Old thread, but still pressing.
Elodie wrote:
Photoshop is a bitmap software but manages its masks as vectorial elements.
Not true. Photoshop uses 2 types of masks - bitmap and vector. Initially there was only bitmap masks, but since CS1 there's also the vector mask.
The bitmap masks assumes black&white values, and sends them to the alpha channel. In this respect, leaving vector masks aside, photoshop is 100% bitmap.
More over, Photoshop is basically a software for retouching pictures and photographs ("Photo" "Shop"), not for painting neither animating. Even if you can do so, it's not it's primary role. TVPaint is a drawing, painting and animating software. It's not a basically a compositing or retouching software.
I think that when people bring features that exist and work well in Photoshop it's not because they are comparing between the programs. Each program its own virtues. But it is also a good practice to notice what can be learned from the other platform and what can be implemented in this platform to good use.
I'm very much supporting the addition of masks in TVP, and have been requesting it for some long time. I think the way that photoshop works with masks and alpha channels is secondary to none. It allows for so much breathing room. It's practically a non-destructive heaven. In this respect, in TVP there's a need for MORE breathing room. Quite some more. Currently you can use an external layer as your alpha source, but this has big limitations:
1. TVP requires an additional layer as stencil source (whereas in photoshop the mask is embedded - it's part of the layer). This complicates and thickens the project.
2. TVP uses the alpha values of the stencil source, whereas in photoshop the alpha source is decided by black and white values (allows for much more accuracy in your mask, because black and white is easy to paint, compared to painting transparencies.)
3. in TVP you can add stencils of several layers. But Stencils INVERTED do not add up - you're left with the allowance of only a single inverted stencil layer.
4. in Photoshop you can easily make selections from masks, because of the B&W values. In TVP you can't, because it's in alpha values.
There are many more advantages to masks, but there's no need to bring them up here.
And since both programs do their magic in bitmap, I can't see why masks can't be implemented in TVP.
In fact, every decent image manipulation, CG graphics, video editing and compositng software in the market today allows for manipulation of it's alpha channel via a separate Black & White image. there should always be an access to your alpha channel via such image. But TVP is lacking there.
Lastly, both programs do more than what they initially intended for. Photoshop is a pretty good drawing program, and TVP has compositing and retouching capabilities. and more to the point, in my process of drawing, painting and animating in TVP I very much would love to have masks. Often I had to find workarounds, which could have been redundant if masks were in use. TVP brought new ways of animating and drawing. why stop it's prosperity with statements when you can actually improve it further and make it shine by adding masks.
