PS-CS4 How do I make type that reverses as it travels over background?

[Evelyn...@adobeforums.com]

I have a black silhouette, and I want to lay a large headline over it so that the type is black when it's over the white background and changes to white as it moves over the black silhouette. The edges of the silhouette cut through the middle of a couple of the letters, so I can't do this letter-by-letter. I think there must be a simple way to do this that begins with rasterizing the text (which is the same as "create outlines" in Illustrator, right?), but I'm a new PS user and am 1) frustrated and 2) clueless. Thank you.

[Rob_K...@adobeforums.com]

Evelyn,

Type the text in grey (R,G,B,=127,127,127) and then change the blend mode to something else than "normal" (experiment).

Rob

[Evelyn...@adobeforums.com]

Thanks for the reply, Rob. Where is "blend mode"? Is that the drop-down menu on the layers palette? Also, do I need to rasterize the text first?

Can you break this down into steps? (Did I mention I've been studying PS for three weeks? I'm quite proficient in Illustrator, but this is not Kansas anymore.)

[Phosąfour dots]

All layer blending modes are set to "Normal".
Silhouette and type are both R0/G0/B0.
• Add an "Invert" Adjustment Layer above text.
• ALT + Click on the line between Adjustment Layer & text layer.
• CTRL + Click on the icon in the Silhouette Layer to create a selection.
• In Adjustment Layer, make sure focus ring is surrounding the mask icon.
• Fill selection with Black. Deselect (CTRL + D).
• CTRL + I will invert the Black & White mask color.
• Done.

<http://www.pixentral.com/show.php?picture=1KJMuiW6MUrPla70UxrmaPybeUggJ>

[Evelyn...@adobeforums.com]

Phos, a million thank yous for the detailed steps.

However... I've done and re-done them six times and there's some step I must be missing. What I wind up with, to use your example above (which is precisely the effect I'm wanting), is the silhouette with the white letters "cut into" the black figure, but no black letters outside the silhouette. It's the same effect I would have achieved if I had simply made all my text white. I've already screamed at the cat and the two dogs... they are all hiding now.

I'm trying to make my layers panel look like yours. Is my type still type or have I rasterized it before I create the Invert Adjustment layer? Clearly you have not rasterized your type, because the layer icon shows a big "T."

The topmost layer in the list on yours shows the silhouette of the figure... When I follow your instruction to create an Invert Adjustment layer above the text, what shows up in the new layer is the type selection bounding box, not my silhouette.

What am I missing?

[Phosąfour dots]

I'm probably the one who forgot to include an important step.

When you follow the step for making a selection (CTRL + Click) you need to do this on the icon in the Layer for your silhouette. It sounds to me like you CTRL + Clicked on your type layer, and made a selection out of the text.

If you want to, you can send me a ZIP-compressed copy of your Photoshop file, with all the layers intact just the way you have them now. I'll make the necessary changes and send it back. Then, you can study the differences between them.

phosphordigital [at] gmail [dot] com

[Evelyn...@adobeforums.com]

On the way. Meanwhile I'll keep messing with it. Thx.

[Phosąfour dots]

Got it. Fixed it. Sent it back.

For the benefit of others following along here:

<http://www.pixentral.com/show.php?picture=1aECkTbZDleponyNvpHyL6iJXg1m0>The main problem Evelyn was having was that the silhouette I told her to CTRL + Click, in order to make a selection, was on a solid layer. The black silhouette was good, but the rest of that layer was white.

I made a copy of her "Layer 1" with the silhouette.

I ran the free "Peel Off White" filter by BergDesign (For Mac) to clear out all the white in the rest of the layer. Then, the CTRL + Click operation on that layer selected the black silhouette only, making it ready to use as a mask in the "Invert" Adjustment Layer.

Then I created a layer below the now-transparent silhouette and filled it with white.

Read more about "Peel Off White" and a similar free filter for Windows at the following link:
<http://www.adobeforums.com/webx/.3bc34571>

[Evelyn...@adobeforums.com]

So my black silhouette needed to be on a transparent layer?

[Phosąfour dots]

Your silhouette doesn't have to be on a separate layer, but making it so made it easy to create the CTRL + Click selection of it. There are other ways you could have done that, but for my workflow, I really like to have elements of a design segregated onto their own layers for easiest and most versatile manipulation.

Layer Properties--->Color...

Just for fun, drop that menu and make a choice--any choice. Then look at your Layers Palette.

Ain't that cool!?

