PhotoImpact 12 has several preset work modes. For this tutorial, we will be using the Full Edit mode so all of the tools in PhotoImpact will be available to you.

As you work, use your mouse to drag this along with you to mark your place.

LET'S GET STARTED

Setting Up the Gallery

Open your Easy Palette click on the Galleries tab. You should see the Stamp group on the menu. The stamps pictured in the thumbnails are the same stamps that can be accessed by clicking on the Stamp Tool and using Select Stamp on the left side of the PhotoImpact work space.

Notice that the stamps in the Easy Palette are identical to those that are activated with the Stamp tool. The images in the EasyPalette have nice thumbnails and show more of the stamp.

When clicking on the stamp tool, you can only see one image in each stamp even though it may have multiples in it. For example, the Button on the left menu only shows one green button but if you look at the button in the Stamp Gallery, you can see all of the buttons.

In this tutorial, we will be creating our own stamp galleries like those in the Easy Palette.

If you have not already done so, create a folder on your hard drive for your stamp files (.ufo files) - do not create it in the Ulead folder. A good name would be MyStamps. Put all your stamp (.ufo) and tube files (.tub) into that folder. Once you've done this, you can then add thumbnails that represent the stamps to the Easy Palette as described below.

1. Open your Easy Palette. Click on the little "house" icon to open the Gallery Manager. Select Create from the menu that opens. This will bring up the screen where we will create a new gallery for our stamp thumbnails.
   

2. Type in the name of your new gallery in the Name box.
3. Click on the browse button and navigate to the folder you created for your stamp and tube files. Do not click OK just yet.
4. Select the My Gallery category from the drop-down menu on the bottom of the window - Click OK.

   You will see your new gallery in the Easy Palette under the My Gallery category. If you look in your stamp folder on the hard drive, you will see that a .smp file has been added. The .smp file is where the thumbnails are stored for the stamps you will be adding to the Easy Palette.

   

5. Your new My Stamp Gallery will have two groups under it, All and Custom Group 1. Right-click on Custom Group 1 and select Rename from the menu. Type in a name for one of your groups - such as Flowers, Leaves, etc. To add a few more groups, Right-click on My Stamp Gallery again and select New Group - type in the name of your group. You can add as many as you like.
   

Adding the Stamp Thumbnails

The thumbnails in the EasyPalette are representations of the stamps and not the actual stamps. When you double-click on the thumbnail, the effect will be exactly the same as if you had clicked on the stamp tool and picked that stamp from the Stamp Menu. Clicking on a thumbnail activates the corresponding stamp. Now that we have a gallery created, let's add some of our own stamps to the gallery.

1. Open a new image, 200x200 to be used for the thumbnail.

2. Click on the Fill tool and select Linear Gradient. Use two colors of your choice. Set the transparency to 50%. Fill your image. It should be a nice soft color. To use the gradient fill, hold down the left mouse button anywhere at the top of the image, drag it across the image to the opposite side, then release the mouse button. For example, start in upper left corner and drag to lower right. (You can also use a plain color but gradients make a nicer background).
   

3. Click on the Stamp tool to bring up the Stamp Menu, then select Add Stamp (note: you can pick a tube or stamp, it doesn't matter). Navigate to your new stamp folder on the hard drive and select your stamp.
   

4. Stamp your thumbnail with the stamp. Make a design of your choice. You may need to adjust the scale down for larger stamps.
   

5. When you're ready, right-click the thumbnail, Merge All. Make sure your stamp tool is still selected. If not. click on it again. On the attribute bar, click on the Add button.
   

6. The Add to Easy Palette screen will open. Type in a name for your thumbnail. Use the dropdown box and select your new gallery, and select the group where you want to store your stamp thumbnail.
   

   If you look in the Easy Palette, you'll see your new thumbnail has been added to your Stamp Gallery and it has a tiny stamp icon in the lower right corner. This means, when you double-click on this thumbnail, it will activate the stamp tool and select that particular stamp.

7. Last step - click the Stamp tool again and delete the stamp you just added to the Stamp Menu (not the thumbnail in the EP). It is no longer needed since you now have it in your Easy Palette. Removing a stamp from the Stamp Menu will not delete the stamp from your hard drive, it will just remove the stamp from the PI drop-down menu.

8. To use your stamps from the Easy Palette, simply double-click on the thumbnail. That will activate the stamp tool and bring up the correct stamp.

Some Working Hints

1. Use images on your thumbnails for variety. See the example above - the doll head was drawn on the background, then the hair stamped.

2. Delete all the stamps from the drop-down menu at the same time. Deleting the stamp from the menu does not delete it from your folder.

3. When you click on Add Stamp, you can select a .tub file and it will work just fine.

Enjoy!

You're invited to join the PIRC Fourm! This is an active PhotoImpact Forum where you'll find a wonderful group of warm, friendly, talented, and knowledgeable people who are ready and willing to share their expertise with you. There are creative activities for all levels of PhotoImpact users. This forum is 100% free and everyone is welcome.