of Xeno-waffles
and Dog-Dreams
Using XenoDream with Project Dogwaffle
Using XenoDream with Project Dogwaffle
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| To Probe Further: |
| XenoDream.com |
Getting Started:
For starters, let's just work with a single, static image. It was rendered in XD 2 and saved in Targa format.
If you're interested in experimenting with it, here is a zip file containing the original .xep file and the rendered Targa image file: Spheration-0001.zip (114 kb)
From
PD Pro, load the image by selecting File > Open...
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Using Thumbnails View mode in Windows
normally doesn't show the thumbnails of Targa images. However, there is
a free plugin available from Greggman, highly recommended. It extends
Windows Explorer so as to add support for Targa thumbs.The plugin is named Thumb plug TGA. You can find a link to it in here or at greggman
This is a must-have, especially if you plan on using Dogwaffle's favorite, Default Targa format.
< click for larger view
| many more free tutorials from PD 2.1 |
Some image formats (like Jpeg) can't hold a selection mask. Others (like Tiff, Targa, Png and more) can contain an Alpha channel in addition to the RGB channels. After loading an image file, you may want to check if an alpha channel mask was also loaded from it. (it may not be enabled automatically).
Alpha > Alpha on/off
in order to toggle visibility of the alpha channel.
The animated, marching ants lines in this example show that XenoDream rendered the objects against the black background and set the selection mask (or transparency) to contain the objects.
< Click to enlarge
You can separately store and view the alpha channel as a greyscale image.
Select menu:
Alpha > Store alpha...
and of course you can store the RGB channels of the image as well.:
Image > Store image...
With a selection present as shown in the alpha channel, you can directly load a copy of that selection into the brush as a current custom brush.
Simply use the menu:
Brush > Use selected as brush
This will transfer the pixels in the selection into the brush, using transparency according to the alpha channel.
With the custom Brush defined, you can store tha too:
menu: Brush > Store / manage...
This will show a thumbnail view of the brush
image, with transparency checker pattern as applicable.You can now start using this brush. For example, the brush manager lets you change size, rotation, and color components of the brush image.
So, if you initially rendered the scene in some golden tones but later wish to experiment with other color variants, you can do a lot of these changes through the controls in the brush manager.
Here's a first look at many silly things to try, using this image-based brush :
Set a blue-green-ish tint, and reduce the size:
Or use random Hue changes (from the Brush Options panel)
or use random sizes, angles, and speed based sizes (or pressure based with tablets) and then add some filters for special effects. Such as the Mystic Vision effect:
Or use the Color Sobel edge filter on the inverted image
And to think that these all started from the same one and a single render in XenoDream.
Next, we'll go into animations, using a sequence of images rendered in XD2.
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