Plugins that don't "plug in"

[EyesOpen]

Hi All,

I use many different plugins mostly for Artistic effects (Photoshop and other) within Xtreme Pro. Most of these work in Xtreme but some don't. Those that need "layers" will probably not work. Akvis "Sketch" and "Artwork" are two of my favorites, as is "Snap Art" by Alien Skin.

But some great effect softwares are not PS plugins - they do not plug in to Xtreme. They are stand alone products. But to use them in Xtreme, all you have to do is copy and paste or in some cases, drap and drop. Almost as easy as using a plugin.

One of my favorites is FotoSketcher, which is totally free and is almost equal in abilities to Snap Art, which is very expensive. It has a "Scratch" paint effect which is great and also a rough watercolor effect and a new dry painting effect that produces great looking painting simulations but takes some time to process. Also smooth watercolor like effects that blend large areas of color [skin for example] while preserving fine lined areas like hair, eyes and teeth in portraits.

Another good standalone product is Dynamic Auto Painter from Chance Media. DAP is very good, perhaps the best auto painting program ever, but has a fairly long learning curve to get great output. It features many art techniques and media effects plus has famous artists "looks" like Van Gogh, Cezanne, Monet, Sargent, Klimt, etc.

Also for illustrations and websites I use "LiveBrush", the best spline based drawing application to garnish or complicate a bland background. It creates flowery curves, ink spots, smooth & Jagged curves and colored ribbons to fill backgrounds.

These aren't plugins, they're better!

[zaphodeist]

Thanks for those stand-alone hints! Good stuff ... playtime now

[HayTay]

Adding to John's (neodist) reply is another hearty thanks from me.

EyesOpen (another John), you wouldn't have a brother named Arthur, by any chance, would you? Just checking. I apologize in advance if you've already been asked that to the point of annoyance.

Exit, stage left, so I can go find your references,
Harry

[zaphodeist]

First attempt with DAP. Lots of options and much more controllable than most of these 'painting' progs, but well worth learning [it certainly ain't just a plug-in!]. Livebrush is going to take a lot of concentration to master, but it looks fun!

Re: Arthur Dent - I use Zaphodeist as an alter-ego/alias/philosophical statement Should've used that on here ... don't think I can change it now!

EDIT The DAP image I stopped while it was painting. It paints background then foreground with different brushes. That's why the sheep has a green foreleg

[alanti]

Thanks for the information. Just downloading the portable version of FotoSketcher now. Another addition for my arsenal of thumb-drive apps.

[Big Frank]

Thanks for those super tips!