Good results from everyone!
Mike, you're right, in that some fonts/dings produce much better results than others. That's pretty much the case with any
Logo Script, especially when dealing with EMaps. This script relies on the ML
Bevel Reflect plug-in, which has 3 main slope settings. The flat slope includes a smoothing factor, while the other two slopes do not. Along with choosing the right slope, getting the right EMap (or using the right Proble/HRDi) is also a factor in getting the best results. Most of the setting in this script come directly from the EnviroMap script, so once you become intimate with how that works, you'll be ahead of the game.
I have a bunch of gradients I downloaded from around the net, which really helps to create the maps. Also, I find RobA's
Sample Gradient Along Path a very useful tool for creating custom gradients.
As I've mentioned previously in this thread, one major downside to the ML
Bevel Reflect plug-in, the edge aliasing that occurs. I try to mitigate that, with only varying levels of success in this script.
One little trick you can use to always get smooth edges is to use a technique I employ in the
Logo Toolbox script, which is to create (what I call) a Text Stroke. Nothing in GIMP produces better anti-aliasing than fonts, so use that to your advantage.
1) Create your Text in a medium to light color, like cyan on a transparent layer.
2) Alpha to selection
3) Shrink the selection by the amount of the stroke you want, using 2 for a good blend stroke.
4) Run
Bevel Reflect Logo from the Alpha to
Logo Menu. This will create the
logo and place the original text layer on the bottom.
5) Make the original Text layer visible and move it under the newly created
Logo Layer.
Now you've got a nice smooth edge. You can then use Colors/Hue & Saturation to match/blend it with the
logo layer. Or you can hue shift it to make a totally different color stroke. Either way, you end up with a really smooth edge.
Blended
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Image ]
Stroked
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Image ]