Freehand: Shadows, Smudges, and Embossing
Freehand allows you to add emphasis to your paths by adding
shadows, smudges, and embossing effects to them. The details are
below our examples. (With each function here, you can see your changes
before you make your decision if you click Apply.)
 |
 |
 |
| Drop Shadow |
Smudge Effect |
Emboss Effect |
- Drop Shadow
- A drop shadow makes it appear as though your path is a
three-dimensional object and there is a light source shining upon it.
To create a drop shadow, open the Xtra tools toolbar and
double-click the drop shadow tool.
- Smudge Effect
- You can also use the smudge tool to simulate the effect of a drop
shadow. If you use the "soft edge" feature, you can generate a long
drop shadow. To create a smudge, open the Xtra tools toolbar
and double-click the smudge tool.
- Emboss Effect
- The emboss effect makes your object look as though it is raised up
from the "surface" of the screen. A pretty neat effect if done well.
(Whereas with our example above, it just looks silly.) To emboss a
path, select it, open the Xtras pull-down menu, choose
Create and then Emboss.
Back