Alter a Blank Gif Tutorial - by Lady Timeless

This is a Lady Timeless Tutorial

.. there are many ways to alter a blank gif.. this tutorial will only show you a few to get you started but it will definately put you on the right track... we will be dealing with Image Magick, GifWorks and WebFX.. it helps a lot if you are familiar with these online tools but I'll try to make it easy enough for anyone wanting to try this... we have a lot to cover so let's get started...

here is the image we will be altering.. I chose this blank gif because it only has one basic section and it's easy to work with.. of course the more sections your gif has the more complex and longer it will take you to alter it..

.. take your blank image url to Image Magick, remove the http:// and place the url in the "URL:" field and click "view"

.. now the first thing you want to do is seperate it into pieces so it's easier to work with.. (don't worry about the jagged edges, we'll take care of that later).. we are going to matte off the OUTside of the gif surrounding the leaf.

.. just under the image, you'll see Optional Paint Attributes change the attributes to the following:

(gray jumpbox) Paint Type: "Matte" Method: Floodfill

FillColor: & Border Color: remove the contents of both and leave them BLANK

now barely tap your return key.. you'll see a yellow square surrounding the edge of the image and an arrow in the center will appear.. move the arrow onto the OUTside area around the image and press your return key... the area around your image should become transparent.. now click "output" and save Format: "gif" and Storage Type: "single file" then transload.

here is the result:

now hit your recent key (it's next to your options key on your keyboard) go back 4 pages and click.. you should see your blank gif just as you altered it just a few moments ago but if you don't, look at the top of the page and click "view" .. this will take you back to where you were.. now we are going to Matte off the INside of the gif.. all the Optional Paint Attributes should be as they were before but if not, do them again with the exception of Method: Replace.. the reason for this change is because of the stem of the leaf being so thin.. if I try and Matte off the center of the leaf like I done the outside, the stem is too thin to remove the inside with Floodfill and it would still have the white area inside (remember this when picking or altering a gif that has a thin area) using replace removes that color you touch even in the tiniest of areas but does still leave a tiny bit on the edges.

now just as you Matted off the outside, let's leave the arrow in the center of the leaf and click.. you should be left with your gif like this now:

now let's clean up that outline edge area.. you will need a solid blank gif (any color but I chose black) and your outline url. A great place to pick one up is at Sherry's Solid Backgrounds page (Thanks Sherry!) .. (or you can fill it with a nice background)

place the url of the outline in the URL: field at Image Magick and click "view" ... at the top of the page click "Composite"

place the url of your solid color background in the URL: field then change only the following:

Compose: In

check the box Miscellaneous Options then click "Composite"

here is the result with a nice clean edge

now transload this part for later use also

now go get your blank gif that has the OUTside area Matted off and your clean edged outline urls.. place the url of the blank gif with the outside matted off in the field and click "view" .. you are going to paint the gif now but don't worry about what it looks like because we are going to Composite the clean edged outline on top of it when we are finished.

now enter the url in the field and click "view" at the Optional Paint Attributes we will be doing things a little differently this time.. change the attributes to the following:

Paint Type: Color Method: Replace

Fill Color:darkred

barely tap your return key and when the arrow comes up click the center of the gif.. your result will be something like this:

now at the top of the page click "Composite"

place the cleaned edged gif in the URL: field and change the jumpbox Compose: to Over

click "Composite"

here is the result:

now let's Matte off that red on the outside of the image (just like we did before).. at the Optional Paint Attributes change the following:

Paint Type: Matte Method: Floodfill

Fill Color & Border Color remove the contents and leave BLANK

barely tap your return key and when the arrow comes up move it to the OUTside red area surronding your image and click.. here is the result:

now you can either leave it this way or take it to GifWorks and spice it up a bit.. you can take the temporary url to GifWorks but if it makes you too nervous go ahead and transload it..

at GifWorks click on the FIRST gray jumpbox under File and click "Open Image" .. a field to place your url in will appear.. place your url in there and click "Fetch Image"

go to the gray jumpbox under "Effects" click on it and scroll down and click "Oil Paint" here is the result.

to save the image click the jumpbox under File and click Save or Transload

let's take it a step further.. let's go to WebFX and play a little.. take your finished image and place it in the field and change the following:

Apply 3D Blocks Low intensity

background color #FFFFFF

Click "Apply Effect"

I know all this seems like a lot of work but after you get use to things it'll become easier... of course you noticed at GifWorks and WebFX there are MANY other options and effects you can accomplish with one click.. here are some other samples of what you can do... experiment and have fun! :-))

gold bg Composite In (Image Magick)	Double Wavey (WebFX)
Composite Bumpmap of a background Composite outline ontop (Image Magick)	taking the same finished graphic and oil painting it (Gifworks)

if you need some blank gifs to practice with or for a newsgroup contest click HERE

[Some Timeless Tutorials]
[ladytimeless.org]