Diagonal symmetry

[Soliloquy]

One of the stumbling blocks I'm running into in finding an artist is not everyone knows how to, or wants to deal with, the diagonal symmetry customary on the court cards.  Are there any Photoshop plugins that will mirror the image on a diagonal axis in real time, or must you mirror and position it manually each time?  What about those of you who work on paper, what's your process for getting the image symmetrical?

[TishToshTesh]

I work in Photoshop, without a plugin.  I start with a line on a separate layer showing where I want the reflection to pivot about, and then work on the portrait layer.  As in, I'll paint for a bit, maybe overlapping that diagonal, then copy the layer and rotate it 180.  (I usually have to do a Select All then rotate, to get it to rotate to the right place.)  I then adjust as necessary on the master portrait layer, then copy and check again.  It's an iterative process, but with practice, it gets easier.

I thought about looking for a script/plugin, but I'm still working in Photoshop Elements 2, so I'm behind the tech curve and didn't think it worth trying to bludgeon when I can just learn to paint it up.

[Lotrek]

I agree with Tish Tosh Tesh. You don't really need a plugin I think.

[Don Boyer]

One of the stumbling blocks I'm running into in finding an artist is not everyone knows how to, or wants to deal with, the diagonal symmetry customary on the court cards.  Are there any Photoshop plugins that will mirror the image on a diagonal axis in real time, or must you mirror and position it manually each time?  What about those of you who work on paper, what's your process for getting the image symmetrical?

I think my question would be: why must it be diagonally symmetrical?  Why not horizontally?  Paint half of the card, copy, rotate 180 degrees.  If you make careful measurements, you can insure that the lines running off the top half are met by lines in the bottom half.

(Remember, this is coming from a complete non-artist!)

I know that in many older European cards that utilized two-headed courts, they literally drew a line through the middle of the card horizontally, allowing them to draw what they wished on the top half and copy that exactly to the bottom half.  All you really need, after all, is symmetry along any line you imagine being drawn through the center of the design.

[The Quadfather]

Isn't it just rotational symmetry? Horizontal or diagonal symmetry would have both heads on each court looking in the same direction.

[TishToshTesh]

There's always this way, too: Make a solid stylistic divider line and just cut the art off.  That Synthesis deck used such a trick:

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1460165270/albino-dragons-synthesis-playing-cards

[Soliloquy]

Thanks Quadfather, I was unaware of the distinction but you're right.  That gave me some new search terms +rep

[Emmanuel]

When I make court cards, I take the duplicate images and play around with how I'll arrange them (before taping them down). Once I'm satisfied with the layout I'll measure and pencil in guidelines to ensure the two halves are in the same position respective to their orientation.

[Don Boyer]

Isn't it just rotational symmetry? Horizontal or diagonal symmetry would have both heads on each court looking in the same direction.

You have a point.

There's always this way, too: Make a solid stylistic divider line and just cut the art off.  That Synthesis deck used such a trick:

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1460165270/albino-dragons-synthesis-playing-cards

That's essentially what I was talking about in the old European decks.  Like the Tarock deck I'm showing in the image below.  Photo from the Wikipedia article "Playing Card".  On that deck, even the spot cards are split in half, with the card's value represented entirely on each half of the card with a dividing line through the middle.

[Soliloquy]

I think my question would be: why must it be diagonally symmetrical?  Why not horizontally?  Paint half of the card, copy, rotate 180 degrees.  If you make careful measurements, you can insure that the lines running off the top half are met by lines in the bottom half.

I'm sure it all comes down to preferences.  Personally I like to see rotational symmetry (thanks Quadfather) done well; I think it shows the cleverness of the design and skill of the artist. 

[Don Boyer]

I think my question would be: why must it be diagonally symmetrical?  Why not horizontally?  Paint half of the card, copy, rotate 180 degrees.  If you make careful measurements, you can insure that the lines running off the top half are met by lines in the bottom half.

I'm sure it all comes down to preferences.  Personally I like to see rotational symmetry (thanks Quadfather) done well; I think it shows the cleverness of the design and skill of the artist.

On that, I agree.  It's the more difficult of the two to achieve, and often the more attractive.