The Photo Editor is the central program module used to edit your photos.
You can use it to improve a photo, e.g. to correct over- or underexposure, weak contrast, colour tinges or red-eye.
You can apply effects to your photo, e.g. turn it into a black-and-white picture, age it with a sepia effect or make it look like an oil painting or a drawing.
You can distort, reflect and turn a photo, and much more besides.
And you can manage your photos using the Photo Editor, rating your photos and adding titles and comments and filtering them according to these and other meta data (in order to show only certain pictures).
The Photo Editor can be launched in two different operating modes.
Firstly as a standalone program (windows only) and secondly with limited menus as a support application within the Bob Designer editor.
If you run the Photo Editor as a standalone program, it offers several commands that are not necessary if it is used as a support application.
For example, you can edit several images in a row, navigate within directories, search for and rate photos, and carry out several other commands that are only relevant within the context of a standalone program.
If, however, you open a specific photo for editing by double-clicking on it in the editor workspace (in a page layout), you do not need some of the menus or commands.
This is because you will only want to edit a specific image and then return to the editor.
In this case, for the sake of clarity, the menus and commands that are not required are simply not shown when the support application is launched, rather than being "greyed out".
When you install the Bob Designer software, an icon will appear on the desktop and a program will be created in the start menu, both of which you can use to launch the Photo Editor.
The "Photo Editor" command is also available if you click on the pop-up menu of a photo file in the Workspace/Explorer of the operating system.
Click on this command to launch the Photo Editor and open the photo in the Photo Editor.
Double-clicking on the photo thumbnail in the selection area of the Bob Designer software will also launch the Photo Editor as a standalone program.
Double-click on a photo that has been added to the editor workspace (a page layout) and the Photo Editor will open as a support application.
You can also find a command to this effect in the photo's pop-up menu.
The photo is then displayed in large format in the Photo Editor.
When you are editing a photo with the Photo Editor, it is only a copy of the original photo that is opened and edited. The original photo is therefore not marked as used. |
At the top of the program window you will find menu items for setting the options and accessing help, as well as more icons for different photo editing functions.
When you start the Photo Editor as a stand alone program, it will open up full width as it does in the Bob Designer software. Here you will find that the directory displays the name of the currently selected folder.
Directly above it on the left side a button with the name of the immediate parent directory. If you want to go there, then please click on it.
The "Select Folder" on the right opens a new dialog window with a tree through which one can navigate in the usual way to the desired directory to select the source of your photos.
Double-clicking on a directory in the preview opens this.
A directory (and any subdirectories) will appear as a strip, and include a preview of all photos contained within them. The directory view is not available when the Photo Editor has been opened for a single photo from the original software. |
Double-clicking on a thumbnail opens it for editing in the workspace.
The "Back" button in the top left will bring you back into the appropriate directory view.
When you double-click a photo on the desktop/page in the Bob Designer software, the picture opens directly into the Photo Editor.
A tree view to select a different photos is then not available.
The "Back" button in the top left will bring you back into the Bob Designer editor.
Opens a dialog box with settings for Bob Designer, with the following groups:
This is for the appearance of the program. The background of the work area can be selected.
To select the folder for temporary files if the preview from the EXIF data is to be used, and to adjust the size of the photo cache (buffer for image files in memory).
Only necessary if you are connecting to the Internet through a proxy (and want to switch between different networks).
Copyright information for the software and support.
Relevant legal information on dealing with your customer data and the "Terms and Conditions".
Opens the online help (this) for the Bob Designer software in your internet browser.
This is the full list of icons that may occur in the toolbar. |
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Opens the currently active (highlighted) image in a full-screen view.
As you move the mouse pointer, under the photo a bottom toolbar for the zoom setting appears, where you can evaluate, navigate, rotate by 90° and delete a photo.
If the mouse pointer does not move for a certain time, then the toolbar is hidden.
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Only active when a photo is selected (indicated by a blue frame)! |
Opens the selected photo for editing.
To apply effects to the photo, use the tools mentioned below in the section "Tools Show".
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With the function correct recording times, change the recording date and / or the recording time of all the photos in a folder or multiple selected photos.
This function is useful for example to synchronize the recording data from two cameras, which is very important when working with the Bob Books Assistant.
Imagine, you have an event, eg. a wedding where there may have been multiple cameras, and one of the cameras had an incorrect time or even an incorrect date set.
