Tutorial 2: Fill Command on a Mask

Original Image

The source image is a scan of a photo taken in winter, which was then reduced to grey scale. The same photo was used for the Christmas card exercise. I used the excellent Help function in Photo-Paint.

Warping and Filling

First, I applied the Effects - Distort - Mesh Warp to distort the tunnel opening-- I made it look bigger. Because this change made the photo a bit fuzzy, I then used Image - Sharpen command to counter the blurring.

With the Path Tool (found on the left-hand toolbar), I outlined the tunnel. The Path to Mask Tool then converted the tunnel opening into a mask. This tool is found in the following way.

Select Window - Dockers - Path (shortcut ALT + F10); a docker window opens. At the bottom of this window, there are six buttons. The left one is the Path to Mask button you need.

Using the Edit - Fill - Bitmap Fill I inserted a photo of Hawaii into the tunnel opening. Almost there!

By the way, you could also apply effects to the masked area, e.g. a colour hue, or a plug-in filter. The choice is yours.

Final Steps

Below is the completed image.

After applying Mask - Invert to select the area outside the tunnel opening. I added some colour using Image - Adjust - Color Hue (great to use because it gives little previews of the various options).

Finally, I applied a vignette from the Effects - Creative menu and gave the picture a title (effect from KPT5 ShapeShifter).

Final Comments

The HELP function is great-- I needed some assistance with the Path tools, and the instructions were very easy to follow.

Now, have a go yourself!

This page was last reviewed in April 2006.