Diagonal Background Tutorial PSP X This tutorial was created 2nd August 2008©Copyright Artwork by EssexGirl please do not copy it, or put it anywhere else without my written permission. *NOTE* Sometimes the links for filters change, it's difficult (and a lot of work) to keep changing them on individual pages, so I have created a page with links to filters and programs that I have used in my tutorials. That way it is easier for me, because when there are changes I will only have one page to update and hopefully better for you, because I'm less likely to miss a page out when doing the updates :) You will find links to filters/programs used in this tutorial Here the link will open in a new window Filters and programs used in this tutorial :- Paint Shop Pro Simple - Half Wrap Supplies:- A Font of your choice, I used Chopin Script available from DaFont Gradient and tube I used Here alternatively you can use your own Some images have been made smaller to shorten file size

Please Note* My tutorials were written for people to learn from, so PLEASE DO NOT SCRIPT THEM.

Step 1. Open a new image 300 X 300 transparent In your Foreground and Stroke Properties box choose Gradient You can use a gradient of your choice, I've used one called sg_sweet-pastels, which is in my supplies zip these are the settings that I used:- Foreground-Background Angle=45 Repeats=2 Invert=unticked Style=Linear Flood fill your image with the gradient Go to Effects...Edge Effects...Enhance More... you won't see a lot of difference, but it makes some of the lines stand out a bit more.

Step 2. Go to Layers...Duplicate... Image...Mirror... On the layers palette change the blend mode to Lighten (or change it to Darken if you prefer). Go to Layers...Merge...Merge visible... Go to Effects...Image Effects...Seamless Tiling... Use the default setting

Step 3. Use the Pen Tool with these settings Mode=Draw Lines and Polygons Connect segments= unticked Show Nodes= ticked Create on Vector= ticked Line Style=Solid Anti-alias= it doesn't matter if it's ticked, or not Line Width=1, or 2 Use a foreground colour which will show up against your background, once the text is in place the line will be hidden Draw a diagonal line across your image by clicking at the bottom left corner, then the top right (or you can do it from top left to bottom right, depending which way you want the text to go). Choose the Text Tool and create as Vector Change the background on you palette to the colour you want your text to be (I used white), make the foreground transparent. Move your cursor close to the middle of the line until you see the letter A then click and the text entry box should appear. Choose the font and font size you want and type in your text. If you highlight your text in the text entry box you can try out different fonts and font sizes, to see what looks best. I used a font called Chopin Script in size 100 pixels (the size needed will vary depending on what version of psp you are using, what font you use and how much text you enter, so you will need to experiment. Your text should follow your diagonal line, if it doesn't and runs straight across the page, just click Cancel and try again. Don't worry if your text isn't quite central On the layers pallete click the little + sign next to the Vector layer, this will open up the two sub layers containing the text and the diagonal line. On the sub layer with the line (New Path) click the eye to hide that layer. That will hide the line under the text Go to Layers...Convert to Raster Layer You could also create more than one line of text like this

Step 4. You could add an inner bevel, to your text or apply something like an SBP preset, or Eye Candy glass preset. I just added a drop shadow with these settings Vertical and Horizontal Offsets = 2 Opacity = 40 Blur = 7 My text is not quite in the centre of the image. I left it like that, but you can use the mover tool to make your text more central if you want to Go to Effects...Plugins...Simple...Half Wrap...

Step 5. Open your tube in psp Go to Edit...Copy... you can close, the tube now Back on your main image go to Edit...Paste as New Layer... You may need to resize your tube layer and use the mover tool to reposition it into a space I added a drop shadow, using the same settings as previously This is another example, the text on this one didn't leave much space in the centre of the image, for putting the tube, so I placed it in the space bottom right, then duplicated it and placed the copy at the top left. Resize if necessary For the background on this page I resized my image by 50% resample using bicubic

Step 6. As a slight variations try changing the blend mode of the tube layer in the layer palette. The results will vary depending on the tube and the gradient colours used, here I changed the blend changed to Screen It gave this pale delicate butterfly, so if you feel like some experimenting try the different Blend modes to see what happens

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial. To see my other tutorials click Here

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