Decals

[phantombullet]

I'm wanting to make my own decals, is there a program out there that I can get to do this with?

I have Windows 10 and for some reason, I haven't figured out to make the pics smaller in order to make them the size I need!

[vince14]

You need to use a graphics package, such as Photoshop.

[spejic]

You actually want your bitmap drawings to be big to have as much detail as possible. You can then use another program that does a good job of printing (like Irfanview) to actually print it at an accurate size. Base your drawings on a set size - I usually do 600 pixels per inch, so whatever you want 1 inch high would be 600 pixels high and so on. Save that drawing, load it in Irfanview, go to the Image -> Information menu, and in the Resolution area type in 600 x 600. Press "Change", then "OK", then save the file. Then when you print it in Irfanview, select "Original size (from image DPI)" and it will be printed at exactly the right size. You will want to chose a high quality print on glossy paper in your printer options. Always test on regular paper first.

The paint program for Windows 10 isn't really optimized for bitmap creation. I don't know if you can get older versions of Paint running on Windows 10. Professional decal designers use vector-based drawing programs instead of bitmap-based ones, but you can get great results from bitmap drawings as well.

There are many limitations with printing decals on ink-jet and laser printers. There are lots of threads about that in the forum.

[RiderFan]

Actually, you want to avoid Raster format (bmp, jpg, png, etc) graphics for decals if you can. You want to use Vector artwork. Get yourself Illustrator or if you don't have the money for that, you can use Inkscape (https://inkscape.org/en/), it's free and has enough tools to create good decal artwork.

Edited August 28, 2015 by RiderFan

[Rob de Bie]

Actually, you want to avoid Raster format (bmp, jpg, png, etc) graphics for decals if you can. You want to use Vector artwork. Get yourself Illustrator or if you don't have the money for that, you can use Inkscape (https://inkscape.org/en/), it's free and has enough tools to create good decal artwork.

I totally agree, forget about bitmap graphics, use vector graphics. For some tips on designing decals, see my Design your own Alps / OKI custom decals webpage. Alps printers are out of production, but can still be bought on Ebay.

Rob

[phantombullet]

Thxs guys!

[spejic]

Actually, you want to avoid Raster format (bmp, jpg, png, etc) graphics for decals if you can. You want to use Vector artwork. Get yourself Illustrator or if you don't have the money for that, you can use Inkscape (https://inkscape.org/en/), it's free and has enough tools to create good decal artwork.

I strongly disagree with that. A properly done bitmap drawing will produce exactly the same quality final product as a vector drawing, and there are many advantages. Microsoft Paint is free, the learning curve is very low, and complicated designs (like unit emblems) can be done faster and with even better results.

[RiderFan]

I strongly disagree with that. A properly done bitmap drawing will produce exactly the same quality final product as a vector drawing, and there are many advantages. Microsoft Paint is free, the learning curve is very low, and complicated designs (like unit emblems) can be done faster and with even better results.

No. Never. A Bitmap will never produce the same quality as a vector image. Why? Because a bitmap is drawn with blocks that can not be scaled. A vector is drawn mathematically with lines that scale from zero to infinity with no loss of definition. Microsoft paint has no concept of layers or objects. You can not effectually create or edit images even remotely as well in MS Paint as you can with a vector art package. It's learning curve is very low because it has no functionality. And faster? Not a chance. It's infinitely easier to create artwork in vector software packages than it is with MS Paint. And what do you do in MS Paint if you need to edit the artwork after you've saved it? Well, erase what you've drawn and start again. With vector art, you can just move your lines, add/edit nodes, or change layers, or use any one of a hundred other ways to edit the image. Everything is an object, so just adjust your objects. No such thing in MS Paint (Photoshop has layers that can be used to fudge objects, but it's not like Illustrator).

I just read your explanation of how to create decals in raster format, and you have a bunch of extra steps in there that are not required if you're using a vector software system.

Never build decal artwork with a raster image package.

As far as cost, Inkscape is free.

This is what happens when you try to scale a raster graphic vs a vector graphic.

Edited August 28, 2015 by RiderFan

[habu2]

Ten out of ten decal producers agree, vector is the ONLY way to go.

[phantombullet]

So, where can you get Vector?

[dnl42]

Inkscape is a Very Good vector program. Better still, it's open source and just a download away for whatever platform you have.

Oh yeah, and you can also use to cut stencils on a Silhouette Portrait.

Edited August 29, 2015 by dnl42

[spejic]

No. Never. A Bitmap will never produce the same quality as a vector image. Why? Because a bitmap is drawn with blocks that can not be scaled.

But those images can't stay on a computer. You have to print those infinitely scalable images at some point, and the printer is a hard limit on how detailed the final product can be. All I need to do is make a bitmap that matches that limit. If I make a bitmap drawing that uses 600 pixels per printed inch and I print on a 600 dpi printer, printing your vector image on that printer is not going to look the slightest bit better.

And 600dpi is plenty of detail on a home inkjet. At that setting you can't see any staircasing. I've gotten professionally printed decals that look far worse.

