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(Ken_vw) Calculating status...
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Line Art Conversions

Nov 7, 2008 11:00 AM

Does anyone have a PS3 tutorial for converting product images to line art? I'm trying to create close-up views of small products (glass vials, screws etc.) for a few different brochures my client wants to create.

Thanks in advance for any help.

Ken
450 Views   14 Replies   Latest reply: (Ken_vw), Nov 10, 2008 6:03 AM
 
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  • Neil_Keller
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    1. Neil_Keller,
    Nov 7, 2008 11:26 AM   in reply to (Ken_vw)
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    Ken,

    Essentially you would convert them to grayscale, adjusting the values as you wish, and from there, as bitmap. Higher resolution would result in cleaner edges. But perhaps converting the black-and-whites to vectors in Illustrator would be the best route.

    Neil
     
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  • Craster
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    2. Craster,
    Nov 7, 2008 4:23 PM   in reply to (Ken_vw)
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    There is an web-based application called "Vector Magic" that really works wonderfully, producing much more accurate vector art than I have been able to produce with PS or AI. Its also available as a standalone desktop app.

    http://vectormagic.com/

    EDIT: a video demo is here: http://vectormagic.com/main/demo
     
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  • Neil_Keller
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    3. Neil_Keller,
    Nov 7, 2008 5:59 PM   in reply to (Ken_vw)
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    Anyone remember Adobe Streamline?  <g><br /><br />Neil
     
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  • Ann Shelbourne
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    4. Ann Shelbourne,
    Nov 7, 2008 10:42 PM   in reply to (Ken_vw)
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    I still have the Streamline disks somewhere I think!

    With Bridge CS4's Tools you can open an image directly into Illustrator's LiveTrace.
     
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  • Welles Goodrich
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    5. Welles Goodrich,
    Nov 8, 2008 8:34 AM   in reply to (Ken_vw)
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    Ann,

    Has Illustrator's LiveTrace been changed in CS4? I always thought it was a significant advance over Streamline which I still have available on an old G4 dual boot I keep around for legacy apps (and nostalgia). So far I haven't upgraded my Illustrator to CS4 as I don't see any compelling need. A new LiveTrace might get me thinking about it.
     
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  • Ann Shelbourne
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    6. Ann Shelbourne,
    Nov 8, 2008 9:45 AM   in reply to (Ken_vw)
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    I have not used LiveTrace that much so I don't know how different the CS4 version may be but Illustrator CS4 is greatly improved in stability, GUI and performance over CS3.

    The whole Suite is just so much better than the previous version particularly the integration between the different applications.
     
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  • Welles Goodrich
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    7. Welles Goodrich,
    Nov 8, 2008 12:42 PM   in reply to (Ken_vw)
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    I have to admit that I don't use Illustrator all that much anymore (I favor of Xara Xtreme Pro) but I never had any instability issues with CS3. GUI changes aren't worth an upgrade price IMO, and performance doesn't mean much to me as Illustrator always worked without any delays on my Mac Pro. I don't do the suite bit... never bought into that concept.

    Thanks for your view. I'll pass on an Illustrator upgrade this go around. Nothing compelling for an occasional user, it seems.
     
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  • StevieJV
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    8. StevieJV,
    Nov 8, 2008 7:06 PM   in reply to (Ken_vw)
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    Talk to me about Xara, Welles, I've used FreeHand for 15 years and really don't like what I see in Illustrator, is it a competent option?
     
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  • Welles Goodrich
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    9. Welles Goodrich,
    Nov 8, 2008 8:29 PM   in reply to (Ken_vw)
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    Stevie V,

    To my way of thinking Xara is a more interesting set of tools for vector image creation with some 3D and bitmap options thrown into the mix. They seem more intuitive to use than the Illustrator tool set. A more important selling point is the screen image is rendered instantly. Tasks are performed real time so I just don't experience waiting for the program to finish. Here is a more comprehensive sales hype but real list of features and a link to a gallery.

    http://www.xara.com/us/products/xtreme/features/

    It is Windows only at present and one of the primary reasons I've been either running a Windows box or dual boot since my Mac Pro. I can run it on my MacBook Pro and never suffer a delays due to a less powerful system and that's running it under VMWare's Fusion and XP Pro.
     
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  • StevieJV
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    10. StevieJV,
    Nov 8, 2008 10:20 PM   in reply to (Ken_vw)
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    No Mac version, damn, I just finished reading up about it and got all excited too! I don't run windows at all.
     
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  • Welles Goodrich
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    11. Welles Goodrich,
    Nov 9, 2008 8:12 AM   in reply to (Ken_vw)
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    Two years ago there was the statement by the developers that Xara was in the process of being ported to OS X and Linux. However time has passed and no further word so I'm not holding my breath.
     
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  • Currently Being Moderated
    12. (Steven_Scotten),
    Nov 9, 2008 1:16 PM   in reply to (Ken_vw)
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    I am a Freehand user from 1993 until 2003 when I switched from PC to Mac for my own machine. Macromedia never offered a crossgrade price and I never bought FGS for the Mac. I've grudgingly used Illustrator since 1995--most of the places I've worked have been Illustrator shops. I garnered a good deal of experience with Illustrator over that time and hated it the whole time, but pretty much had no choice after the Macromedia buyout. Since then I have little justification for investing money in Freehand MX and none for convincing employers and clients to switch over to a "dead" application. So I've now been using Illustrator and cursing at it for a couple years

    So keep that in mind when I say this: CS4 is the first version of Illustrator that I'm actually happy to move to. If there were a future for Freehand, I very well might still be moving to Illustrator now. From my perspective, CS4 is where Illustrator moved from behind Freehand in every way except market position to being ahead of Freehand.

    Or I could have said this more concisely as Freehand fan says: Illustrator CS3, Boo. Illustrator CS4 Yay!.
     
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  • Welles Goodrich
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    13. Welles Goodrich,
    Nov 9, 2008 1:54 PM   in reply to (Ken_vw)
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    Wow! That's a ringing endorsement, Steven. I'll have to try the demo and see if I feel the same. I sort of gave CS3 a ho hum rating and didn't really want to upgrade this time around. As I still use separate licenses I can pic and choose which apps to upgrade.
     
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  • Currently Being Moderated
    14. (Ken_vw),
    Nov 10, 2008 6:03 AM   in reply to (Ken_vw)
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    Thanks to all who responded to my query. I will try a few of the suggestions forwarded. Yes, I fondly remember Streamline. I think I only got rid of those disk about a year ago. Ya just never know. I too was a Freehand user since the late 80's. It just seemed to be much more intuitive than AI. I have MX but since all the folks I do work for use AI, I'm kinda stuck with the format. I haven't checked out the CS4 Suite yet. Not sure if I should spend the money right now. CS3 has been real stable for me so far.
     
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