The Bob Books Assistant would sort and group your photos by the time the photos were taken, and therefore chronology your photos would not appear correctly in your book.
The current recording date and time are displayed on each photo.
If no photo is selected, all photos in the current folder will be selected.
You can filter by synchronizing two cameras but also after the camera model.
Then click on "Next".
In the dialog box, all photos will be displayed at the top, the recording time should be corrected.
The old time is displayed, as well as the new time. At a time change, the new time is shown in red.
There are two ways you can now proceed in correcting the time of your photos.
1. Correct the selected photos manually:
Adjust to the time change.
Determine the direction of change ("In the future," or "In the past").
And enter the values ("years", "month", ..., "seconds") to which the recorded data to be corrected.
The bottom photos can be ignored.
2. Synchronize the recording times of two cameras by reference photos
To continue with the example of the wedding: lets take a snapshot of when the bride and groom kiss at the altar, or if they jointly cut the wedding cake. There are sure to be many very similar photos with the same time stamp.
Above displays the photos taken with the camera previously selected and down all the pictures from the current directory.
You can filter the bottom pictures by the camera model.Search according to one or more photo(s) taken at nearly the same time.
Then highlight that two photos.
The time difference between the two photos is automatically registered with the time change.
The time change can be manually modified if it is a small difference between the acquisition times.
If you then click "Correct recording time for all", the recording time of all the photos will be moved to the top scroll bar to the specified time difference and you end up back in the Photo Explorer.
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Deletes the selected photos, or moves them to the Recycle Bin.
The same function has the "Delete" button.
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Allows you to create a subdirectory in the current working directory.
If you want to change the name of the subdirectory, simply hover the mouse cursor on the directory name for a short time and then click once.
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The star symbols provide quick access to the assessment of your selected photos.
Click on the desired number of stars to rate your photo.
The more beautiful and successful you find a photo, the higher the number of stars should be.
0 star-rated photos that do not have a rating or review will not be included.
1 star-rated photos, although archived, will be farthest along the list.
And 5 star-ratings only apply to the best photos.
Rate your photos to your own taste.
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Set the view mode. This does not affect the view of directories, only the arrangement of the photos within them.
There are three view modes:
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In the Result View the photos are tiled, i.e. arranged with the least possible distance. |
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Photos taken on the same occasion are grouped together. |
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Photos are adapted and displayed in uniformly sized grid cells. |
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There are three ways to sort the view of the photos:
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Sort alphabetically by file name. |
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Sort chronologically by the date of commencement. |
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Photos with the highest star rating are place first. |
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Only photos that meet the set filter conditions are displayed.
Possible filters are enabled with checks:
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Only photos that have at least the specified number of stars are displayed. |
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Only photos that have a file name will be displayed. |
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Only displays the photos that were taken on the selected camera. |
The filters can be combined.
Disables filtering again.
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Toggles the display of file names in the photo view.
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Reduce and enlarge the preview of the photos.
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Opens the thumbnail view in the folder that was specified in the options of Photo Explorer Startup folder.
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This button appears only when photos were selected in the Explorer photo editing and displays a single photo on the desktop.
Ensure that the tools on the left side of the window to be displayed or hidden.
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The "Selective Tool Settings" are only displayed when pictures are selected in the Photo Explorer for editing.
The selection tool is a processing framework that you can draw with the mouse anywhere on the photo and adjust with handles. If the edit frame is too small for the handles, they are hidden, but the frame can be still be adapted.
To bring up a selection tool, no tool must be displayed. You can also show and perform the desired action only after you have fitted the Selection tool.
Editing and changes to the photos are only applied in the selected range.
Everything that is outside of a selection is dimmed slightly, so that the work area is easier to recognize.
This selection can be done before a tool is chosen.
Click to cancel the selection area once outside of the selection frame.
Possible settings are:
The "fixed" aspect ratio of the edit frame is drawn proportional to the values entered.
The "X" value in this case indicates the horizontal value and the "Y" value of the vertical.
If "X" and "Y" is, then the processing frame remains square.
"X" is twice as large as "Y", then the processing frame is twice as wide as high.
The "variable" aspect ratio of the edit frame can be pulled free.
The internal shape of the processing frame may be a rectangle, or an ellipse.
