Sams Teach Yourself Paint Shop Pro 7 in 24 Hours

Introduction.
I. GETTING STARTED IN PAINT SHOP PRO.

Hour 1. Paint Shop Pro Basics, Tools, and Preferences.


Introduction to Paint Shop Pro. Overview of New Features.



Using Online Help.



Overview of the Paint Shop Pro Interface. The Standard Toolbar.



Other Toolbars.



The Toolbox.



The Arrow Tool. The Zoom Tool. The Deformation Tool. The Crop Tool. The Mover Tool. The Selection Tool. The Freehand Tool. The Magic Wand Tool. The Dropper Tool. The Paint Brush. The Clone Brush The Color Replacer. The Retouch Tool. Scratch Remover. The Eraser Tool. The Picture Tube. The Airbrush. The Flood Fill Tool. The Text Tool. The Draw Tool. The Preset Shapes Tool. The Object Selector Tool.



The Menus.



The File Menu. The Edit Menu. The View Menu. The Image Menu. The Effects Menu The Colors Menu. The Layers Menu. The Objects Menu. The Selections Menu. The Masks Menu. The Window Menu. The Help Menu.



Using the Palettes.



The Color Palette. The Tool Options Palette. The Layer Palette. The Tool Palette. The Overview Window.



Setting Preferences.



General Program Preferences. CMYK Conversion Preferences. File Format Preferences. File Format Associations. File Locations Preferences. Color Management Preferences. Monitor Gamma Adjustments. Autosave Settings.



Summary. Workshop.



Q&A. Quiz. Answers.

Hour 2. Opening, Saving, and Printing Files.


Opening a File.



Opening a New File. Opening an Existing File. Browsing for an Existing File.



Importing Files. Saving Files. Exporting Files. Printing Basics. Multi-Image Printing. Summary. Workshop.



Q&A. Quiz. Answers.

Hour 3. Creating Your First Image.


Issues to Consider Before Constructing an Image.



Choosing an Image Size. Choosing an Image Type.



Creating a Simple Image.



Using the Preset Shapes Tool. Avoiding Aliased Images. Using Brush Tips.



Editing a Simple Image. Fixing Errors. Summary. Workshop.



Q&A. Quiz. Answers.

II. EDITING YOUR IMAGES.

Hour 4. Creating and Working with Selections.


Using the SelectionTools.



The Selection Tool. The Freehand Tool. The Magic Wand Tool.



Editing Selections.



Adding to a Selection. Subtracting from a Selection. Expanding and Contracting a Selection. Growing a Selection. Selecting Similar Areas.



Loading and Saving Selections. Summary. Workshop.



Q&A. Quiz. Answers.

Hour 5. Working with Deformations.


Using the Deformation Tool.



Rotating Text. Using the Perspective, Shear, and Distort Options. Adding a Shadow Effect.



Summary. Workshop.



Q&A. Quiz. Answers.

Hour 6. Drawing Tools and Techniques.


The Drawing Tools and Their Options. Drawing Shapes. Drawing Lines.



The Single Line Tool. The Bézier Curve Line Tool.



Summary. Workshop.



Q&A. Quiz. Answers.

Hour 7. Painting Tools and Techniques.


Painting and Drawing with the Paint Brush Tool.



Using the Tool Controls. Custom Brush Tips. Using Patterns and Textures.



Using the Airbrush Tool. Using the Flood Fill Tool.



Filling an Area with a Solid Color. Filling with a Gradient. Creating and Editing Multicolored Gradients. Filling with a Pattern.



Learning the Mysteries of the Clone Brush Tool. Summary. Workshop.



Q&A. Quiz. Answers.

Hour 8. Using Color Effectively.


The Color Tools.



Using the Dropper Tool. Using the Color Palette.



The Color Models Used with Paint Shop Pro.



The RGB Model. The CMYK Model. The HSL Model.



Adjusting Highlights, Midtones, and Shadows. Adjusting Hue, Saturation, and Luminance. Summary. Workshop.



Q&A. Quiz. Answers.

Hour 9. Creating Cool Text Effects.


Using the Text Tool. Creating Wooden Textured Text. Creating Chrome Text. Adding a Drop Shadow. Adding a Glow to Your Text. Creating Text on a Path. Vector Text. Summary. Workshop.



Q&A. Quiz. Answers.

III. TOOLS TO WORK EFFICIENTLY.

Hour 10. Working Progressively with Layers.


Understanding Layers.



The Layer Palette. The Layers Menu.



Using Layers Effectively.



Moving Layers. Grouping Layers Together. Changing the Opacity and Visibility Options.



Understanding the Blending Modes.



A Real-World Blending Mode Example.



Summary. Workshop.



Q&A. Quiz. Answers.

Hour 11. Utilizing Masks for Precision.


