Simviation Forums

Hello,

If it is not layered you should be able to paint over and keep the detail by using the multiply fuction.

Garry

For painting aircraft, you absolutely NEED a program that can handle multiple layers.  I broke down finally and bought PaintShop Pro, and haven't looked back since.  Some folks swear by PhotoShop, but I could never transition between the two interfaces, so I'm stuck using PSP.

The paintkit itself may not be layered which is where the multiply function comes into play.

If the programme use does not support layers I doubt if it would have multiply so we are talking Photoshop/PSP and the like.

Garry

If the paint kit doesn't include layers, you're pretty much out of luck.  You'll have to isolate the rivets and panel lines, then promote them to an upper layer.  A strenuous and tedious process, but worth it if you want to get a good repaint.

or use multiply fuction which retains the detail.

Garry

or use multiply fuction which retains the detail.

Garry

Yeah, that will work, too.

Thanks for the info.  I think Travis was describing the problem that I am having.  The paint kit is red and grey.  I duplicate the layer, set the top layer to multiply, and begin to paint.  The top retains the white paint that I would like to have, but it erases the underlying detail.  When I merge the two layers, the white paint remains without any of the detail.  Any thought on how I could keep both the white paint on the panel lines, rivets, and other details?  Also, how would I seperate the layer of the original paint kit if it was layered?  Would it show up as a layered image when I opened it with the painting program?

If the paintkit was layered the layers will be already be seperated when you open it.


Garry

It seems that the image you're using didn't have any layers to begin with.

Well, after downloading both Paint.net and the paint kit you mentioned, I'm a bit stumped.  How did you open the files in the first place?  Paint.net is incapable of opening that type of file.  Or at least it is without some kind of upgrade or plugin.

At any rate, this seems to be your issue.  If you're going to paint aircraft, the only answer is to get a good repaint program.  PSP or PhotoShop are fairly expensive (PSP ~ $100 US, PhotoShop ~ $700 US), but there are other options out there.  One of which is a dedicated program designed for FS.  It reads the FS model as well as the textures and renders a 3D image of the texture on the model itself, so you can see exactly what the changes you are making can do for the model.  It is called FS Repaint and is only $30 US.  Cheaper by far, and powerful enough for what you want to do.

Once again, thank you for the replies.  Travis, just out of curosity, did you by any chance try to open the paint kit with PaintShop?  If so, was it layered?  I was able to open the paint kit using the Paint.net program.  I had to download another program, the name of which escapes me at the moment and I am not at my home comuter to check, which changed the format of the file from a PSD to a DDS.  I was able to open the DDS with Paint.net.

I did open the files with PSP, and they are layered.  Your problem lies in the fact that Paint.net cannot open any file type that preserves layers.  You're pretty much out of luck unless you purchase a program that can handle something like that.

There are several freeware graphics editors with a Layer feature that support the PSD format. You could try the GIMP or Pixia to start with.

There are several freeware graphics editors with a Layer feature that support the PSD format. You could try the GIMP or Pixia to start with.

Ah, yes!  I completely forgot about those!  Sorry . . .