Masks & Frames

Update 9-4-05 There still seems to be some confusion about the concept of masks. It might be helpful to put it like this.

Masks are a black and white image in some sort of shape. It can be round, square, fuzzy on the edges or made with a simple dingbat. It has to be black on the outsides to hide or MASK the rest of the image you are using. This is a MASK

This is a MASKED IMAGE An image or background has been composited into the mask using multiply.

Making a mask and using a mask are 2 DIFFERENT things

Making a mask requires you to make a white shape on a black background, or a black shape on a white background. It must be black, otherwise, the image will bleed through the whole thing. And it must not have any transparency. So output as a jpg.

Masking an image - requires you to composite an image into the mask, using MULTIPLY. NO other composite will do what multiply does, so if you want a masked image, use multiply! And, enter the url for the mask first, then go to composite and enter url of bg or image.

The image and the mask should be about the same size, unless you are familiar with how to mask a certain section of an image. That's pretty easy, too, just use your composite co-ordinates to move the image around till you have it where you want it.

Below is the lesson we used last year. It just happens to be using a leaf dingbat for the mask. You can use ANY dingbat, or shape, as long as it is white on black. The obvious shapes are readily available all over the net. Or you can draw one, using our draw lessons. Frames, ornamental dings etc, make great masks. You can mask any bg or image for a custom look.

NOTE - forget about gifs. IF you must use a gif, you will have to composite it on a bg of some other color than white, in order for it to show up in the mask. Use a jpg for best results.

Things you will need

Black or White

House of Lime Fonts

Backgrounds or make your own.

A mask is a "shape" that can be used to hold or frame an image. Any dingbat can be made into a mask. Simply annotate it on a black bg using white for the font color for this type:
Leaf - White on Black

You can also make frames that can be used as a mask. By creating a white frame like the one below, you can always have a "custom" look for an image.

Use a black blank resized to 230x230. This size is based on my finished image which is 320x320. You can make adjustments according to the size of your image.

Go to decorate and add a frame - white 15x15+3+3

Go to decorate and add a border - black 10x10

Go to decorate and add a frame - white 20x20+5+5

Results - Frame Blank

Composite a background of your choice using multiply. Results - Frame - Finished

If you would like to use the frame "over" another image, make the center transparent, using the paint function with the settings below.

Fuzz=9999 Method=Floodfill Paint Type=Matte Point & click in the center area of the black. Output as a gif.

Keeping with the fall leaves theme, I used the leaf font and made a black on white mask. Went to decorate and made the frame in white, the comp'd the bg using multiply, all in one sitting. Results - Framed 1

This one is white font on black, comp'd with a bg, multiply. Results - Framed 2

This is my favorite thing to do with masks. Make one of each - black on white, and white on black. Same size font and background. Save them as something like 1.jpg and 2.jpg

White on Black 2 Black on White 2

CCP the background url into your find box.

At IM enter the url for the white on black mask.

Go to composite and comp the background using multiply.

Go to effects. Choose SPREAD at 2 x 2

Go to effects. Choose GAUSSIAN BUR at 7 x 7

Resize to 350 x 350

Go to composite and comp the black on white image, using bumpmap.

Results - Leaf Glow

So, your challenge - go to House of Lime and choose your font /fonts , and make some masks. Make some frames, then frame some of your masks.