🌈 Seamless Colorful Abstract Pattern (Auto Action Edition)
Hi.
Hi guys, welcome to another tutorial of mine.
The software I will be using of course is Clip Studio Paint (CSP) on a Samsung Galaxy Lite Tablet.
❤️ Concept Behind Making A Pattern Seamless
So, here I have a single image for demonstration purposes.
This will be my Motif as it is what will be repeated to form the pattern. However, it would result in a simple and boring pattern. To make it seamless, thus more interesting, the edges of the Motif on one side must match up with the edges on the other side in a manner where they seamlessly connect with each other. The top must match up with the bottom and the right must match up with the left. When they are repeated to make the pattern, it should be hard to tell where the edges (The Seams) of each Motif are.
When repeated it looks like this.
To make it seamless, I would have to move the areas along the edges to the center where they are connected.
It would look like this.
Then I add to the Motif by drawing on this new middle area. The Motif now looks like this.
I can do this as many times as I want untill I'm satisfied with the look of the Motif.
This is a pattern from the Motif. See how it is now Seamless.
In CSP I can manually cut up the Motif and arrange it so that the areas along the edges are now in the middle where I would then add to the Motif to make it Seamless.
However, this is a tedious process. Especially since I would have to repeat this process more than once considering the pattern design I have in mind.
Thankfully, this process will be done only once but recorded as an Auto Action in CSP. Then whenever I need to cut and rearrange the Motif again to add to it, I just need to play this Auto Action that does it in the blink of an eye. Yay ☺️
❤️ Setting up the CSP File for the Auto Action
My Motif is going to be square, so I create a new CSP File with the Width and Height set to 1,200px.
Note, my canvas size doesn't have to be a square. It can be a rectangle and my Auto Action will still work, however, the sizes should easily be divided by two.
The CSP File is created with two layers, a Paper layer and a Blank Raster layer.
I go ahead and create a Folder by clicking the New Layer Folder icon in the Layer Palette or by going to the Layer menu> New Layer Folder.
So now I have three items in my Layer Palette; a Paper layer, a Raster layer and a Layer Folder.
The Paper layer serves no purpose but if I was going to make a pattern with transparent parts, I would make sure to hide or delete this layer.
Now, I move the Raster layer above the Layer Folder and also rename the Layer Folder to ‘Pattern’. I do this by double clicking on the Layer Name then change it to what I want. I also assigned a color to the Pattern Layer Folder for easy identification, it's a habit of mine. I would always wonder which would end up being more colorful when I'm done with my work, my Layer palette or the final image, lol.
Then I moved onto creating a Guide. This where the Canvas Size being divisible by two becomes important.
I go to the Ruler tool then select the Guide sub tool. With it selected, I draw a guide-line across the canvas from right to left.
I then clicked it with the Object sub tool then went to the Tool Property palette to set the Center Y value to that of half the size of the canvas's height which is 600 (1,200/2=600).
This makes the guide-line cut the canvas in half, resulting in a top and bottom section.
Ensure the Snap to Special Ruler is on.
I then select the color Black and rename the Raster layer to ‘VERTICAL’.
I select the Select tool> Rectangle sub tool.
I use it to select the top section ensuring the bottom edges of the selection rectangle snaps to the guide-line.
With the selection made, I press the Fill icon to fill it with the main color which is Black.
I press the Deselect icon below the selection to cancel the selection and I also hide the Guide layer as it has now served its purpose.
I duplicate the VERTICAL layer by clicking on it then going to Layer menu> Duplicate Layer.
I renamed the copy to ‘HORIZONTAL’ then moved it below the VERTICAL layer.
While on the HORIZONTAL layer, I go to Select menu> Select All. With a selection made around the entire canvas, I then go to the Edit menu> Transform> Rotate.
I then go to the Tool Property palette and set the Rotation Angle to 90. I accept the transformation then cancel the selection.
Now, I hide the VERTICAL and HORIZONTAL layers in the Layer palette. My Layer palette now looks like this:
I went ahead and created a new layer in the Pattern Layer Folder and imported an image in it for the sake of this tutorial. I of course rasterized the image after importing it by going to Layer menu> Rasterize.
❤️ Creating the Auto Action
I bring up the Auto Action palette by going to the Window menu> Auto Action.
In the Auto Action palette, I press the Create New Auto Action Set icon and name it SeamlessCut.
When the Auto Action Set is created, an empty Auto Action is also created in it where I am prompted to enter a name for it. So I enter the name CutAndArrange.
Before I start to record the actions, I make sure I am on the Pattern Layer Folder in the Layer palette. This will be my Active Layer.
Once again, make sure the VERTICAL and HORIZONTAL layers are still hidden.
I then click on the CutAndArrange Auto Action then go down to the very bottom of the palette and press the Start To Record Auto Action icon which is the red dot.
I go to the VERTICAL layer in the Layer palette and unhide it.
Go to the Layer menu> Selection from Layer> Create Selection.
A selection is made around the filled black area.
Hide the VERTICAL layer.
With selection still active, go back to the Pattern Layer Folder (not a layer in it, but the folder itself).
Then go to the Edit menu> Transform> Flip Vertically.
Accept the transformation by pressing OK.
With the selection still active and still on the Pattern Layer Folder, I go to the Select menu> Invert Selected Area.
With the selection now enclosing the bottom half, I go to the Transform menu> Flip Vertically.
Accept transformation.
Press the Deselect icon.
Now, go to the HORIZONTAL layer and unhide it.
