Xara :: How To Create Artificial Reflection Beneath Irregularly Shaped Object
Jul 30, 2011
Today's challenge was to create an artificial reflection beneath an irregularly shaped object.
In the past I've been asked to add reflections where the reflection is simply a plane that cuts horizontally across the entire object (example 1), and where the object to be reflected is skewed (example 2) - both operations are pretty straight forward...
Example 3 is the object (a duvet) to which I had to add a floor reflection. I did come up with a solution, which I am reasonably happy with, but would love to see what methods other people use! I guess my attempt is OK because the texture and shape of the duvet is fairly forgiving!
Do you have a better method for these irregular floor reflections?
Example 4 is perhaps the trickiest I can imagine as the entire object is curved and the texture uniform so a bodge job will be very obvious!
Perhaps this can't easily be done in Xara - I imagine it could be painted in a bitmap package or rendered with a 3d package... or photographed with a reflection in the first place!
Is there a way to find the exact area of an irregularly shaped object? If there is, does the procedure work for compound paths (objects with holes in them)?
I've searched on "irregular" and "gradient" and a few other terms, but I did not find anything from the past to answer my question. If I am repeating an old topic, I'm sorry.
I am trying to find an easy way to create gradient fills that are not linear or circular. I want to create them in irregular shapes. So far, the only way I can think of is to draw my shape, select it, fill it, then go to Select>Modify>Contract then fill it with a slightly lighter color then repeat the process over and over and over again until I reach the center. I could certainly create an action to do the contraction of the selection so it would be a little easier, but I would still have to change the fill color each time and then fill the new shape. Is there an easier way?
I'll attach an image to show you what I am talking about. This one has banding since I do not have the patience to contract the selection one pixel at a time over and over. I am hoping that there is an automated way. Incidentally, I am using version 7. I am not completely opposed to upgrading if the feature exists in a newer version, but I am hopeful that there is some feature I am not aware of that will make it easy even in my version.
I want to insert text on an image, using a text box is the ideal way to ensure the text wraps nicely, etc. However I do not want the text to be in a standard rectangular or square text box but one of my own irregular shape.
We (several people at my company including myself) are having a problem where we set up sheets for plotting in paperspace that include multiple viewports. Often, the projects require us to use irregularly shaped viewports (i.e. not square/rectangular). When we print the sheets to our plotter, to PDF, or to any other printer, the page looks fine. However, if we print them to DWF using the DWF6 ePlot.pc3, the viewports will square off, allowing items that were not supposed to be shown outside of the viewport to come through. This has caused extra information to show up across our sheets, making portions of them unreadable.
We are at a loss on how to work around this, beyond only using square/rectangular viewports. Is there a way to get the DWFs to match what we can get out of other plotters?
I will receive a 2D object and a normal pass. And from that I need to create some shperical image that will be mapped on to the image without being in 3D space. I know it's somehow possible in Fusion using some global pointers. Is something similar possible in Smoke?
Smoke 2012 SAP2 SP4 and Smoke 2013 SP2 (Smoke Classic Keyboard Shortcuts) Mac Pro 4,1 OS X 10.6.7 12 GB RAM NVIDIA Quadro 4000 14 TB RAID (Areca)
I am having some trouble with a file in Illustrator CS6. Within a layer, when I add a fill to an object, the fill doesn't block out the object paths beneath. For instance, say I have a square object overlapping a circle object in Layer 1. The square object is above the circle in the layer. When I add a fill to the square, the circle stroke still shows through the square even though the overlapped part should be blocked out by the fill. The square is set to normal visibility, and I have made sure that there are no duplicate paths that would account for what I am seeing. (I.e., it's not a case where there's a second identical circle path that is on top of the square, so that it remains visible in spite of the fill.)
Other details: - I'm mainly working with a white fill, but the problem is the same with fills of any color - When there's a fill color in the circle path as well, the circle's fill color *is* blocked out—just not its stroke. - I have restarted Illustrator and restarted my computer and these have not changed anything. - There are other layers within the same document where the normal layering rules work. - I tried copy/pasting some of the problem objects into a new document, and in the new document, the fill works properly. - If I move the problem objects to another layer, then the fill works as it should. But as I'm dealing with a number of paths, it doesn't make sense to create a layer for each to solve the problem.
I can't tell if it's a matter of working in too large or complex a file.
I just installed Xtreme 5 and am impressed. I have a hard time to learn it and wonder what would be a good way to master this wonderful program.
For example in the 3D Extrude Tool>Textures&Photos section I would like to reproduce the example but how do I use the Selector tool to make the reflection?
A while back I thought I saw a tutorial on how to reflect, mirror, text, but can't seem to find it now. I just want to show a reflection of a text phrase, the reflected text would have a gradient, to give the reflection a subtle effect. Once the text text is rotated I don't know how to "skew it' at the desired angle.
