CorelDRAW X8: The Official Guide, 12th Edition

CorelDRAW X8: The Official Guide, 12th Edition

by Gary David Bouton
Released February 2017
Publisher(s): McGraw-Hill
ISBN: 9781259860218

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Book description

The Corel-Authorized Guide to CorelDRAW®—Updated for CorelDRAW X8

This thoroughly revised guide offers complete coverage of CorelDraw X8, including the revamped interface and brand-new features. CorelDRAW X8: The Official Guide shows anyone—from a beginner to an experienced illustrator—how to create top-drawer commercial graphics and exquisite artwork. You will learn to draw photorealistic illustrations, use shortcuts to create complex art, lay out text like a pro, add special effects, and transform 2D objects into 3D graphics. The book features tips for printing high-quality work that matches what you’ve designed on your monitor.

• Work in the customizable interface redesigned to reflect Windows® Metro style
• Explore and understand the software’s menus, palettes, and dockers
• Lay out brochures, flyers, and other multi-page documents
• Add paragraph, artistic, and custom-shaped text to your designs
• Search the Content Exchange for fonts, vector patterns, background designs, and the Get More docker
• Use the Perspective, Extrude, Smear, Twirl, Attract, Repel, and Distortion tools
• Incorporate lens effects, transparency, shadows, glows, and bevels
• Put all the elements together in a professional, visually compelling way with layout and design tips from the author

