Photoshop for Students. Get super savings at the Adobe Academic Store.
Read our review of Genuine Fractals (includes 10% discount coupon).
Buy. Download. Create. Get Photoshop CS3 now at the Adobe Store.
Photoshop Masking Plugin Fluid Mask 3 - $15 Discount Special
The 4 1/2 out of 5 star review of Fluid Mask 3 at MacWorld begins by saying that this "Photoshop plug-in takes the pain out of extracting backgrounds," and goes on to recommend the latest version, stating that "Fluid Mask 3.0.2 is a very effective tool for separating objects from their backgrounds. It offers a variety of useful features for tackling almost any difficult image, from wispy hair to complex foliage. Online video tutorials and live training sessions help ease the learning curve."
Our friends at Vertus, the makers of Fluid Mask 3 Photoshop Plugin, have set up a special exclusive discount for PhotoshopSupport.com. Just follow this discount link and instantly get $15 off your purchase of Fluid Mask 3.
Fluid Mask 3 is designed for photographers, image editors, graphic designers and all those who take digital image editing seriously. In a streamlined interface and workflow, Fluid Mask 3 instantly shows key edges in the image and provides comprehensive easy to use tools that work with difficult-to-see edges and tricky areas like trees & lattices. Features include:
Fastest masking available today - from loading to final cut-out. Turn hours of tedious work into something that's short to complete and fun to do.
- Quick and easy to pick up, Fluid Mask 3 offers an intuitive workflow. Check out the edge guides that makes selecting the cut-out as easy as coloring by numbers and the always visible interactive help.
- Amazing edge quality. Fluid Mask 3 takes blending to a new level by preserving the edge data. In the final result, natural edge blur and contour is preserved for the best, most authentic cut-outs ever.
- Fluid Mask will also work in standalone mode (i.e. not as a plug-in).
- There is now an XML based Help file which may be searched by sections or by keywords. Also included are video tutorials.
- Fluid Mask may be used with a Wacom tablet, now pen pressure is hooked up to Brush Size.
To learn more visit the Fluid Mask 3 - Discount Deal Page.
Read more about Fluid Mask in the Software Overview, the Official Press Release (featuring jumbo versions of the frogs), and the Interview with co-creator James Carr-Jones. At the end of this page is a list of links to Online Fluid Mask Tutorials, a 30-day Free Trial, an Online Fluid Mask Gallery, and the Online Store where Fluid Mask is presently discounted.
Exclusive Discount Price - Fluid Mask 3 - $224
Vertus Software is offering Fluid Mask at the special 'friends and partner' discounted rate of just $224.
New Features Of Fluid Mask 3.0
- Importing and exporting 16 bit color images
- Improved mask selections — especially on compressed images and fiddly cut-out tasks — making selecting your mask faster and more accurate
- Increases mask selection usability (a completely new image information layer IIL) giving you confidence with your selections, and helping you to learn how to use Fluid Mask easily.
This is an exclusive offer to visitors of PhotoshopSupport.com. To qualify, visit the Fluid Mask Discount Price page.
Fluid Mask - Software Overview
Fluid Mask is a highly advanced software tool designed to make life easier for everyone who creates cut outs. Built as a plug-in to Adobe Photoshop, Fluid Mask is the new next-generation cut-out tool. Behind the product is breakthrough technology that mimics the way the eye, optic-nerve and brain perform visual processing. It offers an intuitive, accurate and fast approach to cut outs.
Using Fluid Mask you apply selections to a meta-data layer of image information called the Image Information Layer (IIL). This is made up of boundary, texture and color information pulled from your image.
The benefits of this approach are:
- It differentiates between hard and soft edges
- Edges and color transitions are separated smoothly
- Blending and masking are co-synchronous - no double work
- There is less data to work on, so more speed - large images no problem
- You can adjust IIL resolution to work on hard-to-gauge edges
- Real-time, image-derived color palettes for color-based mask selections
- Work in progress is easy to review
- You can fine tune mask selections at pixel level for maximum control
- You can preserve maximum detail at the blended transitions
Fluid Mask will also preserve all-important edge information for a professional quality cut out.
