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Attached is a .xar file and a .png of a method for creating highlights to add to your lettering.
I used Milk Script (warning: captcha solving required to download) to achieve this, it's a nice retro style font and the mini-tutorial will make it look even retro-ier.
Bob.
Nice simple tut. Bob. Good effect with the highlights.
Thanks, Peter. Simple but effective.
Bob.
Thanks, Bob, that's truly fortuitous, as it's just what I need right now. Will post end result in due course. Most grateful!
Milk Script is a commercial font:Quote:
Originally Posted by iamtheblues
http://www.myfonts.com/fonts/sudtipo...lar/specs.html
But you can use any script font (well, any font). Script fonts do work best, but any cursive italic that connects letters to each other can work well too.
However. I think the same effect can be made easier. It's how I use to do it when I wanted to achieve this effect.
Type your text.
Convert to editable shapes.
Ungroup.
Move any letters with connectors into a more pleasing arrangement if desired.
Select all the shapes.
CTRL + 1 to add shapes.
Color the text.
Add an outline. For 55 pt text like in this tut, 1 point seems to work well.
Right-click and drag a copy.
Color it black (or whatever).
Remove the outline.
Position this text over the colored, outlined version.
Take care, Mike
Both methods posted here are very good but just like almost anything in Xara there are many ways of doing this. Here is my method :) Note this method requires a version that has the opacity mask feature, but it gives you a result that is still editable text.
1. With your text tool click and type your text you want a text line not a column or box, make it what ever font, size and colour you wish
2 Use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl +K and make two clones
3. Open the page and layer gallery and select the first clone (the one directly on top of the original text) and make it white
4. Select the top clone and make it black and offset it down and to the right if you want highlights at the top left. Cut it to the clipboard (Ctrl +X)
5. Select the white text and right click it and select paste opacity mask from the right click menu
6. The Opacity mask shape can be selected and moved around to adjust the hightlights and the whole opacity mask can be feathered and you can use the profile sliders to adjust the edges of the reflections.
7. Select all layers of the text effect and soft group. You can now move it around and it's still editable text.
I don't understand what you mean here?Quote:
Originally Posted by mwenz
@ Frances
It depends on whether the goal is to emulate a 3D effect (yours) or not (the others).
@Rik
See the screen shot. The upper line is of text after converting to editable objects and ungrouping. I then colored each piece a different color to highlight the 3 areas in the word "Script" where I didn't like the offset of the connecting shapes. In the lower line, I have moved a few nodes so the joins are a bit smoother. In some fonts, one can simply move a letter to align the connectors better.
Mike
Thanks for that, Mike.
I wasn't using a font that was connected. Therefore nothing needed repositioning and couldn't see why things needed moving!
I see what you mean now.
I used this technique to create the highlights on this neon logo.
I can't get the first method to work properly. Everything is well explained, and yet...
When I do the "subtract shapes" this is what I get:
Attachment 95732
Apparently, looking at the page and layer gallery, the "t" is cut out
Attachment 95733
What am i doing wrong ?
Thanks for the tutorial - nice effect.
Same Attachment 95783Quote:
Originally Posted by guyke
I've also tried different process combinations (grouping/ungrouping, putting things to the front/back, breaking/not breaking etc) but just can't work it out. Strange that it's just the last letter (or in my case, the second to last character) that is subtracted.
Seems some folks are having issues with this. Try this VIDEO
Wow! - thanks Egg, very much appreciated =D>
Thanks for the video Egg, much appreciated and as a matter of interest! why do you have to ungroup text twice when converted to editable shape? No one says why :rolleyes:
Stygg
A text story contains a number of lines and each line contains a number of characters. When converted to editable shapes it keeps this structure, becoming a group for the story containing a group for each line and each of these contains the shapes for the characters. The first ungroup removes the story group, if you do it to a story with more than one line you will see the status line change from 1 group to <n> groups selected. The second ungroup does an ungroup of all the selected line group objects.Quote:
Originally Posted by stygg2003
Gerry
Thanks a lot Gerry, it's always nice to know the reason why you have to perform a certain action than just do it with no idea why. Now I know, thank you.:D
Stygg
Thanks Egg. Following the video I can get it right. Still don't know what I did wrong when following the Original script. So be it...Quote:
Originally Posted by Egg Bramhill
Cheers Gerry for your explanation:
Don't wish to appear thick (I am, just don't wish to appear that way) but could you possibly explain what you mean by a text story?Quote:
A text story contains a number of lines