clipping paths?

Hello, I am a brand new photoshop user, having just purchased Photoshop 6.

I am trying to cut shapes from photos and export them to page layout programs and Xara (which I use a lot to lay out pages)

The problem I am having is that even though I cut out a figure and save it as a .tiff file, when I import the file into another program I still get a background colour when I want transparency!

I have been working my way through the manual and think saving my selections as a clipping path may be the answer.

Firstly can anybody tell me how to do that and secondly, would anyone be able to tell me if this is the answer to my problem or suggest another method to just export my shape with no background.

Thanks in advance. J

ok, as far as I know, a clipping path is used to define areas of transparency for when exporting to programs such as Quark, publisher, Xara, etc.

You create a clipping path by using the pen tool, or by creating a selection using the selection tools and then converting the selection to a path. (creating the path using the pen tool is probably better because you have more control over the path, rather than letting PS calculate/convert a selection to a path - often get a path that is way too complicated)

Once you have the path defined, click the little arrow (top right) and on the fly out menu choose 'create clipping path'. Then I presume you save the file as a .tiff and import into Xara.

I dont do this sort of stuff but I have read about it.

Hope this helps some

::edit:: try this tutorial Hope this helps some
http://www.sketchpad.net/paths3.htm

~Vp~

Select the area to be made transparent, or select the object and use Select/Inverse.

Oddly enough, the Transparency/Clipping Wizard is under Help. Click Help/Export Transparent Image.
Select the second option, that you have selected the area to be made transparent. Select Print or Online for how the image is to be used.

If Print, it can save as EPS(not supported by Xara), TIFF, or a variety of different formats. I tried TIFF, and it did NOT come out with a transparent background when imported into Xara X.

The Online choice saves in either PNG or GIF, and did come out with a transparent background. Why not use PNG?

I found Photoshop's Help files on this subject to be pretty sucky!

My Pet Peeve with Photoshop: Photoshop's Help sucks compared to previous editions. HTML Help files are the worst, and PS's Help files have deteriorated to useless rubbish.

http://eyesitewebdesign.com/dale2.gif

[This message was edited by Dale Landry on April 23, 2002 at 11:49.]

Open your image in PS6, take the pen tool or freeform pen or... and draw your path. In the path palette you double click on the name "workpath" and you change the name into something significant. Then you click on the little triangle in the upper right-hand corner of the paths palette and you choose clipping path.
Then you save as a Photoshop EPS or a TIFF, but for a TIFF you have to choose the advanced tiff option to be able to save a path. This can only be interpreted by a select club of applications.

Unfortunately, Xara can't interpret a Photoshop EPS and also an enhanced tiff is a problem.
BUT Xara allows you to open any bitmap, draw any shape you like on it, and when you then select both objects and choose arrange>intersect, your bitmap will have the shape of your choice, AND you can bevel it, give it a shadow, blur its border etc etc...but you probably know all that...

If you get InDesign 2.0, the greatest page layout program in existence, you will be able to import PSD files using selections and channels as masks. This means NO MORE hard, awkward clipping paths, as you can use soft, 8-bit masks to define the cutouts! Fabulous stuff. Death to the hard-edged clipping path!

K
www.xaraxone.com/FeaturedArt/kn/
www.klausnordby.com/xara

Its been quite a few days since I've had a chance to log back on. (had a major catastrophe in the family) anyway, thank you all for your help. I'll be trying out your suggestions.

J

Formats with transparency (PSD, CPT) are easy to create, but....

When you create a PS or PDF file with such files you get raster masks over their transparent areas which isn't too good especially if PDF goes into post-production (imposition etc.) and need to be corrected.

Sometimes raster masks render improperly and RIP improperly (especially under CorelDraw and QuarkXPress...

If you want to be 100% sure and want to produce highest quality prepress, always use clipping paths.

Quote:

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Oddly enough, the Transparency/Clipping Wizard is under Help. Click Help/Export Transparent Image.

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WOW! I can NOT believe that this has been eluding me all this time!! I have been doing workarounds, or using gif's to make up for not knowing how to make a clipping path, and apply it to a tiff image! this is truly a joyous day!

(btw, i am not joking)

http://www.talkgraphics.com/images/smilies/wink.gif