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how to make a picture frame

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jwardf

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Mar 8, 2005, 5:03:18 AM3/8/05
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I would like to be able to create a picture frame and have it ready for adding
to any photo. Possibly it could be stored in the auto shapes. Could someone
tell me about any existing documentation that would tell me how to do this?

Linda Rathgeber *TMM*

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Mar 8, 2005, 10:36:09 AM3/8/05
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Select the image and choose Commands > Creative > Add Picture FRame.

--
Linda Rathgeber
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Fireworks RAZZLE DAZZLE & PHOTO MAGIC | www.webdevbiz.com/pwf/index.cfm
VICTORIANA | www.projectseven.com

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Community MX partner | www.communityMX.com | Extending Knowledge, Daily

jwardf

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Mar 8, 2005, 5:19:56 PM3/8/05
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Linda, I can add a picture frame to an image but I can't add the picture frame
that I want to. I can only add what Fireworks already has stored as picture
frames. I want to use my own frame. Is this understandable? Thank you
Linda. I greatly admire your work and wish I could be just 1/100th as
competent.

artscreations

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Mar 8, 2005, 9:59:38 PM3/8/05
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Great, Jwardf, I hope it helps, and I look forward to hear your results.

Art

artscreations

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Mar 8, 2005, 9:46:31 PM3/8/05
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jwardf , You can use any graphic, texture, that you find on the Internet.
(provided no copyright conflict). Heres how: Just find the type of frame
material that you will want to use, anywhere you can find it, such as a wood
texture gif or jpg background that you find on the net, click save as, and save
it to your My pictures folder, My webs or whereever you save samples. Then,
when you are ready to apply a frame, don't worry about the texture you just
saved, because you will come back to it. For now, make sure that your
graphic on the canvas is the exact same size as the canvas dimensions. If it
is not, go to modify, click on canvas size, and set the dimension of the canvas
as the exact same width and height of your graphic. And when you have it
the same size, go to 'window' at the top of the menu, and scroll down to
'align' , click 'to canvas', and then hit the middle horizontal, and then hit
the middle vertical button. Now that its perfectly centered , and covers the
entire canvas, you are ready to add your frame. (keep in mind that it has to be
a rectangle graphic to add a frame, at least I think it does) Now, select your
graphic, go up to the top menu, click on 'command', click 'creative'
and choose 'frames'. When the frame box comes up, pick any old frame style
provided by MM, because it doesn't matter which you choose, you are going to
change it anyhow. But make sure and choose the 'width' of the frame that
you want in pixels, while you have the dialog box open. Now, you will put the
frame texture that you want on the graphic. Go over to the layers panel, and
where you see it says 'frame' , there is probably a padlock out to the left of
where it says frame. You will have to unlock it. So click on the lock, and you
should see a pencil now instead of the lock. When you do, click on the
frame in the layers panel, and now you can edit it. Once you see the thin blue
outline around the frame on your graphic, you can now select the texture,
background that you want to use for your frame. Go down to the bottom in the
'property inspector' where you usually see your solid fill color listed, and
you will see 'berber' or whichever of the 25 different frames that come w FW.
Click on the drop-down arrow, and click on 'pattern', and then scroll
down all the way past the last item listed in 'patterns' until you see 'other',
click 'other' and now, you just scroll or 'browse' until you find the
actual texture/pattern that you saved earlier for your final frame, in your 'my
pictures' folder, or whereever. Click on that texture, and whallah. You
will have the frame of your choosing. hth Art Hansen

jwardf

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Mar 8, 2005, 9:53:13 PM3/8/05
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Art, thank you so much for taking the time to give me such a complete response.
It all makes good sense to me and I should be able to follow your excellent
instructions. I'm sleepy right now so today is pretty much of a wash but I'm
really looking forward to trying this tomorrow. It's gonna be fun. Thanks
so much Art. I'll let you know how it goes. Jack

jwardf

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Mar 9, 2005, 10:13:55 AM3/9/05
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Art, your directions were very clear and easy to follow. You should write
textbooks (maybe you do). However, there is something that I didn't tell you.
The important thing about 'my' frame is not the color, or the pattern, it is
the shape. It's a wavy bar that is supposed to imitate a frame you might see
in a scrapbook. I wish I could include it here so that you could see it.
Here's what I'll do. Later today I'll put it up on a website and point you to
it. You can take a look and maybe offer a suggestion or two. I'll be back
to you. Thanks much Art. jwardf

