Problems with (german) fuselage numbers

[donnerherz]

Hello everybody,

a big problem I have actually is making german fuselage numbers (Blockschrift) for Sturmstaffel 1 a/c which were of white colour with a thin black trim around (made like described here in a tutorial).

I?m using Photoshop 7 with the bright plugin and in the Il-2 1946 game the black trim (1 Pixel thickness) always looks frayed and uneven.

Making the trim 2 pixels wide looks better in the game but is too thick matching the original look.

Generally I?ve not found out how to get numbers in the game with a clear sharp border. Especially black numbers on a very light coloured fuselage often looks horrible in the game.

Does anybody know an advice for me?

Thanks in advantage and greetings from germany, Ralf

[Serval]

Try making a bigger marking and the border around it first then resize the marking to the size you need it to be.

[donnerherz]

Tried this but it doesn?t solve the problem. Ingame nothing has changed.

Regards, Don

[adlabs6]

Can you post a screenshot of what this looks like in game? Would help figure what might work best.

[donnerherz]

I think the problem is photoshop. As soon as I resize (down) the numbers with photoshop the edges/borders loose dramatically in quality.

I think I need another software (for making "vector graphics") to make the numbers ready and then import them in Photoshop?

Regards, Don

[Serval]

You could create paths of the fonts in Photoshop as well if you like.

The quality loss shouldn't be that dramatic for such small images.
Make sure you try anti alias.

Also: When you have the stroke effect on the layer with the number, create an empty layer beneath it. Then merge the layer with the number with that empty layer and then resize it. Since you need something between 1 and 2 pixels make the number about 1.5 the size it needs to be and then resize it to the size you need.

But be aware you want something like a 1.5 pixel border around the number. No matter what program you use, that will be a problem.

[BLOWHARD]

Hey Don, I think your problem is with the pixels or lack of pixels. If you want super sharp edges you'll need to be accurate right down to the pixel and you'll need to do this on your final size. Once you've reduced the image the pixels from your large size will end up being split between pixels on your reduction. The chances of a 2 pixel line ending up in exactly 1 pixel width are pretty small. You'll have the same problem with vectors, even on the reduced size. A vectored line is more precise and more likely to split your line between two pixels. Be aware of the pixels and how much room you have to work within them at your reduced size. And do try the numbers on your final reduced size file. They may work out spatially within the pixels you need to work with but there's a chance you don't have enough pixels for the proportions and sizes you need.

Or at least that's if I understand the problem correctly

[Serval]

@Blowhard: 2 pixels line is too big 1 pixel too small...

@Don: Support your question with images/screenshots. That helps us to judge the situation.
Also: Try Filter - Sharpen - Unsharp mask. Slider 2 at 0.3 Slider 1 at several positions (preview on) see if that helps to give the best results.

[BLOWHARD]

2 pixels line is too big 1 pixel too small

But that's my point, if you want sharp edges you need to stay with whole full pixels. Nothing else will look sharp. Maybe my point wasn't so clear but if you want sharp you need full pixels. If not, you have to make size adjustments, use 1 pixel or 2 pixels even though you need 1.5 pixels, or deal with a fuzzier edge at 1.5px. There just isn't a way around that

[donnerherz]

Hello to all, thanks a lot for all the replies!

I?ve attached 2 screenshots of the problem I?m working at the moment. I?m a skinning beginner of course.
(The shown a/c is based on a public template by revolver.)

Yes, the main problem is "How do I get sharp and even edges". On other skinners work they have perfect sharp numbers and markings but I didn?t figure out how they did this.
Asking some of the best and best known (also for templates) of them seems useless, I never got any (email) reply.

May be it helps when I describe how I made the shown numbers:
I installed a font and then typed the numbers of it in a photoshop psd. Made the stroke around in photoshop and then downsized the whole thing to its final size.

The result is not satisfying, especially when compared with other skinners works.

Thanks for any help, Don