The Glass filter creates the effect of a layer of glass on
top of the image.
Keep in mind that the sheet of glass is the 3D part, while the image remains
flat.
By adjusting the combination of light filtering, refraction, and highlights,
you can achieve some striking effects with this filter.
The Glass filter requires a mask to do its job. The shape of the mask controls
the shape of the glass sheet.
The top edge of the glass bevel occurs along the mask.
Feathering the mask has no effect on this filter's operation.
The
Glass Dialog Box
The dialog box is divided into two pages: Adjust and Lighting.
Clicking its respective tab accesses each page.
The Style portion of the dialog box, shown next, is common to both pages.
It contains a drop-down list of presets that are provided with the Glass
filter.
Choosing any of them changes the controls in the dialog box for the selected
presets.
Custom settings are also saved in the Style area by changing the controls
to the desired settings and clicking the plus button to the right of the
style name.
Another dialog box opens that allows you to name the new style.
The minus button is used to remove a saved style. |
|
The Adjust Tab
This page contains all the controls for determining the width, breadth and
depth of the effect, as well as the type of effect that is applied.
The Bevel Width Slider:
is used to set the width of the bevel.
In most cases, getting the bevel width to a small value produces the most
dramatic effect. The bevel is the area around a masked object that is slanted
to produce that glassy 3D look.
The Smoothness Slider:
is used to set the sharpness of the edges of the bevel.
A low-level smoothness produces sharper edges, but may also display the
steps used to create the embossed look.
A higher smoothness level removes the jagged edges and makes for rounded
edges.
The Refraction Slider:
the most striking 3D effect of the Glass filter is refraction, which occurs
when the direction of light rays is changed (bent) as a result of passing
through a material such as glass or water. Since we are looking directly
at the glass sheet, refraction only occurs at the beveled edges. The Refraction
slider sets the angle at which the light is to be bent at the bevel.
Tip:to make the refraction effect more noticeable, try
using a wider bevel. This will increase the area of glass that does not
directly face the viewer.
The Opacity Slider:
Colored glass affects light, and it affects it more where the material (the
glass) is thicker.
The Opacity slider is used to set the transparency level of the glass sheet.
The more opaque you make the glass, the stronger the underlying image will
be tinted to look like the glass color.
Drop-Off Type:
is the area adjacent to the bevel effect and has a value that is selected
from a list.
The following choices are available:
Gaussian:
use the Gaussian drop-off when you want a very subtle effect.
On a complex image, it gives a wet appearance to the masked area edge.
The Gaussian drop-off has an "S" shape; it starts and ends with
a round and gradual slope that becomes steep in between. It results in a
smooth and less noticeable transition between the bevel and the rest of
the image.
Flat:
because the Flat drop-off produces a sharp drop-off bevel, the areas around
the edges are sharp. The effect on text with dark colors may not even be
noticeable.
This effect works best with objects that have smooth, rounded edges.
The Flat drop-off is a straight diagonal line starting at the bevel area
and ending on the image. The transition is not as smooth as a rounded bevel,
but the slope of the bevel is less steep.
Mesa:
this drop-off style probably gives the best overall glass effect of the
three.
The Mesa drop-off is a curve that begins abruptly (almost a 90-degree angle)
and ends with a rounded gradual slope. |
 |
The Lighting Tab
The controls on this page control the highlights and reflections of the
effect, as well as the angle and direction of the light source and the color
of the glass.
The Brightness Slider:
controls the intensity of the highlights in the glass.
A higher setting produces more highlights on the glass.
The Sharpness Slider:
theoretically, controls the sharpness of the light striking the edges of
the bevel.
That is, this setting controls the amount of reflections off the bevel:
the lower the setting, the greater the amount of reflections, which creates
very realistic effects.
Color:
the glass can be any color you choose: you can click the color swatch, opening
a color palette, or use the Eyedropper button to select the color from the
image.
Dark glass will color the underlying image more strongly than light glass;
so if you are experiencing difficulty in getting a noticeable glass effect,
try darkening the glass color.
Direction and Angle Controls:
control the direction that the light comes. High light-angle values illuminate
the selection from directly above the surface, which tends to cause lighting
that is bright and even.
Low light-angle values tend to make shadows stronger, accentuating the 3D
effect.
The angles are referenced to the horizon.
High angle (90°) is similar to the sun being directly overhead, whereas
low angle (0°) is like the sun sitting on the horizon.
Direction Dial and Value Box:
controls the direction of the light striking the bevel.
The bevel is the area around a masked object that is slanted to produce
the 3D look.
You can drag the dial to point toward the light source, or you can enter
a value directly in the value box.
Angle Dial and Value Box:
controls the angle at which the light is to be bent at the bevel.
This distorts the image at the bevel location, which is the most striking
effect of the Glass filter.
Tip:you get better effects with
the Glass filter if you have a textured or high-contrast background to accentuate
the glass effect.
Glass Raised Text Using the Glass Filter
The Glass filter is an excellent filter, but it takes some practice to get
the hang of how and where to apply it.
The following hands-on exercise will give you some experience using the
Glass filter, and you will learn some of the tricks to make it work better
for you.
We are going to make text that looks like it is composed of raised glass. |
 |
Create a new 24-bit RGB image. From the dialog box, select
Inches for Units of Measure. From the Size pop-up menu, select the Photo
5x7 option, orizontal and then click the Landscape button.The resolution
should be 72 dpi.
Click the OK button.
The glass effect looks better when there is high-contrast content in the
background.
Select Edit/Fill. From the dialog box, click the Bitmap Fill button and
click Edit, opening the Bitmap Fill dialog box. Open the |
 |
preview palette of fills in the upper-left corner. Scroll
down until you find a light-colored wood near the bottom. Click it to select
it, and then click OK. Click OK again to apply the fill.
Click the Text button on the Toolbar.
Change the Font to Times New Roman at a size of 150.
Ensure the intercharacter spacing is at zero.
Click inside the image and type GLASS.
Press ENTER and type GLASS again.
Click the Object Picker tool. |
 |
Open the Align dialog box (CTRL-A), and select To Center of
Document.
Click OK.
Click the Create Mask button on the Toolbar (CTRL-M).
Open the Objects docker window (CTRL-F7), and select the background by clicking
it.
Select Effects/ 3D Effects/ Glass. When the Glass dialog box opens, select
Wet from the Style pop-up menu.
Click the OK button. |
 |
For the final touch, use the Object Picker and select the text object.
Choose Edit/Fill and apply the wood fill used to flood the background. Change
the Merge mode at the top of the Objects docker window to 'if lighter'.
This lets the highlights created on the |
 |
background text by the Glass filter appear through the text.
The important issue to remember when working with this filter is that it
tends to make the image darker.
We worked around that in the previous exercise by placing a copy of the
original object on top of the background.
The Glass filter makes the text look like it is on embossed glass. |
|
|
|
