Participating Frequently

Answered

Exporting with alpha channel - Help!

Forum|Forum|5 years ago
April 27, 2020
6 replies
10430 views

Hey! I hope one of you can help me with this. I´m a total Illustrator beginner and I´m facing a problem the Internet just couldn´t help me with.

I got a vector graphic that I need to convert to be used in Photoshop.

It looks like this :

I need to find a way to either create an Alpha Channel or to export this file with it´s current opacity.

All I manage to do right now is export it with total transparency which looks like this :

Can someone give me a beginner friendly way to do that? You´d make my day ❤️

Thank you very much in advance!

Correct answer Anna Lander

Yes, I see.

Well, the problem is that your objects are not really transparent. All transparency is made by blending modes, It's OK when you have something below your object to create blend (you see, if there is no content below, there is no blending)

SO, when you have a fake transparency grid under the water splashes, it becomes a base for blending:

but if we hide the fake grid and look at the image on the real grid, we see another image:

All transparency has gone: there is no object to blend with it.

And the same thing takes place when you export or copy your art outside Illustrator.

So, if you don't want to change the appearance of all the splashes, the best way is to follow Ton's adbice and use the AI art as a main and add the photoshop content there.

Oscar Curiel

Participant

I have the same situation but worst, any solution so far?

Anubhav M

Community Manager

Hello @Oscar Curiel,

Sorry to hear about your experience. Would you mind sharing more details about your exact workflow, the OS/Illustrator version, and public links to a sample AI file after uploading it to Dropbox/Google Drive/etc., so we can better assist you?

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Thanks,

Anubhav

Anna Lander

Inspiring

If your AI is 2020 version, you can use the Free Gradient instead Gradient Mesh (the example below is not trying to re-create exactly an original appearance but just a sample).

Left is original, right is re-created with Free gradients/

On a fake grid:

on a real transparency:

Ton Frederiks

Community Expert

Ton Frederiks

Community Expert

It is probably easier to work the other way around and bring the Photoshop content into Illustrator below the water drops and above the fake transparency grid.

KaylePSAuthor

Participating Frequently

Can´t do that sadly 😐 The final content is not used as an image but as part of a 3D model texture.

Anna Lander

Inspiring

What about adding as a bg layer the "diffuse" color for a texture or the texturised image if you plan create something more complex? And then export to any texture-compatible format (psd, png, jpg etc.)?

Otherwice you will need to change all fills to transparent-based form. It's not catastrofically difficult, but takes quite long time.

Anna Lander

Inspiring

could you please share a file (no need all one, you can put the part into a new file to show its structure)

I've tried to repeat the issue, and the easiest way (to open the file directly in PS) worked fine.

in AI:

in PS:

so it's difficult to say anything without seeing the working file.

KaylePSAuthor

Participating Frequently

Hey! I´ve send you a message with the link. Thank you for having a look!

I can open the file in photoshop directly, but the checkered background that is supposed to be transparent ends up being baked into the texture without a way to seperate the layers.

I can export it from Illustrator without the background layer but then it ends up being Picture 2.

Anna LanderCorrect answer

Inspiring

Yes, I see.

Well, the problem is that your objects are not really transparent. All transparency is made by blending modes, It's OK when you have something below your object to create blend (you see, if there is no content below, there is no blending)

SO, when you have a fake transparency grid under the water splashes, it becomes a base for blending:

but if we hide the fake grid and look at the image on the real grid, we see another image:

All transparency has gone: there is no object to blend with it.

And the same thing takes place when you export or copy your art outside Illustrator.

So, if you don't want to change the appearance of all the splashes, the best way is to follow Ton's adbice and use the AI art as a main and add the photoshop content there.

Ton Frederiks

Community Expert

Copy in Illustrator.

Create a New File in Photoshop.

Paste?

KaylePSAuthor

Participating Frequently

That would have been great, but no. It looses it´s opacity as in picture two.

T

Test Screen Name

Legend

Why can't you just open it directly in Photoshop? If the opacity is messed up you reapply transparency to its layer.

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