jwardf

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Mar 10, 2005, 9:12:27 PM3/10/05
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Art, are you still there? Could you go to the following link and take a look
at the image there. I need to turn this image into a frame that I can quickly
add to a lot of photographs. Let me know what you think. thanks Art.
jwardf

http://www.webvignettes.com/brendaferber/home.htm

artscreations

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Mar 12, 2005, 9:53:32 PM3/12/05
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jwardf, If the graphic you showed me is to be used as a frame, where will the
item to be framed go inside of the graphic/frame that you showed me? You can
use anything to make a frame, a knife, a plate, someones cut-off finger
(twisted? huh), but I need to know the exact why that your graphic will be
enclosing your intended picture of whatever within that frame you showed me.
Here is an example of a frame that I made from scratch. I took a black image
and scanned it, enlarged it 200%, (the actual texture and appearance of the
frame was unknown because of the poor quality picture received, so all I could
do was cut out the outer , outline of the shape, using the pen tool, then I
selected the inner shape of it with the pen tool, then I did a combine>punch,
and took the shape, and gave it depth/3d, then I gave it the wood fill, and
that was it). Take a look at it, and then tell me how you will place the
graphic you showed me as a framing object. Here's the link :
http://www.innova-techsolutions.com/darlas_page_3_10.htm Let me know. Art
PS-sometimes I don't get to check this forum everyday since I am in 7 or 8 of
them.

jwardf

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Mar 13, 2005, 10:21:44 AM3/13/05
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Omigod! Totally awesome, Art! Stunning. I'm sitting here pretty much
awestruck.

Art, I have about 30 photographs to frame with the graphic that I showed you.
Picture in your mind a photograph inside the curly or wavy lines. You know
how easy it is to put frames around things with the facility that fireworks
gives with the 'creative' thing. I was hoping that I could somehow put my own
frame into their list of choices or even some other way that would be as easy.

Tell me this; take your beautiful wood frame for example. If you wanted to
quickly add that frame to a lot of different pictures would that be easy for
you to do? Or would it require meticulous work for each one of them? I know
'easy' is a relative word but I would define it as the way the framing in
tools/creative works.

All I can think about is that I should just hire you to do this because never
in a million years will my work be as nice as yours. Thanks for your help
Art. jwardf

artscreations

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Mar 13, 2005, 8:08:30 PM3/13/05
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jwardf, I went back to your link to the graphic/frame item, and it comes up
page not found. Did you take it off the air? I need to stare at it a bit,
while I try to visualize what you are trying to do. So if you can get it back
online, it would help a fair amount. Thanks, Art

artscreations

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Mar 13, 2005, 8:16:54 PM3/13/05
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I forgot to ask you, are the pictures all the same size, or will it be a
number of custom sizes? I am thinking of some kind of a Fireworks
template you might make. From what I can recall from your graphic/sample, if
you just wanted to create a square frame for each picture, that was filled with
the 3/4 inch wide part/band in your graphics, you can right click it as your
fill source, once you have created the physical shape of your frame for each
picture. And then go right thru the techniques I described in my long-winded
explanation up above. Anyhow, let me know whats up with the questions. Art

jwardf

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Mar 15, 2005, 11:55:26 AM3/15/05
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Art, thank you so much for your continued attention to this. I put up a
little different graphic at the below link. I've got probably 35 photographs
to put inside the graphic that you see. One problem is that the photographs
will be of different sizes. If they were all one size then I would just make
the frame to fit and keep changing the pics. But since they are different
sizes this will be time consuming. I was thinking that there may be some
facility like the creative/picture frame in Fireworks that will frame them very
fast only using my frame instead of the preloaded Fireworks frames. Take a
look at the below link and see what you think. Thanks very much Art. jwardf

http://www.webvignettes.com/brendaferber/demo.htm

PJR

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Mar 15, 2005, 12:52:42 PM3/15/05
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This may be of interest

http://tinyurl.com/4kxqx

Peter

"jwardf" <webfor...@macromedia.com> wrote in message
news:d1741u$njp$1...@forums.macromedia.com...

Message has been deleted

jwardf

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Mar 15, 2005, 8:26:27 PM3/15/05
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Art, I'm trying to do a website for an author of young adult books and she drew
the frame. She pictures (no pun intended) this frame surrounding a lot of
family photographs, etc. But each picture would have it's own frame; not a
collage. She wants her site to have a scrapbook feel (whatever that is) and
she refers to this frame as one you would see in a scrapbook. I'm not too
familiar with scrapbooks so I'm just taking her word for it.