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Title Page
  3. Copyright Page
  4. Dedication
  5. Contents at a Glance
  6. Contents
  7. Foreword
  8. Acknowledgments
  9. Introduction
  10. PART I Student Orientation Weekend
    1. CHAPTER 1 Welcome! What’s New (and Also Exciting) in CorelDRAW Graphics Suite X8!
      1. If You’re New to Vector Drawing Programs
        1. What Vector Drawing Is and Isn’t
        2. Your One-Stop Shop for Extra Content: CorelCONNECT
        3. Get Started from the Get-Go
      2. The CorelDRAW Application Window
      3. CONNECTing to Your Workspace
        1. Using Your Universal Connection
      4. From Corel Content to Your Content, “Add to Page” Style
      5. From Corel’s Content Server to CorelDRAW’s Tray
      6. So What Else Is New?
        1. The Elliptical Fountain Fill
        2. An Improved Knife Tool
        3. Copying Paths
      7. Making Use of the New Copy Segment Feature
    2. CHAPTER 2 The Roadmap to Features and Productivity in DRAW
      1. The CorelDRAW Workspace
        1. The Page Shadow: It’s a Command Control
      2. Defining and Saving a Custom Page Size
        1. Page Options on the Property Bar
      3. Can You Give Me a Hint?
        1. CTRL, ALT, and SHIFT Are Your Friends
        2. Choosing Tones from the Color Wells
      4. Surprises When You Right-click and Use the Wheel
        1. Tapping into the Power of the Right-click Menu
      5. Dropping a Copy of a Selected Object
        1. Page Navigation: Panning and Zooming the Smart Way
      6. Not to be Overlooked on the Standard Bar…
        1. Shortcut Keys You’ll Want to Memorize
      7. Global versus Local
      8. A Brief Anatomy Lesson on Dockers
        1. Opening, Moving, and Closing Dockers
        2. Nested (Grouped) Dockers
    3. CHAPTER 3 Diving In to DRAW!
      1. Working with the Star Tool to Build a Pattern
      2. Making the Background: Putting the Star Tool to Work
        1. Tweaking the Star Object
      3. Reshaping a Star: Technique 1
      4. Reshaping a Star: Technique 2
        1. Making a Pattern of Stars
      5. Creating More Stars Than a Hollywood Agent
      6. Rotating and Scaling to Populate the Pattern Area
      7. Shaping Operations and Combining Objects
      8. Trimming the Stars to the Background and Beyond
      9. An Introduction to Enveloping Objects
      10. Enveloping and Trimming the Welded Stars
        1. Adding Shading to Your Composition
      11. Adding Lighting to the Beach Ball
        1. Adding Highlights and a Shadow
        2. Blending Yourself a Cast Shadow
      12. Making a Cast Shadow with Blends
        1. Adding a Background and a Floor in Perspective
      13. A Starry Ball Sitting on a Floral Rug
      14. Completing the Composition with Embellishments
      15. Framing Your Composition
  11. PART II Getting Started with CorelDRAW X8
    1. CHAPTER 4 Working with Single- and Multipage Documents
      1. Setting Up Your Document Page
        1. Controlling Page Size and Orientation
        2. Paper Type/Size
        3. Page Viewing Options
        4. Controlling Page Background Color
      2. Changing a Background Bitmap
        1. Using Layouts and Labels
      3. Naming Pages
        1. Using the Rename Page Command
        2. Saving Details with Your File
        3. Navigating a Multipage Document
        4. Using the Object Manager
      4. Page Commands
        1. Inserting Pages and Setting Options
        2. Deleting Pages
        3. Moving and Duplicating Pages
        4. Using the Page Sorter
      5. Working with Guidelines and Guide Layers
        1. Using Guidelines
        2. Working with the Guides Layer
        3. Making an Object a Guideline
      6. The New Alignment and Dynamic Guides Docker
        1. Alignment Properties on the Docker
        2. Adding Margins to the Mix
        3. Dynamic Guides
    2. CHAPTER 5 Creating Basic Shapes, Applying Transformations
      1. Using the Rectangle Tool and Property Bar
        1. Drawing a Rectangle
        2. Setting Rectangle Corner Properties
        3. Creating 3-Point Rectangles
      2. Using the Ellipse Tool and Property Bar
        1. Drawing an Ellipse
      3. Round 1 with the Ellipse Tool
        1. Controlling Ellipse States
        2. Creating 3-Point Ellipses
      4. Using Polygons and the Property Bar
        1. Drawing and Editing Polygons
