I need help with extracting a specific part of an animated GIF.

[IamSam]

What I would do is to delete all the frames from the original gif.
Mask all the layers.
Then create the frames from the newly masked layers.

This is what I did here. I did a quick and lousy masking job on the first 14 layers then made them into frames.



Any remnant your seeing is from my poor and speedy masking job!

 

[dv8_fx]

There are 2 issues that need addressing here.

First the animation ....

Sam's fix also works but in truth, there's a glitch I can't explain and I've sometimes encountered with PS when it comes to editing gif animations. And this is one of them. I remember it was addressed before in another forum but I don't know if a fix was ever created.

It had something to do with the original gif file itself. Like I said , I can't explain why it happens but it does. I see you've done this work before with no problems but it had to happen on this one.

This also explains why @Paul's image still has it despite editing it out.

Previewed on CS6 and PS7IR, your psd with it's animation timeline works properly. But when saved reveals your problem.

My fix is kinda work intensive which involves transferring all the layer images into a new, fresh document. Create a new document of same or larger size, link all the layers on the orig and drag/position into new document. Then proceed to rebuild the animation frame by frame.

This was created based on your untouched, edited psd with the masks you've created on a new document. If I were to just delete and redo the animation frames on the original, I'd still end up with the original problem.


The second issue is the white outline..... ... I've checked and experimented with all settings most especially checking preserve transparency but I can't seem to remove it. This, by the way, I sometimes also encounter when editing gif animations.

Still trying to find a solution.......

 

[dv8_fx]

What I would do is to delete all the frames from the original gif.
Mask all the layers.
Then create the frames from the newly masked layers.

This is what I did here. I did a quick and lousy masking job on the first 14 layers then made them into frames.

View attachment 51555

Any remnant your seeing is from my poor and speedy masking job!

@IamSam How does it fare with a blank background? Does it have the white outline? If none, what was the setting you had in Save for Web?


addendum.... This was reported during the time of PS7 and it was suggested in the forum report I mentioned to delete the animation sequence in IR, jump back to PS and re-save a duplicate of the psd file which then should be closed and re-opened to continue work with. IR is now integrated in CS so it should work on the same principle without the jumping around... lol.

I never tried it as I came up with my fix at the time and have stuck to it since. But thinking about it now, it's plausible it may work as you've deleted all data of the previous imbedded animation thus it's like a newly created layer file in pre-animation work state.

 

[dv8_fx]

I think I got it....almost..... but figured in IR.... :banghead: and in no mood to off internet , save Corel work and off Corel, restart CS and all that.... so sorry. But the setting should also appear in your CS Save for Web....



Whatever white artifacts you see must be caused by imperfections on your masking on some (or all) the layers

 

[MrToM]

The original problem here was having all the frames set to 'Do Not Dispose' instead of automatic.

Select all the frames, right click and select 'Automatic' and the problem should be solved.

This is from your 'extractionedited.psd' file with all the frames on 'Automatic'...



Took 2 seconds.

Regards.
MrTom.

 

[dv8_fx]

That was a faster fix......

One learns new things everyday around here allright. Must look for that forum thread if it's still around and give that as a fix.... too late , tho.

Thanks for that tidbit, MrT.

 

[MrToM]

No worries.

This was the give away...



I've never used anything other than 'Automatic' so this little icon stood out.....when on 'Automatic' the icon disappears.

Regards.
MrTom.

 

[dv8_fx]

I saw that but didn't suspect it was the cause. I 'd usually be set to Do not dispose. But then I always start a gif project fresh.

 

[IamSam]

The original problem here was having all the frames set to 'Do Not Dispose' instead of automatic.

Select all the frames, right click and select 'Automatic' and the problem should be solved.

This is from your 'extractionedited.psd' file with all the frames on 'Automatic'...

MrTom............. I remembered this from a previous thread on this subject, I tried that on the original gif.................it did not work for me.

I'm going to try it again.

 

[IamSam]

I tried again and it did not work....................



Any explanation as to why?

 

[MrToM]

Yeah...I found that too.

I think it may be just the way the layers were masked.....with the underlying layers included.

Without the complete original PSD with all its layers and mask intact its difficult to say but as the 'extractededited.psd' file worked just fine I see no reason why the full length version shouldn't also.

As we all know its all to easy to forget something and just completely screw things up when dealing with animated gifs so the possibility of a 'masking' error is highly likely.

In short working on the 'erroneous' gif isn't going to do anything....the damage has already been done.
Changing the original PSD file is the only thing you can edit and make a difference.

You could of course re-mask the layers in the 'gif' but editing the original PSD would be much easier....the masks are already there.

Thats the only thing I can think of.....the layers are just masked that way.

Regards.
MrTom.

 

[dv8_fx]

This is one reason why I have PS7 alongside CS in my computer. I find Image Ready tamer to handle.

I tried MrTom's remedy in PS IR 7 awhile back when he posted it and worked. But trying an hour ago in CS gave me the result Sam got.

The masks shouldn't have any effect with the entire ani. If a layer in the frame is off, it won't show in succeding frames in the sequence. And I find nothing wrong with the masks in each layer - they're correctly positioned. Except that on closer inspection, the masks needed a bit of retouch to eliminate those white artifacts. I guess it's the result of using the quick selection tool rather than the pen tool.


