deth502 39 Posted November 2, 2009 so, if anyone has seen my other thread, i just got into this, and i really know nothing. so i was looking around here and found a lot of eps files, which i assume are whats needed to cut vinyl (and a big thanks the the forum for that, a lot of great stuff here!!! ) so, just screwing around, i tried to take an image and make a single color eps out of it. let me back up, i noticed i can open teh eps files in photoshop, and also save a file as eps in photoshop. since i just ordered my cutter last night, i dont have it yet. but i made this up in a quick 5 min. im looking to find out if i did anything useful. i know it isint too sharp, could have been better, but will this work?? can i take this file i just made and cut a decal from it?? (i mean without any extra work, point and click) original pic and my eps file eta---- ok, the eps file wouldnt upload, it was over the size limit, so i zipped it instead. ak47.zip ak47.zip Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jay2703 704 Posted November 2, 2009 You created an EPS file that contains a .jpg image. It will not be cutable. If you have Illustrator you can trace the image and make it cuttable then save it as an EPS file. Jay Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
deth502 39 Posted November 2, 2009 oh well, should have figured it wouldnt be as easy. i guess ill just wait till my package gets here and have a trial by fire. im sure ill be back with more questions. and on the rare instance im not, ill still surely be back for all of the files posted here!!! great site! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest sciondrgn Posted November 2, 2009 I would recommend downloading Inkscape and go ahead and be checking that out since its free.. Also work with your images in Black and White and they will generally vectorize easier.. www.inkscape.org Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
xstreme 0 Posted November 2, 2009 Here is an AK-47 in vector format. There is an Illustrator CS4 Version ak-47.ai ak-47.ai Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
deth502 39 Posted November 2, 2009 thanks! i was just recommended to get inkscape in the other thread i started, im downloading it now. and i also downloaded the ak file, thanks again! i can see the eps files in photoshop, but i cant preview the ai file. either i will be able to with inkscape or i will once i get my machine in. either way, ill be ready now! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
xstreme 0 Posted November 2, 2009 Should be able to import it directly into SB. Here is an EPS. ak-47.zip ak-47.zip Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
deth502 39 Posted November 2, 2009 excellent, thanks again! i dont have sign blazer yet, ive seen it mentioned here with links to download it free, but from what ive read i should be getting a copy with my cutter when it gets here, so i didnt bother. i just finished installing ink scape (took a while!!) and im off now to play with that for a while Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
deth502 39 Posted November 3, 2009 ok, round 2 i downloaded ink scape and gave this another try. i spent nearly 2 hours on this, im kinda rusty on photoshop, and have never used inkscape before. so, the first jpeg is what i started with i used photoshop to remove the grass patch and sharpen the pattern on the snake a little cuz it kept blurring out in inkscape. thats the 2nd jpeg. then i made an attempt to turn it into a usable file with inkscape, thats the 3rd eps file. so how did i do? is this a usable pattern? i think i might have it down now. Unnamed document 7.eps Unnamed document 7.eps Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
deth502 39 Posted November 3, 2009 the only points im worried about is that there were some white spots to touch up on the snake pattern, what i did was to put a black oval over them to blot them out. im hoping that dosent make the program cut all those little elipses? also, the text got all screwey in the changeover, so i redid that. idk how i got the text out in the first place though!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CyberSultan 6 Posted November 3, 2009 I opened up the eps and you did a good job on the vectorizing. There is one part that needs to be fixed before you try cutting. There are some hidden parts behind the text you have that will attempt to cut out as well (looks like some text that got vectorized). Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
deth502 39 Posted November 3, 2009 hmmm, im sure that would be the "white boxes" i made to "erase" the old text. i watched the tutorial, therr was something about selecting and choosing the "difference" option, but that part was all over my head. i think i just have to play with it some more. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CyberSultan 6 Posted November 3, 2009 Yeah, those vector parts that are hidden will still cut on the cutter. To get rid of the old text, you can bring it back into Inkscape and with the node selector...just select those areas you want to remove and delete them. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
deth502 39 Posted November 4, 2009 OK, i couldnt open the image again in inkscape (the final eps i posted), i just kept getting errors when i tried, but it did still open in photoshop, so i opened there and saved it as a jpeg, then imported that back into inkscape and retraced the image...... sounds complicated, but really it was a 30 second job. when i did, my "white boxes" were gone, but the letters traced badly again, so i did as suggested and just deleted the node points, and it was simple :thumbsup: teh i redid the text again, and i think i got a good one. the snake did move the edges a bit again when i retraced it, but i still think it turned out ok. GADSDEN STICKER.eps GADSDEN STICKER.eps Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest sciondrgn Posted November 4, 2009 Inkscape can only save as EPS and cannot open EPS files.. Normally what I do is save as Both EPS and SVG which is inkscapes format just in case but I generally just open it in Flexi to make my changes but if you save as an SVG file you can open it back up in Inkscape if you need to Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
deth502 39 Posted November 4, 2009 Inkscape can only save as EPS and cannot open EPS files.. Normally what I do is save as Both EPS and SVG which is inkscapes format just in case but I generally just open it in Flexi to make my changes but if you save as an SVG file you can open it back up in Inkscape if you need to thanks, i was doing some other stuff trying it out last night and i noticed this as a reoccurring problem, i was actaully going to start a thread asking about it now, until i saw this. as long as i know its normal. actually, i have been saving them as both as soon as i realized this last night. i thought i was doing something wrong when i kept getting error messages when i tried to open them. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
YadirellT 0 Posted November 4, 2009 Great job Deth. What is the original resolution of the JPG that you're working with? I bet you can get an even better contour with a higher res image. Well done! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
deth502 39 Posted November 5, 2009 thanks! yeah, i had that feeling. i used the same one i posted, it looks like it says its 300x 250, and it did look pretty pixelated when i got it to full screen size. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
YadirellT 0 Posted November 5, 2009 If you were using that low res of an image, then a higher res image would certainly get better results. This is a great start though, I recommend at least 800 pixels on the short side to grab some nice patterns. Keep up the good work, you'll have an easier time from here on out, me thinks. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mikerob2334 2 Posted November 5, 2009 deth502, i know you're practicing with inkscape but fiqured i'd post this. i did it a while back to go on a yellow tag gadsden.EPS gadsden.EPS Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
deth502 39 Posted November 5, 2009 nice, thanks!! i saved that one for later, i actually planned on using that one to try my first cut. i like it better with the grass field in it, but i still think im going to try mine first as i dont want to get too complicated for my first cut. amof, maybe i shouldnt even do my simpler gadsden first, might try to find a simple outline. but for now, i just put my stand together and im really anxious, but i gotta post a question here first! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
