Creative-Designs Making Placeholders


Software: PhotoImpact 12 Author: Maureen Title: Making Placeholders Skill Level: Easy to Intermediate Featured Tools: Path tools, mask, materials Additional Files: Photographs
Description: A placeholder is an image area or an active element on the project template that indicates that this may be replaced by another element or image. Creating placeholders can help you change or replace images in your template easily. PhotoImpact 12 has an amazing array of projects that can be accomplished using paths, photographs and other materials to make placeholders. With placeholders you can design cards, bloq pages or for scrap-booking.... just about anything really. They can be dressed up or kept simple and a great way to display your favourite photographs with graphics and with a touch of pizzazz. Work Mode: PhotoImpact 12 have the ability of many work modes that you can personalise by customising your own workspace. Use the below arrow as a bookmark to keep your place in the tutorial Left click, hold and drag to position
Step 1 Let's begin by opening a white canvas size 500 x 400. Once you've learned HOW, then you can choose your own sizes and style. To make a background, go to path tools, oblong and draw a 2D over the blank canvas in a colour of your choice. If you wish you can have multi colours or two tone, just right click, convert to image and the paint bucket or linear gradient fill. Pick strong colours as we will make the path quite transparent. Keep the path object selected and using the transparent slider move to 58, this should give the path a nice soft hue. To make a heading where a picture will be added, draw another oblong but choose a slightly deeper colour. Make this transparent at 68. Next, draw a side bars, duplicate and move to the other side of the canvas, and make transparent to 70. Under the heading path, make another bar, but thinner, and slightly lighter in colour. Use transparency 80. This is a text header. You can add your text now if you wish. Make sure everything lines up neatly
Step 2 Next, we will insert a picture into the header. Choose one of your liking and bring into your workspace. Right click and copy. Have the header path highlighted, go to Edit, Paste, Fit Into Selection. Deselect.
Step 3 Now comes the fun part of making placeholders. Choose path shapes 2D of your choice. Decide how you wish them placed on the background. You may want them on an angle or overlapped, but the decision of placing them must be done at this stage as you cannot change them later. The colour doesn't matter
Step 4 Highlight the newly made path shapes, right click and convert to image - do this to both path objects. Next, open the Layer Manager, and click on the mask icon for EACH path/image object. you have made. To apply a fancy mask of choice, open EasyPalette, Library, Masks and double click on a mask. This makes a mask image for your photograph to be placed within.
Step 5 Next, right click on the path/image object, select Properties, when the Object Properties box opens you will see Placeholder, put a tick in the box. If this is grayed out, then you haven't either converted your path to image or clicked the mask icon or both. When you have done this for each path image you have made, deselect.
Step 6 For the next action, you can do either of these: File, Share, Photo Project, or you can click the Share button on the Attirbute bar and choose Photo Project. Your image will be transported to the Photo Share - Photo Project window.
Step 7 In this next section, you will be customizing your template and adding pictures from your folders. Click on the placeholder (path image) to highlight, choose a picture and double click. This will be entered into the placeholder. A 'hand' icon will appear so you can manouvre the picture wthin the placeholder. Highlight other path/images you have made and add further photographs. You can also add or edit your text here if you wish.
Step 8 When you are happy with your photo selections, you can do several things. Print or Save to file. or just ok and return to PhotoImpact workspace. If you save the file it will be saved as a .ufp Ulead File for Photo Projects. These files will open in your PhotoImpact workspace. The original image will be in your workspace minus the photo additions, you can save this as a template for future use or delete it. If you opted to '0k' and return to PhotoImpact workspace, both the original and your photo project will be there. If you have the Photo Project in the workspace, you can alter text, enhance it, add dings, flowers, or whatever you choose before merging all. Add a little shadow to the placeholders, this will give them a nice effect. You cannot edit your placeholders however. There's templates you can play around with in the Library of your Easy Palette, or make your own as we did in this tutorial. I hope you've enjoyed this tutorial in making placeholders with PhotoImpact 12 and X3.
Example using PI Template
Examples using paths and photographs
Site created and maintained by Maureen Lavis Creative-Designs Terms of use for this tutorial are simple....What you create using this tutorial is yours to do with as you please. A link back to this tut is appreciated but is not a requirement. The tutorial itself along with the images herein are copyrighted to me and all rights are reserved. COPYRIGHT: Maureen ©Creative-Designs 2005-2008 Australia This document may not be translated, duplicated, redistributed or otherwise appropriated without permission.