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INTRODUCTIONTOCOMICLIFELearnhowtocreateastoundingcomicsandbeautifulpicturealbumsusingyourphotosandyourowncreativity.

Comic Life

How to Create a Comic1. Select a template or add a panel on your new page.2. Add digital images from iPhoto, other disks or a connected digital camera.3. Select a style/filter for digital images.4. Add text balloons and captions to the panels.5. Add lettering and a title.6. Save and export to your format of choice.

Screen Overview

A Template is a particular layout of panels on a page. Use the pop-up

menu to view the different template collections.

The Work Area is where all of the

action takes place.

The Toolbar gives you access to the Print Function, Zoom Controls, Level

Arrangement, Page Styles, Lettering Size

controls, Color Selection, and Font

Selection.

The Page Monitor allows you to add or subtract pages and

reorder pages.

The Captioning and Lettering pane allows you to simply drag the balloon style or letter style

onto your pane.

The Library pane is where you can choose built-in page templates, create your own pages by dragging a panel on to the work area, and

view and choose your photos. If you have photos in your iPhoto library they will automatically be displayed. You can click on the finder

button to display your home folder and the capture button is used when the iSight camera is attached to the computer.

The Toolbar

The Toolbar gives you access to:1. Save Function - Allows you to save the comic as a document and place it into the desired file.2. Print Function - Allows you to preview your comic strip, print to a printer of choice, or save the file as a PDF.3. Zoom Controls - Zoom In and Zoom Out allows you to magnify the screen. Zoom to fit enlarges the window to full screen.4. Level Arrangement - The Font and Back keys allow you to move an object to the foreground or background.5. Page Styles - This feature allows you to change the look of the individual panes.6. Lettering Size controls - Allows you to increase or decrease the size of the fonts.7. Color Selection - Allows you to change the color of the font.8. Font Selection - Allows you to change the font collection, family, typeface, and size.

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The Page Monitor• The Page Monitor is

found on the left side of the screen.

• Using the “+”, you can add a new page to your comic book.

• Using the “-”, you can delete a page from your comic book.

• Using the “ a ”you get a menu with which you can make more choices as to how you add a page.

• Within the Page Monitor, you can change the order of the pages.

Lettering

• Drag a balloon from the pane and drop it onto your page. • The sample text within the balloon is highlighted and ready for you to type. Enter your text and either click outside the text area or hit the “enter” key on your keyboard.

• To add lettering, click on lettering style and drag and drop it onto your page. • A separate box will appear allowing you to insert the text you want and choose the font• Click to put the letters on the page. At this point you can change the proportions of the lettering. You do this by grabbing the blue handles and moving them.

Captioning• Drag a balloon from the pane and drop it onto your page.

Ta Dah!

• The sample text within the balloon is highlighted and ready for you to type.

• Enter your text and either click outside the text area or hit the “enter” key on your keyboard.

Libraries• Choose a built-in page template.• There are 16 groups of templates, each with 20-30 individuals templates.• Choose your panels and

create your own page. Just click and drag to work area.

• You can also access your iPhoto images, events, albums, any photos from your hard drive, and even pictures taken on your built-in camera.

Details - Page Attributes

•Allows you to draw a page number on the page. You can choose which edge the number aligns to with the popup menus, and use Inset to move the page number closer or further away from the page center.

• Style attributes allow you to modify a single element, apply a style to an element or to create a new style out of the attributes of that element. Choose the pane or background you wish to add the style to and click. If you like the variation, you can the style. If you don’t wish to keep the style click on button to return go back to the original style.

• Fill the background of the page with a selected color.

• Specify the default font for new lettering elements. This font can be changed on the Lettering creation sheet.

• Allows you to fill the page with a color gradient beginning with the Background color and ending with the Gradient color. The circular control to the right sets the actual gradient.

Details - Panel Attributes

• Allows you to draw a frame around your panel with a specified width. The Type popup allows you to specify the shape for rectangular panels. Some shapes can only be adjusted with the Factor field.

• Panels are typically rectangular but can be irregular shaped by clicking . You can use the pull down menu to add sides to your panel. Check the to prevent the panel from being moved or resized.

• Optionally draw a shadow behind with panel with the specified color. You can blur the radius and offset.

Details - Images Attributes

• The Filter option allows you to turn your picture into a realistic comic illustration. Click on the drop down menu to choose your filter. The box allows you to have a photo negative effect. The box applies the color shown to the image. This is done after the filter is selected.

• Fine tune your photos with the image attributes. Move the blue slider to adjust your image, you can flip the image horizontally and vertically as well as change the aspect ratio. When you are done lock your image.

IMAGE FILTERS

• Normally balloons are cut off where they intersect the edges of a panel. Unchecking this option allows the balloon to break the edge of the panel for dramatic effect.

Details - Balloon Attributes• Change the kind of balloon being drawn. Choose between: Speech, Thought, Exclamation 1, Exclamation 2, Whisper, Rough 1, Rough 2, Rounded, Square, Space or TV.

• If the text is too close to the edges of the balloon (or not close enough) you can adjust the margins by assigning new values to the horizontal (H) and vertical (V) margins.

Details - Caption Attributes• If the text is too close to the edges of the balloon (or not close enough) you can adjust the margins by assigning new values to the horizontal (H) and vertical (V) margins.

Details - Lettering Attributes• Allows you to spread your words out horizontally and vertically. When you are satisfied check the lock box.

• Allows you to skew the direction of the lettering and stagger the letters. If the letters go over the edge of the panel, check the clip button to let them over lap and not cut off the letters.

Comic LifeUnleash Your Comic Within

look they actually do like each other...

is this what

a washing

machine

feels like?

must be some static in the

air today...

oh my gosh!Yeah we know we're cute