Photoshop background is black!

[Marelo]

Edit: Nevermind... Fixed the first problem. Facepalm moment; all I had to do was right click on the black area and select "Gray".

I now have a new problem, as outlined in my second post: When I draw with the brush tool, and then use the fill tool for color, there's always a thin band of pixels up against the brush strokes which remains unfilled. Anyone know a way to fix that?

My Photoshop background is black (screenshot below). It used to just be gray, and I find the change disconcerting.

[synkr0nized]

Do us a favour and describe what you did to fix your problem. That way others who may have or will come across this can have an idea of what to do instead of just an image and "I fixed it."


My assumption is that you just set the background color for when you create new files different from what you had it before? Or was it even just the background color in toolbar?

[Marelo]

I don't know what put it out of whack to begin with, but I fixed it by just right clicking on the background and selecting "Gray".

Incidentally, I've run into a more complex problem... When I draw with the brush tool, and then use the fill tool for color, there's always a thin band of pixels up against the brush strokes which remains unfilled. Anyone know a way to fix that?

[Mondt]

Fill before the brush.

I mean the problem is the brush tool's anti-aliasing. Either fill before brush or use pen. I don't know a good way to fill in stupid anti-aliasing stupidness.

(Anti-aliasing is stupid. Except good.)

[synkr0nized]

I like AA for brushes, but I'm not an artist who might be doing things far more complex than the chopping I do.

Also, oh, right, you can just change the display background like that. ha ha I never do that either, myself, so I would have been "???" at first.

[Marelo]

Originally Posted by Mondt

Fill before the brush.

I mean the problem is the brush tool's anti-aliasing. Either fill before brush or use pen. I don't know a good way to fill in stupid anti-aliasing stupidness.

(Anti-aliasing is stupid. Except good.)

Pen as in the tool with the handlebars and such? That one infuriates me :P It's so counter intuitive!

[Khael!]

Not really, it draws in vectors instead of straight up pixels. (at least, I'm very sure it does.) You can zoom in and the quality of the line's edge remains sharp, if it indeed is. At least until you flatten the image and make it a .jpg instead of a .psd.

I think by "pen tool" maybe they meant pencil? If you right click on the brush tool I think you can select other drawing implements that way.

[synkr0nized]

Brush and pencil share a toolbar button, but the pen tool is also there with its various incarnations as a separate button.

[Marelo]

Originally Posted by synkr0nized

Brush and pencil share a toolbar button, but the pen tool is also there with its various incarnations as a separate button.

Ah ha! I just discovered the Freeform Pen tool, which is exactly what I needed. Thank you!

Edit: Hmm... Looking at Adobe Illustrator, I've realized it's more for what I'm trying to do.

[Savage Thinking]

Originally Posted by Runswithnopants

Incidentally, I've run into a more complex problem... When I draw with the brush tool, and then use the fill tool for color, there's always a thin band of pixels up against the brush strokes which remains unfilled. Anyone know a way to fix that?

Well, if you're using the fill method, what I'd do is use the Magic Wand tool to select what I'm gonna fill, then go to Select>Modify>Expand. Then I choose something like two-three pixels. When I'm done with that, I make a layer under the outline and then fill.

Edit: Hmm... Looking at Adobe Illustrator, I've realized it's more for what I'm trying to do.

The thing about it though, is that you'd need atleast a basic grasp of vectors to do stuff with it (which isn't hard at all). Oh, and just a heads up, if you do plan on using it, there's no Freeform Pen tool. The Pencil tool is it's replacement.