If a fixed aspect ratio and the same values for "X" and "Y", the ellipse is a circle.
If the scope is on the "inside", then the selection for editing is within the editing frame.
The "handles" are outside the edit frame.
If it is "outside", then only those that are outside the edit frame parts of the photo will be selected.
The "handles" are then within the editing frame.
The transition sets whether the selection of "hard" or "soft" merges into the rest of the photos. (Hard or soft edge.)
The selection tool (the edit frame) does not show all the tools that can be used. Some tools are effective only to the entire photo and a selection area is therefore not useful. Example: "Correct Horizon" |
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Undoes the previously performed action.
This is only active when an action has been performed previously.
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Performs the last undone command again.
Only active if a previously "Undo" was performed.
At the start of the Photo Editor from the workspace of the Bob Designer software, all the symbols are not displayed and the bottom toolbar looks like this:
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The bottom toolbar is located directly below the currently open photo.
With the bottom toolbar, you can change the view of the selected photo and navigate within the currently selected directory.
In addition, it provides without detours quick access to some functions that are needed from time to time.
The Icons:
The links in the toolbar that resemble magnifying glass icons (with "+" and "-") and the zoom slider. With these tools, you can enlarge or reduce the view of the selected photo.
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Not present when the photo has been opened from the Bob Designer work surface.
Using the star rating you can quickly and easily add a review to a photo, or change existing ratings.
The more beautiful the photo, the higher the number of stars should be.
The most beautiful photos should have 5 stars.
In contrast, little snapshots should only get 1 star, or you can assign none at all and leave the rating blank.
Not present when the photo has been opened from the Bob Designer work surface.
Use the navigation icons to move to the respective first photo in the directory (left arrow with line before it), the previous photo (left arrow), the next photo (right arrow) or the last photo in the directory (right arrow).
By clicking on the "full screen mode on / off" (with two diagonal arrows) you switch to full-screen mode.
The image appears on your entire screen.
To exit full-screen mode, click on the same icon in the toolbar of the full screen mode (only appears when you move the mouse pointer) or by pressing the "ESC" key on your keyboard.
Rotate your photo 90° clockwise or counter-clockwise using the circular arrows.
Not present when the photo has been opened from the Bob Designer work surface.
Deletes the current photo from your hard drive and places it in the recycle bin. In the next cleaning up / emptying of the recycle bin, it will be permanently deleted.
Many tools and effects have a menu for settings, and effects are displayed in the preview immediately. However, some tools do not have this menu and do not offer any settings. |
Multiple tools can be used in series on the same photo. |
The on-screen tools are divided into groups, each of which open when you click on the button below.
In the following, the different groups:
Here, all the tools are summarised, which have to do with adjustments of the photo(s).
"Red Eye" is often caused by flash pictures in dark places. This function allows you to automatically retouch red eyes in most cases.
Especially when multiple faces with red eyes are in a photo, it is advisable to retouch every pair of eyes (or single eye) individually by creating a selection around it. This avoids other red image areas (eg. a mouth) being automatically corrected.
With the selection tool, enclose the desired area of the photo and then click on the tool "Crop".
Everything that lies outside of the frame is cut away.
Flips the photo or the selected area of the photo to the horizontal or vertical axis.
For straight alignment of the photo using a slider.
The edges of the image are adjusted and cut so that no white image parts remain.
Adjust the brightness and contrast sliders for correcting slight over- or underexposure.
Automatically apply the blur with preset values on the photo.
Especially suitable for using the photos as page background in a photo product.
Has several sliders to control:
Adjusts the amount of blur (softness).
Regulates the course of blur towards the center of the photo.
The higher the value, the less of the soft looking image, the center of the photo is sharp.
A value of 0, the entire image is blurred evenly.
A negative value will fade the picture, a positive value raises the color saturation.
Sets a white veil over the photo to look like fog.
Warp the blurring in a particular direction to simulate movement.
The strength of the warp (the line width) and the direction can be set.
Here you will find all the tools which have to do with colour adjustments of the whole or part of the photo.
The sepia effect gives your photo the look of an old-fashioned yellowing print.
The strength of yellowing is adjusted using a slider.
Discards the colour information of the photo and turns it into a black and white shot.
To reinforce certain hues.
The intensity of the hue and colour are adjustable.
Converts all tones of bright white and dark black into pixels.
