Epson Photo Plus - PhotoPlus Color Photo Scanner User's Guide

Table of Contents 11. Printing and Exporting ... 191 Printing ...

88 Image Adjustments and Effects

Manipulating Images 5

90 Manipulating Images

Manipulating Images 91 Making a selection In any photo editing program, the selection tools and techniques are as significant as any of the basic

92 Manipulating Images To cancel the selection (select nothing): Right-click and choose Deselect, use the Select menu or press Ctrl+D. The opposi

Manipulating Images 93 Lasso Tools flyout Freehand Selection Tool—lets you draw a freehand (irregular) line which is closed automatically to creat

94 Manipulating Images Add = Subtract = Intersect = For Rectangle and Ellipse Selection tools, the Context toolbar

Manipulating Images 95 Color Range As an intelligent color selection method, i.e. where selection is based on "tagging" a specific range o

96 Manipulating Images Meanwhile, the dialog provides visual feedback. 1. If Show Selection is checked, the grayscale Selection window on the righ

Manipulating Images 97 Use in conjunction with the Ctrl key to transform the selection area without constraint, creating a skewed transform (drag no

Table of Contents 14. AlbumPlus Organizer: Searching for Photos 253 Searching for photos ...

98 Manipulating Images To modify a current selection: 1. From any Selection context toolbar, select Modify Selection... 2. From the Modify Select

Manipulating Images 99 Soft-edged and hard-edged selections Antialiasing and feathering are different ways of controlling what happens at the edges

100 Manipulating Images Manipulating a selection Moving the selection marquee Sometimes, you need to adjust the position of the marquee without a

Manipulating Images 101 The "hole" left behind when the image content is moved exposes the current background color (on the Background l

102 Manipulating Images To paste into the current selection, press Shift+Ctrl+L or choose Paste> Into Selection from the Edit menu. The Clipboa

Manipulating Images 103 Changing image size The Image Size dialog lets you specify a new size for the whole image, in terms of its screen dimensions

104 Manipulating Images To change canvas size: 1. Choose Canvas Size... from the Image menu. 2. Enter New Width and/or New Height values (the curr

Manipulating Images 105 To crop unconstrained: 1. From the Tools toolbar's Crop Tools flyout, select the Crop Tool. Ensure the Unconstrain

106 Manipulating Images Use the Thirds grid check box on the Context toolbar for improving photo composition. A 3 x 3 rectangular grid with equally

Manipulating Images 107 If the selection region is non-rectangular, the left-over surrounding region will be either transparent (on a standard layer

Table of Contents

108 Manipulating Images To rotate: 1. Choose Rotate from the Image menu. 2. From the flyout menu, select an option based on the object (Image, L

Manipulating Images 109 The tool's action depends on the exact position of the mouse pointer. As you move the pointer around the enclosed regio

110 Manipulating Images • For a constrained skew effect, press Shift+Ctrl and drag the edge along its line. • For constrained skew relative to the f

Manipulating Images 111 The straight line segments are actually bendable curves. When you alter the contours of the mesh and distort the initial

112 Manipulating Images To delete one or more nodes: 1. Select the node(s). 2. Press Delete. OR Click the Delete node(s) button on the displaye

Manipulating Images 113 Symmetric nodes join curves with the same slope and depth on both sides of the node. To reset the mesh to full-frame and

114 Manipulating Images Watch the Hintline for details on many key-assisted options such as skew, squash/stretch, and perspective effects. In this

Manipulating Images 115 Changing output settings You can set the level of transparency and pixel blending at the cutout edge by adjusting the output

116 Manipulating Images For Show transparent mode, a different Background color can be set (at bottom of the Studio) which might help differentiate

Manipulating Images 117 Refining your cutout area Erase and Restore touch-up tools can be used to refine the cutout area within the studio before co

Welcome 1

118 Manipulating Images PhotoPlus lets you show, hide, and select composite or specific channels of any photo from a single point, called the Chann

Manipulating Images 119 To select specific channels for edit: 1. Select the Channels tab. All channels are switched on and are shown by default. 2.

