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This lesson demonstrates how to create halftone dot patterns.
Undo and Navigation Steps
Two ways of undoing steps are from the top menu, Edit then Step Backwards.
Alternatively, click a previous snapshot in the History Palette.
Navigate (zoom in and pan) your image using the Navigator Palette,
or the Zoom Tool. 
Activate The Hand Tool by tapping the Spacebar, keeping the Spacebar pressed, pan your image in the usual way. 
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Open a New document and set the dimensions of your choice - I chose the following settings.
If you are not printing your work, a Resolution of 92 Pixels/Inch will be fine.
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Then from the top menu, choose Layer then choose Flatten Image, and your image will be Solid White.
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From the Layers palette, click the Channels tab. (To display Channels, from the top menu, choose Window then click a tick before Channels). Now, from the Channels dialogue box, click the following Create new channel icon - and your image will appear to be Solid Black.
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Press your keyboard’s D key, then press the X key. This sets the Foreground colour swatch to Solid White. 
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Then from the toolbar, activate the Brush Tool. Brush Tool Lessons Here!
And utilising a large, soft, brush.
Paint a curve onto the (now black) image.
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Now, from the top menu, choose Filter then choose Pixelate then choose Colour Halftone. Set the following attributes into the Colour Halftone’s dialogue box, then click OK.
Note
Different sized images require a higher - or lower, Max. Radius setting. Max. Radius controls the dot’s size. For personal results, experiment with the Colour Halftone filter.
Tip
Paint out erroneous areas of black or white, utilising the Paint Brush Tool, with a hard brush.
After you have applied the Halftone filter, and removed unwanted pixels - you are ready for the next step.
Note
Your halftone design has been saved to an Alpha Channel, ready to utilise later.
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Click the Layers tab, then click the layer to highlight it.
Your image will revert back to Solid White.
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Now, (to retrieve the selection from its Alpha Channel), from the top menu, choose, Select then choose Load Selection. Accepting the default settings, click OK in the subsequent Load Selection dialogue box.
A multi-dot shaped selection marquee will be applied to your white image.
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It is time to colour your halftone design. However, because the dots are isolated by a marquee, if you apply colour now, just the dots will be coloured.
To fill the background with Solid Black, press your keyboard’s D key to set the default Foreground and Background, Black and White colours. Then press the X key to swap the colours. Your Background colour will now be Solid Black.
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Now, from the top menu, choose Select then choose Inverse, and the dots’ background will be isolated with a selection marquee - as illustrated below.
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Now, press Ctrl then tap your Backspace key, and the selected background will be filled with your Background colour. In my case, it is Solid Black.
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To change the central white colour, Inverse the selection marquee - so just the dots are isolated with a marquee - then set the Background to a colour of your choice.
And press Ctrl then your Backspace key.
Your dots will then be filled with your choice of colour.
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Press Ctrl then D to remove the marquee.
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Now you know the principles of creating halftone dots, they can be incorporated into your artwork.
Wendi E M Scarth. Top of Page - Home.
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