????TGA with Alpha Channel????

[Lean Bear]

How do you make a TGA file with an Alpha Channel. I've looked on the net and asked around but still haven't found a sufficient method for doing it.

And, don't pretend that you don't know, because loads of people do it all the time when making icons for their addons and textures as well.

[Planck]

If it is terrain textures you are working on here is an easy way.

Load a paa or pac file into Texview, then resave it as a .tga file.

Then in Paint Shop or whatever application you use, copy the texture you want into this tga file, thus replacing the texture already present with your own texture.

Any alpha channel already present will be unaffected.

Resave the file, reload into Texview, then save again as paa or pac.

There is a way of creating alpha channels but this is a quick and dirty method.


Planck

[Lean Bear]

Thanks, but I really need a way to make transparent textures for objects not really for terrain.

But I'll try this method with non-terrain objectsa anyway, to see what happens.

[Planck]

The method should work for any paa or pac texture file.

However you would need to edit the alpha channel to suit the model file ..............etc.


Planck

[Lean Bear]

How do you edit the alpha channel though? If I knew how to do that, then I wouldn't have started this topic!

[Planck]

It would take a lot of space to try and explain the process, it would be better if you could find a tutorial of sorts.

I remember seeing one somewhere, I will try to see if I can find it again.
Or maybe someone else knows where to find one.

What program do you use to manipulate textures anyway?


Planck

[Aahz8]

making an alpha chanel is easy

Photo shop 8

Steps:
1. (layer 1) delete unnesasary material (background)
2. duplicate layer to make layer 2 and set contrast and brigtness to -100
3. make blank new layer (layer 3), color white
4. merge layer 2 + 3
5. select color range of black (under select color range)
6. goto select -> save selection. save as Alpha
7. goto channels, select Alpha
8. set contrast to +100
9. create layer 4 Blank, paint average texture color. (if a leaf, color green)
10. merge layer 1 + 4, with 1 on top
11. goto select -> load selection. load Alpha

12. click "Add layer mask"  http://tinypic.com/e3fo0  

13. save as .tga, 32.bit


Alot of the time you can just skip to step 12

[Lean Bear]

I don't have Paint Shop Pro, and unless its free, I don't think I'm gonna be getting it anytime soon.

[Planck]

You can get a 30 day trial copy of Paint Shop Pro 8 I believe.


Planck

[Aahz8]

its PHOTO shop
and i downloaded it from kaza

[Lean Bear]

Hmmm, I don't use kaZaa (or any other program like that) but I tried it out on PhotoShop Elements, but the reduced options were apparent when I got to "step: 6", cause there is no select colour range function on Elements. And you need a lisence or something to have the full version.

Aahz8, do ya think you could make a TGA file with an Alpha Channel (say 512x512) and send it to me? Cause then I could use it as a template and put whatever design on there, and the rest would be transparent, right?

[Planck]

Lean Bear

I'm sure you already posses a 512 X 512 paa or pac texture file with alpha channel.  Many came with OFP.

All you need to do is load it into Texview and resave as a tga file.


Planck

[Aahz8]

those instructions are unessasaraly complex
just save the outline of the texture
and go to channels and set to +100
(or if you can turn off antialiasing you dont need to do the chanals)

then do step 9 - 13

or i will just send an example, but it may not save the mask :-\

[Lean Bear]

Planck, do you know where in OFP's many files I might find a 512x512 texture wih an alpha channel?

Aahz8, where I pointed out I couldn't go any further, it really is the limit of PhotoShop Elements. There isn't a channels option or any form of mask (quick mask, new mask and the like).

Also, if I had a 512x512 texture with an Alpha channel, how could I keep the alpha channel and have a "solid" texture put on it so only he part I added would show in OFP?

[Planck]

Yes LB

If you UnPBO the O.pbo you will find many texture files that are 512 X 512 in size.  Most, if not all of them, have an alpha channel.
Although they have an alpha channel it is 'blank' so to speak.
So it can easily be edited to produce the mask you want if it is for something other than a land texture.

They have a file size of about 171 Kb.

All you need to do is convert one to a tga file with Texview.

Then load it into your graphics program of choice.

Copy the texture you want into the tga file, overwriting what is already visible.......the alpha channel will not be affected.


