How to Manage and Work with Digital Images

Using FastStone Image Viewer Version 4.5

A Tutorial by Bill Westerhoff

Table of Contents

1.    Getting Started

2.    The FastStone Image Viewer Interface

3.    Select a Skin

4.    Change the Size of the Browser Windows

5.    Set Up Your Preferences (Settings)

6.    Change the Size of Thumbnails

7.    Use FastStone to Set Up Folders for Your Digital Images

8.    Select your Startup Folder Option

9.    Set Up And Use Favorites

10.  History List

11.  Download Images from a Memory Card to your Hard Disk

12.  Rename A Group of Images Automatically

13.  Rotate Images

14.  Use FastStone to View Your Images

15.  View Images in the Full Screen View

16.  View Images in the Windowed View

17.  View Images in FastStone’s Comparator View

18.  Compare Images in Comparator’s Full Screen View

19.  Sort the Images (Including Drag and Drop Sorting)

20.  Tag Images

21.  Manage Images (Cut, Paste, Copy, and Delete)

22.  Send Images in E-Mail Messages - Automated Method

23.  Send Images in E-Mail Messages - Semi-Automated Method

24.  Convert and/or Resize Images

25.  Remove Red Eye

26.  Crop Images

27.  Straighten and Crop an Image

28.  Edit Images

29.  Open Images in a Printing, Editing or Other Image Related Program

30.  Use the Draw Board to add text, graphics and watermarks to an image

31.  Print Images

32.  Frames to Photos

33.  Print Contact Sheets

34.  Refresh thumbnails

35.  Copy/Move to Folder

36.  File Associations

37.  Scan Images

38.  Create Wallpaper for on Your Desktop

39.  Slide Shows

40.  Create and Save a Slide Show

41.  Use the Multi-Page File Builder to Create Animated GIFs, TIFFs & PDFs

42.  Use the Multi-Page File Splitter to Extract Images from a Multi-Page File

43.  Use the Image Strip Builder to Build an Image Strip

44.  Use Batch Convert to Resize/Convert/Resample Image Files (for advanced users)

45.  Use Batch Convert to Add Text, Watermarks, Borders, Etc. (for advanced users)

46.  Use Batch Convert to Add a Watermark to Images (for advanced users)

47.  Change the EXIF and/or the File Timestamp(s) on Images

48.  Resize/Resample Images (for advanced users)

49.  FastStone's Settings Window

50.  Functions of FastStone that were Not Covered

51.  Appendix A - Standard Window Selection Techniques

1.  Getting Started

A. 
Install FastStone Image Viewer:

1.   Download the program from: http://www.faststone.org/download.htm

2.   The installation procedure is rather straight-forward, so you should be able to install the program just by following the on-screen instructions

B.  Applicability of this tutorial to the version of FastStone that you are using:

1.   One of the great things about FastStone is that it is constantly being updated

2.   Since the program is constantly being updated, there may be differences between the version of the program that you are using and the version that I am using to write this tutorial. While I intend to update this tutorial from time to time, differences will still be inevitable. Hopefully, this tutorial will be sufficient to get you to the point where you can handle the differences without much difficulty.

C.  Dates used in this tutorial:

1.   You will soon notice dates in the text and graphics that appear to be outdated

2.   Be assured that while the dates may be outdated, all of the instructions and graphics are completely compatible with the current version of FastStone Image Viewer

2.  The FastStone Image Viewer Interface

A. 

When you first open FastStone Image Viewer, you should see something that looks a lot like this (This graphic shows FastStone Image Viewer version 4.0 with the Windows XP skin applied - more on Skins in the next section):

3.  Select a Skin

A.  Description:

1.   FastStone realizes that some users prefer a program’s interface to have a certain look and feel, while other users prefer a different look and feel

2.   In an attempt to make everyone happy, FastStone provides a collection of different Skins

3.   Each Skin gives FastStone a different look and feel

4.   In this section, I will show you how to change the Skin

5.   You may pick any skin that you like - all graphics in this tutorial were created showing the Windows XP skin

B.  Select a new Skin:

1.   Click on Settings on the Menu bar and a dropdown menu will appear

2.  
Point to Skin and a flyout menu will appear, as shown in this graphic:

3.   Click on the Skin that you want to try (I clicked on Windows XP) and FastStone will change the appearance of its interface - You may want to check out the new skins

4.   That was pretty easy!

4.  Change the Size of the Browser Windows

A.  There are three Browser windows (see graphic at beginning of this tutorial):

1.   Folder Tree Window

2.   Preview Window

3.   Thumbnail Window

B.  Change the size of the Browser windows:

1.   Hover over the double vertical line or the double horizontal line that separates two of the windows and the cursor will turn into a two headed arrow

2.   Click and drag the line to resize the applicable windows

5.  Set Up Your Preferences (Settings)

A.  Explanation:

1.   FastStone Image Viewer gives us a lot of user-defined options that we can set to customize the program to our personal tastes

2.   To get started, let’s not change any of the default settings - I will suggest a few changes as we work our way through the various functions of the program, but the steps in this tutorial assume that you have not made any changes to the default settings

3.   If you have already made changes, you may want to open the Settings dialog box and use the Reset button for each tab to reset settings so that you do not get confused as you work your way through the tutorial

4.   After you are finished with the tutorial, you will be in a better position to make your own choices

6.  Change the Size of Thumbnails

A.  Display thumbnails:

1.   Click on any folder in the Folder Tree Window that contains images and the thumbnails will appear

2.   FastStone can display your files in the Thumbnail Window using three different Views:

a.    Thumbnail View (this is the default setting and the only display mode that we cover in this tutorial)

b.   Small Icon View

c.    Report View (often referred to a Detail View)

3.   You can change many of FastStone’s default settings including those for Thumbnails

4.   The only default setting that we will change at this time, is the one that controls the size of the Thumbnails

B.  Change the size of the thumbnails:

1.   Click on Settings on the Menu bar and a dropdown menu will appear

2.   Click on Settings and the Settings dialog box will appear

3.   Click on the Thumbnail tab and the Thumbnails Settings window will appear

4.   Click on the dropdown arrow at the right end of the Thumbnail Size box  and a dropdown menu will appear

5.   Click on the size that you want:

a.    We will click on 160 x 120 - the Settings window should now look something like this:

b.  
Click on the OK button and the Confirmation dialog box will appear

c.    Click on the Yes button and the Processing window will appear and then close automatically when the Thumbnail database has been updated to reflect the size change

6.   If you don’t like the new size, change it to another size

7.  Use FastStone to Set Up Folders for Your Digital Images

A. 
Explanation:

1.   For an explanation of the system of folders that I suggest, please read the text box above

2.   Before you get buried in the details, consider these points:

a.    You are probably using a system that is different than the one that I suggest. If so, ask yourself if the system that you are using is working as well as you would like it to.

b.   Do not be concerned that you will have to redo everything that you currently have. If you think you like the system that I describe, just start using it from this point forward.

c.    Many people that I know are using this system and it is working very well for them. I have been using it (with some minor refinements) for many years and I am very happy with it.

B.  How should I manage my images on my hard disk?

1.  

Here is a graphic that shows the system that I recommend (the dates shown in this section are outdated, but the graphics are not):

2.   Set up this system of folders on your hard disk:

a.    Under your My Pictures folder, set up a folder for each year: 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, etc…. (do not put any images in these folders - these are merely “Header” folders)

b.   Under each year’s folder, set up a sub-folder for each month: 01, 02, etc…. (do not put any images in these folders - these are also merely “Header” folders) - we will use 12 (representing the month of December) in the example that follows

c.    Under each month’s folder, set up a separate subfolder for each occasion on which you take pictures:

(1)  The folder name should include the day and the name of the occasion, such as 04 Double Dutch Farm, where:

(a)The 04 signifies the day, and….

(b)  The rest of the folder title describes the occasion - Double Dutch Farm in this example

(c)The original copies of the images that were taken at the Double Dutch Farm on December 04, 2009, will be put into this folder

d.   Under each occasion’s folder, set up working folders in which you will place copies of the images that you have enhanced or otherwise edited - for example you can give these folders names like:

(1)  Enhanced (contains copies of all of the images on which you made general enhancements for that occasion)

(2)  Prints for Cindy (contains copies of all of Cindy’s images that you enhanced and intend to print yourself or take to Wal-Mart for printing)

(3)  Any other folders that you need to hold copies of specific images that you have enhanced

C.  Set Up the folders:

1.   Now that you have an understanding of the system of folders, we are ready to begin the “how-to” part of setting up the folders

2.   Open FastStone, if it is not already open

3.   In the Folder Tree Window (see the graphic at beginning of tutorial), navigate to your My Pictures folder

4.   Create a subfolder under your My Pictures folder for each year (2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, etc.):

a.    We will create a new folder for each year

b.   These folders will be header folders (we will not put any images directly into these folders)

c.    Create a folder for 2009:

(1)  Click on your My Pictures folder to select it

(2)  Click on the New Folder icon  on the Toolbar

and the Create Folder dialog box will appear

(3)  Type the name of the new folder, in this case 2009 and press the Enter key and a new folder named 2009 will be created as a subfolder under your My Pictures folder

(4)  When you want to create subfolders for other years, just repeat these steps

5.   Create subfolders under your 2009 folder for each month (e.g. 01, 02, …. 12):

a.    We will create a new folder for each month

b.   These folders will be header folders in that we will not put any images directly into these folders

c.    In the next section, we will create subfolders for each occasion

d.   Create a folder for each month in 2009:

(1)  Click on your 2009 folder to select it

(2)  Click on the New Folder icon  on the Toolbar and the Create Folder dialog box will appear

(3)  Type the name of the new folder (01 for January, 02 for February, … 12 for December), and press the Enter key and the new folder will be created – do not type the names of the months, just the number of the month

(4)  Repeat this procedure to create folders for each month

6.   Create subfolders under your monthly folders for each occasion (such as: 04 Double Dutch Farm, 14 Hagley Museum, 25 Christmas at Cindy's, etc.):

a.    We will create a new folder, under the applicable month’s folder, for each occasion. The original copies of the images for that occasion will be put into these folders. For example, pictures of Christmas at Cindy's on December 25, 2009, will be put into a folder under the 12 month folder. The occasion’s folder will be called 25 Christmas at Cindy's.

b.   Create folders for each occasion:

(1)  Click on your 12 folder to select it

(2)  Click on the New Folder icon  on the Toolbar and the Create Folder dialog box will appear

(3)  Type the name of the new folder, in this case 25 Christmas at Cindy's and press the Enter key and the new folder will be created

(4)  Repeat this procedure to create folders for each occasion - we will create folders for 04 Double Dutch Farm and 14 Hagley Museum

c.    To create folders for other occasions, just repeat these steps

7.   Under each occasion’s folder, set up working folders in which you will place copies of the images that you have enhanced or otherwise edited - to follow along, use what you just learned to set up the following working folders under the 25 Christmas at Cindy's folder:

a.    Enhanced (contains copies of all of the images on which you made general enhancements for that occasion)

b.   Prints for Cindy (contains copies of all of Cindy’s images that you enhanced and intend to print yourself or take to Wal-Mart for printing)

c.    Prints for Sue (contains copies of all of Sue’s images that you enhanced and intend to print yourself or take to Wal-Mart for printing)

d.   Any other folders that you need to hold copies of specific images that you have enhanced

8.  Select your Startup Folder Option

A.  Explanation:

1.   Each time you open FastStone, the program will automatically select the last folder that you visited as the Startup folder in the Folder Tree Window, and the contents of that folder will be displayed in the Thumbnail Window

2.   For example, if the last folder that I visited before closing FastStone was 2009, when I open FastStone the next time, the contents of the 2009 folder will be displayed in the Thumbnail Window

3.   Having FastStone start at a different point each time can be confusing:

a.    I tend to get a bit disoriented

b.   I like to tell FastStone to open a specific folder each time I open the program so that I am in familiar territory each time I open FastStone.

c.    Fortunately, FastStone gives the user a choice:

(1)  If you do not change the default setting, FastStone will open to the last folder that you visited

(2)  However, if you are like me, and you want to tell FastStone to open to a specific folder every time it opens, you can do just that

d.   You can change this option at any time that you change your mind

4.   I like to tell FastStone to open to a particular year’s folder:

a.    For example, the current year’s folder

b.   Then when the next year rolls around, I change this option so that FastStone open to that year’s folder

c.    Since this is what I like, I will tell you how to change the Startup folder to whatever folder you would like to use as the Startup folder

B.  Set your Startup folder to be a specific folder:

1.   Open the Settings dialog box to the Viewer settings window:

a.    Click on Settings on the Menu bar and a dropdown menu will appear

b.   Click on Settings on the dropdown menu and the Settings dialog box will appear

c.    Click on the Viewer tab to display the Viewer settings window, if it is not already displayed

d.  
If you have not changed the default setting, the Startup Folder box will look like this:

2.   Set your Startup folder to be a specific folder:

a.    Click on the dropdown arrow at the right end of the Startup Folder box and a dropdown menu will appear

b.  

Click on Specified and a new Browse box will appear to the right of the Startup Folder box - it should look like this:

c.    Click on the ellipsis on the right end of the Browse box and the Browse for Folder dialog box will appear

d.  

Navigate to the current year's folder and click on it to select it - the Browse for Folder dialog box should look something like this:

e.    Click on the OK button on the Select Folder dialog box and your current year's folder will be designated as the Startup folder

f.Click on the OK button on the Settings dialog box to close it

3.   Repeat these steps any time you want to change the setting for the Startup folder

C.    Let’s see if your change is working:

1.   Click on any folder, other than current year's fold, and that folder’s contents will be displayed in the Thumbnail view

2.   Close FastStone

3.   Open FastStone and check to see if the program remembered to use your current year's folder as the Startup up folder:

a.    The contents of your current year's folder should be displayed when FastStone opens

b.   Pat yourself on the back

9.  Set Up And Use Favorites

A.  Explanation:

1.   I often get lost in the maze of folders and sometimes I have a hard time finding one of my favorite folders

2.   FastStone understands people like me and provides an easy way for me to “find my way home”

3.   This function is called Favorites:

a.    It is very much like setting up Favorite Places or Bookmarks when you are browsing the Internet, so that you can jump to your favorite sites

b.   The difference is that the Favorites in FastStone let you jump to your Favorite folders

c.    You can add any folder to your list of Favorites and then use the Favorites list to jump around to different folders

4.   In the next section, we will add some folders to your list of Favorites and then we will use the Favorites list to jump around

B.  Set up your favorites:

1.   Add your current year's folder (2009 in this example) to your list of favorites:

a.    Right click on any folder (we will right click on the 2009 folder) and a shortcut menu will appear

b.   Click on Add Folder To Favorites and the Add Folder to Favorites dialog box will appear:

(1)  The name that appears in the Display Name box is the name that will appear in your list of Favorites

(2)  Make any changes that are necessary - we will accept the name 2009

(3)  Click on the OK button and the 2009 folder will be added to your list of favorites

2.   Add additional folders to your list of favorites:

a.    Repeat Steps a-c above to add the following folders to your list of favorites:

(1)  My Documents

(2)  My Pictures

(3)  The month of December 2009 - in this case you may want to us the Display Name dialog box to change the name that will appear in your list of favorites from 12 to something like 2009 12

C.  Use Favorites to jump from folder to folder:

1.  

