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Ultra Fractal Tutorial -- Matting and Framing
by Robert "Red" Williams
In her tutorial on the use of transformations that permit creating areas of transparency, Janet Parke introduces the idea of a "drop shadow" effect and provides the parameters of a layer to add that effect to any desired fractal. A little experimentation with that layer in an attempt to understand how it worked revealed that a surprising, even astonishing, range of effects could be achieved with very little effort. Simply put, you can create the illusion of elaborate matting and framing with so little effort that it borders on the unbelievable. Some of these effects would be difficult, if not impossible, to duplicate by conventional means.
The basic effect relies on the way traps affect fractal images. Fortunately for us, it isn't necessary to understand all the whys and wherefores - only that it is possible to exert a fair degree of control over the final results.
The easiest way to follow along with this discussion would probably be to open a fractal. A fractal with image elements all the way to the edges is best as some effects depend on partial transparency and you won't see them if there is nothing underneath but black. To begin with, set the image width to 500 and the height to 400. This is a convenient size and will permit you to arrange the Properties boxes and Gradient for full visibility. Also, click on the Layers tab and click on the little magnifying glass icon to "grey it out". This will permit you to make changes to another layer without affecting the primary image layer.
This is the drop shadow layer provided in the original tutorial. Select and Copy (Ctrl-C) these parameters to the Clipboard.
Shadow {
layer:
caption="Drop Shadow" visible=yes alpha=no
mapping:
center=-0.0584953912343803845/0.0584120661022083095
magn=1.74999999999999977 angle=0
formula:
filename="Standard.ufm" entry="Mandelbrot" maxiter=1
percheck=normal
p_start=0/0 p_power=2/0 p_bailout=1E20
inside:
filename="dmj.ucl" entry="dmj-Trap" transfer=log repeat=yes
p_trapshape="astroid" p_trapcolor="distance" p_traptype="first"
p_traporder=100 p_trapfreq=1 p_trapcenter=0/0 p_trapdrift=0/0
p_traporbit=0/0 p_movetrap=no p_aspect=1 p_threshold=0.1
p_diameter=1
p_angle=0 p_anglestep=0 p_skew=0 p_skewstep=0 p_trapstart=0
p_trapiter=10000 p_trapskip=0 p_gauss=0 p_gaussr=0 p_gausss=0
p_gausscenter=0/0 p_radialmode="kaleidoscope"
outside:
filename="dmj.ucl" entry="dmj-Trap" transfer=arctan repeat=yes
p_trapshape="astroid" p_trapcolor="distance" p_traptype="closest"
p_traporder=1000 p_trapfreq=1 p_trapcenter=0/0 p_trapdrift=0/0
p_traporbit=0/0 p_movetrap=no p_aspect=1 p_threshold=0.25
p_diameter=1
p_angle=0 p_anglestep=0 p_skew=0 p_skewstep=0 p_trapstart=0
p_trapiter=10000 p_trapskip=0 p_gauss=0 p_gaussr=0 p_gausss=0
p_gausscenter=0/0 p_radialmode="kaleidoscope"
gradient:
smooth=yes numnodes=4 index=0 color=8882055 index=65
color=14474460
index=293 color=16777215 index=333 color=16777215
}
Then click on the Layers Tab on the Properties box and Paste the layer to your fractal by clicking on the Paste icon on the Layers tab (don't use Edit/Paste or Ctrl-V). You should see a fuzzy-edged grey rectangle against a white background. Before leaving the Layers tab, move the Opacity slider to the 100% position. Center the rectangle by clicking on the Location tab and entering 0 (zero) in both the Center (Re) and Center(Im) boxes. While you're at it, enter 1.6 in the magnification box. The grey area should now be centered with fairly wide margins at the sides and very narrow ones at top and bottom.
The next step is to adjust the height so that the top and bottom margins are about the same as the side margins. This is a little tricky to visualize because it works sort of backwards. (At least that's how it seems to me.) Your image window is 5/4 = 1.25 times as wide as it is high. Click on the Inside tab, click on the little arrow beside the Parameter box and select Aspect Ratio. Enter a value of 1.25 and the grey square will shrink vertically, but the top and bottom margins will still be slightly too narrow. Change the aspect ratio and observe the result. With a little experimentation, you will find that a value of 1.33 provides fairly uniform margins all around. Now, if you adjust the Magnification on the Location tab, both height and width will change but the ratio will need to be adjusted. (This would not be so for a square image.) Just remember that an increase in the aspect ratio will cause a decrease in height and vice versa.
Now, click on the Gradient icon on the toolbar. Move the slider bar and note how the appearance of the image changes. Adjust it so that it looks like a piece of mat board with an opening cut through it. Click on the Mapping tab, load the Scissors transform from the lp folder, select the rectangle shape, center it and adjust the height and width until it matches the dimensions of the opening in your "mat board". Finally, click on the little Mandelbrot icon and set the Opacity to 0 (zero). If your image layer doesn't show through, click its visibility icon until it does. Now, we're ready to dress it up!
