This is a small tut about how to make some cut out icon's
It is supposed to be step by step and i made this in 10min time

You need to know the basics of photoshop!!

1 When you have opened your picture in photoshop use "magic-wand tool" (w) or
        "Polygonal lasso tool" (l) to cut out your figure you want to use,.(so the figure is selected)

2 Copy and make "new" (ctrl-n) with transparent background, paste the picture,..
     try to make clear edges and then image>>mode>>indexed color 40/50 or even 30,..
     after that set back to "RGB color"

3 Now copy again and open the icon frame,.. for ptf theme the topmenu icon is 64x48
     paste you figure into it and do a free-transform (right click picture) with
     "maintain aspect ratio" selected. and fit the figure into the icon frame,.

4 Create a new layer for the background, and use paint bucket to paint black.
     Offcourse this layer will be beneath the first layer so you still can see your figure

5 Hold CRTL and click the layer with your figure,.. the figure will be selected
     Go into the "Channels tab" and create a new channel if there already is a alpha1 channel
     then use that one.

6 You are in the alpha1 channel wich is black and the figure selection on it,.
     Use the "Brush Tool" (b) and make sure the brush is larger then the picture it self
     Select white color and brush,. you now have a black alpha1 channel with a white
     figure,..

7 Deselect and filter>>blur>>blur in the alpha1 channel then hold crtl and select the alpha1
     channel thumbnail, the white figure in the alpha1 channel is selected,.
     now right click the picture and select "select inverse" and then press "delete button"

8 Now select the whole alpha1 channel by using the "select tool" and left click drag
     arround the alpha1 channel and then edit>>copy

9 Now make new picture and select rgb in the new picture option window

10 Edit>>copy into the new picture and go to image>>mode>>indexed color
      select "local perceptual" and type 10 colors

11 Copy the whole picture and go back to your first picture and copy into the alpha1 channel

12 select RGB channel by pressing on the name

13 Go into the layers tab

Now image>>mode>>indexed color and select "local perceptual" again and set to 100(merge layers)
   i choose 100 but i could be 150 or maybe 40 depends on how many colors there are in your figure,.
   You hvae to play arround with this number untill rcoedit will except the bmp,..

14 image>>mode>>rgb colors

15 save your bmp as a 32bit,.. bmp

This is my quick tut i hope it is of any good,. could well be there is some better ways to make
icon's but this is how i do it

If you got any comment that would be :great:

My result:

(This post was last modified: 07/10/2007 02:40 PM by gsmoke.)

Mc Cabe Wrote:Very nice V,

I do it in a slightly different order but...

Good Tut

Yes could very well be i like the way i make my alpha1 channel icon that really works good

well that was quick n ill give it a try

u_c_taker Wrote:well that was quick n ill give it a try

I tried to keep it as simpel as posible,.

the trick part is to get under the 256 color count with both RGB and alpha1 channel,.
This is fairly good way to make it work,.
Its like this: Alpha1 and RGB channel together have to be under 256 colors,.
But if you have 10 colors in the alpha1 and do index color in RGB of 240 the color count won't be 10+240=250 colors
For some reason,.. so if you have 10 colors in the alpha1 they turn out to be like 25 colors and if you do indexed color in the rgb of 50 they arew about 200,..

well i did 1 icon n also put into rco but the icon is really transparent lol
n i have updated stock
i made the image 50 colors n alpha channel 5 colors
topemnu_plugin
n the final icon bmp

(This post was last modified: 08/10/2007 10:06 AM by u_c_taker.)

u_c_taker Wrote:well i did 1 icon n also put into rco but the icon is really transparent lol
n i have updated stock
i made the image 50 colors n alpha channel 5 colors
topemnu_plugin
n the final icon bmp

u_c you did something wrong,.. the picture in the alpha channel should be white and not a grey picture,..

I quees i made the tutoriol not completely good,.. haha

Take a look at the icon below,.. look at the alpha channel,..

(This post was last modified: 08/10/2007 10:42 AM by Vegetano1.)

oh ok i get it although it my brush was white it was grey i think i had to press the brush 4 more times to make it proper white

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thaks v1

u_c_taker Wrote:thaks v1

Now you can make aplha1 color 10 and rgb indexed color maybe 60