Using Photoshop to design a scroll saw pattern is the way to go if you are looking to market your scroll saw patterns, want to print them easily, or simply prefer a digital copy as a backup. The instructions below use Photoshop 7.0, but many of these tools are available in other versions of Photoshop and other image software.
However, there is no one way to make a scroll saw pattern. These steps are all common methods, but you may need to toggle between steps, go back and redo steps, try again, etc. Scroll saw pattern design requires skill, but some photos require some trial and error as well
How To Make A Scroll Saw Pattern With Photoshop
You will need to start with a photo. Scan in hard copy photos using at least 300 dpi. Dpi means “dots per inch” and is a setting located on most scanners. If it is not on your scanner, you can likely adjust this in your image software later. Using 300 dpi will ensure that when your pattern is printed out, the quality is very high. If your image is already digital, also adjust the dpi to 300.
Once your image is digitized, open it in Photoshop. Convert your photo to black and white by going to Image, Mode, Grayscale. Having your image in black and white immediately allows you to start looking at your contrasts and black and white areas, which ultimately will turn into white for where wood will be and black where you (or a scroll saw cutter) will cut.
There are a number of ways to start, largely depending on preference. What you will need to do is get rid of all the gray in your photo and ultimately have only black and white.
Tools In Photoshop
Image, Adjustments, Brightness/Contrast—this is the most straight-forward way to get strong contrast into your photo. Experiment with adding more contrast, and more or less brightness and watch as the white spaces get more intense. Also watch for your image to make sense still. This method, as with all, doesn’t always get the right look.
Image, Adjustments, Threshold—this tool doesn’t work with all images, but with some, can yield almost immediate results.
Filter, Sketch, Photocopy—another favorite, but will leave some white spaces inside of your black areas so may require more manual clean up later.
It’s possible to do an entire scroll saw pattern only with the Brightness/Contrast adjustments. Sometimes, you will need to adjust different portions of the image separately, which you can do by selecting only that part of the image, placing it into its own layer, and adjusting it separately. The polygonal lasso tool can select any shape you want and does not relegate you to circles or rectangles.
A scroll saw pattern will not fully emerge using the tricks above. These are merely to get the basic pattern outlined, but most of the work on a pattern is done manually.
Test For Floating White Areas in Photoshop
To test that all your white pieces are not left dangling, choose a colored paint color, select the paint bucket, and click into a white area around the edges. If you’ve done your work correctly, all white areas should turn that color. If you have any white left, you must connect it to another white area or color it black.
Experimenting With Photoshop
Experimenting with different tools, filters, and adjustments, you can find all kinds of additional ways to clean up and perfect your scroll saw making abilities. Every image is different so different images will sometimes get great results using something that didn’t work at all on another image. These instructions may or may not lead you to produce what you consider to be an amazing pattern, but they should give you a start on what it takes to produce a finished scroll saw pattern.
Don’t be afraid to try something new. You can always undo your latest step using Control + Z (or Undo on the Edit menu). Or you can undo several previous steps using your History panel. If you do not have this up, locate History under the Window menu.
Kristin Kendle - Kristin Kendle is both an editor and a writer. She currently works as an editor, and writes for Live Your Life e-zine, Demand Studios, and ...