Actually, it already looks pretty neat and just a little twiddling with the gradient will improve it even more. Adjust the gradient until the position which is now some shade of grey is some color which harmonizes with your image. Adjust the horizontal slider until there is a sharp line of color around the inside edge of the cutout. With a little care, you can obtain a thin white line inside the colored line. Then, note the Position setting and move the slider until the "mat board" takes on color. Note the physical position of the vertical color band on the gradient and move the slider back to its original position. At the position just identified, adjust the little square doodads to obtain a nice contrasting color. Voila! You have a nice, colored mat surrounding your pretty art work and if you had to do it again it wouldn't take you as long as it takes to read these words. If you move the horizontal slider from one extreme to the other, you'll find that you get several interesting effects. When I got this far in my first experiments, I thought I had received my money's worth, but hang on to your hats - as Jimmy Durante used to say, "You ain't seen nothin' yet!"
Click on the Inside tab. In the Parameters box, select Trap Order and change the value to 1000. This will make the corners of your cut-out more square and make the inner band of color wider. As before, by moving the slider, you can obtain a range of effects. Next try all the Transfer Function settings - I particularly like the effect of the CubeRoot setting. Similarly, experiment with Trap Coloring and Trap Mode settings. Click on Trap Shape and select Box. Go to the Mapping tab and click the little icon to turn the Scissors transform off. You should see what appears to be a uniformly colored rectangle with a decorative frame lying on it. The exact appearance depends on the position of the large slider, the number and placement of color bands in your gradient and the value in the Color Density box, among other things. Add two or three closely spaced color bands and move the slider back and forth to get a feel for what it does. Then, readjust the size of the transparent area so that it doesn't obscure any of the "frame". Click the transparency back on, and you will see your image as if it were in an expensive frame.
The following layer has several narrow color bands and is useful for examining the variations. Paste it into your fractal and experiment. If you go down some blind alley and can't find your way back, delete it and start over. If you find something you like, leave it the way it is, Paste another copy of the layer and continue experimenting.
DropShadow2 {
layer:
mapalpha=0 caption="Drop Shadow" opacity=100 visible=yes alpha=yes
mergemode=normal
mapping:
center=0/0 magn=1.6 angle=0 numtransforms=1
transform:
filename="lp.uxf" entry="scissors" p_shape="rectangle" p_center=0/0
p_width=1.275 p_height=0.955 p_tilt=0 p_power=0.666666666666
formula:
filename="Standard.ufm" entry="Mandelbrot" maxiter=1 percheck=normal
p_start=0/0 p_power=2/0 p_bailout=1E20
inside:
filename="dmj.ucl" entry="dmj-Trap" transfer=log repeat=no
p_trapshape="box" p_trapcolor="distance" p_traptype="first"
p_traporder=75 p_trapfreq=1 p_trapcenter=0/0 p_trapdrift=0/0
p_traporbit=0/0 p_movetrap=no p_aspect=1.33 p_threshold=0.1 p_diameter=1
p_angle=0 p_anglestep=0 p_skew=0 p_skewstep=0 p_trapstart=0
p_trapiter=10000 p_trapskip=0 p_gauss=0 p_gaussr=0 p_gausss=0
p_gausscenter=0/0 p_radialmode="kaleidoscope"
outside:
filename="dmj.ucl" entry="dmj-Trap" transfer=arctan repeat=yes
p_trapshape="astroid" p_trapcolor="distance" p_traptype="closest"
p_traporder=1000 p_trapfreq=1 p_trapcenter=0/0 p_trapdrift=0/0
p_traporbit=0/0 p_movetrap=no p_aspect=1 p_threshold=0.25 p_diameter=1
p_angle=0 p_anglestep=0 p_skew=0 p_skewstep=0 p_trapstart=0
p_trapiter=10000 p_trapskip=0 p_gauss=0 p_gaussr=0 p_gausss=0
p_gausscenter=0/0 p_radialmode="kaleidoscope"
gradient:
smooth=yes position=-19 numnodes=7 index=53 color=11206655 index=80
color=9306096 index=104 color=0 index=153 color=14351103 index=176
color=4096 index=258 color=16777215 index=372 color=32
}
From here on, you are on your own. Experiment with multiple layers. Set the merge mode of one layer and observe the effects of changing the merge modes for the other. Adjust the color sliders of each layer. Some combinations of Merge Modes will permit the outer areas of the image to show through, often with muted or otherwise altered coloring. Some mode combinations make parts of the "molding" appear to be cylindrical lenses. The effects are endless and quite difficult to describe. They are, however, quite easy to obtain - what is not easy is deciding which of the countless variations is most attractive.
Here is an image with two layers of "window dressing" and as a "freebie", I've thrown in a layer of extra illumination to add some visual interest to the image. Remember, even the finest artistic efforts can benefit from attractive packaging.
Happy Fractalling!
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