What Are Masks? The Masks Menu. Creating Your First Mask. Creating a More Complex Mask. Saving and Loading Masks. Understanding Advanced Mask Topics. Summary. Workshop.



Q&A. Quiz. Answers.

Hour 12. Using Channels Effectively.


What Are Channels?



Splitting Channels. Combining Channels.



Identifying the Information in Channels. Putting Channels to Work.



Testing Your Understanding of Channels. Using Channels to Create Masks.



Summary. Workshop.



Q&A. Quiz. Answers.

Hour 13. Working with Flexible Vector Tools.


Using Vector Tools. Creating Vector Objects. Editing Nodes. Creating Vector Lines.



Drawing Single Lines. Drawing Bézier Curves. Drawing Freehand Lines. Drawing Point to Point Lines.



Type as Vectors. Vector Object Properties. Rasterizing Your Vector Objects. Summary. Workshop.



Q&A. Quiz. Answers.

Hour 14. Using and Creating Picture Tubes.


What Are Picture Tubes? Using Picture Tubes. Finding New Picture Tubes. Creating Your Own Picture Tubes. Summary. Workshop.



Q&A. Quiz. Answers.

Hour 15. Applying Filters.


Why Filters? Where You Can Get Plug-ins. Using Built-In Filters.



Buttonize Filter. Chisel Filter. Cutout Filter. Drop Shadow Filter. Filter Effects with Layer Blending Mode Variations.



Using Third-Party Filters.



Installing Plug-ins. Alien Skin's Eye Candy. Auto F/X's Photo/Graphic Edges. Flaming Pear's BladePro. Other Plug-ins.



Summary. Workshop.



Q&A. Quiz. Answers.

Hour 16. Special Effects.


Adding a Page Curl Effect. Mastering Metallic Effects. Using Bevels. Summary. Workshop.



Q&A. Quiz. Answers.

IV. ADVANCED PAINT SHOP PRO TASKS.

Hour 17. Retouching Your Images.


Using the Retouching Tools.



Fixing the Brightness and Contrast. Removing Dust Marks and Scratches. Using the Unsharp Mask Filter.



Retouching to Remove Portions of an Image. Summary. Workshop.



Q&A. Quiz. Answers.

Hour 18. Coloring and Color Correction.


A Little Color Theory. Understanding Gamma Correction.



Using the Gamma Correction Feature. Using the Histogram Palette.



Playing with Other Color Adjustments. Adjusting the Hue, Saturation, and Lightness. Working with the Hue Map Command. Adjusting the Reds, Greens, and Blues of Your Image. Using Adjustment Layers. Color Correction in a Nutshell. Summary. Workshop.



Q&A. Quiz. Answers.

Hour 19. Compositing.


Creating Collages. Creating Photo Montages. Summary. Workshop.



Q&A. Quiz. Answers.

Hour 20. Combining Advanced Techniques.


Outlining Objects. Filling Text with Photos. Creating an Interface.



Setting Up the Interface. Adding the Finishing Touches to the Interface.



Summary. Workshop.



Q&A. Quiz. Answers.

V. PAINT SHOP PRO FOR THE WEB.

Hour 21. Preparing Your Graphics for the Web.


Working with File Formats.



GIFs. JPGs.



Adjusting Color Depth.



8-Bit Color. 16-Bit Color. 24-Bit Color.



Using Palettes.



Problems with Limited Palettes. How to Build or Select a Palette. Loading a Palette.



Previewing Your Images in SmartSaver. Understanding Dithering. Understanding Anti-aliasing.



Aliasing. Anti-aliasing.



Summary. Workshop.



Q&A. Quiz. Answers.

Hour 22. Buttons and Seamless Tiles.


Creating Buttons.



Ordinary Buttons. More Elaborate Buttons. Complex 3D Textured Buttons. Using the Buttonize Effect.



Creating Seamless Tiles.



The Basics of Seamless Tiles. Creating Seamless Tiles with Paint Shop Pro. Using the Convert to Seamless Pattern Option.



Summary. Workshop.



Q&A. Quiz. Answers.

Hour 23. Animation.


Animation Concepts. Why Use Animation? Building an Animation.



Creating Your First Animation. Saving and Previewing an Animation in Your Web Browser. Editing Your First Animation. Using the Mover Tool to Edit the Animation.



Using Transitions. Creating Text Effects. Summary. Workshop



Q&A. Quiz. Answers.

Hour 24. Advanced Animation.


Using Layers and Masks in Animation.



Putting Your Own Spin on the World. Creating the Animation. Spreading Your Wings.



Summary. Workshop.



Q&A. Quiz. Answers.

VI. APPENDIXES.

Appendix A. Installing Paint Shop Pro 7.
Appendix B. Paint Shop Pro Resources.
Index.