120 Manipulating Images The vertical Y axis is the relative pixel count at each of the levels on the X axis described above. The higher the graph is

Painting and Drawing 6

122 Painting and Drawing

Painting and Drawing 123 Color concepts Color modes PhotoPlus operates in several color modes to let you work in standard and higher levels of colo

124 Painting and Drawing At some point, you may have no need to work at a high level of detail (16 Bits/channel). In converting to 8-bit mode, you m

Painting and Drawing 125 Defining colors Now, a few things to remember about how these colors are used: When you draw a selection, shape, or use t

126 Painting and Drawing 1. On the Color tab, move the mouse pointer (dropper cursor) around the Color Spectrum. As you move the dropper cursor aro

Painting and Drawing 127 You can store your currently selected foreground color (in Color tab) to the currently selected category (e.g., G_234); you

2 Welcome

128 Painting and Drawing Painting The Paintbrush Tool and Pencil Tool on the Tools toolbar are the basic tools for painting and drawing freehan

Painting and Drawing 129 If a more bespoke brush tip is required, you can also customize your own brush tip and save it in its own user-defined cate

130 Painting and Drawing Stamping and spraying pictures The Picture Brush Tool works like a custom brush that sprays a series of pre-defined or

Painting and Drawing 131 To import a Paint Shop Pro picture tube file: 1. On the Brush Tip tab, select a category you've created yourself, ri

132 Painting and Drawing To erase with the Standard Eraser: 1. Select Standard Eraser from the Tools toolbar's Eraser Tools flyout. 2. (Opt

Painting and Drawing 133 Contiguous Discontiguous With "Continual" sampling (the default), the reference color is repeatedly update

134 Painting and Drawing Check Contiguous to erase only within-tolerance pixels connected to each other; when unchecked, all in-range pixels are e

Painting and Drawing 135 To paint with a pattern: 1. Select the Pattern Tool from the Tools toolbar's Clone Tools flyout. 2. On the Context

136 Painting and Drawing Filling a region Filling regions or layers is an alternative to brushing on colors or patterns. Making a selection prior t

Painting and Drawing 137 The Context toolbar includes an All Layers option. If checked, the Flood Fill tool samples pixels on all layers (both sho

Welcome 3 Welcome to PhotoPlus X4 Welcome to PhotoPlus X4 from Serif—more than ever, the best value in image creation and editing software for any h

138 Painting and Drawing For a Pattern fill, set the Type to Pattern. The blend options are the same, but in this mode instead of choosing a color

Painting and Drawing 139 On standard and Background layers, the tool creates a "spectrum" effect, filling the active layer or selection

140 Painting and Drawing 3. To choose a preset or to edit the fill's colors and/or transparency values, click the color sample on the Context

Painting and Drawing 141 Cloning a region The Clone Tool is like two magic brushes locked together. While you trace or "pick up" an ori

142 Painting and Drawing For additional brush strokes, to always reuse the original pickup point, keep Aligned unchecked. Check Aligned to have yo

Painting and Drawing 143 To create new solid text: 1. Click the Text Tools flyout on the Tools toolbar and choose the standard Text Tool. 2. C

144 Painting and Drawing To swap to a gradient color: 1. On the Layers tab, right-click the Text layer and choose Edit Fill... 2. Change the Fill

Painting and Drawing 145 Drawing and editing lines and shapes For drawing and editing lines and shapes, the Tools toolbar includes the following dra

146 Painting and Drawing Curved and freehand pen lines cannot be drawn as filled bitmaps. Assuming you’re working on a non-shape layer when you cre

Painting and Drawing 147 A single fill is shared by all the shapes on a particular layer. (Technically the fill is a property of the layer, and th

4 Welcome New features Effects and Adjustments Non-destructive Image Adjustments! (p. 60) Preserve your original image layer by creating filter la

148 Painting and Drawing 4. Select a foreground color, and any other characteristics for the QuickShape. 5. Drag out the shape on the image. It di

Painting and Drawing 149 2. Use either: The Node Edit Tool (Tools toolbar) to click on the shape and readjust any of the shape's handles.

