Best way to reduce to 256 colors?

[Brittany]

Hello everyone! I'm working on a new playscene, and I was wondering what the best method or tool for reducing images to the Babyz color palette might be? I seem to remember having better luck than I am right now, so I wanted to see if anyone here knew a better way.

Currently I am using PSP, and reducing from full color to 256 colors, to the Babyz palette, but I am still getting a lot of yucky colors. I expect it to dither, but this is pretty intense. Any tips?

[Jordyn ✬]

I usually open a picture from my Babypix folder that is in 256 colors and then drag the pictures I need to convert into there!

[Deleted]

I strongly recommend using Irfranview for converting picture-files to 256 bmp. It's a free-ware that's got nothing to it besides from being a killer when it comeback to redusing the color depth without reducing the quality.. Just head over to Irfranview.com, and get it within the minute. (For further description, look it up in the Clinic/Hexers resources board.

[Becky ❤]

you don't need to do that in that way Brittany you can have it be any 256 colors (not just the babyz palette). I use infranview - load the bmp, go under edit reduce color depth, select 256 colors - it will automatically chose the best 256 colors for you; then save. That's how that rainbow playscene I sent you was made and it works great in game! Also how we get kids with colors that are far from the babyz palette in their hair, tattoos, skin, etc!

[Jordyn ✬]

Becky, are you sure it's possible to get more colors than the Babyz palette...? Because I don't think it is. I was pretty sure you could only use the traditional 256 colors. :s

[Brittany]

Hrm... I have no idea what is going on. I tried converting to 256 colors in PSP and in Irfan view, and it looks fine both in the editor and in LNZ Pro, but as soon as I open the game it gets all kinds of wonky. I put the crib I'm working on on a solid white background just to test colors in game and this is what I'm getting...

[Brittany]

Also Becky ❤, you were NOT kidding when you said this little munchkin was posey! Such a ham!

[Budgie]

^ that looks so much better then some of the things I've made recently when converting to 255 colours in PSP! I'm having such issues with it recently :/

[Deleted]

You don't do anything what the converting is concerned in your image-editor (Adobe Photoshop, GIMP or Paint Shop Pro). - Just save your file as png, for then to open it in Irfranview.
- Then, you click 'Image' at the upper meny-bar, for then to scroll down to the feature in question.

[Brittany]

Yeah, that's exactly how I did it, and I'm still getting those results. It's really strange... even when I remove the crib, and just import a solid white background into LNZ Pro, it becomes that odd cream color.