Video Tutorial: Using PS ‘Liquify’ on SecondLife snapshots
April 19, 2007 11:14 amI’ve - tried to - explain this to other avies in-world for over 20 times now, and frankly, I’ve gotten rather tired of shouting out ‘use the frigging liquify tool to correct that!!!’ over and over. Badly made clothing edges, avie limbs seriously messed up by strange poses, squared parts that should be round, strange shadows, prim sticking in or out, exaggerated breast size, … most of this snapshot problems can be very easily corrected by doing some basic post-processing using the ‘Liquify’ tool in PS.
An example:
I was going to write a tutorial about this already ages ago. And then I realized I needed tons and tons of screenshots to go with it, and that I had to aquire those by taking a snapshot in PS, going to GIMP, pasting it, continuing with the liquify tool in Photoshop, taking another snapshot, going back to GIMP, copying, and back to Photoshop, and again, and again and again…
So I gave up on my ‘Text Tutorials uber Alles!’ resolution and made a video tutorial. It’s my first one evvah so please, be mild. If you have any more questions: *points at the comments and miaws*.
This video tutorial is shot in Photoshop CSII (maybe III has even more options there?) and is only a basic. Now you know that the liquify option exists, and what it does, play around with it. Get the hang of it. Experiment. And then show me some results! I’m curious!! Ow, and if you want to play with it without watching my tutorial first, you can find ‘Liquify’ in the ‘Filters’ menu. ;)
Video-tut on using the liquify tool in Photoshop to correct avatar forms and clothes in SecondLife snapshots:
Errors against the English language I bravely admit:
- Cloth should be dress.
- ‘First and all’ is no English. At all.
- Ctrl+Alt+Z is very bad pronounced and sounds like Ctrl+Alt+C.
- …
- …
- …
I beg for forgiveness for those! There was only one take for video and one take for voice. Next time, I’ll try harder (or just go with text again). *grins* *playfully moves her neko-ears* ;)
44 Responses to “Video Tutorial: Using PS ‘Liquify’ on SecondLife snapshots”
with this wonderful software you should change the hakenkreuz at your ugly nazi-costume in a dead chicken or something else!
Hey Vint, I’m a new reader of your blog, and I absolutely love this tutorial! Just earlier I was lamenting the blockiness on a snapshot I’d taken and wondering how to fix it. Now I know how! Thanks a lot - and I really like the video format, it makes things very clear. :)
Great Video Vint! English was fine. Torrey Linden’s got nothing on you for keeping the listener entertained… ;-)
Hahaha…the ‘breast enlargement’ steps alone were enough for me to need to watch your tutorial!!
Looking forward to more…
Hey Vint, so jealous of your skills….:D:D
Have you ever used the GIMP photo software at all? if so any tips?
TY!!!!!!
xXx.
This is what we need more of in Second Life! Well, not necessarily buxom-enhancements, but fun video tutorials!
I didn’t have much of a use for liquify before (for some odd reason), but I do now.
If anyone else has made something like this (or inspired by it, that’s always good), add it to the Video Tutorials page on the Second Life Wiki!
@Kimo: “Torley”! =D
And BTW intriguingly enough, Vint, the “too many photos, might as well do a video” is one of them main reasons that got me started on ‘em, too.
Hahaha….sorry Torley for the typo!
I love your tortorlials (so…can’t spell well) too.
I keep watching your camera tutorial over & over just because your dialogue cracks me up!!
Great tutorial, Vint! I love your voice! I want to go back in a re-do all my photos now! So, thanks a lot, I think! LOL!
Wow, 10 op 10 Vint …
Thanks for the vid, Vint; this is a great walk-through on using the filter.
Voila! And so that’s how it’s done - cool, Vint!! I think I learn much better by seeing it in action versus still images, anyway, so thank you for all the work!!
Although I am guessing you made it look much easier than it actually is, huh? hehe Mind if I just send you all my pics from now on, so you can, uh, use them for more tutorials - and send them back to me in the revised version? *g*
PS - Never thought I’d be in favour of Voice in SL, but now, hmmmm ;-)
@Andro: I seems you guys already ’shopped it out. :(
@Laverne: Welcome and enjoy your stay! You will stay, no? And for the ‘blockyness’, did you check on your avatar mesh settings in the preferences menu? :p (Torley, do correct me when I’m wrong here.)
@Jolie: Yes, but not often. Whenever I use it it’s like being forced to talk another language. I think in ‘PS’ and then I need to find a way to translate that into GIMP. But they say there’s a good PS clone/skin for GIMP, but I can’t recall the name.
@Torley: Héhé. Maybe next time, I’ll just take screenshots from the vidtut and put text next to those. What do you think? And Tortorials would actually be nice name for all your video tutorials! *Looks a bit more amazed because of not one but _two_ comments of her favorite Linden God.* :p
@Kimo: For breast, you can also just rescale them and then make them blend with the rest of the body. Works more slick often. ;)
… and last but not least:
Dear Wrath, it _is_ that easy. Really. Just need some practice to get the hang of it. :p That and having a drawing tabled really helps too. This is voice on web. Voice in SL.. just doesn’t belong there! We don’t type when going to RL clubs either, do we?
Great work, Vint.
There are several reasons we all check your blog many times a day…fresh and interesting content, beautiful photographs, informative tutorials and now video.
I see your blog becoming the unofficial central hub for all SL metaverse blogs. You go girl!
Vint, do I need to say it? Great job, and a geat help. Will try it as soon as possible.
