Magix Photo Designer 7.0 Owners Manual 7 Eng

User Manual: magix Photo Designer - 7.0 - Owners Manual Free User Guide for Magix Photo Designer Software, Manual

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Manual

2 Copyright

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Copyright

This documentation is protected by law. All rights, especially the right

of duplication, circulation, and translation, are reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced in the form of copies,

microfilms or other processes, or transmitted into a language used

for machines, especially data processing machines, without the

express written consent of the publisher.

All copyrights reserved.

All other product names are trademarks of the corresponding

manufacturers. Errors in and changes to the contents as well as

program modifications reserved.

MAGIX and Goya are registered trademarks of MAGIX AG.

Other mentioned product names may be registered trademarks of the

respective manufacturer.

Copyright © MAGIX AG, 2002 - 2010. All rights reserved.

Introduction 3

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Introduction

MAGIX Photo Designer 7 is an image editing application, which helps

you handle all necessary photo editing tasks quickly and easily.

Import all common file formats or scan directly. The integrated

browser enables convenient searching for image files on your PC.

Images can be discreetly improved, retouched, distorted or

transformed into an oil painting. The Task Assistant helps you with

practical step-by-step user guidance.

Specific image sections, such as people, can be removed from the

image for moving or editing with effects. If you want to add them to

the image again, they can be semi-transparent, from covering to

invisible. You can assign various modes for combining these objects

with the main image.

All effects/filters can be applied either to the main image or the object

or even selectively with the aid of a brush.

At the end, the images can be printed flexibly or saved optimized and

Internet-ready.

4 Support

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Support

If you experience any problems with your software, please get in

touch with our support team:

Support website: http://support.magix.net

This website will lead you to the MAGIX user service page, which,

among other things, contains the following free offers:

 FAQs (frequently asked questions) and general tricks and tips. In

most cases you’ll find the solution to your problem here. If not, use

the Email support form:

 E-mail support form. Via the special form you inform our support

staff about your system. This information is used to solve your

problems quickly and competently. Simply fill out and send with a

mouse-click!

 Support forum: You are not alone. Perhaps other users had a similar

problem and can help you solve yours. Our support staff are also

regular contributors.

 Download section: Updates, improvements and patches are likewise

offered free of charge via download Many problems you may

experience are well-known to us, and which can be solved by

downloading the latest patch. Besides patches, there are also

wizards for checking and optimizing your system

 Links: In the links list you will find the contact addresses of all the

most important hardware manufacturers.

You can also reach our support team by telephone:

UK: 0905 118 0888 (25p/min)

(open Monday to Friday 9:00 - 16:00 GMT)

Denmark: 077345695

(open Monday to Friday 10:00 - 17:00 CET)

Finland: 0942597819

(open Monday to Friday 10:00 - 17:00 CET)

Norway: 021543223

(open Monday to Friday 10:00 - 17:00 CET)

Sweden: 0852507027

(open Monday to Friday 10:00 - 17:00 CET)

Support 5

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Email: info@magix.net

Please have the following information at hand:

 Program version

 Configuration details (operating system, processor, memory, hard

drive...)

 Sound card configuration (type, driver)

 Information regarding other audio software installed

6 Table of Contents

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Table of Contents

Copyright 2

Introduction 3

Support 4

Brief Description 9

Object tool setting 9

Draw/Retouch with the brush 11

Effects 11

Mask 11

Objects 12

Tutorial 12

Program interface 13

Quick image optimization and multiple picture editing 17

Detailed image editing 20

Effects & Filters 31

Change image format 35

Working with the Browser 39

The Folder View 40

The File List 41

The Status Bar 44

Working with Images 45

Show images 45

Create, load and save pictures 46

Import Images 47

Print Images 48

Create Panorama Pictures 50

Deform pictures 51

Working with the Mask 53

Select all 53

Remove mask 53

Invert mask 53

Create mask from object 53

Mask > Expand/Reduce selection 54

Vignette 54

Loading/saving the mask 54

Table of Contents 7

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The Mask Tools 54

Working with Objects 56

Creating Objects 56

Adjust shape 56

Vignette 57

Apply Shadow 57

Include/include all 57

Object order 57

Copy objects from different images and programs 58

The Object Manager 58

Working with Text Objects 61

Text effects 62

Working with Batch Processing 63

Input 63

Actions 63

Output 64

Effects 65

Plugin Filters 66

Paint 67

Color Filters 67

Art Filters 70

Focusing Filters 71

Other Filters 71

Stylising Filters 72

Noise Filters 73

Coarsening Filters 74

Distortion Filters 74

Video Filters 76

Soften Filters 76

The Toolbars 78

Standard 78

Effect bar 79

Zoom 80

Dialog bar 80

1 Click 80

Effects 81

Toolbar 82

The tool settings 85

The mask tools settings 85

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The Gradient Tool settings 87

The brush/pen tool settings 88

Configuration 92

Monitor Gamma 92

Undo/Redo 92

Slideshow 92

Other 93

If you still have questions... 94

Task Assistant 94

PDF manual 94

Program Help 94

MAGIX News Center 95

Index 96

Brief Description 9

Brief Description

This section is a brief introduction to the functions of MAGIX Photo

Designer 7. The following paragraphs briefly describe the basic

functions, which will be described in more detail later on.

Object tool setting

Object Mode contains the following tool settings:

Move

An object can be moved at any time. When placed over an

object, the mouse curser turns into a double arrow.

Scale

By scaling an object, you can change its size. To do so, you

can pull on the edges or sides of the object selection frame

using your mouse.

If the "Keep aspect ratio" button is active, the ratio between

height and width will remain constant.

Rotate

By grabbing and pulling on its corners, an object can be

rotated.

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In addition, there are buttons for quick access to often-used angles

of rotation:

Rotate 90° to the left

Rotate 90° to the right

Rotate 180° (upside down)

Rotate numerically

10 Brief Description

To rotate the selected object a certain number of degrees, enter the

angle in the corresponding field and click on the button indicating the

direction of the rotation.

Tilt

By grabbing and pulling on its corners and edges, an object can

be tilted.

Distortion

By grabbing and pulling on its corners and edges, an object can

be distorted into any rectangular form.

3D distortions

By grabbing and pulling on its corners and edges, an object can

be distorted in perspective. In contrast to normal distortion, the

rules of representation in 3D perspective are respected.

Mirror

This lets you mirror the object horizontally and/or vertically.

Horizontal mirroring exchanges left for right.

Vertical mirroring exchanges the top and bottom.

Arrange

If you have many overlapping objects whose order you would like to

change, use these buttons:

Send object one layer to back

Send object one layer to front

See also Working with objects (on page 56)

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Brief Description 11

Draw/Retouch with the brush

Using the paintbrush or pencil tools you can draw or

retouch a picture.

To do this, select the corresponding tool and apply the

selected colour with the left mouse key.

With the tool parameters found at the top you can either select

a preset brush or create a customised brush from the palette

by selecting a tip and other parameters.

There are various further paintbrush tools for special

retouching work such as blurring, sharpening or red-

eye removal.

With the fill tool you can quickly fill a selected area or a

specific colour in the image with the set colour.

Effects

For retouching, please select an effect from the "Effects"

menu or from the Effects browser.

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The effects window with the corresponding effect settings is

displayed on the right. The effect is applied to the entire image, to a

single object or to any mask selection. You can change all effect

settings and immediately view the result. The selection mask can be

changed at any time, and you can even "paint in" all effects with a

brush.

An effect can partially affect the image if you increase its

transparency at the top of the effects dialog. This is where you can

combine the effect with the image in different ways in combine mode.

If you are satisfied with the changes, simply close the effects settings

dialog and the effect will be permanently applied to the image.

Mask

A mask can placed over the main image, which protects non-masked

areas from changes or can be used to create objects. Five different

masking options are available: Box mask, circular mask, lasso mask,

magic wand, and mask creation using a pencil. You can use the

12 Tutorial

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pencil mask to create areas with soft edges (vignettes). The magic

wand is useful for "extracting" certain image elements from the

background. If one of the mask modes is active, the tool settings will

display the suitable configuration options for each respective mode.

Objects

MAGIX Photo Designer 7 allows you to work with objects. A mask is

used to select and create a copy of an area that you can move freely

over the image. The copy can be reshaped and edited using different

colours and effects.

Tutorial

MAGIX Photo Designer 7 is a high-quality image processing software

package which is directly integrated into MAGIX photo and video

software:

First of all, this tutorial will introduce you to the software interface of

MAGIX Photo Designer 7 and demonstrate the practical functions of

MAGIX Photo Designer 7 using suitable examples on the following

pages. The helpful Task Assistant will appear now and then,

imparting useful tidbits of information where it can.

You'll find all of the described functions in the Tasks menu or via the

"1-click" button which starts the Task Assistant. The layout of our

tutorial corresponds to the main points found there:

Tutorial 13

Program interface

MAGIX Photo Designer 7 is a pixel-based image processing program

that masters all basic photo operations and has a number of directly

applicable effects, filters and distorters for use as presets for your

photos.

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1. Menu bar

2. Toolbar

3. Toolbar + Option horizontal

4. Object Manager

5. Filmstrip view

6. Workspace (in the picture with the selected mask)

14 Tutorial

General usage tips

1. Most functions are usually only selectable and usable once a

picture has been loaded via the menu bar: "File" > "Open".

So that you always open the correct picture, we recommend

using the picture browser.

It searches through your folders and automatically shows each photo

in a thumbnail view including each title and filesize. Double-clicking

on a picture is enough to open it. Furthermore, you can delete, sort

or print directly from the picture browser of MAGIX Photo Designer 7.

2. Use the mouse wheel to increase or reduce the size of the view of

the picture you opened.

3. Via "Window" in the menu bar you can hide or show the symbol

bars and options, the Object Manager, the Effects Browser or the

filmstrip view. This way you can create the working environment that

suits you best.

4. When saving a

picture either a copy

is created or the

original is overwritten

(see screenshot): Save

picture via the menu

list: "File" > "Save" or

the Save symbol in

the toolbar.

5. You can also choose to save pictures for the Internet, which results

in them being compressed. Compression settings can be changed in

the save dialog. Select "File" > "Save for Internet" from the menu.

Object Manager

In the screenshot graphic of the program interface you can see the

Object Manager (4) to the right, which sorts the various objects or

layers of a picture. You always work with the object selected there.

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Tutorial 15

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Creating objects

You can create objects by opening a mask. In the toolbar (3 vertical)

you'll find two tools for this purpose: the square mask and the lasso

mask for masks that are drawn freehand.

You can transform a mask into an object simply by right-clicking on

it. In the context menu that appears you'll find the "Object from

mask" option.

Another way to do this is via the keyboard shortcut for copying and

inserting: Ctrl + C and then Ctrl + V.

Scale objects

You can scale objects proportionally by holding down the Shift key

while simultaneously stretching your picture in or out. For this to

work, the object's orange-coloured handles have to be active.

Toolbar

Tip: Use the toolbar as a quick access area for all the most important

tools, as soon as you're familiar enough with them all. Otherwise

almost every option can be found under "1-click" or the "Tasks"

menu anyway. These are always ordered in the most frequently used

combinations and presets alongside the Task Assistant, which

explains everything step by step.

16 Tutorial

Select, move, scale or rotate objects.

Clip or mask – Tool for creating objects & Lasso tool – For

selecting freehand shapes & Mask with brush – Creates a

freehand graphics layer

Magic wand – For selecting sections of a colour

Cut – For cutting a picture by hand

Level horizon

Text editing with comprehensive options for text layout

Red eye removal

Soft-focus effect & Sharpen

Marking/Cloning

Fill tool – Fills masks with the selected colour from the colour

field

Colour gradient (fade out borders and design backgrounds)

Brush for applying effects onto selected areas & Colour pen

for drawing freehand or drawing lines

Colour dropper (select colours on the screen and the colour

appears in the colour field)

Magnifying glass – For zooming in and out and examining

each and every pixel (should you wish to do so).

Colour field – Here you can select a colour with which to

paint

Smart, practical and can be used straight away

MAGIX Photo Designer 7 has two excellent tools that really separate

it from the rest of the image processing software out there. Even in

earlier versions MAGIX Photo Designer 7 had the versatile "Effects

Browser" and "Liquid colours" tools for freely designing and

modelling your photos. Both of these applications can be opened

from the menu bar. Both have been given extra functions and

enhanced in the latest version.

