Tag: tutorial

Make your own animated space gif – DIY

We are going to do something fun today! Nothing is more exciting than a flashing space cat gif!

** It is strongly recommended that you view my other photoshop tutorial before jumping into animated gifs. You can find it here: Make Your Own Space Cat – DIY. **

Don’t want to hunt around for awesome space images? Look no further. Actually, scroll all the way to the bottom of this post. I’ve included them at the very end.

Make your own fancy animated space gif:

1.    Using your epic photoshopping skills, make yourself a base image (you can cut an object and slap it onto a transparent background, or you can go the fancy route).

I cut the cat out and pasted it into a new document. I created a nifty blue brick background for it.

2.    Use the shape tool and insert a radioactive symbol above the cat’s head. Rasterize the layer (rasterizing it will allow you to punch a hole…you’ll see later on!).

3.    Use the Polygonal Lasso Tool to cut out the cat’s super hipster glass lenses (you will later punch a hole with them). Create a new layer by going to Layer>New>Layer Via Cut.


4.    Select the new radioactive and hipster layers by pressing Ctrl as you click them. Right click and select “Merge Layers.”

5.    Here is where it gets a little tricky! We are going to paste the 4 space layers onto the image and use the hipster and radioactive layer as a hole punch.
      a.    Open the 4 space layers and paste them onto your image (make sure they are above your base image).
      b.    Select the merged hipster & radioactive layer.
      c.    Use the Magic Wand Tool, click on the background (do not click on either of the shapes in that layer). You will see a dotted outline around the radioactive shape & hipster glasses.

6.    Punch the hole!
This step is also a bit tricky because it is very easy to forget what layer you have selected as you are punching holes in the space layers.
     a.    Do not click anywhere in the image (you want that dotted line around the two shapes as you work).
     b.    Select your first space layer. Press the “Delete” key on your keyboard. This will punch a hole through the layer so that it only appears where the 2 shapes are.

      c.    Repeat this process for all 4 space layers. If you ever lose the dotted lines, go back to the merged layer and repeat steps 5b and 5c. Just make sure you select a space layer before deleting anything!
      d.    Delete the merged radioactive & hipster layer when you are done.

7.    Animation time!
Tip: Once you get to this stage, you want as few layers as possible. Merge or Group your base layers (keep the space layers separate).
      a.    Click  “Window” from the top menu bar and select “Animation.”

      b.    You will see an animation work area appear below your image.

You can see that I grouped the base layers (Group 1) and kept the 4 space layers separate (Layer 1, Layer 2…etc). 
 

      c.    The dark green bars represent each layer. Dark green = visible. Since we want to animate this and give it a cool space spaz attack effect, each space layer will only be visible for a fraction of a second. The base layer will always be visible.
     d.    Drag the green bars (you can drag and pull from either end).

     e.    Here is how you want the green bars for the space layers to look:

As you can see, they look like a set of miniature stairs. You don’t get to the 3rd step without using the1st and 2nd steps first. The light green represents when each layer is not visible (see how some of them have a delayed visibility?). In order to animate the image, we need to think of the space layers as a series of steps on a staircase. Step 1 is visible first. As soon as you leave it and climb to Step 2, Step 1 disappears while Step 2 suddenly appears. Rinse and repeat as you climb up this fantastic staircase!

      f.    Work Area End (Labeled in the previous image–the light grey space between the two blue ends). This tells the animation to stop. If I left it the way it was in the previous image, you would see the space images filter through and disappear, leaving only the base image.
     g.    Drag the right blue edge of the Work Area End Tool to the end of your final layer (it should be the last “step” in your staircase).

      h.    Test your image (press the play button shown above).

8.    Save your animation!
      a.    Don’t use Ctrl S or “Save.” If you do, it will save it as a still picture with whatever space layer you have visible at the time.
      b.    Go to File>Save for Web and Devices.

      c.    A new window will appear with your image on it and some colored boxes. Select “Forever” in Looping Options (bottom right).

      d.    Save!

9.    View your animation!
      a.    How do you know if all of your hard work…worked? You test it, of course!
      b.    Go to the folder where you saved your animation. Right click on the file.
      c.    Select “Open With” and then select “Internet Explorer.”
            i.    Queue the IE jokes…but it is good for testing animated gifs! 😉
            ii.    Apple users: Safari is the inherent browser on Macs, so you should be able to follow these steps and use Safari instead of Internet Explorer.