When I have the skills to manage this, all my future pictures will look
so much better.;)
I *knew* you were using a tablet when I saw you write your name at the end of the video. You just can’t do that with a mouse =P It’s like trying to write your name with a rock.
I had one of the really large Wacom tablets but it was old and no longer worked with XP (it used the serial port…that’s how old it was). I really should pick up a new (but smaller) one.
Anyway, good work! You explained it well. =)
In the liquify window, did you check ‘Show Image’ under the View Options? (Alt+I will toggle this on and off.)
@Zoe: I think you didn’t discover 3Dpoint yet? ;)
@’Tober: They come cheap now adays. But you can convert serial to USB, no?
Yeah, the one I had, which I gave to a friend, is one of the really large ones…the new equivilent would be about $700 US. She’s going to give it back to me and I’m going to give it a try again. Maybe a USB-to-serial adapter will work, as you say.
What size tablet do you have, and what is the resolution you’re using on your monitor? If I bought a new tablet I want to make sure it’s big enough to be useful (but not too expensive!).
Vint!
That tutorial kicks so much ass!
I may still suck at photoshop (oh, and I do, but not as much as before thanks to this) but just to hear your gorgeous voice making me crack up as I watch you give someone a pixel boob job makes it worth watching over and over! So well done girl, really well done.
October: The tablet size is A5 and my monitor’s resolution is 1280×1024 (although it can handle 1920×1440). I’m just a ‘ctrl+’+” adept. ;)
Thank you, Myg.
Ah good…my monitor is 1680×1050 (it’s a widescreen). That tablet sounds like it would be an ok size to use with my monitor. I’ll look into it. Thanks!
I will exercise it with photoshop and a picture of your breasts,soon!
I love your voice! really great tutorial!!! thank you soooo much!!!
Don’t you dare touch my breasts!
Good tutorial, nice to see how you use the masking tool, I never got the thinking behind that from any earlier tutorials.
Wow Vint! I’m in Awe. I first saw your work at the linden lifestyles pool in Flicker, and I was like “WHO did that and How!!” And then I got here!. Your work is amazing, and thanx so much for putting time and effort in doing such great tutorials for us, knowledge eaters :P. I was wondering, will you ever teach us about lightning? her skin looks so soft and creamy! Is that some filter tweaking, lights?
I’m looking forward for more tuts!!
Greetings from Chile,
Cinthia.
Vint
Not only did I love your video - am I’m trying it now,
I just loved hearing your sexy voice.
Art 100%
Accent 110% sexy
English, better than my Euro languages
we are not worthy……
Archie the Brit
Accent? Me? :p
And I always figured English is an European language too? American, on the other hand… ;)
Vint, I loved this! It opened new possibilities for me. A little research showed that Gimp (yes I’m cheap) has similar functionality, with Filters->Distorts->IWarp. The masking was cool, though, that would help a lot.
No masking in the GIMP?
there are way more masking options in the GIMP than I understand, but as far as I know, nothing that lets you draw with a brush like you did in the tutorial.
Ow. Well, just liquify without mask is handy still!
I know this has been around for a while but….I finally got to watch it and it’s been so helpful! Aside: On top of being talented you have the cutest voice ever. I’m going to be saying ‘Voila!’ all day now. X)
[…] in the original. This work is one of the most effective uses of Photoshop for SL images. Vint has a good video tutorial on how to use liquefy to smooth edges here [link] and a text tutorial on using gaussian blur to add that sense of depth […]
[…] is a great tutorial about using Photoshop to fix the snapshots from the second life. More precisely, it is about using liquify tool. If you do more than two snapshots per day, if you […]
[…] Do liquify. […]
lol..
it sounds like you are holding your breath when you are talking…
anyways… its a great tutorial :D
Wonderful tutorial! This is going to be a huge timesaver for me this week.
I finally got around to trying it, and WOW this post-processing stuff is hard! Thank you! :D
I have neither seen the vid tut or used the liquify tool on my Photoshop. BUT I LOVE THIS THREAD! I would give it four stars for entertainment value alone. :)
[…] there are more: round shapes should be round, shadow on clothing textures should match the atmosphere of your photograph, … . Guess you […]
[…] written in 2007, you are still really interested in ‘learning new stuff’. Toppers are using Photoshop’s liquify tool to correct squared breasts, layer styles for depth in textures (I still need to do Part II) and - strangely enough - How to […]
Haven’t been here for awhile since IT at work labeled your site under games and blocked it, but was able to get here from a link at Rezzable for some reason.
“October: Ah good…my monitor is 1680×1050 (it’s a widescreen). That tablet sounds like it would be an ok size to use with my monitor. I’ll look into it. Thanks!”
To either October or Vint:
I have been wanting to get a tablet for the longest time, but Octobers comment scared me a bit. Why would the size of the Tablet make a difference? Is it the smaller the tablet, the larger the stroke and the larger the tabletm the smaller the stroke?
Did the make sense?
Wow just noticed how old this post is… :p
You’ll still get an answer! ;)
Because of your tablet maps to your screen, so they should have the same aspect ratio.
An example of what is not good:
My tablet has aspect ratio 4:5. My screens has aspect ratio 8:3, as I use dual screen. That’s not very optimal, as if on my tablet I move one centimeter to the right, that’s like 10cm on my screen, where as I move one cm up, that’s like 2 cm, which makes precise drawing more difficult.
So try to get the same aspect ratio on tabled & screen! ;)
Thanks Vint, didn’t think you would see that one.
I thought that is what it was and what I meant in my “What the heck did Kasumi just say?” explaination.
Care to comment?