[RiderFan]

My home inkjet can print 5760 x 1440 DPI. That's about the minimum you need to produce acceptable decals. The imagesetter I use for screen printing film can print at over 300 LPI (Lines Per Inch - which is about the same as an inkjet with 12,000 DPI). At either of those resolutions, that stepping would be painfully obvious. But even more importantly than that, with a raster graphics package you just simply don't have the tools needed to do a good job. Well, Photoshop has some, but it's a tool designed for editing photos, not a tool designed for creating illustrations. MS Paint has zero of the tools required to effectively create decal artwork.

Here's a test for you using MS Paint; In two steps, draw a circle that will print out at exactly .375 of an inch. I can do that in Inksape and Illustrator in 2 steps (add a circle object, set its dimensions). Here's another test; Create text and have it drawm in a perfect circle. I can do that in 4 steps (add the text, add a circle, select 'add text to path' and select the circle).

You're also missing the point about scaling. Yes, I'm sure you could draw a roundel with minimal stepping at .5" and it would print nicely. But now you need a second roundel on the same sheet that's 1.5" in size. If you simply resize your previously drawn art, you're absolutely going to get noticeable stepping. Either that or you have had to redraw the artwork. With a vector package, simply copy paste the first roundel and give it a new outside dimension. Bam! Zero stepping or anti-aliasing and you've created a second, differently sized, object in about 10 seconds.

Inkscape has its flaws. It's not very efficient with memory and tends to bog down when doing really complicated artwork, but if you're doing decals at home, it's pretty much the defacto choice. You're just not going to get a better tool for the price to do the job. You can learn to do the basics with Inkscape in an evening. Spend a weekend with it, and you're doing some pretty fancy stuff. If you can spend some money, Illustrator is the standard for professional shops.

Edited August 29, 2015 by RiderFan

[phantombullet]

Downloading Inkscape!

[phantombullet]

Riderfan can I copy and paste something into inkscape?

[RiderFan]

Riderfan can I copy and paste something into inkscape?

Yes, inkscape can copy/paste both raster and vector objects. Ctl+c and ctl+v just like any other windows software.

[phantombullet]

Can I take an image and copy & paste it to inkscape is what I meant.

[RiderFan]

Can I take an image and copy & paste it to inkscape is what I meant.

Yes, that's what I meant. Copy and paste inside the software, or between packages. Any supported image format, and I think Inkscape supports about 20 different formats so you should be fine.

Edited August 29, 2015 by RiderFan

[RiderFan]

You might also want to watch some of these

https://inkscape.org/en/learn/videos/

Edited August 29, 2015 by RiderFan

[habu2]

But those images can't stay on a computer. You have to print those infinitely scalable images at some point, and the printer is a hard limit on how detailed the final product can be. All I need to do is make a bitmap that matches that limit. If I make a bitmap drawing that uses 600 pixels per printed inch and I print on a 600 dpi printer, printing your vector image on that printer is not going to look the slightest bit better.

And 600dpi is plenty of detail on a home inkjet. At that setting you can't see any staircasing. I've gotten professionally printed decals that look far worse.

I'm not calling you stupid, but you're just Not Listening. You go ahead and make your raster bitmap decals if that makes you happy - but there's an easier, smarter way. And it's not raster....

[Aaronw]

Another option is to find an older edition of either Adobe Illustrator or Corel Draw. You can pick up an older edition cheap, and for the average casual user it makes no difference. Another option if you have children or are in school you can buy a significantly discounted Student / Teacher edition. My personal experience has been more people use Corel Draw, but Adobe Illustrator is very popular as well.

The big advantage to a vector based program is scaling and the ability to print in layers for more complex printers such as an ALPS or getting something screen printed.

The example has already been given, but imagine you are drawing up a national marking. These typically come in multiple sizes. With a raster based drawing program you will either have to draw the two sizes individually, or accept some loss of quality when you resize your drawing.

When I draw a decal in Corel Draw I typically do it on a 5x5" canvas so I can easily see what I'm doing without using a huge amount of zoom. I then rescale down to 1/4", 1/2" or whatever is appropriate for use as a decal when I am ready to print. This is also handy for a decal you are not sure about. Many military decals have the advantage of have a detailed specification stated in a directive (14" roundel, 8" tall lettering), but when you get into other subjects or something like nose art there is a lot of adjustment until it is just right. If you plan some nose art to fit in a 1x1" area but then after taking all the time to draw it up can you imagine the frustration of doing that in a bitmap and then realizing it is a little too big or too small? How about you do it in 1/72 and then your buddy who builds in 1/48 begs you to do a set for him? In Vector no big deal, just scale it up or down with no loss of quality.

So Specjic is correct, you can do it with a raster based program, but unless you are looking at a one off skill why not learn to use a vector based draw program. There is a learning curve, but it opens up a much greater variety of options.

An additional benefit is vector drawings are used for other things beyond model decals. At work we got new crew shirts done, and because I was able to draw the design up in Corel Draw, we saved about $50 off the initial set up (only had to pay for the screens, no charge for digitizing the artwork).

Edited August 29, 2015 by Aaronw