MAKING A BRUSH IN PHOTOSHOP A Step-by-Step Guide

Tutorial #3 for CraftSassy
Guest written by: Cher Lashley
One of the easiest, yet most versatile tools that you can create, then, employ in designing your own papers in most creative software packages is the brush image, which is not to be confused with the pixel counterpart of the tool for applying paint, though these are available as well. The brush image I speak of is basically an image that can be applied to a background much like an inked stamp to paper, but with more versatility. You have probably already seen or read about designs using brushes demonstrated, which is why you are reading this tutorial right now, so I won’t go into any lengthy discussions regarding the myriad of design concepts that you can employ. Instead, we will just cut right to the chase and I will show you, both in print and through photos, one of the ways that you can design your own brushes. Other tutorials will follow that will show you ways to use your new brushes. This tutorial is going to be kept very simplistic so that even someone who has never designed anything in creative software can follow along and get good results. I am using Photoshop 7 for this demonstration, so I know that all the versions following, including Elements, should employ the same principles and possibly have shortcuts not available in this version that you can try on your own. Other programs may have different names for the steps, but the process should be the same.
There are a number of venues where you can seek images to create into brushes; copyright free images, clip art, drawings, simple photos, etc, but for this tutorial we are going to use stamped images. One of the reasons that I like using the brush image as opposed to importing or dragging an image into my document from another source is not worrying about having to extract from a background when I am ready to use it. For the most part, when defining a brush in the Edit mode, you do not have to extract the image from a background beforehand, but since I want this tutorial to cover as many problems as you might encounter at any time, we will be extracting the stamped image from the white paper background. The only size limit that I encountered in making a brush is that the image could be no larger than 2500 ppi in any direction.
PROCESS:
Using a good quality black inkpad (I use Versafine as it will stamp even the most detailed image with a crisp clarity), stamp some of your favorite images onto a bright white copy paper. This will be your Master Image Sheet.
TIP: Since it doesn’t hurt to practice, you might as well stamp more than one image, maybe even filling up the sheet, so you have more to choose from when it is time to design. Don’t forget that text stamps, especially one word text, make good design elements.
- Scan your Master Image Sheet into your creative program at 300 dpi. This

will become your Background Layer in the Layer Palette.
Change the Background Layer to a Layer:
Click onto Layer in the tool bar

New Layer From Background
In pop-up menu, check NONE in background color

and name if desired: Click OK
Extract White Background:
Click on Magic Wand from tool palette
Position onto any area of white background and click once: ‘running ants’ will appear around images and parameter.

Click Edit on tool bar
Click Cut: background will now appear as checkerboard indicating that it is transparent

Click File, then, Save As so that if anything should happen before you finish or need to quit your session, you will have a copy of your Master Image Sheet without the white background ready for future use
Image to Brush:
Make a copy of the Master Image Sheet before cropping out an image
Click on Image from tool bar

Duplicate Image
Crop an image from Master Image Sheet:
Click on Crop Tool from tool palette

Drag guide lines to surround image, then, click inside
Strengthen blackness of image so your design will be as crisp as possible:
Click on Image from tool bar
Adjustments

Auto Contrast or Brightness/Contrast: move slider under Contrast to desired depth, then, OK
TIP: If your image is not solid, this is the time to remove any of the ‘white’ spaces that may be within the black design to be replaced by transparent spaces by following the same procedure as removing the white background: Click within each white space with the Magic Wand from the tool palette: Edit/Cut from the tool bar
Should the wand touch on a black space and the running ants are not within the parameters you desire:
Edit from the tool bar
Undo Magic Wand or Drag the Magic Wand Action to the trash barrel in the History palette (above the Layer’s palette)
Should the space be too small for the wand, move the slider in the Navigation palette on the top right hand side of the screen to zoom in or View/Zoom from the tool bar
Creating the Brush:

Click Edit from the tool bar

Define Brush: type brush name in the pop-up menu, then, OK
Should you desire to have two aspects of an image, such as a right and left aspect of a flourish:
Click on Image from tool bar
Rotate Canvas

Flip Canvas Horizontally
Click Edit from the tool bar
Define Brush, then, as above

Click on the Brush tool in the tool palette
Move the slider down to the bottom of the drop down menu to view or choose your new brushes


Look for Cher's follow up tutorial, Using Brush Images as a Design Tool next week!

Cher Lashley is a freelance Graphic Artist,Scrapbook enthusiast and designer for Scrapbooking.com based in Tucson, Arizona. If you would like to contact her. please email CraftSassy HERE and we will put you in touch.