PI12-blend

And this is what we are making:

DESCRIPTION: Make a beautiful picture with PI.
Tutorial: Copyright © Inge Klement

PI Version: 12 (but you can use earlier versions too)
Level: Intermediate
Featured tools: Pick Tool
Additional filters: Filter Factory Gallery C
Additional files: 1 tube, 2 masks and 1 text file .
You'll get the material in the zip-file.
(For those which are working with previous versions of PI,
I include the PI-mask into the zip-file. Just install it like any other mask into your EP.)

IMPORTANT NOTE:
Supplies: The tube is from the internet, one mask is from the EP in PI 12,
and the second one I made from a picture.
You are allowed to download them here and use them for your private use,
but you are not allowed to change the name of the tubes/masks,
delete the watermark, neither offer them for sale or download.
The copyright © belongs ALWAYS to the original artist/designer!
No copyright infringement is intended.

Remember to save often!

Before we start, you should open the masks, and store them into your Easy Palette. In case you need to freshen up your memory on how to save a mask into the EP - you can take a look at one of my other tutorials, where I explain a little bit more about how to use a mask in PI. You'll find the tutorial here. Important - in my tutorials my masks fit the chosen background/object ... you achieve this by right clicking any mask inside the original category Mask Library in your Easy Palette. Now you choose the option Fit Mask. Very important: Do NOT merge the pictures before I tell you to do so!
	Open a New Image, 800x600 Pixels, color: White. Edit/Fill/Gradient (white hand)/Magic Gradient (1). Choose the Mode 10 (2) and click the Edit button (red arrow). In the Palette Ramp Editor choose palette 035 (3). Click OK. Go to Photo/Blur/Gaussian Blur/Options and set the Radius to 50.

	Right click/All and go to Object/Insert Image Object/Via Copy (red arrow). This will give us an exact copy of our background. Right now, the copy is our activated working space.

	Go to Effect/Filter Factory Gallery C (red arrow)/ Interference (white arrow) und use these settings (1): 237/181/56/78/160/160/174/133. Your screenshot might look different, since I'm using Filters Unlimited 2 - but the settings are the same anyway. Click Apply and keep the copy activated.

	Right click/Properties/General (white hand)/Merge and choose Difference (red arrow). Click OK and Merge All. Duplicate (Ctrl + D) the image 2 times. You have now 3 look-alike images in front of you. Minimize one of them, and resize another one to a Width of 640 Pixels and Height of 480 Pixels.

	Copy (Ctrl+C) the resized image (1), and paste (Ctrl+V) the copy on the one opened image in the original size - 800x600 Pixels (2). Close the resized image (1) we won't need it anymore. Right click the small image on our main picture (2)/ Properties/Position & Size (white hand) and position the image like I did: Left: 64 (red arrow) / Top: 17 (white arrow). Keep the small image activated (That's very important for our next step!).

	Open your Easy Palette/Libraries (white hand) and double-click the mask - calgary.cmx (1) -, which you've downloaded, unzipped and stored into the EP. On the screenshot you can see the mask applied on the small image (2). Keep the small image activated, right click/Shadow and use these settings: Black + 2.altern. + default settings. Right click the still activated small image/Duplicate. Deselect the small image (Enter). Now as we have background is activated, go to Photo/Blur /Gaussian Blur/Options, and set the Radius to 10.

	Open your Easy Palette/Libraries (white hand) and find one of PI's own masks -PI05. You'll find the mask in the category Paint (white arrow). Double-click the mask - P05 (1). On the screenshot you can see the mask applied on the image (2). (For those which work with previous versions of PI - find the downloaded, unzipped and in your EP stored mask P05 and double-click it.) Go to Edit/Fill/Color, choose the color Black and change the Transparency to 30 (red arrow). Click OK and deselect the mask (spacebar).

	Open the tube ... Terry_Shaded Eyes_Oct06 ..., copy (Ctrl+C) the tube, activate our main picture, and paste (Ctrl+V) the copy of the tube on it. Right click the tube on our main picture/Properties/ Position & Size/Position and use these settings: Left: 519 / Top: 80. Keep the tube activated, choose the Pick Tool (white hand) and change the Transparency to 10 (white arrow). With the tube still activated, right click/Shadow and use these settings: Black + 2.altern. (red arrow) + default settings. Click OK and deselect the tube (Enter). Open the text file - blend_035_text - copy (Ctrl+C) the text, activate our main picture, and paste (Ctrl+V) the copy of the text on it. Right click the text on our main picture, Properties/ Position & Size/Position and use these settings: Left: 278 / Top: 512. Merge All.

	Go to Adjust/Expand Canvas, and expand all sides equally with 5 Pixels, Color: 235/118/48. Right click/All, right click/Border, and use these settings: Border width: 10 Pixel (white hand), Direction: Inward (red arrow), Shape: Box and Anti-aliasing. Click OK and keep the border selected. Go to Edit/Fill/Color and fill the border with the color: 235/118/48 (Remember to reset the Transparency to 0%!). Deselect the border (spacebar). Right click/All, right click/Border, and use these settings: Border width: 9 Pixel, Direction: Inward, Shape: Box and Anti-aliasing. Keep the border selected.

	Maximize the duplicated background image (800x600), copy (Ctrl + C) the duplicate (1), go to Edit/Paste/Fit into Selection (red arrow). Keep the border activated. Go to Photo/Blur/Gaussian Blur/Options, and set the Radius to 10. Merge All. Go to Adjust/Expand Canvas, and expand all sides equally with 1 Pixel, Color: 235/118/48.
Here's the result in the original size :))


That's it! A beautiful picture ... made with PI, one tube, two masks and one text file. HAVE FUN!!!
If you need any help with this tutorial - or want to make suggestions to improve it - please email me!