Using Textures in Paint Shop Pro

In general, a texture is a type of effect that can be applied to a digital photograph or other image in Paint Shop Pro that makes the graphic look like it was printed on some special type of material. Some common textures used when editing photos are effects that resemble crumpled paper, fur, and granite.

When applying textures, you can obtain a number of interesting results. Certain “materials” will give a three-dimensional, or illusion of depth, to digital photos. Others can make your image look more like a painting or a sketch, like the one shown below. Textures can even be used to highlight the details in specific items in a photo and de-emphasize others. The possibilities are almost endless.

(Click any image for a larger view.)

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Step 1: Open the photo you want to use in Paint Shop Pro. In this example, I’ll use a public domain image of the United States White House.

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Step 2 (Optional): Apply any other effects to the photo. This step isn’t necessary, but since the particular original photo that I’m working with in this example is a little drab and dreary, I want to spice up the color a bit. There are a number of tools that you can use in Paint Shop Pro to do this, but I chose to use the pre-defined “psychedelic” effect from the Topaz Adjust plugin. (This really is a great plugin that expands the creative potential of Paint Shop Pro, and the developers offer a 30-day free trial so you can try it out for yourself.)

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Step 3: Now it’s time to apply the texture. From the Effects menu on Paint Shop Pro’s main toolbar, select Texture Effects and then Texture.

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Step 4: In the Texture window that opens on your screen, there are several different characteristics you can modify. Although not necessary, the first thing I like to do is put a check in the box next to Preview on Image that’s located in the upper right corner of the window. This way, I can see how the modifications will appear in the photo before actually applying them.

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Clicking on the image under Texture in this window will open up another panel showing a thumbnail preview of all the texture swatches you currently have available in Paint Shop Pro. (It is possible to add other textures or even to create your own. To find out how, see Create Textures from Digital Photos using Paint Shop Pro.) Try a few of these out and see how they change the look and feel of your image. For this example, I’ll pick the texture labeled Canvas course.

Next: Continue to page 2 of this article to find out more about the different controls available in the Texture dialog box and how adjusting them will affect your final image.