 ~FIN

I hope you enjoyed the tutorial!  If you don’t want to bother with the hole punching process, you can skip that step and make something like this (just paste the space layers below your base images):

Space images for animations:
All space images were taken from the free places I mentioned in my previous tutorial. Some of them were then edited to make them “pop.”
If you are going to post these online, please reference this blog and do not hotlink. Thank you!

Make Your Own Space Cat – DIY

So you want to make a space photo with epic clips of cats, planets, and your favorite things in it, do you? Remember this? Here’s how I made the base image.

The first step is to gather your images. Wikipedia, NASA, and US government sources are my favorite resources. Why? Wikipedia lists the copyright information when you click on an image (plus, it’s a great way to find images), and most NASA/GOV images are in the public domain because they are usually taken by a government employee while on duty.

 All right! We have our background base image, a beautiful image to enhance it with, and our items (astronaut, planet, and cat).

Open photoshop (or your graphics program of choice). Create a new document with your desired dimensions. World Domination Cat and Flying Astronaut is 1,000 by 800 pixels (or 14in by 11in) with a 72 resolution (you won’t need to worry about that; 72 is the most common for web images).

Open your images. Select the image you are going to use as the background and press the Ctrl and A keys. It will create a dotted line around the image.  Press the Ctrl and C keys to copy it.

 Paste that image onto your blank document by pressing the Ctrl and V keys.  If your background image doesn’t fit properly, resize it by selecting the Rectangular Marquee Tool (the dotted box) on the left side of your screen. Once the tool’s options box appears, select Free Transform.

 Lines with tiny boxes at each corner of the image will appear. Pick a corner and drag it around until you get the size you want. Tip: If you press the Shift and Alt keys while you drag a corner, it will keep the image’s original ratio intact. Wut? It means that your image won’t end up having a stretched or squished appearance!

Now you have your background!
If you are going to use an image to enhance the background, follow the same steps and paste/resize the image over the background. The cool thing about most graphics programs is that they allow you to modify the transparency/look of individual layers.

 Play with the options shown in the picture above until you are satisfied with the look. I started out with Lighten.  You can change the look of the second layer anytime. I usually go through several changes throughout the entire photo manip process before I am happy with it.

Adding the astronaut, cat, and planet
Select one of the add-on images (we are going to start this off with Socks the cat).

Select the Polygonal Lasso Tool and, using your mouse, start clicking and dragging it around Socks. It’s sort of like cutting something out of a catalog. Drag, click, drag, click. DO NOT DOUBLE CLICK! I cannot stress that enough! Double clicking will close off your selection, and you’ll have to start over.

Once you’ve dragged and clicked your tedious way around Socks, you may give into your mouse’s urge to double click. If the selection disappears on accident, go to “Edit” then “Undo,” and the selection will reappear. Follow the copy/paste procedure and paste it onto your background.  Repeat this process for the other objects.

 Bring Socks to the front. Since we started with Socks, he appears under the Earth layer (as shown). To bring him above that layer, just click and drag his layer to the top (as shown below).

 Oh noes! Socks doesn’t look right!

We want Socks have his paws over the world, but it doesn’t exactly work when the rest of his body shows up.  Position him where you want him, select his layer, and change the opacity from 100 to 50 (as shown above).

Now that you can see where the Earth curves, you can start erasing the area between his paws.  Select the eraser tool. I usually like to use one of the softer brushes (if you make a mistake, it’s harder to spot!).  With your finger pressing the mouse’s left button, drag the brush over the areas you want to erase. When you are done, change his opacity back to 100.

Link the Socks and Earth layers (this comes in handy when you start moving objects around. Linking them allows them to be moved with one stroke).  Select the Earth and Socks layers at the same time by holding down the Shift key and clicking on them. Once they are selected, right click and select Link Layers.

 Notice how I toggled the appearance of the background again? I do this a lot before I’m satisfied!

Once you have all of your objects in place and cleaned up, it’s time to mess around with styles and special effects! Give that background an awesome makeover! You can add patterns, gradients, colors, and much more (to change layer styles, go to Layer > Layer Style > Pattern Overlay/Gradient Overlay/Color Overlay)! The pictures below give you an idea:

When you are happy with the background, start adding some shapes, text, and other odds and ends. Photoshop has some nifty pre-made shapes at your disposal.

