ANIMATED FANTASY BIRD TUTORIAL

You will be making the animated fantasy bird tag you see here.

Download the fantasy bird psp file you need. It's saved for all versions.

My gold gradient (in Photo Shop form, made in PSP 7) gold_dia.grd. Put it in your PSP Gradients folder. If you can't see it, choose Import to bring it up.

Gold bmp pattern (R-click and save in your PSP Patterns folder).

1. Bring your fantasy bird tube to your PSP worktop if it isn't already there.

2. R-Click on the Layer Pallet and choose Duplicate. Turn off view for this layer.

3. Select the bottom bird layer to work on and click on Effects, Geometric Effects, Twirl. Slide the lever one way or the other until you like the effect. For this one, it is all the way over to the right. Click OK.

4. Click on the Drop Shadow icon or go to Effects, 3D Effects, Drop Shadow and give the twirled layer this shadow. Turn on view for "Copy of bird" layer and do the same for your bird layer. Feel free to change the shadow depending on what you like!

5. Set your background color to Null (none), and your foreground color to a color you can see against the colors you have in your tube. In this case we'll be using black.

6. Now,

7. Click again at the upper part of the colored twirl to get another "Node".

8. To get at our arrows you need to...

9. Now follow the pictures for "Text on a path"...
To create a half circle pull the round arrow end to the right and downward to get a smooth line configuration from the top node. Don't be afraid to play around here. Grab the bottom "Node" and R-click - "Node Type" - Asymmetric to get your arrows. Now move that line upward slightly and to the right. Make a smooth, round half circle.

If you "accidentally" get another node (from the "widdle Node family"), just put your mouse on it, R-click choose Edit and Delete and then continue.

10. Follow a "colored line" and not a bare space. You want your text to appear to be following the line, not floating in the space in between the colors. If you aren't sure where, look at mine above.

(Do not use my "dashed" line as a pattern - it will NOT look right, as it is not round enough and does not follow the color around the twirl. It is only an example.)

11.

12. When you are happy with everything, click "OK" to put your text on the path you have created (with the help of your two friends - "Mr. and Mrs. Node")!

If you want the same Stroke and Fill colors I have chosen, I have included them above. If you would like something else, by all means pick out a contrasting (light and dark) gradient you do like. The gradient is your animation flash.

13. Work in this order: Top layer, middle layer, Shadow, Save Copy As or Save As.

Frame one of two for your "Animated Fantasy Bird Tag" is finished! It wasn't that hard now was it? Just look at what you can do!!! :)

14. For Frame two Edit the Command History to get back to your Text Entry level.

15. Follow Steps 11-13 for your second frame of your tag. The only change you'll make is to "Invert" your "Gradient Fill" for your animation effect as per the graphic below.

16. Save As - You have your two parts for your animated fantasy bird tag!