Tài iệu Photoshop cs5 by Dayley part 80 doc

n Using Paths In the previous sections, we discussed path components, the vector tools used to create paths, and Paths panel used to manage paths.. FIGURE 17.27 Selecting the Ellipse too

You share paths between documents by selecting them in the Paths panel of one document and then dragging

and dropping them into another document window in Photoshop n

Using Paths

In the previous sections, we discussed path components, the vector tools used to create paths, and Paths panel used to manage paths In this section, we put that knowledge to use in some of the common tasks that you can perform when working with tasks The following sections take you through some examples of creating and using paths

Creating a path

The first example we look at is creating a basic path using the following steps:

1 Select the Pen tool.

2 Set the mode to Paths in the Pen tool options menu.

3 Select the Ellipse tool from the Pen tool options menu.

4 Draw two circles by holding down the Shift key, as shown in Figure 17.27.

FIGURE 17.27

Selecting the Ellipse tool from the Pen tool options menu with the mode set to Paths adds circles to the current path

5 Use the Path Selection tool to select both circles, and then click the Exclude

over-lapping shape area option in the Path Selection tool options menu to remove the center of the inner circle from the path area.

6 Click Combine in the Path Selection tool options menu to combine the path, as

shown in Figure 17.28.

FIGURE 17.28

Using the Exclude overlapping shape area option on the two paths removes the inner area from the path shape area

7 Use the Pen tool to add the points shown in Figure 17.29.

FIGURE 17.29

Using the Pen tool, you can create a simple handle by adding four path points

8 Use the Path Selection tool to move the new path so it touches the existing circles.

9 Use Convert Point tool to adjust the corners for the handle so they are round by

dragging the direction points, as shown in Figure 17.30

Click each corner to convert the corner to a smooth anchor, and then drag away from the

corner to add and shape the curves

FIGURE 17.30

Using the Convert Point tool converts the corners to smooth anchors and allows the line segments in the handle to become curves

handle and clicking the Add to Shape Area button in the options menu.

11 Select both the handle and the circles, and then click Combine to combine the two

areas into a single path, as shown in Figure 17.31.

FIGURE 17.31

Using the Combine button creates a single path from the two selected paths, completing the magnifying glass shape

Creating vector shapes from paths

In this example, we convert the path from the previous example into a vector shape using the fol-lowing steps:

1 Select the path using the Path Selection tool.

2 Right-click the selected path to bring up the menu shown in Figure 17.32.

3 Select Define Custom Shape… from the menu to bring up the Shape name dialog

box shown in Figure 17.32.

4 Name the shape, and click OK to add the new shape to the Custom Vector Shapes

menu, as shown in Figure 17.32 You can view the Custom Vector Shapes by select-ing Edit ➪ Preset Manager and then selecting Custom Shapes in the PresetType

drop-down list.

FIGURE 17.32

Converting a shape to a path is as simple as right-clicking it and selecting Define Custom Shape from the pop-up menu The new shape is added to the Custom Shapes list

Creating a clipping mask

In this example, we create a clipping mask that can be saved with the file to mask any area outside

of a specific object when the file is printed:

1 Open an image in Photoshop.

2 Use the Pen tool to create a path around an object in the image, as shown in Figure

17.33

You need to adjust the curved anchor points so the line segments follow the perimeter of

the object

Use the Pen tool to create a path around an object in the picture The object is the only thing included when the clipping mask is applied

3 Select the working path in the Paths panel.

4 Select Save Path from the Paths panel menu to save the path

Photoshop doesn’t allow you to make a clipping path until you have saved the path

You need to name the path In this case, we named the path Salt Shaker, as shown in Figure 17.34

5 Select Clipping Path… from the Paths panel menu to launch the Clipping Path

dia-log box shown in Figure 17.35.

6 Select the saved path, and set the flatness

In this case, we set the flatness to 5 device pixels to keep the sharpness good enough while still supporting most printers Flatness determines the number of lines used to draw the curve A lower flatness value will result in a greater the number of straight lines used to draw the curve and consequently a more accurate curve Flatness values can

FIGURE 17.34

Use the Save Path dialog box to name the path something meaningful The working path with be changed to the saved path name in the Paths panel

FIGURE 17.35

Select the path and flatness when creating the clipping path

7 Click OK to make the path a clipping path.

8 Save the file as a format that supports clipping masks, typically EPS or TIFF

The file is created with the clipping path data.

Creating vector masks

In this example, we create a vector mask that will be added to a layer to mask part of the pixels using the following steps:

1 Open an image in Photoshop.

2 Use the Pen tool to create a path around an object in the image, as shown in Figure

17.36

In this case, the path is a simple ellipse around the dog’s face.

3 Select the working path in the Paths panel.

4 Select Save Path from the Paths panel menu to save the path

Photoshop doesn’t allow you to make a vector mask from the path until you have saved

the path, as shown in Figure 17.36