Click on the Favorites icon  on the Toolbar and your list of Favorites will appear:
Note: This graphic shows keyboard shortcuts that you can use to jump to each favorite

2.   Click on the name of the folder to which you would like to jump and the contents of that folder will be displayed in the Folder Window

3.   Try it again and click on the name of another folder

4.   Pretty neat!!!!!!

D.  Manage your list of Favorites:

1.   Click on the Favorites icon  on the Toolbar  and your list of Favorites will appear:

2.  
Click on Organize Favorites and the Settings dialog box will open with the Favorites window displayed:

3.   You can use this window to:

a.    Clear (remove/delete) a folder from this list - the folder will not be deleted from your hard disk

b.   Rearrange the order in which the folders appear on your Favorites list

c.    Add new folders to the list

4.   Move the folder named 2009 12 up on the list so that it appears right under the folder called 2009:

a.    Click on the folder named 2009 12

b.   Click on the Up Arrow button  to move this folder up on the list - click more than once if necessary

c.    When you are finished managing your list of Favorites, click on the OK button

10.  History List

A.  Introduction:

1.   In addition to Favorites, FastStone provides another quick method of jumping from one folder to another - it is called the History List box (it is located right above the Thumbnail Window)

2.   The History List contains the names of folders that you have visited

3.   There does not appear to be a maximum number of folders that can be on the list

4.   FastStone remembers the names of the folders that you have visited even after you close the program

5.   You can clear the list at any time

6.   The name of the active folder is shown in the History List box

B.  How to use the History List to jump to another folder:

1.  
Click on the dropdown arrow at the right end of the History List box and the History List will appear:

2.   Click on any folder that is on the History List and that folder will become the active folder - the contents of that folder will show in the Thumbnail Window

11.  Download Images from a Memory Card to your Hard Disk

A.  Introduction:

1.   I use a Card Reader to download your images from your memory card:

a.    If your computer does not have a compatible card reader built-in, you can purchase a Card Reader

b.   Card Readers are not very expensive and they are easy to use

c.    The download speed is generally faster and more reliablewhen you use a card reader as opposed to downloading directly from your camera

d.   You can leave them plugged into a USB port on your computer so there is no messing with cables each time that you want to download images to your computer

2.   I recommend that you download the images from your memory card after each “occasion”, and then format your memory card before you take more pictures - regardless of what method you use to manage your images, this will make it much easier to organize your images.

3.   FastStone has a fantastic automatic Download Photos feature that is easy to use and is very comprehensive

4.   If you are happy with the method that you are now using to copy images from your memory card to your hard disk, you can skip the rest of this section

5.   If you are not happy with the method that you are now using, or would like to see how easy it is  to copy the images using FastStone, read on

B.  Copy the Images from your Memory Card or your digital camera:

1.   If you want to copy images directly from your camera, take note of the following, otherwise read on:

a.    The camera’s device driver must be installed on your computer (not the camera’s other software, just the device driver)

b.   The camera must be turned on and attached to your computer

c.    The camera must have a sufficient supply of electrical power (AC or DC) – loss of power during the transfer can cause the loss of data

2.   Using a blank Memory Card, take some quick pictures around your house so that we will have some images to use for these steps

3.   Attach your camera to your computer or insert your memory card into a Card Reader that is built into system or that is attached to your system:

a.    If a Windows popup window appears, click on the Cancel button

b.   If some other program that is on your computer tries to take over the copy process, you may want to disable that feature in the other program.

c.    Open FastStone and click on the Download Photos icon  that is at the left end of the Toolbar:

(1)  FastStone will automatically locate your memory card - Great job FastStone

(2) 
The Download Photos from Camera or Card Reader dialog box will appear - it should look something like this:

d.  
The Source Section of the dialog box should look something like this:

(1)  The Location box  should automatically show the path to your memory card

(2)  If the correct path does not show in the Location box, use the ellipses that is at the right end of the Location box to navigate to the source folder on your memory card

(3)  Normally, you should be able leave this box alone

e.   
The Destination Section of the dialog box should look something like this:

(1)  The Destination Location box should indicate the path to the folder into which you would like to put a copy of the images that are on the memory card - you will normally want to change the information that is in this box:

(a)
Click on the ellipses  at the right end of the Destination Location box and the Browse For Folder window will appear - it should look something like this:

(b)  Navigate to the folder into which you would like use and click on that folder to select it - I have navigated to the December 2009 folder that will contain a subfolder for each day on which I take pictures in the month of December 2009

(c)You can use the Create Folder button  on the Browser For Folder window to create a new subfolder for the images, but I prefer to use the Download Photos dialog box to create the folder automatically, as you will see in a moment

(d)  Click on the OK button and the path to the folder that you selected will now appear in the Destination Location box  

(2)  The Create Subfolder box  indicates whether or not you want FastStone to automatically create a new subfolder into which you would like to place the images:

(a)Click on the dropdown arrow at the right end of the Create Subfolder
box  and a list of presets appears

(b)  These presets provide a lot of flexibility, however, I do not use any of them - instead, I click on Specified Folder:

(c)The list of presets goes away

(d)  A name box is added to the right of the Create Subfolder box

(e)I type the name that I want to use for the new subfolder - In this case, I will type 25 Christmas at Cindy's because the pictures that I am downloading were taken on Christmas day at Cindy's house

(f) 
The Create Subfolder box and the related Subfolder Name box look like this:

(3) 
The File Names section of the Download Photos dialog box should look something like this:

(a)If you choose to keep the original file names you do not need to make any changes in the section (I do not recommend that you keep the original file names - they are virtually meaningless)

(b)  If you choose to have FastStone automatically Rename the files as they are put into the designated folder, click on the radio button

(c)in front of Rename File Names and a Name Template box will appear

(d)  Since I prefer to use my own naming system, I type in the name that I want to use - in this case 2009 12 25 ###

(e)Each file will now be sequentially named 2009 12 25 001, 2008 05 31 002, et seq.

(f)  If you prefer to use one of FastStone’s presets for your new names, you can learn what all of that gibberish is by clicking on the Help button   that is to the right of the Name Template box and a gibberish list will appear - now that you have all of that valuable information memorized, click on the dropdown arrow at the right end of the Name Template box , and a select a preset

(g)FastStone is so smart that it will remember the settings that I like to use in this box and they will show automatically each time I want to download more images

(4)  After you have made all of the settings as described above, click on the Download
button  and the Confirm dialog box will appear indicating that a new folder will be created - in our case the 25 Christmas at Cindy's folder

(5)  Click on OK on the Confirm dialog box and the Download Process dialog box will appear

(6)  Click on the OK button and FastStone will begin the transfer process

(7)  After the transfer is complete, click on the Close button and FastStone will open the folder into which the files were copied and the thumbnails will be displayed

(8)  FastStone has:

(a)Created a new folder - in this exercise the 25 Christmas at Cindy's folder

(b)  Copied and renamed all of the images that were on the Memory Card

C.  Format your Memory Card:

1.   Replace your Memory Card back into your camera

2.   Use the Camera’s Format function to clear and format your Memory Card

3.   Caution - Photo Recovery:

a.    If, for some reason, at a later time you want to attempt to “recover” images from a card that has been formatted, you may be able to recover them by using a Photo Recovery program

b.   There are many such Photo Recovery programs (use Google to find them) - some of which are totally free programs

c.    Some cameras provide a Quick Format and a Full Format. On these cameras, I suggest that you use only the Quick Format. If you use the Full Format you will probably not be able to recover the images if you later have a need to do that. On most cameras, the Format command will not actually destroy the images - it will just make them inaccessible without using a Photo Recovery program.

12.  Rename A Group of Images Automatically

A.  Introduction:

1.   The Batch Rename function is generally used to automatically rename a group of images using the renaming pattern that you designate - you can even look at a preview that shows the names before and after the renaming just so that you can make sure that you have all of the correct settings before you actually rename the images

2.   In addition to the basic rename function, FastStone now also has a comprehensive Search and Replace function - this function is not covered in this tutorial

3.   Since the Batch Rename function in FastStone is so comprehensive, I have decided to keep my explanation on a “need to know” basis, so I am just giving you enough information for you to get a basic batch renaming process accomplished - after you master the basics, you may want to dig a little deeper into the other options

4.   In the steps that follow, I will the Batch Rename function to rename a group of images using the file-naming system described in the text box above

B.  Use the Batch Rename function to rename images:

1.   Select the Images that you want to rename:

a.    Select the thumbnails of the images that would like to rename using Standard Windows Selection Techniques (as described in Appendix A of this tutorial)

b.   If you want to rename all of the images in a folder (this is normally what I do):

(1)  Click on any one of the thumbnails in the Thumbnail Window

(2)  Hold down the Ctrl key on your keyboard and press the “A” key - a light blue outline should appear around all of the thumbnails indicating that they are all selected

c.    If you later decided to change which images you want to rename, you can add or remove images to/from the Input List after you open the Batch Image Convert/Rename dialog box

2.   Use Batch Rename to rename the images:

a.    Select the images that you want to rename using Standard Windows Selection Techniques (as described in Appendix A of this tutorial)

b.   Click on Tools on the Menu bar and a dropdown menu will appear

c.   
Click on Batch Rename Selected Images and the Batch Image Convert/Rename dialog box will appear - it will look something like this:

d.   Notice that this dialog box has two tabs (Batch Convert and Batch Rename) and that the Batch Rename tab has been automatically selected

e.    The white window on the left is the Source window - since we selected all of the images that we want to rename before we opened this dialog box, we do not need to use the Source window

f.The white window on the right is the Input List window:

(1)  All of the images (and folders) that we selected will appear in this window

(2)  These are the images that will be renamed

(3)  You do not need to make any changes in this window at this time

(4)  If you want to make changes to your Input list, you can use the Add and/or Remove buttons to make changes

g.    Complete the information in the Template box

 :

(1)  The “Tips” section of this dialog box contains information that may help you in the future, but for now just follow along with these step-by-step instructions

(2)  Assuming that we took these pictures on December 25, 2009, enter the following in the Template box (leaving spaces as indicated):

              2009 12 25 ###

(3)  The first three parts of this entry represent the following:

2009  The Year

12The Month

25The Day

(4)  The fourth part of this entry may not be quite as obvious:

(a)The ### tells FastStone to insert a set of sequential numbers, each of which to contain a three digit sequential number (if, for example, you want a four-digit set of sequential numbers use ####)

(b)  The starting point for the set of sequential numbers is entered in box that is next to the Rename As box - to start the sequence with the number 001, the box should look like this

h.    If you would like to see a Preview of the results, click on the Renaming Preview button  and the Renaming Preview window will appear - Click on the OK button to close this window

i.To rename the images, click on the Rename button  and a Confirmation window will appear

j.Click on the Yes button and the Image Rename dialog box will appear - it displays the Old Filename and the New Filename

k.    Quick as a bunny, FastStone has completed the renaming process, so just click on the Done button and congratulate yourself

13.  Rotate Images

A.  Introduction:

1.   FastStone can rotate many images of certain file types, including JPEG’s

2.   FastStone automatically rotates thumbnails based on the EXIF orientation tag that is created by your camera:

a.    Check your camera’s documentation to see if your camera supports image rotation

b.   If your camera supports image rotation and if you set your camera to automatically rotate the images when they are viewed in the LCD viewer on the back of the camera, the images will be rotated automatically when you bring them into FastStone 

c.    If your camera is not set to automatically rotate the images when they are viewed in the LCD viewer on the back of the camera:

(1)  FastStone will not automatically rotate your images when you bring them into FastStone

(2)   In this case, you can follow the steps in this section of the tutorial to manually rotate your images after you bring them into FastStone

3.   The rotation is lossless for JPEG files

B.  Select the Images to be Rotated:

1.   You can manually rotate certain file-types in FastStone including JPEG files - the rotation is lossless

2.   The first step is to select the image(s) that you want to rotate:

a.    To select a single image, click on it

b.   To select multiple images that you want to rotate, use Standard Windows Selection Techniques (as described in Appendix A of this tutorial)

C.  Rotate the images:

1.   Click on the Rotate Left icon or Rotate Right icon  on the Control Bar and the selected image(s) will be rotated

2.   You can also use other methods to rotate images - I will cover those methods in later sections of this tutorial

14.  Use FastStone to View Your Images

A.  Introduction:

1.   FastStone Image Viewer is a fantastic image viewing program - you have more viewing options with FastStone than with any other image management program that I have used

2.   In addition to the Thumbnail View, you can view your images:

a.    Full Screen View

b.   Windowed View

c.    Compare Selected Images View

d.   Several variations of these views

3.   There are advantages to each of these views and it is easy to switch between them

4.   I think that you will find that you will find uses for each of these views - good job FastStone

5.   In sections of this tutorial that follow, I will described how to use each of these views

15.  View Images in the Full Screen View

A.  Introduction:

1.   As the name implies, this view displays an image as large as possible

2.   At the top of the screen, you will see some information about the image (Complete path and file name, Resolution, File size, Etc.)

3.   There are so many options that apply to the Full Screen View that it could easily become overwhelming or confusing

4.   To simplify this, I have decided to present this topic in two sections:

a.    Basics - for those who just want to be able to get a quick full screen look at their images

b.   Advanced - for those who want to get more involved with the numerous options that are available

B.  Basic use of Full Screen View:

1.   To Open an image in the Full Screen View:

a.    Double click on a thumbnail and that image will open in the full screen view, or

b.  
Click on the Full Screen icon  that is located at the extreme right end of the Control bar, as shown in this graphic:

c.    The image will open in the Full Screen view

2.    To move between images in the Full Screen View:

a.    To display the next image, press one of the following keys on your keyboard:

(1)  Page Down key

(2)  Right Arrow key (except when you are zoomed in on an image)

(3)  Spacebar

b.   To display the previous image, press one of the following keys on your keyboard:

(1)  Page Up key

(2)  Left Arrow key (except when you are zoomed in on an image)

(3)  Backspace key

c.    To jump to the first image, press the Home key on your keyboard

d.   To jump to the last image, press the End key on your keyboard

3.   To rotate an image (lossless in JPEG) while in the Full Screen View:

a.    Press the L key on your keyboard to rotate the image to the left

b.   Press the R key on your keyboard to rotate the image to the right

4.   To zoom in and zoom out on an image while in Full Screen View:

a.    To zoom in, press the + key

b.   To zoom out, press the - key

c.    To return to the best fit view, press the B key or the * key on your keyboard

d.   When you are zoomed in on an image, the cursor turns into the Hand Tool so that you can click and drag to see different parts of your image

e.    When you are zoomed in on an image, you can also use the arrow keys to see different parts of your image

5.   To delete an image while in the Full Screen View:

a.    Press the Delete key on your keyboard

6.   To return to the Thumbnail view, do one of the following:

a.    Double click on an image (you need to double click at the right speed, because a single click invokes the magnifier - see the Advanced section), or

b.   Press the Esc key or the Enter key on your keyboard

7.   Display the File and Attributes window:

a.    Open an image to the Full Screen View

b.   To display the File and Attributes window for the currently displayed image:

(1)  Move the cursor slightly off-screen to the right and the File and Attributes window will appear

(2)  Move the cursor back over the image and the File and Attributes window will disappear

(3)  You can also display/hide the File and Attributes window by pressing the I (for Information) key on your keyboard

c.    Introduction to the File and Attributes window:

(1)  The top section of this window displays information about the file that is currently displayed

(2)  The bottom section of this window has three tabs that allow you to display three different windows:

