Preset Shapes tool set to Ellipse, Foreground/Stroke set to transparent, and Background/Fill set to black, as in Figure 6.28.

    Figure 6.28. Create the body with Preset Shapes.

    graphic/06fig28.gif


  3. Draw the antennae with the Pen tool set to Point to Point , Foreground/Stroke set to black, and Background/Fill set to transparent. Add circles at the ends of the antennae with Preset Shapes (with Stroke transparent and Fill black).

  4. Add a new vector layer, and then create the main part of the left wing. Use Preset Shapes set to Triangle, as in Figure 6.29. Have Stroke set to black and Fill set to yellow. Use the object selection handles to modify the size and rotation of the triangle and drag the shape to position it.

    Figure 6.29. Beginning the left wing.

    graphic/06fig29.gif


  5. Select all the nodes of the wing except the one closest to the body: right-click with the Pen tool and choose Edit > Select All in the context menu, and then Shift-click on the one node to deselect it. Right-click and select N ode Type > Symmetric. The corners of the triangle become rounded.

  6. Right-click the triangle's object button in the Layer palette and select Copy . Then right-click the object button again and choose Paste New Vector Selection . Drag the new selection so that it overlays the original rounded triangle. Double-click the object button of the triangle that is higher in the layer stack and change its fill to red.

  7. Select all of the nodes of the red triangle, and in the Transform panel of the Pen tool's Tool Options palette, choose Contract with Contraction X and Contraction Y set to 10. Click the Apply button a couple times, until your image looks something like Figure 6.30.

    Figure 6.30. Creating the wing pattern with vector transformations.

    graphic/06fig30.gif


  8. Select all the nodes of the red triangle, and in the Transform panel of the Tool Options palette, choose Duplicate with the offsets set to 0, and click Apply . Then change the transformation to Contract and set the values to 10. Click the Apply button a few times, as you did in step 7.

  9. Select just one of the nodes of contracted contour, right-click and choose Edit > Reverse Contour to create a cutout. The result will look something like what you see in Figure 6.31.

    Figure 6.31. The wing with a cutout added.

    graphic/06fig31.gif


  10. Choose the Preset Shapes tool and set the shape to Ellipse. In the Materials palette, set the Fill to a gradient. (The Button red gradient set to Linear is used here, with Angle and Repeats both set to 0.) Create a spot on the wing.

  11. With the Pen tool, modify the shape of the spot. You can select all the nodes and use the Skew X or Skew Y node transformations, or try selecting only two or three of the nodes and using Expand , Contract , Skew X, or Skew Y .

  12. Repeat steps 10 and 11 to add a second spot to the wing. At this point, your butterfly should look something like what's shown in Figure 6.32.

    Figure 6.32. Spots added to the butterfly's wing.

    graphic/06fig32.gif


  13. Now to add the lower wing. Right-click the object button of the triangle that is lower in the layer stack and choose Copy . Then right-click again and choose Paste New Vector Selection . Position the new vector object so that it partially overlaps the upper wing. Then drag the new wing's object button below the layer button of the upper wing. The image will look like Figure 6.33.

    Figure 6.33. The lower wing added.

    graphic/06fig33.gif


  14. Double-click the lower wing's object button and change the fill to the same gradient that you used for the spots, setting the gradient style to Sunburst.

  15. Now for the last step: adding the left set of wings. Right-click the layer button of the wings (Vector 2) and choose Duplicate . Mirror the duplicated layer by choosing I mage > Mirro r . Position the layer with the Mover tool, and your butterfly is complete.

That should get you well on the way to exploring what you can do with vectors. For more ideas, take a look at Ron Lacey's excellent series on vectors in the archives of pspPower at http://www.psppower.com .

[ LiB ]


Paint Shop Pro 8 Power
Paint Shop Pro 8 Power!
ISBN: B001QCXEI6
EAN: N/A
Year: 2006
Pages: 125
Authors: Lori J. Davis

flylib.com © 2008-2017.
If you may any questions please contact us: flylib@qtcs.net