This is one way to do a pixel stretch. The results may be used in the same way any pattern can be used.



Open the image you want to use to do a pixel stretch. You can make your pixel stretch any size you want but if you are using it for a pattern, I'd suggest around 200 to 400px square. It does not need to be large because it will be seamless.

Any image with several colors can be used such as photos and drawings. If you are using a flattened image such as a jpg (layer name will be bold), be sure to add an alpha channel first, and Image > Mode = RGB. Be sure to duplicate the image (Ctrl + D) so you that you have one for the pixel stretch.

I used the Noise filter to do this pixel stretch. It's handy and quickly available. My image is 500x250 pixels and I filled it with a color.

Filters > Noise > RGB noise. Move the three color sliders all the way to the right to 1.00, and be sure Independent RGB is checked. Repeat if you want heavier noise.



With your image open, click the Crop tool and in the Crop Tool Options click Fixed and in the dropdown, choose Size. I made my size 400x1. Click in your image and you will see the selection line. Move it around to where the color seems best to you if you are using another image. Once you have it where you want it, let up on the mouse button. Everything is dark, click in the rectangle and it will crop.



You will see only a dotted line in your image window.

Image > Scale Image. Break the chain in the dialog by clicking it. Make both measurements 400. Click OK. For some reason, GIMP may cut off 1 pixel when you autocrop. Go ahead and make the measurements 400 or whatever width you set the selection.



Your results are ready to use.

When you do stretches using noise, the background color sets the predominant color. The image below shows 4 different colors and the color patches at the bottom show the original color of the image.



Example of using a photograph for a pixel stretch to make a matching frame.



Download a pdf document of the tutorial.

Very nice tute "0". got it saved to my desktop to do next.

for some reason my pixelline wont stretch, i dont know what im doing wrong

A couple things I'm wondering. First, did you invert the selection before you deleted? Second, did you autocrop your results after deleting?

yes to both

EDIT: ah, im an idiot

i used autocrop layer instead of image

You got me to thinking there Esper. I just tried this and it worked. Use the Crop Tool instead of the Rectangle Selection tool. All you need to do is set the size for the crop tool, move it around on the image where you want and then click it. Image is ready to scale.

yeah sorry about the confusion, im using the german version of GIMP and my english translation ability got mixed up

Thanks for trying out my tutorial, Esper. Nice job!!! I'm going to re-write it so the Crop tool can be used instead of the Rectangle Selection tool. The Crop tool method is much quicker.

there is one thing i dislike about playing with GIMP
very often you get "colorful sauce", if you understand what i mean

you play with levels or colorize or put another layer on top and use a layermode like difference and it gets more colorful with every step, but there is very little control and these picture always have the same kind of feeling to them

this pixelstretch technique is a bit like a gradient and i was thinking, what else could you do with it, to make it less random ?

but when i had another look at your pic of the leaf with the pixelstretched border, it dawned to me, you made that border from the picture itself
so one interesting use for pixelstretch is making another detail for your work in matching colors !

or, making a palette from it !

Nice tutorial "O", shall have to try this.

Esper - reading your post got me thinking, I have a script downloaded called path to gradient, you draw a path across your image and it creates a gradient from that pathstrikes me that this pixel stretch could be good for this.

Cool idea and nice result O.

Oohhh! I like that Lyle. How did you do it?

I reckon he used the pan to bow script.

Oh, I guess I don't have that script. Here is my attempt to do what he did.

cant you do that with polarcoordinates ?

You can get the script from http://registry.gimp.org/node/20869

Thank you, Erisian. I was looking around with google for the script and found this. I guess I did have the script at one time but my OS and gimp are upgrades now so will have to dl it again. viewtopic.php?p=8257#p8257

You're welcome O. I discovered the script through a thread by Lyle on making droste spirals but I can't seem to find the thread now.

Erisian figured it out. Did use G'MIC's Anisotrophic smoothing (fake smudge) to clean up the resulting aliasing too and a few other things. The trick is to start with a primary target color before applying the noise. I like orange.