creating a mosaic like this

[tomt]

Yes, there is a lot of information in the Painter help menu. There are several different ways to go about it. I'm a newbie here so can't show a method I've used in the past, but soon as I'm an approved member past the 2 post minimum, I'll try to get together a little tutorial.

[Cris-Palomino]

Since Tom has said he will post a tutorial, I'll let him...it's a great way to get to know others by sharing your knowledge.

What I will do, for now, is say, yes, you can make mosaics. A few things to keep in mind are to:

1. Design it in your head. The direction you want the pieces to go. All vertical, all horizontal, or to follow contours or shapes in your piece.

2. Work slowly. You get more even pieces when you do.

3. After you make your mosaic, clean up any pieces with a little postwork where the color got mismatched.

This is a sign I made: text on a background of colored squares, the last with a gradient. The letters could have had the gradient and that would be a different effect. This was done with mosaics and cloning.

http://www.elektralusion.com/painter/VictorySign.jpg

http://www.elektralusion.com/painter/CloneVictorySign.jpg

I'll wait to see what Tom puts together before making further comments. And welcome, Tom...looks like you're a new member from your post.

Cris

[sketchbook]

wow. thanks all.

i did see lots of stuff in the help menu, but i couldn't get it working. i was hoping i would not have to paint the tiles. did you do this by hand, or was it a setting?

this is a pretty rush job, so chances are i may need your help Cris. Paid of course.

will wait to see what tut's people come up with!

thanks so much!

[tomt]

Thanks for the welcome Cris.

I've done a quick little tutorial regarding the mosaic theme, although this isn't strictly a mosaic. My method will work for any kind of tiling look, I did go a little heavy handed with the 3D look, and is in definite need of toning down. Ah well, maybe the next time.

Enough excuses;
First, I started out much the same way Cris did, but I changed the letter S to a shape and stroked it with black in the Shape attributes drop down.

Then using the grid, snap to grid set, I drew the lines for the brick/tile grout lines. I used the Pen, flat color for this. I also drew two shape rectangles, the inner and outer border of the frame. I Committed all the shapes to layers, and collapsed all the layers to one layer. (Not the canvas)

This is where it gets interesting. I Color Selected the black areas from the Selection menu dropdown. I clicked on this area with the Layer Selector tool, to make the selection a layer. In the Layers menu, I moved this layer above the original. This is to keep it from inadvertantly merging back into the original layer when working further with it.
Then I went to the original layer, selected it, and using the Layer's menu on the toolbar, selected, "Create Layer Mask from Transparency".

Then I went to the Effects menu> Apply Surface Texture>Using the layers mask. Check the invert button. Then futz with the Softness, and the Amount. Experience will tell you more than I can here.

That's basically it. I'm sure I can give you more detail if asked, but with a little practice, you can do a whole heck of a lot better than I. In the finished example I also used "Apply Lighting" also from the Effect> Surface controll menu. Have fun.

Edit, one final note;
The original poster to this thread has show several examples of mosaic work. Although Painter can do a great job creating mosaics, as per Cris's example, and fairly fast, I think you would have a lot better control using my method or some variation of it. One very cool thing about Painter, there is always more than one way to creat a work.

[Cris-Palomino]

Nice tutorial, Tom. And, yes, there are many approaches. Jin might have a different way of doing this if she stops by. The only thing about what you've got is that it has more of a brick wall feel. The letters should also be made of mosaics. These comments per the examples provided. I have not found a way to have complete control over the mosaics in Painter, thus far, for very rigidly made mosaic patterns. It seems to be more of the random type mosaics which, in my opinion, can be very pretty and effective.

So it really depends on what kind of mosaic work you need to do, sketchbook.

If you need it to be more rigid, then employing the type of technique that Tom describes, but don't stagger the mosaic pieces; keep them more uniform and do the letters as well.

If it can be more randomized, you can follow the method I used.

1. Make your graphic that you wish to mosaic-ize.

2. With that file selected, go to File>Quick Clone. A new file is created that says "Clone of <your file title>".

3. Canvas>Make Mosaic. Mosaic dialog box appears; "Use Tracing Paper" is likely to be checked. If you uncheck it, the image of your original file will disappear. (White is the default grout color, but by clicking in the grout square, you can change the grout to whatever color you wish.)

4. In the Color Palette, Clone Color should be on. (There is an icon that looks like a little rubber stamp; click on that. When Clone Color is on, the colors look dimmed.) This will use the colors from your original file.

5. Use the tracing paper to know where your graphic shapes are and to be able to follow those shapes with the mosaics. You will dimly see the tiles appear over your image that you are tracing. To see the mosaics at full strength, turn tracing paper off and turn back on to continue.

6. Once you have placed mosaics (example, the letters in my graphic were done first; the tiles in thee direction of the shapes - the outer shape, the dark line were done second in the same fashion), you can safely draw mosaic lines down vertically (as in my example) over any existing tiles; it will not displace them.

7. Draw slowly and evenly. Postwork any bits necessary.

8. Play with Apply Surface Texture using Image Luminance to give the mosaics dimensionality. If you are going to put the sign in perspective in your final image, you may wish to apply your perspective before applying the surface.