Select a shape and put it onto your picture by clicking and dragging (photoshop will automatically create a new shape layer).  Play around with the opacity and properties until you are happy with it.

 Make the background even more epic by adding new layers. In the above image, I added a a shape (the halo/circle behind Socks) and a new layer (Layer > New >Layer). For the new layer, I used a large, soft black brush in areas I thought were too bright. I then toggled with its appearance.

Using the techniques in this tutorial, I added another brush layer to give it a grunge feel, another shape with a low opacity, and some text. If you want to add text, just click the text tool (the large T) on the left side of the screen. It will allow you to change fonts, sizes, and colors.

Once you are happy…

You can even take it one step further if you like exploring the options in graphics programs!

Plush Doll Tutorial

How to Make a Miniature Plush Doll

By MLC 2011

| Doll Pattern | Optional Coat Pattern |

If you decide to use and post the pattern, please credit me, thank you!

Using the Pattern

***The pattern is marked with measurements to make it scalable***

  1. Print the pattern
    1. Click the link, “Doll Pattern”
    2. Right click, “save as” and follow the prompts
    3. Print from a photograph/picture program
  2. Cut the pieces out
  3. Pin them to fabric (for the ones that need 2 pieces, fold the fabric over before pinning it in place)
  4. Leave ½ cm of fabric around the pattern edges (or more depending on how thick you want the limbs and torso)

Limbs

  1. Leave a lot of space at the top of the pattern (as shown) when you make the initial cuts
  2. Fold in half (over the dotted lines in the patterns)
  3. Sew along the bottom and edge, leaving the top open
    1. *optional* you may cut it so that the bottoms are rounded
  4. The limbs should look like small tubes: stuff them with stuffing of your choice
  5. Leave some of the space at the top free because you will be inserting that part into the torso (so that the limbs can be sewn into it)
  6. Sew a straight line to close the stuffing off (make sure the seem is closer to the stuffing than it is to the end of the limb)

Optional (feet)

  1. Use the circular patterns and follow the steps for “Using the Pattern”
  2. Sew into the soles of the feet instead of sewing the bottom of the legs shut

Head

*** You may have to cut the head a bit larger than shown in the pattern (depending on personal preference and hair style) ***

  1. Follow the instructions for “Using the Pattern”
  2. Make sure you make the neck extra long, as this will be used to connect it to the body
  3. Hair and eyes can be pinned to the outer sides at this stage
  4. Sew the seams shut, but make sure you leave the neck open enough so that you can stuff it
  5. Stuff it, leaving enough loose space in the neck to allow you to insert it into the body
  6. Insert it into the completed Torso and follow the steps for “Finish the Doll”

Torso

Arms/sides

  1. Start with one side
  2. Pin the two pieces together. As you do this, pin one of the arms between them in its respective slot
  3. Make sure the stuffed arm is inside the torso and not hanging out of the future seam (only the long/loose end should be hanging out)
  4. Sew the pieces together
  5. Using the other side of the torso, open it to make sure the arm is attached to the seam you just finished
  6. Fold the side back so that it’s “inside out” (the stuffed arm should be inside the torso)
  7. If the other arm fits inside of the torso, allowing you to pin everything in place, repeat steps 1 – 6 and skip to step 15. If not, go to step 8.
  8. Fold one of the ends to the other side over as though you are hemming a garment
  9. Pin the other arm to that end only (stuffed end should be pointing away from the hemmed side)
  10. Make sure the torso is “inside out”
  11. Start from the bottom of the other side and sew the seam shut until you reach the arm
  12. Flip the torso so that its not “inside out” anymore
  13. The second side (the open arm slot) should naturally fold over now that you’ve started sewing the seam (if not, make sure it is folded like a hem)
  14. Sew along the nice, folded edges you made to secure the arm in place

Legs/bottom

  1. Fold one of the bottom sides up (make sure the torso not inside out), into the body as though you are about to hem a garment
  2. Pin both legs along that side with the loose ends up, inside of the torso (stuffed ends should be hanging free)
  3. Fold the other bottom edge of the torso up as you did in step 15
  4. Sew along that outer edge, securing the legs in place

Finish the Doll

  1. Fold the top ends over as though you are about to hem a garment
  2. Insert the completed head and hold it against the back end (you can pin it in place if you want)
  3. Stuff the torso
  4. Sew the folded ends shut, securing the stuffing and head in place