Probably really stupid question

[qdesign]

Hi,

This is probably the simplest thing - but i am a newbie and I did not have enough time to study the products before i started an ad book project because my trial ran out long before i was able to afford the full CS@ - anyway.

I took this bitmap and opened it in both photoshop and illustrator

No matter what i have tried, i cannot remove the square from the top or crop it off. If it helps this problem to turn it to greyscale - i will need to do that anyway. I tried that, but still couldn't edit the top square.

What i am doing wrong? - and stop laughing

[Shaman]

Hey qdesign:
Not stupid at all, and I'm only laughing because we All have done it.
I opened the .psd with The Gimp and couldn't edit it, either. Then I duplicated the layer and was able to crop off the rectangle at the top in the duplicated layer.
First make sure you re-save your file with a different name. I often use a number and letter combination tacked on to the original file name, then you can edit the new file.
The original layer was probably locked as an opened background layer often is and you can't directly unlock that particular layer. If you duplicate the layer however and then edit the new layer and toss the original locked layer, you'll have it fixed. You can duplicate the layer that's highlighted in the layers palette.
If your still not getting it, let me know. I'm assuming you are using Illustrator?
Scott

[jamesmc]

Don't have either program, but was able to do it in Paint Shop Pro and save it to PSD format.

[dduran]

In Photo Shop you can select the eraser tool and erase the section in question.

Danny

[handrawn]

This opened for me as index color which does not support layers - so layer was locked. [PS6]
Changing mode to RGB unlocked it
Crop tool worked fine.

[Albacore]

Hi Q,
Had half hour before going to work and so I had a quick go at your logo. Could not find the exact font so turned the font into a objext so that you can mess about with the file. If you have any problem just give a reply on the thread.

[qdesign]

You are all fabulous - thanks so much for the help. I tried the changing to RGB as suggested and that worked great - so here's my question - why didn't that work when i changed to greyscale?

This forum is the greatest thing and i so appreciate you all!

[Shaman]

Hi:
The short answer is, wait for it, this is soooo good: 'we don't know'. This is one that involves "it just works (or doesn't work) that way". Not "blowing you off" with this, I'm paraphrasing Deke McClelland, from Photoshop 7 Bible. Various color modes, including the bit amount options, limit the types or way of editing. This may have to do with the programming, or just the amount of info converting a particular mode leaves in the file. That would limit choices. Grayscale for instance, is limited to an 8-bit depth, and 256 levels of tone between and including black and white (or levels of gray), so there is more than a 1 bit black (line) drawing effect, but far less than the 16, 24 or 32-bit choices we have currently. So sometimes the thing to watch out for is what mode you're working in. The next thing is what layer you are on. I have often been working on a multiple layer project and noticed that the changes I was making weren't working, then realizing I was on the wrong layer. The next thing is that a particular layer is locked and that means you can't edit it. That goes for Illustrator as well as Photoshop. There is often a lock icon and a check box next to it, usually in the Layers pallet to indicate whether a layer is locked or not. The option to unlock the bottom (1st) layer, which often renames itself "background" in a newly re-opened filed, is often grayed out, or unavailable, thus permanently locking that layer. Duplicating that layer is the easiest, fastest way to unlock that layer. Gave you a short easy answer, figured you needed a fast fix and a trick to use next time.
Y'know never really noticed if saving as a .psd file automatically converts to indexed color. If it has I just converted it back.
One other tip in working with logos and type. If you are saving for the web, type generally works best in a .gif. Using a .jpg for type will create "muddy" looking type. You may already know this one.

Am I over the top, yet?

Scott

[Albacore]

If you do your artwork in Illustrator, select all, go to Filter - Colours and then down to Convert to greyscale problem should be partly solved. Then it is really only picking a shade of grey that you want to give the art work some definition and then the next step is up to you really. If your artwork is only for the local newsletter and is not being printed in a professional CMYK machine but only your local print shop which uses a commercial laser I would go to file Save for the Web and then select Gif when the Image Ready menu comes and make sure transparency box is ticked. If your newsletter on the on the other hand is sent to commercial printers you have to stay in the CMYK colour mode and you would go along with the first part of the instructions and then go to Object down to Ratersise then check 300 dpi and if the paper being used or the background the artwork is going onto is not white also tick the transparent box.

The great advantage of doing this type of work in a vector package you can change things very quickly and still have the original saved in its full colour ready to be used again where in paint package this is slightly different you have to scroll back through the history. Before anyone says anything I know that saving your file as a PDF will do for sending to the printer but it will not give the transparent background unless it is taken in to a DTP programme like InDesign or PagePlus whick accept PDF