:)

[Evelyn...@adobeforums.com]

What does it mean that when I went to "layers properties," it said "none," but the background was still white? How would I get my silhouette on a transparent background without having to remove the white background? IOW why was the background white even though the layers properties said the background was none.

I'm guessing that the problem I was having was due to the fact that when I thought I was selecting only the silhouette, I was in fact selecting the silhouette PLUS its background.

This brings me to another source of confusion, i.e., the fact that you can select the whole layer OR objects on the layer, and it's not obvious (at least not to me) when you're doing which. You can have something selected but no marching ants are showing.

I changed the layers properties as you suggested above to a color, but there was no change in the document window. In the layers palette/panel, the color showed up in the tiny window where the eyeball is. Where is the cool part?

Still coming down from my extremely high frustration level of yesterday and earlier today. Not ready to be friends with Photoshop yet. <Ev pouts>

You, however, have been extremely helpful!! :-)

[Phosąfour dots]

That drop down menu you see in the Layers Properties dialogue has nothing to do with the contents of the document's layer.

Again...choose something other than "None" from that menu. Look at your Layers Palette.

The riddle for the day (and you'll smile when you figure it out) is: What changes when you choose something other than "None?"

[Phosąfour dots]

"This brings me to another source of confusion, i.e., the fact that you
can select the whole layer OR objects on the layer, and it's not obvious
(at least not to me) when you're doing which. You can have something selected
but no marching ants are showing."

When you CTRL + Click on a layer's icon, you're making a selection of all the pixels on that layer that are 51-100% opaque. Any pixels that are less than 50% opaque will appear OUTSIDE of the "marching ants" selection line.

You can also make selections via masks, and this is one of Photoshop's most powerful tools/functions. When you think about it, the most important part of doing edits and adjustments on selected areas of an image is being able to make as accurate a selection as possible.

There are dozens of ways to make selections, and the method or combination of methods you use depends on the nature of the object you want to isolate from its surroundings. The more techniques you know how to apply, the better able you'll be to just look at an image and assess what techniques will most efficiently isolate an object.

Got a little treasure trove that covers that huge subject as well. Strap in tight and put your helmet on...you're about to get hammered with a monster sledge of info:

<http://www.adobeforums.com/cgi-bin/webx?128@@.3bb80e5d>

:)

[Evelyn...@adobeforums.com]

"That drop down menu you see in the Layers Properties dialogue has nothing to do with the contents of the document's layer."

<sigh> Now why would I think that drop down menu that is labeled " layer properties" would have anything to do with "layer properties"? Rhetorical question.

As I said, when I selected the silhouette layer, then opened the "layers property" drop down menu, and chose "green," a green highlight appears around the eyeball. Should something else be happening?

Also, how would I have created my silhouette on a transparent background? As you can see from the file I sent you, I had a photo, and I traced the figure and then filled it with black. At what point in the process did I have the option to create a transparent background?

[Phosąfour dots]

"As I said, when I selected the silhouette layer, then opened the "layers
property" drop down menu, and chose "green," a green highlight appears
around the eyeball. Should something else be happening?"

<Reiteration>That color change is a visual tool for us to use as a way of organizing and differentiating layers and layer groups. </Reiteration>

"...I had a photo, and I traced the figure and then filled it with black.

At what point in the process did I have the option to create a transparent
background?"

I have to assume you knew to trace the figure on a new layer (which will be transparent), right?. Once you've made your shape (either by Pen Tool or by Lasso, or whatever), and you fill it on that new layer, everything you don't fill will remain transparent. Somewhere along the line, you had to have merged your silhouette layer with either a white-filled layer (like the one I created in your PSD) or you flattened it to the Background and then copied that into another document.

[Evelyn...@adobeforums.com]

Whoosh! That's the sound of the coolness of the color thing flying over my head. I'm still too new to this to see why what you're telling me is a Good Thing. Sorry. I feel sure that one day soon I will understand.

Phos said: "I have to assume you knew to trace the figure on a new layer (which will be transparent), right?"

I honestly don't remember exactly what I did. That was an eternity ago... last Thursday. I do know that the nuanced importance of needing a transparent background was lost on me. Not any more, by gum!

You have been very helpful. I really appreciate it. :-)

[Phosąfour dots]

You're welcome, Ev.

I don't care about football, so I have no big Super Bowl plans getting in my way. Today its coffee, cigs, Sopranos reruns on A&E and surfin' the webbernet.

:)

[Eve...@adobeforums.com]

Likewise not a football fan. I could really use an NCIS marathon today...