I need a line with a sharp edge

[Lester Toil]

Greetings all. Not sure if this is even do-able but can anyone instruct me on how to make a paint brush stroke that starts with a point and ends with a point? As you can see from my examples below, the "Brush Tip Shapes" feature shows me how to fade one end of a stroke but it doesn't show me how to fade the beginning end. And hell, I don't even want a faded edge. I want a sharp edge--on both sides. Creating grass and dog fur and human hair would be a breeze if I could accomplish this. I mean, a real brush stroke starts off with a point and ends with a point. Why can't Photoshop accomplish this?

By the way, can this be accomplished with my Wacom pen if I set it on "pressure"? I never really got the hang of the pressure setting so I keep it at the default.

Thanks much for any light you can shed.

[Teej]

Les,

Try going into photoshop to window> Brushes> shape dynamics, then set it onto pen pressure.

You can also turn off the opacity dynamics if need be -- under "other dynamics" in the palette.

hope this helps?

[vanderhate]

Hey Les... the cleanest way - though not the most efficient - is to use the pen and "stroke path" with "simulate pressure" selected. Here's what the same stroke looks like done the three most common ways. Obviously, no care was taken in executing these strokes, it's just to give you a quick visual.

Don't know if this helps, but...

[vanderhate]

This might even be easier... create a brush that looks like a blade or blades and set your dynamics (scatter, direction, size, color) till you get where you want.

[Lester Toil]

Van, I have enough grass and fur brushes to sweep your living room floor, but they don't go in every direction that I want them to. Sure I can make a brush at a 90 degree angle, and then 110 degrees, then 125, etc.. but that kills spontaneity, plus grass/fur starts to look repetitive. I'm starting to putz around with pen pressure but even that either starts or ends with a rounded hard tip. I wanna turn my Wacom pen into a #2 Windsor-Newton inking brush!! LOL

But what's the deal with "Direction" Van? Maybe my version of PS (PS 7) doesn't have that brush adjustment feature. Where's that found? That may be the key, sir.

Thanks very much to the both of you for the effort.

[vanderhate]

7 may not have the brush engine currently used in CS (my memory's shot), but here's the CS3 version of Brush Options dialog/palette, which is what you'd look for.

[bangalore_monkey]

this looks to me to be a matter of setting the shape dynamics to be controlled by pen pressure, the rest would be up to your hand.

this is me talking while looking at CS3, so i don't know if 7 has that same option.

here's a screen, given the lines here are a wee bit wobbly, my pc's lagging like a real POS right now, but it's just to give you the idea.