The chop shop

[bigken117]

I have no idea why I cannot trace people that well. Any tips would be helpful. I am trying to get better, but here's a couple I did this weekend.





I know, they're terrible.

[Snakes Gould]

not terrible. good start if i do say so. most people just starting seem to have the hardest times cutting, including myself. after a few sigs, you'll get much better at it, and find it easy and simple. trust me.

the overall sigs are fine. good start. you have a good design, good placement, and sizing. now you just have to work on technique and execution. watch some tutorials that are posted around here, and keep asking for advice and help. there are some really good guys around here that will lend a helping hand. if you need any advice, feel free to pm me. keep practicing.

[GiantsFan14]

what program are you using?

[bigken117]

Paint Shop Pro 7
That is paint, not photo

[GiantsFan14]

Paint Shop Pro 7
That is paint, not photo

hmm, i have no idea how that differs from photoshop, but the easiest way to cut that i've discovered is just to zoom in on the photo and use the polygonal lasso tool with a feather of 1 pixel... i'm not the best at it but it does a pretty good job for what i want and gives me the best combination of speed and accuracy so it doesnt take too long to do. zooming in makes it A LOT easier to get a clean cut though, thats the best advice i can give that is universal to all programs.

[Snakes Gould]

Paint Shop Pro 7
That is paint, not photo

get yourself photoshop.

[abrage22]

whats the cheapest photoshop software??

[Snakes Gould]

whats the cheapest photoshop software??

all of them.

[abrage22]

o ok i thought they were all different prices, unless....its what i think it might be that your sayin

[Neato Torpedo]

Well I got Photoshop pretty cheap ( ) and my output skyrocketed in quality. Before, I used Paint Shop Pro 5, and when I got Photoshop I was like "wtf, layers?" Now I can't imagine doing any serious designs without layers. They're the most useful art tool since Crayola crayons.

I'm no good at lassos and stuff (the only things I can do with any dexterity is pitch, hit, and shoot basketballs, but I can't color inside the lines) so all I do is erase the edges and it comes out pretty well. It's better for a beginner IMO. See the edges to Lars Anderson right here:



Just zoom in real close to the hat area and use a very small eraser to get the edges down. Make sure it's smooth. If it still doesn't look right, zoom in more and use an even smaller eraser. I've gotten satisfactory results without touching the lasso.

Another thing to keep in mind is if you have a photo where the area around the player (or part of the player) is monochrome (like in this image) then just use the magic wand. Increase the tolerance to a point where it grabs the edges, but not so high as to cut into the player himself. Then smooth out the edges with the eraser (this works better in Photoshop than PSP).