Ask Me Your Web Design Questions!
Do you have questions about web design you would like answered? Would you like a critique of your web site? Send us your questions on web design! We will select questions each month to be answered on this page. Simply e-mail us your web design questions. Your comments are welcome too!
Question:
Hi,
I was very impressed with your site and was wondering whether you would
be able to explain how you were able to create the faded flower image
featured on your home page? I have always be interested in trying to fade
an image but have no joy. I use Macromedia Fireworks.
Regards, Sati.
Answer:
Glad to help! Since you are using Macromedia Fireworks you may also need
a program that excels at bitmap manipulation. I would suggest that you
add Adobe Photoshop or Jasc Paintshop Pro to your web design software
toolkit. Of the two Photoshop is the superior (but more expensive) tool
for manipulating bitmap images. Here is how I created the faded image
using Photoshop:
This is a basic gradient effect. After importing the flower image on a layer in Photoshop, I created a new layer on top of the image and grouped it with the flower image layer (check the "Group With Previous Layer" checkbox in the "New Layer" box). This limits any effects created in the new layer to the layer just below it. I then applied a white to transparent color gradient on the new layer. This gave the soft gradient effect to the flower image layer. That's it! I simply tweaked the opacity and levels to get just the right look. Easy effect!
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