Hello there! I've been watching the skin contest entries since the very first Brightshine Jubilee skin contest, and I've noticed some common, simple mistakes being made that disqualify skins and accents for judging. So, I've put together this guide on how to format your skins and accents properly so they can be judged! Sorry for a lack of screenshots, I'm happy to add them if folks would like, but I'm hoping this guide is clear enough without them.
First off, I'm going to explain how skins and accents actually work with Flight Rising's dragon images. Skins and accents are layered on top of the existing images of dragons – the lineart and shading of the dragon below has no effect on the skin or accent, as they're saved as flat images. This means that submitting a skin or accent without lineart or shading will not receive them when it's applied to a dragon.
Also, a little clarification about skin contests; you don't need a blueprint to enter! You just need to post a 350x350 transparent .png of your skin or accent. If you win, the skin or accent will be made into an official site item without you paying a penny.
Note: I'll be referring to some keyboard shortcuts in this tutorial. I use a Windows machine, so I'll be using ctrl where a Mac user would use cmd – just substitute cmd for ctrl in your head if you're using a Mac. Also, I have never used GIMP or FireAlpaca, so the information I have on them is taken from the internets and not from personal experience. Caveat lector.
To get the blank mannequins for making your skin or accent, go to the 'Custom Skins' tab in the FR sidebar, and then to 'Download PSDs'. There, you'll be able to download zipped .psd files of whichever dragon you want to use. The .psd files are all 750x750 pixels, so they'll need to be resized when you're finished. When you open up the zip you'll find two files; one labeled [species]_[m/f]_dragon.psd, and the other labeled [species]_[m/f]_dragon_elements_friendly.psd.
The difference between these two files is important. If you're using Photoshop Elements, you will not be able to use the non-Elements friendly version. This is because the regular .psd contains layer groups, which are not supported by Photoshop Elements.
Programs that support layer groups:
Photoshop 6 and onwards
Photoshop CS1 and onwards
GIMP 2.71 and onwards
Paint Tool SAI
FireAlpaca 1.0.48 and onwards
So, once you've opened the appropriate file, you'll find one of two layer setups. We'll discuss the non-Elements friendly setup first.
The file contains two layer groups, one labeled 'Accent Parts' (which is hidden by default) and one labeled 'Skin Parts'. The Skin Parts contains layers with colour separations of each part of the dragon, like wings, belly, facial features, etc.
These layers are in a clipping group with the layer at the bottom of the group, labeled 'Base'. This means that no part of the layers in the group will appear outside the silhouette of what's on the Base layer. You can paint on these layers, or you can create a new layer above them, but below the shadow layer, to make a skin. Very simple.
Tip: You can add or remove layers to or from a clipping group with the shortcut ctrl+alt+g in Photoshop, or just ctrl+g in Photoshop Elements. GIMP does not have a clipping group function, so I'll link a workaround tutorial in the post. Paint Tool SAI does not have a shortcut built-in, but instead has a little button labeled 'Clipping Group' in the layers sidebar. In FireAlpaca, you'll have to make a new layer and set it to 'Clipping'. I don't know how to add an existing layer to a clipping group in FireAlpaca – if anyone knows how, let me know and I'll amend this!
To make an accent, you'll be using the Accent Parts group. The layer labeled 'Accent Goes Here' is a clipping group base for the lineart and shading layers above it, so they'll only be visible for the parts of the accent that's on that layer. You don't have to paint directly onto this layer. In fact, if you try to place a layer above it that'll be for part of your accent, that layer will be affected by the clipping group too. So, you can paint your accent on a separate layer or layers and then paste it into your Accent Goes Here layer if that's easier for you.
Note: You'll have to collapse the layer onto the Accent Goes Here layer in Photoshop, as it insists on making new layers for every paste even if the selected layer is empty. To do that, make sure your pasted layer is directly above the Accent layer (it'll be in the cliping group, that's fine) and hit ctrl+e with the pasted layer selected to merge the two. Or, you know, delete the Accent Goes Here layer and use your own layer to make the clipping group.
