Semi-Automatic Photo Layouts

Zoins

Now that auction sites (and dealers like CRO) have great photos, I've been thinking it would be great if they all matted them like TrueViews.

For a long time, I've been manually matting photos for easier sharing. I do this in Photoshop but it's actually pretty time consuming if you do a lot of them.

So, now I have a little program to create these semi-automatically. Here's one:

Here's a manually created one for comparison.

I'll probably refrain from typing in the description text manually, but I'm considering having it added by the program as well. The image is nice and clean without the added text, but I do like additional reference information.

Now that I have this, I'll probably eventually do it for vertical layouts as well, including my vertical TrueView layouts.

Here's one of my manual vertical TrueViews:

Onastone

Nice program! Great find~

Zoins

This will also make it easier to make the black and carbon fiber background TrueViews I've been manually experimenting with.

And eventually, it may be able to do the @SpaceMonkey background and reflection too.

https://forums.collectors.com/discussion/1016847/my-new-coin-template-feedback-requested

TurtleCat

The easiest way with photoshop is to set up an automation. Have it prompt you to select 2 pics, resize to a set size to ensure reasonably similar sizing, then set up the layers as needed.

Zoins

@TurtleCat said:
The easiest way with photoshop is to set up an automation. Have it prompt you to select 2 pics, resize to a set size to ensure reasonably similar sizing, then set up the layers as needed.

I'm pretty good at Photoshop now. I probably have hundreds of PSD files

This approach is better for me since it will do the following. I never even have to open an image editor. Just use my browser to see the output.

• automatically resize photos
• automatically position photos for each face
• automatically create / position QR code
• automatically add / position logo, e.g. Stack's, PCGS, CRO, etc.

It will also make it easier to make multiple versions of each coin:

• white horizontal
• black horizontal
• white vertical
• black vertical
• white single side
• black single side

TurtleCat

So what are you using now? Something custom? I’ve considered writing an app to do this for me but just haven’t had enough enthusiasm to make it happen.

Zoins

@TurtleCat said:
So what are you using now? Something custom? I’ve considered writing an app to do this for me but just haven’t had enough enthusiasm to make it happen.

Yeah, it's custom. For a long time, I was in your same position. Photoshop is pretty fast, but I've done this manually with Photoshop so many times that I finally decided to automate it. It's pretty awesome now that it's operational. Automatically resizing the images, logos, QR Codes and moving them around has been fun.

Stack's was first, but next up will probably be black background TrueViews and vertical TrueViews.

Zoins

Here's a simple black, along the lines of the new simple white ones PCGS posts.

It's pretty neat to try different colors too. It's worth adding some padding around the QR code here.

Zoins

It's pretty cool that you can just click the QR Code in the iOS browser and go to the link.

BLUEJAYWAY

Initially, I thought this might be another firearm display thread.

ricko

That is a great program @Zoins....Very nice...and automated (I like automated ).... You should market that one. Cheers, RickO

U1chicago

Well done!

Aercus

Very neat! Am I correct in thinking you are cropping the individual photographs manually still and then importing them to the template? Have you ever experimented with automated (programmatic) cropping?

Zoins

@Aercus said:
Very neat! Am I correct in thinking you are cropping the individual photographs manually still and then importing them to the template? Have you ever experimented with automated (programmatic) cropping?

Thanks! I'm not doing any cropping with the program for now, though I did it a lot in Photoshop. The goal of the project is to get rid of manual work

The nice thing about Stack's and CRO is that they are pre-cropped with white backgrounds. Here's a CRO coin that I just did.

PCGS is easier to change backgrounds for because they provide transparent background images.

At some point, I'd enjoy using automated cropping. I haven't found a way to do it yet but it would be nice.

BuffaloIronTail

@ricko said:
That is a great program @Zoins....Very nice...and automated (I like automated ).... You should market that one. Cheers, RickO

I figured you would like anything to do with semi-automatic stuff............................;)

Pete

Zoins

Great to see Great Collections using QR codes in their GreatPhotos

https://www.greatcollections.com/Coin/1495886/