On to the Tool Icons

In the next few pages, I'm going to cover the GIMP's tools one by one, a row at a time. Each row has six tools, except for the last, which has five. I mention this because this is the default layout. If you decide to resize the GIMP toolbox by dragging one of the sides out, the toolbox widens but the number of tools per row increases as well, so you could have seven tools if you want. The reverse is true should you decide to shrink the width of the GIMP toolbox.

Start by moving your mouse over the various icons, pausing over each one. Tooltips appear, telling you what tool each of the icons represents. (I'll go over these in a moment.) If you click any of these icons, the window below the toolbox changes to present you with that tool's options. For instance, Figure 17-11 shows the tool options for the flip tool.

Figure 17-11. Tool options dialog, in this case for the flip tool.

What are all those icons for? An excellent question. Let's look at them again, one row at a time, starting withyou guessed itthe first row (see Figure 17-12).

Figure 17-12. First icon group.

The first icon, represented by a dotted rectangle, lets you select a rectangular area. Just hold down the left mouse button at whatever point you choose for a starting corner, and drag it across your image. A dotted line indicates the area you've selected. If you hold down the <Shift> key at the same time as the left mouse button, your selections are always perfect squares.

Quick Tip

To undo changes, press <Ctrl+Z>.

The dotted circle icon next to the dotted rectangle is much the same except that it selects a circular or elliptical area. Similar to the rectangular area you selected, you can hold down the <Shift> key along with the left mouse button to select only perfect circles.

Next, we have the lasso tool. This is another selection tool, but this one lets you select irregular or hand-drawn regions. Hold down the left mouse button and draw your selection around the object.

Quick Tip

When you have selected an area on an image, you can right-click, move your mouse cursor over the Edit menu, and select Cut or Copy. You can then Paste your selection back to another part of the image.

Next comes the magic wand. This is a strange tool at first glance. It selects an area by analyzing the colored pixels wherever you click. Holding down the <Shift> key lets you select multiple areas. This is a very useful tool but also a little tricky. Double-click the icon to change the sensitivity.

Next, it's over to the color selection tool. Using the color selector feels a bit like the magic wand but the functionality is based on color rather than a single area at a time. Select the color picker, click any colored area, and all areas matching this color are selected.

Finally, we wrap up this row with another selection tool, the so-called intelligentscissors. You select an area by clicking around it. This tool follows curved lines around an object. It does so by concentrating on areas of similar contrast or color. Simply click around the perimeter of the area you want to select and watch the lines magically draw themselves. When you join the last dot, click inside the area to select it.

That wraps it up for the first row of tools. It's time to look at the next set (see Figure 17-13).

Figure 17-13. Second icon group.

The first icon in this row is the Bezier tool (also known as the path tool), which takes some getting used to. After you get used to it, however, you'll be impressed with the flexibility it affords you in selecting both straight and curved areas. Click a point outside the area you want to select, and it creates an anchor point. Click again a little further along your outline, and you get new anchor points with a straight line connecting to the original. Click and drag an existing anchor point, and a bar appears with control boxes on either end. You can then grab those control points and drag or rotate them to modify the straight line between the points. After you have joined the final point, look at your tool options (the pane below the GIMP toolbox) and click the button labeled Create Selection from Path. You see an animated dotted line, as with the other selection tools.

The second icon looks like an eyedropper. This is the color picker. Choosing an exact color can be difficult (if you need to get the tone just right), but if the color you want is on your existing image, click that spot, and you've got it (your default active color changes).

The magnifying glass does exactly what you expect it to. Click an area of the screen to zoom in. Double-click the icon to reverse the zoom. This doesn't actually scale the image; it just changes your view of things. Zoom is used to make it easier to work on a small area of the image.

Next in line: the calipers, or measuring tool. This doesn't actually change anything on your image. It simple provides information. Click a starting point on the image, then drag the mouse pointer to another part of the image. Now look at the bottom of your image window. You see the distance in pixels from your starting location to where you let go of the mouse pointer. The angle of the line is also displayed.

The fifth icon on the second row looks like a cross with arrows pointing in all directions. This is the move tool. It is really quite simple. Click the tool, grab the selected area on the screen, and move it to where you want. If you haven't selected an area, you can move the entire image in the window.

The knife icon is the crop tool. If you start working with digital photography in a big way, this is one you will want to know. I use the crop tool all the time when I am trying to get a small part of a larger image. It is what I used to separate the rows of icons from the GIMP toolbox image I captured earlier (refer to Figure 17-2). Click a part of the screen, and drag it to encompass the area you want to select. The space around your selection darkens (see Figure 17-14).

Figure 17-14. When cropping an image, the selected area is emphasized by a darkening around the rest of the image.

Click the Crop button when you are satisfied with your selection. You can also fine-tune the settings (X and Y position, and so on) at this time.

And just like that, it's time to look at row three (see Figure 17-15).

Figure 17-15. Third icon row.

On the left, in the first position, we have the rotate tool. Click an image (or a selection), and small square handles appear at the corners of your selection. Grab one of these handles (or points), drag the mouse, and the selection rotates. When you have it in a position you like, click Rotate on the pop-up window that appears. The image locks into place.

