Map-Making TTT (Tips, Tricks & Tutorials)

[DiM]

the purpose of Map Making TTT is to have a place where new and old map makers share their knowledge and help eachother achieve a higher level of understanding photoshop fireworks or any other image editing software we use. my hope is to gather as many tutorials as possible and constantly update them in the first post, thus allowing everybody to quickly find what they need. also you can share your brushes patters and textures. just upload them on the web and post the link.
anybody is free to ask and answer if they follow some simple rules:

rules for asking:
1. please state the name and version of your image editing software. this way you'll make sure you receive a proper advice.
2. please don't bump your question. somebody will answer it.


rules for answering:
1. always quote the question so people will know what the tutorial is about.
2. the tutorial must be in one of these forms: video or text with explanatory images
3. make sure your tutorial is easy to follow even by the noobest of noobs. that means no skipping of steps you assume the readers should know.


general rules:
1. no side talk. posts like "wow" or "great" don't belong here. they just clutter the thread. if you really feel you want to congratulate someone for a nice tutorial then pm him.
2. if you post a collection of brushes textures or patterns please say what software they are for.


Video tutorials:

1. terraforming tutorial by mibi
2. epoch terraforming parts 1-5 by mibi

Image and text tutorials:

1. how to make an old paper by DiM
2. Using the Magic Wand Tool by DiM
3. how to make a mountain by WidowMakers
4. how to make realistic trees by DiM
5. Photoshop keyboard shortcuts by DiM

Layered images:

1. layered mountain file by WidowMakers
2. 8 Thoughts by WidowMakers
http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/6/15/ ... hts_WM.zip
3. Circus Maximus [Revamp] by WidowMakers
http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/6/15/ ... mus_WM.zip
4. Great Lakes by WidowMakers
http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/6/15/ ... kes_WM.zip
5. Indochina [Revamp] by WidowMakers
http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/6/15/ ... ina_WM.zip
6. King of the Mountains by WidowMakers
http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/6/15/ ... OTM_WM.zip
7. Montreal [Revamp] by WidowMakers
http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/6/15/ ... eal_WM.zip
8. realistic trees by DiM


External links:

1. Rotating and cropping in GIMP by DiM
2. Simple Animations in GIMP by DiM
3. Advanced Animations in GIMP by DiM


Brushes, Patterns and Textures:

1. patterns for Fireworks 8 by DiM
2. textures for Fireworks 8 by DiM


Various files:
1. GIMP help files by DiM

[DiM]

i am having a problem with my antarctica map im using inkscape but i might be able to use gimp (learning how to). the problem is impasible borders rivers aren't a problem in inkscape its mountains that r tough because u have to import a pic into inkscape and then edit it , so it has a box around ur image i can color that box but it takes a while.

how can i put in impassible borders preferable mountains?

i'm not sure i fully understand your problem but my guess is you have a picture of a mountain and you want to use just the mountain and not the background. here's a tutorial on the magic wand tool. the tutorial is for gimp. i'm not sure if you have the magic wand in inkscape.


Using the Magic Wand

you have this image:



you want to use the ring but not the hand.
zoom into the ring as much as you need but make it so you can see the entire ring and a little bit around it. now select the magic wand tool that looks like this:



set the tolerance at a low value. let's say 2 or 4. using the magic wand, click on the ring. a small part will highlight.



you can select larger areas by clicking and holding down the mouse button and moving your mouse down. this selects a larger area, but sometimes it will select unnecessary parts of the picture. you can press undo(or Ctrl+Z) to undo anything you accidentally selected. you can also hold Ctrl and press unwanted areas to deselect them. once you have a little bit selected, hold the Shift key and do the same thing. Your area will generally increase, but make sure you don't select unwanted areas. keep the Shift key held down and click, click the mouse down and unclick. then select another part on the ring. keep repeating the process until the entire ring is selected. like this:



when you're done, copy the selections you just made by pressing Ctrl+C or going to Edit and Copy Image. now you're going to want to make a new layer. make sure it's on transparent mode. now click the layer you have just made. then go to your image and press Ctrl+V or Edit > Paste. this will paste the ring on the new layer.

your newly created layer will contain nothing but the ring.
do so to any image you need.