The Effects Browser mentioned can be opened via the "FX"

menu. There are a number of effects, filters and other presets

in it that can be applied to your picture with a single click.

In the Effects Browser to the bottom of the screen you have all the

picture effects at a glance and don't have to go searching for from

within various other tools. If you select one of the options, an

Assistant will open, which explains the individuals steps in detail.

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Tutorial 17

So as not to be experimenting

around on the picture without

having a clue what you're doing,

you can work with a preview.

The preview can be opened by

clicking on the red button in the

picture.

It shows you what effect applying this particular action to your photo

will have. To lock the effect, simply click on "Apply".

Use this button on the toolbar to open the "Liquid Colours

tool" dialog. This is where the fun starts:

With the move, grow, shrink, dent, bump, wave & explode options

you can really make some wild distortions on your pictures. With

advanced options you can set the direction and strength of the

distortion. This can all be done using your mouse. Really fun and

very, very easy.

The following pages describe various operations in MAGIX Photo

Designer 7, from quick image optimization to individual picture

creation – similar to the selection of options from the Task Assistant.

On the next page we start with "Quick image optimization" and

explain "Batch-processing".

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Quick image optimization and multiple picture

editing

Logically enough, quick picture optimization can also be explained

quickly. There are four options in the Tasks menu for "quick image

optimization":

 Removing red eyes that appear when taking photos with a flash,

regardless whether photographed in analogue or digital.

 Optimizing lighting to get the best colour value out of over and

underexposed photos.

 Optimizing picture colour, either to remove colour faults or add

colour effects by increasing or decreasing the "colour saturation".

 Correcting picture sharpness to help you get more out of shaky

recordings by "sharpening" transitions.

18 Tutorial

In the example...

In every one of these use-cases

there's a step-by-step explanation

which can be supplemented if

required with brushes or other

suitable tools at different strengths

and using varying painting shapes.

A small, soft brush is preset as the

red-eye removal tool, which prevents

painting over the edges, which would

smudge the white of eyes.

Sometimes the tool sizes provided

have to be adjusted to your

templates.

Note: Red-eye distortion can be fixed because the tool removes all

the red parts from the selected color spectrum. For this reason, you

can turn really bad red-eye into the deepest black, if you like.

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Tutorial 19

Editing multiple pictures at a time or "batch processing"

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Do you have lots of pictures to which you want to apply the same

change, like, picture size, 90° rotation, brightness & contrast

adjustment or increase picture sharpness. These are the typical areas

of application for so-called "batch processing". In MAGIX Photo

Designer 7 you'll find the point "Batch processing" in the "File" menu.

The following example demonstrates the usage of batch processing

in scaling, i.e. changing the picture size. You start by selecting

pictures using the dialog window of the batch processing function

and clicking on the "Add picture" or "Add folder" buttons.

Tip: If you use the thumbnail view of your browser, it's easier to find

the pictures you want.

20 Tutorial

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Select "Scale" from the "Actions" dropdown menu to change the

picture size. In "Parameters" you can fine-tune your input. In our

example, we enter the desired picture size. Make sure that the

checkbox in the "Aspect ratio" field is ticked. Then enter only one

value, either the length or the width.

Now select the file type and the target folder where you want to store

your picture after batch processing. Click "Start". Your pictures will

then be converted at lighting speed and saved to the target folder.

Detailed image editing

With "Tasks" you'll find six practical options for editing photos in

detail in the Task Assistant:

 Create panorama picture – We show you how to make a panorama

picture from multiple source photos.

 Crop person/object – cut, move around and effectively insert

elsewhere.

 Design picture title – Text design with individual layouts. Carve

lettering into your photos!

 Brighten areas – because some pictures need a bit more light to

brighten up dark corners.

 Remove scratches and stains – give your analogue pictures a

chance: Scan them in first, then restore them in style.

 Clone – Remove annoying objects from a picture simply by moving

the mouse over the affected pixels and copying a different section

(fantastic for retouching blemishes on skin).

Tutorial 21

Panorama

It's no coincidence that panorama shots of vast uninhabited

expanses and grandeur evoke our most romantic and happiest

memories of utopian sunsets and daring climbing adventures from

previous holidays.

MAGIX Photo Designer 7 provides all the romantics and hobby

photographers with an enormously able tool for creating personal

panorama pictures. You will, of course, need several interconnecting

photos.

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Tip: You should only take photographs in landscape or portrait

format. Make sure the photos are slightly overlapping when taking the

shots. In the program you can move the pictures around horizontally

or vertically, letting you position the identical picture portions on top

of one another. Keep an eye on the lighting and adjust the exposure

time according to the direction. Stay on one spot and try to move as

little as possible when taking the other shots for your panorama

picture.

22 Tutorial

Panorama: This is how you do it!

You can open the panorama picture creation dialog either via "File >

Panorama" or by using "Tasks > Create panorama pictures".

All of the pictures that are already open in MAGIX Photo Designer 7

are automatically displayed in the browser of the new dialog window.

From there you can use the mouse to drag them one after the other

into the preview list.

First sort out the order, then take care of the transitions.

You can horizontally and vertically define every transition individually.

To do so, you should always select the correct current overlap, for

example, [1]<->[2], [2]<->[3], then all you have to do is move around

the faders. That's it.

Tip: If you are a user of MAGIX Photo & Videoshow deluxe, why not

just use this ideas for your slideshow: Add a camera movement to

your panorama picture in MAGIX Story Maker.

Crop person or object

With the lasso you can catch runaway horses just like a cowboy or

fish out objects or people from photos. Just use the lasso tool from

MAGIX Photo Designer 7, it's perfectly suited to it. You can instantly

crop any mask you like and then insert them into other photos.

Note: A "mask" in MAGIX Photo Designer 7 refers to the clipping of a

picture that has been selected for the original. Clippings can be

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Tutorial 23

created in different ways, for example, with the mask tool that always

drags up a quadratic shape and is therefore called a "Rectangle

mask".

Object from mask

To be able to crop the "mask" as an "object", you have to right-click

on the mask and select "Object from mask" in the context menu

(alternately via "Object > Create > From mask"). The object now has

orange handles and can be moved around with the mouse. It is now

a layer on the picture. All object layers are visible and selectable in

the Object Manager.

Insert object and set edge blur

You can select an object using the mouse and insert it elsewhere.

For example: Cut using the key combination Ctrl+X and Insert into a

different picture with Ctrl+V. An inserted cropped object can be made

less obvious by using a vignette. A vignette creates blurring at the

periphery of the picture, i.e. a color gradient around the object. You

can freely specify the pixel magnitude of this gradient. You'll find the

vignette in the menu bar under "Object" > "Vignette". Your object has

to be selected in order to be able to use the vignette.

Freehand

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When you select "Crop object/person" using the lasso tool via the

Task Assistant, you create a freehand mask.

Crop the object as precisely as possible by using the tool

options of the lasso. You can insert or remove sections

after selecting the freehand object.

So, if you ventured outside the desired object border, the protruding

part can be pinpointed and removed from the object mask.

24 Tutorial

Photo 1 Photo 2 Photo 3

Step 1: Photo 1: Here, a photograph was taken of the room and we

see that the bright light from the window has caused the rest of the

picture to be overexposed.

Step 2: Photo 2 was taken with a small lens aperture for less light so

that the interior is in complete darkness, but the window, as

expected, is less lit and what's outside can be seen clearly.

Step 3: The photo montage in picture 3 involves the window from

photo 2 being cropped as an object using the lasso tool. Then the

object is cut out and inserted into photo 1.

Step 4: By double-clicking on the object, handles will appear to it

sides, which can then be used to scale the object, that is, you can

move it around precisely and rotate, stretch or tilt it any way you like.

Tips for transforming objects

To transform objects, you have to open the tool shown here

for selecting and manipulating objects.

If you select an object on the workspace, orange-colored handles will

appear to its side.

You can now access a large amount of tool options:

Hint: If you can't see the tool options, you will have to make them

visible by selecting "Tool options" from the "Window" menu.

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Tutorial 25

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If you move the mouse over the individual symbols, a "tooltip" will tell

you what the option can be used for. Why not simply try a few of

them out? You'll probably find the options for perspective distortion

quite interesting, but you shouldn't miss the mirroring and rotating

options either. You can also use the lock to scale pictures

proportionally or block distortions being made.

You can change the order of the objects by using the last two

buttons on the option list.

Multiple objects on the workspace

Objects can also be selected by right-clicking the mouse in the

context menu. This means: if, for example, the background and two

additional objects cover one another on the workspace, then all three

layers will be shown in the context menu and can be opened from

there. This is a practical function if you're in danger of getting lost

among the jungle of objects in a photo montage.

Add name

Before starting, you should give your objects names in the Object

Manager, otherwise the individual layers cannot be differentiated from

one another. They can be renamed by right-clicking on the object in

the Object Manager.

Tip: This is how to create shadowing around objects: Select Object >

Add shadows from the menu list.

26 Tutorial

Design title of picture

Those of you who enjoy creating invitation cards will most likely also

enjoy using the text option of MAGIX Photo Designer 7. Start the title

design either using the Task Assistant or using the text tool.

Start wherever you like, the text can always be moved around as a

separate object later on. (Want to find object? – Always via the Object

Manager – see red marking)

Tip: When you open the text option using the text tool from the

toolbar, you can experiment around with shadow as well. Use

shadow with a similar colour to get smooth, unfrayed borders. Try out

the different settings for letter shadowing, e.g. edge blur, distance

and transparency.

Once you've

confirmed the text

object (see figure

below), the text will

become a mask and

can be moved

around like an object.

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Tutorial 27

After double-clicking you can scale, rotate or tilt. When masked, the

text objects can also be deleted: simply press the Del key.

Reshape texts

Among the new feature is an option for distorting the perspective of

the text. After creating and confirming a text object, it is masked on

top of the picture background. Double-clicking or using the object

transformation tool creates an object frame with orange-coloured

handles that surround the text object.

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Select the symbol shown here from the tool options for

perspective distortion. Then grab one of the small orange

handles in the corner of the object frame using your mouse

and drag it in or out, the result can be seen in the picture.

28 Tutorial

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Selectively brighten areas

Brightening things up is all well and good, but what do you do when

only specific areas on the picture are in the dark, picture borders in

particular.

The solution is simple: You can selectively brighten an area. In the

example below, the photographer wanted to catch the dusky

atmosphere of the beach, but the back border portion of the photo

turned out too dark. The light ratios weren't precise enough, so more

targeted help was needed. All in all, the picture was brightened up a

little, however, a bit too strongly on the buildings and trees in the

background.

This is how it was done:

Select "Detailed image editing > Brighten areas".

Step 1: Choose the appropriate tool size.

Step 2: Move the brightness, contrast or gamma faders to get the

look you want.

Step 3: Now mark the areas that you wish to brighten using the tool.

The effect can be noticed immediately.

Tutorial 29

Step 4: Do some fine-tuning using the brightness, contrast and

gamma faders until you have the desired result. If the changes are

not precise enough, change the size of the tool.

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This way you'll be able to see the interior much more clearly. Here we

see the outside of a tavern. You can't see any of the inside of the

tavern in the photo. Just select the windows and brighten up the

scene as described previously.

Isn't it amazing how much image information that could still be

retrieved?! In the example, brightness and contrast were first applied

to the entire motif and then the windows and doors were polished

with the paintbrush and "brightness" effect.

30 Tutorial

Removing scratches and stains

The Task Assistant provides you with a tool for retouching and

applying soft-focus to picture errors. We also recommend three tools

from the preset toolbar which can be used to restore: the brush,

colour-picker and colour gradient.

With the colour picker you can select a colour from anywhere on the

screen. If you now use the brush to paint, it will apply this exact

colour. This way you can skilfully paint over stains, spots, blisters and

other sources of irritation.

Tip: Use the magnifying glass for detailed tasks like this and use a

high zoom factor to catch exactly the colour you want and paint over

single pixels that you want to get rid of.

Cloning

To match our previous topic, "Remove scratches and stains", we'll

now have a look at an alternative editing option for retouching

pictures – this can be found in your Task Assistant under "Detailed

editing" > "Cloning".

Here you can also get rid of larger distortions. If you want to clone

something, you'll need the stamp tool. A usable reference point is

required for cloning. In the example below, the problem is that it

looks like there's a palm tree balancing on top of the guy's head. This

needs to be erased. The sky in the background is perfectly suited as

a reference point. In the end, there'll be two pieces of sky: the original

and the clone covering the palm tree. And the best thing about it is

that you'd never know there was one there in the first place.

