PHP GD Use one image to mask another image, including transparency

Question

I am trying to create a PHP script that takes an image:

http://i.stack.imgur.com/eNvlM.png

and then applies a PNG image:

http://i.stack.imgur.com/iJr2I.png

as a mask.

The end result needs to maintain transparency:

http://i.stack.imgur.com/u0l0I.png

If at all possible I want to do this in GD, ImageMagick is not really an option right now.

How would I go about this?

phalacee's post (in "PHP/GD, how to copy a circle from one image to another?") seems to be along the right lines but I specifically need to use an image as a mask, not a shape.

Answer 1

Matt,

If you make your png with the oval white fill on black background instead of black fill with transparent background the following function does it.

<?php
// Load source and mask
$source = imagecreatefrompng( '1.png' );
$mask = imagecreatefrompng( '2.png' );
// Apply mask to source
imagealphamask( $source, $mask );
// Output
header( "Content-type: image/png");
imagepng( $source );

function imagealphamask( &$picture, $mask ) {
    // Get sizes and set up new picture
    $xSize = imagesx( $picture );
    $ySize = imagesy( $picture );
    $newPicture = imagecreatetruecolor( $xSize, $ySize );
    imagesavealpha( $newPicture, true );
    imagefill( $newPicture, 0, 0, imagecolorallocatealpha( $newPicture, 0, 0, 0, 127 ) );

    // Resize mask if necessary
    if( $xSize != imagesx( $mask ) || $ySize != imagesy( $mask ) ) {
        $tempPic = imagecreatetruecolor( $xSize, $ySize );
        imagecopyresampled( $tempPic, $mask, 0, 0, 0, 0, $xSize, $ySize, imagesx( $mask ), imagesy( $mask ) );
        imagedestroy( $mask );
        $mask = $tempPic;
    }

    // Perform pixel-based alpha map application
    for( $x = 0; $x < $xSize; $x++ ) {
        for( $y = 0; $y < $ySize; $y++ ) {
            $alpha = imagecolorsforindex( $mask, imagecolorat( $mask, $x, $y ) );
            $alpha = 127 - floor( $alpha[ 'red' ] / 2 );
            $color = imagecolorsforindex( $picture, imagecolorat( $picture, $x, $y ) );
            imagesetpixel( $newPicture, $x, $y, imagecolorallocatealpha( $newPicture, $color[ 'red' ], $color[ 'green' ], $color[ 'blue' ], $alpha ) );
        }
    }

    // Copy back to original picture
    imagedestroy( $picture );
    $picture = $newPicture;
}

?>