The reason for quick clone is that it preserves the original document (in case, as example, you want to try another version).

I apologize for not showing example images for the steps...I'm a littel pressed for time. Please feel free to post questions or comments. Let us know how it works out.

Cris

[sketchbook]

i am after more of the example like you did cris,

thanks tom for the info as well.

cris, is there a way to add dimension to this, or would you do that in post? also, is there a way to make the tiles les hard edged. like roundy on the corners, etc?

thanks!

[Cris-Palomino]

Hi, sketchbook...that would be where the Apply Surface Texture comes in.

I distorted the mosaic-ed sign and played with depth and lighting.

http://www.elektralusion.com/painter/Clone%20of%20VictorySignAST.jpg

Hope that helps.
Cris

P.S. additional sheen and other things will need postwork (to look more like the images you showed as examples) - this gives you one look and something to start with

[tomt]

Here is something I think you were looking for Sketchbook. Done basically the same way as I stated in my previous post. I just worked on the idea to give a more inlayed tile look. You can do squarish tile just as easily.

I didn't realize that Cris was working on the same idea from her viewpoint, and I didn't realize you have that much versatility with Painter's tile tools. Live and learn. I'm thinking that the two methods can be combined. I'll have to work on that idea, but not tonight. Thanks Cris for making me think outside the box, and thanks sketchbook for giving me something to think about

I thought I submitted a more detailed version of this post earlier, but don't see it up. If this one is redundant, I'll remove it.

[Cris-Palomino]

That's cool what you've done there and I think you could do the more precision-type mosaics with that as I suggested in my post. Thanks for posting the image...that demonstrates the possibilities.

I am always pleased when I see people use their initiative to come up with a different angle on the same problem. We all get to learn new things things way.

Your post is not redundant at all, IMO.

Very nice alternative way of working.

Cris

[Cris-Palomino]

sketchbook,

I did forget to address your question on rounding the corners...I didn't find a way to do that in the tiling process...I tried using Softness in the Apply Surface Texture dialog...does it look a little rounder?

http://www.elektralusion.com/painter/Clone of VictorySignsoft.jpg

[Jinbrown]

Hi folks,

There's a whole chapter on Mosaics in Painter IX Help Topics where you should find a lot of answers:

Painter IX Help > Help Topics > Mosaics


You'll also find information on Mosics via the Help menu in the following Painter versions:

Painter 8 Help > Help Topics > Mosaics

Painter 7 Help > Help Topics > Mosaics

Painter 6 Help > Mosaics (opens a PDF file)

Painter 5 Help > Index > Contents tab > Working with Mosaics

[sketchbook]

sketchbook,

I did forget to address your question on rounding the corners...I didn't find a way to do that in the tiling process...I tried using Softness in the Apply Surface Texture dialog...does it look a little rounder?

http://www.elektralusion.com/painter/Clone of VictorySignsoft.jpg

yes, this looks better!

thanks a bunch!

so, i am ultimately using this in a 3d scene and will use the image for the color and the numb channels, so this will work really well (without the camera angle, but just flat).

cris, can i send you some artwork for this effect early in the week? email me offlist and we can discuss the cost.

insert @ and . below

joe () sketchbookinc () com

thanks!

[Cris-Palomino]

Joe, if you're doing this 3D, then you should do a bump or displacement map for the tiles and not use a filter effect.

I'll send you an email and we can talk.

Cris

[Cris-Palomino]

With everything I've done with Painter, there are still a ton of things I haven't done or tried. So I went and looked and found something that I had tried, but forgotten about.

There is a part of the the Painter Effects menu called Esoterica. I took my original image in there and applied Custom Tile using squares. I applied a white grout, no angle, played with scale, left blur radias and passes at default, upped the thickness slightly.

http://www.elektralusion.com/painter/VictorySign_squares.jpg

I duplicated it the layer (just to preserve the original) and went to Apply Surface Texture. I gave it a high shine. Decided to make another and give it a good reflection...this muted the colors...I also added more shine.

I made the doc a psd and took it into Photoshop...at this point I'm manipulating the image, and for me, it's just faster in PS because I know it so well.

I made a layer mask on the reflected version and showed some areas through to the non-reflective just to give it color variance. I set that non-reflective layer to overlay to up the colors a bit.

http://www.elektralusion.com/painter/TesterSign.jpg

For 3D, I would create a color, specular and bump or displacment map, but for 2D, this is what I would do.

Cris

[Mu]

This has been a very exciting read so far folks as I have been totally not in the know of Painter's mosaic features...


:thumbsup:

I think I'll give it a try with one of my watercolor sketches and post it in here...:)

[sketchbook]

Joe, if you're doing this 3D, then you should do a bump or displacement map for the tiles and not use a filter effect.

I'll send you an email and we can talk.

Cris

yup, i will use a bump or displacment or normal map, to make it pop out in 3d, but it will still need beveled edges and all that for the bump to look good. i don't need a surface texture or glossyness or any of that but i do need it to look like raised tiles with rounded edges. make sense?

did you send me an email? if so i might have spammed it away. please send again.

thanks!

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