Tip: You can use this to retouch really small defects, for example,

blemishes on skin. Select a reference point from the immediate

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Tutorial 31

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surroundings of the defect. Zoom into the picture and precisely paint

over the distorted points.

This is how it works:

 Select "Effects" > "Clone"

 Select a reference point with the mouse for cloning

 Then click on the object you wish to retouch. You should now have

two points selected at a specific distance from one another.

 You can now move the mouse over the object you wish to remove

while holding down the mouse button. Here, the pixels from your first

reference point are applied to where your mouse goes.

Effects & Filters

MAGIX Photo Designer 7 has an Effects Browser that quickly guides

you to where you want to go and provides playful tools like "Liquid

colour" and "Transform into painting". You've experienced some of

them already in the introduction.

Under the menu point "Individual picture creation" you can access

these special MAGIX Photo Designer 7 features and then employ the

help of the Task Assistant to assist you in implementing them

professionally. The options in this section are exciting, new and easy-

to-use.

In the menu of the Task Assistant you'll find four practical options for

uniquely and creatively transforming your pictures:

 Artistic distortion – With "Liquid colour" you can conjure up bizarre

pictures and shapes from your motifs.

 Transform into painting – Learn to appreciate the finer side of image

processing with the effects brush for user-defined size, direction,

transparency, colour and paper structure. The modern way to

"Modern Art".

 The rotation effect lets you see the other side of your pictures!

 Emboss – Add structure and stress to your pictures with the light

source, reflection, depth and smoothing options, which help you

emboss a material character into them.

32 Tutorial

Surgery without artistic malpractice

Cheeky fun effects are the results of artistic distortion. Whether it's

bumps or explosions, your photos better be prepared for some

heavy-handed action and one or two surprises. Use the "Reset"

button to revert your photo back to its original state. With "Delete"

you can repair the bumps and explosions precisely the way you want.

Practical for correcting small mistakes here and there, and not the

entire work.

Tip: Use the forward and back arrows to undo or redo each and

every step you take and fix mistakes without having to start from the

start.

Turn new into old – Transform photos into paintings

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Tutorial 33

There's a very comprehensive feature to be found in > Paintings. This

is because it consists of a dialog window with diverse presets, which

pictorially change the optics of your motif: there are various materials

like pastels, oils or crayons, various structures like leather, coarse

wallpaper or canvas. If you select one of these settings, it will be

applied to your entire picture as an effect. But you can also use >

"Paint" to apply the effect to a specific area.

Our favourite effect: Newspaper print!

Emboss

The previously colourful picture of an

old Cuban car has been decolorized

and stylised using "Newspaper print"

("Transform into painting").

The depth of the picture was then

changed using the "Emboss" tool.

This transforms the photo into an eye-catching screen print. With

"Emboss" you can apply extreme filters to your pictures, quite original

if you like strong picture effects.

To finish, shadowy lettering was positioned in bright red and then

rotated, tilted and distorted.

Colour with colour gradient

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Finally, we'll take a look at colour gradients in the Effects and Filters

section. MAGIX Photo Designer 7 has a number of spectacular colour

combinations which let you create your own designs in no time. It's

especially suited to creating personalised CD covers or for colouring

less successful border gradients. One example would be a sky that is

totally white as a result of overexposure. A blue colour gradient can

colour in the sky later on.

You can use the colour gradient tool in MAGIX Photo

Designer 7 to select various preset gradients. The options

can be found in the tool options list. We recommend using

"Glow 2", "Transparent Blue" or "Alpha Blue" for the sky, all

of which can be seen in the example.

34 Tutorial

Select "linear" if you want to add colour along a line or at the picture

border. Additional modes are quadratic, square, etc., which can be

used to design or just edit graphics in general.

To define your own gradients, click on the option field of the colour

gradients and open the Gradient Editor. Once there, click on "Edit"

and create your own colour combinations for unique colour gradients.

To apply the gradient, select a starting point with the mouse from

which the gradient should start and then drag the gradient across the

picture (by clicking and holding down the mouse button).

The gradient is applied to the entire breadth, unless you previously

added a mask to the picture, which woulud result in the colour

gradient only being applied to the mask.

Colour gradient editor

In the colour gradient editor you can exactly specify the start and end

points of your colour gradient and even improve the individual colours

of each section.

First, you should define the transparency of your colour gradient, for

the starting point and end point as well. This is decisive as not every

gradient should cover an entire picture. For this reason the gradient

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Tutorial 35

should start 100% transparent. This can be implemented effectively

using the preset gradients with the description "Glow".

Change image format

The Task Assistant provides you with five options under the "Change

picture format" menu point: Rotate picture, mirror picture, cut picture,

scale picture and change aspect ratio. The first three options are so

easy that they don't need any further description at this point.

To differentiate between "Scale picture" and "Change aspect ratio"

you should use the following example.

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To the left you can

see the sample

picture with its

original aspect ratio

of 4:3. The photo

has 1600 x 1200

pixels in the original.

When scaling a

picture, you change

the actual picture

size and the number

of pixels with it. In

the example just

one parameter was

changed: the height.

36 Tutorial

The picture's height

has been stretched.

If you keep the aspect ratio by checking the corresponding box, the

height and width are changed proportionately to one another. To stay

with the same example, reducing the height to 900 pixels would

result in the width being reduced to 1200 pixels.

If, on the other hand, you change the page size, your side areas of

the picture will be cut, thereby changing the page ratio and the size

of the working area. There are two options here:

Either you set the page size as user-defined and specify the width

times the height or you select a standard format.

Picture 1: In the first case, the user-defined variation, you can enter

any picture size you like (3) and specify the exact clipping of your

picture by specifying the placement (2): centered, top left, top right,

top center, ... bottom and so on.

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Tutorial 37

In our example, the

result remains the

same. The borders of

the picture are cut off

at the top and

bottom. A 16:9

format was created.

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Picture 2: In the second example when selecting a standard format

(3): quadratic 1:1, landscape 3:2, 4:3, 16:9 or end-wise 2:3, 3:4,

9:16, you save having to calculate the size and can optimize the

picture by setting the size to the standard values. You can specify the

placement just like in the first example (2). Set the tick (4) to remove

the undesired picture areas.

Note: 16:9 is today's normal format for widescreen TV screens. The

corresponding image processing is sensible if you want to create

matching DVD menu background pictures for slideshows in 16:9

format.

38 Tutorial

www.magix.com

Screenshot function

MAGIX Photo Designer 7 has a nifty screenshot function which can

be started via > "File" > "Screenshot".

You can select from a number of input options in the dialog window

to take a photograph either of the entire screen, the active window or

the content of the window. It's possible to use the mouse pointer for

this.

Set a "hotkey". The hotkey is a key which can be used to make

screenshots. Put a tick beside "Repeat" to take multiple screenshots

one after the other.

You can save the whole thing in one place and in the file format of

your choice. Select a format from the dialog window and set the

storage area.

Working with the Browser 39

Working with the Browser

Exactly as in Windows Explorer, you can navigate files with the help

of a file tree system in MAGIX Photo Designer 7. Using thumbnails,

you can organise, open, edit, and print images or add a description,

organise into albums, and view photos as a slide show.

With regular use, large image quantities can be organised easily and

efficiently.

Open the browser by clicking on the browser button in the

effects bar (on page 78).

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40 Working with the Browser

The Folder View

Folder

By selecting the folder tab, the computer file system can be viewed in

the "tree" format. The contents of a marked folder are displayed in

the file list.

You can use this button to go

one level up

in the browser.

With this button you can reload the file list.

Album

Select the album tab to see all existing albums. Albums can also be

organised in specific hierarchies.

Create New Album: By selecting "New Album", you create a

new album in the current directory which remains in rename

mode until it is assigned a new name.

Create New Folder: To organise albums in specific hierarchies,

you can create sub-files here. This way you can, for example,

place albums with similar themes into one folder.

Add Image(s) to Album: When an album is selected, click on

"Add" and the "select images..." dialog opens. Here you can

drag & drop files or click on "add" or "add all" to add an image.

To verify, click "OK"

Delete and Rename Folder and Album: After right-clicking on an

album or folder, a pop-up menu appears where you can delete or

rename the album or folder.

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Working with the Browser 41

The File List

The right side of the browser window contains the file list, detailing

the contents of the currently marked folder or album.

Views

Images (and other files) can be displayed in 5 different views.

Thumbnails: Images are displayed as miniatures, other files are

displayed as symbols.

Other views include:

 Tiles

 Icons

 List

 Details

The details list offers up to 6 file information columns (file name, size,

type, date last changed, properties, and description).

Sorting a column is achieved by clicking on the column title. A further

click reverses the sequence of items. Columns can be hidden or

displayed in the column sub-menu.

Selecting Images

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 Select a file with left mouse click.

 Select a file area by selecting further images while holding down the

<Shift> key.

 Select any files by selecting while holding down the <Ctrl> key.

Search photos

The search function is a great assistance in finding photos.

Enter any part of the name of the file you are looking for in the "File

name" field. The search will produce a list of matching images shown

in thumbnail format.

42 Working with the Browser

If you are working in album mode, you can insert the search results

into the Selected photos field and add to the current album by

pressing OK.

This function can be opened directly, without having to first open the

browser, by selecting the "Search file" menu.

Open

Open the marked image for editing in MAGIX Photo Designer 7

using the "Open" button or by double-clicking a file.

Print

The "Print several images (on page 49)" window opens when

you press "Print".

All selected images are located in the miniature list and can then be

assigned for printing.

Add to current album

Use "Add to current album" to add selected images to the active

album, by opening the folder and album views and marking one or

more images.

Slideshow

In "Slideshow", you pictures can be played back in a

straightforward slideshow.

All ticked pictures will be included in the slideshow. If you remove all

ticks by clicking once on an empty space in the list, all photos

located in the file/album will be included in the slideshow

Using the previous/next buttons you can skip or go back to earlier

pictures during the slideshow.

The slideshow configurations can be set under "File menu > General

settings " on the "Slideshow (on page 92)" tab.

Copy, Paste, Copy to..., Move to..., Delete and Rename Files

By pressing "Copy" in the pop-up menu, the marked files are copied

to the clipboard. "Paste" inserts files from the clipboard into the

folder/album.

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Working with the Browser 43

Buttons for "Copy to...", "Move to...", "Delete"

and "Rename"

If you select "Move to..." or "Copy to..." a dialog window appears for

the selection of the target folder. Confirm with OK and the selected

files are moved to the target folder and deleted from the output

folder. "Copy to..." places a copy of the files into the target folder.

"Delete..." moves the selected files in the file view into the waste

paper basket (after confirmation). In the album view, the files from the

album are deleted, but remain on the data medium. "Rename..."

allows a new file name to be assigned.

"Rename" is only available for selection if one file is selected. You can

then assign a new file name.

Rename Sequence

If several files are marked, they can be renamed as a unified

sequence.

In the "rename sequence" window, you can specify a template for the

new file names. All occurrences of the # symbol are replaced by

sequential numbering whose initial value can likewise be set. When

no # symbol is displayed, the numbering is added to the end of the

new name. The file extensions remain.

Description

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All files (images, other files, folders) can have their own description

added to them. Click with the right mouse button on a file and select

"description...", and a text window opens displaying the current

description text for editing.

The description belonging to a file is indicated in the browser status

bar, in the file tool tip, and in the detail view of the description

column.

Note: The descriptions are stored in the descript.ion file.

This format can be used by other programs (some file managers and

some image management programs). The descriptions can be read

and edited in these programs.

As long as you copy, shift or rename files in the MAGIX Photo

Designer 7 browser, the file descriptions remain. With file operations

44 Working with the Browser

in Windows Explorer or other programs that do not recognize the

description files, the descriptions are unfortunately lost.

JPEG Transformations

The JPEG format compresses an image to a smaller size, with some

reduction in image quality as a result. The image quality reduces each

time it is saved as a JPEG due to the technical nature of the format.

The options found here allow you to transform the image without

repeatedly compressing the JPEG file.

Options include: Horizontal and vertical mirroring, and 90° and 180°

clockwise or counter-clockwise rotation.

Sorting

You can sort pictures in your browser by setting sorting

criteria using the "Sort" button.

