Onoz! This cannot be! ;)

7 & 16 were made from an ultra high quality source pic. That makes ALL the difference because you can't manufacture what isn't there and lower-res pics lose detail when you shrink them. I DO spend a lot of time smoothing after I sharpen the reduced image but that level of clarity is possible only with the best quality source material.

*huggles*

LMAO! That icon is so cute!

And yes your absolutely right. The quality does make a huge difference.
But your smoothing skills does an even huger different.

I took this pic and got this: but I don't know....

*smooches*

Here's the base I would come up with:



I haven't done any coloring or anything, just prep'ed my base. That's what the raw image would look like before I started coloring. I didn't do anything fancy or special, just the standard sharpen/smooth/mask-out-the-oversharpened-bits like I discussed in a tutorial I wrote many moons ago. :)

You see, this is why I "hate" you! LOL
Yours is so much clearer than mine. But then again, you've been practicing longer than me. ;0)

Do you mean this tutorial?

I don't really understand the "layer mask" yet.
Thanks for taking the time to help me understand this complicated world of icon making.

Hugs!

Yes, that's the tutorial. :) I can see why it wouldn't be helpful, though, if the layer mask is a problem. What program are you using? I've used Photoshop Elements and Photoshop, but as I understand it GIMP and PSP also have layer masks.

Did you see this image of my layer palette?:

http://pics.livejournal.com/hsapiens/pic/001t5x6f

The mask on the layer labeled, "Copy, Normal 100% Sharpened and Smudged" is the method I use for getting clarity. I did something similar on the Ronon. That's my secret. :) If we can get you using masks, you'll find it's really not very hard to get a crisp image (assuming you have good source material).

Where is it that your understanding breaks down? Do you understand what they are? Do you understand how to add one to a layer? Do you understand how to use a brush on them? If you can tell me where your problem starts, I'll try to help you.

I use PS CS2 9.0
I'm with you up to #4, but then this is what I don't understand... Add a layer mask to the copied & smudged layer to remove obvious oversharpening.
When I chose Layer Mask I can only chose "Reveal all" or "Hide all"
I know how to use a brush on a layer...

Does that make sense?

Yes! I'm so glad we're using the same program. I haven't used the other two so this is much easier for me. :)

This is, I think, a very easy problem to fix. There is a button on your layer palette that will add a layer mask for you. Go back to this picture for a second:

http://pics.livejournal.com/hsapiens/pic/001t5x6f

and look at the bottom of the layer palette. Do you see those tiny icons on the right at the bottom? Those are "shortcuts" for common functions. Starting from the left, go over to the third symbol, the one that has a circle inside a square. THAT button will add a plain old layer mask to whatever layer you have highlighted when you click it. It comes up all white, meaning it hasn't masked anything then you can use your brushes on it to hide the bits you don't want.

This lets me add just the parts of the picture that need sharpening. Let me know if this does not answer your question and I'll keep going.

(*sigh* I just lost my long replay...)

I get it, I think! LOL I have never used the short cuts before, if you don't count the "blending options" button. LOL

This is what I got...
From this: to this:
What do you think? (No coloring at all, just your tutorial.)

Your tuturial makes so much more sense now and I can't thank you enough for taking the time to teach me all this.

Sometimes when people makes these tutorial they tend to "shorten" words and that confuses me to no ends...
If I take yours for example, you write "Copy Layer" and I looked for that and couldn't find it in the program... LOL
So I guessed that you "hopefully" meant was "Duplicate layer" cause when you think about it copy = duplicate....which probably says more about my English skills.... LMAO!!!

Thank you soooo much!!!

(*sigh* I just lost my long replay...)

Oh, I HATE that.

What do you think?

Yes! It's perfect! Now it's crisp and clear and ready for your genius. Now you know the "secret." :)

Sometimes when people makes these tutorial they tend to "shorten" words and that confuses me to no ends...

I can see now how that must frustrating. I never realized it would be a problem but now that I know, I'll try to remember that I need to get the exact wording that the program uses. Yes, copy=duplicate but it's bad enough learning Photoshop. You don't need to add in language questions. Thanks for telling me that -- and feel free to bop me on the head if I forget. :)

You're very welcome. Any questions you have, I'm happy to try to help. I don't know everything, or even 1/10th of everything, but I'll help with anything I do know.

BTW, I just played with the "Add Layer Mask" dialog (would you believe I'd never used the menu command?) and found a way for that to work, too.

If you want to add a layer mask that is white like I do when I click on the shortcut icon, you would choose "Add Layer Mask -> Reveal All." That adds an all-white mask to the layer that you can then work on.

However, if what you want to do is apply something to just a tiny bit of the picture, you COULD choose, "Add Layer Mask -> Hide All" and that would add a black mask to it. Then you could paint with a white brush or white pencil to show just the parts you wanted. I hate to keep going back to that palette illustration, but please look at it again:

http://pics.livejournal.com/hsapiens/pic/001t5x6f

You see that selective color layer up near the top? That was me making her lips a little redder without making the whole picture redder. Adding a "Hide All" mask to that sort of layer would just be quicker than what I've been doing, which is blacking it out with a huge black brush and then painting on it in white. Hope that makes sense.

You see that selective color layer up near the top? That was me making her lips a little redder without making the whole picture redder. Adding a "Hide All" mask to that sort of layer would just be quicker than what I've been doing, which is blacking it out with a huge black brush and then painting on it in white. Hope that makes sense.

Ehhh nope. You've lost me again.
You make the selective color red, then you erased everything but not her lips, right?
And do you mean that you can add a "hide all" then paint with a red pencil? *iz confused*

You make the selective color red, then you erased everything but not her lips, right?

Yes. Selective Color lets you take a color, in my case the reds, and change just that color. So, when I made it "redder," only the reds were affected. The yellows, greens, blues, blacks, and other "non-red" colors were unaffected. I turned the "redder red" off everywhere but her lips.

And do you mean that you can add a "hide all" then paint with a red pencil? *iz confused*

Not exactly. The mask is just an "on/off" switch for applying the layer. In this case, the layer was me playing with reds but in the base you made up there, it was the sharpened layer you were turning off at certain points.

I did not paint on the mask in red. In fact, you can't paint on it in red. You can only paint on it in white (on) or black (off).

The "Reveal All" option adds a white mask, turning the entire layer "on." The "Hide All" option adds a black mask, turning the entire "off." After you've added a layer that way, it isn't unchangeable. You can still paint on it to alter portions as being "off" or "on."

Does that make sense?