150 Painting and Drawing Each tool's supporting context toolbar lets you create the line on a shape layer, as a path or directly as a fill

Painting and Drawing 151 Sharp Corner means that the segments either side of the node are completely independent so that the corner can be quite

152 Painting and Drawing Creating outlines Two approaches to creating outlines are available within PhotoPlus—creating an outline from any current s

Painting and Drawing 153 3. (Optional) From the Mode drop-down menu, pick a blend mode, which controls how the outline color and underlying pixels

154 Painting and Drawing To switch off the layer effect: With the layer selected, click the Layer Effects button and uncheck Outline in the Laye

Painting and Drawing 155 To create a path outline from a QuickShape/outline or selection: 1. Select a QuickShape or Outline tool, then ensure Pat

156 Painting and Drawing You can also flip a path outline either horizontally or vertically. Use the Flip Horizontally>Path or Flip Vertically>

Painting and Drawing 157 To create a filled bitmap from a path: 1. Select the Background or standard layer where you want to create the filled bitm

Welcome 5 Modify Selection with Preview Feather, Smooth, Contract, and Expand your selection in combination, from one location. Preview your curre

158 Painting and Drawing

Making Images for the Web 7

160 Making Images for the Web

Making Images for the Web 161 Slicing images Image slicing and image maps are two convenient ways to create navigation bars and clickable graphics f

162 Making Images for the Web Once you've sliced up your image you have to export it to make the image slices understandable to a web visitor&a

Making Images for the Web 163 To draw a hotspot: 1. Click the Image Map Tools flyout on the Standard toolbar and choose one of the following too

164 Making Images for the Web To export an image map: When exporting via Export Optimizer, export the image for which you have created the image m

Macros and Batch Processing 8

166 Macros and Batch Processing

Macros and Batch Processing 167 Understanding macros If there are operations that you want to repeatedly perform in PhotoPlus, you can apply a macro

6 Welcome Existing features PhotoPlus power Professional Input and Output Options Import an impressive selection of graphic files, including raw

168 Macros and Batch Processing You can cut, copy, paste or even duplicate any macro. This allows you to modify preset macros once pasted into your

Macros and Batch Processing 169 To record a macro: 1. In the Macros tab, select a category from the drop-down list of category names. 2. Click t

170 Macros and Batch Processing Modifying Macros Once you’ve recorded and played back your macro it's possible to modify the macro’s saved seq

Macros and Batch Processing 171 To enable command interactivity: This allows you to intervene in the macro running process to alter some dialog val

172 Macros and Batch Processing 3. Click OK. The Stop command is added to the command list below the command you performed a right-click on (you ma

Macros and Batch Processing 173 Resize Images: to resample images to various widths, heights, or resolutions (using different resampling methods).

174 Macros and Batch Processing Using macros Macros (see p. 167) can be applied to a batch process easily (via Use Macros). PhotoPlus doesn’t differ

Macros and Batch Processing 175 Check Maintain aspect ratio then enter values for Max Width and Max Height to scale to maximum intended dimension

176 Macros and Batch Processing Changing file names It is also possible to define a Destination File Name for the files to be processed by selecting

Creating Animations 9

Welcome 7 selections between any open file. Use combination buttons (as for shapes) to define cutout selection regions. Convert selections into path

178 Creating Animations

Creating Animations 179 Getting started with animation Animation creates an illusion of motion or change by displaying a series of still pictures,

180 Creating Animations In this file (as in any imported .GIF animation) the individual frames can each occupy one layer in the PhotoPlus image. Thi

Creating Animations 181 Single-layer animation Let's look at a different example (below) which shows the Yin-Yang symbol as a bouncing ball, an

182 Creating Animations The previously selected frame is cloned as a new frame, immediately following it in the sequence. To select a single frame:

Creating Animations 183 Set which frame attributes are to be tweened—choose Position, Opacity and/or Effects. Position lets you distribute frame o

184 Creating Animations For .gif (not .avi files), you can set a loop property for the animation as a whole. (You can also set this property on th

