Need Help getting a picture to look like this again

[prschaff]

Hi everybody! I'm pretty new to this photo editing stuff so I need a little bit of help! I edited this pic of my niece for grad pics but I dont remember how I did or if it was even in this program. I was using the trial version of this & photoshop at the same time. Also, this program is really kickin my butt. Any ideas of a good book to get for help with it? Would like one with colored pics of before and after effects. Thanks so much for your help!!

[Ken Berry]

Welcome to the forums!

You don't say which version of PSP you are using... I suppose you realise the a new version (X4) was just released a couple of days ago, and has a neat new vignette filter which will certainly do what you want. But I will need to leave it to the experts to tell you how to do it with earlier versions.

[prschaff]

Sorry! Im using PSP x3 & it was a preset that I just adjusted. I did not physically create a seperate layer

[wds937]

Also, this program is really kickin my butt. Any ideas of a good book to get for help with it? Would like one with colored pics of before and after effects.

There are two books currently offered on the Corel website. Both have useful information, but each has a different focus. I have both books. I bought one from Corel and one from a local bookstore.

The book Picture Yourself Learning Corel PaintShop Photo Pro X3 is oriented toward learning to use PaintShop Pro. It has a lot of "how to" material (how to add text, how to print images, how to remove dust spots) as well as a lot of "how this works" material (how does the selection tool work, how does the crop tool work, what are the drawing tools). Nearly all of the pictures are in color, and there are many before/after pictures. The book is 400+ pages, and there is additional material on the enclosed CD.

• http://www.corel.com/corel/product/inde ... 3545-674-7

The other book, Photo Restoration and Retouching Using Corel PaintShop Photo Pro, 2nd Edition, is specifically oriented toward photo retouching and repair. It takes you through several projects involving such things as fixing creases, erasing ink pen marks, retouching people, etc. It is less about PSP than about fixing photographs; PSP is the tool that is used. This is not really a beginner's book, as it assumes a working knowledge of PSP before you start. This book is nearly 400 pages, and additional material is available via download.

• http://www.corel.com/corel/product/inde ... 3545-680-8

Both books are written to PSP X3, but most of the concepts will apply to any halfway-recent version of PSP (though I can't speak for X4).

Shop around, as prices vary. You may want to check all of your local bookstore, online merchants like amazon.com, and the Corel web site. For that matter, also search for other books on PSP. Even older ones (at least version 8 and newer) will still be largely applicable to newer versions up through X3 (and maybe beyond).


EDIT: It appears that the above two books are on sale right now on Corel's website at significantly reduced prices.

[wds937]

I edited this pic of my niece for grad pics but I dont remember how I did or if it was even in this program.

Without knowing what program you used, I can only guess, but I'll give it a try.

In PSP, this might be done using one of the picture frames, such as Antique Vignette or Edge Circles 01, possibly on a partially transparent layer.

In PhotoImpact, this might be done using the Edge 31 frame, or something similar. Better yet, try Spot Filter 1.

[teknisyan]

Like what KEN said PSP X4 has a Vignette Effect that you can access via EFFECT > PHOTO EFFECT > VIGNETTE...

You can download the PSP X4 trial at http://www.corel.com/trials

[Kathy_9]

Something else that may help you are some YouTube tutorials created by one of our members, LeviFiction http://www.youtube.com/user/LeviFiction#g/u

An added bonus is that if you have a question on something you don't understand in one of the tutorials, you can ask the question here in the forum and Levi or someone else will answer you.