      5. Reshaping a Polygon
        1. Stars and Complex Stars
      6. Using the Spiral Tool
      7. Using the Graph Paper Tool
      8. Power-Drawing a Grid with Graph Paper
      9. Using the Convert Outline to Object Command
    3. CHAPTER 6 Arranging and Organizing Objects
      1. Basic Object Selection
        1. Pick Tool Selections
        2. Picking and Freehand Picking
        3. Selection Techniques
        4. Selecting Objects by Type
      2. Moving Objects
        1. Using the Pick Tool
        2. Using Nudge Keys
      3. Transforming Objects
        1. Transforming Objects Using the Cursor
      4. Off-center Object Rotation to Create a Design
        1. Using the Free Transform Tool
      5. Straightening Objects via Attributes
      6. Applying Precise Transformations
        1. Positioning (Moving) Objects
        2. Rotating Objects
        3. Scale and Mirror Objects
        4. Sizing Objects
        5. Precision Skewing
      7. Controlling the Order of Things
      8. Working with Views of a Document’s Depth: Layers
        1. Exploring the Object Manager
        2. Navigating Pages, Objects, and Layers
      9. Navigating and Mastering Layers
        1. Using Object Manager Editing and View States
        2. Controlling Layer Properties
        3. Working with Master Page Layers
      10. Working with Master Page Items
  12. PART III Working with DRAWing Tools
    1. CHAPTER 7 Choosing (and Understanding) the Right Path Tools
      1. Sidling Up to CorelDRAW’s Curve Tools
      2. How to Draw in CorelDRAW
        1. Drawing with Freehand and Polyline Tools
      3. Drawing Arcs with the 3-Point Curve Tool
      4. 3-Point Curves and Closed Objects
        1. The 2-Point Line Tool
      5. Using the Bézier and Pen Tools
        1. Getting a Handle on Béziers
      6. Drawing Curves and Straight Line Segments
      7. Editing Bézier Paths
      8. Editing Paths with the Shape Tool
      9. Copying and Pasting Subpaths
      10. Increasing the Number of Holes in Swiss Cheese
      11. Controlling Freehand and Bézier Tool Behavior
        1. Working with Compound Paths
        2. Combining Objects
        3. Breaking Paths Apart
        4. Converting Objects to Curves
    2. CHAPTER 8 Exploring Special Shapes, Connectors, and Other Office Automation Helpers
      1. CorelDRAW’s Smart Drawing Tool
      2. CAD: CorelDRAW-Assisted Drawing
      3. Reshaping a Perfect Shape
      4. Using Perfect Shape Tools
      5. Creating Perfect Objects
        1. Editing Glyph Nodes
      6. Working with the Dimension Tools
        1. Using Dimension Tools
        2. Checking Out Dimension Lines
      7. Using Dimension Lines
        1. Segment Dimensions
        2. An Exercise in Dimensioning to Scale
      8. Drawing Scale, Windows Calculator, and Dimension Lines
        1. Working with Callouts
      9. The Connector Tools
      10. Tables
        1. Creating a Table
        2. Using the Proper Tool for the Job
        3. Table Options When the Pick Tool Is Active
        4. Table Options When the Shape Tool Is Active
        5. Editing a Table When the Table Tool Is Active
        6. Working with Text and Graphics in a Table
        7. Converting a Table to Text
        8. Converting an Existing Text to a Table
    3. CHAPTER 9 Editing Objects, Rearranging Paths, and Using Boolean Ops
      1. Shaping and Reshaping Object Shapes
        1. Shaping Commands and the Property Bar
      2. Working Examples of Object Shaping
        1. Getting Nutty With the Trim Operation
        2. Fillet/Scallop/Chamfer
        3. Down and Dirty and the Shape Tool
      3. Reshaping Objects With the Shape Tool
      4. Editing Shapes via Their Nodes and Control Points
      5. PowerClips
      6. PowerClipping a Design Onto an Object
      7. The Knife Tool
        1. Types of Cuts With the Knife Tool
        2. Setting Knife Tool Behavior
      8. Using the Eraser Tool
        1. Working With Eraser Operations
      9. Power Erasing
        1. Setting Eraser Tool Properties
        2. The Reduce Nodes Option
      10. Using the Virtual Segment Delete Tool
      11. Cropping an Illustration
  13. PART IV Working with Text in Composition
    1. CHAPTER 10 Paragraph Text, Artistic Text, and When (and How) to Use Them
      1. CorelDRAW’s Text Tool
        1. Entering and Editing Artistic Text
