[img]http://www.genaw.com/linda/translucent_supplies/brooch_final.jpg[/img]

[b]TRANSLUCENT JEWEL TUTORIAL[/b] 
This tutorial was written for Paint Shop Pro 8 and X2

[b]SUPPLIES:[/b]
[list]
[*] [url=http://www.genaw.com/linda/translucent_supplies/brooch.png]brooch.png[/url]
[*] [url=http://www.genaw.com/linda/translucent_supplies/translucent_mask3.png]translucent_mask3.png[/url]
[/list]

1. Using the Freehand Selection Tool ([i]Point to Point, Mode: Replace, Feather: 2, Smoothing: 0, Anti-alias checked[/i]), select the areas of the gem that should be translucent. Press and hold the Shift key to add to the selection as needed. 

[img]http://www.genaw.com/linda/translucent_supplies/gem_marquee_screenshot.jpg[/img]

2. Save the selection to an Alpha Channel (Selections > Load/Save Selection > Save Selection to Alpha Channel).

3. Open "Translucent Mask 3.png". Set the Foreground color swatch to Pattern and choose the mask image ([i]Scale: 100, no rotation[/i]). 

4. Keeping the selection active, create a new layer above the brooch layer. Flood Fill the selection on that layer with the gray translucency pattern. Select None. 

Create another new layer in between the two layers and Flood Fill it with white. Merge the top two layers (Layers > Merge > Merge Down).

5. Now we will create a New Mask Layer from the gray and white layer. Go to Layers > New Mask Layer > From Image ([i]Source Luminance, Invert mask data, no change in Source window[/i]). 

Go to Selections > From Mask. Make the brooch layer active then press the Delete key. Select None and delete the mask layers. Duplicate the brooch layer (Layers > Duplicate) then merge them both (Layers > Merge > Merge Down). 

6. Load the selection from the Alpha Channel (Selections > Load/Save Selection > Load Selection from Alpha Channel).

7. I found that I ended up with a slightly visible checkerboard pattern on the gem but I found a way to fix that. With the brooch layer active, go to Adjust > Add-Remove Noise > Edge Preserving Smooth. I used a setting of 9 but play around with it until you get the effect you like. This blurred the gem slightly so I next applied the Unsharp Mask (Adjust > Sharpness > Unsharp Mask) to crisp it up again. I used these settings: [i]Radius: 2, Strength: 50, Clipping: 5[/i]. Below you can see how the gem looked before and after tweaking to remove the checkerboard pattern:

[img]http://www.genaw.com/linda/translucent_supplies/gem_before_closeup.jpg[/img]

[img]http://www.genaw.com/linda/translucent_supplies/gem_after_closeup.jpg[/img]

8. This is optional, because the results were subtle, but I also made a selection of the bright area on the upper left side of the gem and adjusted the Gamma (Adjust > Brightness/Contrast > Gamma Correction) a little ([i]Linked: 1.1[/i]). *

[img]http://www.genaw.com/linda/translucent_supplies/gem_marquee_screenshot2.jpg[/img]

9. I added a drop shadow to the brooch but it needed some manual tweaking. Because the gem is translucent, the shadow behind it will make it look too dark and drab so we'll fix that. 

Apply a Drop Shadow (Effects > 3D Effects > Drop Shadow) with these settings:
	Offsets: 2
	Opacity: about 70
	Blur: about 15
	Color: black
	Shadow on new layer: checked

10. Now go back to the layer with the gem on it and make it active. Load the selection from the Alpha Channel again. Make the Shadow layer active then press the Delete Key to remove the shadow from under the gem. Select None.

11. Go to File > Save As. Choose "Portable Network Graphics (*png)". Go to Options then click "Run Optimizer" (ignore the other settings in that box). Under the Colors tab, check "16.7 Million Colors". Under the Transparency tab, check "Alpha Channel Transparency" and "Existing Layer Transparency". Click OK then name your file and choose the location for it. 

[b]NOTES:[/b]

The lighter the mask pattern you use, the less translucent the image will become. A medium gray works best for most images but you may need to try lighter or darker masks to get the effect you like. The color of the image can make a difference in how dark the mask should be. 

What the mask does is change every other pixel in the image to a lower opacity leaving the alternating pixels opaque. Because the pixels are so tiny, you can't detect the tiny checkerboard pattern this creates but it allows you to be able to see through the image.

 If you think you might rotate the brooch image later when you use it in a collage, wait and add the drop shadow (using the steps above) at that time so that the shadow ends up at the correct angle. You will have to make a new selection at that time because the Alpha Channel selection won't be saved in PNG format.

* In Paint Shop Pro X2, you'll have to add the Adjust Gamma Correction tool to the toolbar and/or menu. It's not there by default. To add this tool, right-click on a blank area of the workspace and go to Customize. Under the Commands tab, choose the All Tools category (it's at the very bottom of the list). Under Commands, scroll down until you find Gamma Correction and drag it onto your toolbar.