Photoshop CS3 Upgrade Options And Bundles From The Adobe Store
Photoshop CS3 Extended is ideal for film, video, and multimedia pros and for graphic and web designers using 3D and motion. Get the full version for US $999, or upgrade for US $349. The standard version of Photoshop CS3 is available for US $649, or as an upgrade for US $199.
Photoshop Extended is also available as part of Adobe Creative Suite 3 Design Premium ($1,799/$440), which combines all-new CS3 versions of Photoshop, Flash Pro, Dreamweaver, Illustrator, InDesign and Acrobat 8 Pro. International options are available at Adobe's UK Store, Europe Store, and Australia Store.
Fluid Mask Online Tutorials
On the Fluid Mask tutorials page you'll find the following tutorials, which also include accompanying image files so you can work along.
An Introduction To Masks And Brushes
In this tutorial you'll be introduced to the three mask types and the tools to use to apply them.
The Simplicity Of One Mask
In this tutorial you'll be introduced to the basic concept of applying a mask, performing a test render and creating a cut-out.
Introduction To The ILL Tool
See how mask selections can be improved when the Image Information Layer setting is adjusted.
Introducing The Region Editor
In this tutorial you'll be introduced to the Region Editor and how to apply masks at a pixel level.
Mastering The Edge Noise Filter
Here we see how the Edge Noise filter can help us smooth edges and create perfect cut-outs.
Forcing Edges
Shows how the Force edge tool can be called upon as a last resort.
Complex Foregrounds & Backgrounds
Learn how to tackle images with complex backgrounds and foregrounds by working with Regions.
Dealing With Hair
This tutorial illustrates the blending power of the Complex mask and shows you how to work within confined regions.
Defocused Edges
Shows how to achieve great results when dealing with defocused images.
Dealing With A Spectral Effect
Some images suffer from what we call Spectral Effect. Learn what they are and how to deal with them.
Fluid Mask - Cutout Gallery
On the Fluid Mask Cutout Gallery Page you'll find some of the complex cut outs Fluid Mask can help you create. Getting such precision results may look like a lengthy process but each of these didn't take long to complete.
You can also Email your 'before' and 'after' cut-out images that were made using Fluid Mask. If your images appear on the gallery, you'll be sent a free copy of Fluid Mask for you to give to a friend.
Fluid Mask - Free Trial
Download a free trial. Requirements: Adobe Photoshop 7.0 or higher.
Exclusive Discount Price For Fluid Mask 3.0 - $224
Vertus Software is offering Fluid Mask at the special 'friends and partner' discounted rate of just $224.
New Features Of Fluid Mask 3.0
- Importing and exporting 16 bit color images
- Improved mask selections — especially on compressed images and fiddly cut-out tasks — making selecting your mask faster and more accurate
- Increases mask selection usability (a completely new image information layer IIL) giving you confidence with your selections, and helping you to learn how to use Fluid Mask easily.
This is an exclusive offer to visitors of PhotoshopSupport.com. To qualify, visit the Fluid Mask Discount Price page.
Interview With Fluid Mask Co-creator James Carr-Jones
The following interview between Jennifer Apple and James Carr-Jones is from July, 2005.
Can you give me a little background on the origins of the company and who are its principals.
A little confusing - Vertus is the customer facing expression of Heligon. And Heligon is a pure R&D company that specializes in creating image focused algorithms.
It was began some 8 years ago with a meeting between a physicist and an artist both of whom were interested in applied mathematical psychology and the way the eye, brain and optic nerve perform visual processing. This continues to be the inspiration and DNA of the company. Their mixed disciplines helped them develop new ideas and hypotheses. We are now 4 developers (our disciplines include statistics, mathematics, physics, engineering, applied psychology) and there are three of us on business development and IP.
Currently we are very interested in image segmentation and the nature of edges...
Can you outline for us the goals of the company, what is in store, what is in the pipeline...
Vertus' aim is to provide a range of tools for graphics users. We like the Adobe platform for plug-ins – it provides a loose set of rules and expectation of behavior, and a great community - so we'll try to keep in there.
Some people dislike the plug-in environment because they think it's a cheap effects library (and some of it is) and others, on the developer side of the tracks, thinks it pins the price down so they develop for free standing only. I think it is a great platform and with a great community; and deep-graphic applications such as ours which offer our community real benefits (time saved, and quality of response) I'm sure will be attractive...
