Issue link: https://nbm.uberflip.com/i/1362655
2 8 G R A P H I C S P R O S E P T E M B E R 2 0 2 1 G R A P H I C S - P R O. C O M S I G N A G E & P R I N T I N G T H E D I G I T A L E Y E To apply the pattern, use the Pattern Stamp or select it from the pattern list when making a Pattern Fill layer (Figure 9). Here's an interesting little discovery I stumbled on when writing this article. If you select pixels with the Rectangular Marquee that are surrounded by transparency and save the area as a pattern, the pattern preset will contain transparent areas (Figure 10). You learn something new every day! GRADIENT PRESETS Saving a custom gradient as a preset is a little different and requires a few extra steps. First, go to the Window menu and choose Gradi- ents from the list. From the Gradient Options menu, choose New Gradient Preset. The Gradient Editor is displayed. Choose one of the gradients in the list and modify it by adding, subtracting, or changing colors and moving the house-shaped color and transpar- ency sliders to produce the exact color combinations that you want. Name the gradient and click on the New button to save it to the list at the top of the dialog box. Then close the Gradient editor. To place the new Gradient in a folder, go to the Gradient Options menu and choose New Gradient Group. Name the group and drag the gradient(s) you made from the list into the group (Figure 11). PROGRAM THE PROGRAM Creating presets is a way of customizing your software so that you have all of the tools you need at your fingertips. Essentially, with Presets, you are reprogramming your software to increase its po- tential. Presets streamline your workflow so that at any given time you can grab a custom brush, color, pattern, or gradient and apply it to an image. Figure 6. Spec- ify the color that you want in the Color Picker then click the Add to Swatches button. Figure 7. From the Swatches Options menu (the four little lines on the upper right of the panel) choose New Swatch Group. Name the group in the dialog box that appears and click OK. Group. Name the group in the dialog box that appears and click OK. The new group now appears in the Swatches panel (Figure 7). The group is automatically saved as a preset for use at any time on any document. PATTERN PRESETS Much like brushes and colors, custom patterns can be created and stored as presets. To create a pattern, select an area on any image with the default Rectangular Marquee tool. The rectangular marquee should not be feathered. Then, in the Edit menu, choose Define Pattern. Name the Pattern and click OK (Figure 8). The pattern will be saved in the pattern list as a preset and nothing further needs to be done.