The following criteria are possible: File name, file size, date, file type,

properties, image width/height or size, bits per pixel, or the image

description.

Filter

Allows you to set the type of file displayed.

Image Information

If you glide over a file with the mouse cursor, a reference display

window appears in which the file name, image size, depth of colour,

type of file, file size, and description are indicated (image size and

depth of colour, of course, only for images).

The Status Bar

The status bar displays information about the currently marked file.

From left to right, the fields contain:

 The number of files in folders/albums or the number of marked files

 The file names or the file path (for albums)

 File size and the date of the last change

 Images: Size, depth of colour and abbreviated file format

 The description, if available

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Working with Images 45

Working with Images

This section briefly describes the MAGIX Photo Designer 7 options for

importing and creating images, as well as changing their scale, page

size, and shape.

Show images

A loaded image will be scaled in such a way as to be completely

visible in full screen mode.

You can load as many images as you like into MAGIX Photo Designer

7. At the bottom, you will find the film strip view, where all loaded

pictures will appear as thumbnails. You can toggle between the

thumbnail images by clicking on them.

You can view the loaded pictures simultaneously by selecting an

ordering scheme (next to each other, overlapping, stacked, tiled)

under "Window > Order". Clicking on a picture selects it as the active

picture for editing, and it will appear with a lighter frame around it.

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To view an image maximised, use the "maximise" symbol in the

top right corner of the picture window.

All other screen elements (like toolbars (on page 78) and tool

windows (on page 78), effect browser (on page 78), object manager

(on page 78), film strip view (on page 78)and brush palette (on page

78)) can be brought to view or hidden on command in "Window

menu".

You can zoom in and out on every image using the mouse wheel or

the +/- keys in the number pad.

You can also use the zoom slider or the zoom tool provided.

By pressing the space bar, the mouse cursor is transformed into a

hand, which can be used to move sections and cut-outs.

46 Working with Images

Create, load and save pictures

Create

Select the "File -> New image..." menu item or press the

appropriate button in the "Standard bar".

In the dialog that appears, you can either select a size from a list or

enter an individual size, choose a "Paper colour" and set the print

resolution in dpi.

Load

Select the option with the same name in the "File" menu to open a file

dialog. MAGIX Photo Designer 7 can accept the following formats at

this time:

BMP, DIB, RLE, JPEG, TIFF, PNG, TGA, PCX, PSD, IFF, LBM, RAS,

WMF, EMF, PPM, PGM, PBM, Photo-CD, and its own PAI (*.pai)

format.

Use the browser (on page 39), opened by clicking the

browser button, to easily select and search the files you are

importing.

Save

Select "File > Save" to save an image, or choose "File > Save as" to

save it with a new name. MAGIX Photo Designer 7 can save in the

following formats: BMP, JPEG, TIFF, TGA, PCX, PNG, PSD, RAS,

PGM, PPM, and its own PAI (*.pai).

When you save an image, you have the option of either overwriting

the original file or making a copy.

Save for Internet

You can open the JPEG Export Assistant via the menu "File > Save

for Internet". This will help you find the correct JPEG correction

factor.

The original image and the compressed image are displayed side by

side so you can see how each selected compression factor affects

the quality of the image. This feature enables you to determine the

optimum compression while maintaining a reasonable level of quality.

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Working with Images 47

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The "Output" box displays the resulting file size as well as the

corresponding Internet download times at various transfer rates.

Note: Saving a JPEG image in progressive mode affects the way it

loads when viewed with an Internet browser. It will first appear at a

coarse resolution and will gradually improve as the page loads.

Keep Exif Camera Information

The EXIF (exchangeable image file) format is an international standard

that enables meta-information to be encrypted in the file header or

application segments of a JPEG file. This meta-information supplies

information on the shutter speed, aperture setting, and the date and

time the photo was taken.

Import Images

Import Images via TWAIN Interface

By using "File > Import > TWAIN" you can import via Twain-

compatible sources (practically all scanners and some digital

cameras) with "Select source..." and "Acquire...". A device-specific

dialog automatically appears.

Creating Screenshots

By using "File > Import > Screenshot" a dialog appears for setting

screenshots. MAGIX Photo Designer 7 can "photograph" either the

entire monitor screen, the active window (with frame) or only the

contents on screen.

This is possible via hotkey or timer (between 1 and 1,000 seconds)

functions. If the mouse pointer should be included, activate the

appropriate check box. After clicking the "Start" button the desktop

will be displayed and the screenshot created either after the timer has

elapsed or the hotkey is pressed.

48 Working with Images

Print Images

Printing an Image

By using "File > Print..." a dialog appears offering a print preview of

the current image. Positioning and scaling should be made prior to

printing.

Shortcut: Ctrl + P

A Pop-up menu appears when you right-click on an image. Image

placement and proportional scaling can thus be made.

The tool bar

The printer, paper adjustment, and additional printer-specific settings

can be changed in the toolbar under "Setup...". Pressing "Print"

sends the preview to the printer.

The "Automatic new layout" button repositions all images

according to the "Layout" tab settings (only available with "print

several images (on page 49) ").

The "Align on grid" button can be pressed in the toolbar. The

image is subsequently aligned on a grid when you move the

mouse.

The size of the preview can be changed by using either

"entire page", "increase view", and "decrease view".

The Index Tabs

Current Image: Here you can indicate the exact position and size of

the image on the paper in millimeters or inches. Alternatively, the

image can be shifted and scaled using the mouse.

Underneath each active image you can enter text in the text field.

Image-specific information can also be inserted automatically in the

form of TAGS: Click on the TAG>> button and a pop-up menu opens

offering tags for image name, file path, image dimensions, depth of

colour, resolution and file description. The text field indicates the

existing TAGs. The text generated is displayed beneath the image in

the print preview.

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Working with Images 49

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The selectable font and text alignment applies to all images on the

page if several are present.

Text: A headline or a subtitle can be added to the page to be printed.

The standard text which appears under the images can also be

specified.

Settings: The grid size and parameter dimensions can be specified in

millimeters or inches under "Settings".

Layout: (only with "Print more images") If you would like to print

several images on a page, you can specify the number of lines and

columns the paper should contain as well as the spacing between

images.

Print several images

Using "File > Print several images" allows you to place as many

images (for subsequent printing) in a preview as you wish. Besides all

of the properties available at "Print one image", the following are also

of help:

The Thumbnail Bar

Initially, no image appears in the preview. All images opened in the

editor are thumbnails in a bar to the left of the screen (or all marked in

the browser if called up from the browser).

You can drag & drop individual or several images into the preview.

Multiple images are arranged according to the "layout" tab setting.

If images are marked, they are also placed on the page by clicking

the "Arrange" button.

The "Add" button is useful for printing several images. Click on "Add"

and the "Select images..." dialog opens. Here you can select and

search for further images. The images can be positioned either by

drag & drop, by clicking on "add" or "add all" in the "selected images"

field. The selected images are then available in the thumbnail bar.

50 Working with Images

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Create Panorama Pictures

The "File > Create panorama pictures" menu item opens a dialog,

enabling easy creation of photo montages by gluing images

horizontally to create a panorama.

The window consists of three parts. At the top is the preview in which

you can shift the currently visible cut-out with the mouse. The two

magnifying glass buttons allow you to increase or decrease the size

of the view.

In the lower part of the screen (as with Print Multiple Images (on page

49)) is a bar with thumbnails of all images opened in the editor from

which you can click on "Add" and select the images to be added.

Multiple or large images should not be opened with the Editor.

Instead, add them here.

Images can be added in a sequence from right to left via drag & drop

or using the "Add" button.

The middle part of the window contains the control functions for

positioning and overlapping individual images.

Since images are inserted from the right, you can correct errors at

any time with the "Remove" button.

As soon as at least two images are in line, an overlap can be selected

for editing, starting between image 1 and image 2.

The "vertical" fader changes the vertical alignment (measured in

pixels), i.e. the right image is shifted upwards or downwards. The

"horizontal" fader sets the overlap of the two images (also measured

in pixels). Both images merge into one another within the overlap.

You can adjust the overlap with more precision using the "width

crossfade (%)" and "position crossfade" controllers. If the crossfade

does not cover the whole width of the overlap, reduce the width with

the automatic controller. If the crossfade is smaller, specify the

position using the position controller.

Furthermore, dead areas created from different image heights and

vertical alignments can be cut away by activating the "cut edges

automatically" option.

Working with Images 51

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Creating a Panorama

To create a panorama with images from your digital camera,

photograph a set of images with an overlap of about one-third of the

screen of the previous image (when using wide-angle lenses, exceed

one third overlap). Make sure the brightness of the images is

consistent by setting the aperture and exposure time. Correct any

discrepancies by using the brightness/contrast effect.

Now load the sequence of images, as described under "Create

panorama pictures". Select the overlapping sequence while using the

horizontal and vertical automatic controllers to look for suitable

positioning.

Deform pictures

Scale

To change the size of an image, select "Image > Scale" and in the

dialog window enter the new size and print resolution.

Shortcut: Shift + S

Rotate/Flip

Read more about the rotate and mirror options in the sub-menu

"Image > Rotate/Mirror".

Using "Rotate freely..." the image can be rotated at any angle. A

small preview shows the result. When "automatically clip edges" is

marked, the preview displays the clipped image by using ledger lines.

Shortcuts

Rotate freely.. Ctrl + R

Rotate 90° left

Shift + W

Rotate 90° right Shift + R

Rotate 180° Shift + E

Horizontal mirroring Ctrl + M

Vertical mirroring Ctrl + J

52 Working with Images

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Page size

If you change the size of an image with "Image > Page size...", the

image is not scaled but placed within the new dimensions in the way

specified at "Positioning". You can keep the aspect ratio or use one

of the standard formats that correspond to typical screen and photo

aspect ratios.

Keep the current aspect ratio or select one of the standard formats

that correspond to typical screen and photo aspect ratios.

Shortcut: Shift + P

Crop to mask

The "Image > Crop to mask" menu item requires a mask. If a mask

exists, everything outside the mask is removed from the image.

Shortcut: Shift + C

Working with the Mask 53

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Working with the Mask

If a mask exists, only the area covered by the mask can be edited,

while other areas are protected. However, a mask can be defined

only on the main image and not on objects.

Additionally, you can create objects from masks, see Working with

Objects (on page 56).

Select all

Selecting "Menu selection > Select all", the entire image will be

masked.

Remove mask

You can remove the mask by selecting the option "Menu selection >

Remove mask". Adjustments apply to the entire image.

Shortcut: Shift + Del

Invert mask

The command "Menu selection > Invert mask" inverts the mask,

selecting all the points of the image that were unselected in the old

mask.

Shortcut: Ctrl + I

Create mask from object

Select "Selection > Create mask from object" to make a copy of the

active object which then serves as mask.

54 Working with the Mask

Mask > Expand/Reduce selection

In the dialog window under the menu item of the same name in the

"Selection" menu you can specify the number of pixels by which the

area selected by the mask is to be expanded/reduced.

Vignette

Vignetting ( "Selection > Vignette..." ) blurs a band of variable width

along the edge of the mask.

Loading/saving the mask

You can save a mask for later use by selecting "Menu selection >

Save mask".

The Mask Tools

There are four different tools in the tool bar for specifying masks,

which can each be further specified in the tool setting (on page 85)

bar.

Auto scroll

It can happen, that you wish to apply a mask to a picture in zoomed-

in mode, which will result in parts of the mask lying over areas of the

image that are out of view. To do so, drag the mask slowly almost to

the end of the current image view, and using the "Auto scroll" option,

you can cause the image view to move automatically with the

selection.

Rectangular mask/round mask

Use these buttons to create rectangular and round

masks.

Draw a rectangle with the mouse over the area where the mask

should be. To make an ellipse, drag the shape starting from the

center. Pressing Ctrl during this process creates squares or circles.

More about settings options in Tool parameters mask (on page 85).

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Working with the Mask 55

Lasso mask/Magnetic lasso

The lasso mask lets you draw along the border of the

desired area.

When the mouse key is depressed, the line follows the mouse

pointer. When you release the left mouse key, you can draw a

straight line. If you use the magnetic lasso, the line snaps to the

edges of the image, i.e. those pixels that strongly differ from their

neighbouring ones. Finish the lasso selection with a double click. See

Mask Tool settings (on page 85).

