Hope you enjoy. Questions and comments are always welcome.

Art

I've modified the tutorial so that it's no longer a single image and have updated it to GIMP version 2.2.13



Using an image to make up the letters of your text in lieu of a gradient of single color is a very cool effect. Here are 3 different ways to accomplish this task in GIMP.

Technique # 1

I’ve included a copy of my image, just in case you want to experiment with it.



1. Open the picture above or one of your choice. (File | Open…)
2. Right-click on the image you’ve just opened and, if the “Add Alpha Channel” is grayed out, continue on to Step 3. If the “Add Alpha Channel” is available to be activated, select it. This will allow your image to have transparency added to it, so your text will have a transparent background. Continue with Step 3.
3. Select the font you want to use and start typing. (I’m using a font called Coolsville) Color does not matter, as we are only concerned with the text’s outline. Also, wider fonts work best, as more of the picture will show through.
4. Once finished with typing, use the move tool (4-headed arrow) to position the text where you want it.
5. Right-click on the text layer in the layer dialog window and selection “Alpha to Selection.”
6. Click the “eye” symbol next to the font layer name to turn off the text layer.



7. Activate (highlight) your image layer.
8. Currently, everything within the outline of the text is selected. We need to get rid of everything on the outside of the text. To do this, Invert your selection by using the Ctrl+i keystroke (or Select menu | Invert). Everything outside of the text is now selected. You should now see the animated outline along the outer edge of the layer. This animated outline is also referred to as “marching ants.
9. Now, delete everything outside of the text by using the Ctrl+K keystroke (or Edit menu | Clear).

Here’s what my text looks like:



Very nice, huh?!


Technique #2

In this method, I won’t be using screenshots, but the steps are pretty straightforward.

1. Open the picture above or one of your choosing. Again, make sure it has an Alpha Channel (Right-click | Add Alpha Channel).
2. Add the text and position it where you want it to be.
3. Select the outline of your text (Right-click | Alpha to Selection).
4. Turn off the text layer (Deselect the “eye” next to the text layer).
5. Activate (highlight) your image layer.
6. Copy (Ctrl+C) the selection and Paste (Ctrl+V) the selection into the document.
7. The selected portion will show up as a “Floating Selection” at the top of the layer dialog window. Anchor it to a new layer by clicking on the new layer button at the bottom of the layer dialog window or going to the Layer Menu | New Layer.
8. Turn off or delete your background layer and you are finished.

Technique #3

Complete steps 1-5 of Technique #2
Right-click on the image layer and select “Add Layer Mask.” Under the “Initialize Layer Mask To…” dialog window, choose “Selection.”

You are finished.

Now, add a drop shadow or two (Script-FU > Shadow > Drop Shadow...), a bevel (Script-FU > Decor > Add Bevel...), and a reflection (http://www.gimptalk.com/forum/topic/Reflections-484-1.html) and you have some pretty sweet looking text!

The text with bevel an shadow looks awsome, I really like like.
I prefer the 2nd method you mentioned.

and btw : I learnt Ctrl+K today, believe it :l:.

Thanks for sharing mate, let me update the homepage.
and ya, I continously add ne tutorials to pixel2life, I thought to tell you so that there are no double enteries and they don't think that we are spamming lol. All of yours and Michael's tutorials.

regards

Where can i download fonts

Just type "free fonts" into google and you'll get a bunch of sites. The one I used for the tutorial (the part that says nature lover is called "coolsville", I think). I'll check that when I get home. I'll also provide a couple of font sites that I have in my favorites.

Art

Don't know why, but none of your methods work for me. I end up with empty white or empty black letters. Followed your methods step by step. The picture never enters the boundaries of the text. Some further guidance would be helpful.

Your blending images tutorial worked well for me so I thought I would be able to do this, but I'm not getting it.

1) I open an image.
2) I type text (which brings up a text layer)
3) I position text
Here is where I am probably making a newbie mistake:
4) I right click on the text and alpha to selection
5) I invert selection (what selection?)
6) I bring up background layer and hit Ctrl-K.
7) I kick the computer as it is taunting me.

I hope you have some clue as to what I am doing wrong.

Welcoem to GIMPTalk

Do you have focus on Image window before pressing Ctrl+K ?
May be this is the reason the area is not being cut, on soem version of gimp global keys do not work perfectly especialyl on windows os.

I hope it helps

regards

If you mean do I have the background image selected before hitting ctrl-K, then yes. Maybe a step that seems obvious to you guys is left out, because as far as I can tell I am following the instructions down to the letter. Like most newbies to GIMP I am frustrated with the controls, making more useless images due to a lack of understanding, but I am willing to work at it and conquer this thing (if possible).

