STEP 1
In this first step, let's just get everything set up for the tutorial. Then we'll be able to proceed efficiently!
Set the foreground style to pattern and select the ss-yellowplaid pattern I provided in the "goodies" download - or a jacket pattern of your choice! If you're using the yellow plaid, set the Scale to 50%, and the Angle to 0. Now set the foreground style back to solid, color white.
Set the background style to pattern and select the Scarf pattern distributed with PSP, setting the Scale to 100%, and the Angle to 36. Now set the foreground style back to solid, color black.
Turn the foreground texture ON and set it to the ss-fur2_texture I provided in the "goodies" download. We'll be using this to get some texture for the snowbear's fur. It's important to note that the foreground texture will be enabled only for the bear's body (and the pompom on his hat), and then disabled again. Unpredictable results can occur if you forget to turn this option off when directed!
The Color Palette is now pretty much set up for the snowbear! Just remember to use the LEFT mouse button to flood fill with the foreground pattern or color, and the RIGHT mouse button to flood fill with the background pattern or color!
Note: This tutorial contains a lot of flood filling! I will not always remind you to change your foreground and/or background style from solid to pattern, or vice versa! I will merely tell you to flood fill with the plaid or the scarf pattern or this or that color! I'll just assume you know to change from one to the other as we go along!
There are many selections for this tutorial - basically, that's why I had to make disk selections rather than use the alpha channels, as there are only 24 of those available! Quite often, I will load several selections on the same layer, only changing layers when it is necessary! This "necessity" arises either because of the actions that must be performed on a selection, or because other layers will eventually need to be inserted between existing layers. As long as you load the selections in the order listed, you should not run into any problems. However, you may load each selection on a separate layer if you want to!
With all that said, let's get down to work!
STEP 2
Open a new transparent image, 700 x 750. I know this is large, but it's much easier to work with a large image, and then resize it smaller! Add a new raster layer, naming it "leftarm". Load the 01leftarm selection from disk. Flood fill with black, and then with white - the white will be textured! Deselect. Apply the Eye Candy 4000 Jiggle effect using the ss-snowbear preset.
Note: We will be creating all bear parts using this same procedure -
- Flood fill with black
- Flood fill with textured white
- Deselect
- Apply EC4000 Jiggle with the ss-snowbear preset!
Save your work.
STEP 3
Add a new raster layer, naming it "chest". Load the 02chest selection. Flood fill and "jiggle" as above.
Save your work!
STEP 4
Add a new raster layer, naming it "bottom". Load the 03bottom selection. Flood fill and "jiggle" as above.
Save your work!
STEP 5
Add a new raster layer, naming it "ears". Load the 04ears selection. Flood fill and "jiggle" as above.
On the same layer, load the 05earshadow selection. Setting the background color to dark grey (#808080), flood fill the selection - you do not want to pick up the texture which affects the foreground color! Be sure to change the background color back to black before continuing!
Tip: For a quick change of colors, use the Recent Colors dialog box - the top section always displays the same basic 10 colors or greys, including both dark grey (4th color, top row) and black (4th color, second row)!
Merge all layers but the background layer now, renaming the merged layer "body1".
Save your work!
STEP 6
Continuing on with the snowbear body, add a new raster layer, naming it "head". Load the 06head selection. Flood fill and "jiggle" as above.
Save your work!
STEP 7
Add a new raster layer, naming it "rightarm". Load the 07rightarm selection. Flood fill and "jiggle" as above.
Save your work!
STEP 8
Add a new raster layer, naming it "leftpaw". Load the 08leftpaw selection. Flood fill and "jiggle" as above.
Add a drop shadow to the left paw using the following settings:
Vertical offset (0)
Horizontal offset (0)
Opacity (17)
Blur (17)
Shadow color (black)
Save your work.
STEP 9
Add a new raster layer, naming it "snout". Load the 09snout selection. Flood fill and "jiggle" as above. Apply the same drop shadow as in Step 8 - the settings should still be there.
On the same layer, load the 10eyes selection from disk. Flood fill with black and apply an inner bevel using the PSP Round preset.
On the same layer, load the 11nose selection. Flood fill with black and apply the same inner bevel as above, EXCEPT change the Depth to 38.
Deselect and save your work.
STEP 10
Add a new raster layer, naming it "cheeks". Load the 12cheeks selection, and flood fill with color #CF5F49 - be sure to use the background for this color so as not to pick up the foreground texture! Lower the opacity on this layer to 40-60, whatever you'd like! We want pink cheeks, but not too bright!
Deselect and save your work!
STEP 11
Activate the "head" layer. Add a new raster layer, naming it "pompom". Load the 13pompom selection. Flood fill with black, then the textured white, as above. Deselect, and apply EC4000 Jiggle, changing the Bubble Size to 10, the Warp Amount to 3, and the Twist to 70 - leave all other settings as before.
We're now finished with the "furry" parts, so turn the foreground texture to OFF.
Save your work!
STEP 12
Add a new raster layer, naming it "hat". Move this layer below the "pompom" layer. Load the 14hat selection, and flood fill with the yellow plaid pattern.
On the same layer, load the 15hatshadows selection and flood fill with dark grey (#808080). Reload the 14hat selection, invert the selection, and apply a drop shadow with the following settings:
Vertical offset (0)
Horizontal offset (0)
Opacity (55)
Blur (22.1)
Shadow color (black)
Deselect and save!
STEP 13
Add a new raster layer, naming it "hatband". Load the 16hatband selection, and flood fill with the scarf pattern. I muted the color a bit by selecting Colors...Adjust...Brightness/Contrast, with Brightness = 0 and Contrast = -20 (minus 20).
Invert the selection and apply the same drop shadow as in Step 12. Deselect.