Pressure sensitivity and pen tablets 10

186 Pressure sensitivity and pen tablets

Pressure sensitivity and pen tablets 187 Pressure sensitivity Pressure sensitivity is a property of individual brushes, and is only applicable if yo

How to Contact Us Our main office (UK, Europe): The Software Center PO Box 2000, Nottingham, NG11 7GW, UK Main: (0115) 914 2000 Registration (UK o

8 Welcome Gradient Fills Take your pick of radial, linear, conical, or square fills—perfect for masking, to hide or reveal parts of your photo usi

188 Pressure sensitivity and pen tablets Using pen tablets You can either draw or paint with your mouse or, for a more natural experience, use a pen

Pressure sensitivity and pen tablets 189 The studio offers: a practice area for automatically calibrating your tablet's input devices (Press

190 Pressure sensitivity and pen tablets Function key assignment If your pen tablet is equipped with ExpressKeys (or equivalent), Pressure Studio le

Printing and Exporting 11

192 Printing and Exporting

Printing and Exporting 193 Printing For basic printing primarily to desktop printers, Print Studio offers an exciting, comprehensive, and versatile

194 Printing and Exporting For any mode, you can also create your own custom template from an existing template. Currently open documents will

Printing and Exporting 195 For Print Layout templates, right-click a gallery thumbnail and select Fill Layout with Image. All occupied or empty ce

196 Printing and Exporting To print using your own layouts: 1. Click the Print button on the Standard toolbar. The Print Studio appears. 2. Fr

Printing and Exporting 197 Sizing and rotating images in cells The Print dialog helps you size or rotate your image(s) to fit a cell(s) according t

Welcome 9 Text Editable Text Add formatted color text directly onto your image, reposition and scale it by dragging. Text layers keep the contents

198 Printing and Exporting Rotate for best fit You can re-orient your image to fit cells using the Rotate for best fit check box—great for fitting a

Printing and Exporting 199 Before After Unconstrained Cell Image (default) Custom (e.g., 1.00 x 1.00 in) 3. Drag a crop area'

200 Printing and Exporting If your image is already present in your layout then it will update automatically to reflect the new cropping applied. If

Printing and Exporting 201 popular printing method compared to electronic PDF publishing (using PDF/X1 compliance). See PhotoPlus help for more deta

202 Printing and Exporting 2. Set basic output options on the dialog’s General tab (shown). Checking Fit to complete page or Fit to page width to

Printing and Exporting 203 Exporting to another file format In many situations, you’ll want to save a file to one of the standard graphics formats.

204 Printing and Exporting The Export Optimizer consists of a left-hand preview display (single, dual, or quad) and a right-hand settings region, wi

Printing and Exporting 205 To adjust the preview display: To change the display scale, click the dialog's Zoom Tool and then left-click (to

206 Printing and Exporting To preview an image in your web browser: Choose Preview in Browser... from the File menu. PhotoPlus exports the image

AlbumPlus Organizer: Getting Started 12

10 Welcome Versatile Deform and Warp Tools The "Swiss Army Knife" of image tools, the Deform Tool lets you rotate, resize, skew, reshape

208 AlbumPlus Organizer: Getting Started

AlbumPlus Organizer: Getting Started 209 Organizing photos AlbumPlus Organizer is Serif's powerful photo management application that can be use

210 AlbumPlus Organizer: Getting Started In PhotoPlus, if you save a photo previously launched from AlbumPlus Organizer using Save As... (File me

AlbumPlus Organizer: Getting Started 211 2. In Step 1 of the wizard, enable Create new album, choose an album name and a location for your proposed

212 AlbumPlus Organizer: Getting Started In the Search text box, select the drive/device containing your media files from the drop-down menu; cho

AlbumPlus Organizer: Getting Started 213 2. From the dialog, navigate to the AlbumPlus file you want to open. 3. Select the file and click the Ope

214 AlbumPlus Organizer: Getting Started It's also possible to search for photo comments, ratings, import history, and inherent photo prope

AlbumPlus Organizer: Getting Started 215 Option File types included Common Media Files Includes all Image, Audio, or Video files listed below All I