      2. Options for Formatting Characters
        1. Use the Property Bar to Change Characters
      3. Using Object Styles with Paragraph Text
        1. Combining and Breaking Apart Artistic Text
        2. Converting Artistic Text to Curves
        3. Entering and Editing Paragraph Text
      4. Creating Linked Paragraph Text Frames
      5. Wrapping Text Around Other Shapes
        1. Fitting Text to Curve
      6. Text Along a Curve
      7. Embedding Objects into Text
        1. Using the Insert Character Docker
        2. Using the Symbol Manager
      8. Creating, Saving, and Using Symbols
      9. CorelDRAW’s Font Playground: Take a Ride!
    2. CHAPTER 11 Intermediate Desktop Publishing and Proofing Tools
      1. A Few Paragraphs Covering Advanced Paragraph Features
        1. Working With Columns
        2. Column Settings
        3. Moving Text Within a Paragraph
        4. Converting Between Artistic Text and Paragraph Text
      2. The Text Bar and Special Paragraph Formatting
        1. Formatting Bulleted Lists
      3. Creating a Bullet Motif
        1. Changing Text Case
      4. Formatting Paragraph Text
        1. Paragraph Alignment
        2. Spacing
        3. Paragraph and Line Spacing
        4. Language, Character, and Word Spacing
        5. Indentation and Margins of Paragraph Text
        6. Formatting Tabs
        7. Adding, Moving, and Deleting Tabs from the Dialog
        8. Formatting Tab Leaders from the Dialog
        9. Using the Ruler to Set Tabs
      5. Take Me to Your Leader
      6. Spelling and Grammar
      7. Using CorelDRAW’s Writing Tools
        1. Assigning Language Codes
        2. Using the Proofing Tools
        3. Common Buttons
        4. Setting Spell Checker Options
      8. Using Word Lists
        1. Using Main Word Lists
        2. Other Spell-Checking Options
        3. Main Spell-Checking Options
      9. Using Grammatik
        1. Checking and Correcting Grammar
        2. Turning Grammatik’s Rules On and Off
      10. Using the Thesaurus
        1. Setting Thesaurus Options
      11. Finding and Replacing Text and Special Characters
        1. Finding Text
        2. Replacing Text
  14. PART V Attributes for Objects and Lines
    1. CHAPTER 12 Options for Filling Objects
      1. Examining the Fill Types
      2. Using the Color Palette
      3. From Uniform to Non-Uniform Object Filling
        1. Customizing Your Fountain Fills
      4. Editing a Fountain Fill In-Place
      5. Uniform Color Fill Options on the Property Bar
        1. Swatches and Preset CMYK “Color Chips”
      6. Applying Pattern Fills
        1. Two-Color Pattern Fills
        2. Vector Pattern Fills
        3. Bitmap Pattern Fills
        4. Controlling Pattern Fills Interactively
      7. Customizing a Pattern Fill
        1. Create Your Own Two-Color and Full-Color Patterns
      8. Applying Texture Fills
      9. Applying PostScript Fills
      10. Working with Mesh Fills
        1. Mesh Fill Options
      11. Sampling Fills
        1. Applying the Color Eyedropper
        2. Using the Attributes Eyedropper Tool
      12. Dropping a Property
    2. CHAPTER 13 Applying Strokes to Paths
      1. Applying Outline Pen Properties
        1. Outline Pen Options and the Property Bar
      2. Going Long and Wide
        1. Outline Tool Features on the Object Properties Docker
      3. Exploring the Outline Pen Features
        1. Setting Outline Color
        2. Choosing Outline Styles
        3. Creating and Editing Outline Styles
        4. Setting Outline Arrowheads
      4. Drawing, Saving, and Editing an Arrowhead Style
        1. Setting Corner Shape
        2. Setting Line Cap Shape
        3. Outline Pen Calligraphic Effects
        4. Scaling and Behind Fill Options
      5. Turning an Outline into an Object
      6. Using the Artistic Media Tool
        1. Applying Presets to Lines
      7. Painting with a Drawing Program
        1. Drawing with Brushes
        2. Applying the Sprayer
        3. Calligraphy Pens and Applying Media
      8. Defining and Applying Calligraphic Brushstrokes
        1. Pressure Mode
    3. CHAPTER 14 Using Blends and Contours
      1. Blend and Contour Effects: Similarities with Distinctions
      2. Blending as Illustration Shading
      3. The Interactive Blend Tool and Property Bar
      4. Creating a Simple Blend Effect
