problem with alpha layers

whenever I try to do alpha layers I end up losing the checkered background for the design. Hit the create new alpha layer, select the red green, unselect the alpha layer, save as targa. And lose the checkered background, happens every time, any ideas?

Well, your first problem is there's no such thing as an alpha layer. It's an alpha CHANNEL. This forum is the only place in the entire universe where people insist on referring to channels and layers as the same thing. Please see this thread.

Anyway, are you actually putting anything on the alpha? By your description, it sounds like you're just creating the extra channel and then not doing anything with it. There's a bit more to it than that. Here's my standard 10 step tutorial on how to create them, preceded by an explanation of what they are. 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, this is for all versions of Photoshop other than 7.0. If you're using 7.0, update to 7.01 for free by downloading the free patch patch from Adobe.

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.

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.


Viewing the Transparency on the TGA
By default, Photoshop will not show you the transparency when you look at the TGA image. Photoshop itself has no idea the alpha is intended as a transparency map. Interpreting it as transparency, or as anything else, is the job of the program the image is destined for, which in this case is SL. If you wish to see the transparency in Photoshop, you must apply a copy of the alpha channel as a layer mask, which is very simple. It should take you all of about 3 seconds, once you know how. Here's how:

1. Open the TGA file.

2. On the Layers Palette, and double click on the word "Background". A diaolg will open to change the background layer to a regular layer. Click OK.

3. Go to the Channels Palette, ctrl click on the thumbnail for the alpha channel to select it. You should now see marching ants around the white areas, indicating a selection has been made.

4. Go back to the Layers Palette, and click the button at the bottom for "Add Layer Mask". It's the second one from the left, the one that looks like a rectangle with a circle in the middle. As soon as you click it, you should see through the layer to the checkerboard below in all the areas that were black on the alpha, and partially through on all areas that were gray. That's all there is to it.

When you close the TGA, you'll lose the mask. Next time you open the file, you'll have to recreate the mask if you want to see it again. The TGA format does not support layers, so it follows that it can't support layer masks either. Don't worry though, the transparency info is still there. Remember, the alpha channel is the transparency map as far as SL is concerend. Whether or not you can see the transparency in Photoshop is irrelivant.