You can modify the colour of the lineart and shadow layers as long as they're both visibly darker than what's underneath them – don't leave it black if you don't want to! Some accents in particular really suffer with black lineart.
With the Photoshop Elements friendly version of the file, you have only what's in the Skin Parts group in the full file. To make a skin, you use the exact same method as with the full file, but to make an accent you need to jump through some hoops. If you're using GIMP, you're going to need to jump through a lot of hoops.
First, make your accent on a separate layer (if you've used multiple layers, save the layers as a separate file before continuing). Collapse all the layers you used in making your accent into a single layer by shift+clicking each layer in your layers window and using ctrl+e in Photoshop, SAI, or by clicking your top layer and using Layer>Merge Down in GIMP and FireAlpaca. Delete all layers but the accent, shadow and lineart layers. Then shift+select the shadow and lineart layers and add them to a clipping group with the accent layer as the base. To do this, see the tip above. You should now have just the accent with the shadow and lineart layers visible only where the accent is.
In GIMP, clipping groups are not an option. To get the accent to work, first collapse your accent's layers, and ctrl+click on that layer to get a selection. Go to Select>Invert or use ctrl+i to invert that selection, then go to the lineart and shadow layers and hit delete to remove everything outside that selection.
Flight Rising requires all skin and accent submissions to be 350x350 pixels in size, in .png format, and to have transparency. Flight Rising cannot strip out a white background if you've saved without transparency, so remember to check! If you've made an accent, be sure to hide or delete the Skin Parts group below it, or it'll be visible when you save it.
When saving, I recommend keeping a full-size .psd of your working file so you can make modifications as needed. Then, save a .png of your full-sized version. Open that .png, and resize it to 350x350 pixels. Save that version as a separate .png, keeping your full-sized .png as well. (You don't strictly need to keep your full-sized .png, but a lot of people like showing full-sized images of skins and accents as well as their 350x350 submission).
Tip: Keep a consistent naming convention, like 'Fireball Fae F Accent Layers', 'Fireball Fae F Accent 750' and 'Fireball Fae F Accent 350' so you can tell at a glance what your files are.
Resizing Images
In Photoshop, go to Image>Image Size or use ctrl+alt+i, and set the height and width to 350. In SAI, go to Canvas>Change Resolution. In GIMP, go to Image>Scale Image. In FireAlpaca, go to Edit>Image Size.
Saving With Transparency
In Photoshop and GIMP, .png files are automatically saved with transparency. In SAI, you need to select '32bpp ARGB (Each pixel have opacity)' when prompted. In FireAlpaca, select 'transparent .png' when saving.
Making Previews
Everybody loves previews! To make one, find a dragon you like (preferably not wearing apparel – if there's a cool dragon with apparel on it, input its ID into the Scrying Workshop to see it naked), and save its image to your computer. Copy-pasting it will often give you a nasty black background. Open the dragon's image and your 350x350 transparent .png, and copy your accent and paste it into the dragon you want to preview it on.
In Photoshop Elements, pre-CS5 versions of Photoshop, SAI, GIMP and FireAlpaca you'll have to nudge the image around to get it to line up, but in Photoshop CS5 and onwards there's a handy command called 'Paste in Place'. This will paste a copied image into exactly the same location as it was in the original file. To do so, go to Edit>Paste Special>Paste in Place, or use ctrl+shift+v.
Now you have a transparent 350x350 pixel skin or accent, upload it to the file host of your choice (I usually use imgur.com, but you can use any you like). If you're submitting your skin or accent to a contest, post the image in the contest thread using the tags [ img ]image url[ /img ] (without the spaces). If you're submitting it directly to the site with an existing blueprint, you don't need to upload it to the web. Just go to the Upload Submissions tab under the Custom Skins page.
I hope that helped clear some things up! Let me know if you'd like something clarified, or if I've made an egregious error with regards to GIMP or FireAlpaca. I tried to be as concise and simple as possible, but feedback on how to make this less of a wall of text would also be much appreciated. Also, @QueenParda has made a guide on how to do this with Clip Studio Paint, also called Manga Studio, and Paint.NET here.
