Book Image

Getting Started with Paint.NET

Book Image

Getting Started with Paint.NET

Overview of this book

Paint.NET is a free, reliable program that rivals the most expensive photo editing programs currently on the market.Paint.NET supports plugins, which add image adjustments, effects, and support for additional file types. They can be programmed using any .NET programming language, though they are most commonly written in C#. This book will teach you everything you need to know to edit and manipulate images. Written with very clear walkthroughs, hands-on tutorials,and amazing resources, this book will turn you into a photo wizard with Paint.NET. The book starts with simple tool-based tasks, introduces you to the workpane and then builds up to more complex areas taking a deep dive into the commonly-used features of Paint.NET. With this book, you will learn how to do everything from making simple adjustments to full artistic rendering with tools not available in any other program. Starting with the very basics of photo editing, you will gain an understanding of the basic principles of manipulating images. From layering to special effects, this book will give you all the knowledge you need to create images that leave a lasting impression. This book has everything you need to make amazing, artistic photos using completely free software. Filled with fun exercises and valuable information, you will learn how to master every tool and every effect in Paint.NET. Within minutes, you will be able to resize images, make adjustments to brightness and contrast, and apply color correction. By the end of this book, you will be working with layers and effects to create images that rival some of the most advised and expensive pieces of software. With simple exercises and information, this book will take you from absolute novice to an accomplished photo editor quickly and easily.
Table of Contents (15 chapters)
Getting Started with Paint.NET
Credits
About the Authors
About the Reviewer
www.PacktPub.com
Preface
Index

Auto-Level (Ctrl + Shift + L)


The Auto-Level feature is a very easy way to fix dark and light areas in your photos, fixing them instantly with the press of a button. Let's say you take a photo in a heavily shaded area on a bright day. You love the photo, but everyone's eyes are too shaded, and there is bright glare in other areas. What Auto-Level does is bring the light and dark areas into a normal range.

It does this by finding the darkest pixels and the lightest pixels and averaging them out. It may make the dark areas too light and the light areas too dark or give the entire image a muddy tone. You can also use this feature if you use the Levels feature and select Auto.

Now you try

You may now try using the Auto-Level option by performing the following simple steps:

  1. Open a photo of your choice in Paint.NET.

  2. Find the darkest area on the photo. Select one of the selection tools described in Chapter 2, The Paint.NET Workspace (Rectangle Select, Lasso, or Ellipse).

  3. Select your chosen area with...