[NewGenSTi]

ok, so I every time I try to change the color of wheels or anything it really doesnt work how all the tutorials show me. I make my selection, then got to replace color, and all I get is a rainbow effect and never a nice solid color change!!! please help!

[STI_Fever]

Are you using Photoshop? Please post an image of the wheel and what color you want to see it in.

[NewGenSTi]

well its not so much just a specific wheel or color, I am just trying to learn the feature for future use. You know rather than bothering you guys to do all my photoshops I would rather be able to do it myself.

I am using Photoshop CS Version 8

[boxtwo]

Not sure what the actual pallets or menu's are called because I use Fireworks, but the concept is the same. It sound like the fill is adding a gradient. Once you have changed the color, with the object or vector still selected, there should be a "Properties" or "Fill" Pallet. In there will be an option for the type of fill, color, pattern, transparency, etc. It is in that section that you can change the properties of the fill.

Sorry for being vague, I don't have the program in front of me, but I hope that made sense!

[STI_Fever]

Chop Tutorial

Here are the before and after. Notice the "after" is not perfect, I did not spend much time on it. You can make it as nice as you want, if you spend the time.

Before



After



Steps for an older version of PS:

1. Duplicate your original image or make a backup. Make sure your image is not a GIF. If it is, "Image > Mode > RGB Color".

2. Show Layers, Show Channels

3. Click the "Channels" tab on the Layers Palette. Click on the arrow, choose "New Channel." Any name is OK.

4. Click on the Lasso Tool

5. Make sure your new channel is highlighted (you should be working in your new channel). Click on the "eye" of your "RGB" Channel so you can see it too while you work.

You should have an image and a channel setup that looks close to this:



6. A "mask" or white area will be created in Channel Alpha 2. The channel will eventually look like this:



To make the white shape, use the Lasso Tool to surround the area, which you can see by looking at the original image. Hold down the "Alt" key and lasso an area and fill it with white. This will take a while. You made need to zoom in to see well enough. The easiest way to fill in the area with white is with the "Delete" key. This works when white is set as your background color. Keep selecting all the areas you want to change to a single color, in this case blue. You should create a new channel if you plan on changing the wheel colors. Each color (or item like a wheel or a hood) would need its own channel.

While working in the channel, it will look close to this (this is a simulated screen capture):


8. When your mask is complete in Alpha 2, turn it off by clicking on the eye again. Click on the layers tab. Go ahead and duplicate your image to keep a backup copy in another layer (click on the layer with your original image in it, and choose "Duplicate Layer". Turn off the layer with the backup copy in it by clicking on the eye (so it will not interfere with what you are trying to do). Now for the fun part.

9. Click on "Select" > Load Selection > Channel (open the dropdown) > select Alpha 2, then OK

10. You should see a marquis now on your original image.

11. To change colors, try the following in varying degrees to get what you want. I will describe what I did to get the green color. It is more than just a "hue" change, there is a saturation change and probably a lightness change.

Image Adjust > Hue Saturation > Hue - slide to minus 29, OK
Saturation about minus 27
Lightness plus 10

12. The advantage of the mask in the channel is it is reuseable. To make a new color, just duplicate your layer again (make another copy of your original image) and then apply your mask again.

13. Select > Load Selection> channel, choose alpha 2 from the dropdown. This time choose a different hue, saturation and lightness/darkness.

14. Accumulate your different colors in a new image:

[NewGenSTi]

Originally Posted by STI_Fever

6. To be Continued

ahh you left me hangin. haha

[Parker]

the above directions sound a little more complicated than they need to be...but there are many ways to do this. I just:

1. duplicate layer
2. lasso areas to be changed
3. Image --> Adjustments --> Color Balance
4. Adjust sliders until desired color is achieved

[STI_Fever]

Tutorial completed.

[NewGenSTi]

Wonderful, The tuturials I went through used the replace color option, which I guess would work fine on solid colors, but anything with shadows and reflections just made a mess of it.


THANKS !!!!!!!!!!!!

[midnit]

Yeah, replace color on cars isn't so hot... The above tutorial is actually pretty damn good!