I have been given a logo with shading or color shading. In order to get the correct engraving, I need to be able to distinguish different shade. If I bring the file in as colored vector, the lines are colored but there is no shading. If I bring in a shaded logo, the vector shows but no shading. To work around I have put it into paint and saved as an image, which results in having a background. So, how do I remove the background?
Better yet, how to bring in colors as shaded?
Or Vectors with multiple shades included?
I am pretty new, maybe I just missed a setting.
If you make it an image with a transparent background, and save as a PNG, LightBurn will preserve the transparency (no background).
Can you show the logo, or an example? You could select different areas (or colors) of the logo and use different interval, speed, and/or power settings for different areas to change the shading. If the logo is already shaded and you can easily export it as a high-res image, it’s likely easier to go that route, then just put a vector outline around it if you need to cut it out.
So, here area 2 examples. One is the image from Paint, the other is the color logo which comes in as color vectors.
How do I make a transparent background to begin with though? There was a link to another paint program from an earlier post a year ago, but the site was gone.
Paint.net will let you do it, but can I ask why you need the transparency? With the white background, LightBurn won’t engrave those areas - dithered it looks like this:
You can use the image controls to adjust the contrast, brightness, gamma, etc if you need to, but as long as the pure white background stays, you won’t be engraving in those areas.
If you open in GIMP you can use the Hue/Saturation tool to desaturate the colors and then adjust the lightness of each of those individual colors. Maybe it would grayscale engrave well with a little experimenting. If you really need a transparent background for some reason, then select by color and delete the white and save as a PNG to preserve the transparency.
I had some trouble with the scan when it has the background, although, that could be my lack of experience with the laser and Lightburn. Paint.net has not worked yet for me. Keeps saying that the site is gone.
GIMP looks interesting but, is there no setting in Lightburn for this? I will be bringing in Vector logos all the time. Do you all use external software to deal with it first?
I feel like I should be charging an INKscape tax for the difficulties it causes from newbs using poor masking techniques and handing me files I need to clean up. I would love it if Lightburn was my all-in go to software to deal.
We often have to spend a lot of time working with artwork that have logos that are complex or color dependent. Often we will ask our clients for a black and white logo, and most of them have a version they use in that situation that are comfortable with that doesn’t have the shading issues. Otherwise we charge for our time when it comes to artwork/laser/dialing in adjustments. It’s common in other industries dealing with graphics and we are no different. Don’t be afraid to charge for your ability or your incurred costs.
