Creating and using personal styles

[iamhives]

Running 1.22. Trying to create my own style. Have copied an existing style diretory and php and edited php it refer to new style.However, the new style does not showup in the style drop-down when editing an exhibition. How do I make this appear and be selectable. Also, what is the easiest way to find the hex values that correspond to different colors ?

Maybe we should start a 'style' sharing forum ?!

Paul

[Pekka]

To make style appear in the menus, see the end of style.php in gallery root folder. Originally it has

"1" => "Original",
"2" => "Dusk Feel 1",
"3" => "Back to 80's",
"4" => "Sahara",
"5" => "Dusk Feel 2",
"6" => "Rosamunde"

If you want to add your style "Lunar 1" you do

"1" => "Original",
"2" => "Dusk Feel 1",
"3" => "Back to 80's",
"4" => "Sahara",
"5" => "Dusk Feel 2",
"6" => "Rosamunde",
"7" => "Lunar 1"

Remember the new comma on preceding line, and that the id must match what you entered a few lines earlier.

[Pekka]

iamhives wrote:
Also, what is the easiest way to find the hex values that correspond to different colors ?

You can create a "color scheme", using e.g. filled rectangles and dummy text, in any image editor. Use that to help you find pleasing color combinations. When you think you have a good one, use the color picker and color dialog to give you hex color values.

And learning to use the hexcolorshifter function helps a lot sometimes. It's explained in detail on the FAQ.

[iamhives]

How do I change the frame etc ?? I'd like a format that looks something like this:

http://paul.hives.us/storage/CRW_2405_JFRbandw7.jpg

If I could achieve the framing, shadows etc in EE it would save me a lot of time running a Photoshop action on each inage to generate the frame etc

Thanks again Pekka for all of your hard work

Paul

[Pekka]

iamhives wrote:
How do I change the frame etc ?? I'd like a format that looks something like this:

http://paul.hives.us/storage/CRW_2405_JFRbandw7.jpg

If I could achieve the framing, shadows etc in EE it would save me a lot of time running a Photoshop action on each inage to generate the frame etc


That's the whole point of style frames and shadows :)

I can do that kind of frame for you ( do you really want it so wide?). I'll try to finish one new style today and put that frame there.

Here's a graph that explains the rectangles needed for building a frame:

http://photography-on-the.net/ee/files/frame_rects.gif

I use XaraX for making frames, as it has excellent bevel tools and easy slicing via layers.

[iamhives]

Thanks Pekka. I didn't see an explaination of how the frames work and I'm not as technically accomplished as you obviously are !

Incidentally, I like the format of the picture I posted because it looks like a framed and matted print hanging on a gallery wall. And the drop shading etc on the outside as well as within the frame creates a bit of a 3D effect

[Pekka]

How do like this one:

http://photography-on-the.net/ee/styledemo/1.jpg

[iamhives]

Nice !

Really pushing my luck here since you are being so nice as to do my work for me !!

Any chance of the frame being a little darker - closer to black

Also, its hard to tell because of the color of the image, but in my example there a shadow to simulate the depth of the inside 'matt' which I like. Its like using the drop shadow you have on the outside of the frame on the inside of the matt (hard to explain)

One final question. Is the size of the 'inside border' always equal (width and height). Also if the image size changes goes the border increase/decrease in proportion (ie its a percentage of the image size) or is it set at an absolute value maning that small images have a bigger frame proportionally

Thanks again

[Pekka]

iamhives wrote:
Nice !

Really pushing my luck here since you are being so nice as to do my work for me !!

Any chance of the frame being a little darker - closer to black

Of course

Also, its hard to tell because of the color of the image, but in my example there a shadow to simulate the depth of the inside 'matt' which I like. Its like using the drop shadow you have on the outside of the frame on the inside of the matt (hard to explain)

If you mean that the image itselft should have a shadow so that it appears to be lower than the "paper"? You could achieve that by placing a "dip" on top and left side of the image, but techically it's not possible to put anything over the photo.

Inside the frame (top/left) there is now a slight shadow, that's easy -but I prefer shadows to be very subtle. The shadow effect is best when it makes you just "feel" it's 3D, if the shadow is quite visible it feels like you had too many features in your drawing program and you had to use them all :)

One final question. Is the size of the 'inside border' always equal (width and height).

