Book Image

Python 2.6 Graphics Cookbook

By : Michael J Ohlson
Book Image

Python 2.6 Graphics Cookbook

By: Michael J Ohlson

Overview of this book

Python is a great object-oriented and interactive programming language that lets you develop graphics, both static and animated, using built-in vector graphics functions that are provided with Python. Python 2.6 Graphics Cookbook is a collection of straightforward recipes and illustrative screenshots for creating and animating graphic objects using the Python language. This book makes the process of developing graphics interesting and entertaining by working in a graphic workspace without the burden of mastering complicated language definitions and opaque examples. If you choose to work through all the recipes from the beginning, you will learn to install Python and create basic programs for making lines and shapes using the built-in Tkinter module. The confusing topic of color manipulation is explored in detail using existing Python tools as well as some new tools in the recipes. Next you will learn to manipulate font size, color, and placement of text as placing text exactly where you want on a screen can be tricky because font height, inter-character spacing, and text window dimensions all interfere with each other. Then you will learn how to animate graphics, for example having more than one independent graphic object co-exist and interact using various Python methods. You will also learn how you can work with raster images, such as converting their formats using the Python Imaging Library. Next you will learn how you can combine vector images with raster images so that you can animate the raster images with ease. You will also walk through a set of recipes with the help of which you can handle and manipulate blocks of raw data that may be hundreds of megabytes in size using datastreams, files, and hard drives. You will also learn how you can use Inkscape to dismantle existing images and use parts of them for your own graphics and Python programs. At the end of the book you will learn how you can create GUIs for different purposes.
Table of Contents (18 chapters)
Python 2.6 Graphics Cookbook
Credits
About the Author
About the Reviewers
Preface
Index

Chapter 7. Combining Raster and Vector Pictures

In this chapter, we will cover:

  • Simple animation of a GIF beach ball

  • The vector walking creature

  • Bird with shoes walking in the karroo

  • Making a partially transparent image with Gimp

  • Diplomat walking at the palace

  • Spider in the forest

  • Moving band of images

  • Continuous band of images

  • Endless background – a passing cloudscape

Vector graphics as seen in Chapter 2, Drawing Fundamental Shapes and Chapter 3, Handling Text can be shrunk and expanded to any size and in any direction using simple algebra. They can be animated with rotations using basic trigonometry. Raster graphics are limited. They cannot be resized or rotated dynamically while the code is executing. They are more cumbersome. However, we can get tremendous effects when we combine both vector and raster graphics together. The one thing that Python cannot do is to rotate a GIF image by itself. There are ways of mimicking rotation reasonably but there are limitations you will appreciate after trying...