Masks Workshop (2025)

[Julie Magerka]

  On 6/19/2025 at 4:24 PM, Karen Borgmann said:

Here's my layout for Mask Lesson 4.  Enjoyed this one...even uploaded the free brushes all by myself; didn't even require a "Help" note to Carole!  Making progress and feeling so good about myself!!!  Whoop-Whoop!😉

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Feels good, doesn't it, to nail done those techniques! Good for you. Love the colours in this.

[Julie Magerka]

Lesson 3: I'm behind, but plugging away at it. Did this one rather fast. Used PSP (2022) since the kaleidoscope effect is much easier than in PSE. Not an effect I would use very much, but nice to be reminded how to do it. Kept it all simple. 

A friend's dog when he was a pup. He's a big boy now. Elements from my stash. Font Bodoni.

I can't keep up with the layouts being produced and displayed! So many great ones, such fun to see. The newcomers are doing a great job with masks. Much better than I did at the start. We're all keeping Carole busy!!!!

Edited June 19 by Julie Magerka

[Donna Sillia]

  On 6/19/2025 at 5:48 PM, Corrie Kinkel said:

This plaid looks much nicer, it isn't overpowering the photos any longer. Seeing that those photos are from Nappa Valley I understand the grapes!

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I had a really hard time with the plaid in PSP.

[Donna Sillia]

  On 6/19/2025 at 4:24 PM, Karen Borgmann said:

Here's my layout for Mask Lesson 4.  Enjoyed this one...even uploaded the free brushes all by myself; didn't even require a "Help" note to Carole!  Making progress and feeling so good about myself!!!  Whoop-Whoop!😉

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I love what you did with the font on the surfboard!

[Donna Sillia]

Day 3 - Affinity  I copied the frames from PSP as pngs in order to add them to Affinity and changed the font to Brandish from CF. I also played with the styles settings.

[Hank Sobah]

  On 6/18/2025 at 3:11 AM, Cassel said:

Wow, this was a productive day for you all!

@Linda Rexford You must be very fast to capture those hummingbirds. I find that the hummingbirds here come and go so quickly, I would not even have time to lift my camera! If you find any pattern too overpowering, you can always put a solid color layer underneath and reduce the opacity of the pattern. That gives you control on how much of it shows.

@Gerry LandrethThat little girl is so photogenic! This is a perfect way to showcase her. I think you are making a whole family album now!

@AprilDawnYou had a great idea to color the photo frames to match the flowers.

@Cristina Are those birds attracted to the camera? It is amazing how they stare directly into the camera! Back to the plaid "cheat" from Corrie, the reason you need only 1 pixel is that if you have 2 pixels in height and you stretch it, the top half will be one color and the bottom will be another color. That might lead to a mismatch if you want a seamless edge.

@kasanyYour cat is modeling? That is such a cute idea. That frame around the Autumn Park layout is quite effective.

@Sue ThomasIf you find that plaids are overpowering, you can always choose some sections of your image with less contrast to make a more subtle pattern in the end.

@Jannette NieuwboerYou will find out that templates often use layers as masks so you will likely use them in a similar way.

@fiona cookThe technique of floating/defloating to create a mask is something I learned after having used PSP for many years. It was actually someone more knowledgeable than me, in the beta-testing group who told me how to do that, when I was suggesting a way to "turn a raster layer into a mask" (similar to how you can convert a vector into a raster). That was a real discovery and now something I teach too!

@Robert GarrettIt is good to read that you tweaked the mask layer to match what you wanted to get. Sometimes (especially if a photo is not that great), we might want to mask to give a faded look. Other times, we want to showcase the photo in all its glory! Great work.

@Corrie KinkelYes, some settings might be missing if you use a smaller monitor, but sometimes, they just play hide and seek for no reason. I often answer this question on the FB group too. As for the plaid, the way you cheated is perfect. It shows that you understand the steps and you understand how the program works enough to get to the same point with a workaround.

@Karen BorgmannYes, the process becomes easier over time. But if you are REALLY struggling, there is a script in the store that can do it automatically for you. I still prefer to teach how to do it manually instead of promoting an automation. It gives you a better understanding of the process and it will be useful in future lessons.

@Donna SilliaYou are ahead of the workshop as we will use "outside" masks in lesson 3, but it is ok. It means you are already comfortable with masks.

@ClarineI think you squished your grandpa again. Be careful when you resize an image and ALWAYS use a corner handle. Even then, make sure it resized proportionally as sometimes, it might still distort (I am not sure why).

@Hank SobahDid you take those pictures? They are fantastic.