      5. A Basic Blend Between Very Different Shapes
      6. Looking at the Components of a Blend
      7. Editing Blend Effects
        1. Setting Blend Options
        2. Creating Extraordinary, Complex Blend Effects
        3. Assigning a Blend Path
      8. Blending Objects Along a Path
        1. Working with Multi-object Blends
      9. Tapping into Contour Effects
      10. Exploring CorelDRAW’s Contour Effects
      11. Creating Expensive Stationery
      12. Using the Contour Tool and Property Bar
      13. Applying a Contour Effect
        1. Editing Contours Interactively
        2. Choosing Contour Direction
        3. Setting Contour Colors
        4. Creating Special Effects With Contours
      14. Controlling Contour Acceleration
      15. Using the Contour Docker
    4. CHAPTER 15 Mixing and Matching with Digital Color Models
      1. Digital Color Terms and Definitions
        1. Subtractive and Additive Color Models
        2. LAB Color
        3. YIQ
        4. Grayscale
        5. Registration
      2. Using Color-Related Dockers
        1. Using the Color Docker
        2. Finding and Applying Fixed Colors (and Tints)
      3. Dyeing a Pair of Shoes
        1. Using the Color Palette Manager Docker
        2. Using Fixed and Custom Palettes
        3. Using the Color Styles Docker
      4. Making a Color Style and Changing It
      5. Introducing the New Color Harmony
        1. Color Harmonies for Fashion Design
      6. Changing the Color Harmonies of a Monochrome Drawing
        1. Changing Groups of Dissimilar Colors
      7. Recoloring a Logo with Color Styles
      8. Adjusting and Transforming Color
  15. PART VI Creating the Illusion of 3D Composition
    1. CHAPTER 16 The Perspective and Extrude Effects
      1. The Perspective Effect: What Perspective Does to an Object
        1. Getting a Perspective on Perspective
      2. Experiments in Perspective
      3. Creating Two-Point Perspective
        1. Working with Three-Point Perspective
      4. Creating a 3D Ground Plane
        1. Copying Perspective and Creating a 3D Scene
      5. Perspective Scenes via Copying
        1. Pre-visualizing Designs in Perspective
      6. Pre-visualizing a Design on a Product
      7. Extruding Objects: How Extrude Works
        1. Choosing and Applying an Extrude Effect
        2. Navigating the Interactive Markers
      8. Going Deep with the Extrude Tool
      9. Using the Extrude Tool and Property Bar
        1. Setting Extrude Depth
        2. Setting Vanishing Point Properties
        3. Setting 3D Rotation
        4. Using the Rotation Tools
        5. Adding Lights
      10. Working with Extrude Light Options
        1. Setting the Extrude Color
      11. Using the Extrude Docker
      12. Assembly Instructions for a Kid’s Toy
        1. Tinkering Around.cdr and a Beginning Point
        2. Concluding Touches to the Construction
        3. Cleaning Up After Assembling an Extrude Composition
    2. CHAPTER 17 Using the Envelope Tool, Lens Effects, and Bevels
      1. What Does an Envelope Do?
      2. Creating Envelope Effects
        1. Using the Envelope Tool and Property Bar
      3. The Envelope, Please
        1. Using the Envelope Docker
        2. Choosing an Envelope Mode
        3. Choosing Envelope Mapping Options
      4. Creating a Text Envelope
      5. What’s Behind a Lens Effect
      6. Using the Lens Docker
      7. Working with a Lens Effect
        1. Exploring the Lens Effects
      8. Changing Object Size with the Fish Eye Lens
        1. Using Lens Options
      9. Using the Bevel Effect
        1. Creating Soft-Edge Bevel Effects
        2. Determining Altitude
  16. PART VII Special Effects in CorelDRAW
    1. CHAPTER 18 The Shape Editing Tools and Distortions
      1. The Shape Edit Tool Group
        1. Using the Smooth Tool
        2. The Smear Tool
      2. Adding the Smear to Your Artistic Career
        1. The Twirl Tool
      3. Creating a Stylized Sun
        1. The Attract and Repel Tools
      4. Repelling a Polygon Object
        1. Using the Smudge Brush
        2. The Roughen Brush
      5. Roughing Out a Pumpkin’s Smilie
      6. Mastering Distortion Effects
      7. Using the Distort Tool and the Property Bar
        1. Choosing Distortion Modes
        2. Push and Pull Distortion
        3. Zipper Distortion
        4. Twister Distortion
