GIMP Version: 2.6.11
Operating System: Windows
OS Version: XP - SP3
GIMP Experience: Beginner Level

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I am working on a photo. Well i think at one point i knew how to do this. But for some reason i can't remember how. In the picture below i want to change the truck from white to black. and have it look like the truck is truly a black truck. I have done this with a layer mask on a different picture and set the layer mode to overlay but it was from a off color orange to a red orange. but doing that same thing to this picture doesn't seem to work. it just comes out as a darker white. here is the photo. i want to turn the truck from a white paint job to a black paint job.

Moderate success with the following method.
- Select the white paint parts
- Sample the paint where it is grayish (typically on the driver's door)
- Add alpha channel
- Add layer filled with black below car layer
- Color/Color to alpha, using the sampled gray.

But this picture lack contrast and shine, you may want to enhance it first.

Did you ever figure this one out?

The nearest I can think of doing this is as follows:

1. Select the truck that needs the color to be replaced. How you do this is up to you. I would magnify to 400% and use the scissors or the lasso tool.

2. Color -> Levels
Move the dark slider (the left slider) towards the white till you get the desired color you want.

This method has the advantage of retain the shine and the texture and more importantly the details in the reflections of the tree etc.

Hope this helps.

Partha

Black is a rather difficult color to achieve (because it is not really a color). Here is an XCF of the result I achieved, with the layer names describing the treatment.

very nice job saul.

Saul,

This method does not retain the reflections that you see on the hood. Notice that on the original? How do you handle that?

Thanks,
Partha

PS: You need to handle the white part on the front of the truck as well.

If you decrease the opacity of the "25% more grain merge" layer (hide it altogether?), the reflections become more visible, but with a blue tint. Perhaps this is reasonable, assuming a blue sky.


I am not familiar with the coloring schemes of Chevy vehicle trim (I'm a Ford man).

I am a Nissan woman...they reflect better

I Can't.
An interesting challenge, and fun.
But I could not get a satisfactory result.
The black color was one of the initial challenges, and then obtain a polished texture and lustrusa* was another.

*waxed (glossy)

Best I could come up with today - looks more like a cartoon car though. Was supposed to be black 'glass' so don't know how the white lines got back into it.
I tried colourizing black and colour to alpha but that didn't help much at all

Well, it's not easy to do this and I doubt that there is a general technique.

Best I came up with:

1. Select the truck you want to change color. Use Lasso/same color etc. Any method that allows you to select it.
2. Color -> Desaturate (luminosity )
3. Color -> Invert

This is the result:


Notice the halo? Well, you need to do a better job of selection.

Had a go but I think my results are similar to kit's

This is the most convincing try, imo, reducing the brown tone with a black car photoref to go further maybe.
Note: white balancing the photo sounds also a good idea to erase those green tints.

Photo editing isn't my thing, but it's an interesting challenge.

Merrak - Thats the best looking black I've seen so far.

Thanks I could've done a better job on the selection. As for the paint itself, I think the trick is to increase the contrast, rather than just darken.

That is very good merrak. I agree about the selection part, it is very hard to select around all the stuff you don't want to change.

Here's my attempt...
It does seem a little dark out side.