(a)Click on the EXIF tab to display the EXIF Metadata of the file that is currently displayed - the EXIF information now includes a GPS line - a Show In Google Earth button will be available if the image has GPS information

(b)  Click on the Histogram tab to display the histogram for the image that is currently displayed

(c)Click on the JPEG tab to display the JPEG Comments (if any) for the image that is displayed and allows you to enter and/or edit JPEG Comments

C.  Advanced Use of the Full Screen View:

1.   Open an image in the Full Screen view - see the previous section if you need help doing this

2.   Use the Magnifier to view a portion of your image in a magnifier

a.    Click and hold down the mouse button and a magnified view of part of your image will appear

b.   Continue to hold down the mouse button and move the magnifying glass around the image to see a magnified view of a different part of your image

c.    Set the size and shape of the magnifier (you may want to use different settings on different images):

(1)  Right click on an image and a shortcut menu will appear

(2)  Point to Magnifier Settings and a flyout menu will appear

(3)  Use the three sections of the flyout menu to set your preferences:

(a)Top section:    Shape of the magnifying glass

(b)  Middle section:   Magnification level of the magnifying glass

(c)Bottom section:  Size (in pixels) of the magnifying glass

3.   Use the Full Screen View Popup Windows:

a.    Top Popup window:

(1)  Move your cursor to the top of your screen and the Thumbnail Browser Window will appear - move your cursor back to the image and the Thumbnail Browser Window will close

(2)   The primary use of this Popup window is to provide an easy for you to jump to different images - use the scroll bar to scroll to other images and click on the one that you want to view in the Full Screen Window, then move your cursor back to the image to close the Thumbnail Browser Window

b.   The Right Side Popup window:

(1)  Move your cursor to the right side of your screen and the Files And Attributes Window will appear

(2)  The top section of this window displays information about the file that is currently displayed

(3)  The bottom section of this window has three tabs that allow you to display three different windows:

(a)Click on the EXIF tab to display the EXIF Metadata of the file that is currently displayed - the EXIF information now includes a GPS line - a Show In Google Earth button will be available if the image has GPS information

(b)  Click on the Histogram tab to display the histogram for the image that is currently displayed

(c)Click on the JPEG tab to display the JPEG Comments (if any) for the image that is displayed and allows you to enter and/or edit JPEG Comments

c.    The Left Side Popup window:

(1)  Move your cursor to the left side of your screen and the File Management Window will appear

(2)  This window provides fast access to file and image editing functions

d.   The Bottom Left Popup window:

(1)  Move your cursor to the bottom left of your screen and the Control Bar and the Navigator Window will appear

(2)  The Control Bar provides fast access to major program functions and the Navigator Window provides another way for you to zoom in and zoom out

e.    The Bottom Right Popup window:

(1)  Move your cursor to the bottom right of your screen and the Windows Task Bar will appear

(2)  The Windows Task Bar provides fast access to other programs

4.   Use the Shortcut menu:

a.    Right click on an image and a shortcut menu will appear

b.   Use the shortcut menu to access other program functions

5.   To return to the Thumbnail view, do one of the following:

a.    Double click on an image (you need to double click at the right speed, because a single click invokes the magnifier)

b.   Press the Esc key on your keyboard

c.    Press the Enter key on your keyboard

16.  View Images in the Windowed View

A.  Introduction:

1.   This view, in effect, expands the Preview Window so that it occupies the part of the screen that was being used by the Folder Tree Window and the Thumbnail Window, leaving the other components of the Folder View Window available for your use - a pretty neat trick

2.   When an image is open in the Windowed View, the Popup windows are available when you are in the Windowed View are not available

B.  Use the Windowed View:

1.   To open an image in the Windowed View:

a.   
Click on the Switch to Windowed View icon  at the far right end of the Options Bar:

2.   Use all of the functions as described in the section on Full Screen View, except for the Popups

3.  
To close the Windowed view, click on the Switch to Browser View icon  at the far right end of the Options Bar:

17.  View Images in FastStone’s Comparator View

A.  Introduction:

1.   The Compare Selected Images view lets you view two, three or four images side-by-side

2.   The Zoom functions help you to compare images very nicely

3.   I have found this feature to be extremely useful

B.  Open Selected Images in the Comparator View:

1.   Select the thumbnails that you want to compare:

a.    Select 2 to 4 thumbnails using Standard Windows Selection Techniques (as described in Appendix A of this tutorial)

b.   For the purposes of this discussion, I selected 4 thumbnails

2.   Click on the Compare Selected Images button  on the Options Bar and the selected images will open in the Compare Selected Images view - they will be zoomed in to 100%

3.   Click on the Best Fit button  on the toolbar to change the view to Best Fit

C.  Zoom In and Zoom Out on all of the images:

1.   To Zoom In, do one of the following:

a.    Click on the Zoom In button  on the toolbar of any one of the images

b.   Use the scroll wheel on your mouse

c.    Click on one of the images and press the + key on your keyboard

2.   To Zoom Out, do one of the following:

a.    Click on the Zoom Out button  on the toolbar of any one of the images

b.   Use the scroll wheel on your mouse

c.    Click on one of the images and press the - key on your keyboard

D.  Zoom In and Zoom Out on just one of the images:

1.   Click on one of the images to select it

2.   Use the same tools as described in the previous section except that you hold down the Ctrl key on your keyboard as you are using each tool - very nice indeed!

E.   View different portions of your images:

1.   To use this feature effectively, you should be zoomed in to some extent on an image:

a.    To demonstrate this, click on the Actual Size button  on the toolbar (it is the button just to the right of the Best Fit button  ) to view the images at actual size - you will only be able to see a portion of each image

2.   FastStone provides two ways to view different portions of all of the images:

a.    Use the arrow keys on your keyboard to pan around all of the images at the same time, or

b.   Click and drag on any one of the images to pan around all of the images at the same time

3.   To view a different portion of only one of the images, do one of the following:

a.    Right click and drag on one the images and the visible portion of only that image will change - even cooler!

b.   Hold down the Ctrl key on your keyboard as you click and drag on one of the images and the visible portion of only that image will change

F.    Display the EXIF information and/or the Histogram, and to Smooth the images:

1.   Click on the applicable box(es) in the upper right corner of the Comparator window

G.  To permanently Delete an image while in the comparator view:

1.   Click on the Delete button  on the toolbar of the image that you want to delete

H.  To return to the Thumbnail View:

1.   Click on the Close button , or press the Esc key on your keyboard

18.  Compare Images in Comparator’s Full Screen View

A.  Introduction:

1.   This is one of the great features in FastStone

2.   This feature allows you to use the comparator to compare 2 to 4 images in the Full Screen view - fantastic!

3.   Most of the viewing techniques described in the previous section can be used when comparing your images in comparator’s Full Screen view

B.  Open Selected Images in the Comparator View:

1.   Select the thumbnails that you want to compare:

a.    Select 2 to 4 thumbnails using Standard Windows Selection Techniques (as described in Appendix A of this tutorial)

b.   For the purposes of this discussion, I selected 4 thumbnails

2.   Click on the Compare Selected Images button  on the Options Bar and the selected images will open in the Compare Selected Images View - they will be zoomed in to 100%

C.  Open the images in the comparator’s Full Screen view:

1.   While the images are still open in the Comparator, click on the Compare In Full Screen button  on the toolbar of any one of the four images and that image will open at full size in the comparator’s Full Screen view

2.   Click on the Best Fit button  on the toolbar to change the view to Best Fit

3.  
Take a minute to look at the new toolbar at the top of the screen:

a.    The buttons on the left end of the toolbar  should look rather familiar since we have already discussed how most of these buttons work

b.   The number buttons near the right end of the toolbar  are new - they represent the images that we have open in the comparator:

(1)  Since we opened 4 images in the comparator, there are four buttons

(2)  The number that is illuminated (in my case #2), indicates which image is currently displayed - in my case the #2 image is displayed in the Full Screen view

c.    The Zoom In, Zoom Out, Best Fit and Actual Size buttons work exactly as previously described - they can be used to control the view of one image or of all four images, as previously described

d.   A Return button  has been added to allow you to go back to the normal comparator view, and an Exit button  has been added to allow you to go back to the Thumbnails view

e.    Use the Image buttons  to view a different image - just click on a different number to display another image

D.  Use the comparator’s Full Screen view to compare portions of different images:

1.   As previously stated, when you are in the comparator’s full screen view, the Zoom In, Zoom Out, Best Fit and Actual Size buttons work exactly as previously described - they can be used to control the view of all four images, or of one image, as previously described:

a.    Ctrl click on a Zoom In or Zoom Out button zooms only on the current image

b.   Very nice

2.   Also recall that you can right click and drag on an image to reposition only that image

E.   To permanently Delete an image while in the comparator’s Full Screen view:

1.   Click on the Delete button  on the toolbar of the image that you want to delete

F.   Here are some ways to leave the comparator’s Full Screen view:

1.   Click on the Return button  on the toolbar (or press the Esc key on your keyboard) to return to the regular comparator view, or

2.   Click on the Exit button  to go back to the thumbnail view

19.  Sort the Images (Including Drag and Drop Sorting)

A.  Images may be sorted by:

1.   Filename  2. Date3. Type  4. Size5. Dimension

B.  Ascending and descending order:

1.   To sort images in ascending order click on a sort method that is not enclosed in parentheses

2.   To sort images in descending order click on a sort method that is enclosed in parentheses

C.  To sort images:

1.   Automatic sorting:

a.    Click on the dropdown arrow at the right end of the Sort box  - the Sort box is near the right end of the Toolbar  and a dropdown menu will appear

b.   Click on your choice of sort method and the thumbnails in the thumbnail window will be sorted

c.    Sorting rearranges how the thumbnails are viewed in FastStone, but does not change the order of the images when they are viewed in some other file management program such as Windows Explorer

2.   Custom sorting:

a.    This is a cool feature in FastStone and it can really come in handy from time to time

b.   This method allows you to sort images by clicking and dragging them to new locations

c.    This sort is not temporary - if you leave the current  folder and later return to it, the thumbnails will still be sorted in the Custom sorting order

d.   You can switch back and forth between a Custom sort and an automatic sort and FastStone will remember your custom sort

e.    If you want FastStone to stop remembering your Custom sort, click on the Delete Custom Sort  button that is right next to the Sort box

f.To give this method a try:

(1)  Open a folder that contains images

(2)  In the Thumbnail window, click and drag thumbnails and drop them in new locations

g.    Sorting rearranges how the thumbnails are viewed in FastStone, but does not change the order of the images when they are viewed in some other file management program such as Windows Explorer

h.    If you want to permanently change the sort order in all programs, you can use FastStone’s Auto Rename feature to automatically rename the newly sorted images (see the Auto Rename section of this tutorial)

20.  Tag Images

A.  Introduction:

1.   This is a great feature in FastStone

2.   You can now tag images and then tell FastStone to:

a.    Select only the tagged images that are in a folder, or

b.   Display only the tagged images that are in a folder

3.   After the tagged images are selected or displayed, you can do all sorts of neat things to these images without doing anything to the rest of the images in the folder

4.   You can Tag and Untag images in any of FastStone views including:

a.    Thumbnails view

b.   Window view

c.    Full Screen view

d.   Comparator Normal views

e.    Comparator Full Screen view

B.  Turn the Image Tagging feature on and off:

1.   Introduction:

a.    In an attempt to keep from confusing people who do not want to use the tagging feature, tagging is not enabled until you tell FastStone to enable it

b.   Turn the Image Tagging feature on and off at any time:

(1)  If you think the you may use Image Tagging from time-to-time, I suggest that you turn it on and leave it turned on

(2)  If you think that you probably not use Image Tagging, you can turn it off after you have gone through this section, and then turn it on if you ever change your mind and want to give it a try

c.    You can Tag and Untag images in any of FastStone's for viewing modes

2.   Turn the Image Tagging feature on:

a.    Click on Tag on the Menu bar and a dropdown menu will appear

b.   The first selection on the dropdown menu is Allow Image Tagging:

(1)  If there is a checkmark in front of Allow Image Tagging, Image Tagging is already turned on; therefore you do not to turn it on again - just press the Esc key to close the dropdown menu

(2)  If there is no checkmark in front of Allow Image Tagging, Image Tagging is not turned on - just click on Allow Image Tagging to turn it on

(3) 
Notice that there is now a new icon  on the Toolbar - it is called Show Tagged Files Only - here is how the Toolbar should now look:

(4)  FastStone has also added Tag Boxes in the following views:

(a)

Thumbnail view - in lower left corner:

(b)  Comparator view - upper right corner

3.   Turn the Image Tagging Feature off:

a.    If Image Tagging is turned on and you want to turn it off:

(1)  Click on Tag on the Menu bar and a dropdown menu will appear

(2)  The first selection on the dropdown menu is Allow Image Tagging:

(a)If there is a checkmark in front of Allow Image Tagging, Image Tagging is turned on

(b)  Click on Allow Image Tagging to turn Image Tagging off

4.   Before you proceed to the next step, be sure that Image Tagging is turned on

C.  Tag and Untag images, in FastStone’s various views:

1.   In the Thumbnail view:

a.    To Tag or Untag one image, either:

(1)  Click on the Tag Box, or

(2)  Click on the applicable thumbnail and then press the Backslash (\) key on your keyboard

(3)  Repeat either of these two steps to Untag a thumbnail that was previously Tagged

b.   To Tag or Untag multiple images:

(1)  Select the applicable thumbnails using Standard Windows selections procedures (see Appendix A)

(2)  Press the Backslash key (\) key on your keyboard to Tag all of the selected thumbnails

(3)  Repeat both of these steps to Untag thumbnails that were previously Tagged

2.   In the Normal Comparator view:

a.    Open two to four images in the Comparator

b.   Click on the Tag Box of the image that you want to Tag, or

c.    Click on the image that you want to Tag to select that image, and then press the Backslash (\) key on your keyboard - notice that a red Tag Box now appears in the Tag Box of the selected image

d.   Repeat either of these last two steps to Untag an image that was previously Tagged

3.   In the Window view, the Full Screen view or the Comparator Full Screen view:

a.    Press the Backslash key (\) key on your keyboard to Tag the image that is currently displayed - notice that a red Tag Box now appears in the upper right corner

b.   Repeat this step to Untag an image that was previously Tagged - notice that the red Tag Box is no longer displayed

4.   When you switch from view to view, the red Tag Box will indicate which images are Tagged

D.  Untag all of the thumbnails in a folder:

1.   Use the Folder Tree to display all of the thumbnails in a folder, and do either one of the following:

a.    Using the Menu bar:

(1)  Click on Tag on the Menu bar and a dropdown menu will appear

(2)  Click on Untag All and Tags will be removed from all of the thumbnails in that folder

b.   Using a keyboard shortcut:

(1)  Hold down the Shift and the Ctrl key on your keyboard and, while holding down those two keys, press the Backslash (\) key on your keyboard and the Tags will be removed from all of the thumbnails in that folder

E.    Select all of the Tagged files:

1.   Introduction

a.    After you have gone through the trouble of Tagging files, you will probably want to do something with the Tagged files

b.   FastStone let’s us Select all of the Tagged files so that we can do things with the Tagged files without doing the same thing to the rest of the files in a folder - we can do lots of things such as:

(1)  Copy, Move or Delete only the Selected Files

(2)  Open only the Selected files in an another program such as an image editing program

(3)  Send only the Selected files in an email message

(4)  Etc., etc.

