Hello!

I want to pep up my vector sketches for a non-technical/scientific audience. For most of my presentation I used the pen tool (splotchy) with a graphics tablet, but with the pen-tool producing a complicated shape rather than a decorated curve doing major adjustments basically comes down to redrawing the image.

So I wanted to start using filters -- but there are so many! Selecting one after the other from the drop-down menu and pressing Ctrl-Z when it doesn't fit is somewhat tendious.

Is there a better alternative to try out filters rapidly?

Welcome to INkscapeForum!

If you apply filters one after the other, you're not seeing the true effect that the filter has on the object, from the 2nd one on. If you apply a filter to an object, then you apply another filter, it's being applied to the result of the first filter, not to the original object. So unless you know what you're doing, it's probably not a good idea to apply them one on top of the last. When I experiment with filters, I always use Undo, in between.

So that's probably not very good news for you, because it makes your process longer. But on the other hand, you weren't seeing the real effect of the filter, when you were putting them on top of each other. But the fastest way I know is apply filter, undo, apply another, undo....etc.

Somewhere I've see a chart someone made, of each filter applied to the same object. Actually it was more like a poster. Let me see if I can find that, and I"ll post a link for you. Although, unless your object is similar to the one used on the chart, it probably won't help. Filters can look radically different on different objects. But I"ll try to find it. I think I saved it. BRB

Edit
Rats, I didn't save it. But it was posted in the forum. I don't think the whole poster was posted, but there's a link to it. All I could suggest is to search the forum. Sorry

Hi.

Some links:
http://c-quel.deviantart.com/art/Inkscape-0-47-Filter-Guide-143226196
http://littlewebhut.com/inkscape/graphics_filter_guide/
http://imppao.deviantart.com/gallery/27848046

RGDS
Ragnar

HA! The first one is exactly what I was thinking of

brynn wrote:If you apply filters one after the other, you're not seeing the true effect that the filter has on the object, from the 2nd one on.

the original post actually said:

Inkly wrote:... pressing Ctrl-Z when it doesn't fit is somewhat tedious ...

So I would think that they are removing the effect of each filter before trying out the next one.

Ragnar did not include the manual in his reply so I thought I would mention it. The link is the introduction and thereafter every group of filters is given a page with examples of every filter in the group.
You will see mention of an SVG sample file that is included with your Inkscape installation. You can test the computing power of your computer with this file!

Thanks for the links -- just what I needed

Inkly wrote:Hello!

I want to pep up my vector sketches for a non-technical/scientific audience. For most of my presentation I used the pen tool (splotchy) with a graphics tablet, but with the pen-tool producing a complicated shape rather than a decorated curve doing major adjustments basically comes down to redrawing the image.

So I wanted to start using filters -- but there are so many! Selecting one after the other from the drop-down menu and pressing Ctrl-Z when it doesn't fit is somewhat tendious.

Is there a better alternative to try out filters rapidly?

Sounds to me that you want only to simplify the complicated shapes. There is a simplify option with pressing Ctrl+L when the object is selected.
With filters you can slow your performance down, because they work raster-based.

I was sent this link today by the French translator of The Greys: http://imppao.wordpress.com/2010/12/13/ ... -inkscape/

It appears to be by the same person as the third link posted by ragstian. Download the SVG file and watch the video. My French is pretty poor, but here's the gist of it, as far as I can tell:

1) The SVG file contains a master image in a group and clones of that group.
2) The clones are arranged on layers corresponding to the Filters menu in Inkscape, with each clone having a separate filter applied.
3) To try out the filters on a different image you only have to replace the contents of the master group. In the video he uses Edit > Paste Size to get the replacement image to the same width as the original, and Edit > Make a Bitmap Copy to "simplify" the new image down to a single bitmap.


The only "problem" with this is that the filter names in the file are the French versions, but I'm sure most people can work out the corresponding English name fr a given filter, or perhaps someone would like to create an equivalent English version of this whole file.

.............

Hi.

The only "problem" with this is that the filter names in the file are the French versions,
but I'm sure most people can work out the corresponding English name fr a given filter,
or perhaps someone would like to create an equivalent English version of this whole file.

Had a go at it. Please report errors - (this is ver 0.1 !! )
To use - enable the layers and hide / display layers to see the different filter effects.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/yrgparpkpfkzt6s/Filters_English.svg

RGDS
Ragnar

Hi.

Pilosopong Tasyo wrote;

Hi ragstian, just a suggestion.
You might want to include the unfiltered version (say at the beginning) along with the others
so users can see the difference before and after applying the filter.

Good idea - I have just edited a 'ready-made' file. The original unfiltered object can be seen in the 'original' layer above the page. (zoom out).

RGDS
Ragnar

druban wrote:

brynn wrote:If you apply filters one after the other, you're not seeing the true effect that the filter has on the object, from the 2nd one on.

the original post actually said:

Inkly wrote:... pressing Ctrl-Z when it doesn't fit is somewhat tedious ...

So I would think that they are removing the effect of each filter before trying out the next one.

Oops, my bad For some reason, when they said "...pressing Ctrl-Z when it doesn't fit..." I was thinking they were invoking the Zoom tool to make it fit the screen But anyway, I apologize. And thanks for catching that druban