Clothing shadow on skin and faded socks

Hello! Thanks for checking out my thread! I'm sorry if this has been answered before, but I did a search and couldn't find anything. I'm working on a couple clothing bits for some friends but need to try to learn to do a few new things.

1) How can I make a shirt and have it look like there is a bit of a shadow on the skin? Would I just do a light airbrush of sorts include that in the alpha channel?

2) Another friend wants some socks that will fade away into her skin. I know I've seen prims done like this on dresses, where the flexi pieces fade as they go up and attach to the body. I'm not sure how that is done either, but what she is wanting is some socks that will fade into her skin near the top. Is that possible? and if so how? Would it just require mabye a gradient tool for the alpha instead of flat white?

Thanks for any help! Hope that wasn't too confusing.

(1) Yes.
(2) Yes.

Transparency isn't an on/off property. It's infinitely variable from 0% to 100%. If you want anything between total opacity and total transparency, then the alpha channel image has to be gray instead of black and white. You can apply a gradient to any areas in the alpha channel image that you want to fade toward transparency, just as you would apply a gradient in a layer to fade from one color to another.

I strongly suggest that you read through the sticky on transparency and alpha channels at the top of this forum and that you visit Robin Woods' excellent tutorial site (http://www.robinwood.com/Catalog/Technical/SL-Tuts/SLTutSet.html) to get a good theoretical understanding of the subject. Then, of course, come right back here and ask more specific questions.

Thank you Rolig. I think you answered both my questions in number 1. After thinking about it, I realized that a shadow and a fade are pretty much the same thing as far as how it would go and that would, as said, be with use of a graduating white to black alpha channel. However, I AM going though Robin Woods tutorials. I've understood the concept of how grey scale can effect transparency for awhile, I've just never applied a graduating transparency effect until now. Hopefully I can get this to work successfully.

Thanks again!

1. add shadow to the layer you want shadow on

2. make 2 copies of that layer and hide one of them (incase you need to modify it again)

3. merge the 2 visible layers together

4. select the layer transparency (right click on the layer in PSCS2)

5. switch over to your alpha channel and fill the still highlighted masking area 100% white.

All done....you will notice in the alpha channel that your shadowed area is not 100% white but faded.

Play about with a shadow set at about 25% to start with as you are combining 2 layers with shadow added so it becomes quite dark. When you find a shadow strength that works for you just keep using it.

Hope all that made sense heheh