Art, I'll put up the pic of her enclosed in the frame that she drew and you
can see what you think. As always, any help/suggestions will be greatly
appreciated. Go to
http://www.webvignettes.com/brendaferber/demo.htm.

Thanks Art. jwardf

jwardf

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Mar 15, 2005, 9:23:39 PM3/15/05
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Art, I just had an idea. Instead of making a frame I could just have a square
with those 'frilly' edges and on another layer put the actual photo. It would
make the square with the frilly edges look like a frame.

jwardf

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Mar 16, 2005, 8:42:47 AM3/16/05
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Peter, thanks for that link. I've gone there and also signed up for their newsletter. Should be helpful. jwardf

PJR

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Mar 16, 2005, 9:43:57 AM3/16/05
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"jwardf" <webfor...@macromedia.com> wrote in message
news:d19d4n$aki$1...@forums.macromedia.com...

| Peter, thanks for that link. I've gone there and also signed up for
their newsletter. Should be helpful. jwardf

You're welcome jwardf.

If you going to get involved with Fireworks it's only a matter of
time before you come across Kleanthis's invaluable extensions.
Newsletters are scarce so don't expect a flood of them.

Peter


jwardf

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Mar 16, 2005, 11:21:07 AM3/16/05
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Peter, I would love to be a good Fireworks guy so I've gotta learn about these extensions. Thanks much. jwardf

artscreations

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Mar 16, 2005, 9:20:14 PM3/16/05
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jwardf, You're on the right track. In order to use it for a frame, it
just needs to be in a small square swatch. I have added a link to show you but
for some reason, that link will not upload to my site. I added 2 other links
to it and they uploaded just fine. I still have to make the swatch though.
I've been swamped. In the mean time, make a 3/4 inch swatch that has the rough
edge on all sides, and use the techinique that I mentioned the other day, and
it should work. I'll be back as soon as I can. Art

PJR

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Mar 17, 2005, 11:39:17 AM3/17/05
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This may be of interest

http://tinyurl.com/4kxqx

Peter

"jwardf" <webfor...@macromedia.com> wrote in message
news:d1741u$njp$1...@forums.macromedia.com...

artscreations

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Mar 18, 2005, 9:36:23 PM3/18/05
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jwardf, I tried to cut a section out of your frame image, and no workee (new
word?) The only way to make it work at all, is to use the pen tool, and cut
out the outside perimeter, and inside perimeter of the sample image. Then you
will have to drop a canvas background that matches the photo, and the frame.
The same thing I did with that frame pic that I showed you, a few pages up,
grin))))))))). I created a black backdrop, thru a radial gradient to
look like centered lighting, made sure it fit within the frame I made. Look
closely , at how I pieced it together. I did a bunch of layers. Link
again: Art http://www.innova-techsolutions.com/darlas_page_3_10.htm

jwardf

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Mar 18, 2005, 11:10:07 PM3/18/05
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Art, you can see one of the things that needs being framed. I could send you
a photo or give you the exact dimensions as you requested but I think if you
look at the following link you'll be able to see what you need.

I haven't heard from you so I'm thinking maybe you thought I was all squared
away. Not so. Manually framing all the pics I have is going to be
difficult. Very painstaking and I'm trying to find an easier way. Thanks
much Art and have a good weekend. jwardf

http://www.webvignettes.com/brendaferber/header%20samples.htm

jwardf

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Mar 20, 2005, 6:17:05 PM3/20/05
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Art, I didn't know there was a page two to this thread so you had answered
(twice I think) and I didn't know it. Thus my inane message above. Sorry
about that. Thanks for all the help and interest.

It seems to me that I will just have to piece together some frames and go with
about two or three different size photos. And have a frame for each. I can
do this but it will just take a little longer than hoped for. But, I think
there is just no easy way. Art, do you have a website where I could see
other samples of your work. For inspiration purposes. Thanks Art. jwardf

artscreations

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Mar 20, 2005, 10:40:06 PM3/20/05
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jwardf, My brain is fried at the moment. My reply comes after a day of
surfing 63 degree water without a wetsuit, along w some east coast Florida
salt-water fishing. I'll be back at it experimenting w your shape
Monday, and further. Talk to you later. Art

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