MAGIX Entertainment Xara Photo & Graphic Designer (Download)

Description

A versatile software for both photographic and digital drawing needs, Xara Photo & Graphic Designer from MAGIX spans a range of tools and functions to creatively refine the look of and produce original images and vector graphics. For working with photographs or other raster graphics, a series of image optimisation tools is available, including the ability to remove unwanted elements, apply blend modes for selective editing, use a magnetic lasso tool to make selections and masks, use preset filters and effects to adjust the overall look of imagery, and a Photo Manager is also accessible for organising, finding, and rating imagery. In addition to photographs, this programme is also adept at producing illustrations and other vector graphics, and also contains a set of design-oriented tools for simultaneously working with text and image as well as creating collages to blend multiple photographs, illustrations, and text into a finished piece.

Features

Image Optimisation

• Selective Light and Shadow Editing - Selective adjustments to specific tonal regions allows you to better control brightness ratios.
• Adjust Brightness and Contrast - The photo tool can be used to adjust global brightness and contrast levels.
• Cut and Level - This cropping tool can make use of a grid overlay for accurate re-composing and guidelines help to ensure straight alignment.
• Colour Correction - Hue, brightness, and saturation of specific colour ranges afford more selective control over colour correcting imagery.
• Resharpen - This sharpening tool offers two functions for increasing apparent sharpness in your image: a slider in the photo optimisation tools for quickly applying global sharpness effects, and an unsharp mask filter for more fine-tuned control.
• Intelligent Scaling and Zoom - Scaling control lets you resize your image by inputting new width or height dimensions, and specific elements can also be transformed to scale to fit certain compositions.
• Customise Specific Areas - A Selection Tool lets you highlight and select specific portions of an image for more refined editing.
• Remove Distortions - Perspective distortions, such as keystoning and converging lines, can be removed with a single click to render them as a parallel, naturally appearing line pairs.

Retouch

• Remove Unwanted Elements - The Photo Heal tool lets you remove spots and wrinkles from people's faces, and a Magic Erase function allows you to remove unwanted elements from a picture, such as footprints, signs, or other objects.
• Restore Old Photos - Photo Heal can also be used to erase scratches and dust from images, such as in the case as working with older photographic prints to restore their appearance.
• Change Body Shapes - A Liquid Paint feature offers control in adjusting the shape, posture, and size of various elements, such as straightening a nose or enlarging or shrinking body parts.
• Red-Eye Correction - This single-click tool instantly removes red-eye from subjects.

Creative Design

• Photomontage - Individual image elements can be selected and merged together into a single composition for a unique collage appearance.
• Blend Modes - A trio of blend modes lets you apply special effects and textures to an image, and include: Soft Light, for softly applying washes of colour to an image; Hard Light, to add highlights and intensify shadows; and Optimise, for selective editing of specific features.
• Panoramas - Several images can be automatically combined into a single seamless stitched panoramic photo.
• Photo Filters - A range of 12 distinct filter effects are available to creatively refine the look of your image with a single click.
• Combine Image and Text - Ideal for creating your own album, collage, or greeting cards, photos can be edited in conjunction with text using font effects to transform the look of your text, including the ability to have text flow around shapes or images themselves; utilise painting and drawing tools for a handmade effect; add 3D effects for a dynamic appearance; and adjust the look of text by controlling leading, paragraph formatting, and more.

Illustrations

• 3D Design - A dedicated 3D tool lets you add dimension to your graphics by setting perspective, depth, and shadow parameters.
• Web Graphics - Buttons, menus, cards, and more can be designed for your website, and finished graphics can be transferred directly to Xara Web Designer for use online.
• Logos - Vector graphics can be created, which are ideally suited for producing logos or other symbols with scalable freedom.
• Avatars - Using photographic elements, you can construct your own illustrated avatar that is ideal for use online.
• Flow Charts and Process Diagrams - Useful charts and diagrams can easily be created using the graphics tool.
• Floor Plans - Ideal for interior decorating or planning, floor plans and blueprints can easily be created.
• Smart Shapes - Special handles can be used to intuitively change the pre-made smart shapes for fast, easily application.
• Online Catalog - Over 2500 design templates and decorative elements are available from the Xara online catalog.
• Stock Photos - A dedicated catalog is also available to access more than 760,000 free stock photos and illustrations.

Digital Drawings

• Liquefying Vector Graphics - Updated paint brush tools are available for intuitively working with vector graphics, and vectors can now be enlarged, stretched, and distorted in various ways.
• Merge Graphics into New Shapes - Different vector objects can be combined or altered to create new, more complex shapes. A circle can be cut out from a square, or graphics can be split at overlapping edges.
• Custom Art Brushes - You can produce your own photorealistic brush patterns using scans, photos, and vectors in order to produce more realistic looking effects.

Performance

• Vector Graphic Engine - A fast graphics processing engine enables more intuitive and responsive performance when editing large graphics and complex vectors.
• Non-Destructive Editing - By preserving original image files, you have more freedom to experiment with edits without sacrificing the quality of your originals.
• Raw File Format Support - Numerous raw file formats are supported for import in order to retain the most data possible from the image files.
• Graphics Tablet Support - As an alternative to a mouse or track pad, graphics tablets are also supported as a navigational tool as well as a more precise way for freehand drawing.
• Plug-In Expansion - Adobe Photoshop plug-ins are supported to expand the functionality of the application.
• MX Media-X-Change - Files can be exchanged between various MAGIX applications using Media-X-Change for a more seamless complete workflow.

Specifications