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February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fractals
Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fractals
Attachment 94560 |
Stephen (stygg2003 on TG) shows you this month that the sky isn’t the limit. Come see how to use Xara’s fractal fills and transparency in combination with other features to make a surreal sky. Need a background for an awesome foreground shape? Wipe your feet and come on into this month’s Tips and Tricks at Xara Xone.
So show us your work! And be sure to thank Stygg2003 for a great tutorial. |
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
A very nice tutorial Stygg, thanks for sharing it with us :)
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
Quote:
Originally Posted by
angelize
A very nice tutorial Stygg, thanks for sharing it with us :)
Thanks very much Francis, learnt so much from Gary and you thought I'd put a little back for appreciation :D
Stygg
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
Cheers Stygg, not always got time to play but off sick today so thought i would try this tutorial out.
Nice tutorial and good fun, one small thing is to watch out for is the horizontal line when you flip the duplicated image, the duplicated image is offset about 1 pixel from original, i found the blend tool useful at this point.
I came up with this
Attachment 94572
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
Cheers tx, 1 pixel off hey, must get myself new specs.:) Love the image you've come up with.
Stygg
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
Quote:
Originally Posted by
stygg2003
Cheers tx, 1 pixel off hey, must get myself new specs.:)
sorry Stygg, should have explained why that was important :), not too long ago while using Photoshop to do similar reflections, i found the same 1 pixel line........at first i didnt even see it but on the printed 20" x 20" digital painting it was very obvious. I was left a little red faced. Just one to watch for.
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
No problem tx, I appreciate the feedback and glad you enjoyed doing the tut :D
Stygg
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
Hi and welcome tx—
That line you, or anyone gets, is due t Xara's native anti-aliasing.
If there is a fractional amount, let's say 95.15 pixels per inch or something with a bitmap you've scaled, the screen doesn't resolve this fractional amount properly at all resolutions, including viewing resolutions.
So if you zoom, that visible line might go away at certain viewing resolutions.
It's Xara, not Stygg's tutorial.
It's irritating though!
My Best,
Gary
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
Just had to give Stygg's good tutorial a try.
Of course I always have to "do my own thing" with these so I combined Stygg's tutorial with stuff from a thread about curving a show plus some stuff from one of the exercises in Gary's book and I hope a little from Gar's tut on reflections. So, now you guys have something throw some darts at :-)
Attachment 94578
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
You get an A+++ for integrating both what you learn with your resources.
Oh, um Stygg might throw darts, but I'm from The USA, New York specifically. We don't throw darts because we don't have pubs.
Our sport is throwing insults at California.
-g
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
Thanks for the kind feedback. I really had some fun trying to incorporate off of these things with the tutorial. You might notice that the boy is an adaptation of the one in your Clock Tower image. I used the shape tool to create a bunch of pieces that he is made of.
Yeah, that darts comment was kind of out of line as I think about it. I really did not mean it to be negative. I was really saying, go ahead and give me feed back so I can continue to improve my skills. As you have seen several time before, I am not an artist. I have been doing this stuff as a retirement hobby.
Sometimes I wish I had a good use for this stuff because it is fun. I really like using the Xara tool and I really appreciate the skills people like you, Frances, Stygg and several others are willing to share with people like me.
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
Quote:
Originally Posted by
dcahall
As you have seen several time before, I am not an artist. I have been doing this stuff as a retirement hobby.Sometimes I wish I had a good use for this stuff because it is fun.
I've been "doing Art" for most of my life, and for most of my life, the pursuit of self-expression via creating stuff on paper has not paid the bills or filled the fridge. Sadly, this is why many gifted people turn to art as a relaxation and/or a passtime.
It is certainly relaxing, or can be if you immerse yourself in it. But for all my experience, the pursuit of Art is usually a reward in and of itself. The process of creation doesn't have to have a "good use" as you put it.
Let your experience and own person thrill of having said something in a non-verbal way be your payoff.
My Best,
Gary
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
Glad you enjoyed the tut. dcahall and I like the variation you've created, really good. As Gary always says, if you learn from resources and improve or add to the original well that must be good. I notice this is the second time you finish your post with "throw darts at it" stop putting yourself down, were all learning here and hope to improve as we go.:D
Stygg
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
Yep, no more "throw darts at it". That comes across negative which is not what I meant.
Thanks for the good words. I did have a couple of problems so I improvised a little. I am going to go back through the tut and see what caused me the problem and let you know what they were. I do remember that one of them was with the profile. You said select option 3 but I did not have multiple options. I just made the setting like what your screen capture showed.
I will add another post when I go back and see where I had a problem.
BTW: I do not know if it makes a difference but I am using P&GD instead of Designer.
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
Went through the tut again and think I messed up the first time (although I honestly was satisfied with the final picture). The only question I might have is the dimensions in two places.
- On step 4 under "Whipping up a Cloudy Sky" you say the dimension should be 735x992 pixels. Did you really mean for it to be that tall. Yes, it got fixed when you do the Clip View but I wondered if you meant for it to by 992x735.
- On step 1 under "Creating the Ground Plane" you say the dimension should be 627x509. Should the width be the same as the original box (672)?
