Tiled clones

Clones are also be created in the tiled form. Tiled Clones dialog can help in creating tiled clones.

Opening tiled clone dialog1. Create the original object using any tools

For example:

2. Select the original object and then select Edit →Clone →Create Tiled clones

3. Tiled clone dialogue opens.

Pattern symmetriesUsing symmetry tab in the filed Clones dialog you can create any number of clones of the selected object, then move and transform them to create a pattern according to one of the 17 plane symmetry groups. To create symmetric tiled clones:

1. The first tab ‘Symmetry’ gives options to create a symmetry tile where you can select the pattern type and the size of the tile.

2. There are 17 plane symmetry pattern listed when you click on the drop down down. Select any one of the pattern.

3. Select the pattern type and enter the number of rows and columns to define the size of the tile. Then click create. This creates a tiles pattern on the canvas.

Example 1:

Example 2 :

Example 3 :

To remove the tiled patterns, click on remove button. Click on the ‘unclump’ button and observe the changes.

Shift, scale, rotate, Blur & opacityThe Tile Clones dialog can also move, scale, rotate, or change opacity of the pattern tiles by specified percentages, per row or per column. Any of these changes can be randomised to a given degree. These controls are on the corresponding tabs of the dialog. With this, a wide variety of exciting effects becomes possible: fadeouts, spread outs, gradients, ‘force fields’, ‘explosions’ etc.So after creating the symmetric pattern, select the respective tab, make changes in the required values and click create to see the output.

Example 1: Blurred per column 5%

Example 2: Shift y co-ordinate per row 20 %

Example 3: Scaled y co-ordinate randomly

Example 4: Rotate 15 degree per row and column

Colouring the tiled clones

The Colour tab of the Tile Clones dialog allows you to assign fill or stroke colours to the clones in the pattern. A lot of effects ranging from tidy rainbows to randomly patched quilts are easy to achieve with such algorithmic colouring. To play colouring the tiled clones:

1. Create the original object

2. Select the object and unset paint in the fill and stroke dialog (Remember whenever you want to play with colours, unset paint)

3. Create a tiled clone of your choice (Here reflection+reflection+180 degree rotation is applied)

4. Click on the colour tab and it opens with the specification related to colour

5. The starting colour to which the changes apply can be selected by clicking on the Initial Colour button. On clicking the initial colour, the colour palette opens. On selecting the colour, it will be reflected as initial colour. Once it is done color the colour palette.

6. Vary the hue, saturation, and/or lightness per row or per column and click create. The changes can be seen in tiled clones.

Example 1:

Example 2:

Trace shapesUsing the controls on the Trace tab, you can trace the existing image under the pattern – that is, pick a value (such as an HSL or RGB colour channel) in the area under each clone and apply that

value to that clone’s size, colour, opacity or probability of presence. Shown here is an example of tracing a shape by the grid of glass buttons.