@crowcorvidae has also made an excellent list of general-purpose suggestions for making skins and accents here.
First off, I'm going to explain how skins and accents actually work with Flight Rising's dragon images. Skins and accents are layered on top of the existing images of dragons – the lineart and shading of the dragon below has no effect on the skin or accent, as they're saved as flat images. This means that submitting a skin or accent without lineart or shading will not receive them when it's applied to a dragon.
Also, a little clarification about skin contests; you don't need a blueprint to enter! You just need to post a 350x350 transparent .png of your skin or accent. If you win, the skin or accent will be made into an official site item without you paying a penny.
Note: I'll be referring to some keyboard shortcuts in this tutorial. I use a Windows machine, so I'll be using ctrl where a Mac user would use cmd – just substitute cmd for ctrl in your head if you're using a Mac. Also, I have never used GIMP or FireAlpaca, so the information I have on them is taken from the internets and not from personal experience. Caveat lector.
To get the blank mannequins for making your skin or accent, go to the 'Custom Skins' tab in the FR sidebar, and then to 'Download PSDs'. There, you'll be able to download zipped .psd files of whichever dragon you want to use. The .psd files are all 750x750 pixels, so they'll need to be resized when you're finished. When you open up the zip you'll find two files; one labeled [species]_[m/f]_dragon.psd, and the other labeled [species]_[m/f]_dragon_elements_friendly.psd.
The difference between these two files is important. If you're using Photoshop Elements, you will not be able to use the non-Elements friendly version. This is because the regular .psd contains layer groups, which are not supported by Photoshop Elements.
Programs that support layer groups:
Photoshop 6 and onwards
Photoshop CS1 and onwards
GIMP 2.71 and onwards
Paint Tool SAI
FireAlpaca 1.0.48 and onwards
So, once you've opened the appropriate file, you'll find one of two layer setups. We'll discuss the non-Elements friendly setup first.
***
Using the Full File
Using the Full File
The file contains two layer groups, one labeled 'Accent Parts' (which is hidden by default) and one labeled 'Skin Parts'. The Skin Parts contains layers with colour separations of each part of the dragon, like wings, belly, facial features, etc.
These layers are in a clipping group with the layer at the bottom of the group, labeled 'Base'. This means that no part of the layers in the group will appear outside the silhouette of what's on the Base layer. You can paint on these layers, or you can create a new layer above them, but below the shadow layer, to make a skin. Very simple.
Tip: You can add or remove layers to or from a clipping group with the shortcut ctrl+alt+g in Photoshop, or just ctrl+g in Photoshop Elements. GIMP does not have a clipping group function, so I'll link a workaround tutorial in the post. Paint Tool SAI does not have a shortcut built-in, but instead has a little button labeled 'Clipping Group' in the layers sidebar. In FireAlpaca, you'll have to make a new layer and set it to 'Clipping'. I don't know how to add an existing layer to a clipping group in FireAlpaca – if anyone knows how, let me know and I'll amend this!
To make an accent, you'll be using the Accent Parts group. The layer labeled 'Accent Goes Here' is a clipping group base for the lineart and shading layers above it, so they'll only be visible for the parts of the accent that's on that layer. You don't have to paint directly onto this layer. In fact, if you try to place a layer above it that'll be for part of your accent, that layer will be affected by the clipping group too. So, you can paint your accent on a separate layer or layers and then paste it into your Accent Goes Here layer if that's easier for you.
Note: You'll have to collapse the layer onto the Accent Goes Here layer in Photoshop, as it insists on making new layers for every paste even if the selected layer is empty. To do that, make sure your pasted layer is directly above the Accent layer (it'll be in the cliping group, that's fine) and hit ctrl+e with the pasted layer selected to merge the two. Or, you know, delete the Accent Goes Here layer and use your own layer to make the clipping group.
You can modify the colour of the lineart and shadow layers as long as they're both visibly darker than what's underneath them – don't leave it black if you don't want to! Some accents in particular really suffer with black lineart.