216 AlbumPlus Organizer: Getting Started CD Import As photos are linked to an album in AlbumPlus, a CD Import dialog provides a Copy item to hard d

AlbumPlus Organizer: Getting Started 217 Autoplay Your computer may have Autoplay enabled which means it will be able to detect any new photo conten

Welcome 11 Retouching Clone, Smudge, and Erase tools are included as essential retouch tools. Use the PhotoFix’s Blemish Remover to subtly remove

218 AlbumPlus Organizer: Getting Started The user is informed of any of the above by the display of an Import Report dialog. This will only be disp

AlbumPlus Organizer: Getting Started 219 To add photos from your camera, scanner or removable USB drive: 1. Click the Get Media button on the mai

220 AlbumPlus Organizer: Getting Started

AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos 13

222 AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos

AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos 223 Selecting thumbnails Before looking at each of the operations that can be used to manage your photos it’s w

224 AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos Alternatively, you can choose a function without selecting any photos at all. AlbumPlus will assume that t

AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos 225 My Projects Slideshow Project Calendar Project Photo Album Project Greetings Card Project Postcard Pro

226 AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos Thumbnail details 'on': Thumbnails can be displayed with or without the extra detail—the default

AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos 227 Thumbnail details 'off': This view is useful if you want to quickly see your album photos and yo

12 Welcome Animation Tools It's easy and fun to create or edit animations for the web. You can import and export animated GIFs, apply special

228 AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos Click Display then click Thumbnail size and choose a size from the list. OR Use the keyboard shortcu

AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos 229 To change photo order: 1. Click Display on the main toolbar and then click Sort. 2. Select a different

230 AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos To rate your photos in Full Screen View: 1. In any mode, click Full Screen View. 2. On the toolbar, cl

AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos 231 To change a photo date: 1. Click on the date display in the lower left corner of the thumbnail. 2. Clic

232 AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos Changing time zones Suppose you’re on vacation and in your excitement you forget to adjust the time settin

AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos 233 The Relative date/time adjustment is better when adjusting multiple images in one batch as it preserves t

234 AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos Adding comments and file information to photos Why would you add comments? You may already be using tags t

AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos 235 To view/edit comments/file information in a photo: View the Photo Information dialog as described above,

236 AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos Full Screen View In Full Screen View, you can manage your photos while viewing them at full size. In this

AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos 237 Displays two photos side by side, in a split screen mode—each with independent control. Displays two phot

Welcome 13 Installation Minimum: Windows-based PC with DVD/CD drive and mouse (main processor must support SSE2 instructions) Microsoft Windows®

238 AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos Viewing and editing photos in split screen mode In the split screen modes, each photo can be viewed and

AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos 239 You'll get a confirmation message asking if you want to delete your photos from disk. If Yes is select

240 AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos To flip a selected photo: 1. Click Fix & Enhance on the main toolbar. 2. Click Flip Horizontal

AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos 241 4. You can modify your panorama with the following options: Click Stitch to create a panorama from select

242 AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos 5. Click Close to exit the studio. Your new panorama is displayed in the Photos pane. File management M

AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos 243 4. Click Yes (selecting No will abort the operation). 5. The Insert CD(s) dialog is displayed, which ind

244 AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos After inserting the “Flowers” CD the flowers photos are made available for use (and removed from the list

AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos 245 Photo Cache: Specifies the pixel size for low resolution caching. A lower setting reduces the disk space re

246 AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos A - Create new tag entry B - Delete tag entry C - Show photos with this tag (click to select) D - Don&

AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos 247 When a previously tagged photo is imported, you can also import the associated tags. This can either create

14 Welcome

248 AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos To delete a tag: In the Tags pane, select the tag and click Delete Tag. When you delete a tag from t

AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos 249 Tag icons Every tag that is created can be assigned a unique icon. These appear on the left-hand side of th

250 AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos Understanding metadata The main strength of modern photo albums comes in their support for various metadat

AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos 251 To display XMP metadata for a selected photo: 1. Click Display and then select Photo Information from th

252 AlbumPlus Organizer: Managing Photos To display EXIF data for a selected photo: 1. Click Display and then select Photo Information from the

