{"id":428,"date":"2014-09-01T10:37:13","date_gmt":"2014-09-01T10:37:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.marcoristuccia.com\/it\/?p=428"},"modified":"2014-09-01T21:57:33","modified_gmt":"2014-09-01T21:57:33","slug":"photopatch-pro-making-of-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.marcoristuccia.com\/it\/2014\/09\/photopatch-pro-making-of-2\/","title":{"rendered":"PhotoPatch Pro – Using an image as a selection mask"},"content":{"rendered":"

PhotoPatch Pro<\/strong><\/a> is an image editing application for\u00a0Apple iOS iPad devices. It was developed by me specifically to retouch and blend images in the most creative way. In these blog’s pages I’m publishing a series of tips and tutorials to show you how to get the most creative results from it.<\/p>\n

With this tutorial I’d like to show you a particular and unique feature of PhotoPatch Pro: its ability to use a real image as selection mask. This opens an entire new world of creative possibilities and experimentations, such as shaping an image by giving the form of another one.<\/p>\n

In this example I’m going to make use of PhotoPatch Pro in a less traditional way, because I will work exclusively with the foreground\u00a0image and its selection mask, basically ignoring the background by letting it transparent.<\/p>\n

Here is the my foreground image:
\n <\/p>\n

\"Sunset

Sunset – Canada – 2011<\/p><\/div>\n

 
\nAs you see this is a beautiful sunset’s image that I took during my trip to Canada in 2011.<\/p>\n

This\u00a0second image, a dying tree that I photographed in Sicily, will be used as the selection mask for the first one:
\n <\/p>\n

\"Tree

Tree – Sicily<\/p><\/div>\n

 
\nAs usual, let’s open PhotoPatch Pro and start creating this new composition.<\/p>\n

First I’ll\u00a0load\u00a0the background and foreground image<\/strong>. I’ll use the same sunset image for both.<\/p>\n

As already explained above, in this tutorial I’m going to work exclusively with the foreground image and its selection. So\u00a0the background image could\u00a0be any image because it will be turned fully transparent. However, its frame’s proportions\u00a0and its resolution are important because this image is the one that is going to be patched with\u00a0the foreground one and keep the final result. That’s the reason why I chose the same image for both.
\n <\/p>\n

\"PhotoPatch

After loading the sunset as background and foreground image. The background will be turned fully black.<\/p><\/div>\n

 
\nI want a black background. The easiest\u00a0way to do so is by making\u00a0it totally transparent. The opacity slider, located on the right side of the bottom application bar, acts on the foreground image. So I will first make the foreground totally transparent and then swap the two images to send the transparent one to the background. The swap button is located between the “Background” and the “Foreground” menus (two opposing arrows).<\/p>\n

 
\nHere is what I got after doing that:
\n <\/p>\n

\"PhotoPatch

After setting the foreground opacity to zero and swapping the two images.<\/p><\/div>\n

 
\nNow I see only the foreground image. The background is totally transparent and it’s behind the foreground image.<\/p>\n

I can now load the selection for\u00a0the foreground image<\/strong>. Normally at this point I would use a previously saved mask created with the PhotoPatch’s selection tools for a specific image. Here instead I’ll use a real image: the dead sicilian tree presented above. A selection mask can be loaded\/saved through the “Selection” menu located in the upper application bar. The image loaded\u00a0as selection will be automatically stretched to fit exactly the foreground image.<\/p>\n

After loading the selection mask\u00a0our app’s screen should look like this:
\n <\/p>\n

\"PhotoPatch

After loading the tree image as the selection mask of the sunset image.<\/p><\/div>\n

 
\nAs you can see, the tree\u00a0image is interpreted as a selection mask. The\u00a0darker pixels\u00a0of the tree let\u00a0the corresponding sunset pixels be shown. Conversely, the lighter pixels mask out the corresponding sunset pixels and let the black background pass through. The resulting image is a sunset with the shape of a tree!<\/p>\n

That’s great, we have a first interesting result!
\nBut hey, experimenting is the key to creativity! So what if I invert the mask? I can do this through the “Selection” menu located on the upper application bar.<\/p>\n

Here is the result of the inversion:
\n <\/p>\n

\"PhotoPatch

After inverting the selection mask.<\/p><\/div>\n

 
\nThe effect is exactly\u00a0the opposite of the previous one: a sunset with a tree shape carved into it. The pixels forming the tree are actually unselected pixels of the sunset image which let the black background appear through, just like in a micro drill-work.<\/p>\n

I\u00a0could now try to tune the foreground image to my taste through the color settings and filters in the “Foreground” menu. For example, this is what I\u00a0get by adding a “Process” color filter and increasing the brightness and vibrance a little bit:
\n <\/p>\n

\"PhotoPatch

Tuning the color settings and filters of the foreground image.<\/p><\/div>\n

\"PhotoPatch

After adding a “Process” filter and increasing the exposure and vibrance a little bit.<\/p><\/div>\n

 
\nIn this case I tend to prefer\u00a0the original one with its warmer colors, so\u00a0I will save that one as my final composition. This can be done through the “Export\/Save” button. It’s important to remember at this point that the “Export\/Save” button saves only the background image, because it’s assumed to be the one being\u00a0patched and thus containing the final image. But in this case my\u00a0final image is the foreground (masked) one.<\/p>\n

So, in order to avoid saving a meaningless black background, I should patch the foreground image onto the background. The patch button is located in the rightmost part of the bottom application bar (the stamp). By just pressing it I’ll get the patched background image.<\/p>\n

Now I can finally export\/save the background image,
\n <\/p>\n

\"PhotoPatch

Saving\/exporting the final image.<\/p><\/div>\n

 
\nAnd this is the final exported image:
\n <\/p>\n

\"PhotoPatch

The final result: a sunset photo negatively masked with a tree image and patched\u00a0onto a fully transparent background.<\/p><\/div>\n

 
\nSome useful suggestions when using images as selection masks:<\/p>\n