Working with Images

In Swift Publisher you can either use the images supplied with the program (clipart), import an image from a graphics file, use pictures from your iPhoto library, or find and download images from the Internet.

Inserting Images into the Document

To insert an image supplied with Swift Publisher:

1. Open the Clipart Collection tab on the Clipart panel or select the Window > Clipart > Clipart Collection menu item.
2. Select an image category in the pop-up menu.
3. Click on a picture on the panel to get it inserted into the center of the document. Or drag the picture with the mouse into the document.

To insert an image from the iPhoto library:

1. Open the iPhoto tab on the Clipart panel or select the Window > Clipart > iPhoto Library menu item.
2. The thumbnails of your photos will be displayed on the tab. This may take some time if your iPhoto library contains many pictures.
3. Drag & drop a picture from the iPhoto tab into the document. Or click on it to have it inserted into the center of the document.

To insert an image from a file on the disk:

1. Choose the Insert > Image > From File menu item, or click the Insert Picture button on the toolbar.
2. In the Open dialog, navigate to the graphic file you want to open and click the Open button. Images in JPEG, PDF, EPS, GIF, PNG, TIFF and some other formats are supported.
3. The image will be inserted into the center of the document.

If you need to insert multiple images from a single folder, it's better to use the Custom Folder tab on the Clipart panel.

To find and download an image from the Internet:

1. Choose Search on the Internet... from the Insert > Image menu.
2. In the dialog, type the keywords that describe the image you need and click OK. Swift Publisher uses the Google image search engine.
3. The found images will be displayed on the Clipart panel as they are downloaded. Click on the image you need to insert it into the document window. Or drag & drop it into the document.

Drawing Lines and Rectangles

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

To draw multiple lines or rectangles in one go, double-click the drawing tool button. The drawing tool will stay active until you select another tool in the toolbar.

Inserting Art Text Images

The Art Text object is an image inserted from the Art Text application. Swift Publisher uses the Link Back technology to allow sending the image back into Art Text for modifying it.

To learn more on Link Back see the official web site: http://www.linkbackproject.org

To learn more on Art Text see the product web page: http://www.belightsoft.com/products/arttext

Making an Image from Text

To make an image from text, select a text box, open its context menu and choose Convert Text to Image.

Image Attributes

On the Image tab of Inspector you can set tint color for an image. Check/uncheck the Tint image checkbox to switch this option ON/OFF. Click the Color button to select color.

To change transparency of an image use the Opacity slider.

The Tile Image tool creates multiple down-scaled copies of the image in the rectangle which that image takes. This feature can be used for decorating your designs.
To tile an image, select it and choose Format > Image > Tile in the menu or tick Tile in Inspector. Use the Tile slide bar to adjust the number of tiles and their size.

Masking Images

To apply some interesting effects to your images, use the Mask image option from the Image tab of Inspector.

Select an image, check the Mask image checkbox and select a mask from the collection on the Image tab.

If you want to use some other picture as a mask click the Browse button and select an image file. Or simply drag an image into the mask preview box located to the left from the Browse button.

Cropping Images

From time to time you may need to use only a small part of an image. For instance, you have a photo, part of which you want to use in your design. In this case you will have to use the Crop tool.

To crop the image:

1. Select the image.
2. Click on the Crop button to activate the tool.
3. The resize handles will turn to red crop handles. The image frame will turn to the crop frame.
4. Move the crop handles to reshape the crop area.
5. Click on the Crop button to deactivate the tool.

Another crop tool opens when you double click on the image.

Note: if you work on Mac OS 10.4 or later and have installed the Image Tricks application for working with Core Image filters, make sure that the Crop tool is selected in the Edit Image window.

Core Image Filters

The Core Image filters are available for users of Mac OS 10.4 and later (you'll need to install Image Tricks for using them).

The set of filters is organized into filter categories (color, blur, etc.). Some filters have adjustable parameters.

The picture in the preview area immediately changes after selecting a filter or if you change parameters of the selected filter. Every time you select a new filter, you'll see the result applied to the original picture.

Some filters have an additional parameter. Effects that have such a parameter allow you to edit images with a mouse click directly on the image. The mouse click will be the base of distortion or other effect. When you move the mouse pointer on the image with the button pressed (the left button for a 2-button mouse), the image changes in real time (the reaction depends on the performance of your computer and of your graphic card).

The filters for which you can select such point, are marked in the filter list by the crosshair icon on the right. When such a filter is selected, the mouse pointer also looks like the crosshair.

Another type of filters is marked with a colored ball icon. This means that such a filter has color as a parameter. Selecting such filter will enable the Color button.

To access Core Image filters via the Edit Image window, install the free Image Tricks application. More information, related to Core Image filters, can be found on the Image Tricks Web page:
http://www.belightsoft.com/imagetricks

Using LinkBack vs. the Image Tricks Plug-In

The Image Tricks application provides more capabilities than its plug-in. You can edit images by using the stand-alone Image Tricks instead of the plug-in. In this case, you should copy an image from the Image Tricks into a Swift Publisher document through the clipboard.

Later, when you want to edit the image, double-click it. Image Tricks will open the image. When you finish modifying it, choose File > Save in the menu of Image Tricks to update the image in the document.