photoshoped drop shadow, what am i doing wrong

http://pic80.picturetrail.com/VOL826/4336175/22017449/364023823.jpg

Ok i created an image, then with the layer tools added emboss & drop shadow. I have read through some photoshop articles and i understand that the alpha must be black, then a fade to grey for the shadow, then white for the part. no mater how i do it i either get a halo around it or no shadow or a shadow with a halo, lol

Are there any tuts that you know of that go through the steps using drop shadow, and it be semi-trans when viewed in SL. I created the same image without dropshodow and it looked fine.. I think im just missing a step or two somewhere

Thanks
Bill

Here's an easy fix:

1. First rasterize the layer effects. To do this, simply flatten the layer onto another totally transparent layer, just underneath it.

2. Ctrl-click the layer's thumbnail to se|ect everything on the layer.

3. Hit the button in the Channels palette to make a new channel from the selection. On the new channel, you should now see the object silhouette in white, the shadow in gray, and the background in black.

4. To prevent haloing, either run the Solidify filter (available free at flamingpear.com), or place a dark gray background layer underneath the subject layer, as described in the stickied transparency guide at the top of this forum.



Tip: Rasterizing the layer effects will make them no longer parametric, meaning they won't be adjustable anymore. If you want to preserve the adjustability, first duplicate the layer, and perform the flattening action on just one the copies, not on both. Turn off visibility on the unflattened copy, so it doesn't interfere with anything. Just keep it there in reserve, in case you need it again.

Thanks, that worked, lol... i kinda had to do some other round about stuff but it looks much better in the beta grid now.. I think im going to start over and make it again your way to see if it work out perfectly.