Not to be confused with "grey scale".
In gamma correction, the calculated curve of the mean colour brightness is moved. The advantage is that the darkest and brightest pixels are not changed.
Just move the brightness values in towards brighter or darker. This is non-linear instead, but in a proportional flattening both the end of the brightness scale curve, that is, the brightness values in the middle of the brightness scale to be shifted more than that located closer to the ends of the brightness scale values.
So you can lighten or darken an image without too much loss of quality in the image become visible.
Sets the gamma value for only one specific colour channel.
Inverts the colours of the photo, producing a negative photo.
Each colour channel (red, blue, green) can be inverted individually and independently of the other as well as brightness.
Here all the tools relating to stylisation are grouped together.
Search for these effects in your photo by contrast edges, which are represented as contours.
The photo looks like it as a line drawing with a thicker (strong) or a thinner (weak) pin.
This effect makes your photo look like an oil painting.
By setting the brush thickness, the painting is more or less abstract.
Creates the effect that your photo is an artistic charcoal sketch.
The strength controls the width of character strokes, and the blurring of coal on the drawing sheet.
This effect makes your photo look like a black and white photo on coarse-grained photographic paper.
This effect reduces the colours of the photos in contiguous areas to create a more striking effect.
This effect shows your photo projected on a tiled wall.
The size of the tiles (grid size) and the depth of the joints (line depth) between the tiles can be set.
Pixelate your photo in monochrome square blocks.
The greater the intensity, the more abstract the result.
Splits the photo in rows and columns. The individual cells can be twisted to each other at random.
The number of columns and rows, as well as size, rotation and color of edges of the cells can be adjusted.
The initial value for the random number generator affects the random distribution of the cells, when the rotation angle is not 0.
Tip: To get a very special and appealing result, set the maximum angle to 0 and set the alpha channel to 0 at the colour of the edges. |
Here you will find all the tools to distort your photo.
The implosion tools takes one pixel as the midpoint of your photo and "implodes" the rest of the image around it.
The strength of the effect (radius) is adjusted using a slider.
An explosion distorts the image from the center to the edge.
Again, the strength of the effect (radius) via a slider is adjusted.
Simulates concentric shaft rings, like throwing a stone into the water.
The frequency (wavelength) and the amplitude (wave height) can be set.
Creates the effect that the photo has been sprayed with paint.
The density of the spray dots can be set.
Moves pixels circularly around the image center of the photo.
This looks like a whirlpool in the photo.
The angle adjust the strength of the turbulence.
This picture is distorted into a circular arc or circle sector.
The inner and outer radii adjust the thickness of the arc.
If the control is for the inner radius on the far left (ie 0), then from the arc a circular sector (pie).
With the alignment you determine the viewing angle of the arc in degrees. At 180 (°) the picture is upside down.
With the sector size to adjust the angle of the circle segment.
Simulates a prism filter (effect lens for cameras).
The number of repetitions or prisms can be adjusted.
Distort the image in a waveform.
The wavelength affects how many valleys and mountains photo receives, amplitude, and wave heights are.
To edit and view the EXIF data.
The "Exchangeable Image File Format" (EXIF) is an international standard, such as so-called metadata is stored in digital photos.
The digital camera puts a piece of metadata directly when taking pictures of (brand of camera, camera model, date, resolution, focal length, exposure time, aperture, etc.).
Among the "Camera Data" the most important of these data are displayed.
The review is also one of the metadata.
To manage the photos even more additional metadata can be used:
You can insert or change a short title for your photo.
In the "Description" field you can briefly describe the image content.
Tags are used for subsequent searches for a particular photo or multiple photos. A slogan should be a short descriptive term. You can assign multiple keywords separated by a semicolon.
Examples: "Vacation, Mediterranean, Mallorca, Friends, Beach" or "Family, Friends, Birthday, Gift".
If you assign a copyright to an image, any subsequent use of the image will contain the use and reproduction rights to the photo.
This is usually attributed to the photographer, but can also be a company that has bought the reproduction rights to the image.
As an author, you are usually the photographer and the author of this photo. This allows you to keep photos of several photographers apart.
Personal or technical comments on the photo or on the occasion where the photo was taken.
Displays any other data stored in such a way as has been registered by the camera or by an image editing program.
This metadata can not be edited, are it is dependent on the camera software used.