@SharlaUsually, making just a stretched line instead of a plaid might not work, but in your layout, it works fantastically!

@gwen jewittYour plaid works well with the photo and is not overpowering, even if it is dark. It helps show off the pictures.

@Carolyn RyeBeautiful layout. If I could offer a little suggestion, I would brush a bit of white on the mask to show the baby's face better.

@Art KuiperI didn't know you spoke French!!! I am glad to hear that you now have more uses for all those templates. And templates can be such a time-saver!

Time for bed for me, but I am sure others will keep working and tomorrow, we will have even more masterpieces!

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Sadly, I did not take the pictures.  Found them online for this one.

[kasany]

Our cat works in modeling, from time to time;) 

L4. JK has been there today. 

[Gerry Landreth]

Day 4 - Today's layout revisits one from 2021 of my niece, Corinne. Both are posted.

I found free snowflake, frost, and glowing circle Photoshop brushes at DeviantArt.

On another topic, Affinity has been closing down without warning. It started in the last couple of days. Has anyone else experienced this issue and been able to identify the cause?

[gwen jewitt]

Day 4 using Affinity  I used a photo of hubby relaxing on the grass under a tree with the hills behind him it was a lovely summers day, I changed the photo into a pencil Drawing

and made a mask to soften the image by using a photo of the hills which I took from a slighty different angle. I then used a stipple brush over the top to add to it, finished off with Baby Garland Font for the text on a path.  Added a second one using the brush set from the link Carole provided added a gradient for the background paper .

Edited June 19 by gwen jewitt

[Hank Sobah]

Day 3

[Hank Sobah]

Day 4

[Ann Seeber]

Here's my Lesson 4 - Daughter Deb took the photo for this one at The Met (The Metropolitan Museum of Art) in NYC. I played with the brushes a bit, used a solid brush to clear up the center of the painting and a really small watercolor to finish the edges. Then I applied a drop shadow to the whole group. The fonts are Niagara Solid and Copperplate Gothic Bold. The text at the bottom reads: The Metropolitan Museum of Art proudly presents Iba N’Diaye: Between Latitude and Longitude, a landmark exhibition celebrating the legacy of Iba N’Diaye, a pivotal figure in African Modernist painting. Tabaski III celebrates the Muslim ritual of sacrifice. Oil on plywood painted in 1970, it is an imposing size, measuring about 5 feet in height by more than 8 feet in width.

EDIT: I'll also post the original photo so you can see my transition.

Edited June 20 by Ann Seeber

[Corrie Kinkel]

Lesson - Affinity

When starting with Affinity I imported all the abr.brushes which I originally had downloaded for PSP; I always keep the zipfile! I just chose one of my collection watercolor brushes to use on the photo. It is nice that Affinity has sort of similar settings for the brushes as F11 in PSP, so it is simple to understand what they are. Because the orientation of the tree in the photo I placed it on the left side and used a rather small brush along the right side where the branches are. The background consists of 2 colored layers with a blendmode and a canvas pattern overlay that I made in the Paper Workshop also with a blendmode. I hope it is visible in this reduced version.

[Clarine]

Grandpa Great was a very hard worker.  He often put in long work days as a Field Supervisor at Green Giant.  On his rare

free days, he enjoyed fishing at his cabin, playing golf and restoring antique engines.  He loved playing cards with his

wife and the card club gang.   And of course most of all, he enjoyed the company of his 4 kids and their spouses, 6 grandkids and 7

great grands.   

[Cassel]

@Connie CollierSimple is beautiful, and it helps showcase your photos and your skill.

@Jeni SimpsonBeautiful layouts. Yourfirst kaleidoscope pattern, I had to look at it twice to realize it was done with that technique. It looks so delicate!

@kasanyDoes the rose have a black background or is that the shape of the mask? If it is the actual background, I think it would work better if the paper is also dark, otherwise, the contrast does not give a smooth transition. Your latest project is stunning with the black background!

@Sharla I think that this pattern looks good. Right now, you are "very close" to your design so it might become "boring" to you, but for us, viewing it in a project, we just see the overall effect and it looks great.

@fiona cookThat is a great end result. And you are totally allowed to play with all those effects. That is how you can discover something new or something you didn't think you would like.

@CristinaUsing the pattern only on the edges is a great way to use it without overpowering. And with that light-colored photo, it was a smart choice.

@Jen Brown Great to see you! Your first layout is wonderful. Looking forward to your other projects.

@Robert GarrettThe effect is much more striking with the resized mask/photo.