@IamSam..... I've still got work to do with another apps and can't afford to shut it down as it's a big file work.

Can you try what I suggested earlier - deleting the animation timeline, save the file, close then reopen and reconstruct the animation with either Do Not Dispose or Automatic on? Deleting the frame timeline and saving should result in a much smaller psd file size. Let's see what happens.....

Thanks.



edit..... oooops..... Sam was here but now is outta the building..... .

 

[IamSam]

dv8............I'm having massive server issues on my end and I also have to run to work! I will try it later this afternoon! Sorry!

 

[MrToM]

...If a layer in the frame is off, it won't show in succeding frames in the sequence...

Not quite...
If the frame is set to 'Do Not Dispose' it WILL be included regardless of its layer visibility.

...And I find nothing wrong with the masks in each layer - they're correctly positioned...

I agree.....but all the frames have 'Do Not Dispose' set on them.

...Except that on closer inspection, the masks needed a bit of retouch to eliminate those white artifacts. I guess it's the result of using the quick selection tool rather than the pen tool....

Totally agree....but masking isn't why previous frames are being shown. (Yeah, I know....my last post may have condradicted this but its not what I meant...sorry)

The problem lies entirely with the original PSD file....if the OP changes all the frames to 'Automatic' and re-saves the gif then everything will be fine.

The 'gif' posted by the OP has the error embedded in it....its flattened the layers using each layers unique mask.
Each layer in the 'gif' is now a RESULT of the masks AND the 'Do Not Dispose' setting.....each layer not only contains itself but all those preceding it.

Editing the 'gif' is not an option.....the 'error' is now on each layer.
Editing the original PSD file is the easiest way to correct the problem.

If you want the masking practice then by all means you could open the 'GIF' image and re-mask all the layers AGAIN to remove the unwanted pixels and re-save it again as another GIF......but why bother with all that when you could just re-save the gif from the original PSD file with the correct settings?

If we had the complete original PSD file it could be solved in seconds.....as per my example with the only PSD file the OP has supplied.

Sorry if my previous post was confusing.

Regards.
MrTom.

 

[dv8_fx]

Ahhhhh... OK. That clears it.

I do agree the problem does lie in his full original psd workfile.

Looks like we've done all we could here.

@Stran84 ... we hope this almost entire day's worth of experimenting, trouble shooting and major monitor head-banging by some us taking part here while you were away solves your problem.

 

[dv8_fx]

Stran84 ..... We'd appreciate it if you could post the result of whatever you produce so we'll know all our efforts to help you out wasn't in vain....

Or I'll ask Santa not to go down your chimney.... :lol:....

 

[Stran84]

Everyone,
Thank you for all your effort and suggestions. For the sake of completion I will attach the original psd file. I tried setting the frame settings from "Do not Dispose" to "Automatic" and it fixed the error just like MrTom said. It seems like I still have a lot to learn, haha. As for the white spacing, I have a theory for that. I'm still new to using the Quick Selection tool, and as such the only parameter I really understand about it is "Size". When I worked on previous GIFs I had the issue of the QS tool being too "sensitive" and selecting much more than I wanted it to. So I experimented with some of the parameters hoping one of them to control the "sensitivity" or "threshold" of selected pixels. I had no success there, but as this screenshot shows



I have "Spacing" set rather high. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe the white space is a result of "Spacing" being set really high? When I was extracting this GIF (before I took the screenshot) the value was around 300%. If so, I can easily redo the extraction frame by frame with an ideal spacing value.


And this is what I have


All that remains is me editing the white space.

 

[dv8_fx]

Personally, I don't use the Quick Selection tool that much as compared to using the PEN TOOL or BRUSH in MASK MODE.

Everyone here will tell and advise that the pen tool is the way to go. With the pen tool, you get a more accurate selection. Yes, it looks like there's more work involved but if you're after accuracy and clean cut quality, nothing beats the pen tool. And it won't be that bad if you're used to using it in creating selections.

I'm sure there's others here who can give a more insight regarding the Quick Selection Tool settings....

 

[MrToM]

Good to hear it worked ok.

As to this 'white space'.....are you talking about the white fringe around the image?

All I'll say on that is that the 'gif' format only supports transparency as on / off.
Any transparency from 1% to 99% is totally ignored and replaced with the 'matte' colour.....the default for this is......yep, white.

In order to remove this 'white' you need to remove any pixels with a transparency between 1% and 99% inc.

This means you'll get a 'hard' edge but that's the nature of the gif format.

You are on your way with what you have so far, but a 'soft' edge to your masks is where the problem lies....make that a 'hard' edge and you'll find the 'white' gone.

In other words, any 'greyscale' in your mask and you'll have problems....it needs to be black or white ONLY.

You should be able to edit your existing masks easily enough with the magic wand....set tolerance to 0, no anti-aliasing, no feathering, and select a pure black pixel....invert the selection and fill with white.

The result wont be very pleasing to the eye but that's the limitation of the gif format.

Regards.
MrTom.

 

[dv8_fx]

You can also retouch or refine the individual layer masks by creating a selection with the pentool around not so good sections in the layer image to tighten the selection of a detail then painting black or white on the mask itself ( black to hide, white to reveal).