2.   Select all of the Tagged files:

a.    You can select all of the Tagged files that are in the current folder by doing either of the following:

(1)  Using the Menu bar:

(a)Click on Tag on the Menu bar and a dropdown menu will appear

(b)  Click on Select Tagged Files Only and the Tagged files will all be selected

(2)  Using a keyboard shortcut:

(a)Hold down the Ctrl key on your keyboard and while holding down the Ctrl key, press the Backslash key (\) on your keyboard and the Tagged files will all be selected

F.   Show only the Tagged files:

1.   Introduction:

a.    After you have gone through the trouble of Tagging files, you may want to be able to view only the Tagged files that are in the current folder

b.   In addition to just viewing the Tagged files, you can also refine your decisions as to which files you would like tagged - this is easier to do when you view only the Tagged files

2.   Show only the Tagged files:

a.    Click on the Show Tagged Files Only  icon on the Toolbar and after a short pause, FastStone will display the thumbnails for only the Tagged files

b.   To return to the normal thumbnail view, click on the Show Tagged Files Only  icon on the Toolbar and after a short pause, FastStone will return to the normal thumbnail view

c.    You can also use Menu choices to switch the Show Files Only feature on and off (Tag>Show Tagged Files Only)

d.   Before you go to the next step, use this procedure to show only the Tagged files

3.   Refine your decisions as to which files you want Tagged:

a.    Use any of FastStone’s views and one of the methods described above to Untag one or more of the Tagged files

b.   After you have Untagged one of more of the Tagged files, they will still be displayed in the Show Tagged Files only view until you click on the Refresh  icon on the Toolbar

4.   Use just the Tagged files:

a.    Introduction

(1)  After you have gone through the trouble of Tagging and Showing only the Tagged files, you will probably want to do something with them

(2)  FastStone let’s us Select all of the Tagged files so that we can do things with the Tagged files without doing the same thing to the rest of the files in a folder - we can do lots of things such as:

(a)Copy, Move or Delete only the Selected Files

(b)  Open only the Selected files in an another program such as an image editing program

(c)Send only the Selected files in an email message

(d)  Etc., etc.

b.   Select all of the files that appear in the Show Tagged Only view:

(1)  Hold down the Ctrl key on your keyboard and press the A key, or

(2)  Use any other Standard Windows Selection Techniques (see Appendix A)

c.    Use the selected files for your intended purpose

5.   Return to the normal thumbnail view:

a.    Click on the Show Tagged Files Only  icon on the Toolbar and after a short pause, FastStone will return to the normal thumbnail view

b.   You will also return to the normal thumbnail view if you open another folder and then return to the current folder

21.  Manage Images (Cut, Paste, Copy, and Delete)

A.  How to Manage Images:

1.   FastStone performs these task in much the same way as Windows Explorer, by using:

a.    Menu commands

b.   Icons

c.    Shortcut menus (right click to display them)

d.   Shortcut keys

e.    Click and drag and Right click and drag

2.   If you are familiar with Windows Explorer, you already know how to perform these functions in FastStone

22.  Send Images in E-Mail Messages - Automated Method

A.  Introduction:

1.   If you are using Outlook Express as your default mail program this function should work very well

2.   Some people who are using an online email program, skip this section of the tutorial and refer to the next section

3.   In this section, I will only touch on basic email functions

a.    You may want to explore more of the very sophisticated uses for the Copy To function which can even be used to Convert and Resize images

b.   Some of the Copy To functions are briefly described in the next section of this tutorial

B.  Select the Images to be Attached to the e-mail message:

1.   If you want to attach only one image, just click on it to select it

2.   If you want to attach more than one image, use Standard Windows Selection Techniques (as described in Appendix A of this tutorial) to select multiple images

C.  Attach the selected image to an e-mail message:

1.  
Click on the Email icon  on the Control Bar and the Email Images dialog box will appear:

2.   This dialog box contains functions that we do not need to use when we just want to send basic email messages:

a.    I will only cover the basic settings in this section

b.   You can experiment with the other settings on your own

3.   Make the following settings (FastStone will remember these settings the next time you want to send an email message):

a.    The most important setting change:

(1)  If there is a check mark in the Compress Images Into One Single File checkbox

(2)    click on the checkbox to remove the check mark

(3)  If you do not make this change, the recipient of the email message will receive a compressed file and may not know how to open it

b.   New Size:

(1)  Click on the dropdown arrow at the right end of the <Pick A Standard Size> box  and a dropdown menu will appear

(2)  Click on the size that you would like to use:

(a)I clicked on 1024 x 768 which is a good size to start with

(b)  Notice that the size that you select from the list will automatically be placed in the New Size boxes

c.    Quality:

(1)  Type a number between 10 and 100 in the Quality box and press the Enter key:

(a)I use the default of 85, but you can use any Quality that you like

(b)  The higher the quality the larger the image files will be (high = slow; low = fast)

(2)  You can also use the spinner arrows at the right end of the Quality box to change the quality setting

d.   Add Border Effects (optional):

(1)  If you do not want to add borders to your images, uncheck the Add Border Effects  checkbox

(2)  If you want to add borders to your images:

(a)Make sure that there is a checkmark in the Add Borders Effects checkbox

(b) 
Click on the ellipses  that is to the right of the checkbox and the Border Effects dialog box will appear - it will look something like this:

(c)Put a checkmark in the Frame checkbox if you want to add one or more frames and then enter the related settings - in the graphic shown above, I added frame #1 (a black frame 3 pixels wide) and Frame #2 (a white frame 7 pixels wide)

(d)  Put a checkmark in the Inner Frame checkbox if you want to add an inner frame - in the graphic shown above, I did not add an inner frame

(e)Put a checkmark in the Shadow checkbox if you want to add a shadow and then enter the related settings - in the graphic shown above, I add a black shadow with a radius of 5 and a depth of 5, with a gray background

e.    Keep EXIF/IPTC Data:

(1)  Put a checkmark in this box if you want to keep this information with the images that you send in your email message

(2)  Remove the checkmark in this box if you do not want to keep this information with the images that you send in your email message

f.Rename:

(1)  Do not leave a checkmark in the Rename checkbox if you do not want your images to be renamed when they are attached to your email message

(2)  Put a checkmark in the Rename checkbox if you want your images to be renamed and complete the required information

g.    FastStone will remember all of the settings that you use so that you can use the same settings the next time without changing anything

h.    These settings will be applied only to the images that are sent in your email message, the images on your hard disk will not be effected

i.If you want to apply these border effects to images on your hard disk, refer to the next section of this tutorial for a method to use to do that

4.   Click on the Send Email button  and the Confirmation dialog box will appear

5.   Click on the OK button and (after a few moments) the New Message window of your email program will appear:

a.    You may want to click on the Maximize button  to maximize the New Message window

b.   Notice that the image files are shown in the Attachment box

c.    The Attachment box also shows the file size of each image file

6.   Complete the message:

a.    Select the recipient(s):

(1)  You may want to send your first message to yourself so you can see what the recipients will see when you send a message to them

(2)  The images may appear larger or smaller on a recipient’s monitor depending upon the screen resolution that he/she is using

b.   Enter a subject

c.    Enter a message

7.   Send the message:

a.    Click on the Send button and your message will be sent (it will take a few moments)

b.   FastStone's Email dialog box will reappear

8.   Click on the Close button on the Email dialog box to return to FastStone’s browser window

23.  Send Images in E-Mail Messages - Semi-Automated Method

A.  Introduction:

1.   FastStone’s automated email function (see the previous section of this tutorial) will not work with all email programs

2.   The method described in this section should work with all email programs

3.   In this section, I will tell you how to use FastStone’s email function to resize and save selected images in a folder that you designate. You will then be able to insert these resized images as attachments in email messages that are created by any email program that supports attachments.

4.   The method described in this section can also be used to convert and/or resize and save images that you want to use for purposes other than as attachments to email messages:

a.    This method offers an extensive set of options for converting and resizing images (I do not cover a lot of them in this tutorial)

b.   Some people find that this is a great way to quickly convert RAW images into JPEG files and at the same time to resize the JPEG files to a stipulate size

c.    If you want to convert and/or resize your images for purposes other than to be used as email attachments, you can use the following step just as they are described ignoring the references to email messages

B.  Select the Images to be Attached to the e-mail message:

1.   If you want to attach only one image, just click on it to select it

2.   If you want to attach more than one image, use Standard Windows Selection Techniques (as described in Appendix A of this tutorial) to select multiple images

C.  Resize and save the selected image(s):

1.  
Click on the Email icon  on the Control Bar and the Email Images dialog box will appear:

2.   Make the following settings (FastStone will remember these settings the next time you want to send an email message):

a.    The most important setting change:

(1)  If there is a check mark in the Compress Images Into One Single File checkbox  click on the checkbox to remove the check mark

(2)  If you do not make this change, the recipient of the email message will receive a compressed file and may not know how to open it

b.   New Size: 

(1)  Click on the dropdown arrow at the right end of the <Pick A Standard Size> box  and a dropdown menu will appear

(2)  Click on the size that you would like to use:

(a)I clicked on 1024 x 768 which is a good size to start with

(b)  Notice that the size that you select from the list will automatically be placed in the New Size boxes

c.    Quality:

(1)  Type a number between 10 and 100 in the Quality box and press the Enter key:

(a)I use the default of 85, but you can use any Quality that you like

(b)  The higher the quality the larger the image files will be (high = slow; low = fast)

(2)  You can also use the spinner arrows at the right end of the Quality box to change the quality setting

d.   Add Border Effects (optional):

(1)  If you do not want to add borders to your images, uncheck the Add Border Effects  checkbox

(2)  If you want to add borders to your images:

(a)Make sure that there is a checkmark in the Add Borders Effects checkbox

(b) 
Click on the ellipses  that is to the right of the checkbox and the Border Effects dialog box will appear - it will look something like this:

(c)Put a checkmark in the Frame checkbox if you want to add one or more frames and then enter the related settings - in the graphic shown above, I added frame #1 (a black frame 3 pixels wide) and Frame #2 (a white frame 7 pixels wide)

(d)  Put a checkmark in the Inner Frame checkbox if you want to add an inner frame - in the graphic shown above, I did not add an inner frame

(e)Put a checkmark in the Shadow checkbox if you want to add a shadow and then enter the related settings - in the graphic shown above, I add a black shadow with a radius of 5 and a depth of 5, with a gray background

e.    Keep EXIF/IPTC Data:

(1)  Put a checkmark in this box if you want to keep this information with the images that you send in your email message

(2)  Remove the checkmark in this box if you do not want to keep this information with the images that you send in your email message

f.Rename:

(1)  Do not leave a checkmark in the Rename checkbox if you do not want your images to be renamed when they are attached to your email message

(2)  Put a checkmark in the Rename checkbox if you want your images to be renamed and complete the required information

g.    FastStone will remember all of the settings that you use so that you can use the same settings the next time without changing anything

3.   Click on the Copy To Folder button  and the Copy Items To Folder dialog box will appear

4.   Designate the Destination folder:

a.    This is the folder into which a copy of the images will be placed

b.   You can use and existing folder or you can create a new folder - If designate the folder that contains the original images, they may be overwritten so proceed with caution - to avoid this possible problem, in the next step I will create a new folder in which to copy the images

c.    I will create a new folder called Email as a subfolder under the folder that contains the original images that we have selected:

(1)  Click on the Browse button  and the Browse for Folder dialog box will appear

(2)  In the folder tree, navigate to and click on the folder that contains the selected images

(3)  Click on the Create button  and a folder called New Folder will be created as a sub folder under the folder that contains the selected images

(4)  The name New Folder should be in the edit mode (highlighted in blue with a blinking cursor after it), so you can just type in a new name - we will use Email - and press the Enter key:

(a)If you lose the highlight and cannot type in the new name:

(b)  Right click on the New Folder and a shortcut menu appears will appear

(c)Click on Rename and then type in the new name

(5) 
Click on the OK button and notice that the path to the new folder called Email now appear in the Destination box - it should look something like this:

5.   Click on the Copy button  and:

a.    A new folder called Email (or whatever name you indicated)

b.   Edited copies of the selected images will be placed in the new folder, and you will return to the Email dialog box

6.   Click on the Close button to close the Email dialog box

7.   In the Folder Tree Window of the browser, navigate to the new Email folder that you just created and click on it:

a.    Thumbnails for the resized images will appear in the Thumbnail Window

b.   All of the changes that you designated will be applied to these files - take a look in Full Screen view to see the result of all of your hard work

c.    Point to any of the thumbnails and a Popup window will show you information about that image, including the file size

D.  Attach the resized images to an email message:

1.   Open your email program to the new message window

2.   Use your email program’s attachment function to attach the resized images to the new message

3.   Complete your message and send it on its way

24.  Convert and/or Resize Images

A.  Introduction:

1.   There are many ways to convert and/or resize images

2.   One of the easiest ways that I have found is the one that is covered in the previous section

3.   Another more-advanced method is described in a later section called Use Batch Convert to Resize/Convert/Resample Images (for advanced users)

25.  Remove Red Eye

A.  Introduction:

1.   FastStone’s Red-Eye Removal function is easy to use and seems to be quite effective

2.   Caution should be used when using this function so that you do not unintentionally overwrite original image files

B.  Remove the Red Eyes:

1.   Click on a thumbnail to select it (only one at a time)

2.   Click on Edit on the Menu bar and a dropdown menu will appear

3.  
Click on Red-Eye Removal and the Red-Eye Removal dialog box will appear - it should look something like this:

4.   If necessary, Zoom in to get a better view of the red eyes:

a.    Set the amount in the Zoom Ratio box  to an amount that works well for this image - I will use 100%

b.  

Click and drag on the square marquee in the Navigator window so that the red eyes are easy to see in the Preview window - the Navigator window should look something like this:

5.   Select the portion of the eye that is red:

a.    Point to the center of the eye and click and drag to the right and down to form an elliptical marquee around the red portion of the eye - make sure that all of the red portion is included, and that none of the skin is included, within the marquee

b.   If you are not happy with your selection, click outside of the marquee and try again

c.    To move the marquee, click within the marquee and drag the marquee to a new location

6.   Click on the Remove Red-Eye button  and FastStone will attempt to eliminate the red eye

7.   If you are not happy with the result, you can click the Undo button  and try again

8.   Repeat the applicable procedures for the second red eye

9.   Click on the OK button to close the Red-Eye Removal dialog box

C.  Save the Changes:

1.   With the thumbnail still selected, click on the Save As icon  on the Options bar and the Save As dialog box will appear

2.   Use the Save As dialog box to:

a.    Designate an existing folder into which the edited image should be saved (or create a new folder and designate that folder)

b.   Rename the image (not necessary if it will be saved in a different folder)

3.   Click on the Save button to save the image - If you saved the image to a different folder and/or change the image name and the thumbnail for the original image will not have been effected by the changes

26.  Crop Images

A.  Introduction:

1.   FastStone has a powerful, easy-to-use Crop function

2.   In this section, I will demonstrate the Crop function by making a 4 x 6 Portrait crop out of a Landscape image

B.  How to use the Crop function:

1.   Click on the image to select it

2.  
Click on the Crop Board icon  on the Options Bar and the Crop Board will appear - it will look something like this:

3.   Select the Paper Ratio:

a.    Click on the dropdown arrow at the right end of the Paper Ratio box

 and a dropdown menu will appear

b.   Select a ratio or size from the Ratio List - I will click on 7x5 inch to select that size

c.    If you want to manage the items on the Ratio List:

(1)  Click on the ellipses at the right end of the Paper Ratio box and the Paper Ratio Settings dialog box will appear

(2)  Using this box, you can:

(3)  Add new items to the list

(4)  Remove existing items from the list

(5)  Edit existing items

(6)  Pretty snazzy!

d.   The cropping marquee will adjust so that it has the correct aspect ration for a 7x5 inch print and it will be in the Landscape mode

e.    Since I want to make my crop in the Portrait mode, I will click on the Flip Ratio checkbox  and the cropping marquee will change accordingly

f.If you want to change the size of the crop, use the corner handles to click and drag to change the size - the correct aspect ratio will be maintained

g.    If you want to move the cropping marquee, just click inside of the marquee and drag it to a new location

h.    When I was finished moving and changing the size of the marquee, here is how the Crop Board looked like the graphic shown above

i.Click on the Lossless Crop To File button  and the Save As dialog box will appear:

(1)  The folder that was active when you started the cropping process will appear in the Save In box

(2)  If you want to change the destination folder, use the dropdown arrow at the right end of the Save In box to designate a new location (or create a new folder)

(3)  FastStone has designated an Object Name by adding _cr to the original file name. You can accept this name or change it to anything that you like.

