Re: [Gimp-user] Enhancing text

[Steve Kinney <admin pilobilus net>]

On 01/24/2013 12:30 AM, Liam R E Quin wrote:
> On Thu, 2013-01-24 at 05:30 +0100, RogueRanger wrote:

[...]

> 1. duplicate the text layer
> 2. use select by colour on the text, so the outline of the text is
> selected;
> 3. select->Border Selection by 2 pixels
> 4. with the lower copy of the text active, use control-, (control-and
> comma) to fill the outline with the foreground colour (use "d" first to
> set it to the default black and white if you need to).
> 5. use Select->None to get rid of the marching ants selection so you can
> do other things :-)

A while back I found another method for outlining text when sharp
corners are needed.  The "select > grow selection" or "border
selection" method is faster and usually adequate, this one is slower
but gives more fine grained control:

1. Turn on text tool, select text to be outlined.

2. Right click on the text, select "Path from text" from the drop menu.*

3. Back in the layers dialog, create a new transparent layer
directly below the text layer.**

4. In the Paths dialog dock, use the Stroke Path tool (2nd button
from right at bottom).  When the dialog opens, expand the "Line
Style" part to see your options.

5. Tweak the line style until the settings look right, and set the
stroke width to 2x the desired width of the border around your text.

6.  Push the "Stroke" button, and check your results.  Control+Z,
tweak settings, and Stroke again until your results are just right.

You can do the same thing to outline any shape that is on an
otherwise transparent layer by doing "Alpha to Selection" in the
right click context menu of the Layers dialog, followed by the
Selection to Path button in the Paths dialog.  Undo your selection,
then proceed as above to make the outline on a new transparent layer
below your object.

This ancient tutorial by Jens Lautenbacher is still up on gimp.org:

http://www.gimp.org/tutorials/The_Basics/

This "3D Golden Text" procedure is well worth duplicating in the
GIMP to see where the relevant tools are & how they work.
Unfortunately a lot of the images in this tutorial were anti-aliased
for display against a white background, which makes them look awful
around the edges against a dark background, but be not deceived:
The techniques shown work very well.

http://www.gimp.org/tutorials/Golden_Text/

Also, open an image, make a text layer with a few large-size words
and go to Filters > Alpha To Logo and play around.

:o)

Steve

* This used to be a button on the Text tool properties dialog, I
might request adding it back as an aid to user discovery.  That's
how I originally found the function.

** If you have several text layers, combine associated sets of text
layers, outline and/or drop shadow layers, bump masks, etc. in in
layer groups.  YAY layer groups!