create cuttable outline from Jpg image

[angelize]

I decided to see how quickly I could accurately trace the photo just to see how my speed compared to Steve and Rik's and I recorded my session the recording is 14mins, 5 seconds

[gwpriester]

He knows how to do it Frances. He is just not willing to spend the time to do it right.

I am very familiar with the vector drawing tool. I am looking for a FASTER cleaner way to do this. My client doesn't want to pay me for the time to draw everything by hand. Soooo. I am looking for a down and dirty way to get "close" then spend a few minutes making final cleaning up steps. Trying to get this done in less than 15 Minutes tops for an image as presented here.

There is never time to do it right. But, there is always time to do it over.

[Tabian]

How does 6mins 28scnds sound. I did this with the bitmap tracer. First I made a copy of the image, converted it to back and white, darkened it and run a bitmap trace. Break the shapes apart then deleted a everything except the outside shape, this then gives you the full image shape in vector.
Please not that if the job entails a print and cut an outline can be applied, converted to shape, broken apart and the inner shape deleted, this will give you a bleed boarder around the image to prevent the ink solvents from curling up the edges. A more accurate trace can be obtained by adjusting the trace settings.
Just a question Mr. Vinyl what output devices do you use with your vinyl production?

[gwpriester]

Tabian - If I had this sort of vinyl printing to do, I would come to you.

Is your shape one shape or is it many smaller shapes? If smaller shapes, select the whole bunch and Add Shapes. Ctrl + 1.

Vinylman - I think you have your answer.

[Vinylman]

First let me say THANK YOU! to each of you who responded. I hope that others will be helped in the process.

I have the job in question completed and the customer was VERY satisfied.

My reasoning in the original query was an attempt to find a more time effective approach to a situation. For me, as with most, time is money. I am trying in this weak economy to wrest the greatest reward for my work with my customers whilst providing a cost effective finished product for my clients.

That being said, the different ,though similar, approaches provide me with options to consider regarding how to BEST get from point A to point B.
Sometimes, as my late wife was want to say, "You can't get there from here, you have to go through Struthers" [a local small town near us].

Anyway, Again THANK YOU ALL for being here and helping.

Lastly, Tabian: looking at your approach was the direction I had been trying to think through. You have done a nice job of explaining what I was rattling around in my head but couldn't get properly thought through enough to accomplish.

Also would be remiss to not give a shout out to "Angelize" for her detailed video. That was above and beyond. It was how I accomplished the tracing [ in about 21 minuets] the same results.

[Vinylman]

I am currently using a Mimaki JV-33 160 for printing, and cutting on a Mimaki 65" plotter [forgot the number on the machine]
Running my prints through the Rasterlink3 software. System works great.

[Gamerprinter]

Well right now I've got 4 cartoon bulldog's heads being cut-out on my Graphtec 24 inch cutter in black vinyl - part of a door graphic for a pickup truck. I found the cartoon B/W on Google for a security systems company. I actually used the vector drawing tool and made the outlines by hand - of course I'm still using Xara Xtreme 4. I dabble with the image tracer now and again, but seldom get clean enough traces to consider usable.

When I create my gaming maps, it's a lot worse in that I am creating vector shapes (to give a color, bevels, drop shadows). I do this for the entire land masses, with rivers and lakes cut out (by vector drawing tool), mountains, forests and other terrain features as their own separate shapes. If you think hand vectorizing the outline of a complex shape from an image file, is tough, imagine creating the interior shapes within a photo/scanned image as well - all hand vectorized. I know this time consuming normally, but I do this nearly everyday whether on a customers job or one of my personal maps - I am extremely fast at doing it (but it's still slow and few would have the patience that I have at doing it.) But I'm not looking for a faster way - I'm quite satisfied with the process.

[handrawn]

How does 6mins 28scnds sound. I did this with the bitmap tracer. First I made a copy of the image, converted it to back and white, darkened it and run a bitmap trace. Break the shapes apart then deleted a everything except the outside shape, this then gives you the full image shape in vector.
Please not that if the job entails a print and cut an outline can be applied, converted to shape, broken apart and the inner shape deleted, this will give you a bleed boarder around the image to prevent the ink solvents from curling up the edges. A more accurate trace can be obtained by adjusting the trace settings.
Just a question Mr. Vinyl what output devices do you use with your vinyl production?

nice going - personally I'm still not sure this kind of approach will be accurate enough, but at least this image has enough contrast to give it a go...