The transparent cornerpiece governs the ratio. If the cornerpiece is not square then the frame will be different height horizontally and vertically. For different frame widths you will need different frame files - it can not be set by EE directly (or could, but it would loose quality). One trick to make frames wider fast is to make bigger transparent cornerpiece - the frame will repeat itself and this produces sometimes nice effect.

Also if the image size changes goes the border increase/decrease in proportion (ie its a percentage of the image size) or is it set at an absolute value maning that small images have a bigger frame proportionally

The border stays same "size" regardless of photo size. In practice: the horizontal and vertical pieces of the frame changes width and height with the photo.

In future versions I could code a special frame type which would change paper border size with the photo.

Thanks again

No problem. I'll post few frames like that tomorrow.

[Pekka]

Pekka wrote:
No problem. I'll post few frames like that tomorrow.

Do I did not! Sorry for the delay. I have few frames and one new style ready. I'll debug them and upload them in 24 hours.

[Pekka]

Hi,

I uploaded a few frames to
http://photography-on-the.net/ee/files/frames_1.zip

These are generic frames, meaning that you can use them on any background. Unzip them to gallery/styles/frames_1/

See http://photography-on-the.net/gallery/photo.php?photo=351&exhibition=1 for example of frame called "passepartout_5".

To insert a certain frame to your favourite style, edit you style code. Look for "$s_graph_frame_dir" variable. Change it to:

$s_graph_frame_dir = "styles/frames_1/passepartout_5/";

or

$s_graph_frame_dir = "styles/frames_1/passepartout_4/";

Which simply means that you show EE where the frame directory is.

These style do not have shadows embedded, so use the shadow which comes with each style (so no need to change anything there, that is done by default).

More later,

Pekka

[steelduck]

Hello Pekka

My humble request is to have a frame like in the the orginal style but with the simple dropdown shadow on the pictures.

ie. a narrow black border without the paspartu and a drop shadow.

Kristian

[steelduck]

OK.. I found out how to enable the shadow :) but my humble request still is to get a bit larger shadow.

Kristian

[steelduck]

I tried to install new frames to original style, but this is the outcome: http://steelduck.pp.htv.fi/ee/photo.php?photo=646&exhibition=10

What might be wrong. Here is the code I changed:

// FRAME GRAPHICS:^M
// leave empty if section is not used (in e.g. bottom right shadow)^M
// please keep the filenames standard so it would be easy to switch root for different styles^M
$s_photopage_frame = "1";
// "1" = on , "0" = off^M
$s_photopage_frame_background = "000000"; // fr
ame plate background color^M
$s_graph_frame_dir = "styles/frames_1/passepartout_1/"; // fr
ame style folder^M
$s_graph_frame_top_left_corner = $s_graph_frame_dir . "t_l_corner.jpg"; // t_l_corner.jpg^M
^M
^M

[Pekka]

steelduck wrote:
I tried to install new frames to original style, but this is the outcome: http://steelduck.pp.htv.fi/ee/photo.php?photo=646&exhibition=10

What might be wrong. Here is the code I changed:

// FRAME GRAPHICS:^M
// leave empty if section is not used (in e.g. bottom right shadow)^M
// please keep the filenames standard so it would be easy to switch root for different styles^M
$s_photopage_frame = "1";
// "1" = on , "0" = off^M
$s_photopage_frame_background = "000000"; // fr
ame plate background color^M
$s_graph_frame_dir = "styles/frames_1/passepartout_1/"; // fr
ame style folder^M
$s_graph_frame_top_left_corner = $s_graph_frame_dir . "t_l_corner.jpg"; // t_l_corner.jpg^M
^M
^M



Well by viewing the source code the page tries to get graphics from correct location e.g. so the only question is are the files there and if they have correct permissions to be readable by all.
I suspect the permission for the directory is wrong, because trying to read an image directly like http://steelduck.pp.htv.fi/ee/styles/frames_1/passepartout_1/left.jpg gives "You don't have permission to access /ee/styles/frames_1/passepartout_1/left.jpg on this server".

[steelduck]

Doh!! Thank you... and I work for a Unix company :I

[Lewiswax2]

Pekka wrote:
Hi,

I uploaded a few frames to
http://photography-on-the.net/ee/files/frames_1.zip



I know you had some problems with your server...but can you give me the new URL to the frames?

Tanx!