Preparing Images for Paper Tole
by Maureen Williams
Using
your computer and Paint Shop Pro to produce images for doing paper
tole or 3D paper sculpture is very easy. In traditional paper tole
multiple prints are used, starting with a full print in the
background and building the picture forward by overlaying parts cut
from other copies of the print.
One of the drawbacks with traditional
paper tole is, no matter how careful the placement of the top
images, you can still see the underlying copies of the print.
By using Paint Shop Pro on your computer it is possible to clone out the
unwanted parts of a picture and increase the depth perception. Once
you have modified your image you can print out as many copies as you
wish in varying sizes using your printer. Although I am using an
ostrich egg for this demonstration the same principle would work if
you were making a framed picture as well.
Although
this is a rather complex image the basic principals of cloning are
the same for any type of image requiring the removal of unwanted
portions.
You will
need:
PSP - you
can download a 30-day free trial here.
I am using 7.04 for this tutorial but the same principle would apply
in Version 8 as well.
An image
of your choice or you can download the one I am using
here.
This lesson uses the
 Clone Tool and the  Retouch Tool.
Notes
The Clone Tool allows you to remove or replace unwanted parts of an
image with a different part of the same image or even from part of
another image.
The Retouch Tool has
a number of uses including the ability to soften or smudge the
changed areas to blend them into the total image.
Before you
start make a 2 copies of your original picture (Shift+D) and then
close the original. If you make an unrecoverable mistake
you can always go back to the original image and start again. If you
are working on a large image you may need to reduce the size of your
reference image.
Save each modified image, for example
“Balcony-mod 1, “Balcony-mod 2” etc, as you go. If you don’t like
any of your changes you can always hit the ‘Undo” or return to the
last saved image.
If you would like further information on
how to use the Cloning Tool or any other tool in PSP click on
the Context Help (the question mark with an arrow) icon for
instructions.
Click on
the images for a larger view.
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This was the image I used for my
Balcony Panorama egg design. I had a beautiful Victorian Lady
figurine and I thought this would be the perfect setting for
her.
Shift+D twice to duplicate and
create two copies of the original image. Minimise the
original - we will be using it again later..
In your workspace have the two
copies of the image side by side. One will be the working
image, the other will be for reference.
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Click on the Clone Tool and choose
a medium size. The size will vary depending on the different
parts of the image.
e.g. for large background areas where there is a lot of space
between the reference point and the cloning position. |
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Hold down the Shift key and Left
Click on the area you want to copy. You will notice the brush
outline remains at this position. This is the Reference Point
and will indicate which part of the image will be copied. |
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Move the cursor to where you want
the copying to start and hold down the Left mouse button.
Drag the mouse while holding down
the left mouse key. The Reference Point moves in relation to
the Cloning Point.
As you cover an area with the
new detail you will see the Reference Point changes to a cross
and follows the Clone point. |
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Use the Clone Tool
as described above, starting in the top left hand corner, to
remove the pillar in the foreground.
As you get
down towards the mountains it may be necessary to change the
size of the brush and also reposition the Reference point.
If you forget to
hold down the Shift key when selecting another Reference Point
you will be prompted by the program.
Use the Retouch Tool
set to Smudge to smooth out the sky and the water.
Save your modified
version as balcony-mod1 in psp format.
Save your
modified version, then Shift+D to copy and minimise your
saved, modified image. |
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Shift+D to duplicate your newly
modified image. Close the modified image.
Work on this copy of the saved
version and then clone out the balustrade to increase the
water surface. |
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Again use the Retouch Tool to
smooth out any uneven areas in the water.
Save this newly modified version
as balcony-mod2. |
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Use the Selection Tool set to
Rectangle and select the sky and water areas and then Crop to
Selection.
Don't forget to save after each modification and then
duplicate this image before continuing.
This means at any
time you can return to any step to re-do the cloning if you
decide you aren't happy with it. |
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Due to the surface area to be
covered in the bottom of the egg it was necessary to move the
water's edge closer to the left hand side of the image.
This completes the required
changes for the background of the image.
Note: If working on a
framed picture this step may not be necessary. |
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Restore the original balcony
image, duplicate and then minimise the original again.
As a wider paved area was needed
at the front of the egg to allow for the curvature of the
shell it was necessary to clone out the shadows, the pot
plants and the foreground flowers to achieve this. Make a
feathered selection of the modified paved area. CTRL+C to copy
this selection.
Restore the original image and
create another copy. Minimise the original. Working on the
copy, go to Image>Canvas Size and increase the canvas size at
the bottom of the image.
Paste the feathered selection
of the modified paved area as a new layer and position at the
bottom of the image. If necessary, use the Retouch Tool and
when happy with the placement, Merge Visible to join the two
layers together. Crop the top of the image to remove the water
and sky, leaving just the balustrade and paved area. |
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In the foreground I also needed
more of the small pillars to extend across the width of the
egg. This was achieved by copying and pasting as a new layer
and then merging the two layers together.
Once I had all of images
modified as required i closed all unnecessary images, leaving
open only those I want to print. I File > Print Multiple
Images I selected the images I wanted to print. The mountain
area was used to fill the back of the egg and then the water
was glued to a shaped piece of cardboard to form a bas in the
bottom of the egg.
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A normal sized print was used as
the balustrade and the pillar. To give these areas more
stability the background print was glued to a piece of plastic
from a shirt box. A second print of the balustrade, 10% larger
than the original, was shaped and glued over the background
print. A mixture of Tissue and glue was used to pad and
maintain the shape of the pillars.
The flower pots were also enlarged
10% to allow for shaping. Dried lichen, bunka and tiny punched
paper flowers were used for the creeper and pot plants. |
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The ostrich egg used in this
design had a large hole in the side of the egg so I was able
to take advantage of the broken egg rather than having to cut
a whole shell. |
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To
allow light into the inside of the egg a decorative cut-out
panel incorporating a wood carving design was outlined with
gold cord and filled with imitation enamel.
Full instructions for the
Imitation Enamel technique are detailed in my 132-page
electronic book "Bright
Ideas & Facets of Egg Artistry". |
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Copy and paste the cut-out image
from here. |
If you have problems with any part of
this tutorial email me. |
