Problems With SL Templates

I made a few shirts with the SL templates. I have a design that I want to put on the back of a shirt. You know how on the template the front and back is together (upper body template)? The design is going on the back of the shirt so I put it on the right side of the template in the middle of the body but when I add the alpha layer it places the design in the middle between the front and back of the template. I can't figure out why and I've tried it on 3 different programs and they all are doing the same thing. Any ideas on how to correct this?
Thanks

Hi Lucie.

I'm sure I can solve your problem, but I might need a little more info on what you're actually doing. First, are you familiar with how alpha channels work? Since you said "alpha layer" and not alpha channel I'm wondering if maybe you're pasting something where it's not supposed to go. There's no such thing as an alpha layer.

For a detailed description of the difference between layers and channels, see this thread.

In the mean time, you might find this helpful. It's my standard tutorial for creating alpha channels in Photoshop, preceded by an explanation of what they are and how they work. If you already know some of this, great, but I always try to be thorough. I've pasted this tutorial into many threads on this forum, and just about everyone has found it helpful. My girlfriend was able to follow it, and she'd never previously used Photoshop in her life so I know it's fool proof. Note that the tutorial is for a bikini top but the concept applies to anything. Just mentally remove the word "bikini" and insert the word "shirt".

Also note that this is for all versions of Photoshop other than 7.0. Adobe made an error with 7.0 that led to a serious flaw in the way it saved alpha channels in TGA files. They quickly corrected that with the 7.0.1 update. If you're using 7.0, update before you do anything else. The patch is free from adobe.com.

Color Space & Channels
Images designed to be shown on a color screen are comprised three colors (red, green, & blue). The relative brightness of each of these primary colors in each pixel determines each pixel's actual color. For example, a pixel comprised of equal values of red and blue without any green would appear to be purple.

When taken seperately, the individual values for red, green, or blue are represented by a grayscale image called a channel. In an individual channel, white represents the maximum possible concentration of color and black represents the absense of color. Shades of gray represent amounts of color that are less than the maximum. The darker the gray, the lesser the concentration of color. The lighter the gray, the more color is present.

Channels & Transparency (Alpha Channels)
Images that have transparency have the same three primary color channels and also have a fourth channel, called Alpha, which represents opacity. In the alpha channel, white represents comlete opacity and black represents the absense of opacity (transparency). Shades of gray represent semi-transparency. The darker the gray, the more transparent. The lighter the gray, the more opaque.

So, for example, if you are making a bikini top for your avatar, the alpha channel would be white in the shape of the bikini top, and black everywhere else. The white part makes the bikini top 100% opaque so that you won't be able to see through it when it's on the av, and the black part makes the rest of the image invisible so that there appears to be nothing on the av's arms, stomach, etc.

How to Create an Alpha Channel
Let's stick with the example of a bikini top.

1. On the Layers Palette turn off all layers except for the layer that has your bikini on it. (To turn a layer off, click the eyeball symbol to the left of its name.)

2. If the bikini layer has any white space around the bikini itself, use the eraser to get rid of the white space. It's very important at this stage that the bikini be on its own layer with nothing else on it.

3. On the Layers Palette, ctrl-click the thumbnail for the layer with the bikini on it. (The thumbnail is the little picture of the layer directly to the left of the layer's name.) This will select everything on the layer. You should see the "marching ants" outlining your bikini now. If there are elements of the bikini on any other layers, hold down shift, and then ctrl-click their respective thumbnails to add them to the selection. Make sure not to include the background or any of the template layers.


4. On the Layers Palette, click the tab that says Channels to switch it to the Channels Palette. What you should see listed here are the three primary channels for your image, labled, "Red", "Green", & "Blue", and a master channel for the three, labelled "RGB". If you see any other channels besides those four, delete them now.

5. In the lower right corner of the Palette Window, locate the button that looks like a square sticker being peeled from its backing. It's the second one from the right. It's immediately to the left of the one that looks like a trash can. It says "New Channel" when you hover your mouse over it. Click it.

6. You should now see a new layer called "Alpha 1", which is currently all black. Make sure all channels except for Alpha 1 are turned off and that Alpha 1 is turned on. This should have happened automatically when you created Alpha 1, but if it didn't, do it now.

7. Your canvas should now appear to be solid black with the exception that you should still be able to see the "marching ants" outline of your bikini. Paint everything inside the outline white and leave everything outside of it black.

8. Click "Select" on the menu bar at the top of the screen to pull down the Select Menu. Click "Deselect" and you should see the marching ants disappear.

9. On the Channels Palette, trun the red, green, & blue channels back on, and turn Alpha 1 off. Now click the tab that says layers to switch back to the Layers Palette. Create a new layer by pressing the same button you previously used to create the new channel. (Just as it created a new channel while you were on the Channels Palette, it will create a new layer while you're on the Layers Palette.) Click on the name of this new layer and drag it underneath the layer with the bikini on it. Paint the new layer 50% gray or darker; black is fine. (The gray/black layer will prevent the white halo sometimes caused when Alphas are created the way we just did it. If you don't know what I mean by that, don't worry about. Just make sure to always put a gray/black layer underneath your work and you'll never have to see that white halo.)

10. Save your file as a 32-bit TGA and upload it to SL.



I hope that solves your problem. If not, please come back with a little more detail about your workflow. If you outline exactly what you're doing, I should be able to pinpoint the problem.

I know how to make a alpha in adobe that's not the problem.
It when I get to #7 Your canvas should now appear to be solid black with the exception that you should still be able to see the "marching ants" outline of your bikini. Paint everything inside the outline white and leave everything outside of it black.
That happens just like it should but the marching ants are not where they should be. Think of it this way...... The design is on the right side and when I add the alpha the marching ants are on the left side. I can't figure out why they move but they do and it never happened befor now.

Hmm, that's really weird. I'm not sure what to tell you. I would say maybe reinstall Photoshop, but you say it's happening in other programs as well. Is your machine low on memory, perhaps? It might sound silly, but have you tried rebooting and then seeing if it works?

I figured it out. I have a new key board and the copy and paste keys are in a different place and I was doing it backward. (hehehe) well.... at least I know it was me and not my computer about to blow up although I was just about to the point of throwing it out the window but caught myself when I hit the button and though.....now that was just stupid! Anyway thanks for the help and I bet I had your brain clicking didn't I? Makes sence to why it was happening in all 3 programs

Hehe, yes, my brain was clicking (and screeching, and popping) on that one. Glad you worked it out. That would certainly do it.