@Donna SilliaYour use of the nested frames in your PSP project is puzzling me. It looks like some sections have a bevel but not all. It LOOKS like what is overlapping the mask has no bevel but the rest does. I think you COULD consider erasing some parts that overlap the mask and it would even show off your photo more.

@Karen BorgmannThose Those boards are great! Did you make them from scratch or were they part of a kit?

@Corrie KinkelYes, some things are harder or just not possible in Affinity. You will see that on Saturday!!! 😞

@Julie MagerkaYou might not think much of those kaleidoscope patterns, but I definitely think that they have great potential. Once you don't have them right "in your face", you might appreciate them more.

@Gerry LandrethYour pages are wonderful. I think that Affinity is just like PSP: it can get finicky with closing and it is inconsistent. It is annoying, and usually, there is no specific solution unless it can be reproducible on demand.

@gwen jewittthe bird layout made me smile! That is a great way to combine different layers in a single "story".

@Hank SobahAre we invited to those festivals? They look great.

@Ann SeeberIt is interesting how that shadow was essential for the text, and it looks good, making the text legible.

@Clarineare you planning on printing an album about your grandfather? With all those layouts (and more that you can add), it would be great! 

[Linda Rexford]

Day 4 with Affinity.  This was fun to do and so easy!  I used one of the brushes from Carole's link.  The back ground is a texture layer with a colored pixel layer over it.  Then I used a blending mode to get the look and color I wanted.

[Jenny MacKay]

I'm a bit late getting to do this workshop, here's my first lesson. 

[Jenny MacKay]

Lesson 2. This was a great lesson. I have worked with this technique some years ago in a different software, so it was great to revisit it again.

[Susan Ewart]

Lesson 3 Diamond Template.

Font is Single Fighter (CF).  I made lots of tiles using the Kaleidoscope, some seamless and some not seamless that looked cool as a smaller size.  the background is subtle(and might not show up)  and is made from two not so seamless tiles in a small size and at 45 degrees and a blend mode of lighten.  Then i added a texture of bricks to simulate a graffiti wall over the mask group(rasterized) and the text group (rasterized).  Such a fun effect.  Everyone has been making such cool plaids and backgrounds, super inspiring.  Photo is mine.

 

Edited June 20 by Susan Ewart

[Susan Ewart]

Lesson 3 Background

Here's what the layers looked like and the blended result.  

[Jeni Simpson]

  On 6/20/2025 at 5:14 AM, Susan Ewart said:

Lesson 3 Diamond Template.

Font is Single Fighter (CF).  I made lots of tiles using the Kaleidoscope, some seamless and some not seamless that looked cool as a smaller size.  the background is subtle(and might not show up)  and is made from two not so seamless tiles in a small size and at 45 degrees and a blend mode of lighten.  Then i added a texture of bricks to simulate a graffiti wall over the mask group(rasterized) and the text group (rasterized).  Such a fun effect.  Everyone has been making such cool plaids and backgrounds, super inspiring.  Photo is mine.

 

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Susan, that kaleidoscope is beautiful, so soft, yet I can see it, hiding behind that brick wall.

[Jeni Simpson]

  On 6/19/2025 at 8:28 PM, Hank Sobah said:

Day 4

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Hank, is this a country music festival, or a county music festival? You may need to tweek it if it is supposed to be country.

[Ann Seeber]

  On 6/20/2025 at 2:13 AM, Cassel said:

@Ann SeeberIt is interesting how that shadow was essential for the text, and it looks good, making the text legible.

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I assume you are referring to Iba N’diaye / Lesson 4. I'm wondering if you saw my Lesson 3 that had the Mountain Laurel at Childs Park featured? I can't find any comment from you about that one. It is located on page 6.

Edited June 20 by Ann Seeber
added location

[kasany]

  On 6/19/2025 at 7:18 PM, Gerry Landreth said:

Day 4 - Today's layout revisits one from 2021 of my niece, Corinne. Both are posted.

I found free snowflake, frost, and glowing circle Photoshop brushes at DeviantArt.

On another topic, Affinity has been closing down without warning. It started in the last couple of days. Has anyone else experienced this issue and been able to identify the cause?

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Too early;), but very nice.

[Sharla]

  On 6/19/2025 at 7:18 PM, Gerry Landreth said:

Affinity has been closing down without warning. It started in the last couple of days. Has anyone else experienced this issue and been able to identify the cause?

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That has been happening for me as well.  For me, it only started when I tried to use a set of brushes I'd imported. As long as I don't use those brushes, Affinity is stable. So, if you've added anything new into Affinity that just might be the problem.