        5. Getting Hands On with the Distortion Tool Markers
      8. Using Distortion Presets
        1. Exploring Distortion Presets
    2. CHAPTER 19 Transparencies and Shadows
      1. The Importance of Objects Interacting with the Scene
      2. Clearing Things Up with the Transparency Tool
      3. Using the Transparency Tool and Property Bar
      4. Creating a Dimensional Drawing Through Transparency
        1. Setting Transparency Properties
        2. New Controls and Locations for Transparency Options
      5. Creating a Reflection on a Shiny Surface
        1. Creating a Better Reflection Using a Bitmap
      6. Filtering a Bitmap Copy
        1. Additional Fountain Transparency Types
        2. Using Transparency Operations (Merge Modes)
        3. Creating Multistage Transparencies
        4. Pattern Transparencies
        5. Using Transparency Freeze
      7. Using the Drop Shadow Effect
        1. Using the Drop Shadow Tool and Property Bar
      8. Working the Property Bar and Shadow-Making Markers
        1. Manually Adjusting a Drop Shadow Effect
        2. Shadows as Glow Effects
  17. PART VIII Bitmaps and Photos
    1. CHAPTER 20 Understanding and Working with Pixel-Based Images
      1. Cropping a Placed Photograph
      2. Nondestructive Cropping
      3. Using the Shape Tool to Crop
      4. Masking Through Nondestructive Cropping
        1. Trimming Away Unwanted Image Areas
      5. Background Removal, Technique 1
      6. Background Removal, Technique 2
        1. Background Removal, Last Technique!
        2. Compositions with Mixed Media
      7. Composing a Design Using Vector and Image Shapes
        1. The Easy Soft-Edge Shading Technique
      8. Working with Alpha Channels and Image Transparency
        1. Working with Partial Transparency
      9. Creating a Photorealistic Glass Effect
        1. Blending Photos with Transparency
      10. Creating a Transition Between Two Images
      11. Bitmaps to Vector Art: Using PowerTRACE
        1. Bitmap Conversions for Logo Alterations
      12. PowerTRACE Options
        1. The Color Tab in PowerTRACE
        2. Lines, Curves, and Excess Nodes
        3. The Solution to Messed-Up Text
      13. Making New Text Along a Curve
        1. PowerTRACE for Traditional Artists
      14. Digi-tooning
    2. CHAPTER 21 Common Image-Editing Techniques Using PHOTO-PAINT
      1. The Building Block of Digital Photos: The Pixel
        1. Pixels and Resolution
        2. Image Resolution
        3. Resolution, Pixel Count, and Printing
      2. Resizing a Photograph
      3. Resampling and Resizing Photos
      4. Making a Thumbnail Image Suitable for Printing
      5. Automation: Recording Your Cropping and Resampling
        1. Evaluating a Crop Area for a Collection of Photos
      6. Recording Your Edits
      7. Fun and Fantastic Image-Retouching
        1. Ridding a Photo of the Red-Eye Effect
      8. Bye-bye, Red Eye
        1. Face Replacement and Editing
      9. Selecting a Face
      10. Getting A Head with PHOTO-PAINT
      11. Erasing and Liquefying the Subject
        1. Flipping Images, with a Twist
  18. PART IX Motion Graphics and Halting Thoughts
    1. CHAPTER 22 Creating Animations in PHOTO-PAINT
      1. Creating an Animated GIF
        1. Playing with a Paper Airplane
      2. Adding Text and Exporting a CorelDRAW Drawing
        1. Animation: Defining Frames and Basic Setup
      3. Building a GIF Animation: Part 1
      4. Building a GIF Animation: Part 2
        1. Finishing the Animation
      5. Exporting an Animation
      6. Movie Animations
        1. Limitations and Workarounds for GIF Movies
      7. Capturing and Saving Video Frames
        1. An Anticlimax with Fantastic Results
        2. Creating the Video Animation Sequence
        3. Timing Is Everything
      8. Hold On to That Cat!
    2. CHAPTER 23 Final Thoughts: Where Do We Go from Here?
      1. No Skipping: You’ll Lose Points!
      2. Closing Thoughts
        1. Guiding Yourself After All Is Written and Read
        2. Learning from Life
        3. Learning How to Learn
      3. Indexing a Nugget of Wisdom in a Book
      4. Okay, Gary. Why’d You Write This Book?
  19. Index

Product information

  • Title: CorelDRAW X8: The Official Guide, 12th Edition
  • Author(s): Gary David Bouton
  • Release date: February 2017
  • Publisher(s): McGraw-Hill
  • ISBN: 9781259860218