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Working with Images


In Disc Cover, you can either use the images supplied with the program (clipart), import an image from a graphics file, use pictures from your iPhoto or Aperture library, use a frame from a QuickTime compatible video file, or use images from the Internet.

The built-in graphic library is located in the Source panel. In the Gallery tab (1), you can find collage templates and backgrounds. The Clipart tab (2) contains images and Smart Shapes. To open a particular category, choose it in the pop-up menu (3).

Source Clipart

Some operations common for different objects are described in Basic Operations on Objects.

 

Adding an Image to the Document

From the clipart:

  1. Open the Clipart Collection tab in the Source panel (Window > Clipart > Clipart Collection).

  2. Select an image category in the pop-up menu.

  3. Click on an image thumbnail or drag it with the mouse onto the document.

 

Source iPhotoFrom the iPhoto or Aperture library:

  1. Open the Import tab (1) in the Source panel (Window > Import > Pictures menu item). Choose iPhoto or Aperture in the pop-up menu (2).

  2. The thumbnails of your photos will be displayed in the Import dialog. To select images you wish to import, click on them holding the Shift key. To import all, don't select anything. Click OK.

  3. Imported images will appear in the Source panel (4). Drag images onto the document. To import more images, click the Import button.

To insert an image from a file in the Finder, choose Insert > Image > From File… in the main menu. Or drag an image from a folder into your document.

If you need to import multiple images from the same folder, choose Photo Folder in the pop-up menu (2) in the Source panel. Images from this folder will appear in the Source panel.

 

From the Internet using Google image search engine:

  1. Choose Search in the Internet... from the Insert > Image menu.

  2. Type a keyword that describes the image you need and click OK.

  3. Found images will be displayed in the Source panel. Drag and drop an image onto the canvas.

 

Importing a video frame is described in the Video Content section.

 

Drawing Lines, Rectangles and Circles

To add a line, rectangle or circle, click the corresponding tool in the toolbar and draw on the canvas.

To draw multiple shapes without having to reactivate the tool every time, double-click the drawing tool button. The drawing tool will stay active until you select another tool in the toolbar.

 

Inserting Art Text Images

An Art Text object is an image created in the Art Text application. Disc Cover uses Link Back technology that allows sending the image back to Art Text for modifying it. An Art Text object can contain text, logo or any other graphic content.

For more information, see Working with Art Text.

 

Inserting Generated Images

Disc Cover includes an image generator for creating backgrounds. See the Using Image Generators for more information.

 

Internal Image Storage

The images you work with can be saved in the internal image storage called Image Depot. It is located in the Gallery tab of the Source panel. To access images, choose Image Depot in a pop-up menu. Or, choose Window > Gallery > Image Depot in the main menu.

Image Depot can be used to collect images from different sources in a single place to quickly access them later. To add an image to the Image Depot, select it in the document and click the “plus” button.

To open the folder where the images of Image Depot are physically located, click the gear button in the Image Depot section. There you can delete them.

 

Image Properties

Inspector Image

Image properties are located in the Image tab of the Inspector.

To tint an image, select the Tint image check box. Then click the Color button to choose a color.

To change the image transparency, use the Opacity slider.

The image tiling tool creates multiple down-scaled copies of the image in the rectangle which the original image takes. This feature can be used to create backgrounds.

To tile an image, select it and choose Format > Image > Tile in the menu or tick Tile in the Inspector. Use the Tile slide bar to adjust the number of tiles and their size.

The Replace image at import option is useful for creating templates. When you import new images, they will automatically replace images in your design template. This feature was used in all of the standard collage templates.

The Edit… button opens the selected image in the Edit Image window where you can modify it using Core Image filters. For more detail, see Editing Images.

The Generate… button opens image generators. Generated images can be used for the background. For more detail, see the Using Image Generators section.

 

Masking Images

Mask
  1. Select the image.

  2. Select the Mask image check box in the Image tab of the Inspector.

  3. Click on a mask to apply it to the image.

To use a custom mask, click the Browse button and navigate to an image file. Or simply drag an image into the custom mask box located to the left of the Browse button.

 

Cropping Images

The Crop tool lets you use a part of an image in your design.

To crop an image, right-click on it and choose Crop. The handles on the image frame will become red indicating the crop mode. Move these handles to show the desired part of the image. Click on empty space of the canvas to exit the crop mode.

An image may look as if cropped when it is inserted into a Smart Shape. For more detail, see the Working with Smart Shapes section.

 


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