I also did one additional step. Since this wound up with a pretty tall image, I created a final box that was the size of the total image I wanted, put it to the back, did Ctrl-A to select all objects and finally did a Clip View to wind up with the final image (below).
Attachment 94593
Once again, just wanted to let you know how much I enjoyed the tut and feel that I learned some very useful things for future endeavors.
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
The dimensions I give in the tut. dcahall are correct and your final image is pretty good. If what you finally see is what you like then that's it. You made some changes and your image turned out good. The line you see between the sky and ground base is due to Xara's anti-analising and not a fault in the tut. as Gary explained in an earlier post.
Stygg.
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
In my first one try I eliminated the line by slightly overlapping the sky and ground and applying a small amount of feathering. You have taught me something here that I think will be very useful. I do not think I would have thought of doing multiple layers of fractal fills to achieve the sky like this.
Looking forward to more tutorials. It is always fun to learn how to make better use of a tool.
I wish that you, Gary, Frances and a couple of others could/would write tutorials for another product that I own (ArtRage 4) so that I could learn how to use that software better. It is a great artist tool but I am not artist and sometimes I get really frustrated because I cannot figure out how to use the software to achieve some things.
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
Overlapping and feathering is an inspired and very good remedy to the reality that Xara's anti-aliasing engine usually works for you, but also sometimes against you.
Another thing you might try is making certain that the width and height of shapes is precisely an even pixel number. You'll notice that occasionally you'll see the width or height of a shape to be a fractional amount, and when Xara then exports with anti-aliasing, it cannot reconcile the fractional pixel amount and leaves a semi-transparent row or column of pixels which become a visible line.
Attachment 94597
ArtRage tutorials aren't going to happen on the Xara Xone, for reasons I hope you can understand.
The Xara Group, is more than generous for footing the bill for TalkGraphics and providing forums for Photoshop and CorelDRAW. The Xara Group and its parent company, MAGIX, cannot support every graphics program on Earth, nor should they even try. ArtRage, as I recall, has a good community of their own, and good support.
I'd like to repeat something I mentioned in this month's tutorial on image retouching: Art can usually be approached as a process. You don't fling yourself at it and expect results, nor is the "use a bigger hammer" philosophy useful in creating Art, or most anything else.
1. Identify what your goal is. Be specific, and break it down into smaller goals if a single large one is creatively overwhelming.
2. Devise a system for solving or achieving your goal. If the goal is to create a painting, then start with a sketch, discover your colors, and work from the general outline to the specific details on your painting.
3. Pick the tools you need to accomplish your goal based on the appropriateness and familiarity you have with the tools you own.
It helps to learn the language of the Natives sometimes! If you come from, say, an engineering or a mathematics career and background, it's very hard to learn art, because you have brought yourself up with a language that influences your thinking, and is not applicable to this new realm of creative endeavor. So it helps to give up thinking, "Oh, I must do this or that within x number of hours", and just kick back and learn, experiment, and forget the time constraints that are self-imposed.
I didn't get to where I am in the art field overnight. In fact, I'm still not there. But I find the jouney much more enjoyable than any destination I might imagine.
Relax, man. Perhaps if you don't try to find the solutions so hard, the solutions might find you!
Good stuff comes to you when you leave your mind open.
My Best,
Gary
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
Gary, a couple of things I am learning from people like you are to be more patient and to not be afraid to try. I retired a couple of years ago and have been having fun learning to use the Xara tool (thanks to people like you, Frances, Stygg and some others).
I did not mean for you to post ArtRage tutorials on the Xara Xone. I have looked at tutorials on the Ambient Design site and they are not the caliber of stuff that is on the Xone. They just released a new version of their tool that I really like but am struggling a little about how to use it. I fully appreciate and would not expect to see ArtRage stuff on the Xone.
As you, and the whole world has seen, I am not an artist but the digital art/graphics world is fascinating to me. The only real world exposure was in creating a couple of DVD/automated slide shows for 50th year high school graduations for both my wife and my classes. I did incorporate some graphics in them but not to the level of stuff I am now trying. I also used to create some minor graphics and a couple of animations for PPT that our sales people used. So I fully appreciate what you are saying about the language. I might also add that because of the people here in this forum, I am learning to "see"/"look" at things differently. When I recreated the little boy from the Clock Tower image you had in one of your tutorials, I learned a lot about creating and combining shapes, using the shape tool to create small objects that I then combined for the final image, using the feathering tool to make objects that did not have clean edges, and many other things. And yes, I also that was a good lesson in learning to take my time and think about the "big picture" in smaller pieces.
Before I retired, I designed web applications (updates, new facilities, user documentation and training) for the home building industry (I was a Product Manager and Business Analyst). I do not pretend to be an artist and enjoy seeing things people like you create. I have to admit (going back to the language thing) that sometimes you use terms that make me stop and think (a good thing for me in the learning process).
OK - all of that said, I have watched your current video. I now need to go back and watch it again and give it a try. Sometimes a little bit of a challenge when you only have a single screen (on my laptop) to watch (pause) and then go do.
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
Hey.
The best we can expect from ourselves and from other is to at least try at something.
