Trying to do curved line for form header in Photoshop 7

[imperialdata]

Hi all.

I'm making a background image for a form in Visual Basic. Using Photoshop 7 I have a white background 661px wide x 495px high. I want the header to resemble this:

http://www.pctools.com/spyware-doctor/ and click to enlarge the image half way down the page.

How can I achieve this? I have created a blue rectangle at the top. I have also tried using the pen tool and then adjusting the anchor points with the direct selection tool which gives me the left hand curve. Somehow I managed to get the stroke path to work as it did not show up on my work path (greyed out). I then filled the area between curve and rectangle with the paint bucket. There is some pixelation going on under the curve and it looks pretty poor.

How do I resolve this and also get the path to not show up on the screen?

Perhaps someone could walk me through the correct way to attack this please?

Thanks in advance

[CopperDesk]

i'm completely lost...

can you please post the screen capture of both the images please...

are you talking about this ...

[tombothetominator]

I'm confused too. I have to imagine you are talking about the in-program header, because the web header has no curved lines...

IF that is what you are talkinb about, then i would use the pen tool to create your curved line, then (using the pen tool still, on the same path) box in the rest of the top rectangle. Then fill the path (right click on 'work path' in paths palette, and select 'fill path'). Looks like they used a gradient in there...

Hope that helps.

[imperialdata]

Cheers for the quick replies. Yep, the screenshot is exactly right. You see where the blue header of the screenshot drops off in a nice curve? That's what I am aiming for.

The problem was the excessive pixelation on the curve because I was using stroke to get the line. Curve seems good now thanks but finding the edge of the canvas is bugging me.
Perhaps my method is still wrong, I'll try to explain how I'm doing it better. If the rest is OK then it may help someone else....

Start off with blank canvas, white background
New layer
Add a rectangle which gets filled with foreground colour (blue)
****At this point I'm watching the cursor to see when it changes to a crosshair on the canvas to find the edge, there must be a better way than this. How do I do this?****
New layer
Select pen tool, ensure paths are selected on toolbar
Add 2 anchor points
Select Direct selection tool
Move anchors to get desired curve
Add more lines with the pen tool to get an area to fill
Select paths tab from the layers palette and fill path

So can someone explain how best to find the edge of the canvas please?

[CopperDesk]

take this... will it do?

[tombothetominator]

Most tools don't require you to find the edge of the canvas. If you take, for example, the rectangle tool, and click off of the canvas, then drag it across the cavas, then off the canvas again on the other side, the tool will only fill the pixels that are on the cavas. I know you said PS 7.0, which i suppose might work different, but i dont remember it working differently.

This is all assuming that th image is maximized within photoshop, which will show grey around your cavas. Does that make sense?

Also - why are you drawing a rectangle first, instead of just doing the whole thing as a path? That would be easier, in my book.

[Isick]

Just use the Pen tool.

1) select pen tool
2) click on upper right corner of canvas
3) move pen tool to left side of canvas and down about an inch
4) Click and hold at new location while dragging mouse down.
5) when desired angle of curve is found release mouse
6) move mouse off the canvas to the left and click once
7) move mouse up two inches insuring it is to the left and above the canvas and click
8 ) move mouse across the canvas and click on original point.

You have just made a curve.

[imperialdata]

I had not maximised the image in photoshop, that's why.
Strange though, it worked the first time and now creating a new file (maximised) I can't select the pen tool to start on the grey canvas outside the main image. It changes to a pen shaped cursor within the image boundaries though, just outside it's a normal white pointer.

@CopperDesk - It's the knowledge how to do it that I need, not the actual image. Thanks for your time though

[tombothetominator]

Hmmm.. that might be a difference between 7.0 and cs2, because my pen tool is a pen tool even when off of the cavas. You can always try clearing your preferences file to see if it is a setting, but i'm not sure.

[Isick]

If the layer is not visible that you are trying to draw on the tool changes to a pencil with an x below it. That is the first thing that came to mind when you said a 'pen'.

Post a screenshot maybe yes?