Go to the Layer menu> Selection from Layer> Create Selection.
With the selection made around the filled black area, I hide the HORIZONTAL layer.
With the selection still active, I go back to the Pattern Layer Folder.
I then go to the Edit menu> Transform> Flip Horizontally.
I accept the transformation.
With the selection still active and still on the Pattern Layer Folder, I go to the Selection menu> Invert Selected Area.
Then I go to the Transform menu> Flip horizontally.
I accept the transformation.
Deselect.
(The Auto Action was edited afterwards to add this part) Go to Select menu> Select All
Then go to the Edit menu> Transform> Rotate.
In the Property palette, set the Rotation Angle to 180.
Accept the transformation.
(The Auto Action was edited afterwards to add this part) Go to the Select menu> Deselect
Press the Stop To Record Auto Action icon which is now a red square at the bottom of the Auto Action palette.
This is a Youtube video of the recording of the Auto Action. You can pause the video to see parts better which you wouldn't be able to do with a GIF.
After I was finished with recording the Auto Action, I realized that I had missed a step that would've prevented errors later down where the image was rotated using the center of the image as the rotation instead of the center of the canvas. So I clicked on the CutAndArrange auto action and pressed the Start To Record Auto Action icon again then went to the Select menu> Select All. Then I pressed the Stop To Record Auto Action icon. I then moved this command to before the Rotation command. I did this for the Deselect command as well which is why they are not in the youtube video showing the recording of the process.
Below is a screenshot of the commands of the CutAndArrange Auto Action before and after the update.
❤️ Live Execution of the CutAndArrange Auto Action
In the GIF below, you will see me press the Start To Play Auto Action icon, which is a white triangle, which will move all the areas along the edges to the middle of the canvas. I then add to the image.
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❤️ Important things to note about the CutAndArrange Auto Action
The CutAndArrange Auto Action still works even if I don't click on the Pattern Layer Folder (making it my active layer) before I execute the Auto Action. It will however end with me being back on the Pattern Layer Folder though, which I cannot draw on. I just have to remember to go back on the layer I want to draw on in the Pattern Layer Folder.
Do not delete the VERTICAL AND HORIZONTAL layers and keep them hidden. They will be needed by the CutAndArrange Auto Action.
It works with other canvas sizes other than the 1,200px for both the Height and Width which it was created with.
It even works with rectangular canvas sizes. I tested it and it still works when the Height is taller than the Width and vice-versa.
Hence, the Motif doesn’t have to be square.
🌟 Don't name any other layers VERTICAL, HORIZONTAL or Pattern. Don't even have them as part of the Layer Names of other layers. So if I copy any of these layers, I must rename them to something different as it will affect the Auto Action because it will search for those layers with those names including those which have them as part of the layer name.
❤️ Creating my original pattern: Rainbow Lava
About My Design for my Pattern.
To aid me in my pattern creation, I bring up the Sub View palette. I do this by going to the Window menu> Sub View.
In it, I import my artworks that I want to pick colors from and to also look at. I do this by clicking the Import From Device Storage icon at the bottom of the Sub View palette as my reference images are indeed in the tablet's storage.
These are the 3 pictures I have in my Sub View palette. And yes they were all drawn by me.
I've drawn these colorful designs before and I really like how they look, but they take hours to make. Hence why I decided to make a pattern that looks like them. So if I ever need to incorporate these colorful designs in any of my future work, I atleast have this pattern that I can use as my starting point and hopefully save me some time.
I can create as many layers needed in the Pattern Layer Folder, but I just needed only one for this design.
I focus on the parts in the middle each time, drawing over the areas along the seams which forms a cross.
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Final images of the Motif when the edges are to the sides and when they are in the middle.
❤️ Turning My Design Into A Pattern
I click on the Pattern Layer Folder, then go to the Layer menu> Duplicate Layer.
Rename the copy to Rainbow Lava.
Then select it and go to the Layer menu> Merge Selected Layers.
Now it's all on one Raster layer.
While on the Rainbow Lava layer, I go to the Edit menu> Register Material> Image.
Enter the name, select where to categorize it and enter a tag so I can search for it. Ensure the ‘Tiling’ option is selected at Paste Operation.
Press OK. It is now in the Color Pattern section in my Material Palette.
Now whenever I want to use it, I just locate it in my Material Palette and either drag it onto the canvas or press the Paste Selected Material To Canvas icon at the bottom of the Material palette.
Here is me creating some stuff with the pattern.
I rasterize the layer then I can modify it with the Liquify tool to make it more dynamic.
I can clip it to other layers with shapes or words on them. I think it's perfect for making posters.
❤️ Free Goodies ❤️
Yes yes I am a very kind person. I know the wonderful feeling of getting other people's hard work for free. So I am sharing three things with you today via the CSP Asset Store and Gumroad.
The Rainbow Lava pattern:
The CutAndArrange Auto Action:
This Auto Action will need to have all the required layers to execute properly. Namely the VERTICAL, HORIZONTAL and the Pattern Layer Folder and with no other layers having these as their names.
The Template (CSP File with the necessary layers):
Here is a CSP File with the required layers. Note, this file has 1,200px by 1,200 px for its dimensions. If you want to edit the canvas size you may do so, but you also have to adjust the fills on the VERTICAL and the HORIZONTAL layers. That's why I have also included the Guide layer in the file in case you wish to do so. Edit the guide-line and use it to fill the layer as demonstrated in the tutorial.
This is the end of my tutorial. It was fun to make and I hope you guys found it very helpful. Bye bye.
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