Magic Wand

The Magic Wand masks the area around a clicked-on location

in which the deviation of the colour values is smaller than

those set in the tool window.

Setting options see Mask Tool Settings (on page 86)

Brush Mask

With the Brush mask you can paint the mask with your own

paintbrush which you can select independently from the

paintbrush or pen.

Setting options see Mask Tool Settings (on page 86)

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56 Working with Objects

Working with Objects

Objects in the image are the basis of flexible, object-oriented image

processing. Objects are images or image areas which independently

lie over the main image. In this form they can be moved about,

deformed, vignetted, painted or retouched freely without the main

image being affected. Only when the objects are reunited with the

image is the main image changed.

Creating Objects

Objects can either be created from a complete image (menu: "Object

> Create > From image" ) or they can be defined areas which are

copied out of the image. This defined area is always the current mask

on the image (see Working with the Mask (on page 53)). Create a

mask that covers the desired clipping and select the "Object > Create

> From mask" menu item. The clip is then converted into an object

and the mask is removed.

Shortcut: Ctrl + Up

Adjust shape

Move objects by clicking of the arrow button (Object mode) in

the tool bar, then clicking on the object, and moving it with your

mouse.

Using the mouse you can rotate, tilt, distort and scale objects. To

distort objects with the mouse, select distortion mode in the Tool

parameters > Object (on page 9). You can choose from: move, scale,

rotate (90° to the right/left, 180°, numerical to the right/left), distort,

and tilt horizontally or vertically.

The changes are non-destructive, meaning that the resulting files

have the resolution of the original. Thus, if an object is reduced in

size, and then blown-up again, this will have no effect on its picture

quality. This is valid as long as no alterations to the image file (like

painting, effects) have been undertaken.

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Working with Objects 57

Vignette

Vignetting makes the border around an object increasingly

transparent. This allows softer integration of an object into the main

image. Select "Object > Vignette..." to vignette and enter the width of

the transparent band in the dialog window.

Apply Shadow

Select "Object > Apply shadow..." to apply a shadow to an existing

object. In the associated dialog window you can set direction and

distance, colour, transparency, and edge blur of the shadow. Check

your settings with the "Preview" button. If you are satisfied with your

settings, confirm with "OK" and the appropriate shadow object is

generated.

Include/include all

To embed an object into an image, select "Object menu > Include".

The selected object will be merged with the background of the

image. By selecting "Include all", all objects will be merged with the

background.

Shortcut: Ctrl + Arrow down

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Object order

To determine and change the order and overlapping of all objects,

the "Object menu > Order" submenu is available.

This function can also be activated with "Object to

front" and "Object to back" buttons.

58 Working with Objects

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Copy objects from different images and

programs

You can copy objects from different images by moving them using

drag & drop onto an opened image window. (You can view all images

at once by selecting Window menu > images "next to each other",

"stacked", or "tiled".) You can also move objects onto the thumbnail

image in the film strip view.

You can even move objects into other applications via drag & drop

(for example, into a text processing program), as long as these

support this action.

The Object Manager

The object manager is activated with "Window > Object manager". It

presents current images as thumbnails placing the background at the

bottom and ascending through the objects in the image, so that the

object at the very top is represented by the top thumbnail in the

object manager. The object manager allows easy handling of images

consisting of a large number of objects without losing track of them.

The object manager consists of two columns. The left indicates

visibility and the right the thumbnail and name of the object.

Selecting Objects/Background

The active object (= selection) is marked with a red border. Left-click

on the thumbnail to make the associated object or the background

active.

Visibility

Objects and the background can be hidden by clicking on the

associated eye icon in the left column. Only inactive objects can be

hidden. This function lets you edit otherwise covered objects and

keep track of a complex project.

Connect/Transparency

"Connect" states how the objects or applied colours are connected

to the background when painting, cloning or filling. The settings

always apply to the current image and its objects. The following

options are available:

Working with Objects 59

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Normal The applied colour or the object covers the original

image, just like in real painting.

Addition The RGB colour values are added.

Subtraction The RGB colour values are added and 255 is

subtracted.

Multiplication The colour values are multiplied and divided by

255.

Division The larger colour value is divided by the smaller

one.

Difference Generates the difference between old and new

colour values.

If brighter A new colour in the original image is only covered if

the new pixel is lighter.

If darker The opposite of "If brighter".

Color

Colour tone and saturation of the applied colour or

the object are combined with the brightness of the

original.

Hue Only the colour tone is changed; saturation and

brightness remain as in the original.

Saturation Only saturation is applied, the colour tone and

brightness remain like the background.

Brightness Only brightness is applied, colour tone and

saturation remain like the background.

Invert The colour is inverted and applied to the original.

Logical AND The colour application is connected to the original

with a Boolean AND.

Logical OR The colour application is connected to the original

with a Boolean OR.

Logical EXOR The colour application is connected to the original

with a Boolean exclusive OR.

Red Only the share of red is used.

Green Only the share of green is used.

Blue Only the share of blue is used.

Transparency determines how much of the background comes

through the applied colour or objects. 100% means fully translucent

(i.e. normal translucency), 0% means fully transparent.

Context menu

Right-clicking an image or an object in the object list opens a context

menu enabling quick access to frequently required functions for

objects. In detail:

60 Working with Objects

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Object 1...Object n, background All objects of the image and

background are listed in the top

part of the context menu and can

be selected for editing.

Object from mask If a mask exists, the masked area

is converted into a new object.

Cut/Copy/Paste This command lets you copy or

cut an object into the clipboard

and paste it into a different image.

Rename You can use Rename to change

the name of the object.

Arrange Moves active object in Z-direction.

Delete Deletes the selection (= active

object).

Integrate Connects the selection with the

background.

Integrate all Connects all objects with the

background.

Working with Text Objects 61

Working with Text Objects

When you click on an image while in in text mode you can

enter text at this position.

The following text properties can be set in the text tool properties

bar.

Font type and size

Style (bold, italic, underlined or

crossed out)

Alignment (right, center or left)

Text color

To change these settings for an entered text you have to highlight the

text first and then change the respective parameters.

You have to press the Enter key to switch to a new line. Line changes

are not carried out automatically.

Click on the "Check" button to change text into a text object.

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This object can be positioned, scaled, rotated, and tilted freely in the

image just like any other object (see Working with objects on page

56). As long as the text objects are not yet added to the background,

you can always change it by simply clicking into the text object.

Click on Cancel to leave the edit mode.

62 Working with Text Objects

Text effects

"Other" opens a dialog where you can add a shadow or a

3D effect.

Shadow

Activate "Shadow" to apply a shadow to the text. Analogous to

"Object > Apply shadow... (on page 57)" you can define the

parameters of colour, direction, distance, transparency, and edge

blur.

3D Highlighting

Activate "3D Highlighting" to make the text look three-dimensional.

The parameters "Direction" and "Angle of incidence" affect an

imaginary light source. "Edge shape" and "Width" define the shape in

Z-direction (the "depth") to be used at the edges of the characters.

Smaller values for "Shine" result in small shine points, higher values

lead to diffuse reflection. Increasing the values of the "Reflection"

parameter makes the shine metallic. The plastic effect is best applied

to large and wide fonts.

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Working with Batch Processing 63

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Working with Batch Processing

With the batch processing in the "File" menu at "Batch processing..."

whole lists of images and entire directories can automatically be

loaded, edited, and saved.

Possible applications range from simple format conversion to

automatic thumbnail creation or focusing, colour correction, etc.

The Batch Processing dialog window has three areas:

Input

Use "Add file" to enter one or more images into the list of images to

be processed or add whole directories with "Add folder". You can

delete individual images from the list with the "Delete" button, or

delete the entire list with "Delete all".

Actions

Use the "arrow" buttons to add the desired actions from the list on

the left to the tasks. Use "Delete" to delete one or "Reset" to delete

all actions from the list of tasks (on the right side).

If available, the "Parameters" button opens a parameter window

which you can use to change the settings of the selected action.

Use the Arrow up/Arrow down buttons to change the order of the

tasks. A summary of the actions, called script, can be saved and

loaded with the respective buttons.

64 Working with Batch Processing

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Output

You can select a file type from the list of image formats for output of

processed images. Any possible setting options for the image format

are available at "Options...".

All images are stored in the target folder which you need to specify. If

you want MAGIX Photo Designer 7 to warn you prior to overwriting

existing files, tick the respective box.

After the processing is started with the "Start" button you can see the

current status in the status window. Click on "Abort" to end the

process.

Effects 65

Effects

Choose an effect from the Effects menu or other category.

Alternatively, choose the Effect browser button to open the

effect browser.

The effect browser uses a sample image to show the results of

different effects.

When an effect is selected, it is applied to the whole image first. Each

time you change effect settings, they are displayed on the image.

This allows you to adjust the effect and see how it affects the entire

image.

The masking tool (on page 53) allows you to limit the effect to certain

areas of the image. We recommend softening the edges of the image

somewhat (in the tool window (on page 85) of the masking tool) to

better integrate the effect into the whole image. The magic wand

provides another masking option, allowing you to target a particular

colour within the image and change it using colour effects.

You can also use the pencil to apply effects by

choosing this button in the Effect settings dialog box.

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When you do this, the tool window for the pencil appears. When you

use the pencil to apply the effect, all pencil settings relating to shape,

size, and effect are available. However, colour characteristics

(structure, colour, spotting, and colour deviations) are inactive.

Pressing the right mouse button allows you to erase the applied

brush strokes. You can, therefore, first apply the effect onto a large

surface and then adjust the borders with the paintbrush.

You can also apply an effect using the gradient tool. Only the

transparency of the selected gradient type is used. This allows you to

fade an effect in or out, for example.

When you choose "Quick preview," a scaleable preview

window appears.

In this window, you can display the effect, or the original and the

effect side by side, in zoom mode. You can use the magnifying glass

66 Effects

buttons or the slider to zoom in and out of the preview. You can use

the mouse to scroll through the visible section in the window.

If you press this button, the effect is permanently

applied to the image.

At the top of the dialog you will also find a list box with the various

link modes and a transparency controller. These setting options

determine how the calculated pixels of the effect are combined with

those of the original image. A simple cover is set by default; however,

you can select other modes for special colour distortion and

retouching. Not every mode makes sense with every effect. With the

transparency controller you can make an effect "transparent". Read

more about the combination modes in the chapter Object manager

(on page 58).

Plugin Filters

In addition to the MAGIX Photo Designer 7 effects, external plug-in

filters are supported, which are compatible with the Adobe standards

(Photoshop®-compatible plug-ins). These effects are immediately

applied to the image or the selection, the flexible application options

(paint, masking tools, transparency) of the MAGIX Photo Designer 7

effects are not available for plug-in filters.

Hundreds of such filters from numerous developers can be found on

the Internet.

Including Filters

To include filters in MAGIX Photo Designer 7, select "Effect->Plugin

filter->Settings..." . Use "Add..." to select the folder where the desired

plug-ins are located. Filter files mostly are annexed "*.8bf". To only

check such file types, activate "Only check *.8bf files!".

To do a recursive scan of sub-directories, activate "Search sub-

directories".

However, you should only specify folders which actually contain filters

and are needed because otherwise the search for filters may

noticeably slow down the start of the program.

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Effects 67

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Paint

With the paintbrush or pencil tool you can draw in your image, i.e.

add paint, just as in other graphics programs. Details on the settings

can be found in the Paintbrush tool window (on page 87).

MAGIX Photo Designer 7 also includes painting as an additional

effect. However, there are some differences compared to regular

"painting":

 The colour is applied as an effect (on page 65). This helps you vary

the transparency and link mode after applying the paint (see Object

Manager (on page 58)). The right mouse button allows you to erase

the added brush strokes. The brush strokes are only applied to the

image permanently when you press the "apply" button.

 Deactivating the Paint button (here activated by default) applies the

colour to the entire image or section. This corresponds to a "Fill"

effect, although the selection can still be changed later before the

effect is finally applied.

Color Filters

Chromatic Aberration

Chromatic aberration, sometimes described as ‘purple fringing’ is a

type of image distortion caused by a camera lens. Chromatic

aberrations are caused by the cameras lens not focusing different

wavelengths of light onto the exact same focal plane (the focal length

for different wavelengths of light is different). The index of refraction

for blue light (short wavelengths) is larger than that of red light (long

wavelengths). The amount of chromatic aberration depends on the

dispersion of the glass.

