Photo Merge

bcripps · **Joined:** Jun 21, 2016 **Posts:** 60

Hello, Wallis:

A couple of quick questions, if I may.

You seem to have a tool bar across the bottom of the work space. I think it is called a Status Bar (?) and I see you refer to it often to zoom in and out. I don't have that toolbar displayed. Are you using a different version of GIMP? (Some secret version, that no one knows about, yet?) Mine is 2.8.

And because I am cropping photographs to a specific “height / width” ratio, to match the format of a paperback book cover, is there a way of producing a Rectangle Select box that matches that ratio and that I can superimpose on a photograph and manipulate it's size while dragging it around the photo to crop it to get exactly the image I need while retaining the ratio? This seems to be a function that spans the Rectangle Select tool and the Scale tool.

Ideally I would like to save this “ratio cropping rectangle” as a sort of default, because I will be referring back to it again and again. But maybe that's pie in the sky....

Hey, the video was super. I've watched it a half-dozen times. The new software and microphone worked great but more important, your pacing was bang on. Nice and slow so newbies could follow the instructions. I looked at a bunch of videos, trying to figure the ins and outs of photo manipulation... Your's is the best! Hands down! Thank you again.

Personal regards,
Bry

Wallace · **Posted:** Wed Jun 29, 2016 2:25 pm **(#22)**

bcripps wrote:

Hello, Wallis:

A couple of quick questions, if I may.

You seem to have a tool bar across the bottom of the work space. I think it is called a Status Bar (?) and I see you refer to it often to zoom in and out. I don't have that toolbar displayed. Are you using a different version of GIMP? (Some secret version, that no one knows about, yet?) Mine is 2.8.

And because I am cropping photographs to a specific “height / width” ratio, to match the format of a paperback book cover, is there a way of producing a Rectangle Select box that matches that ratio and that I can superimpose on a photograph and manipulate it's size while dragging it around the photo to crop it to get exactly the image I need while retaining the ratio? This seems to be a function that spans the Rectangle Select tool and the Scale tool.

Ideally I would like to save this “ratio cropping rectangle” as a sort of default, because I will be referring back to it again and again. But maybe that's pie in the sky....

Hey, the video was super. I've watched it a half-dozen times. The new software and microphone worked great but more important, your pacing was bang on. Nice and slow so newbies could follow the instructions. I looked at a bunch of videos, trying to figure the ins and outs of photo manipulation... Your's is the best! Hands down! Thank you again.

Personal regards,
Bry

No secret to the Zoom Function on the status bar.

With an image open in Gimp.
Go to View>Show Status Bar.
Wake sure that Show Status Bar is checked.

You can save a selection to a channel and bring it back up when needed.

First make the desired selection you'd like to save.
With the selection active,
go to Selection>Save to channel.

This will save the selection as channel.

To reactivate this selection.
You must go to the Channels Dialog,
right-click on the Selection Mask Copy and select Channel to Selection.

bcripps · **Joined:** Jun 21, 2016 **Posts:** 60

Thanx, Wallis....
Having fun with GIMP, lots to learn but now i'm on track...

Personal regards,
Bry

Wallace · **Posted:** Thu Jun 30, 2016 11:58 am **(#24)**

bcripps wrote:

Thanx, Wallis....
Having fun with GIMP, lots to learn but now i'm on track...

Personal regards,
Bry

Terrific!

bcripps · **Joined:** Jun 21, 2016 **Posts:** 60

Okay. The Rectangle Select Box isn't doing it for me. I'm probably doing something wrong here, or maybe I didn't explain myself well.

I want to draw a Rectangle Select Box, with no image, at a set ratio (that matches that of a book cover), and save it. Then, in the future, retrieve the Rectangle Select Box to drop it in place over a photograph; drag the corner of the Select Box to increase or decrease it's size, while it retains it's height to width radio; move it around on the photo until I have the image I want to crop to. And then Crop to Selection to crop the photo to the exact ratio of the book cover.

Is possible?

Bry

Wallace · **Posted:** Fri Jul 01, 2016 11:04 am **(#26)**

bcripps wrote:

Okay.
The Rectangle Select Box isn't doing it for me.
I'm probably doing something wrong here,
or maybe I didn't explain myself well.

I want to draw a Rectangle Select Box,
with no image,
at a set ratio (that matches that of a book cover),
and save it.
Then,
in the future,
retrieve the Rectangle Select Box to drop it in place over a photograph;
drag the corner of the Select Box to increase or decrease it's size,
while it retains it's height to width radio;
move it around on the photo until I have the image I want to crop to.
And then Crop to Selection to crop the photo to the exact ratio of the book cover.

Is possible?

Bry

There is no direct way that I know of.
To save a selection and then be able to open it and or manipulate it's dimensions.

You could make the rectangle selection you want,
do a Selection to Path and then export the path as a .svg file.

When you want the selection,
just import the svg file into your image.
Then do a Path to Selection from the saved .svg file.

This way you will always have this selection,
but in a saved .svg file format to use with any image.

When exporting the path to a .svg file.
Export it with a name like Book Template,
or something similar.

Note:
Selection made from a path can't be manipulated by dragging,
as you would when using the rectangle selection tool.
To form a newly created selection.

bcripps · **Joined:** Jun 21, 2016 **Posts:** 60

Thanks Wallace, (sorry for mangling your name)

Was trying to develop a short cut for myself. But I guess it's not possible.

Bry

Wallace · **Posted:** Sun Jul 03, 2016 11:30 am **(#28)**

bcripps wrote:

Thanks Wallace, (sorry for mangling your name)

Was trying to develop a short cut for myself. But I guess it's not possible.

Bry

Yeah...

Saving selections is possible, but once saved.
The're limited in the ways in which they can be manipulated.

bcripps · **Joined:** Jun 21, 2016 **Posts:** 60

Hey Wallace
Just wanted to write to say how much I am enjoying GIMP. You got me off to a great start when I first began using the software. Remember the Shorts Girl? I still have that video right on my desktop.

Hopefully you’ll remember that I primarily design book covers. And recently a publisher sent me a photo of a sporty girl (Attachment 1), who was a dead ringer for the character portrayed in the book. Except for one detail. The character in the book carried a hook-bladed knife. The girl in the photo holds a butcher’s knife.

The publisher was prepared to overlook this detail. But, I thought, “I can do this!” And I GIMPed it!

I downloaded a photo of a “bill hook” knife and using the Masking technique you taught me, I swapped one knife for another, (Attachment 2).

It might not be perfect, but the publisher was amazed and, thanks to you, I’m a hero!

I also just love that Cloning Tool. It’s great to be able to clean up a background before dropping in the text.

So again, thank you, Wallace,
Personal regards,
Bry