AlbumPlus Organizer: Searching for Photos 14

254 AlbumPlus Organizer: Searching for Photos

AlbumPlus Organizer: Searching for Photos 255 Searching for photos A range of diverse methods to search for photos exist within AlbumPlus: Tag: Ph

256 AlbumPlus Organizer: Searching for Photos 3. Click to select the box next to a tag name to include that tag. It will display a green check mar

AlbumPlus Organizer: Searching for Photos 257 Refining a multi-tag search The Match All Tags or Match Any Tags options shown after a multi-tag searc

Getting Started 2

258 AlbumPlus Organizer: Searching for Photos Unassigned status The Unassigned tag will let you view photos that have no tags assigned. This can be

AlbumPlus Organizer: Searching for Photos 259 Searching by rating Search for photos with a particular "star" rating level. You can refine

260 AlbumPlus Organizer: Searching for Photos Searching by import history An import history search lets you display specific photo import sessions

AlbumPlus Organizer: Searching for Photos 261 4. Highlight an entry in the list (as shown above) to view that session only. Remember multiple log e

262 AlbumPlus Organizer: Searching for Photos To search for specific metadata (file information, IPTC or EXIF), tags, path names, file names, and/o

AlbumPlus Organizer: Searching for Photos 263 For example: This will show you all photos in your album in excess of 5 Megabytes. This will enable y

264 AlbumPlus Organizer: Searching for Photos Searching by date The Search feature lets you search for dates when photos were taken, files created

Index 15

266 Index

Index 267 .AVI format, 179 .GIF format, 179 .HDR format, 84 .PSD format, 20, 203 .PSP format, 20 .SPP (PhotoPlus) format, 26 16 bit images, 123 2D

16 Getting Started

268 Index combination buttons for lines, 146 for paths, 156 for selection, 92 for shapes, 146 Conical (gradient fill), 138 copying, 101 correction

Index 269 Freehand Pen Tool, 149 GIFs animated, 179 Gradient Fill Tool, 138 gradients, 138 graphics tablet, 129, 188 HDR Merge, 84 HDR Photo Merge,

270 Index pixel opacity, 35 pixels, 35 macros, 167 copying, 172 modifying, 170 playing, 169 recording, 168 Magic Wand Tool, 93 Magnetic Selection T

Index 271 printing, 193 as PDF, 201 cropping to print sizes, 105 marks for, 200 professional, 200, 202 Promote to Layer command, 35, 101 Publish as

272 Index Solid fill, 138 special effects, 67 spot repair, 61 square drawing, 145 placing hotspot, 163 selecting, 92 Square (gradient fill), 138 st

Index 273 dates changing photo, 231 searching for, 264 duplicates, 217 EXIF, 251 searching, 262 file management, 242 file names searching, 262 flipp

274 Index thumbnails adding captions to, 233 assigning tags to, 248 changing order of, 228 removing tags from, 248 resizing, 227 selecting, 223 sty

Getting Started 17 Startup Wizard Once PhotoPlus has been installed, you're ready to start! The Setup routine during install adds a Serif Pho

18 Getting Started Use the Choose Workspace drop-down menu to choose your workspace appearance (i.e., Studio tab positions, tab sizes, and show/hide

Getting Started 19 To create a new image or animation (using Startup Wizard) : 1. The first time you launch PhotoPlus, you'll see the Startup

20 Getting Started To create a new picture or animation (during your session): 1. If the Startup Wizard is disabled, click New on the Standard to

Getting Started 21 2. Click the file name to open it. PhotoPlus opens the image as a maximized currently active document; the document appears in t

22 Getting Started Opening a raw image High-specification SLR digital cameras give the option of saving your photos as JPG, and more recently, as ra

Getting Started 23 Workflow refers to the shoot-to-print progress when working with JPG or raw files. A JPG workflow is destructive, in that your JP

24 Getting Started Once you click OK you won't be able to undo your adjustments—it's therefore recommended to spend time "developin

Getting Started 25 4. Drag the Black Point slider right to set the darkest parts of the image to black (by shifting the histogram's left-most

