Staightening and cropping

[Larry4511]

The straightening bar was a bit tricky to get used to, but once I figured it out, I liked it a lot.

In the straightening options box, you can check the 'crop' option, and PSP will crop the straightened image for you, but it forces the image to its original size by adding some canbas, and you have to crop it off. If you do not have the 'crop' option checked, you have to manually crop the straightened image.

Question is, is there a way to have the added canvas not added after the auto-cropping?

Just a quick question, too, on scripts. I have not looked into it yet, but can shortcut keys be attached to recorded scripts?

Thanks.

[LeviFiction]

I don't seem to have that problem of Paint Shop Pro adding canvas after straightening. In fact it shouldn't be doing that with Crop Image selected. Nothing in my books or the tutorials I've downloaded suggest that it does. So I'm clueless on this one.


As for using scrips with short-cut keys. I could be wrong but I don't believe you can. I know you can bind a script to an icon and then drag that script into a toolbar or menu for quick and easy access. For example I've added the sloppy edges script to my effects menu.

You go to View->customize

Under the scripts tag select the script, the icon you want to use, and click the bind button. Then just drag the icon onto the toolbar or menu you want to use it in.

[JoeB]

Once you bind a script following LeviFiction's instructions, you can then assign a shortcut key using Customize>Keyboard and selecting Boundscripts from the Categories dropdown.

Applying your Straighten should not leave white areas (it doesn't in my PSP v.9). What version are you using?

Regards,

JoeB

[Larry4511]

I have Version 12.0 of PSP X2 Plus, purchased in a 'bundle' Aug 29.

Perhaps 'canvas' is the wrong word.

Both PSP and Photoshop do straightening that result in an image with checkerboard wedges at the corners of the image representing the amount of the rotation. Manually cropping this out yields a 'straight' image.

With the Crop option checked in PSP, the images is auto-cropped and if cropping is actually done, the image becomes smaller and a symmetrical checkerboard 'canvas' is added around the image representing the original size of the image.

The image is now straight and cropped, but the added checkerboard 'canvas' still has to be manually cropped and, if desired, the image must be resized to the original image size.

Now, I don't know if I have changed a Preference in some way that causes this for me but not to others, but, even so, it is no different than what happens in Photoshop.

Accepting this as 'normal', my suggestion for PSP is to add two more options to the Straighten Options Box:

1. Remove added canbas
2. Resize to original

I have not looked at assigning an icon/key to a script as yet, but that would be a great suggestion for PSP, too:

1. Assign Shortcut Key to Script

Right now, I have re-assigned several keys to make processing my photo scans to make it easier to cut out individual photos into seperate image files:

Ctrl Insert: save selection to clipboard
Shift Insert: paste clipboard to image file
Shift Ctrl Insert: Save As...
Ctrl Backspace: Close image

PSP makes it very easy to re-assign keys and this combination makes it very fluid to process the multiple-image scans.

Outstanding!

See ya.
Larry

[LeviFiction]

Huh, that definately seems like a fast enough process. I've just been using the crop tool's Crop To New Image feature which takes what I'm about to crop and makes a new image out of it. But that's a cool method you've got going there.

YAY! JoeB answered the most likely reason. Now I know too.

[JoeB]

I have Version 12.0 of PSP X2 Plus, purchased in a 'bundle' Aug 29.

Perhaps 'canvas' is the wrong word.

Both PSP and Photoshop do straightening that result in an image with checkerboard wedges at the corners of the image representing the amount of the rotation. Manually cropping this out yields a 'straight' image.

With the Crop option checked in PSP, the images is auto-cropped and if cropping is actually done, the image becomes smaller and a symmetrical checkerboard 'canvas' is added around the image representing the original size of the image.

OK, this added info about the checkerboard helps. You are rotating an image that is a raster layer, not a Background layer, with the checkerboard representing transparency which can be seen behind the image data if the image is made smaller than the actual canvas.

In PSP9, if I have more than one layer and just straighten one of them and I only want that one layer straightened but not the others, then having Crop Image checked straightens and crops only that layer, then centers the smaller resultant image on the canvas, so that the layer below it is visible around the edges. However, if I also check the Rotate All Layers box then all layers get rotated and the whole canvas gets cropped to the smaller size.

If you don't have more than one layer on your image, maybe PSPX2 automatically assumes that an image with a regular Raster layer MIGHT have more than one layer so it maintains the original canvas size just in case. Try checking the Rotate All Layers checkbox and see if that fixes the cropping problem.

The image is now straight and cropped, but the added checkerboard 'canvas' still has to be manually cropped and, if desired, the image must be resized to the original image size.

Accepting this as 'normal', my suggestion for PSP is to add two more options to the Straighten Options Box:

1. Remove added canbas
2. Resize to original

I doubt that Corel is going to be adding the Resize to Original feature, because they don't add anything that won't make the product appeal to enough people to increase sales to make it worth their time and effort.

I have not looked at assigning an icon/key to a script as yet, but that would be a great suggestion for PSP, too:

1. Assign Shortcut Key to Script

As I said in my previous post, you can already do this, you just have to create a Boundscript first.

Right now, I have re-assigned several keys to make processing my photo scans to make it easier to cut out individual photos into seperate image files

Doesn't your scanner allow you to place several photos on the scanner and automatically create separate images for each one? Most scanners today have that option.

Regards,

JoeB

[Larry4511]

Levifiction,

I haven't yet played with the Crop to Image function yet, but it may speed things up a bit since it has the option to put a Straighten bar onto the image after cropping.

JoeB,

Yep, that was it. With Rotate All Layers checked, the image is straightened, cropped, and no excess canbas. Great! And thanks. That's what I get for not mastering layers.

Well, I didn't know that ab out the scanners. Mine was a Mictotek 5700 circa 2002 and I don't recall it having that feature. Since it has quit on me (after some 15,000 scans--got my money's worth), it's time for a new one. Of course, as the economy fails, it will probaly cost me $25,000 the way the world is priting money. Well, it was a good run...wonder what's next?

See ya,
Larry