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somuchluv — Gimp Transparency Tutorial

Published: 2007-09-20 02:42:47 +0000 UTC; Views: 19141; Favourites: 339; Downloads: 772
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Description Gimp is a free alternative to other artwork editing programs such as: Adobe Photoshop, Corel Painter/Paint Shop Pro, Open Canvas, etc. It is easy to use, and free to download and a good alternative for those artists who can't afford pricey software. You can download it here: [link]

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How to make a transparent background. It works the same way for all types of media (photograph, digital, pixel, etc), just takes more effort for more complicated pieces.
I tried to make it simple enough that it didn't need words to explain, but I will be happy to if anyone is confused.

Click download for full view

MORE IMPORTANT EDIT
Because its a little unclear, in Step 3 you need to choose the Magic Wand to select areas you want transparent.


EDIT!
Since having put this up, I have learned much more about GIMP. With that in mind, I want to make a clarification about step #10.
As far as the compression level goes, moving the bar to a higher number (like 9) saves your artwork at a smaller file size.
Saving as a smaller number (like 1) saves your artwork as the actual (therefore a larger) file size.
There are advantages and disadvantages with both.
For instance, if your art piece is very large, saving as '1' will mean that your file may be large and take up a few MBs.
But if you save as a small file such as '9', it may hurt the quality of your image.
So depending on how much disk space you have on your computer and how important quality is to you, you can choose whatever number, for the compression level, that you like. =]
[Obviously if you have a small image, saving as '1' shouldn't be a problem. ]

OH! and make sure Interlacing (Adam 7) is checked too. ;]
Related content
Comments: 171

somuchluv In reply to ??? [2009-09-05 19:51:53 +0000 UTC]

you're welcome. =]

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HorselandGirl In reply to ??? [2009-06-09 18:05:15 +0000 UTC]

Thanks so much for this!

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somuchluv In reply to HorselandGirl [2009-06-12 05:53:38 +0000 UTC]

you are welcome.

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LittleWishWolf In reply to ??? [2009-04-26 13:43:25 +0000 UTC]

thank you SO much I've been wondering how to make transparent backgrounds for so long! hehe, thanks again!

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somuchluv In reply to LittleWishWolf [2009-05-01 16:24:59 +0000 UTC]

haha, you are very much welcome.
it Took me forever to figure out how to do it.

👍: 0 ⏩: 1

LittleWishWolf In reply to somuchluv [2009-05-01 23:30:50 +0000 UTC]

hehe, Well I'm glad you did find out! thanks again.

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somuchluv In reply to LittleWishWolf [2009-05-02 00:59:09 +0000 UTC]

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LittleWishWolf In reply to somuchluv [2009-05-02 14:51:10 +0000 UTC]

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sleepingangel21 In reply to ??? [2009-04-16 22:22:53 +0000 UTC]

Ahhh the usefulness!
thank you for making this

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somuchluv In reply to sleepingangel21 [2009-04-19 01:47:09 +0000 UTC]

you're welcome!!
and thank you for the fav

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blondtresses [2009-03-29 08:30:20 +0000 UTC]

thank you so much for this tutorial ! It helped me out a lot

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somuchluv In reply to blondtresses [2009-04-13 08:30:38 +0000 UTC]

oh, im glad. =]

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H-x-S In reply to ??? [2009-03-21 04:41:30 +0000 UTC]

When I say "Color to Alpha" [The Channel option is faded], and set the chosen color to pure white, it makes the entire image transparent. DX

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H-x-S In reply to H-x-S [2009-03-21 04:52:07 +0000 UTC]

Nevermind, I got it! <3

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somuchluv In reply to H-x-S [2009-03-21 22:08:17 +0000 UTC]

haha, okay. <3

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H-x-S In reply to somuchluv [2009-03-21 22:10:18 +0000 UTC]

Thanks for making this tutorial!
I didn't know you were supposed to use the magic wand.

👍: 0 ⏩: 1

somuchluv In reply to H-x-S [2009-03-21 22:29:13 +0000 UTC]

yea, i really didnt put much work into making this tutorial. i think ill make that more clear in the description.
thanks for the feedback!!

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yourlittleirs [2009-03-20 21:20:49 +0000 UTC]

i'm doing everything, and i hit cut... and it cuts to white. what the fuck?

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somuchluv In reply to yourlittleirs [2009-03-21 02:36:04 +0000 UTC]

no need to get angry.
try using 'Color to Alpha' instead of 'Add Alpha Channel'

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ovengloves [2009-02-23 02:11:45 +0000 UTC]

It's not working for me. D:

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somuchluv In reply to ovengloves [2009-02-23 02:47:54 +0000 UTC]

which part? what step?

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ovengloves In reply to somuchluv [2009-02-23 03:11:00 +0000 UTC]

None of the parts, when I upload the end result to dA, it's not transparent.