[DiM]

.... ok got all that done but now i cant figure out how to change the size of my mountain in gimp
idealy if u could tell me how to download the help files for gimp i wouldnt need to bother u

to scale something in gimp right click that something and go to image then scale image. after that set the dimensions you want and click ok.


help files are here:
ftp://ftp.gimp.org/pub/gimp/help/

[Evil Pope]

Ok.. So how would one go about making buildings, such as in the troy map.. I can make buildings, but they seldom(never) look quite as good as those.. And its somewhat hard to make out quite what he's doing in the movie.. Also, the movie's little help to me anyway because I use GIMP.. The only way I could make use of it is to find the GIMP eqivalent to the Photoshop tools.. Which can't be done because its hard to make out... But anyway, I'd like any sort of help in forming buildings like those, or any other varieties of buildings.. Maybe even castle-like structures..

And i'd like to know how the trees are done, its difficult to see what he's using, and is there a way to do that in GIMP?

Thats all right now, thanks.

[gimil]

for the trees i would sue a small rounded brush ( i used a 5pz and a 3px) place a few dots around of green around then drop shadow it. Thats how its done in photoshop but i dont know if you can do a drop shadow to a layer in GIMP.

[DiM]

im using gimp 2.2.11
i need to know if anyone has a way to rotate something with out it blurring, for my map i want to rotate buildings to fit the area i want them in, at it is easier to make them as a rectangle then rotate than make it on a angle.

read here:
http://world.std.com/~mmcirvin/gimp_tutorial/rotate_crop.html

[DiM]

Does anyone know a good quick way to make animations using gimp?

here you go 2 tutorials to animations in GIMP:

http://www.gimp.org/tutorials/Simple_Animations/

http://www.gimp.org/tutorials/Advanced_Animations/

[DiM]

sorry to make this topic but i had no idea who to ask and were to post. it can be deleted after i get my answer.


so here's the question. how can i merge some brushes or layer styles or shapes?

i have let's say basic brushes file and assorted brushes file. and i want all of them in one single file because i'm tired of switching between them all the time.

thanks.

[mibi]

you keep loading new brushes and make sure to APPEND to the current set. then when you have all the brushes you want you save the brush set as something else.

[WidowMakers]

Here is a PSD file that shows one way to make mountains. It is basically a layered approach. Each layer is made by applying and layering small amounts of color to a layer (pick a textured brush with 25%-40% opacity and flow) then the layer has a bevel and texture applied to it via Blending options.

You can open the PSD file and turn off the layer styles. That will show you what each layer looks like and how to better make the mountains.

Have fun

http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/6/15/ ... ntains.psd

[DiM]

Sorry if this isn't the correct subforum to post this in

On the US Senate map, any idea how to make the area of Democrats/Republicans where there is a semi-circle of sub-divided sections? I have a map drawn on paper that has something similar, but instead it is an entire circle and sections are divided evenly.

I tried using the GIMP to draw circles, but GIMP doesn't even have a shape-drawing tool. I do not have Adobe Photoshop, although my school has Photoshop and I could ask if I could use it for "extra-curricular" projects.

I downloaded Inkscape but I have to spend some time learning that.

Is there a premade image of circles placed inside of circles (not a spiral). It would make the job a whole lot easier. Even if I can make a circle, I need circles inside of circles inside of circles (a total of 5 or 6 circles).

Can anyone tell me how to get started on this?

Use the ellipse select tool, and press Shift while clicking and dragging the mouse. Pressing Shift constrains the selection to be circular. Once you've selected a circular area, you can either stroke the selection with the current brush (Under "Edit->Stroke"), change the selection to a path, or fill the selection. It all depends on what you want to do with the circle.

also check the first post in this thread. you'll find there the help files for GIMP. download them and read.

[Gnome]

Tutorial:

hey gnome, how do u get the pictures into the background anyways???

This tutorial is for Photoshop (I made it in Adobe photoshop cs2)

1) make a new layer (I made it 300x300 for the example)

2)choose a background colour...I took (0d1d4b)


3) take a picture you want to add in the background (Im going for a boat in the see) Just put the picture on top of everything


4)now go in the picture<adjust menu (I think it's called that way)


5)this is what it should look like now


6)now put the layer on 50%


7)should look like this


now take this tool (don't know name in English)


9)take it on 87px or something that suites you and start to move it around...
this is my final result on it but it works on all kind of stuf...

[Wisse]

gnome the "natte vinger" tool is called smudge tool in english

[casper]

Here's a cool tutorial I found on Wikipedia's Cartography page.



Rendering a map using relief shading technique in Photoshop

[WidowMakers]

Whenever i try to type more than one line in Photoshop, the text overlaps. How do you type more than one line?

Is this what is happening?

You want to type like the top text, but the text overlaps like the bottom.

Adjust your leading in the character panel in photoshop

TOP: Proper Leading in Photoshop (Character size 30, leading 36)

BOTTOM: Improper Leading in Photoshop (Character size 30, leading 11)

WM