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Old May 28th, 2011, 03:46 PM   #2
VintageKell
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Default Basic Clone Tool Usage

I don't know what I was expecting, but I hoped all the Photo Shop and Paint Shop Pro experts, and others of that ilk would flock to the thread, and reveal the wonders of colouring B&W photo's etc ...... but I guess that if you want something doing, do it yourself .... mutter, mumble moan.

Hopefully this will encourage the experts to give hints so these posts are only the basics for each tool, and use various versions of the only tool I have access to, Paint Shop Pro and Photoshop videos. Other tools and versions will vary in how to use the functionality, but the basics are the same.

Cloning: Best described as copying one part of a picture or another picture and pasting it over another part in the same or another picture. This is not strictly cutting and pasting, which is a collage effect, this is more a blending process.

Golden Rule Number One: For ALL these tasks use a COPY VERSION of the picture not the original. Use one or two copies as suits task, but leave original safe as you may need to make more copies. Remember, you can clone from numerous sources into one picture.
  1. Open up your editing tool e.g. Photoshop or Paint Shop pro
  2. Either paste in a copy of the picture that you want to edit, or open the picture with the editor and save with a new name (which makes it a copy), and in either case only use the copy/new version (so close any original).
  3. Expand the picture up a size or two e.g. 3:1 ratio In mine its the wheel on the mouse, while the picture is selected (aka the picture having 'focus')
  4. Now select the clone tool on the tool-set on the left side and R/Click to see what is available.


  5. Make sure that you have the following tools selected
    • Colour palette
    • Tool options
    • Tool bar
    • Tool palette
  6. Now you find a part of the picture that has a blemish, and using the tool to select a suitable replacement area (See the target cross-hairs?) Right Click on that area. This selects a small copy of that area to the clipboard for pasting (the size of this cut and paste is determined by the Tool Options function, and you vary it to suit the task being performed)


  7. Now move mouse over the area to be replaced, and left click. if not happy use the edit undo to remove the clone step or steps - Control +Z keys on many programs
  8. As well as single-shot selections, you can use this tool like a paint brush by keeping the left hand mouse key pressed down continuously pressed down and do whole areas BUT remember to watch where the cross-hairs are, because that's what your copying and pasting, and this moves in relation to where it was when your pressed the left hand mouse key down (unless you have set the aligned as unaligned in options, in which case the source are starts in the same area each time).
  9. Alignments. You can either have the cloning tool move identically with that of the area where you are copying to (don't worry its easy to see when you try it), which means that when you resume, the copy area starts where it left off -this is aligned. Or you can have the tool restart the copy area from the original start point every time you resume. You might want to do this if only one good area is available to clone from - this is non aligned.
Tips:
  • One good method is to clone the area around a blemish since it will be similar in color, density etc.
  • Do small sections rather than big bits as the undo removes all of last action.
  • You can undo everything unless you have saved, so only save when sections you are happy with have been done.
  • You can use keyboard shortcuts if no mouse, to do this, these are usually the alt key on PC (or the option key if you're on a mac).
  • Remember to review the tool size e.g. smaller or larger as suits the task.
  • Be inventive, use the image rotate or image mirror functions to move useful parts of an additional copy of a picture to a position where a good bit mimics the position of the area that you want to repair ... it makes the cloning better and easier.

Last edited by VintageKell; August 20th, 2013 at 08:11 PM.. Reason: video link removed, website not accessible / requires login
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