(4)  Click on the Save button and the cropped image will be saved in the designated folder and you will return to the Crop Board

j.If you want to crop other images, you can use the Next Image and Previous Image buttons  to select other images to crop

k.    Other Crop features:

(1)  You can use the Rule of Thirds button  to display a rule of thirds grid

(2)  You can use the OD slider to control the Outer Darkness around the cropping marquee

l.When you are finished cropping images, click on the Close button to close the Crop Board

27.  Straighten and Crop an Image

A.  Introduction:

1.   Have you ever taken a picture when you were holding the camera straight so that you get a crooked picture? Well, I have!

2.   In a this section we will use FastStone’s Rotate By Degree function to straighten such an image

3.   After the image has been straightened, we will use the Crop function to crop the image to the desired size

B.  Straighten a crooked image using Rotate By Degree:

1.   Click on the image to select it

2.   Open the image in the Rotate window:

a.    Click on Edit on the Menu bar and a dropdown menu will appear

b.   Point to Rotate and a flyout menu will appear

c.   
Click on Rotate By Any Degree and the Rotate window will appear - it should look something like this:

3.   Rotate the image:

a.    Click on the After image and move the referencing lines up to the horizon

b.   Use the Any Angle slider  to rotate the image - note that the degree of rotation that you apply with the Any Angle slider appears in the Amount box

c.    Fine tune the amount of rotation by using the Up and Down arrows in the Amount box

d.   Get real picky with the amount of rotation:

(1)  Click and hold down the Hold Down To Preview button  and a preview of the rotated image will show in the Preview Window, then release the mouse button to return to the Rotate window

(2)  As a result of previewing the rotation you may want to change the rotation angle slightly

(3) 
Here is a look at my Rotate window at this point:

(4)  When you are happy with the amount of rotation, click on the OK button and the Rotate window will close - notice that your rotate image now appears in the Preview window even though you have not yet saved the rotated image

4.   Save the rotated image:

a.    Click on the Save icon  on the Control Bar and the Save As dialog box will appear

b.   To avoid overwriting the original image give the rotated image a new name - I added an R to the file name

c.    Click on the Save button to save the rotated image

C.  Crop the rotated image:

1.   Click on the rotated image to select it

2.   Open the image in the Crop Board, and crop the rotated image:

a.    To open the Crop Board, you can simply press the X key on your keyboard, or you can:

(1)  Click on Edit on the Menu bar and a dropdown menu will appear

(2)  Click on Crop Board

b.  
The Crop Board will now be open - it should look something like this:

c.    If you have trouble with the settings on the Crop Board, refer to the Crop Images section of this tutorial for more information on the using the Crop Board

d.  
Make the desired settings and use the handles on the corners of the crop marquee to adjust the boundaries of the crop - after adjusting the boundaries, my Crop Board look like this:

(1)  Click on the Lossless Crop to File button  and the Lossless Crop To File dialog box will appear

(2)  Click on the Save button to save the image with the new name assigned by FastStone

(3)  Click on the Close button to close the Crop Board window - notice that the cropped image now appears in the Preview window and that the cropped image has been saved

e.    That’s all there is to it!!!

28.  Edit Images

A.  Introduction:

1.   FastStone has image editing capabilities only a few of which we will cover in this section

2.   With each new version, the image editing capabilities become more comprehensive - now included are:

a.    A Clone Stamp and Healing Brush

b.   Auto-Adjust Colors

c.    Adjust Lighting (Shadows and Highlights)

d.   Adjust Levels

e.    Adjust Curves

f.Unsharp Mask (USM) to Sharpen/Blur

3.   It is now possible to adjust Lighting, Colors, Levels and Curves within selected areas of an image

4.   The special effects options now include Sketch and Oil Painting (Wow! I am really impressed!)

5.   Image editing functions can be used when you are in any one of the following views:

a.    Thumbnail View

b.   Full Screen View

c.    Windowed View

6.   I recommend that you use the editing function when you are in the Full Screen View:

a.    The editing functions are quite accessible

b.   You can see the effects of the changes in the Full Screen View and even in zoomed in views

7.   Caution should be used when using this function so that you do not unintentionally overwrite original image files

B.  Edit an Image:

1.   Open the image in the Full Screen View

2.   Point to the left side of the screen and a Popup menu will appear

3.   In the Adjustments section, click on the type of adjustment that you want and a dialog box will appear

4.   Click on the Reset button  to reset the adjustment to no adjustments

5.   Make any adjustments that you want to make

6.   Click on the Hold Down To See Original Image

  button to see the effect of the adjustments

7.   When you are happy with your adjustments, click on the OK button and the Full Screen view will show the effects of the adjustments

8.   Make any additional editing adjustments that you want to make following the same steps including clicking on the OK button when you are finish with each set of adjustments

9.   Save the changes:

a.    Right click on the image and a shortcut menu appears will appear

b.   Click on Save As and the Save As dialog box will appear

c.    Use the Save As dialog box to:

(1)  Designate an existing folder into which the edited image should be saved (or create a new folder and designate that folder)

(2)  Rename the image (not necessary if it will be saved in a different folder)

d.   Click on the Save button to save the image

e.    Double click on the image to return to the browser - if you saved the image to a different folder and/or changed the image name, the thumbnail for the original image will not have been effected by the changes

C.  Edit a Selected Area of an image:

1.   Introduction:

a.    It is now possible to adjust Lighting, Colors, Levels and Curves within selected areas of an image

b.   To do this, you make a selection using one of FastStone's selection tools (rectangle, oval or freehand) before you apply the applicable adjustments

c.    Then you make whichever adjustments you want to make and those adjustments will only apply to the selected part of the image

d.   You can even make multiple adjustments to the same image by making one adjustment and
then making another selection and applying it to another part of the
same image

2.   Here is a brief example (there are other ways to do these steps):

a.    Open an image in Full Screen View by double clicking on the image

b.   Point your cursor to the bottom left side of the screen and the FastStone Toolbar will appear

c.   
Click on the dropdown arrow on the right end of the Select icon, as shown in the following graphic:
and pick one of the selection tools (rectangle, oval or freehand) - I picked the oval tool as shown in this graphic:

d.   Move your cursor back onto your image and the toolbox will disappear

e.    Hold down the Ctrl key and draw your selection on the image:

(1)  When using the oval selection tool, start in  the middle of where you want to make your selection and drag down and to the right

(2)  To delete a selection Ctrl Click on your image

(3)  To draw a different selection on your image Ctrl Click on the image and the first selection will disappear and you can make a new selection

f.After you have made a selection, you can now use the various Adjustment Tools to adjust just the selected portion of the image - in this example, I will use the Levels Adjustment Tool to make a circle in the middle of the image brighter

(1) 
Here is how my image looks after I have used the Oval Selection tool to make a selection:

g.    Use the Levels Adjustment tool to make the selected area brighter:

(1)  Point your cursor to the middle left side of your screen and a tool box will appear

(2)  In the Colors section of the tool box, click on Adjust Levels and the adjustment box will appear showing just the selected portion of the image:

(a)Below the histogram there are three upward pointing arrows

(b)  Move the center arrow to the left and the left arrow to the center to brighten and add contrast to the selection

(c)When you are happy with the adjustment, click on the OK button and you will return to the Full Screen view and your adjustment will be applied

h.    Save the adjusted image:

(1)  Point your cursor to the middle left side of your screen and a tool box will appear

(2)  Click on Save As and the Save As dialog box will appear showing the original file and its location

(3)  If you want to save the adjusted file in the same folder without overwriting the original file, change the name that appears in the Object Name box

(4)  Click on the Save button and the adjusted copy of your file will be saved

i.Double click on the image and you will return to the folder view of FastStone and you will see the thumbnail for both your adjusted image and your original image

j.Just to check on your handy work, double click on the adjusted image to open it in the Full Screen view   

29.  Open Images in a Printing, Editing or Other Image Related Program

A.  Introduction:

1.   Today, most programs have some sort of a file browser that you can use to open images in that program

2.   However, in most cases, I prefer to use an image management program such as FastStone as my file browser

3.   To do this, I keep the FastStone program open when I am using another program such as Photoshop Elements. Then I switch back and forth between Elements and FastStone, using FastStone to select the images that I want to edit, and then telling FastStone to open those images in Elements.

B.  Tell FastStone what external image editing program you would like to use:

1.   Follow these steps if you have not already told FastStone which external image editing program you would like to use, or if you want to make an addition or change to the program list, otherwise, just skip this section

2.   Click on the Settings icon at the right end of the Options bar, as shown below,

and the Settings dialog box will appear

3.   Click on the Programs tab on the Settings dialog box

4.   Click on the Add button and the Open dialog box will appear

5.   Navigate to the folder on your hard disk that contains the applicable program file such as Photoshop Elements Editor.exe

6.  
Double click on the program’s executable file (in this example: PhotoshopElementsEditor.exe) and the External Program dialog box will appear - it should look something like this:

7.   Click on the OK button and Photoshop Elements will be added to the list of programs

8.   Click on the OK button to close the Settings dialog box

C.  Open images in an external program:

1.   Select the image(s) that you want to open in the external program, using Standard Windows Selection Techniques (see Appendix A)

2.   Open the images using one of the following methods (when opening multiple RAW images you will probably find that the click-and-drag method works best):

a.    Open images using a keyboard shortcut by pressing the “E” key on your keyboard and the images that you selected will be opened in that program:

(a)If the program is not already open, this process will take a bit of time - be patient

(b)  If the program is already open, this process will be quick

b.   Open images using a shortcut menu:

(1)  Right click on one of the selected images and a shortcut menu appear will appear

(2)  Point to Edit With External Program and a flyout menu will appear:

(a)The name of the program(s) that you previously designated as an External Program will be listed

(b)  Click on the name of the program that you want to use and that program will open (if it is already open) and the images that you selected will open immediately in that program

(c)If the program is not already open, this process will take a bit of time

c.    Open images using the click-and-drag method (this method is especially useful when opening multiple RAW images):

(1)  Open the applicable image editing program as well as FastStone, so that both program are open at the same time

(2)  Position the FastStone window so that it is on top, and so that you can see any part of the image editing program’s window at either side of FastStone’s window

(3)  Click-and-drag the images:

(a)In step one of this section, we selected the images that we wanted to open in an external image editing program:

(b)  Notice that there is a darker border around the thumbnails that were selected

(c)Also notice that the border around one of the selected thumbnails is bolder than the borer that is around the rest of the selected thumbnails

(d)  We must use the thumbnail that has the bolder border when we use the click-and-drag method

(e)Click and drag the thumbnails with the bolder border and drop it any place on the Photoshop Elements window and all of the selected images will open in Photoshop Elements

30.  Use the Draw Board to add text, graphics and watermarks to an image

A.  Introduction:

1.   This feature allows you to add text, graphics and watermarks to images

2.   It has a lot of bells and whistles that you may find very helpful

3.   Now you can even add outward-pointing tails to text objects (I love it!)

4.   For the purposes of this tutorial, I have opted not to cover this feature in detail - I will leave that to you - Instead, I have decided just to tell you how to get to the Draw Board and to let you explore its possibilities (there are many) on your own

B.  Open the Draw Board:

1.   Click on a thumbnail in the Thumbnail Window to select it

2.   Open the Draw Board by either:

a.    Using the Menu:

(1)  Click on Edit on the Menu bar and a dropdown menu will appear

(2)  Click on Draw Board, or by

b.   Pressing the D key on your keyboard

C.  Use the option provided by the Draw Board:

1.   As I said, I will leave this to you

2.   Be sure to read the Tips at the bottom of the Draw Board window - they are very important

3.  
I used the Draw Board to add the caption “Natural Beauty” to a picture as shown in the graphic below. The Draw Board provided all sorts of options for this including text style, text size, text color, text box background, text box outline, text box drop shadow, etc.

4.   I cover the Draw Board in more detail in the FastStone Capture tutorial, in the section called Use FastStone Capture’s Editor. The tutorial is available Free at the FastStone site.

31.  Print Images

A.  Introduction:

1.   FastStone has image printing capabilities, but I have opted not cover this function in this tutorial

2.   The Print dialog box has been improved so take a look to see if it meets your needs

32.  Frames to Photos

A.  Introduction:

1.   Introduction:

a.    FastStone has features that provide various effects that can be added to your images.

b.   I have not spent much time playing around with these features, but you may find that some of them are quite interesting

c.    One of our members enjoys using the Frame Masks feature and the Drop Shadow feature

d.   I will briefly cover the Frame Masks feature just to get you started - I will leave the rest up to you

B.  Add a Frame to a Photo:

1.   Click on a thumbnail in the Thumbnail window to select it

2.   Click on Edit on the Menu bar and a dropdown menu will appear

3.   Click on Frame Mask and the Frame Mask dialog box will appear

4.   Click on any of the various frames and you will be able to preview the effects to see the effect

5.   If you want to add a color to the white background:

a.    Click on the Background Box and the Color Picker will appear

b.   Choose a color on the Color Picker and click on the OK button and the color will shown as the background in the preview window

6.  
I used one of the frames and a light yellow color to produce this effect:

7.   When you are happy with the results, click on the OK button and you will return to the Thumbnail view - at this point the changes have not yet been saved

8.   Click on any other thumbnail and the Information dialog box will appear:

a.    Click on the Yes button as the first step in saving the changes - don’t worry, FastStone will not alter your original image at this point - and the Save As dialog box will appear

b.   Use the Save As dialog box to give your new creation a new name or to save it to a new destination - if you do not assign a new name or a new destination, the new image will replace the original image

c.    If you gave your new creation a new name, a new thumbnail will appear as the last thumbnail in the Thumbnail window

9.   That’s all there is to it!!!

33.  Print Contact Sheets

A.  Introduction:

1.   Contact Sheets can be used for many purposes:

a.    Create sheets of thumbnails that can be used for various purposes

b.   Create sheets of pictures that can be used for brochures - I recently use this feature to produce a brochure that I am using to assist in the sale of my house

c.    Create pages of pictures with EXIF information - you have complete control over what EXIF information is displayed

d.   As many other purposes as you can dream up - I suggest that you play with this feature by following along in this tutorial and then on you own - I think you will be surprised to see how many uses for it pop into your mind after you have mastered the basics

2.   In this tutorial, I will walk you through the procedure to use when making a conventional contact sheet of thumbnails

