'Mad Planets' Bezel ... # file recovered #

[spriggy]

As reference, I'm at the very early stages of vectorising the 'Mad Planets' Bezel.  The source file is excellent and detailed, escpecially the moons.  This will be a relatively slow project due to the complexity of some of the moon ellements and finding available time.

cheers

[rohan]

Fine choice!  If you're using the source I'm thinking about, it should turn out very well.  It should also save some bandwidth and hard drive space once it's traced.
Keep up the good work.  Maybe this should be moved to the Vector WIP thread sticky above.

[spriggy]

Fine choice!  If you're using the source I'm thinking about, it should turn out very well.  It should also save some bandwidth and hard drive space once it's traced.
Keep up the good work.  Maybe this should be moved to the Vector WIP thread sticky above.

Yeh.. it's the source that originally came from CAGA and has been up at the AAL for some time now.  I like the whole artwork theme of the MP's. 
I have already updated my old thread reply on page 1 of the WIP thread, as per the threads requirements  The obvious problem with that is that it won't show up under the main last post stats... oh well..

[spriggy]

Slow going!  An hour here.... half-an-hour there....

Have tested the PS Magic Wand to create some paths for the very detailed blue highlights on the Space Ship.  Freehand is almost not an option here.  I really don't like auto-tracing or the results.  However as you can see by the pic, the blue highlights are intricate as hell..plus.. very small comparative to the entire bezel.  Really lucky the source scan is so detailed at this size.

I find the PS Magic Wand does a better job than auto tracing and then just convert the selection to a compound path.  Have also very very slightly rounded all the corners of the highlight path 0.1mm.   So far, I'm quite pleased.  Just testing at this stage.

Feedback from any Gurus?

#edit#  Removed the 0.1mm rounded corners.  Decreased the accuracy of the path to much.  Even @ a 0.01mm rounding.  Also revised Spaceship test pic.

[GreenKnight37]

Hmm...I'm not familiar enough with Illustrator to know of a good way to accomplish the blue-white speckle effect. 

But, after a bit of Google searching, I may have found something (or at least a concept for further research) that will help.

Check out these "Tasty Vector Textures" - the pink images.  http://www.designbum.net/downloads.htm

If I'm getting the correct impression, those are Spraypaint effects for Illustrator.  You should be able to apply the spray textures over a blue surface, producing little white dots.  If you look at the top left graphic, the one with the smallest dots, I think that could work.

If not, do some more searching for "Spraypaint" and "Illustrator" in Google and see what turns up

[spriggy]

Hmm...I'm not familiar enough with Illustrator to know of a good way to accomplish the blue-white speckle effect. 

But, after a bit of Google searching, I may have found something (or at least a concept for further research) that will help.

Check out these "Tasty Vector Textures" - the pink images.  http://www.designbum.net/downloads.htm

If I'm getting the correct impression, those are Spraypaint effects for Illustrator.  You should be able to apply the spray textures over a blue surface, producing little white dots.  If you look at the top left graphic, the one with the smallest dots, I think that could work.

If not, do some more searching for "Spraypaint" and "Illustrator" in Google and see what turns up

The problem there is that tools such as that will create a random texture effect as opposed to replicating the actual pattern to be traced.  Not viable (in most cases) when attempting to accurately recreate arcade art.

However, cheers for the interesting link.

[spriggy]

I know I'm harping on..but this source scan is excellent.  The available detail for the smaller ellements are great...  a big help in replicating the inconsistencies of the original artwork...giving  these vector replica's that much more authentic feel!   yadda yadda yadda..

Regardless... finished the spaceship and happy with blue highlight once I played around with the compound path created by the PS Magic Wand.   Thanks to Jakobud for the idea of using the Magic Wand (in certain circumstances) (old BYOAC thread).

#Message to self#  - Enough of the bollocks spriggy....get back to work..

[spriggy]

Let me copy 'n' paste a modified version of what I just updated in my old DK3 CPO VECTORISATION thread....

Alright.. been a while... why? .... http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=59953.0

Anyway... A techie friend of mine tried to recover data from this drive when it first happened..without any luck.  In coversation with him the other day, he started testing some new software he had, on the drive.  Looks like the drive came to life for a short period, before it failed again.  In the mean-time, he was able to recover alot of my family snaps AND some of my old arcade stuff... including some AI (Adobe Illustrator) files for the DK3 CPO and my MAD PLANETS BEZEL!!   The recovered MAD PLANETS BEZEL was my last file but the DK3 CPO was an early version of the vector trace.

Regardless, if a compitent vector tracer would like my AI files to complete the MAD PLANETS BEZEL.. give me a hoy!!  I'm still not ready to come back yet.

PS The trace is at a fairly early stage... but a good start.  I'm at work now, so I'll post a jpg of it when I get home.

[mrclean]

this looks good enough to me ?

[spriggy]

this looks good enough to me ?

For some maybe.   Plus it's raster... not vector, which is what arcade artwork restoration is all about.  If it's printed properly, it definately won't print out nice in it's current state.

[zorg]

this looks good enough to me ?

For some maybe.   Plus it's raster... not vector, which is what arcade artwork restoration is all about.  If it's printed properly, it definately won't print out nice in it's current state.

don't confuse, arcade restoration, in some case does not need vector.
vector is only usefull when you want to scale without losses. point.

if the raster is at enough high resolution and clean no need to trace.
plus some artwork will be quite impossible to vectorise.

[spriggy]

Point taken.  Who am I to argue!.   

[zorg]

Point taken.  Who am I to argue!.   

does not wanted to sound rude, the rant was not directed to you , but I'm over some people that want's everything vector.

do people realise that the tracing processIS DESTRUTIVE depending on the artwork ??


why vector ??
1) cause I have a poor and blurry scan/picture representing some simple artwork (by simple I mean few colors, weel seaprated paths, few gradients if not, simple forms even if really numerous) tracing it will allow me to have an acurate and clean artwork: OK good reason

2) cause there's some guys doing nice vector trace, that I can freely use .  OK good reason

3) cause the artwork I want to produce/use is stencli based. OK good reason, if correctly traced (keeping in mind it will be used as stencil), OK good reason conversion from vector to some automatic cutters is quite simple

4) cause I don't understand what are the advantages/inconvenient of raster vs vector, but everyone claims vector is the way to go BIP bad reason

5) cause I have a really good scan at scale 1:1 that will be easy to trace: BIP bad reason, let it raster, clean it a bit it will perfect.