We have an exciting pipeline coming up. We will have the next version of Fluid Mask with even better edge finding and blending algorithms.
Then straight after that is Fluid Color enabling you to re-color all or separate bits of an object (stripes in a shirt – colors elements within skin) within the image (not having to go to layers) and blend those changes seamlessly in. We are also looking at two further elements for this, "clamping" colors - what to do with out-of-gamut colors - and exporting "image derived natural palettes." Further still there is this idea (work already begun) for Fluid Object – flattening colors and automatically vectoring an object's edges – like creating a vector path for a football as well as the patterns within the football.
Then it's taking this stuff to the moving environment... As for Heligon, it will continue to create its own IP and licence it to third parties independently of Vertus.
What are the advantages of Fluid Mask over other software of this nature, and specifically Photoshop channels, RGB procedures, and Mask Pro.
I think you can only generalize and avoid absolutes when answering questions of this nature – there will always be an image, for instance, where using RGB channels in PS will be quicker. Having caveat-ed heavily in the front of this answer, I can now go on to say that in general I think that Fluid Mask is:
- Really easy to learn. Cutting-out has been this dark art for so long and it needn't be. People have often asked me about de-skilling this task and managing some of the pen tool techniques almost requires a degree course unit!
- Great on complex images. In our testing we deliberately use real world images (complex foreground and background) or difficult lattices such as natural objects and hair – in fact people have told us it is brilliant on hair.
- Cutting and blending. Gone should be the days of cutting and then going round and tidying up the edges. It's double work – and is just unacceptable! Just as unacceptable is the hair-cut approach to blending with an X pixel feather. This is purely a personal preference but I think an edge sits better when it has some of the noise that accompanies it (- I'm not talking above spectral effects and distortion...) I'm talking about natural edge noise such as skin-hair.
- Quick. I have to be careful here because cutting out a cornflakes packet would be better accomplished using 6 points on a vector path in Photoshop or a simple object contrasted against the background without much edge anomaly could be just as well picked out by filtering the RGB channel. But my experience is that in general 80% of a typical image is easy and it's that last 20% that soaks the time if you want a decent result. And that's where we win: our image information layer lets you make very quick mask selections and control the workspace; having simultaneous cutting and blending techniques; using the Local brush to find awkward edges; and pixel level control using the Region Editor and the Global brush. These all give you the edge (excuse the pun) over other methods. Take a look at the live demos and tutorials on our website...
What Photoshop gurus have tested Fluid Mask, and what were their remarks?
We've only just launched and I have met with 4 gurus so far. They really put Fluid Mask (and me) through our paces and liked what they saw. What they were all really impressed by what we could do with complex images, lattices and hair - how we got that really right. Speed was impressive to all but for some images RGB channel manipulation was just as fast (these guys are really fast!) but to me (an average user) super tricky. But the more complex an image the more Fluid Mask pulled ahead in terms of speed and quality of result. As for names... I have to get there permission – I will try...
Please detail how Fluid Mask can be used with the Wacom Tablet.
Well, painting masks and isolating areas of interest just become so much easier using the Wacom Tablet. This is a good moment to say that our analysis of the workflow when cutting out is that this process we do involves up to 40% of concentration on less that 11% of the pixels. We spend our lives shedding data when cutting out to get at the really important stuff and a Wacom Tablet is great for that approach. We are developing a new brush for the next version with the Wacom Tablet specifically in mind. It would allow you to select an area of interest using the brush and have all those colors immediately available in an editor and then assign them to different masks from the Editor or the image itself. This will give users the pixel level control on focused areas of pixels, such as hair ends, that they desire and need.
You are offering a special introductory price, is that right, at $399?
Yes. Although we chose to launch in the Adobe Plug-in environment, Fluid Mask is a deep graphic application into which 15 man years have been poured. But that is not the justification for the introductory price of $399. The justification for the price is that this will give you great results especially in key areas such as lattices, complex backgrounds, and hair. It will increase the number of images in your libraries available for cutting out and it saves time.
As realistically as possible, describe the learning curve.
I think there is an easy and short learning curve to achieve a "competent badge" – which is great cut-outs. Use the tutorials first and then experiment with images (yours or ours). Try one-mask and then some more complicated images which requires 2 masks. I think 2 hours watching and playing will do it for you.