3.   At the end of this section, I will also show you a page for my house sale brochure that I created using this feature

B.  Create a standard contact sheet:

1.   Select the images that you want to include:

a.    Open the folder that contains the images that you want on the contact sheet and the thumbnails will be displayed in the Thumbnail Window

b.   Select the thumbnails that you want to include, using Windows Standard Selection Techniques (as described in Appendix A of the tutorial):

(1)  Normally, you would select all of the thumbnails that you want to include

(2)  However, I suggest that you select only two thumbnails to start with, because:

(a)You will probably want to look at the Contact Sheet Builder’s Preview window several times as you experiment with the many settings that are available

(b)  If you are using large files, it will take a lot more time for FastStone to build the Preview if a larger number of thumbnails is selected at this point

(3)  If you follow my suggestion and select only two thumbnails at this point, after your are happy with all of your settings:

(a)You can close the Contact Sheet Builder window and FastStone will remember your settings

(b)  You can then select all of the thumbnails that you want to include and reopen the Contact Sheet Builder window (Yes, you could use the File List window to add more files without closing the Contact Sheet Builder window, but I do not suggest that you add files that way)

(c)You can even give your settings a name and save them to use again at a later time - I will show you how to do that shortly

2.   Open the Contact Sheet Builder window:

a.    If you decided to follow my suggestions in the previous section, you will have two thumbnails selected - if you do not have two thumbnails select, select them now

b.   Click on Create on the Menu bar and a dropdown menu will appear

c.   
Click on Contact Sheet Builder and the Contact Sheet Builder window will appear - it should look something like this:

d.   Take a few minutes to look at the Contact Sheet Builder window - it is very comprehensive and I will only touch on those selections that are need to create my contact sheet

3.   Tabs:

a.    You will see three tabs at the top left of the window

b.   The Settings tab has been automatically selected

c.    Click on the File List tab to open a window that shows the list of the files that will be included on the Contact - notice that you can add and remove files with this window

d.   I will use the Preview tab shortly, so do not click on it now, instead return to the Settings window by clicking on the Settings tab

4.   Make the following settings on the Settings window:

a.    Sheet settings section:

(1)  Set the size of the page:

(a)Note that the Height and Width dimensions are in pixels - this seems very confusing to me

(b)  To see the page size in inches, click on the ellipses  at the right end of this row of settings and the Print Size To Pixels dialog box will appear

(c)
Use the Print Size To Pixels dialog box to change the Unit to inches and then set the page size to 8.50 x 11.00 and the DPI (I think this is really the PPI, but let’s not split hairs) to 150, as shown in the following graphic:

(d)  Click on the OK button to close the Print Size To Pixels dialog box

(2)  Margins:

(a)I decided to leave the Margins at the default settings

(3)  Background Color:

(a)This setting controls the background color of the sheet

(b)  Click on the Background Color box  and the Color Picker will appear

(c)Select a color - For this example, I picked a light gray color

(d)  Click on the OK button to close the Color Picker

(e)To preview the Sheet Background Color, click on the Preview tab (top left of the window) and the Contact Sheet Builder Preview window will appear

(f) 

Notice that the thumbnails for the two images that you selected now appear on the contact sheet and notice that the background color of the page is light gray - It should look something like this:

(g)Return to the Settings window by clicking on the Settings tab - Do no click on the Close button

b.   Thumbnail settings section:

(1)  Decide how many thumbnails you want on each page - obviously, the more thumbnails on each page, the smaller the thumbnails will be:

(a)The default Thumbnail settings are:

(b)  6 Columns

(c)8 Rows

(d)  Let’s just accept these settings for now - we can change them at any time

(2)  Decide what Spacing you want to use for the thumbnails:

(a)The default Spacing settings are:

(b)  Horizontal:  30 pixels

(c)Vertical:10 pixels

(d)  Let’s just accept these settings for now - we can change them at any time

(3)  Decide what thumbnail Background Color you want to use:

(a)This is the color that will fill a frame that is placed around each thumbnail

(b)  Click on the Background Color box  and the Color Picker will appear

(c)Select a color - For this example, I picked a slightly darker gray color

(d)  Click on the OK button to close the Color Picker

(4) 
Change the Border settings to match these settings - I hope you can do this on your own at this point:

(5)  For now, we will not make any other changes in the Thumbnail section of the Contact Sheet Builder window, so let’s do another Preview:

(a)Click on the Preview tab (top left of the window) and the Contact Sheet Builder Preview window will appear

(b)  Notice that the thumbnails for the two images now have a dark gray background and a black rounded border  - It should look something like this:

(c)
Return to the Settings window by clicking on the Settings tab - Do no click on the Close button

c.    Header, Caption and Footer section:

(1)  Introduction:

(a)There are three tabs in this section: Header, Caption and Footer

(b)  Header settings:

(c)By default, the Header tab should be selected - if the Header tab is not select it, select it now

(d)  There are three text boxes in the Header section: Left, Center and Right and there is a Font button:

(e)The entries in the three Header text boxes determine what text, if any will appear in the Header of the contact sheet, and whether that text will be Left justified, Center justified or Right justified - you can either use the ellipses box at the end of each text box to select a preset, or you can type an entry in the text box

(f)  The Font button determines the font, font style, size and color of the text in the Header, as well as a couple of other options

(2)  Make the following entries in the Header text boxes:

(a)Left -let’s leave this one blank

(b)  Center - let’s type: Summer Vacation

(c)Right - let’s use the ellipses box and select the presets for month, day and year:

(d)  Click on the ellipses box  and a dropdown menu will appear

(e)Point to Current Date Time and a flyout menu will appear

(f)  Click on Month to select this preset and code ($53) will appear in the Right text box

(g)Type a Forward Slash (/) after the ($53)

(h)Click on the ellipses box  and a dropdown menu will appear

(i)  Point to Current Date Time and a flyout menu will appear

(j)  Click on Day to select this preset and code ($54) will appear in the Right text box

(k)Type a Forward Slash (/) after the ($54)

(l)  Click on the ellipses box  and a dropdown menu will appear

(m)Point to Current Date Time and a flyout menu will appear

(n)Click on Year to select this preset and code ($52) will appear in the Right text box

(o) 
Your text boxes should now look something like this:

(3)  Header Font settings:

(a)Click on the Font button  and the Font dialog box will appear

(b)  Select a Font - I selected Times New Roman

(c)Select a Font Style - I selected Bold

(d)  Select a Size - I selected 24 point

(e)Select a Color - I selected Navy by clicking on the dropdown arrow at the right end of the Color box and by clicking on Navy

(f)  Click on the OK button to accept the settings for the Header

(4)  Now that we have completed the settings for the Header, let’s do another Preview to see how our Headers look:

(a)Click on the Preview tab and a new Preview will be generated

(b)  Use the scroll bars to display the right side of the sheet

(c)Looks pretty nice to me!

(d)  Click on the Settings tab to return to the Settings window - do not click on the Close button

(5)  Caption settings:

(a)Click on the Caption tab to open the Caption setting window:

(b)  The caption is the text that appears below each thumbnail

(c)There is only one text box for caption settings, however:

(d)  You can make multiple entries on each line and/or you can enter multiple presets on each line

(e)You can also use multiple lines - I used multiple lines when I wanted to create a contact sheet that showed EXIF information next to each thumbnail

(f)  There is a Font box that allows you to make all of the font choices as previously described

(g)There is a Center checkbox:

(h)If this box is checked, the Caption will be centered

(i)  If this box is not checked, the Caption will be left justified

(j)  Complete the Caption settings:

(k)The default setting uses the ($C2) preset in the Caption text box

(l)  This preset uses the file name as the caption for each thumbnail

(m)You can use the ellipses at the right end of the text box to choose from a large list of other presets, or you can type any entry that you want to be part of the caption for each thumbnail - I will just accept the default setting

(n)You can use the Font button to change the font settings for the Caption - I will just accept the default setting

(o)  You can use the Center checkbox to change the justification of the text from center to left - I will leave the Center checkbox check so that my captions are centered under each thumbnail

(p)  Now that we have completed the settings for the Caption, let’s do another Preview to see how our Captions look:

(q)  Click on the Preview tab and a new Preview will be generated

(r)Look at the caption under each thumbnail - the information displayed is the file name of each image

(s)Click on the Settings tab to return to the Settings window - do not click on the Close button

(6)  Footer settings:

(a)Click on the Footer tab to open the Footer setting window:

(b)  There are three text boxes in the Header section: Left, Center and Right and there is a Font button:

(c)The entries in the three Header text boxes determine what text, if any will appear in the Footer of the contact sheet, and whether that text will be Left justified, Center justified or Right justified - you can either use the ellipses box at the end of each text box to select a preset, or you can type an entry in the text box

(d)  The Font button determines the font, font style, size and color of the text in the Header, as well as a couple of other options

(e)Complete the Footer settings:

(f)  The default setting places the entry: Page: ($1)/($2) - in the Right Footer text box - this is a combination of text and presets

(g)Let’s just replace the Backslash (/) with the word “of”:

(h)Edit the text in the Right Footer text box replacing the Backslash with the word “of” - insert a space before and after the word “of”

(i)  The text box should look like this:

(j)  This will result in a Footer that reads, for example: “Page: 1 of  2” on the first page and “Page: 2 of 2” on the second page

(k)I will just accept the rest of the default settings

(l)  Now that we have completed the settings for the Footer, let’s do another Preview to see how our Footer look:

(m)Click on the Preview tab and a new Preview will be generated

(n)Use the scroll bars to scroll to the bottom right corner of the sheet and you will see the page number for the first sheet

(o)  Click on the Settings tab to return to the Settings window - do not click on the Close button

d.   Other settings section:

(1)  Entries in this section control the spacing of various elements

(2)  I just accepted the default settings

e.    Output section:

(1)  This section controls what actions FastStone take when you click on the Create button - there are two options:

(a)Create:

(b)  This option creates a file that will be placed on your hard disk - you can control:

(c)Format - the Format of the file that FastStone will create

(d)  Folder - the Folder in which the file will be placed

(e)Filename - the Filename that will be assigned to the newly created file(s) - a separate file will be created for each page

(f)  Print:

(g)This option send your creation to your printer

(h)FastStone does not create a file when you select this option

(2)  Complete the Output section:

(a)Create:

(b)  I like to save my contact sheet(s) to files so that I can go back to them at a later time if I want to print additional copies, so I always select the Create option

(c)If you want to use FastStone to print your contact sheet, you can select the Print option after you have used the Create option to save the file(s) to your hard disk

(d)  Let’s take a look at the settings in the Create section:

(e)Format and Quality:

(f)  You can use the dropdown arrow at the right end of the Format box to select the file format that you would like to use - the default setting of JPEG will be used most of the time

(g)You can use the dropdown arrow at the right end of the Quality box to select the JPEG compression rate - the default setting for JPEG of 90 and will be used most of the time (Quality settings are not applicable if you decide to use a file format other than JPEG)

(h)Folder:

(i)  Use the ellipses  at the right end of the Folder box to select or create the folder on your hard disk into which you would like to place the file(s)

(j)  I will not step you though this process - hopefully, you can figure it out for yourself

(k)Filename:

(l)  Use the Filename text box to enter the text and presets that you want FastStone to use to create a file name for each page

(m)Click on the ? Mask at the right end of the Filename box for a tip on presets

(n)We will type “Summer Vacation 2006 ##” - this tells FastStone to create a sequential set of files that are called, for example, Summer Vacation 2006 01, Summer Vacation 2006 02, etc.

(o)  Print:

(p)  Select this option when you want FastStone to print your contact sheet(s)

(q)  If you select this option without using the Create option to save a copy of your contact sheet file(s), FastStone does not save a copy of the file(s) - of course, you can use the create option after you have used the print items to create the file(s)

5.   Close the Contact Sheet Builder window:

a.    Click on the Close button

6.   Observation:

a.    At the outset, I told you that the Contact Sheet Builder was very comprehensive and flexible

b.   Now I expect that you can see what I meant

c.    Although this feature is very comprehensive and flexible, I believe that it is very well designed and that using it becomes intuitive very quickly

C.  Use the Contact Sheet Builder to create a page for a brochure:

1.   I will not take the time and space needed to give you the details of how this page was created because it would be nothing more than a rehash of the steps described in the previous section

2.   The most significant change for the previous example is that I told FastStone to create a sheet of thumbnails 2 across and four down

3.  
Here is a graphic of the house sale brochure sheet that I created using FastStone’s Contact Sheet feature - it was fast and easy to do:

34.  Refresh thumbnails

A.  Introduction:

1.   This feature allows you to refresh the sorting of the thumbnails that are displayed in the Thumbnail Window

2.   It is sometimes necessary to refresh the sorting of the thumbnails, when, for example, a new image is added to a folder that is already open - in this case the new thumbnail is add at the end of the thumbnails that are displayed

B.  Refresh thumbnails:

1.   If the thumbnails need refreshing, click on the Refresh button  on the toolbar and the sorting of the thumbnails will be refreshed

35.  Copy/Move to Folder

A.  Introduction:

1.   In addition to the Windows-like methods for copying and moving files and folders, FastStone has very useful Copy To Folder and Move To Folder functions

2.   This function is available in many places in FastStone, including:

a.    The Folder Tree Window

b.   The Thumbnail View

c.    The Windowed View

d.   The Full Screen View

3.   In some cases the only way to access the Copy To Folder function is via a shortcut menu

4.   A knowledge of Windows system of files and folders is useful in using these functions

5.   I will give step-by-step instructions for using this function using a shortcut menu in the Thumbnail View

B.  Copy To Folder:

1.   Open the browser to the Thumbnail View

2.   In the Thumbnail View window, select the files and folders that you want to copy using Standard Windows Selection Techniques (as described in Appendix A of this tutorial)

3.  
Click on the Copy to Folder icon   on the Toolbar (or press the “C” key on your keyboard) and the Copy Items to Folder dialog box will appear - it should look something like this:

4.   Navigate to the folder into which you would like to copy the selected files and folders:

a.    Click on the Browse button   at the right end of the Destination box and the Browse for Folder window will appear - it should look something like this (yours will differ a bit):

b.  
Navigate to the folder into which you would like to copy the files and folders (you can also create a new folder at this point)

c.    Click on the OK button and the folder that you just selected will appear in the Destination box on the Copy Items To Folder dialog box - it should look something like this:

d.  
Click on the Copy button  and the selected files and folders will be copied into the folder that you designated

C.  Move To Folder:

1.   Just follow the steps described above except that you should click on the Move To Folder icon  on the Toolbar (or press the “M” key on your keyboard) instead of the Copy To Folder icon

36.  File Associations

A.  Introduction:

1.   Windows allows the user to associate a particular type of file with a particular program

2.   When you double click on a file name or use the Windows Open command, the file will open in the program to which it is associated. For example, if your JPEG files are associated with Adobe Photoshop Elements, every time you double click on a JPEG file or use the Open command to open the file, the Elements program will open and the image will be displayed

3.   The Association function in FastStone allows you to associate various file types with FastStone. If, for example, you associate your JPEG files with FastStone, then every time you double click on a JPEG file or use the Open command to open the file, the FastStone program will open and the image will be displayed in Full Screen View in FastStone.

4.   FastStone offers an easy way for you to create an association with FastStone and to remove an association. If you are interest in doing this, read on.