I just solved it! It was a very dumb newbie mistake after all. All I had to do was to delete the text layer. Thanks for helping out and for all the great tutorials. I don't think I would ever figure any of this out otherwise.

We are glad to see that you solved it yourself.

regards

Welcome to the boards Gatormac2112!

Sorry you had difficulty with the tutorial, but was glad you were able to resolve it.

You've probably figured out the answer to number 5 above, but just to clarify for anyone else that might not be aware, the Alpha to Selection option will select everything on a layer that is not transparent. For this tutorial, when you perform that step on the text layer it selects the outline of your text. If you performed that instruction on layer without transparency, it wouldn't select anything.

So, in step 5 when you are told to Invert the Selection, the computer will now select everything not previously selected. Then you just delete the background layer (Ctrl-k) and proceed.

Hope that clarified and hope you found the tutorial enlightening, albeit a little frustrating at first. I'll try to cover a little more material in future tutorials.

As a side note, later today, I'll be adding a second portion to this thread: Punched out text! Very easy to follow.

See ya, Art!

As promised earlier, here's a punched out text effect. Ali, thought I might as well add it here since there's no need to create another thread, but you can move it if you see fit.

Very easy and uses same techniques described above....

Your result should look like this.......



Rather than go through all the steps again, I'll be referring back to the steps I used for the first example above.

Step 1. Follow steps 1-4 above. Step 3 will select the outline of the text. Step 4 will then swap the selection to everything, but the text.

Step 2. Add the drop shadow by going to Script-Fu | Drop Shadow | Shadow. I used the following settings, but you can use whatever looks good : Offset X: 8, Offset Y: 8, Blur Radius: 15, and make sure you de-select Allow Resizing. Click OK.

Step 3. Admire your work; it's a beautiful thing!

Note: If you did not invert your selection, your drop shadow will be [b]outside of the text, giving the text a raised appearance.[/b]

Told you it was easy! If I've left anything out, please let me know. Hope it was helpful!

Post your results if you like.

Art

Edit: Just in case you're wondering, I typed my text layer in blue. It was not a separate blue layer. Additionally, you could try combining the original tutorial with this one to come up with some pretty nice designs as well.

Great work art, highly appreciated.
Since it is extension to above tutorial, I suggest you keep it here. Otherwise, you may split the topic by going through topic moderation panel.

regards

Thanks for clearing the alpha to selection mystery fencepost...working with layers and transparent layers at that is entirely new to me. Here is my attempt at your method:

Very nice. You're catching on. Did you make that background yourself?

Art

Thanks! Yeah, I somehow stumbled my way to create the background....right now I am in the trial and error phase of creativity! I look forward to more of your tutorials getting me out of the dark.

Well, believe me, my learning curve is about vertical. Like you, I was first frustrated with GIMP because I couldn't make sense of certain things, but once you start getting familiar with some of the tools, it gets better.

Hope you continue to come back here and can provide some of your experiences.

Art

How do you do it mine looks like yours until I get drop shadow on it

The most likely the reason is that you did not swap your selection After you select the outside of the text (Alpha to Selection), you must swap the selection by doing a Ctrl-I.

Art

Edit: Actually disregard my statements above. Which one are you trying to achieve? Cut out text or the first example?

If it's cutout text, follow my steps listed in the first part of this post (the stuff I told you to disregard). If it's only a drop shadow, the only thing you need to do is have your text layer be active and then go to Script-FU | Shadow | Drop Shadow.

Hope I didn't make it more confusing, but it should be pretty straightforward.

Art

Fencepost, in your first tutorial above, what font did you use for the part that says, "3 ways to put an image into your text..."? I like that font. :l:

It's called SevenSwordsmen and it can be found here:

http://www.blambot.com/fonts.shtml

This is an excellent font resource.


Art

Thank you! :l:

I've just noticed a slight little glitch in the "punched out text" segment of this tutorial.

When you add the "inner shadow" to the text, a shadow is also added in the same direction to the outside of the layer. This isn't noticeable unless you move your "drop shadow layer". Grab the "Move layers" tool (4-headed arrow) and click/drag the "drop shadow layer" in the opposite direction as the shadow, and you'll see what I mean.

If you don't plan on moving your text after you create it, no big deal. But, if you later decide you want to move the text, you can either re-create it

or

[*]Make your "drop shadow layer" active
[*]Go to Layer -->Crop Layer

Problem solved! This crops the layer to the same size as the other layers.

Art

I got it some what need to work on it more
Edit: I see what I did wrong i didn't cut out the text

OK I got it now
thanks fencepost

Glad to see you got it! BTW, what's the name of the font you used?

Art