***
Using the Elements-friendly File
Using the Elements-friendly File
With the Photoshop Elements friendly version of the file, you have only what's in the Skin Parts group in the full file. To make a skin, you use the exact same method as with the full file, but to make an accent you need to jump through some hoops. If you're using GIMP, you're going to need to jump through a lot of hoops.
First, make your accent on a separate layer (if you've used multiple layers, save the layers as a separate file before continuing). Collapse all the layers you used in making your accent into a single layer by shift+clicking each layer in your layers window and using ctrl+e in Photoshop, SAI, or by clicking your top layer and using Layer>Merge Down in GIMP and FireAlpaca. Delete all layers but the accent, shadow and lineart layers. Then shift+select the shadow and lineart layers and add them to a clipping group with the accent layer as the base. To do this, see the tip above. You should now have just the accent with the shadow and lineart layers visible only where the accent is.
In GIMP, clipping groups are not an option. To get the accent to work, first collapse your accent's layers, and ctrl+click on that layer to get a selection. Go to Select>Invert or use ctrl+i to invert that selection, then go to the lineart and shadow layers and hit delete to remove everything outside that selection.
***
Formatting for Submission
Formatting for Submission
Flight Rising requires all skin and accent submissions to be 350x350 pixels in size, in .png format, and to have transparency. Flight Rising cannot strip out a white background if you've saved without transparency, so remember to check! If you've made an accent, be sure to hide or delete the Skin Parts group below it, or it'll be visible when you save it.
When saving, I recommend keeping a full-size .psd of your working file so you can make modifications as needed. Then, save a .png of your full-sized version. Open that .png, and resize it to 350x350 pixels. Save that version as a separate .png, keeping your full-sized .png as well. (You don't strictly need to keep your full-sized .png, but a lot of people like showing full-sized images of skins and accents as well as their 350x350 submission).
Tip: Keep a consistent naming convention, like 'Fireball Fae F Accent Layers', 'Fireball Fae F Accent 750' and 'Fireball Fae F Accent 350' so you can tell at a glance what your files are.
Resizing Images
In Photoshop, go to Image>Image Size or use ctrl+alt+i, and set the height and width to 350. In SAI, go to Canvas>Change Resolution. In GIMP, go to Image>Scale Image. In FireAlpaca, go to Edit>Image Size.
Saving With Transparency
In Photoshop and GIMP, .png files are automatically saved with transparency. In SAI, you need to select '32bpp ARGB (Each pixel have opacity)' when prompted. In FireAlpaca, select 'transparent .png' when saving.
Making Previews
Everybody loves previews! To make one, find a dragon you like (preferably not wearing apparel – if there's a cool dragon with apparel on it, input its ID into the Scrying Workshop to see it naked), and save its image to your computer. Copy-pasting it will often give you a nasty black background. Open the dragon's image and your 350x350 transparent .png, and copy your accent and paste it into the dragon you want to preview it on.
In Photoshop Elements, pre-CS5 versions of Photoshop, SAI, GIMP and FireAlpaca you'll have to nudge the image around to get it to line up, but in Photoshop CS5 and onwards there's a handy command called 'Paste in Place'. This will paste a copied image into exactly the same location as it was in the original file. To do so, go to Edit>Paste Special>Paste in Place, or use ctrl+shift+v.
Now you have a transparent 350x350 pixel skin or accent, upload it to the file host of your choice (I usually use imgur.com, but you can use any you like). If you're submitting your skin or accent to a contest, post the image in the contest thread using the tags [ img ]image url[ /img ] (without the spaces). If you're submitting it directly to the site with an existing blueprint, you don't need to upload it to the web. Just go to the Upload Submissions tab under the Custom Skins page.
***
I hope that helped clear some things up! Let me know if you'd like something clarified, or if I've made an egregious error with regards to GIMP or FireAlpaca. I tried to be as concise and simple as possible, but feedback on how to make this less of a wall of text would also be much appreciated. Also, @QueenParda has made a guide on how to do this with Clip Studio Paint, also called Manga Studio, and Paint.NET here.
@crowcorvidae has also made an excellent list of general-purpose suggestions for making skins and accents here.