B.  Change the types of files that are Associated with FastStone:

1.   Associate JPEG files with FastStone:

a.    Click on Settings on the Menu bar and a dropdown menu will appear

b.   Click on Settings and the Settings dialog box will appear 

c.    Click on the Associations tab, if it is not already selected and the Associations window will appear

d.   Click on any of the checkboxes to select or deselect that file type - we will select JPG, JPE, JPEG

e.    Click on the OK button and you have now associated JPEG files with FastStone

2.   Remove JPEG files from their association with FastStone:

a.    Click on Settings on the Menu bar and a dropdown menu will appear

b.   Click on Settings and the Settings dialog box will appear 

c.    Click on the Associations tab, if it is not already selected and the Associations window will appear

d.   Click on any of the checkboxes to select or deselect that file type - we will deselect JPG, JPE, JPEG

e.    Click on the OK button and your JPEG files will now be associated with whatever program they were previously associated

37.  Scan Images

A.  Introduction:

1.   FastStone can activate your scanner software and place the scanned image in the folder that you designate

2.   You need to have a scanner that is properly installed in order to use this function (but you already knew that, didn’t you?)

3.   This is not a tutorial on scanning techniques, only an attempt to get you pointed in the right direction

B.  Make the scan:

1.   Make sure that the scanner is correctly installed and that it is turned on

2.   Insert the object to be scanned face down into the scanner

3.   Click on File on the Menu bar and a dropdown menu will appear

4.   Click on Acquire Images From Scanners and the Acquire Images From Scanner dialog box will appear

5.  
If your scanner is properly installed and is turned on, it should appear in the list in the Source box, as shown in this graphic:

6.   If the name of your scanner does not appear in the Source box, click on the dropdown arrow at the right end of the Scanner box and then click on your scanner to select it

7.   Click on the Scan  button and your scanner’s software should take over

8.   Some scanners will perform a preview automatically when the scanner software is opened. Other scanners require that you click on a Preview button to tell the program to do the preview. When the image of the object that is in the scanner appears on your screen, you will know that the preview scan has been completed.

9.   Before you make the final scan, you should check the settings in your scanner software:

a.    Check the settings in your scanner's dialog box

b.   Each scanner has a different set of settings

c.    You may need to check your scanner's documentation to decide what settings to use

10.  After you have checked the settings, you are ready to do the final scan:

a.    Click on the Scan button it to initiate the final scan

b.   After the final scan is complete, you should be returned to FastStone's Acquire Images From Scanner dialog box

11.  At this point you can rotate, crop, deskew and annotate scanned images directly within this tool - way to go FastStone!!!

12.  Save the Scan (if you select one of the other "destinations", you will be given other choices of settings and options than those that are shown below):

a.    Click on the radio button in front of Files, if it is not already selected

b.   Check the settings in the Destination and the Options sections of this dialog box

c.    Click on the Save button and the Browse For Folder dialog box will appear

d.   Designate the folder into which you would like to save the scan and click on the OK button

e.    Assuming that you want to view your scan in FastStone Image Viewer, make sure that there is no check mark in the checkbox in front of Open in Windows Explorer and click on the OK button

f.Close the Acquire Images From Scanner dialog box  and you will return to FastStone

13.  Your scan should now be in the folder that you designated as the Save To folder

38.  Create Wallpaper for on Your Desktop

A.  Introduction:

1.   FastStone has two separate features that you can use to automatically create Wallpaper for your desktop:

a.    Standard Wallpaper:

(1)  Very easy to use

(2)  Places the selected image on your desktop

(3)  Offers no options as to size, placement, etc.

(4)  Provides an easy way to clear the Wallpaper from your desktop

b.   Wallpaper Anywhere:

(1)  Very nicely implemented by FastStone’s developer

(2)  Still quite easy to use, but very comprehensive

(3)  Places the wallpaper image on the desktop

(4)  Permits use of any number of images:

(a)I think that this is a fantastic option

(b)  You can use Wallpaper Anywhere to make a collage for you to use:

(c)As wallpaper on your desktop, and/or

(d)  As a collage that you want to print

(e)For anything other purpose that you can dream up

(5)  Wallpaper Anywhere gives you lots of control over the image(s):

(a)Size of each image

(b)  Placement of each image

(c)Frames on each image

(d)  Transparency of each image

(6)  Gives you the option to change the background color

(7)  Has a Save option that allows you to save the “wallpaper” as a separate file

(8)  Provides an easy way to clear the Wallpaper from your desktop

B.  Standard Wallpaper:

1.   Create Wallpaper:

a.    Click on a thumbnail for the image that you want to use as Wallpaper

b.   Click on Tools on the Menu bar and a dropdown menu will appear

c.    Point to Wallpaper and a flyout menu will appear

d.   Click on Set As Wallpaper and the Wallpaper dialog box will appear

e.    Click on the dropdown arrow at the right end of the Style box  and select a style - I will use Fit

f.Click on the Set As Wallpaper button  and the image will become wallpaper on your desktop

2.   Clear Wallpaper:

a.    Click on Tools on the Menu bar and a dropdown menu will appear

b.   Point to Wallpaper and a flyout menu will appear

c.    Click on the Clear and the Wallpaper will be removed from your desktop

C.  Wallpaper Anywhere:

1.   Create Wallpaper:

a.    Introduction:

(1)  To keep things very simple, I have written this section so that it covers the steps required to use Wallpaper Anywhere to create wallpaper using a single image

(2)  If you want to jump right in and create wallpaper using multiple images, just follow the steps in the this section, except:

(a)Instead of selecting one image, select multiple images before you open the Wallpaper Anywhere window - you can add additional images later, but I have found it to be much easier to select all of the images at the beginning

(b)  Apply any or all of Wallpaper Anywhere’s editing features to each image separately - this is a great option

b.   Create Wallpaper:

(1)  Click on a thumbnail for the image that you want to use as Wallpaper

(2)  Click on Tools on the Menu bar and a dropdown menu will appear

(3)  Point to Wallpaper and a flyout menu will appear

(4)  Click on Set Wallpaper Anywhere On Desktop and the Wallpaper Anywhere dialog box will appear and the selected image will be displayed in the Preview window

(5)  Use standard methods to relocate and resize the image in the Preview window

(6)  If you are using one image for your wallpaper, you can click and drag the “handles” to zoom in on the image to such an extent that only a particular part of the image shows as your wallpaper - very nice indeed!

(7) 
Click on one of the Border presets in the Presets window and that border effect will be shown on the image in the Preview window - keep clicking on other presets to see the how the effects look on your image - here is the way mine looked:

(8)  If you want to change the background color from the blue default color:

(a)Click on the Background  button and the Color Picker will appear

(b)  Pick a color that you think would look good (it is very easy to change your selection of color if you don’t like the way it looks) and click on the OK button

(c)Repeat these two steps until you get the perfect color for the background

(9)  If you want to make the image partially transparent, slide the
Opacity Slider to the left - there are times when decreased opacity will create a very nice effect

(10)To preview your creation, click and hold down the Hold Down To Preview  button to simulate how your creation will look on your desktop - my hat is off to the developer of FastStone for providing such a useful feature

(11)When you are happy with your creation, and want it to become the wallpaper on your desktop, click on the Set As Wallpaper  button and the FastStone will do all of the work for you

(12)If you want to save your creation as a file, proceed to the next section, otherwise, just click on the Close button to close the Wallpaper Anywhere dialog box

c.    Save the Wallpaper image as a separate file:

(1)  Click on the Save As File  button and the Save As dialog box will appear

(2)  Use standard procedures to:

(3)  Select the Save In folder of your choice

(4)  Assign a file name (in the Object Name box) that you like

(5)  Assign the file format:

(6)  Use the dropdown arrow at the right end of the Save As Type box to select the file format

(7)  I suggest that you use the JPEG file format, unless you have a good reason to use another file format

(8)  I have chosen not to cover the Advanced options that are available when you click on the Advanced  button - you may want to explore them on your own

(9)  Click on the Save button and your file will be saved in the folder that you specified

d.   Clear Wallpaper - If you want to clear the wallpaper from your desktop, click on the Clear Wallpaper  button and FastStone will do the rest

e.    Close the Wallpaper Anywhere dialog box by clicking on the close button

39.  Slide Shows

A.  Explanation:

1.   FastStone has two completely separate slide show creation functions:

a.    One of these functions is called the Slideshow (covered in this section of this tutorial)

b.   The second of these functions is called the Slide Show Builder (covered in the next section of this tutorial call Create And Save A Slide Show)

2.   The Slideshow function:

a.    The Slideshow function allows you to very quickly create and view some neat looking slide shows complete with transitions and music, however, you can not save the shows that you create using this function

b.   If you want to save your slide show, use the Slide Show Builder function which is covered in the next section of this tutorial

c.    The Slideshow function provides a very nice way to view the images that are in a folder, or to view the images that are in multiple folders

d.   You can select an image as the starting point for a show, but you can not limit the show to just a group of selected images - if you select an image as the starting point, all of the rest of the images in that folder will be included in the slide show

B.  Create a basic Slide Show using the Slideshow function:

1.   Select the folder that contains the images that you would like to include in the slide show:

a.    In the Folder Tree Window, click on the folder that contains the images

2.   Select the first image that you want to use in the slide show:

a.    By default, the first image in the folder that you selected will be automatically selected

b.   If you want to use a different image to start your slide show, click on its thumbnail in the Thumbnail Window

3.   Create the Slide Show:

a.    Open the Slideshow Options dialog box:

(1)  Click on the Slideshow icon  on the Control Bar and the Slideshow dialog box will appear - it should look something like this:

(2) 
If your settings are not as shown in this graphic, click on the Reset button and the settings will be reset to the default settings

b.   Change some of the default settings:

(1)  You can, of course, make any changes that you like

(2)  If you would like to follow along with me, make the following changes:

(a)Deselect the Show Text Option:

·   Click on the Show Text checkbox to deselect this option:

·   When this option is deselected, no text will appear when your images are displayed in the slide show

·   If you decide that you want to display text on the images:

·   Leave this checkbox selected

·   You can display text that gives the filename, datetime stamp, and EXIF metadata

·   Click on the Ellipses  at the right end of this option to display the Slideshow Text Settings dialog box on which you can selected from a large list of Variables - I will leave it to you to investigate the many Text display options that are available

(3)  Designate some Transition Effects:

(a)Transition effects are applied to each image as it is displayed - they are quite cool

(b)  Click on the Ellipses  at the right end of the Use Transition Effects option and the Transitions Effects Selection dialog box will appear - it should look something like this (this graphic shows the default options):

(c)
Notice that this dialog box has three Selection Buttons:

·   All - click on this to select all of the transitions

·   None - click on this button if you do not want to use any transitions

·   Default - click on this button to select only the default transition setting (Fade In and Out)

·   If you are following along with me, click on the Default button

·   Click on the checkbox in front of Wipe Left To Right and the Preview window will show how this transition will look

·   For our purposes, we will select the first five Transition Effects

(d)  Notice that you can use the Effect Duration box  to select the duration of the Transition:

·   Click on the dropdown arrow at the right end of the Effect Duration box and a dropdown menu will appear

·   Notice that there are five choices available - we will click on 4:Longer to select this option

(4)  We are finished making changes to the Transition Effects, so click on the OK button and the Transition Effects Selection dialog box will close and our setting will be saved

c.    Play the Slideshow - click on the Play button and the show will begin

d.   Pause/Resume the show:

(1)  Click on the Space Bar on your keyboard to pause the show

(2)  Click on the Space Bar again to resume the show

e.    Stop the show:

(1)  If you want to stop the show completely before all of the images have been shown, press the Esc key on your keyboard and you will return to the FastStone Image Viewer mail window

C.  Include multiple folders in the Slide Show:

1.   Introduction:

a.    You can elect to include as many folders as you would like in a show

b.   You select the first folder, tell FastStone how many folders you would like to include, and FastStone will do the rest (see graphic below to understand how FastStone progress through the folder tree to determine which folders are used)

2.   Create the Slide Show:

a.    Select the first folder that contains the images that you would like to include in the slide show - In the Folder Tree Window, click on the folder that contains the images

b.   Open the Slideshow Options dialog box:

(1) 

Click on the Slideshow icon  on the Control Bar and the Slideshow Options dialog box will appear - if you have been following along in this tutorial, it should look something like this:

c.    Click on Auto-Play Folders checkbox and the Maximum Number of Folders box will appear:

d.  
Click on the Up or Down arrow at the right end of the number box to set the desired number of folders - I will set the number to 4

e.    That’s all there is to it - click on the Play button to display the images that are included in all four folders

f.
This graphic shows the order in which FastStone selects the folders to be included (remember, you selected the first folder):

D.  Add music to a Slide Show:

1.   Introduction:

a.    You can tell FastStone to play music while a show is running

b.   To do this, you will need to have some music saved on your hard disk in a format such as WAV, MP3, etc.

2.   Create the Slide Show:

a.    Select the first folder that contains the images that you would like to include in the slide show:

(1)  In the Folder Tree Window, click on the folder that contains the images

b.   Open the Slideshow Options dialog box:

(1) 
Click on the Slideshow icon  on the Control Bar and the Slideshow Options dialog box will appear - if you have been following along in this tutorial, it should look something like this:

c.    Click on the Music checkbox and the Music Selection box will appear:

d.  

