There are a lot of fantanstic new features in PhotoPaint X4, but one that I was hoping to see didn't show up. Or, maybe I'm just not getting it.
What I'd like to do is crop part of a photo to a predetermined size. For example, set width and depth to 3.09in by 2.78in, set the resolution to 300, draw the crop border around the area I want cropped at that size, and double click to do it. Then, when I import that photo into CorelDraw it is exactly 3.09in wide by 2.78in deep.
Right now, I'm going out to my long-in-the-tooth PhotoShop 5.0 LE to do that simple crop task, but I prefer doing everything from within PhotoPaint because I really love the cut-out feature (greatly enhanced in X4 by the way), which I use a lot.
Am I just not getting it, or is it not possible?
Thanks for any help anybody can give me.
Dave
Hi Foster,
Thanks for getting back so quickly.
Unfortunately, that's not what I'm looking to do. What I want is a finished crop exactly the size I need to fill a certain-size hole in CorelDraw. When I draw the crop box first, then set the size, two things happen that don't work for me. First, I don't know how much of the photo I can crop to based on the hole size I have to fill in CorelDraw. Second, when I set the size of the cropped area, the crop box shrinks or expands. If I drag the handles to resize it, the finished crop is anything but the original size I needed.
In PhotoShop, I set the exact size I need to fill the hole in CorelDraw, grab the crop tool, drag it around the area I want cropped, double-click, and that's that. When I import it into CorelDraw it fits perfectly.
Maybe there's something I'm still not getting.
First, thank you for hanging in there with me and trying these various ideas.
I changed my default to pixels in CorelDraw and checked my 3in by 2in box. It was 900px by 600px, as expected. I loaded the photo into PhotoPaint, selected the crop tool, put in dimensions of 900px by 600px, 300 dpi, then dragged the crop box out to the area I wanted cropped. Then saved it.
When I imported it into CorelDraw it placed as a 399px by 266px photo.
I just don't believe that PhotoPaint has a simple crop-to-dimension feature like the one I've been using in PhotoShop for years. I don't see how I can do it without resampling the cropped image in PhotoPaint to bring it up to the size I need. I compared the images using resample in PhotoPaint and by cropping the usual way in PhotoShop and they are virtually identical.
Maybe nobody has ever expressed the need for this feature in PhotoPaint, and maybe it would behoove me to suggest it for a future build. What do you think of that idea?
OK. I think we are getting somewhere.
I changed default to pixels in both CorelDraw and PhotoPaint.
I created a 900px by 600px box in CorelDraw (equivalent to a 3in by 2in box).
I loaded a photo, 1,280px by 960px @ 72dpi, into PhotoPaint. Set crop to 900px by 600px, 300 dpi, arranged the crop box in the photo (without resizing) to crop an area of 900x600px, and double clicked to crop. Resample info said it is now a 900x600px, 300 dpi photo. Imported into CorelDraw as a 900x600px .cpt photo at 300dpi. Fit the box perfectly.
Then I reloaded the original 1,280px by 960px @ 72dpi photo into PhotoPaint again, and set crop to 900px by 600px, 300 dpi. But this time I didn't accept the crop box the way it was. I dragged it smaller to crop the photo tighter. Double clicked. This time the pixel size changed to 358x238px at 300 dpi. Importing into CorelDraw as a .cpt photo brought in the smaller 358x238 photo at 300 dpi.
In PhotoShop, when I resize the crop box it remembers what size I wanted and resamples on the fly, I guess, to keep the cropped photo the size I set in the crop dimensions.
I'm betting that, short of resampling after the crop is finished, there is no way in PhotoPaint to crop and size on the fly to a preset dimension by dragging crop handles.
I'd be mighty pleased to be wrong, however.
The thing is, I really need this feature. I publish a newspaper and build ads, lots of ads, lots of photos (real estate, etc.) Realtors typically stand about a mile away from the house when they snap their pictures, so, I have to crop very liberally in order to get a full frame shot of the house for the ad. Been doing that all along with PhotoShop but, like I said, I'd prefer to be able to do everything in PhotoPaint without having to swap out to another program in the middle of production each time.
Foster,
What you said is true. But, it's not what I need to do. Fixing the crop size, and then using that size without dragging the handles doesn't allow me to crop out extraneous image from the photo. I have two non-variables: The finished size is etched in stone; and I need only a particular, certain portion of the photo. But, that portion must be exactly the finished size. It would be a lot easier to show than explain. I'll have a go at Jeff's idea, then report back here.
