Here you'll learn about all the options available to you when creating a Page Design. We'll go through every option in detail and create a simple Page Design in the process.
1.
Open PBU Settings, select the Page Designer tab, and click Create New Page Layout.
2.
You'll be presented with the Create Page Layout window. This step will detail every option available in this window, but proceed to Step 3 to continue learning how to create a Page Design.
Name: The name of the Page Design you will be creating.
Printer Settings: This button allows you to select a printer and adjust printer settings for this specific Page Design.
Import Template: Allows you to import an existing template created from Breeze or Paddee in XML or Zip format.
Background Image File: Select an existing background image file by clicking the respective Browse button. This image will appear BEHIND the photos taken and will appear as a background. Please note the background image must be in one of the following formats: BMP, PNG, JPG, or GIF.
Overlay Image File: If you would like to include an overlay image to appear in front of your guest's photos, click the Browse button inline with Overlay Image File. This is a great option for adding frames or borders around your Page Designs. Overlays will appear ON TOP of the background and photos. The overlay should be transparent where you want the photo or background to show through and should be in PNG format. Should be the size of whatever you want your photos to be.
Page Size: Select a page size by selecting the corresponding option. The values shown are width x height in inches. You can also select Custom and enter a custom page size in the space provided.
Create Photo Strip: Check this box if your Page Design is intended to be a photo strip. With this box checked, select 4x6 as your page size and PBU will display your graphics as a 2x6. You should create your background and overlay graphics as single, 2x6 strips.
Nr strips (usually 2) will determine the number of strips to be fit in your chosen page size.
Photo Holders: A Photo Holder is where your guests' image will appear. A Page Design must have at least 1 photo holder. Add or remove the number of photo holders by clicking +/- next to the Photo Holders box to determine how many photos will be taken.
Filter: Here, you can apply a filter directly to your page design without needing to use the Filter Tab. You can only select 1 filter per page design to be applied here.
3.
Name the Page Design. This name will be visible to your guests if you choose the User Select option in the Page Designer tab. We highly recommend you give every Page Design you make a unique name. Page Designs can be referenced in other parts of the software, and you'll need a unique name to be able to identify the right one.
4.
Add a background and/or an overlay image by selecting Browse beside their respective fields.
5.
Under Page Size, choose a page size that you desire. If you're printing, this page size should match the size of your printer paper. For this example, we'll choose 6x4.
6.
Under Photo Holders, press the + button to add a photo holder. An Add Photo Holder window will appear providing you with a number of options. Check out what the options mean below or continue to step 7.
Basic: When the basic tab is selected, the menu will appear as the image above with Photo aspect ratio below Message. Choose an aspect ratio that you desire for your photo. The default 3:2 is the standard aspect ratio of DSLR photos.
Advanced: When the Advanced tab is selected, Photo aspect ratio changes to Photo Holder Position. This will allow you to manually adjust the position and size of the photo holder by Inches or Pixels, and the Angle in degrees. In inches, if you set the Left position to 1.5, the left side of the photo holder will be 1.5 inches from the left side of the page. Adjusting Top will set the top of the photo holder a specific distance from the top of the page.
Message: Any text input here will appear as a message for your guests below the photo before it's taken. This message will also be added to the name of the photo holder in the Photo Holders box.
Green Screen: This section will allow you to choose a green screen background and overlay for this photo holder. You can check as many green screens as you like, and your guests will be able to choose whichever one they prefer. Unselect All will un-check every selected green screen for this photo holder.
Note: For this feature to work, the green screen photo mode must be set to disabled in the Green Screen tab.
Stretch Mode: Will adjust how the photo appears in the photo holder. If your camera aspect ratio matches the photo holder aspect ratio, your images will not be affected.
- Stretch will stretch and distort the image to fit it in the photo holder.
- Crop will center the image at the top, enlarge it so all parts of the photo holder are filled, and crop any part of the image that is outside the photo holder.
- Center will position the image in the center of the photo holder, and shrink it so the entire image is visible. This may leave blank space on some sides of the image.
Repeat Photo Holder: This allows you to repeat a photo from any previous photo holders. For example, if you have 3 photo holders 1-2-3 You can have the first photo taken, repeat in the third photo holder. Instead of 1-2-3 it would appear 1-2-1, or whatever photo holder duplicate you choose.
Opacity Slider: You can adjust the transparency of your photoholders so that it better matches the background of your page design.
Mirror Photo: This will flip the Photo Holder horizontally in the Page Design.
7.
For this example we'll choose 3:2 aspect ratio and set Stretch Mode to Crop. Press OK and you'll see the photo holder appear on our page design. If you'd like to edit your photo holder settings, double click the photo holder number in the Photo Holders box.
While the photo holder is highlighted, it will appear red with a green circle coming from a line in the center. You can click and drag the red photo holder to re position it, or click and drag the green circle to adjust the angle and size of the photo holder.
You can also use these keyboard shortcuts for precise adjustments:
- Arrow Keys to move the photo holder
- Z and X to rotate
- N and M to change size
- C to center the photo holder in the Page Design
Pro tip: If you plan on having multiple photo holders of the same size and settings, you can duplicate a photo holder to save time. Create a photo holder and position and size it how you like. Right click the photo holder number in the Photo Holders box and select Copy. You should now have an exact duplicate of your copied photo holder that you can easily reposition.
8.
Once your photo holder is positioned where you want it to appear, click OK.
9.
In the main Page Designer tab, select Auto Apply in Page Design Mode. Find your Page Design in the gallery of thumbnails at the bottom of the screen (new Page Designs always appear on the far right) and click the Select button.
Click OK on the bottom of the screen to save your new Page Design and we'll be ready to take a photo!
On the Main Screen, press the Photo button.
10.
Check it out!
You did it! You've successfully created a basic Page Design! Congrats! Itching for more? Check out our Page Design Photo Strips and Green Screen tutorials.