Bending layers with Warp in Paint by Zaweba
Warp mode in Paint by Zaweba bends a layer with a Bezier grid from 1x1 to 5x5 or custom, plus presets such as Arc, Flag, Fisheye and Twist.
Some shapes cannot be made by stretching a box. A label needs to curve round a bottle, a flag should ripple, a logo wants a gentle arch. In Paint by Zaweba these jobs belong to Warp, a mode of the Transform tool that lets you bend a layer by pulling on a grid.
The warp grid
In Warp mode a Bezier grid is laid over the layer. You can choose a 1x1 grid, 3x3, 4x4, 5x5 or a custom size.
A 1x1 grid has just the four corners with their handles. It gives smooth, gentle bends and is the best place to start. Larger grids give you more points to pull, which means more local control, for example pushing in one part of a label while leaving the rest flat. More points also mean more ways to make a lumpy result, so use the smallest grid that does the job.
Three ways to pull
You can drag an anchor point, which moves that point and bends the surface round it. You can drag a handle, which changes the direction of the curve leaving the point, much like the handles on a curve in a drawing program. Or you can drag inside a cell, which pushes that part of the layer and bends the surrounding grid with it.
Dragging inside a cell is the most intuitive way to start: grab the middle of the layer and pull it up, and it bows upwards.
The presets
For common shapes, presets save time: Arc, Arch, Bulge, Shell, Flag, Wave, Fish, Rise, Fisheye, Inflate, Squeeze and Twist. Each has a bend amount plus horizontal and vertical distortion.
The names give a good idea of each shape: Arc and Arch curve, Bulge and Inflate swell, Flag and Wave ripple, Fisheye bends like a lens, Squeeze pinches and Twist turns. Fish, Shell and Rise have their own characteristic shapes. The quickest way to know them all is to try each on a test layer with some text on it.
The bend amount sets how strong the effect is. Horizontal and vertical distortion add a sense of the shape leaning or receding, which helps a warped label sit convincingly on an object photographed at an angle.
A practical example
To put a flat label onto a photo of a jar, place the label on its own layer above the photo. Scale it roughly to size. Start Warp, choose Arc or Bulge, and adjust the bend until the label's top and bottom edges follow the curve of the jar. Then fine tune the corners by hand on a 1x1 grid. Lower the label's opacity while you work so you can see the jar through it, and raise it again when you are done.
Where Warp fits
Warp is for smooth, overall bends. Free Transform's distort and perspective are for flat planes at an angle. Pin Warp is for bending a cut-out object, like an arm or a tail, around pins. Fluid Warp is for pushing pixels around with a brush. Pick Warp when the result should look like the layer is printed on a curved surface or flowing cloth.
Common faults
Overdoing the bend, so text becomes hard to read. Using a big grid and leaving small kinks. Warping a pixel layer several times and softening it each time; get the shape in one go if you can. And forgetting to check the result at normal zoom, where small wobbles are less noticeable than you fear or more noticeable than you hoped.
Used with a light hand, Warp in Paint by Zaweba gives flat artwork a believable shape.