26 Getting Started Getting images from cameras and scanners If your digital camera or scanner supports the industry-wide TWAIN standard, you can br

Getting Started 27 An intermediate HDR image can be saved, which stores the results of an HDR Photo Merge in an hdr file for future use. See Mergi

Credits This User Guide, and the software described in it, is furnished under an end user License Agreement, which is included with the product. The

28 Getting Started

Layers and Masks 3

30 Layers and Masks

Layers and Masks 31 Basics of using layers If you're accustomed to thinking of pictures as flat illustrations in books, or as photographic pri

32 Layers and Masks You can create any number of new layers in your image. Each new one appears on top of the currently active layer, comprising a

Layers and Masks 33 preview), while the Background layer does not. A couple of examples will show how this rule is applied in PhotoPlus: Suppose y

34 Layers and Masks depth maps, creating animation frames, or masking, only work with standard layers. Once an image has more than just a backgroun

Layers and Masks 35 The Add Layer Mask button adds a mask to the currently selected layer. The Add Layer Depth Map button creates a depth ma

36 Layers and Masks To control layer content: To select all layer content use Select>Select All or Ctrl+A. To select non-transparent regions on

Layers and Masks 37 Using layer groups For greater management and efficiency it is possible to place selected layers into a created group. There

This product includes Radiance software (http://radsite.lbl.gov/) developed by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (http://www.lbl.gov/). ©201

38 Layers and Masks To add one or more layers to a Layer Group: Select the layer(s) you want to add to the group and drag onto the group name (a r

Layers and Masks 39 As a property of individual layers, a layer's blend mode determines how each pixel on that layer visibly combines with th

40 Layers and Masks Adjusting opacity/transparency Varying opacity is rather like lighting a gauze backdrop in a theater: depending on how light fal

Layers and Masks 41 To set a layer's opacity: Select the layer in the Layers tab and adjust the Opacity setting at the top of the tab—either

42 Layers and Masks You can also combine depth maps with pre-defined 3D effects hosted in the Instant Effects tab (if you can't see it, switch

Layers and Masks 43 While working on the layer, you can switch back and forth between the bitmap, depth map, and (optional) mask by clicking the a

44 Layers and Masks Importing a depth map Another way of incorporating a depth map is to create a suitable bitmap image separately (or borrow one fr

Layers and Masks 45 Each non-Background layer can have one mask at any given time. (The Background layer can’t have one because it doesn’t support t

46 Layers and Masks Choose Mask>Add Mask from the Layers menu and then one of the following from the submenu: • Reveal All for a transparent ma

Layers and Masks 47 To edit the active layer's mask: Click the mask thumbnail, or check Edit Mask on the Layers menu. In Edit Mask mode, you

48 Layers and Masks A click on this button will unlink the layer and mask, changing the button to display a red cross through it; you can also righ

Image Adjustments and Effects 4

50 Image Adjustments and Effects

Image Adjustments and Effects 51 Introduction to image adjustments A major part of photo-editing is making corrections (i.e., adjustments) to your o

52 Image Adjustments and Effects Here’s a summary of the available PhotoPlus image adjustments. Levels displays a histogram plot of lightness valu

Image Adjustments and Effects 53 Lens Filter adjusts the color balance for warming or cooling down your photos. It digitally mimics the placement

54 Image Adjustments and Effects Using adjustment layers Adjustment layers are recommended for applying image adjustments experimentally and non-d

Image Adjustments and Effects 55 Color Balance: Adjust color and tonal balance for general color correction in the image. Brightness/Contrast: V

56 Image Adjustments and Effects 2. In the Layers tab, the new adjustment layer is inserted above the active layer. The adjustment is applied to al

Image Adjustments and Effects 57 To delete an adjustment layer: (via Layers tab) Select the adjustment layer and click Delete Layer. OR (via A

Contents 1. Welcome ... 1 Welcome to PhotoPlus X4 ...