An honest "try" makes you feel good, too!
And an "Artist" is nothing less and nothing more than "one who is immersed in the practice of creating Art." So you might feel your work is not as polished as others? Don't refuse to call yourself an artist because of this.
There's Good Art.
There's Outstanding Art.
There's Poor Art.
There is no such thing hanging on a wall that is Not Art.
Be good to yourself DCAHall. Be accurate in the way you describe your efforts. Words affect the way we think... as the flip side of what we think gives rise to words.
@everyone—
I will try to get the transcript for this month up as soon as. I would expect this to come in handy, seeing as the tute this month runs over 10 minutes.
By the way, Frances, I am completely at the whim of the Muses when it comes to what I cover versus how many minutes it takes to document it on video. I'll begin with a topic, a concept, and without fail, I'll say to myself going in, "Oh, this will run 5 minutes, 6 tops"...and it doesn't.
The good news (hopefully) is that I took my time and honestly paced the tute this month, perhaps explaining why it ran as long as it did. Apparently, you (and I hope others) were able to follow it.
My Best,
Gary
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
Thanks for the great tutorial Stygg! Here's my try at it!
Attachment 94638
:)
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
Quote:
Originally Posted by
BeanPole
Love it BeanPole, that would have been great for Valentines Day! :D
Stygg
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
Thanks Stygg!
Yes, a little late for Valentines Day, but I did have a lot of fun with it. Thanks again for the great tutorial.
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
See my post under Gary's Advanced Image tutorial for another use of Stygg's fine tutorial. Hope you enjoy it.
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
Hi Stygg!
Here is another try at it! I took the photo of the whitetail deer about two weeks ago, and I have been itching to do something with it ever since.
Attachment 94647
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
Welcome dadztoy!
I can't answer your question, but I'm sure someone else can. I just wanted to welcome you to the forum. A good place to ask an off topic question though, would be in the Off Topic section. (I believe this is just above the XaraXone section!) :)
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
I've moved Dad's Toys' post to Off-Topic. I believe Photostory is a MAGIX product, and the content of Dad's post relates more to pre-sales or something than it does Stygg's fractals.
-g
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
Gee thanks for all your help "SUPER HELPFULL".......! I'll be sure to let others know how helpful you were.............. I beleive I did say something about my first time to this site................ Never mind. We'll figure it out ourself!
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
Hey, dadztoy, you might want to dial the attitude back a little.
I realize it's frustrating to hit a new board and not know where to post, but clearly this is the Xara Xone thread, as it says at the top of the page.
I didn't delete your post, I moved it. It's
right here, neatly marked and ready for anyone with experience to help you, unlike me.
If you need tech support on the product, it's right here.
My Best,
Gary
-g
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
tx200man:
I really like the fish jumping out of the water. Could you give a few pointers on how to make the water (& colors) and how to make the splash?
Also, I thought it would be kind of neat to make the ground/water look like sand of a desert. Anyone willing to attempt this variation?
Or even snow! I tried to make snow, but it was so different than my deer picture snow that I just went with the snow in the deer photo.
Or even grass!
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
Hey Beanpole—
An awful lot of your Wish List for textures can be accomplished by varying the options with fractals and also using fractal fills in combination with transparency, and layering partially opaque fractal filled shapes.
I don't know how tx200man accomplished the splash illustration, but when I need something that's this complex, I use an image. I rendered these corona-style splashes out of my modeling program. Feel free to experiment—that's why I'm posting 'em!
Attachment 94678
My Best,
Gary
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
just follow the tutorial and use the 'Colour Editor' to get the desired colour and as per the tutorial use the fill tool and move the handles till you get the angle you want for the ground cover (you can really move these handles well beyond the limits of the image your editing to get the right look) .............the splash is just an overlay/layer. Here are a couple of variations for you to see your desert (with snake layer added) and a fun snow scene........Again, Big thanks to Stygg for this tutorial, its been a lot of fun to use.
Attachment 94680Attachment 94681
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
Hi tx200man—
When you say that the splash is just an overlay, do you mean that you used a photo?
I went originally with the assumption that you illustrated it.
I'd feel much better as an artist knowing that you did what I did! :)
TIA,
Gary
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
Gary, yes the splash is just a photo imported in, then the colour changed to match. Could have drawn it but that wasn't the object of the game.
Tried to attach the file but dont see how to add a file, just an image?
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
Argh!
I tried to remove your file link from its inline position but failed, tx200man.
I'm being told there's an invalid handle with the file.
When you want to post an attachment,it's best to uncheck the "Insert Inline" option.
My Best,
Gary
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
Okay, got it and looked at it.
Very clever, very nice work, tx200man!
-g
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
Thanks Gare and tx200man!
Now I have lots to play with over the next few days!
Thanks a bunch! =D>
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
Thanks Gary, appreciate that...........have fun Beanpole
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Re: February 2013 Guest Tips and Tricks - Making Surreal Backgrounds with Xara Fracta
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Gare
Okay, got it and looked at it.
Very clever, very nice work, tx200man!
-g
When I try to open the file Gary I get the attached message and DP7 stops working? Any idea what the problem is?
Stygg