Paint Shop Pro
| Opening
Existing Image Files Creating New Image Files Using the Browser Saving and Reformatting Image Files Color Functions Basic Image Editing Using Selection Tools Painting and Drawing Layers Tips:Changing Backgrounds to Transparent |
Paint Shop Pro is a painting program used to edit existing image files, to create new images, and to browse collections of images. Use artistic painting and drawing tools in Paint Shop Pro to create various images, and Web development futures to enhance the appearance of your Web pages. Paint Shop Pro creates images in almost thirty different types of graphic formats including the .BMP format, the .JPG format, and the .GIF format. |
Choose Open from
the File menu and click on the file to work on in Paint Shop
Pro. A list of recently used files appears at the bottom of the file menu
which can also be used to access a file. The graphic appears in its own window
in the workspace. Multiple files can be opened in Paint Shop Pro as memory
allows.
Select New from the File menu. Use the Width and Height spin controls to set the image's dimensions in pixels. Select a new color from the Background Color drop down menu to fill the new image. The first two choices are the current active colors on the Color Palette. The image type is the new image's color depth. Select the image type from the Image Type drop down menu. At the bottom of the NewImage dialog box is a text display that indicates how much memory (RAM) is required to create the new image. If you don't have at least as much memory as is indicated here, select one or both of the following: lower color depth or smaller dimensions. Click OK.
Use the browser to scan through a collection of images in a folder. Images are displayed as small, thumbnail graphics that link access to the source file.
From the File menu, choose Browse and select a folder. If there are image files in the selected folder, thumbnails will fill the window.
Use thumbnails to manage source
graphic files.
To open a single file, double-click the picture on the thumbnail or select
the picture and then click the right button of the mouse, then select Open from
the pop-up menu. To open multiple files, hold down "Ctrl" key and
select the files that you want to open and then select Open from
the ImageFile menu. Sort, Select, Update or Print thumbnails
from the File menu. Choose Copy to, Move
to, Rename, or Delete from the ImageFile menu.
Saving and Reformatting Image Files
To save the changes to the active
image, select Save from the File menu or click
on the Save button in the toolbar. If you are saving a new file,
Paint Shop Pro will open the Save As dialogue box. Select
a folder using the Save In drop down box or click on the Create
New Folder button. Select the file type from the File Type drop
down box. Enter a name for the new file in the File Name text box.
Paint Shop Pro will automatically add the file extension. Click on the Save button.
To copy a file to a different
file format, select Save As from the File menu.
Paint Shop Pro will open the Save As dialog box. Use the dialog
box to save the image under a new filename and choose a new file type from
the File Type drop down box.
| Choosing Colors | Changing Number of Colors | Brightness / Contrast | Hue / Saturation/Luminance | Grey Scale Function |
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Click the eyedropper on the color that you want to select with the
primary mouse button(Left) to select the foreground color and the
secondary mouse button(Right) to select the background color.
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Cropping
an image eliminates unwanted parts of the original graphic. To
crop an image, select the part of the image to retain. The area
outside of the selection will be deleted. Select Crop button
from Tool Palette, select the part of the picture you want to crop,
then select Crop from
the Image menu. 
Cut
from original image.
Original
image on an enlarged canvas. | Marquee | Freehand | Magic Wand |
Selecting part of an image is the
first step for many editing tasks. Selection areas can be moved, copied,
deleted, edited, recolored and more.
Use
the Tool Options Palette (open Tool Options Palette from
View -> ToolBars) to choose a rectangular, square, elliptical,
or circular area. Click on the Select button in the Tool
Palette. Use the Selection Type drop down box to choose
the shape that you want to select. Click and drag the cursor
around the area to select. To add more area to the selection,
press and hold the <Shift> key. To remove area from the selection,
press and hold the <Ctrl> key. 
Use
the Freehand tool to select an irregular area. Click on
the Freehand button in the tool palette. Hold down left
button of the mouse and drag the cursor to draw the selection's
boundary. The boundary can cross itself. The selection will be
closed by adding a straight line between the selection's starting
and ending points. 
Use
the Magic Wand to select an area of a particular color,
hue, or brightness. Click on the Magic Wand button in
the tool palette.
| Paintbrush | Eraser | Airbrush | Flood Fill | Clone Brush | Text Tool |
The Tool Palette contains
a ten tools that simulate painting and drawing utensils. If some of the
tools seem to do little, confirm that the video display and the image are
both shown in 16 million colors. Once a tool is selected, a Style Bar for
the tool will appear. The Style extention box determines how the
color "leaves" the cursor. The Size spin control sets the pixel
size for the tool. The Shape drop down box selects a tool shape.
The Opacity spin control sets the tool's opacity. The Paper Texture drop
down box selects a surface type. The paper texture setting determines how
the image "absorbs" the color. To draw lines with a tool, press and hold
the <Shift> key. Click at the end of a line segment.
Paintbrush
Select
the colors to paint with. Click on the Paintbrush button in the
tool palette. Position the cursor where you want to start painting.. Apply
color to the image by moving the mouse. When finished painting, release
the mouse button.
The
eraser works as an undo function. It is works on the last change to an
image. Click on the Eraser button in the tool palette. Place the
cursor, press and hold the primary mouse button(Left). Move the mouse to
erase and then release the mouse button.
Select
the colors. Click on the Airbrush button in the tool palette. Position
the cursor and press and hold a mouse button to apply chosen colors. Opacity
is an important style choice for this tool.
The Fill tool
fills an area with a color or pattern. Options control how it recognizes
and replaces color. Click on the Fill button in the tool palette. Use the Fill
Style drop down box to select the type of fill to perform. Every fill
style except for the solid color fill has additional options.
Use
the Clone brush to copy part of an image to another location. Copy
within an image, or between two images of the same color depth. Clone
Mode controls the behavior of the source area when you stop copying
and then resume copying somewhere else. In aligned mode, the source area
behaves as if you never stopped copying. In non-aligned mode, the source
area does not move and behaves as if you just selected it.
Click the Clone brush button in the tool palette. Position the cursor over the part of the image to copy. Click with the secondary mouse button. The computer will beep to indicate that the source area is selected. Click and hold the primary mouse button where you want to copy to. Move the mouse to copy color from the source area to the target area. When done copying, release the mouse button. To resume copying, hold the primary mouse button again, where the source area will be depends on the clone mode.
Click
on the Text button in the tool palette. Click on the image where
the text will place. A window of Text Entry appeals. Set the font
properties. Click in the large text box labeled "Enter Text Here" and
type the text. Select the Floating Checkbox option so the text will
appear in the foreground color and will be a floating selection. Click OK.
The text will be selected and can be moved by dragging its selection.
Click
the Layer button to open the layer palette window. The
original image is the background layer. To create a new layer
click the Add New Layer button 
on
the palette.
or 
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