58 Image Adjustments and Effects Dodge Tool - for lightening an area Burn Tool - for darkening an area Sponge Tool - for increasing or decreasing

Image Adjustments and Effects 59 You can straighten using one of two methods: As a separate tool used directly on your image (below) or via the Phot

60 Image Adjustments and Effects Using PhotoFix PhotoFix provides an image adjustment environment within PhotoPlus which simplifies the often compl

Image Adjustments and Effects 61 PhotoFix also lets you compare before-and-after previews, with tiled- and split-screen controls (horizontally and

62 Image Adjustments and Effects Straighten Re-aligns slightly or wildly crooked photos by resetting the image's horizon, then applying an au

Image Adjustments and Effects 63 To apply an adjustment (from a favorites preset): 1. From the Favorites tab, scroll the tab to review the categor

64 Image Adjustments and Effects Using PhotoFix masks Masks in PhotoFix adopt the same principles as layer masks (see p. 44). In PhotoFix however, m

Image Adjustments and Effects 65 To apply a mask: 1. Select Create Mask from the main toolbar. 2. In the Mask Brush pane, select the Add Regi

66 Image Adjustments and Effects Adding multiple masks So far we've looked at an individual mask applied to an image. However, PhotoFix also s

Image Adjustments and Effects 67 Saving favorites If there's a specific filter setting (or combination of filters) you want to keep for future

Table of Contents 4. Image Adjustments and Effects ... 49 Introduction to image adjustments ...

68 Image Adjustments and Effects Each effect can be applied in one of several ways: via dialog, on a filter layer. (Non-destructive). via the Fi

Image Adjustments and Effects 69 To convert to a filter layer: 1. In the Layers tab, right-click a standard or Background layer and choose Convert

70 Image Adjustments and Effects Managing filter groups and specific filters When you apply a filter to a filter layer it automatically creates a fi

Image Adjustments and Effects 71 Editing filters The core objective of filter layers is to host filters applied to your image. Once a filter is appl

72 Image Adjustments and Effects To create a filter mask (from a selection): 1. Make a selection on which your mask will be based, e.g. a brush sel

Image Adjustments and Effects 73 3. Right-click the created filter group and select Add Mask from the flyout menu. A mask thumbnail appears to the

74 Image Adjustments and Effects Using the Filter Gallery The Filter Gallery offers a one-stop studio environment for applying single or multiple fi

Image Adjustments and Effects 75 You'll also launch the Filter Gallery when you double-click any filter effect already applied to a Filter La

76 Image Adjustments and Effects Use the Undo button to undo recent changes to the filter (or the Redo button to re-apply the changes). 3. Adjust

Image Adjustments and Effects 77 To replace a filter: 1. Ensure Replace selected is checked. 2. Select the filter you wish to replace by clicking

Table of Contents 6. Painting and Drawing... 121 Color concepts ...

78 Image Adjustments and Effects Applying 2D layer effects Layer effects can be applied to the contents of standard (transparent) layers, text layer

Image Adjustments and Effects 79 Bevel and Emboss/Pillow Emboss adds a concave rounded edge and shadow effect to an object. Color Fill lets you

80 Image Adjustments and Effects To make the effect appear smaller or larger in relation to the image, drag the Scale slider or type a value in th

Image Adjustments and Effects 81 To apply 3D Effects: Click Add Layer Effects on the Layers tab and check 3D Effects in the Layer Effects dialog

82 Image Adjustments and Effects 3D Reflection Map The 3D Reflection Map effect is used to simulate mirrored surfaces by selection of a pattern (i.e

Image Adjustments and Effects 83 The Pinch and Punch Tools apply, respectively, a concave or convex spherical distortion under the brush. Wi

84 Image Adjustments and Effects Use the Unwarp Tool to reduce the strength of the current warped effect under the brush. Drag the Unwarp brush ac

Image Adjustments and Effects 85 For good results, it's important to bear the following points in mind: Many modern cameras offer auto-bracke

86 Image Adjustments and Effects Click the Add button to add more photos or the Remove button to exclude a selected photo. For scanned images (fr

Image Adjustments and Effects 87 To adjust your intermediate image: 1. From the HDR Merge dialog, an image preview is displayed, along with a merge