Gently soften the edges of the hat band a bit by selecting the Retouch tool with the following settings:
Shape (Round)
Size (6 to 10)
Hardness (22)
Opacity (44)
Step (9)
Density (40)
Mode (Soften)
Note: Change the Mode first! Each mode of the Retouch brush retains all its previous settings, so when you change the mode, all other settings are reset to what they were the last time you used the Retouch brush with that mode!
You can merge the last 3 layers if you want - "pompom", "hat", and "hatband" - renaming the merged layer "hat".
Save your work!
STEP 14
Now let's make the snowbear's jacket! Activate the "rightarm" layer. Add a new raster layer, naming it "jacket1". Load the 17rightjacket selection and flood fill with the plaid pattern. Invert the selection and apply the same drop shadow as above.
On the same layer, load the 18leftjacket selection and flood fill with the plaid pattern. Invert the selection and apply the same drop shadow as above.
Continuing on the same layer, load the 19leftsleeve selection. Flood fill with the plaid pattern, invert the selection, and apply the same drop shadow as above.
Still on the same layer, load the 20leftcuff selection. Flood fill with the plaid pattern and apply a drop shadow with the following settings:
Vertical offset (7)
Horizontal offset (5)
Opacity (25)
Blur (22.1)
Shadow color (black)
Invert the selection and apply the same drop shadow as in Step 12 - settings repeated below:
Vertical offset (0)
Horizontal offset (0)
Opacity (55)
Blur (22.1)
Shadow color (black)
Deselect and save your work!
STEP 15
Add a new raster layer, naming it "jacket2". Load the 21rightsleeve selection and flood fill with the plaid pattern. Invert the selection and apply the same drop shadow as above - settings will still be there.
On the same layer, load the 22rightcuff selection and flood fill with the plaid pattern. Apply a drop shadow with the following settings:
Vertical offset (5)
Horizontal offset (0)
Opacity (25)
Blur (22.1)
Shadow color (black)
Invert the selection and apply a drop shadow with the same settings as in Step 12 - settings repeated below:
Vertical offset (0)
Horizontal offset (0)
Opacity (55)
Blur (22.1)
Shadow color (black)
On the same layer, load the 23jacketshadows selection and flood fill with dark grey (#808080).
Continuing on the same layer, load the 24patch selection, flood fill with the plaid pattern, invert, and apply the same drop shadow we have been using EXCEPT change the blur to 7.4.
Load the 25patchstitching selection and flood fill with a contrasting color - I used #7E8A9F.
Deselect and save!
STEP 16
Almost finished with the jacket! Continuing on the same layer, load the 26pocket selection and flood fill with the plaid pattern. Invert the selection and apply a drop shadow with the following settings:
Vertical offset (-6)
Horizontal offset (11)
Opacity (45)
Blur (22.1)
Shadow color (black)
Load the 27pockettrim selection, flood filling with the contrasting color.
Now open the pocketbear.psp file and copy the bear image. Returning to your snowbear image, load the 28pocketbear selection and paste the copied image into the selection. Apply a drop shadow with the following settings:
Vertical offset (5)
Horizontal offset (-4)
Opacity (36)
Blur (22.1)
Shadow color (black)
Finally, load the 29jackettrim selection and flood fill with the contrasting color.
Deselect and save your work!
STEP 17
One last thing for the jacket - we need to add buttons! I used the blue button from the buttonset in the accessories kit provided with the tutorial, at 72% for the 2 jacket buttons, and about 60% for the pocket button. You may want to place these buttons on separate layers so you can move them around into position. Place the first button over the top button hole on the left side of the jacket. Place the second button on the right side of the jacket, across from its buttonhole. And place the third, smaller button on the pocket!. Apply a slight drop shadow using the following settings to each of the buttons:
Vertical offset (0)
Horizontal offset (0)
Opacity (94)
Blur (7.4)
Shadow color (black)
Save your work!
STEP 18
Let's build that scarf, and we'll be finished with the snowbear! Activate the "jacket1" layer. Add a new raster layer, naming it "scarf". Load the 30scarf selection and flood fill with the scarf pattern. Mute the scarf color as you did with the hat band in Step 13 - the settings for the Colors...Adjust...Brightness/Contrast dialog should still be intact. Invert the selection and apply a drop shadow with the following settings:
Vertical offset (0)
Horizontal offset (0)
Opacity (55)
Blur (22.1)
Shadow color (black)
Deselect. Reactivate the Retouch tool with the same settings as before, and soften the edges of the scarf.
Save your work!
STEP 19
Now for the scarf tails! Activate the "body1" layer. Add a new layer, naming it "scarftails". Load the 31upperscarftail selection, flood fill with the scarf pattern, muting the color as before. Invert the selection and apply the same drop shadow as in the previous step.
On the same layer, load the 32lowerscarftail selection, flood fill with the scarf pattern, and mute the color as before. Invert the selection and apply the same drop shadow.
Deselect, and use the Retouch tool to soften the edges of both scarf tails. You may want to hide the "jacket2" and "rightarm" layers to do this.
Save your work!
STEP 20
Finally, let's add the fringe to the scarf tails. Add a new layer naming it "fringe" - drag this layer below the "scarftails" layer in the Layer Palette. I used the Rope tube provided with PSP for the fringe, setting the Scale at 32 - yes, I know, the color's wrong, but we'll fix that in a moment! Place several short pieces of rope/fringe along the edges of the scarf. When you have the fringe as you want it, colorize using a Hue of 155 and Saturation of 52.
Save your work!
Hurrah! You've finished the snowbear! This is a good time for a rest! I've included instructions and selections for building the fence, broom, and snow, so after you take your break, click HERE to continue!
If you have any problems, comments, or questions, please do not hesitate to Email me.
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