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somuchluv In reply to ovengloves [2009-02-23 04:49:26 +0000 UTC]

does it show up transparent on your computer though?

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ovengloves In reply to somuchluv [2009-02-23 23:47:14 +0000 UTC]

Yep.

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somuchluv In reply to ovengloves [2009-02-24 08:46:50 +0000 UTC]

then its working fine.
its a problem with dA.

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ovengloves In reply to somuchluv [2009-02-24 23:39:50 +0000 UTC]

Alright then. Thanks!

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somuchluv In reply to ovengloves [2009-02-25 06:37:16 +0000 UTC]

welcome.

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HerbstKatze In reply to ??? [2009-02-08 17:49:31 +0000 UTC]

Very helpful!
Thank you so much!

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somuchluv In reply to HerbstKatze [2009-02-08 23:42:02 +0000 UTC]

You're welcome!

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AngelArt95 In reply to ??? [2009-01-24 03:10:41 +0000 UTC]

look at you being all helpful and what not <333

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somuchluv In reply to AngelArt95 [2009-01-24 03:22:30 +0000 UTC]

haha
you are just raiding my gallery today, now arent you?

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AngelArt95 In reply to somuchluv [2009-01-24 03:25:22 +0000 UTC]

sure am. im collecting inspiration for when i get my camera, and it just so happens that i LOVE a lot of your pictures. by the way...we should get on iscribble

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somuchluv In reply to AngelArt95 [2009-01-24 22:50:52 +0000 UTC]

haha, thanks. =]
and lol, i havent signed into iScribble for AGES.
kinda decided to give up on learning how to draw. xDD;;

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Yondercat In reply to ??? [2009-01-09 21:30:47 +0000 UTC]

that is very handy! thanks! it helped me out!!

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somuchluv In reply to Yondercat [2009-01-10 05:35:51 +0000 UTC]

no, thank you!
and im glad it helped.

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Yondercat In reply to somuchluv [2009-01-10 13:55:34 +0000 UTC]

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jessilloyd In reply to ??? [2008-09-22 23:43:54 +0000 UTC]

um... how do u find the cut thing? i keep trying to find it but my gimp is kinda weird *is kinda new to this*

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jessilloyd In reply to jessilloyd [2008-09-22 23:55:41 +0000 UTC]

eek nevermind

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somuchluv In reply to jessilloyd [2008-09-23 02:52:32 +0000 UTC]

haha, 'kay.
if you have any other questions dont hesitate to ask.

👍: 0 ⏩: 1

jessilloyd In reply to somuchluv [2008-09-23 20:35:29 +0000 UTC]

okay :3
i made 3 transparent pics, and theyre really good, thanks to your tutorial :3

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somuchluv In reply to jessilloyd [2008-09-25 03:33:08 +0000 UTC]

im glad i could help.

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jessilloyd In reply to somuchluv [2008-09-25 20:26:44 +0000 UTC]

:3

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Devilofgaming In reply to ??? [2008-07-29 14:18:20 +0000 UTC]

heh.... I'm a super newb to Gimp so... I can get to step 3, when I click it with the fuzzy select tool it just makes moving lines around my drawing. does that mean I did it?

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Devilofgaming In reply to Devilofgaming [2008-07-29 20:00:31 +0000 UTC]

IGNORE ABOVE COMMENT! I FIGURED OUT HOW TO DO IT

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somuchluv In reply to Devilofgaming [2008-07-29 22:07:04 +0000 UTC]

lol, ok.

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StitchesAndStripes In reply to ??? [2008-07-05 05:19:49 +0000 UTC]

Thank you so much for making this!
I was trying to figure out how to do that for weeks, Until I found this!

👍: 0 ⏩: 1

somuchluv In reply to StitchesAndStripes [2008-07-05 06:06:03 +0000 UTC]

haha, your welcome.
yea, me too. i had to look up 5 or 6 tutorials and then try to put them together to figure it out and i thought, "Gosh, if IM having this much trouble, imagine Other people. D:"
lol

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Alan497411 In reply to ??? [2008-05-15 19:33:23 +0000 UTC]

IS THAT A CINNABON!?!?!?!?!?
.....LMAO!!! ....
...i aslo noticed that your using vista!... welcome to the crappy operating system club!

👍: 0 ⏩: 1

somuchluv In reply to Alan497411 [2008-05-16 00:06:02 +0000 UTC]

yes, it is a cinnabon. =3
and yes, unfortunately, i am a slave to vista. X_X
its a love-hate relationship.

👍: 0 ⏩: 1

Alan497411 In reply to somuchluv [2008-07-26 22:12:51 +0000 UTC]

you poor child! :'(
... screw the people in Afica, you need help!

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