Hi Dave,
Another idea - yet again; I used this method this week for a team of hockey players that wanted uniform sized pics of each player for their web site.
1. Make a document the size/DPI you need in PP. Think of this as a template file.
2. Paste or import one pic you want to fit that space. It may exceed the Space. No prob, just scale it down until what you want to see from that pic is before you. When done, CTRL + DWN arrow to merge it to the background.
3. Clone, color correct, sharpen as required.
4. Export as file format you want, to a unique name. it's safe on disk.
5. Keep the file open, and go through steps 2-4 for next pics.
DJWick said: The finished size is etched in stone; and I need only a particular, certain portion of the photo. But, that portion must be exactly the finished size. It would be a lot easier to show than explain. I'll have a go at Jeff's idea, then report back here.
The finished size is etched in stone; and I need only a particular, certain portion of the photo. But, that portion must be exactly the finished size. It would be a lot easier to show than explain. I'll have a go at Jeff's idea, then report back here.
Hi D.
one goofy thing: go into CorelDRAW options and uncheck this box:
also - I use Alt+P and press the alt key on the right side of space bar with left hand thumb. That way I can launch powerclip with one hand only. Or, you can make any key press you like.
DJWick said: I'll have a go at Jeff's idea, then report back here. Dave
I'll have a go at Jeff's idea, then report back here.
Foster and Jeff,
Very interesting video. It looks like I'm going to have to spend some time on YouTube viewing some of your others.
OK. Jeff hit it right on the sweet spot. I was skeptical at first, because it seemed just so obvious. But, I went ahead and rebuilt one of my real estate ads using Jeff's method for cropping and sizing the photos. It did indeed go faster. I believe the photos are a better quality. I came up against some limitations because of my particular workflow situation, but I believe I've worked around them. I'll have to redo the ad again both ways, and count keystrokes and mouseclicks, but I believe Jeff's method has an edge, mainly because it's all within CorelDraw.
Here are some observations and comments.
1. I wondered if resizing imported photos directly in CorelDraw like any other object would reduce image quality. It didn't seem to. Properties info for the photo showed that it stayed at the original imported size, but adjusted the dpi, so it sized smaller (or larger) but kept the same number of pixels, hench quality.
2. I wondered if resizing without resampling would create too much unnecessary bloat in the file size. It didn't appear to. The original ad and the rebuilt ad were virtually the same file size, the rebuilt one being a micro smidgen smaller in file size.
3. I wondered if I could easily adjust brightness, etc., which was one of the tasks I accomplished as I sized the photo in PhotoShop. No problem. Either before doing the PowerClip, or afterward with a Control-click, I merely went up to Bitmap Adjustment Lab and went at it.
4. I wondered if I could reuse the same photo in a future issue's ad. Realtors advertise a home for several months, rotating their listings from issue to issue. The same home might be in one ad, skip an issue, be in the next issue, etc. All I had to do was select the PowerClipped photo, border and all, and save it with its unique name, ready to be used again.
Ummm ... I wonder if this same technique will work with my ROP grocery ad? Bunch of little grocery items, meat, etc., usually downloaded as EPSs or JPGs. I open them in PhotoPaint, cut them out of the background if necessary, then size them down. I see there is no Cutout Lab as part of CorelDraw's Bitmap menu, so I guess I'll have to go to PhotoPaint for that. If there is no cutout needed, I believe CorelDraw can do the whole job for me.
All in all, this has been a very productive learning cycle for me. Thanks a bunch guys.
Jeff Harrison said: one goofy thing: go into CorelDRAW options and uncheck this box: also - I use Alt+P and press the alt key on the right side of space bar with left hand thumb. That way I can launch powerclip with one hand only. Or, you can make any key press you like.
Thanks. Done.
Jeff Harrison said: 1. Make a document the size/DPI you need in PP. Think of this as a template file. 2. Paste or import one pic you want to fit that space. It may exceed the Space. No prob, just scale it down until what you want to see from that pic is before you. When done, CTRL + DWN arrow to merge it to the background. 3. clone, color correct, sharpen as required. 4. export as file format you want, to a unique name. it's safe on disk. 5. keep the file open, and go through steps 2-4 for next pics.
3. clone, color correct, sharpen as required.
4. export as file format you want, to a unique name. it's safe on disk.
5. keep the file open, and go through steps 2-4 for next pics.
Very clever. Thanks. I'll keep this technique as a backup in case something goes haywire with the PowerClip option.