The second icon, the scale tool, is very similar to the rotate tool. Instead of rotating the selected area, you drag the points to resize the selected area. As previously, a pop-up window appears so that you can lock your changes. It's also the place to manually enter your changes if dragging the mouse doesn't offer the control you like.

The shear tool is the third on this row and once again, it acts on a previously selected area. This one looks a lot like the last two in terms of functionality, but the effect is more like taking two sides of an object and stretching it diagonally in opposite directions. A square becomes a parallelogram, which gets longer and thinner as you continue to stretch the image. When you're happy with the changes, click the Shear button on the pop-up .

In the fourth position, we have the perspective tool. This is one of those that you almost have to try out to understand, but let me try to describe it. Remember your grade school art classes when you first learned about perspective? A road leading off into the distance compresses to a single point in the distance. With the perspective tool, you can take a selected area and pull the points in whatever direction you want to create the perspective effect. Do that with a person's head and the top of his head becomes a sharp little point. As with the last three tools, there's a pop-up where you lock in your changes. Just click Transform.

Next in line is the flip tool. By default, it flips the image horizontally. The tool option, in the lower half of the GIMP toolbox, has a check box if you want to flip vertically instead.

Tip

Remember that if you close the tool options below the GIMP toolbox, you can always double-click a tool to bring up its options dialog.

The next icon is the text toolthat's what the big T signifies. Click your image, and the GIMP Text Editor appears. This is where you enter your text. In your tools option is the font selector; the same one that you used for your logo appears. Select a font style, size, and color, and the changes are visible in the image. This makes it easy to change the look and feel on-the-fly, type your text in the preview section, and click OK. Where the text appears on the screen, the move tool is activated, allowing you to place the text accurately. The color of the text is your current foreground color.

The fourth row is next (see Figure 17-16).

Figure 17-16. The fourth row icons.

The paint can represents the fill tool. It can fill a selected area not only with a chosen color but with a pattern, as well. To choose between color and pattern fill, double-click the icon to bring up its menu.

The second item on this line is the gradient fill tool. Start by selecting an area on your image, and then switch to this tool. Now click a spot inside your selected area and drag with the tool. The current gradient style fills that area. This is one of those tools that you have to use to understand.

Quick Tip

Would you like a blank canvas right about now? Click File on the GIMP toolbox menu bar and select New. Those who like using the keyboard can just press <Ctrl+N>.

The third icon of this group looks like a pencil. In fact, this and the next three buttons all work with a brush selection (the bottom-right box). This pencil, as with a real pencil, is used to draw lines with sharply defined edges. Try drawing on your image with the different types to get an idea of what each brush type offers.

The next tool icon is the paintbrush. The difference between it and the pencil is that the brush has softer, less starkly defined edges to the strokes. Double-click the icon to bring up the paintbrush's menu and try both the Fade Out and Gradient options for something different.

If the next icon looks like an eraser, that's no accident. The shape of the eraser is also controlled by the current brush type, size, and style. Here's something kind of fun to try. Double-click the icon to bring up its menu, and then change the Opacity to something like 50 percent. Then start erasing again.

Now it's on to the airbrush tool. Just like a real airbrush, you can change the pressure to achieve different results. Hold it down longer in one spot, and you get a darker application of color.

Next is the fifth and final row of icons (see Figure 17-17).

Figure 17-17. The fifth row contains primarily drawing tools.

The first tool on this line is another drawing tool, the pen, or ink tool. Double-clicking the icon brings up a menu that lets you select the tip style and shape, as well as the virtual tilt of the pen. The idea is to mimic the effect of writing with a fountain pen.

Next to the pen is the clone tool (the icon looks a bit like a rubber stamp). Sheep? No problem! We can even clone humans. Okay, that's a bit over the top. Where the clone tool comes in handy is during touch-ups of photographs. Open an image, hold down the <Ctrl> key, and press the left mouse button over a portion of the imagethe tool changes to a crosshair. Let go of both the mouse button and the <Ctrl> key. This is your starting area for cloning. Now move to another part of the screen, click, and start moving your mouse button (the shape of the area uncovered is controlled by the brush type). As you paint at this new location, notice that you are recreating that portion of the image you indicated with the <Ctrl+mouse-click> combination. Start with someone's head or body, and you can have twins on the screen.

The droplet you see in the third position represents the convolver tool. Use it to blur or sharpen parts of an image. You switch between the two operations by selecting the mode in the tool options below the toolbox, or by double-clicking the icon. Change the rate to make the effect more pronounced.

Quick GIMP Trick

When you need to zoom in on an image to get some fine work done, press the plus sign on your keyboard. Keep in mind, though: If you zoom in enough, it can get difficult to navigate the larger image. You wind up trying to adjust the scrollbars to locate the area you want. Instead, click the little crosshair icon in the bottom right side of the image editor window. A smaller version of your image window appears with a target area outline that you can move to where you want it.

On to the finger, or the smudge tool.... Pretend that you are painting. You press your finger on the wet paint and move it around. The smudge tool has exactly the same effect on your virtual canvas or, at the very least, a similar effect.

Finally, the dodge and burn tool looks like a stick-pin, but those who have worked in a darkroom might recognize it for something differenta stick with an opaque circle on the end of it. It is used to adjust the brightness or shade of various parts of an image (a photograph might have been partly overexposed).