Planck

[remcen]

i would suggest downloading the gimp.
it's a free open source programme and it supports all kinds of graphic formats including tga's with alpha channels.
if you make a new texture, simple enable background -> transparent nad save it as tga.
and i would recommend you feersum endjin's paatool v1.1 (not v1.0!) to convert your tranparent textures. if you enable 'no alpha filtering', it eleminates the completely tranparent edges of your textures.for comparison and download if you don't know what i mean.

[Lean Bear]

Planck,

The .tga you sent me is a texture, and I'm really looking for something transparent (so it won't show up in OFP). I tried that anyway and it did, it looked like the ground was on the wall (good camoflauge though )

remcen,

I already have feersum.endjin's paatool v1.1, but I didn't understand the Gimp. The site didn't make any sense at all? Can you tell me what to download?

[Planck]

@LB

The tga I sent you is a texture, this is true, but it is a texture which has an alpha channel.

I thought that was what you wanted.

All you have to do is paste the texture you want on top of the texture which is already there.
The alpha channel will not be affected.


Planck

[Lean Bear]

The Alpha Channel needs to be in the texture so that the transparency will work, but since the .tga file you sent me has a textures on it, then it won't be transparent.

It's the transparency I'm intrested in, that's why I've been lookng for all this help with Photoshop etc.

Sorry if I've mislead you, but the Alpha Channel needs to be in a transparent texture anyway (so it will be transparent).

[Planck]

The texture is on its own layer.

The alpha channel is on its own layer, so to speak.

You can change the texture layer to whatever you want.

You may also edit the alpha channel to your own specs.

The alpha channel at the moment is white.....(transparent).

You can edit it to make the parts you want transparent by using black in the relevant places........(opaque)

Edit:  corrected mistooks


Planck

[Lean Bear]

Hmmm, I'll have to disagree with you there Planck. You see, when I open up the .tga file in Photoshop, its one layer, ie. if I edit the layer it will affect the alpha channel (I've tried this with other textures before, so I know that it will affect the aplha channel).

[Planck]

Lean Bear

I examined the texture before I sent it to you, so I KNOW it has an alpha channel.

I use Paint Shop Pro, I loaded it into this and examined the file properties.

Results:

1 layer
1 alpha channel

I also loaded it into Texview and looked at the alpha channel from there........it is white, and the RGB texture layer is also there too.

I can only conclude that whatever program you are using to view this texture is not up to the job.

I have just this minute looked at the texture again.
There is no change it has the texture layer AND an alpha channel.

Also copying over the texture layer does not affect the alpha channel.
Once again, I KNOW this because I do it all the time.

However, if you merely copy the file into a new one, you WILL lose the alpha channel.

At least this happens for me with PSP.

btw.......I got in back to front in my earlier post......it is white that is transparent and black which is opaque.....my apologies.  The alpha channel on the texture I sent you is white so it is completely transparent, if it wasn't you wouldn't see the texture through it.
Actually I think it depends on how you look at it when trying to decide which is transparent and which is opaque. Anyway, thats the way I look at it.


Planck

[Lean Bear]

I can only conclude that whatever program you are using to view this texture is not up to the job.

Yeah, you're probably right Planck.

I can see where you're coming from now that you've explained how you view the .tga file in Paint Shop Pro, but in Photoshop, it just comes up as one layer.

Perhaps you could just send me the alpha channel layer without the texture layer on top. So I could edit it without messing up the alpha channel (Cause if I tried to edit it with both layers, it would mess up the alpha channel, since my program thinks it all one layer).

[Planck]

I seriously doubt the program you are using will be able to edit the alpha channel.

Perhaps if you tell me exactly what you require, I can get it done.

The file must have 1 texture (or background if you like) and 1 alpha channel.

You can't really edit them together.

I could make you a file that has a black texture (background) and a black alpha channel.
This would make the whole thing transparent ingame.........I think.......hehehehehe.

Anyway......let me know what it is you are trying for.


Planck

[Lean Bear]

Yeah, that's what I had in mind. Something which will appear completely transparent in-game.

[Planck]

OK LB,

Have a play with this one attached below.........it is a .paa file in a zip.

It has a black background and a black alpha.


Let me know if it works ok.


Planck

[Lean Bear]

Thank you Planck!!

That's what I've been trying to make/get all this time!!

[Lean Bear]

Anyone scanning this topic for an idea of how to make transparent textures or TGA files woth an Alpha Channel then here is your answer:-

!!!THE GIMP!!!

Its free, easy to use and great for editing and making new OFP textures in general.