Chromatic aberration makes images appear fuzzy. Selecting this

option simulates it as to create an interesting artistic effect. It can

also be used for correcting images taken using cameras with a poor

(very small) lens which contain the described shift of red and blue

shares.

Level Balance

The effect level balance adjusts the brightness distribution of the

image. Use the automatic controllers for the input area to stretch the

68 Effects

defined brightness range across the whole tonal value range (this

resembles an increase in contrast, but with greater control than in the

brightness/contrast effect).

Use the automatic controllers for the output area to compress the

brightness values across this range. With the gamma automatic

controller, the central tones can be altered, either for all colours (grey

channel) or specifically for the red, green or blue color channels.

Dye

Colour the entire selection with one colour selected with the Colour

Selection button.

Color Balance

Targeted colour balance for bright, middle and dark areas of

specified colours. Poor colouring in a image can be corrected by

changing the balance between red & cyan, green & magenta, and

blue & yellow.

Gamma Correction

With gamma correction you change the weighting of colours in the

medium range of the brightness spectrum for the red, green and blue

colour channels of your image. Select "Connect channels" to change

all values simultaneously. Gamma values >1 mean a brightening of

the medium hues, values <1 mean darkening.

This effect is available also via the quick access button.

Shortcut: F6

Limiting Value

Creates an image of only two hues. Colours with a brightness under

the limiting value are assigned to the minimum colour, colours above

it are assigned to the maximum colour.

Tip: Try this effect with a paint mode such as additive, subtractive

etc.

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Effects 69

Brightness/Contrast

Correct contrast and brightness of the image in the effects dialog and

check the result in the preview.

This effect is available also via the quick access button.

Shortcut: F5

Channels

Exchange the colour channels of the RGB colour model.

Paint with Gradient

Colours an image with a colour gradient available from the list. The

criterion for colouring may be brightness, saturation, hue of the red,

green or blue channel.

Negative

Creates a negative of the area to which the effect is applied.

Poster

A normal RGB image consists of 256 brightness values for red, green

and blue. With poster you can reduce these brightness values to a

new value in the range of 2-256. So, the image will lose colours due

to this effect: The less grades of brightness, the higher the colour

loss.

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Red/Green/Blue

Correct the weighting of red, green, and blue (see

brightness/contrast).

This effect is available also via the quick access button .

Shortcut: F7

Remove Red Eyes

Apply this effect to photos with a brush not bigger than the pupils of

the person to be edited to remove the occasional "red-eye" defect.

70 Effects

This effect is available via the quick access button.

Shortut: F8

Hue/Saturation/Brightness

Correct hue, saturation, brightness (as above).

Shade Curve

Manually correct all colour values in an image. By changing the

gradient of the shade curve you assign new brightness values to the

red, green, and blue channels (i.e. all channels simultaneously). The

starting value in each case is a straight line from bottom left to top

right. Areas which are corrected upwards will be brighter, otherwise

darker.

You can use the "White balance" option to carry out manual

white balance.

An incorrect white balance can lead to an unnatural blue or red hue.

Instructions: To use the white balance, click on the button to the right

of the label "White balance" and then select a point which represents

white or a light surface represented in the photographed lighting

conditions. The colour temperature is then corrected automatically.

Art Filters

Painting

This effect creates paintings which feel realistic by trying to "redraw"

the content of the image using a pre-defined brush shape. With the

many parameters on the Brush, Size, Direction, Colour, Transparency

and Paper tabs you can specify how this brush shape is used based

on the original image. It’s best to try the settings and experiment with

the parameters and the effects they have.

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Effects 71

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Focusing Filters

Focus

This is a simple focusing/blur tool which you can adjust via the slider

and apply with the paintbrush.

Tip: Vary the intensity of the effect by changing the transparency or

with paint modes such as 'If brighter' and 'If darker'.

Unsharp Mask

This filter is, although the name be confusing, a high-quality focusing

tool. The name is derived from the fact in the focusing process, the

image is compared to a soft-focus copy, and the differences are used

to enhance contrasts. With 'Radius' you set the radius within which

the filter searches for focusing information. Limiting value determines

how great the brightness difference to the original pixel must be to

replace it.

Other Filters

User Filter

Use this effect to create your own filter by combining a pixel value

with neighbouring pixels. In the 5x5 matrix, enter values in

accordance with the weighting of the pixels (e.g. 2 means twice the

value). The center field of the matrix is the point to which the effect is

applied. All pixels of the matrix are then added in accordance with

their weighting, divided by the divident and the compensation value is

added to the result. The result then replaces the pixel in the center of

the matrix. It’s best way to understand the effect is to experiment

with it.

Highlight

Creates plastic depressions/elevations in the image. When applying

the effect with the brush or filling masked areas, the edges serve to

raise/depress these areas. Parameters "Luminous intensity", "Light

colour", "Direction" and "Angle of incidence" influence an imaginary

light source. "Edge shape" and "Width" define the shape in Z-

direction (into the "depth" ) at the edges. Smaller values for "Shine"

result in small shine points, higher values lead to diffuse reflection.

72 Effects

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Increasing the values of the "Reflection" parameter makes the shine

metallic. If "Observe edges" is activated, the edges of the

object/image are observed, so you can create, e.g. three-dimensional

keys and buttons for websites.

Flip pages

The application of this effect gives the impression of the image being

flipped, i.e. rolled up at a corner. You can specify the corner and the

size of the rolled up area in the dialog. You can also define a colour

for the free background and the back of the image.

Stylising Filters

Bumpmap

This effect creates a relief view with the difference that you have a

light source that you can position. The resulting lighting effect makes

the image look very metallic. Experiment with the position of the light

source, intensity, unevenness and, above all, the height and width of

the light cone to find the optimal lighting.

Find Edges

Finds edges in the image. The thickness of horizontal and vertical

edges can be set with the associated slide controls, and also the

intensity of the effect.

Emboss

Makes the image look as if it is embossed in metal.

Relief

Creates a relief view of the image. Use 'Depth' to specify the intensity

and 'Direction' to define the direction of the light.

Additionally, you can select whether the edges of the relief are gray or

in the colour of the image, or whether the relief is added to the image.

Effects 73

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Noise Filters

Remove Stains

This effect calculates a mean colour value within the defined "Radius"

which only becomes active if the new colour value deviates from the

original by more than the "Limit". By trying out parameters and

purposeful application to the image, preferably with a soft brush, you

can make stains, dust and scratches invisible on the image.

Maximum

Searches the brightest pixel in the defined area and replaces the

current pixel by it (see Median).

Median

This effect calculates the median of the pixels within the area defined

by "Horizontal radius" and "Vertical radius" and replaces the current

pixel by that value.

Minimum

Searches the darkest pixel in the defined area and replaces the

current pixel by it (see Median).

Add Noise

Generates "random" noise and superimposes the image with it. Use

"Density" and "Intensity" to limit the intensity and deviation from the

original colour value. If "Coloured" is not ticked, the colour of the

pixels is preserved, they will only become brighter or darker.

Noise Reduction

Noise reduction is a soft-focus effect that does not make the image

fuzzy. This effect changes only those pixels whose colour value

exceeds that of neighboring pixels by a specific threshold value.

The "High Quality Correction" setting includes the next neighboring

pixels (a radius of 2 pixels) in the computation.

74 Effects

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Noise reduction (selective)

Noise reduction is a soft-focus effect that does not make the image

fuzzy. This effect changes only those pixels whose colour value

exceeds that of neighbouring pixels by a specific threshold value.

The "High Quality Correction" setting includes the next neighbouring

pixels (a radius of 2 pixels) in the computation.

Diffuse

The pixels in the image are dispersed like grains of sand. Select the

intensity by defining the maximal horizontal and vertical dislocation.

Coarsening Filters

Mosaik

Combines several pixels into a rectangle in such a way that a rough-

pixel, or mosaic image is created. Enter the number of lines and

columns to be combined in the dialog window.

Distortion Filters

Dent/Bump

Creates a dent or bump around the center of the image/object. Use

the slide control in the dialog window to regulate the intensity and the

type of the effect.

Tips: See whirl (on page 75)! Can create a caricature effect when

applied to faces with the brush.

Even Waves

Superimposes the image with horizontal and vertical waves of

adjustable length, amplitude and phase.

Fisheye-perspective

Distort images to look as seen by a fish so that centre of the image

bulges forward.

Effects 75

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Effect: Adjust the intensity of the bulge by moving the slider from

right to left.

In the above dropdown menu you can add an additional effect to the

bulge. The "Normal" setting here means that the "clean" fisheye effect

will be applied.

By using the slider next to the flip menu you can adjust the

transparency of the entire effect when using an additional effect.

Moving it to the leftmost position means maximum effect while only

the original image is displayed when set to the right.

Concentric Waves

Creates circular waves around the center of the image/object, similar

to a stone dropping into water. Wavelength and amplitude can be set

in the filter’s dialog window.

Tip: See also whirl (on page 75) filter!

Perspective

The Perspective effect bends image space 45° out from the image

plane or 45° into the image plane. This creates "straightened" lines

for high buildings photographed from below, for example.

Barrel/Pincushion Correction

Barrel distortion is an effect often associated with wide angle lenses

that causes an image to be spherized at the center. Pincushion

distortion is an effect caused by zoom lenses or telephoto adapters

that causes an image to appear ‘pinched’ at the center.

Selecting the Barrel/Pincushion correction option allows you to

correct barrel or pincushion image distortion, or add them to an

image as an artistic effect. The background colour of the resulting

image borders can be set under "Background".

Select the "Avoid Borders" option to zoom further into the image and

hide the background.

Whirl

Creates a whirl rotating around the center of the image/object.

Intensity and direction can be regulated with the slide control.

76 Effects

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Tip: To apply a whirl to an area of the image, mark it with the

rectangular mask, create an object and apply the effect to the object.

After that replace the object.

Influence the intensity of the effect with the brush! It’s best to select a

large, very soft brush. Application or erasing with this brush will make

the deformation more or less intense.

Video Filters

Deinterlace

This effect is mainly intended for snapshots of video images because

due to the suppressed field recording the image is often useless if

two fields are too different.

Use "Even" or "Odd lines" to select which field to remove and

"Interpolation" to define whether the lines of an image are simply

doubled or whether the missing lines are to be interpolated.

Soften Filters

Gaussian Blur

Creates a blurred image, but in contrast to "Blur", pixels are

weighted. Pixels further away from the point of focus are less

important than pixels closer by. The name is derived from the method

of data weighting with the help of a Gaussian bell curve, a function

that takes place around the pixel to be processed.

Here you can also define the "Radius" within which pixels are used

for calculation.

Gaussian Blur (Smart)

This function is similar to the Gaussian blur, but with the significant

difference that for pixel blurring only those neighbouring pixels are

used, whose colour doesn’t deviate more than the given "Limit"

parameter. This leads to blurred areas with similar colours, while

contrasting edges are preserved.

Effects 77

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Motion Blur

This function creates a directional blur, similar to that on a photo

taken with a slow shutter. Use "Distance" and "Direction" to define

the intensity and direction of the effect.

Camera Zoom

Creates an effect similar to a fast camera zoom. In addition to the

effect intensity, you can select between zoom in and zoom out, and

choose the zoom depth.

Rotation

The effect is similar to that achieved by quickly rotating a camera

while taking a picture. Available parameters are intensity and mode

(rotation left, rotation right, and rotation amount).

Blur

Creates a blurred image by averaging an area of points. "Horizontal

radius" and "Vertical radius" specify the number of pixels used for

blurring in horizontal and vertical direction.

Tip: Try paint modes "If brighter", etc.

78 The Toolbars

The Toolbars

A brief description of the toolbars follows:

Standard

Contains buttons for file operations, undo/redo, and for displaying

various windows.

New/Load/Save for file operations (on page

46)

File browser: Opens the file browser (see

Using the browser (on page 39)).

Print (on page 48)

Undo/Redo: Undo and Redo allow you to

undo any action. See also File menu-

>General settings->Undo/Redo (on page 92)

Film view: In movie view all loaded images

are displayed in the lower window. You can

toggle between the loaded images by clicking

on them.

Object manager: Opens and closes the

Object manager (on page 58)

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The Toolbars 79

Effect bar

Allows you to quickly select frequently used effects.

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Task Assistant. The Task Assistant helps you

perform typical image editing tasks with practical

step-by-step instructions.