Who is the primary user here? Is Fluid Mask primarily for design studios?
We have had interest and purchases from catalogue companies, design studios, repro and pre-press houses, architects, photographers. You name it...
Can someone invest more time and reap the rewards, or is this a push-button plug-in, limited in scope?
I think once you achieve competence, there is a whole lot more to learn which will have a direct bearing on the quality of your cut-outs. For instance, using the Image Information Layer to its best advantage such as filtering for camouflaged or high resolution scanned images will have direct payoffs, as will using the Region Editor.
Ultimately this is a professional product but we don't see why it should be so complicated that half the tools baffle even the most experienced users.
Well that's it for now. Thanks James!
Alien Skin Software - Photoshop Plugins - Special 10% & 20% Discounts On All Alien Skin Photoshop Plugins
Our friends at Alien Skin Software have set us up with an exclusive special offer discount link that will give you some sweet savings at their online store.
Just follow this link and you'll see 10% and 20% price drops on their products when you get to the Alien Skin Online Store area (excludes the Eye Candy Bundle, which is already discounted at $199). This special offer includes a discount on Eye Candy: Textures, Eye Candy: Nature, Eye Candy: Impact, Exposure, Blow Up, and their latest release Snap Art.
Snap Art – $149 – our price $129
Blow Up – $199 – our price $179
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Eye Candy 5: Impact – $99 – our price $79
Eye Candy 5: Nature – $99 – our price $79
Eye Candy 5: Textures – $99 – our price $79
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Total Training for Adobe Photoshop
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SiteGrinder 2 - Photoshop Plugin
There often seems to be a strict division of labor within the world of web design and development. Creative professionals tend to stick to the Photoshop domain, while those well-versed in scripting are left to the task of implementing their work. Indeed, the two realms are quite different from each other, to which any of us even vaguely familiar with either can easily attest.
Essentially, Photoshop is a no-holds-barred design studio, offering the artist a seemingly endless array of creative options. On the other hand, HTML, CSS, Java and the like follow strict rules of engagement, requiring the developer to take any number of esoteric concerns into consideration in order to ensure that designs are properly displayed on the web.
Turn Photoshop Into A Complete Web Design Tool
SiteGrinder 2 seeks to bridge this gap between design and development. Basically, this program turns Photoshop into an easy-to-use and fully functional web design tool. With SiteGrinder 2, designers will now have the freedom to totally let their creativity loose and then, without skipping a beat, transfer their designs to the web. Bringing esthetic concerns together with more practical considerations, this program is an amazingly powerful tool that would make a fantastic addition to any web designer's bag of tricks.
Generate Your Web Pages Directly From Photoshop
By generating web pages directly from Photoshop, you'll be able to spend much more time on the creative end of the spectrum, since you'll know right off the bat how well particular designs will translate to the web. No more going back to the Photoshop drawing board after getting a phone call from your development team, telling you that what you had envisioned doesn't have a chance of being displayed on the web. You can immediately visually and interactively test your designs, which permits you to then make changes to either esthetics or functions while it's still relatively early on in the design process.
Pricing and Availability
Mac OS X and Windows versions of the SiteGrinder unlockable demo are available now via download. SiteGrinder 2 can be ordered from Media Lab's online store.
Photoshop Book - Photoshop CS2: Essential Skills - By Mark Galer And Philip Andrews
An inspirational and user-friendly guide to creative image editing, Photoshop CS2: Essential Skills provides direction for photographers and designers alike who have ventured into the realm of the 'digital darkroom.' The book offers a progressive curriculum to guide you through Photoshop with a series of clear, step-by-step projects designed to place knowledge into a practical context.
Whether you simply want to retouch an image, create a glamour makeover or create a highly sophisticated montage - this book will give you the essential skills to complete the work to a professional standard.
The accompanying CD-ROM and website, www.photoshopessentialskills.com, offer additional teaching and learning materials which form a library of indispensable supporting resources including:
• All of the images used in the text
• Over four hours of QuickTime movie tutorials to support the practical projects
• A range of presets (including layer styles, curves, shapes and gradients)
• Camera RAW files
• Free extra chapters in e-book form.
For a free sample chapter see our How To Sharpen An Image In Photoshop tutorial.
Photoshop CS2: Essential Skills (Amazon.com - save 34%)
