LIFE IS A MAZE TUTORIAL


This tutorial has three levels, which show through the
three variations. Choose the level which fits you best or
if you like challenges choose a more advanced variation
and you can always go back to another level if it is
necessary! I hope you�ll enjoy this tutorial.

If you haven�t activated your rulers please activate now.
View � Rulers



    PREPARING
  1. Open tube, height maximum: 350 px
  2. Duplicate tube (Shift D)and close original
  3. Choose a light colour from tube and select it as foreground
    colour in the material box
  4. Choose a darker colour from tube and select it as background
    colour in the material box
  5. Edit - Copy
  6. Minimize copy of tube

    BACKGROUND TILE
  7. File � New Image (400x400, transparent)
  8. Selections � Select all
  9. Edit � Paste - Paste into Selection
  10. Selections � Select none
  11. Layers � New layer (raster)
  12. Floodfill layer with light foreground color
  13. Layers � Arrange � Send to bottom
  14. Layers � Merge � Merge visible
  15. Effects � Image effects � Seamless tiling: default
  16. Adjust � Blur � Gaussian Blur: radius of 20:
  17. Effects � VM Experimental � Mighty Maze: settings



    Random Seed: 0, Red, Green and Blue: 255, Zoom: 10
  18. Effects � Simple � Quick Tile
  19. Layers � New raster layer
  20. Floodfill (Flood Fill tool in your toolbox) your new layer
    with your light fore ground colour
  21. Lower opacity of top layer (50 � 80). Mine: 69 and 75.
  22. Layers � Merge � Merge all (flatten)
  23. Your background tile is now ready, minimize. You
    will need it later

    BACKGROUND
  24. File � New Image (1280 x 400, transparent)
  25. Go to your material pallet and put your background color
    (box) to pattern



  26. Click once to oen your Material Properties box.
  27. Choose your settings: angle 0, scale 100,
  28. Choose your background tile as pattern
  29. Flood fill the Background with your pattern
  30. Choose one of the 3 variations for making a Maze Selection

      VARIATION ONE FOR BEGINNERS
    • Open the selection I included or go and find it in my groups
      files or on my homepage
    • Selections � Load/Save Selection � Save Selection to disk.
    • Selections � Load/Save Selection � Load Selection from Disk
      And choose the life is a maze selection.

      VARIATION TWO FOR ADVANCED BEGINNERS:
    • View � Rulers (if the rulers aren�t activated yet)
    • Choose Freehand Selection in your toolbox and use the
      settings of the image.

      Point to Point type, Replace Mode, Feather: 0, Smoothing: 0
      And Anti-Alias checked.
    • Then click the following points.

      POINT TO POINT EXPLANATION:
      The points are in number combinations of two. The first number
      of each set is the horizontal spot. The second number is the
      vertical spot.
      250 � 30 means 250 on the horizontal line and 30 on the
      vertical line. In your image you now have a horizontal and a
      vertical ruler. You will put your points in the image with the help
      of these rulers. If the first point you want to make is 120-20 then
      it means that you first go to 120 on the horizontal ruler. On
      exactly 120 you will get a white small stripe. Then go down
      (but the horizontal distance must be kept), so only move vertically
      on the vertical line. When you reach 20 there you will notice that
      a stripe will alight white on the stripe of 20 exactly on the vertical
      ruler. If the 120 horizontal is as well still alight you can click once
      with your left mouse button. If it isn't anymore on the right spot try
      to find it. You then can continue to the next spot. Look again for
      the horizontal distance and when that is found and white alight
      then go down to the new vertical spot. If you have the exact spot
      (white both on the horizontal and the vertical ruler) click again.
      Do not click in between as you might add a point to your selection
      which you don't need! Continue with making these points until
      you reach again the starting point. Double click on it and your
      selection is ready.

      These are the points, walk through them vertically

      30-30
      250-30
      250-50
      180-50
      180-70
      220-70
      220-150
      280-150
      280-100
      250-100
      250-80
      300-80
      300-170
      200-170
      200-90
      160-90
      160-50
      130-50
      130-130
      160-130
      160-200
      300-200
      300-300
      170-300
      170-240
      230-240
      230-260
      190-260
      190-280
      280-280
      280-220
      140-220
      140-150
      110-150
      110-50
      90-50
      90-170
      120-170
      120-240
      50-240
      50-350
      70-350
      70-280
      120-280
      120-350
      300-350
      300-370
      100-370
      100-300
      90-300
      90-370
      30-370
      30-220
      100-220
      100-190
      70-190
      70-50
      50-50
      50-150
      30-150
      30-30

    • Then double click to activate the selection

      VARIATION THREE FOR INTERMEDIATES:
      You can also chose to make a Maze selection of your own.
    • Chose Freehand Selection in your toolbox
    • In your presets box chose these settings:

      Selection: Point to Point type, Replace Mode, Feather: 0,
      Smoothing: 0 and Anti-Alias checked.
    • Now put the points on spots you like and make it look like a maze.

    All variations continue here:
  31. In your material box change your foreground color to gradient.
  32. In your material properties box use these settings:
    Foreground-Background, Angle: 45 and Repeats: 3, Invert
    Not checked. Lineair Style.
  33. Layers � New raster layer
  34. Floodfill your selection with your gradient
  35. Selections � Select None
  36. Effects � 3d Effects � Inner bevel: with these settings:


    Bevel: 2, Width: 2, Smoothness: 0, Depth: 2, Ambience: 0
    Shininess: 0, Angle: 315, Intensity: 50 and Elevation: 30
  37. Effects � 3d Effects � Drop Shadow: these settings:
    Vertical & Horizontal: 4, Opacity: 45, Blur: 10
  38. Repeat Dropshadow with Vertical & Horizontal: -4
  39. Edit � Paste � Paste as New Layer
  40. With your mover tool (toolbox) move your tube to the left
  41. Position your tube nicely in front of the maze
  42. Effects � 3d Effects - Dropshadow: these settings:
    Vertical & Horizontal: 4, Opacity: 45, Blur: 10
  43. Layers � New raster layer
  44. Add your watermark
  45. Layers � Merge � Merge all (flatten)
  46. File � Export � JPEG Optimizer: Compression of 24

    FINISHING
  47. Open Letter Creator
  48. In your Body open your background
  49. In your body tile
  50. Choose matching color for text, choose margins
  51. In your Footer mention your credits
  52. Finish


Another example:


Last example:




I hope you enjoyed making this letter. I would love to see the results.
You can reach me at:
[email protected]

Please put a link to my group:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/IMtutorialsbyJetty
Or to my website if you have gotten this tutorial through
creatorscommunity:
http://www.geocities.com/ladyluna37/index.htm

My tutorials can be found in my groupfiles.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/IMtutorialsbyJetty
or after a while at the earlier mentioned homepage.

With thanks to the brilliant women who have given me
lessons in PSP and Incredimail.
Many things I learnt have been used by me in creating.
Any resemblance with other
tutorials is purely coincidental.
And special thanks my testers for their testing.

You are free to share my tutorials. If you want to use them for lessons
or a groupshare please ask me and please acknowledge it as my tutorial.

Hugs

Jetty
Hosted by www.Geocities.ws

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