Color with Alpha - Image Editing For Bryce

1. Find an image, Select outside and fill with Pure White.



2. Make a copy of the image and save it, then fill the inside with Pure White and the Outside Selection Pure Black.
Black is transparent in Bryce...kinda.
Note: Go to Layers > Flatten the Black-White image and convert to Mode > Grayscale



3. Copy all of the Black White Grayscale image and paste into a new Alpha Channel of the Original Image.
3.a For my piece of mind, click the Layers tab, then click the RGB image.



4. Save as tiff or .psd - make sure you do not exclude the alpha when saving!
It should look like the below in the Bryce Pic editor.  
On the Left is the Base Color image and the middle shows the embedded ALPHA.
Note, You will have to hit the Invert Alpha thing where you see the mouse cursor if you reversed the black white bit..



5. How it looks in the Material Lab...



6. A fast preview render. . .



Once you get good with masking areas you want from your photos, abstracts, filter generations whatever. . .
You have a near endless source of materials to use in Bryce, don't think that making a leaf is the end of it ; )

Finis! Paul 12/23/2001 - 08