I do a lot of design for engraving and most of the items are odd shapes that I wish to fill with design. I wish to engrave a name in block letters on a heart shaped locket. I wish for the name itself, to be in the form of the heart. I know I can put a mold on the name and play with the handles to sort of get it close to a heart shape, but it occurred to me that it would be real nice to simply drop a photo of the item into the file, do a nice outline of the item with the pen tool or shape tool and after getting a real good outline...to just make that shape into a mold I could save and use to apply to most anything I wish to mold into a heart shaped form. Is there a way to make a shape outline...any unfilled shape into a "mold" and not have to play with the preset mold shapes that are found in the mold tool? Any way to save it once you went to the trouble of making it? I had hoped there would simply be a right click on the shape and a menu button saying "use as mold" or such. Another menu choice with "save as mold"...that would put the icing on the cake..
If I create a text object, then copy and duplicate, how do make the width of the duplicate text smaller whilst maintaining the length of the object. I have worked out that I can use borders around text to create a smaller version however the effect is not suffice.
Effectively what I want to achieve is the 'feather' effect that reduces the width but retain the overall shape and dimension without any distortions.
I am attempting to edit a scanned abstract drawing where many of the colors are similar, resulting in them printing as all the same shade of red. I am attempting to change some of the reds to have a greater degree of shading. I am aware that I can probably do this using masks and RGB tweaking; but it occurred to me that I can also use a drawn shape and color fill with transparency to change the shade. This worked very well; but it caused one problem I don't know how to solve.
The image I am editing is intended to be uploaded to a website named Zazzle that takes your artwork and puts it on their products. This includes anything from notecards to canvases, to clothing, to shoes, etc., etc. Customers browse the site to find products and images they like. I also have a free webpage on the site where I can promote the sale of these items with my artwork on them.
The image must be a high resolution preferably png file which can be resized greatly for the canvases or left as is for notecards and the like.
While experimenting with the size of my image, I discovered that the edits I performed stay the same size while the rest of the image increases. Is it possible to make the edited shapes part of the scanned image so they will increase and decrease with the rest of the image?
I am trying to use the flip canvass vertical command with the free transform tool to create a reflection below a harsichord with seven legs. I understand the technique with simple objects; however I fail to see how a complex object such as this can be given a reflection using this method.
I am using AutoCAD R14. I need to create a solid which is sort of wedge shaped. But the top surface twists (like a propeller blade). So it is not in any one plane. Also, that surface is not square (no right angles). The bottom surface is flat and in the x-y plane. It is a quadrilateral. The other three sides are a rectangular flat surface and two triangular flat surfaces.
I don't know how to create this shape as a solid. I was able to create several polylines to accurately describe the shape but then when I tried to join them together to create a solid using the UNION command I get the following error message: "At least two solids or coplanar regions must be selected." How can I create this solid?
i'm trying to create a custom shaped viewport. Instead of using just a rectangular viewport I need to make it polygon shaped. I know I've done it before but for the life of me I cannot remember how. I'm using ACAD MEP 2011.
I am using w7, x64 bit, illustrator. I am creating an owl. Only one side, for I am trying to reflect the right side to complete the whole owl. But, the reflections are not perfect. View this file, what I can do to perfect my idea? URL...
I would like to learn how to create a pizza slice shaped graphic similar to the one attached. Preferably in layers so that I can change the individual photos easily. Pizza segments must have rounded corners and be equal proportions. Individual images have a thick white border and gray stroke.
I cannot figure out how to create a flexible T-shaped dynamic block. It falls apart scattering the linework all over the screen. My constrain parameters for width, height and thickness are not controlling the lines. I have an I-beam shape that works, but using that to make a Tee didn't work. Or a link as to creating semi-complex dynamic blocks.
I'm trying to create a hole in a sheet-metal part so that a pipe can be welded in it, see attached picture. What's the best method to do this? Because the flat-pattern of this hole isn't an ellipse-shape (more like an egg), it seems it's very difficult to do.
Product Design Suite 2014 Inventor 2012 SP2, Vault 2014 HP Workstation Z220 Intel Xeon 3.4GHz 16GB RAM Nvidia Quadro 4000 Windows 7 Professional (64bit)
1) on the attached, how do I produce the effect of the shaky light on the brick floor that can be seen on the 2 lights in background behind the swimming pool (tried shadow effects option) 2) the fire on the left hand side (in front) still looks too superimposed, even though I've tried some of the things I was advised to do on a similar post (adjust vibrant mid tones, use burn tool etc).
I'm working on a UDK level for a college assignment.
I want to create a circular shaped elevator with a circular fence around it that's roughly half the size of an average sized character standing on it. I then wish it import this as a static mesh into UDK.
Here are 2 sketched up designs of the elevator, what I want to create.
1st image: [URL].... 2nd image: [URL]....
I am very new to 3DS Max so I would prefer a list of steps to follow to create this elevator with a a fence,