Mat and Frame

[Marpel]

A couple questions about this transform.

To use a frame that is accessed through the "open frame image" tab, it seems the image of a particular frame has to be opened into the work surface, then chosen from the drop down list. Is this the only way or is there a quicker way (less clicks) than this?

I took a look at the frame images and it appears the images of various frame styles are not all the same size. I would like to make my own frame images and am wondering - if this is possible and if so, what is the recommended size for the image?

Thanks,

Marv

[ksinkel]

You can indeed add your own frame profiles to the Mat and Frame transformation. You do this by photographing a repeating section of the frame and then cropping it tightly. The full procedure for making your own frames is described in the PWP manual in Chapter 19. There is a link to the description on the first page of the chapter.

Kiril

[Marpel]

Thanks Kiril,

I did take a look at the section of the manual on Mat and Framing, but saw no discussion/recommendation for the suggested size of the image one would take of the frame section - I have a lens that will focus to 1:1 so can get quite close to the frame (and have a large image as a result), hence my question on whether there is a recommended size at which the image is captured. Presumably, regardless of the capture size, the image of the frame section is up/down-scaled to properly match the image one wishes to frame.

Marv

[ksinkel]

I:1 is certainly overkill. After all your frame will only be a small portion of the final picture. The frame-section images that ship with PWP are on the order of 200 x 200 pixels. When you take the photo, make sure that your camera back is parallel to the frame and that you have even lighting. The lighting should also be off axis so that you get some modeling of frame details. Precise cropping is also important. You can use the tile transformation to test your crop.

Kiril

[Marpel]

Kiril,

Makes sense. Thanks for the advice.

Marv