Brightness/Contrast (on page 68)

Gamma Correction (on page 68)

Red/Green/Blue (on page 69)

Auto exposure/auto saturation: The contrast or hue

of the entire photo is adjusted automatically.

White balance: Opens the shade curve effect (on

page 70) for balancing the white tone.

Liquid Colour: This tool is ideally suited to create

caricatures and deform your images. A click on the

icon opens a preview in which the active image area

can be edited with the editing modes listed to the

right. Use the "Brush size" and "Thickness" sliders

to regulate radius and effect of the current mode.

Deactivate the respective direction arrows to protect

the image from modifications in horizontal or vertical

direction. "Reset" returns you to the original state.

Transform into painting: This tool transforms your

image into a painting. More can be found in Effects

> Painting (on page 70).

Effects browser: This shows you an example of the

change caused by the individual effects.

80 The Toolbars

Zoom

Is used to set the zoom level of the current

image.

1:1 restores the original size.

"Fit" fits image to window size.

Dialog bar

Task assistant: This feature gives you fast access to all

important functions.

In the "Tasks" menu you will find further step-by-step

instructions as well as hints & tips.

Movie view: In movie view all loaded images are

displayed in the lower section of the window. You can

toggle between the loaded images by clicking on them.

Object Manager: Opens and closes the Object Manager

(on page 58).

1 Click

White balance:Opens the Color curve (on page 70) for

white balancing.

Auto-exposure: Use this option to automatically correct

the exposure.

Auto-color: This option automatically corrects the color,

i.e. the brightness of all color channels (red/green blue) is

optimized. The best results are achieved with photos that

have lots of colors.

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The Toolbars 81

Effects

The following effects are accessed via this button:

Liquid color: This tool is ideal for creating cartoons and

reshaping images. Clicking on the symbol opens a preview

in the active image area which can be used to edit the

active image section with the edit mode listed on the right

side. You can use the "Brush size" and "Brush strength"

sliders to adjust the radius and effect of the current mode.

By deactivating the corresponding arrow you can protect

the image from horizontal or vertical changes. "Reset"

restores the initial situation.

Transform into painting: This tool transforms your image

into a painting. Read more in Effects > Paintings (on page

70).

Depending on what you are planning to

use your document for you can choose

from cards, magazines, etc. and will

automatically be transferred to Xara

Xtreme Pro where you will find the

corresponding effects and functions.

www.magix.com

Clicking on this button lists all MAGIX Online

Services and you can access the service by clicking

on the corresponding page.

82 The Toolbars

Toolbar

This toolbar contains the most important functions for editing images

and selecting frequently used effects.

Object Mode (See Working with Objects (on page 56) )

Magnifying Glass: Serves to zoom in on image areas.

Draw a rectangle over the desired area to zoom in. You

can also zoom in and out of an image using the mouse

wheel.

Mask tools

(See Working with the Mask (on page 53)). A click on the small black

triangle at the bottom right at the button opens a pop-up menu

where you can select the mask mode.

Rectangle & round masks: Use this to create

rectangular and round masks.

Lasso mask: You can use the lasso mask to circle the

desired sections with the mouse. Finish by double-

clicking.

Brush Mask: This lets you paint the mask with your own

brush.

The magic wand is a special mask mode that allows you

to quickly select image areas with the same or similar

colours.

Crop: The crop tool allows you to draw a box around a

portion of the image and delete everything outside the

area selected. Objects above the image are retained,

however. After making a selection, the area outside the

selection will appear dimmed for better optical definition

of the selection. Now you can correct the trim area using

handles. By clicking on the tickmark button at the top

right, the image will be trimmed.

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The Toolbars 83

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Level horizon: This button lets you straighten crooked

pictures. Simply draw a line using the mouse along the

crooked horizon. The picture will be rotated

automatically so the horizon line runs horizontally. The

option "No borders" prevents appearance of black

borders.

Hint: This function is also suitable for leveling scanner

imports.

Text: Click on the image to enter text. You can set the

font type, size, and style with the tool settings. You can

even add style elements to the text such as shadows

(see text tool settings (on page 60)). If you click on the

"Check" button, MAGIX Photo Designer 7 creates an

object containing the text at the clicked position (see

also Working with Objects (on page 56)). You can even

change the text later if you click on a text object in text

mode.

Remove red-eye

(on page 69)

Sharpen (on

page 77)

Blur (on page

77)

These three buttons allow you to

select the above effects and apply

them using the paint brush.

Copy stamp: Activates the cloning draw function. Use

cloning to change areas of an image, for example, to

remove unwanted persons or objects from a photo and

replace them with surrounding elements.

Hold down the Shift key + left or right mouse key to

select an area form the source. If you draw on a different

area of the image with a held-down mouse key, the

image pixels from the selected source will be copied

over.

Fill: The fill tool fills the selected area with the

foreground colour. If no mask has been selected, the

screen area to be filled is automatically selected (see

magic wand (on page 55)).

84 The Toolbars

Fill with Colour Gradient: In the associated tool window

you can select a colour gradient and apply it to the

image by drawing with the mouse.

-> Details on Gradient Tool Settings (on page 87) and

Colour Gradient Editor

Tip: Test transparent gradients with various effects.

Draw mode: In this mode you can paint with the current

paintbrush by depressing the left mouse button. Erasing

is achieved with the right mouse button (see Paintbrush

tool parameter (on page 87)).

Pencil: Like paint mode, but the default pencil tip is

smaller and harder.

Pipette: Samples a colour or colour area in the image

with a mouse click to make it the current painting color.

Colour: Clicking here opens a menu to select a new

painting colour. The colour selection provides four

different models for selecting a new colour and a box

with pre-defined colours, which you can exchange for

the current painting colour via drag & drop.

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The tool settings 85

The tool settings

In the tool settings bar you can change any option of the tools in

MAGIX Photo Designer 7. The tool settings bar is located at the top

of the program immediately below the menu. It always adapts to the

selected tool. The selected tool is therefore displayed on the left. The

tool bar can be displayed and hidden in the "Window" menu.

The mask tools settings

Different settings for the mask modes will be displayed in the tool

settings:

Rectangular Mask/Round Mask

Mode

New: Any existing mask is first deleted.

Add: Add to existing mask.

Subtract: Subtract new selection from existing mask.

Style

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Normal: You select the area with the mouse.

Fixed size: The mask has the defined width and height and you only

select the position of the mask.

Line (only for rectangle mask): The mask has the defined height and

you only select the position of a "Line selection" running across the

entire image width.

Column (only for rectangle mask): The mask has the defined width

and you only select the position of a "Column selection" running

across the entire image height.

Edge blur: You can define the width in pixels of a blurred transition

area at the edges of the mask.

86 The tool settings

Lasso mask/Magnetic lasso

Mode

New: Any existing mask is first deleted.

Add: Add to existing mask.

Subtract: Subtract new selection from existing mask.

Magic Wand

You can set tolerance for colours to be masked either using the RGB

colour model (red/green/blue) or the HSB colour model

(hue/saturation/brightness). Use the slide controls and input boxes to

regulate the colour channel tolerances.

Available modes are New and Add.

Brush mask

In this mode you can add or change the mask using a

paintbrush.

Mode

New: Any existing mask is first deleted.

Add: Add to existing mask with the left mouse button.

Subtract: Subtract new selection from existing mask.

Paintbrush shape

In the first field you can select the preset

paintbrush.

Clicking on the paintbrush palette icon opens the paintbrush

palette with detailed paintbrush settings.

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The tool settings 87

Drawing style

Paint freely: Freehand drawing mode.

Draw lines: Assists drawing straight lines.

See also Working with the Mask (on page 53).

The Gradient Tool settings

In gradient mode the following tool settings exist:

A preview of the gradient will be displayed.

A selection box will open where you can choose a gradient from a

list. This will then be the active gradient that can be applied to the

image with the mouse.

Double-click on a gradient or press the "Edit..." button to open it in

the Colour Gradient Editor.

Fill Mode: You can define whether gradient application is to be linear,

circular, conical, square or rectangular. Additionally, you can define

the number of gradient repetitions applied, whether the number of

colours is limited or not ("Limit number of colours to"), and how the

gradient concludes at the edges ("Edge areas").

The Color Gradient Editor

Here, you can edit and create new gradients.

www.magix.com

Edit: Insert a new colour marking into the gradient with a mouse click

above the colour bar, or delete existing colour markings by dragging

them out of the list. A color marking is activated by clicking on it.

Your colour and transparency can then be changed with

"Transparency" and "Colour" boxes.

Actions: Use "New" to create a completely new gradient and "Copy"

to duplicate an existing gradient for further editing.

88 The tool settings

The brush/pen tool settings

Different settings are displayed in the paintbrush and

pencil tool settings.

Hint: The same tool parameters also apply to all other tools that also

add colour or effects, i.e. sharpen, blur, remove red eye (on page 69),

and clone.

In the first field you can select the preset

paintbrush.

Clicking on the paintbrush palette icon opens the paintbrush

palette with detailed paintbrush settings.

Drawing style

Paint freely: Freehand drawing mode.

Draw lines: Assists drawing straight lines.

Connect/Transparency

Here you can select the various modes for combining the newly

applied paint with the background. More detailed information can be

found in the Object Manager (on page 58) section.

The Brush Palette

The Selection Tab

You can select a pre-defined brush from the dropdown list. A brush

is comprised of a brush tip, found under "Shape", and a selection

from the 27 variable properties. By clicking on the brush tip, a pop-up

menu with a selection of other tips is opened, and a new tip can be

assigned to the current brush. Changed brushes can be saved or

deleted here.

The Selection index card offers the parameters Size, Interval, Level,

Rotate, Pressure, Blurred edge, and Flow rate. When painting, the

brush tip is applied at the intervals specified at Interval (% of tip size).

Use Level and Rotate to compress and rotate the shape of the brush

tip. Blurred edge results in a soft focus of the tip. Pressure specifies

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The tool settings 89

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the intensity of application and Flow rate indicates the rate of colour

application when the mouse button is pressed, which leads to a

spray effect.

The Structure Tab

On this index card using "Preserve colour" and "Mix colour" functions

you can regulate how quickly the brush takes up colour from the

background, altering its painting colour.

Use "Smear" to define the ratio between applied colour and smeared

background with values ranging from 0 to 100%. Values greater than

90% result in a clear smear effect, while 100% produces pure smear

without colour.

If "Fade" is greater than 0, the brush will loose colour during constant

painting similar to a real brush until it no longer applies colour.

Note: Parameters "Smear", "Preserve colour" and "Apply colour" are

only visible for 'Paint' effects and do not affect other effects.

The Dots Tab

Here, you can define properties of dots stringed together during

painting. Use "Dots" to control how many dots are applied

simultaneously (Number) and at what random radius around the

mouse pointer (Radius) (radii > 0 signify a spray effect).

Settings under "Colour deviation" are again only visible with 'Paint'

effect. Use the "Hue", "Saturation", and "Brightness" slide controls to

define the maximal deviation of the colour applied from the paint

colour used.

If you activate "Linear deviation", such deviations are no longer

random, but occur at the specified speed.

The Orbitals Tab

Orbitals are strokes of the brush moving alone or in groups parallel to

or around the lines drawn with the mouse. If you activate Orbitals,

you can specify how many, how fast and at what intervals additional

strokes are applied around the line drawn with the mouse using

"Number", "Radius" and "Orbiting speed" parameters. Use "Radius

variance" and "Variance speed" to generate a varying radius. To paint

only orbitals without the main stroke, activate "Exclude center".

90 The tool settings

www.magix.com

Selection

You can select a pre-defined brush from the dropdown list. A brush

is comprised of a brush tip, found under "Shape", and a selection

from the 27 variable properties. By clicking on the brush tip, a pop-up

menu with a selection of other tips is opened, and a new tip can be

assigned to the current brush. Changed brushes can be saved or

deleted here.

The Selection index card offers the parameters Size, Interval, Level,

Rotate, Pressure, Blurred edge, and Flow rate. When painting, the

brush tip is applied at the intervals specified at Interval (% of tip size).

Use Level and Rotate to compress and rotate the shape of the brush

tip. Blurred edge results in a soft focus of the tip. Pressure specifies

the intensity of application and Flow rate indicates the rate of colour

application when the mouse button is pressed, which leads to a

spray effect.

Structure

On this index card using "Preserve colour" and "Mix colour" functions

you can regulate how quickly the brush takes up colour from the

background, altering its painting colour.

