Expert: Amy - 10/2/2006

Question
on #2 how do i save it as a GIF with white transparency?  and
then, i need to import it into illustrator to use it so will the
transparent background carry over?
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Followup To

Question -
1. i read your answer to someone about how to do a gradient fill
with color. as an adendeum to that, how do i do a gradient fill
with
a color from another object vs. choosing my own in the scale? im
color blind so i have to depend on other peoples colors.

2. if i grab a logo from the web (say the Tivo logo). how do i
crop
out the white background and just use the TV man.

3. how would i do a pattern like that which you see on TIvo's
home
page right now?  the box that says cach the new fall season

Answer -
Hi Dan,

1) Use the eyedropper tool to "pick up" the color.
  Create a rectangle and keep it selected.
  Double click the eyedropper tool (I).
  Make sure the Focal Fill option is selected but nothing else.
  With that tool, click on the object that has the color fill you
want the rectangle to be and the little fill color box on the
bottom of the tools palette will become that color.
  Choose Window > Show Swatches
  Click on the fill color box beneath the tools and drag it over to
the swatches window and let go. It's now a swatch and you can
choose it for anything.

To create a gradient with it, open the gradient window. When
you click on the little gradient swatch box (usually it's a
grayscale gradient to begin with), you can see the gradient slider
bar becomes active with arrows and boxes and such.

Well, you can drag that new swatch you made over from the
swatch window and drop it right on the slider bar. Either as an
additional color in the gradient by dropping it on the actual bar
- or replace one of the little boxes of color under the bar by
dropping it onto one of those. Forgive me for the random
terminology. I don't actually know what Adobe calls the "little
boxes."

2. Best done in PhotoShop by saving as a gif with white
transparency. If you don't have PhotoShop, you can trace the
shape of the lil guy and make a clipping mask over the image
with the traced path but this never looks great IMO.

3. Pretty easy. Create a rectangle the shape of that image. Then
find the center point and make a little circle to mark it
permanently. Create either a triangle or a wedge shape coming
out from that center point like a starburst and going out to the
edge of the rectangle at the furthest point away from the center
mark. Leave the wedge empty for now.

Choose the rotate tool, click on the center point, hold down the
alt key (this will create a copy while dragging), click on the outer
edge of the wedge you made and drag/rotate it clockwise,
leaving a gap of whatever distance you like between the original
shape and the new copy. Repeat as many times as you need by
clicking Ctrl+D repeatedly.

All the wedges should overlap the rectangle.

Select all the wedges and group them.

Copy the orginal rectangle from behind and paste in front (Ctrl
+F) and bring to Front (Ctrl+]).

Select the grouped wedges and the top rectangle and create
clipping mask (Ctrl+7).

Then fill the bottom rectangle with a color (call it color A). Hide
the wedge group if needed to do this.

Show the wedge group and fill it, as a group, with a gradient
that goes from color A to Color B.

I think this will get you what you want.

Hope this helped. Don't break any copyright laws =)
Amy  

Answer
Hi Dan.

If the file you are creating is not going to end up being printed at a print shop on a print press, you can use gifs.
To make a gif:
Use the File > Save for Web command
Choose GIF in the format drop down list.
Choose Adaptive in the color reduction algorithm
Choose No Dither
Check Transparency
Choose No Transparency Dither
Don't check interlaced.
No Lossy
256 Colors
You can choose a matte color that's close to the color the image will be sitting on top of.
0% web snap

In the image size tab
Specify the image size you want and click apply.
Quality: Bicubic

In the color table tab
Click on the white swatch and then click the 'maps selected color to transparent' button underneath the color table... it's the checkerboard icon.

If you are intending on printing this document at a print shop, you shouldn't use a gif.

Instead, you will want to create a closed path (beginning anchor point meets last anchor point) in Illustrator around the border of the image. You can use the pencil tool or the pen tool. Then select both the image and the new path and create Mask (Ctrl+7). The more complex the outer edge/shape of the object, the tougher this task.

There's also a way to do it in PhotoShop with paths but it's a little different.
Use Magic Wand (W) and click in area to be transparent.
Select > Select Inverse
Windows > Show Paths
Paths Window Flyout menu -->
         Create Work Path - tolerance .5
         Save Path
         Clipping Path

Then Save the document as a CMYK PhotoShop EPS file.

When you place it (embedded NOT linked) into Illustrator, the path will come too and the image will appear without a background. The cons to this are that the image border will not be anti-aliased, so if its going on a contrasting background, you may see jagged edges unless you "fine tune" and smooth the path using the smooth tool in Illustrator.  Yes, you can edit the path once you import it into Illustrator.