Use "Smear" to define the ratio between applied colour and smeared

background with values ranging from 0 to 100%. Values greater than

90% result in a clear smear effect, while 100% produces pure smear

without colour.

If "Fade" is greater than 0, the brush will loose colour during constant

painting similar to a real brush until it no longer applies colour.

Note: Parameters "Smear", "Preserve colour" and "Apply colour" are

only visible for 'Paint' effects and do not affect other effects.

The tool settings 91

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Dots

Here, you can define properties of dots, or dabs, stringed together by

the brush during painting. Use "Dots" to control how many dots are

applied simultaneously (Number) and at what random radius around

the mouse pointer they are applied (Radius) (radii > 0 signify a spray

effect).

Settings under "Colour deviation" are, again, only visible with 'Paint'

effects. Use the "Hue", "Saturation", and "Brightness" slide controls

to define the maximal deviation of the colour applied from the paint

colour used.

If you activate "Linear deviation", such deviations are no longer

random, but occur at the specified speed.

Orbitals

Orbitals are strokes of the brush moving alone or in groups parallel to

or around the lines drawn with the mouse. If you activate Orbitals,

you can specify how many, how fast and at what intervals additional

strokes are applied around the line drawn with the mouse using

"Number", "Radius" and "Orbiting speed" parameters. Use "Radius

variance" and "Variance speed" to generate a varying radius. To paint

only orbitals without the main stroke, activate "Exclude center".

92 Configuration

www.magix.com

Configuration

You can configure MAGIX Photo Designer 7 by selecting "Settings" in

the "File" menu.

Monitor Gamma

Select the "Monitor-Gamma" tab in the "Settings" dialog to change

the monitor’s colour representation. Gamma correction is a non-linear

modification of the colour spectrum that optimizes colour viewing for

monitors.

After activating gamma correction by ticking the control box, you can

adjust the colours by moving the slide controls. You should adjust all

three colour channels to balance the brightness of the colour fields.

Confirm your settings with "OK".

Undo/Redo

Select the "Undo/Redo" tab to set the number of steps that may be

undone.

Ticking the "Activate undo" control box allows you to undo work

steps. The next two control boxes allow you to limit the number of

steps and/or disk space that may be used for operations.

Mark "Redo" to be able to redo actions after undoing them.

Slideshow

You can set browser parameters for slideshows here. Set the image

display interval anywhere between 1 and 180 seconds. If you select

"Repeat", the slideshow will start over again once a cycle is

completed. The "Adjust to window size" option adjusts the size of

images that are larger than the current window. "Enlarge to fit

window" works the same way.

Configuration 93

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Other

Under "Other", the following settings can be specified:

Edit EXIF information: JPG files loaded from cameras contain meta

data, such as "rotate 90°", which is processed if this function is

activated.

Adjust image size during opening: Images are automatically

displayed as large as possible when opened.

Use JPX information during opening: If this option is activated, then

realtime effects from other MAGIX photo programs (Digital Photo

Maker, Media Manager, etc.), if available, will be applied to the image

when it is imported.

Convert image description as a text object: Attaches image

descriptions as a text object to the image file.

Create image copies automatically: A copy will be automatically

created when images are saved.

94 If you still have questions...

www.magix.com

If you still have questions...

Task Assistant

The Task Assistant is your information center. It helps you complete

your tasks and provides support at every step. Not only will you find

clear videos with step-by-step instructions, you also find quick

access to lots of functions.

The Task Assistant chapters can be found in the "Tasks" menu.

PDF manual

Much like the program Help, the electronic manual (PDF) contains the

entire program documentation. You can find it under "Start menu" >

"Programs" > "MAGIX Photo Designer 7" in the subfolder

"Documentation".

Note: To view the PDF file, you will need the "Adobe Acrobat Reader"

application, which you can download for free from the manufacturer's

homepage if it is not yet installed on your PC.

Program Help

The program Help contains hints on how to use the program and lots

of additional information. It's available to you at all times in the

program. You can search Help using keywords and cross references.

Homepage: The main Help page can be accessed via the "Help" >

"Contents" menu point.

Context Help: Press the "F1" key on your keyboard at any point in

the opened program and Help will open with the matching Help topic

(context help).

If you still have questions... 95

www.magix.com

MAGIX News Center

MAGIX supplies you with all the latest information on your software.

In the MAGIX News Center you can find out about all the links to

current online tutorials and tips & tricks on individual topics or

software application examples.

You will also be informed of the availability of brand new updates and

patches for your program as well as special offers, contests and

questionnaires.

The news is split into three color-coded sections:

 Green for practical tips & tricks for your software

 Yellow reports the availability of new patches and updates for your

product

 Red for special offers, contests and questionnaires.

 If there are no new messages, the button will be gray.

All available information is shown as soon as you click on MAGIX

News Center. If you click on one of the news items, you will be

forwarded to the corresponding website.

96 Index

www.magix.com

Index

1

1 Click............................................................................................ 80

A

Actions........................................................................................... 63

Add Noise ...................................................................................... 73

Add to current album...................................................................... 42

Adjust shape .................................................................................. 56

Album ............................................................................................ 40

Apply Shadow ................................................................................ 57

Art Filters........................................................................................ 70

Auto scroll ...................................................................................... 54

B

Barrel/Pincushion Correction .......................................................... 75

Blur ................................................................................................ 77

Brief Description ............................................................................... 9

Brightness/Contrast........................................................................ 69

Brush mask.................................................................................... 86

Brush Mask.................................................................................... 55

Bumpmap ...................................................................................... 72

C

Camera Zoom ................................................................................ 77

Change image format ..................................................................... 35

Channels ........................................................................................ 69

Chromatic Aberration...................................................................... 67

Cloning........................................................................................... 30

Coarsening Filters........................................................................... 74

Color Balance................................................................................. 68

Color Filters .................................................................................... 67

Colour gradient editor..................................................................... 34

Colour with colour gradient............................................................. 33

Concentric Waves .......................................................................... 75

Configuration.................................................................................. 92

Connect/Transparency ................................................................... 58

Context menu................................................................................. 59

Index 97

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Copy objects from different images and programs ..........................58

Copy, Paste, Copy to..., Move to..., Delete and Rename Files .........42

Create ............................................................................................46

Create mask from object.................................................................53

Create Panorama Pictures ..............................................................50

Create, load and save pictures........................................................46

Creating a Panorama ......................................................................51

Creating objects .............................................................................15

Creating Objects.............................................................................56

Creating Screenshots .....................................................................47

Crop person or object.....................................................................22

Crop to mask..................................................................................52

D

Deform pictures ..............................................................................51

Deinterlace .....................................................................................76

Dent/Bump.....................................................................................74

Description .....................................................................................43

Design title of picture ......................................................................26

Detailed image editing.....................................................................20

Dialog bar.......................................................................................80

Diffuse ............................................................................................74

Distortion Filters..............................................................................74

Dots ...............................................................................................91

Draw/Retouch with the brush..........................................................11

Dye ................................................................................................68

E

Editing multiple pictures at a time or................................................19

Effect bar........................................................................................79

Effects ................................................................................ 11, 65, 81

Effects & Filters...............................................................................31

Emboss .................................................................................... 33, 72

Even Waves....................................................................................74

F

Filter ...............................................................................................44

Find Edges .....................................................................................72

Fisheye-perspective........................................................................74

Flip pages.......................................................................................72

Focus .............................................................................................71

Focusing Filters...............................................................................71

98 Index

www.magix.com

Folder............................................................................................. 40

G

Gamma Correction ......................................................................... 68

Gaussian Blur................................................................................. 76

Gaussian Blur (Smart) ..................................................................... 76

General usage tips.......................................................................... 14

H

Highlight......................................................................................... 71

Hue/Saturation/Brightness.............................................................. 70

I

If you still have questions... ............................................................. 94

Image Information........................................................................... 44

Import Images ................................................................................ 47

Import Images via TWAIN Interface ................................................. 47

In the example................................................................................ 18

Include/include all ........................................................................... 57

Input .............................................................................................. 63

Introduction...................................................................................... 3

Invert mask..................................................................................... 53

J

JPEG Transformations.................................................................... 44

K

Keep Exif Camera Information......................................................... 47

L

Lasso mask/Magnetic lasso...................................................... 55, 86

Level Balance ................................................................................. 67

Limiting Value ................................................................................. 68

Load .............................................................................................. 46

Loading/saving the mask................................................................ 54

M

Magic Wand ............................................................................. 55, 86

Index 99

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MAGIX News Center.......................................................................95

Mask ..............................................................................................11

Mask > Expand/Reduce selection ...................................................54

Maximum .......................................................................................73

Median ...........................................................................................73

Minimum ........................................................................................73

Monitor Gamma..............................................................................92

Mosaik............................................................................................74

Motion Blur.....................................................................................77

N

Negative .........................................................................................69

Noise Filters....................................................................................73

Noise Reduction .............................................................................73

Noise reduction (selective)...............................................................74

O

Object Manager ..............................................................................14

Object order ...................................................................................57

Object tool setting ............................................................................9

Objects...........................................................................................12

Open ..............................................................................................42

Orbitals...........................................................................................91

Other..............................................................................................93

Other Filters....................................................................................71

Output............................................................................................64

P

Page size........................................................................................52

Paint...............................................................................................67

Paint with Gradient .........................................................................69

Painting ..........................................................................................70

Panorama.......................................................................................21

PDF manual....................................................................................94

Perspective.....................................................................................75

Plugin Filters ...................................................................................66

Poster ............................................................................................69

Print ...............................................................................................42

Print Images ...................................................................................48

Print several images........................................................................49

Printing an Image............................................................................48

Program Help .................................................................................94

100 Index

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Program interface ........................................................................... 13

Q

Quick image optimization and multiple picture editing...................... 17

R

Rectangular mask/round mask ....................................................... 54

Rectangular Mask/Round Mask ...................................................... 85

Red/Green/Blue.............................................................................. 69

Relief.............................................................................................. 72

Remove mask ................................................................................ 53

Remove Red Eyes .......................................................................... 69

Remove Stains ............................................................................... 73

Removing scratches and stains ...................................................... 30

Rename Sequence ......................................................................... 43

Reshape texts ................................................................................ 27

Rotate/Flip...................................................................................... 51

Rotation ......................................................................................... 77

S

Save............................................................................................... 46

Save for Internet ............................................................................. 46

Scale.............................................................................................. 51

Scale objects.................................................................................. 15

Screenshot function........................................................................ 38

Search photos................................................................................ 41

Select all......................................................................................... 53

Selecting Images ............................................................................ 41

Selection ........................................................................................ 90

Selectively brighten areas ............................................................... 28

Shade Curve .................................................................................. 70

Show images.................................................................................. 45

Slideshow................................................................................. 42, 92

Smart, practical and can be used straight away .............................. 16

Soften Filters .................................................................................. 76

Sorting ........................................................................................... 44

Standard ........................................................................................ 78

Structure ........................................................................................ 90

Stylising Filters................................................................................ 72

Support............................................................................................ 4

Surgery without artistic malpractice ................................................ 32

Index 101

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T

Task Assistant ................................................................................94

Text effects.....................................................................................62

The Brush Palette ...........................................................................88

The brush/pen tool settings ............................................................88

The Color Gradient Editor ...............................................................87

The File List ....................................................................................41

The Folder View ..............................................................................40

The Gradient Tool settings ..............................................................87

The Index Tabs...............................................................................48

The Mask Tools ..............................................................................54

The mask tools settings ..................................................................85

The Object Manager .......................................................................58

The Status Bar................................................................................44

The Thumbnail Bar..........................................................................49

The tool bar ....................................................................................48

The tool settings .............................................................................85

The Toolbars ..................................................................................78

Toolbar.....................................................................................15, 82

Turn new into old – Transform photos into paintings........................32

Tutorial ...........................................................................................12

U

Undo/Redo.....................................................................................92

Unsharp Mask ................................................................................71

User Filter .......................................................................................71

V

Video Filters....................................................................................76

Views .............................................................................................41

Vignette ....................................................................................54, 57

W

Whirl...............................................................................................75

Working with Batch Processing.......................................................63

Working with Images ......................................................................45

Working with Objects......................................................................56

Working with Text Objects ..............................................................61

Working with the Browser ...............................................................39

Working with the Mask....................................................................53

102 Index

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Z

Zoom ............................................................................................. 80