Click on the Ellipses  at the right end of the Music checkbox and the Setting dialog box will appear and will open to the Music tab:

(1)  Since I had not previously added any music to the FastStone music list, the list is blank

(2)  If you previously added music, it would appear on the list and it would not be necessary for you to add more music to the list unless you wanted to use a different piece of music for this show

(3)  In the next step, we will add a piece of music to the list - if the music file that you want to use is already on your list, you can skip the next step

e.    Add a piece of music to the FastStone music list:

(1)  Click on the Add button and the Open dialog box will appear

(2)  Navigate to the folder on your hard disk that contains the music

(3)  Click on the music file that you would like to add

(4)  Click on the Open button on the Open dialog box and the music file will be added to the FastStone music list

(5)  If you have more than one file in the list, click on the file that you want to use in the show to select it

f.Click on the OK button on the Setting dialog box and you will return to the Slideshow Options dialog box - the file name of a music file that you selected in the previous step will now appear in the Music box

g.    Click on the Play button and the slide show will play complete with transitions and background music - WOW!!!!!

h.    As I mentioned at the beginning of this section, you cannot save the slide shows that are created using this function

i.If you want to save your slide shows, please refer to the next section of this tutorial

40.  Create and Save a Slide Show

A.  Explanation:

1.   FastStone has two completely separate slide show creation functions:

a.    One of these functions is called the Slideshow (covered in the previous section of this tutorial called Slide Shows)

b.   The second of these functions is called the Slide Show Builder (covered in this section of this tutorial)

2.   The Slide Show Builder function:

a.    The Slideshow function allows you to create, view and save (as an executable file) neat looking slide shows complete with transitions and music

b.   If you only want to view your slide show (without saving it), use the Slideshow function which is covered in the previous section of this tutorial

c.    Using the Slide Show Builder, you can select which images you want to include in a show even if the images are in different folders

B.  Create a slide show:

1.   Select the images to be included:

a.    In the Folder Tree Window, navigate to, and click on, a folder that contains images that you want to include in the slide show - the thumbnails for the images that are in the folder will appear in the Thumbnail Window

b.   Use Standard Windows Selection Techniques (see Appendix A of this tutorial) to select the images that you want to include in the slide show

c.    If you want to also select images that are in other folders, just follow along and I will tell you how to do that

2.   Create the slide show:

a.    Open the Slide Show Builder dialog box:

(1)  Click on Create on the Menu bar and a dropdown menu will appear

(2) 
Click on Slide Show Builder and the Slide Show Builder dialog box will appear - it will look something like this:

b.   Change the Settings on the Slide Show Builder dialog box:

(1)  In the steps that follow, I will cover all of the settings on the Slide Show Builder dialog box

(2)  Just pick and choose which settings you would like to use

c.    Rearrange the order of the slides:

(1)  To move an image from one position to another, just click and drag it to the new location

(2)  Drop it in the new location as indicated by the vertical red line that appears as you drag

d.   Add additional images to the show:

(1)  Add individual image(s) to the show:

(a)Click on the Add Files button  and the Open dialog box will appear

(b)  Navigate to, and open the folder that contains the images that you want to add

(c)Select the image(s) that you want to add using Standard Windows Selection Techniques (see Appendix A) - Hint: to change the Open dialog box to the Thumbnail View, click on the View Menu icon  and click on Thumbnails on the dropdown menu

(d)  Click on the Open button and the image(s) will be added to the show

(2)  Add all of the images in a folder to the show:

(a)Click on the Add Folder button  and the Select A Folder dialog box will appear

(b)  Navigate to, and select the folder that contains the images that you want to add to the show

(c)Click on the OK button and all of the images that are in the selected folder will be added to the show

e.    Remove an image from the show:

(1)  Click on the image that you want to remove to select it

(2)  Click on the Remove button  and the selected image will be removed from the show

f.Remove all of the images from the show:

(1)  Click on the Clear button  and all of the images will be removed from the show

(2)  Once you have removed all of the images, you will, of course, need to add images to the show

g.    Change the Background Color:

(1)  This is the color that appears around the slide in a show

(2)  To change the color, click on the Background Color box  (shown in black in this graphic) and the Color dialog box will appear

(3)  Select the color that you want to use (I selected a green color) and click on the OK button

(4)  The Background Color box  will now show the color that you selected

h.    Change the Auto-Play Time setting:

(1)  This is the length of time that each slide will remain of the screen when the show is run in the Auto-Play mode

(2)  Click on the spinner arrows at the right end of the Auto-Play box  to change this setting (I selected 3 seconds)

i.Change the Random setting:

(1)  If Random is selected, the slide will appear in the show in random order rather than the order in which were added to the show

(2)  To activate/deactivate this feature, click on the Random checkbox  - when there is a check mark, the feature is active, when there is no check mark, the feature is not active (I have elected to deactivate this feature)

j.Change the Loop setting:

(1)  This setting determines whether the show will run once when it is played, or whether it will continuously loop until it is stopped

(2)  To activate/deactivate this feature, click on the Loop checkbox  - when there is a check mark, the feature is active, when there is no check mark, the feature is not active (I have elected to deactivate this feature)

k.    Change the Stretch Small Images setting:

(1)  This setting determines whether or not images that are small images are stretched to cover the maximum size that is available, or whether they will appear as small images during the show

(2)  To activate/deactivate this feature, click on the Stretch Small Images checkbox  - when there is a check mark, the feature is active, when there is no check mark, the feature is not active (I have elected to activate this feature)

l.Change the Show Text setting:

(1)  This setting determines whether or not designated text will appear on each slide in the show

(2)  To activate/deactivate this feature, click on the Show Text checkbox  - when there is a check mark, the feature is active, when there is no check mark, the feature is not active (I have elected to deactivate this feature)

(3)  If you elect to activate this feature

(a)An ellipses will appear to the right of the Show Text checkbox, as shown in this graphic

(b)   If you click on the ellipses, you can determine what text will appear, the location of the text on the slides, and how the text is formatted - there are many options available

m.  Change the Transition Effects settings:

(1)  This setting determines whether or not transition effects will be applied when one slide changes to the next slide

(2)  To activate/deactivate this feature, click on the Use Transition Effects checkbox  - when there is a check mark, the feature is active, when there is no check mark, the feature is not active (I have elected to activate this feature - see graphic below)

(3)  If you elect to activate this feature

(a)An ellipses will appear to the right of the Use Transition Effects checkbox, as shown in this graphic

(b)   If you click on the ellipses, you can determine which transition effects will be used and the duration of each transition - the explanations on the Transition Effects Selection dialog box are good, so I will not go into the details here

n.    Change the Music settings:

(1)  This setting determines whether or not music will be played when a show is played

(2)  To use music in a show, it must be stored on your computer in one of the following file formats:

(a)MP3 Music(*.mp3)

(b)  Windows Media File(*.wma)

(c)Windows Audio File(*.wav)

(d)  MIDI Music(*.mid, *.midi)

(3)  To activate/deactivate this feature, click on the Music checkbox  - when there is a check mark, the feature is active, when there is no check mark, the feature is not active (I have elected to activate this feature - see graphic below)

(4)  If you elect to activate this feature

(a)A text box and an ellipses will appear to the right of the Music checkbox, as shown in this graphic  - if this is the first time you have used this feature, the text box will be blank, otherwise a file will show in the text box

(b)  If you have used this feature before and if:

(c)The music file that you want to use appears in the text box, you can skip the rest of this section

(d)  The music file that you want to use is in the FastStone Music List, but does not appear in the text box:

(e)You can use the dropdown arrow at the right end of the Music text box to select the music file that you want to use

(f)  You can skip the rest of this section - if you want to add a new file to FastStone’s Music List, read on

(g)Click on the Ellipses  at the right end of the Music checkbox and the Setting dialog box will appear and will open to the Music tab:

(h)
Since I had not previously added any music to the FastStone music list, the list is blank as shown in this graphic:

(i)  Add a music file to the FastStone music list:

(j)  Click on the Add button  and the Open dialog box will appear

(k)Navigate to the folder on your hard disk that contains the music file that you would like to use in the show

(l)  Click on the music file that you would like to add

(m)Click on the Open button on the Open dialog box and the music file will be added to the FastStone music list

(n)Click on the OK button on the Setting dialog box and you will return to the Slideshow Options dialog box

(o)  Select the music file(s) to use in the show:

(p)  If there is only one music file in the FastStone Music List, that music file will appear in the Music text box and that song will be used in the show

(q)  If there is more than one music file in the FastStone Music List, use the dropdown arrow at the right end of the Music text box to select one of the music files, or one of the other options that are offered

o.   Change the Resize using JPEG format settings:

(1)  Introduction:

(a)This setting determines whether or not the file sizes, of the images used in the show, will be changed

(b)  The settings that you select in this section will determine the size of the exe file that will be created

(c)A smaller size exe file may be useful if you intend to send the file as an attachment to an email message, but setting that result in a larger size exe file may produce a better quality slide show

(2)  To activate/deactivate this feature, click on the Resize Using JPEG Format checkbox  - when there is a check mark, the feature is active, when there is no check mark, the feature is not active (I have elected to activate this feature - see graphic below)

(3)  If you elect to activate this feature

(a)A new set of settings boxes will appear

(b) 
The following graphic shows what I consider to be reasonable settings - please consider them only as a starting point:

p.   Change the Launch Slide Show After It Is Created option:

(1)  This setting determines whether or not the slide show will run automatically after you create it - this is an easy way for you to see the results of all your hard work

(2)  To activate/deactivate this feature, click on the Launch Slide Show After It Is Created checkbox  - when there is a check mark, the feature is active, when there is no check mark, the feature is not active

(3)  Since there is currently no way to preview a show before the exe file is created, it is probably good to leave this option activated - the developer of FastStone hopes to add a Preview feature at some point in the future if he possibly can

q.   Complete the Create Initial Window section of the Slide Show Builder dialog box:

(1)  After the executable file for the slide show has been created, you can run the show by opening the executable file

(2)  This setting determines whether or not a menu-type window will appear before the slide show runs

(3)  To activate/deactivate this feature, click on the Create Initial Window checkbox  - when there is a check mark, the feature is active, when there is no check mark, the feature is not active

(4)  If you elect to activate this feature

(a)
A new set of settings boxes will appear - This graphic shows some settings that I made for demonstration purposes:

(b) 
The settings show above resulted in an Initial Window (menu-type window) that looks like this - this window appears whenever the slide show’s executable file is run:

r.    Create and Run the slide show:

(1)  It is finally time to create and save our slide show

(2)  To create the show, click on the Create button  and the Save As dialog box will appear

(3)  Navigate to the folder in which you would like to save the show, or use the Create Folder button  on the Save As dialog box to create a new folder for your show

(4)  Enter a file name for the executable file in the File Name box

(5)  Click on the Save button and the Processing window will appear and FastStone will create the executable file and save it for you - this could take a few minutes depending upon the size of the show

(6)  When FastStone has completed its work, an Information window will appear - click on the OK button and, if you have selected the Launch Slide Show After It Is Created option, the show will either:

(a)Begin automatically, or

(b)  The menu-type window that you created will appear:

(c)Click on the Play button to start the show

(d)  Click on the Browse button to Browse through the images in a show

(e)Click on the Export button to copy the images in the show to another folder - it should be noted that the resolution of these images may have been reduced if you selected the Resize Using JPEG format option

(7)  How to Pause, Resume Play, Stop a show when it is running:

(a)To Pause/Resume, either press the Space Bar on your keyboard, or click with the left mouse button

(b)  To Stop a show, either press the Esc key on your keyboard or click with the right mouse button

C.  Distribute the Slide Show:

1.   Now that you have created an executable file for the show, you can distribute the show to others who either own a PC (not a MAC) or have some way to run and executable file, and they will be able to view your show

2.   If the executable file is not too large, you may be able to email it as an attachment to others - there are several factors that may make this impractical

3.   You can burn the executable file to a CD and send the CD to others

4.   You can save the executable file on some sort of external device such as an external hard drive, a flash drive, a memory card, etc., and play it on other PC’s - That’s it!!!! - Have fun!!!!

41.  Use the Multi-Page File Builder to Create Animated GIFs, TIFFs & PDFs

A.  Introduction:

1.   The Multi-Page File Builder can be used to put multiple images into a single file

2.   It can be used to create Animated GIFs, TIFFs and PDFs

3.   You can add a shadow to each image

4.   You can automatically resize the images

5.   For PDFs, you can specify the Quality which affects the file size

6.   For TIFFs, you can choose the compression method

7.   For GIFs, you can set the speed of the animation

8.   The GIF format supports a maximum of 256 colors - this should not be a problem for small-sized images

9.   In this section of this tutorial we will use the Multi-Page File Builder to created an Animated GIF

10.  Hopefully, this example will be enough for you to get started using the Multi-Page File Builder

B.  Create, Save and Test an Animated GIF:

1.   Select the images to be used:

a.    Navigate to the folder that contains the images

b.   Use Standard Windows Selection Techniques (see Appendix A) to select the images that you want to use

2.   Created and Save the Animated GIF:

a.    Click on Create on the Menu bar and a dropdown menu will appear

b.   Click on Multi-Page File Builder and (after a brief pause for processing) the Multi-Page File Builder window will appear and the images that you selected should be in the film strip window

c.    At this point, you can use the Add button to add additional images and/or the Remove button to remove images

d.   If you want to add a drop shadow, make sure that there is a checkmark in the Drop Shadow checkbox

e.    If you want to resize the images (strongly advised), make sure that there is a checkmark in the Resize checkbox

f.
Use the dropdown arrow at the right end of the Pick A Standard Size box to select a standard size, or manually enter the desired sizes in the size boxes - the following graphic shows that I have picked the standard size of 320x240:

g.   
Use the dropdown arrow at the right end of the Output Format box to select Animated GIF, and specify the Interval as 100, as shown in the following graphic:

h.    Click on the Create button  and the Save As dialog box will appear

i.Specify the folder in which you would like to save the GIF and click on the Save button, and after a brief pause for processing the image will be saved

j.Click on the OK button of the FastStone window and you will return to the Multi-Page File Builder dialog box

k.    You are now finished, so click on the Close button

3.   Check out the GIF to make sure that it works:

a.    Navigate to the folder in which you saved the GIF, if you are not already there

b.   Click on the GIF and look at the Preview window to see the GIF playing

C.  Use the GIF:

1.   Let's assume that you want to use your email program to send the GIF to others

2.   Open your email program to the New Message window

3.   Use the Insert command in your email program to attach the image as a file - do not attach it as an image

4.   Complete the message and send it

5.   That's all there is to it

42.  Use the Multi-Page File Splitter to Extract Images from a Multi-Page File

A.  Introduction:

1.   The Multi-Page File Splitter is used to extract images from multi-page files

2.   This function can extract images from multi-page TIFF and animated GIF files such as the files built by the Multi-Page File Builder

3.   This function cannot extract images from PDF files

4.   In this section of this tutorial we will use the Multi-Page File Splitter to extract images from an Animated GIF

5.   Hopefully, this example will be enough for you to get started using the Multi-Page File Splitter

B.  Extract and Save the images from a multi-page GIF:

1.   Select the multi-page image:

a.    Navigate to the folder that contains the image

b.   Click on the multi-page image

2.   Extract the image from the multi-page image:

a.    Click on Create on the Menu bar and a dropdown menu will appear

b.   Click on Multi-Page File Splitter and Browse For Folder window will appear

c.    Browse to the folder in which you would like to save the extracted images and click on it to select it

d.   Click on the OK button and, after a brief pause for processing, the FastStone information window will appear stating that the files have been created

e.    Click on the OK button and the images should pop into view

f.Pretty cool!!!

43.  Use the Image Strip Builder to Build an Image Strip

A.  Introduction:

1.   The Strip Builder is used to put images side-by-side across an Image Strip

2.   The program automatically resizes the images so that they are all the same height - no cropping is done

3.   You can place the images side-by-side, either horizontally or vertically

4.   You can add a drop shadow effect to each image

5.   You can use the 1. 2. 3. Command to add a sequential number next to each image on the Image Strip

B.  Create and Save an Image Strip:

1.   Select the images to be used:

a.    Navigate to the folder that contains the images

b.   Use Standard Windows Selection Techniques (see Appendix A) to select the images that you want to use

2.   Created and Save the Image Strip:

a.    Click on Create on the Menu bar and a dropdown menu will appear

b.   Click on Image Strip Builder and, after a brief pause for processing, the Image Strip Builder dialog box will appear

c.    If you want to add a drop shadow, make sure that there is a checkmark in the Drop Shadow checkbox

d.   If you want to resize the images (strongly advised so that all of the images will be the same height), make sure that there is a checkmark in the Resize checkbox

e.    Enter the number of pixels that you want to use for the height - I used 300

f.If you want to a number next to each image, click on the 1.2.3. … checkbox - I left it blank

g.    Use the dropdown arrow at the right end of the Direction box to select a direction (either horizontal or vertical) - I selected horizontal

h.   
The following graphic shows the setting that I used:

i.Click on the Create button and after a short pause for processing, the Save As dialog box will appear

j.Specify a folder in which you would like to save the Image Strip and click on the Save button and the FastStone information window will appear stating that the file has been successfully created

k.    Click on the OK button and you will return to the Image Strip Builder dialog box

l.Click on the Close button and the Image Strip image will appear

44.  Use Batch Convert to Resize/Convert/Resample Image Files (for advanced users)

A.  Introduction:

1.   If all that I want to do is to convert and/or resize files, I have found that the basic method that I describe in the section of this tutorial called Send Images in E-Mail Messages – Semi-Automated Method, is the easiest and fastest way to go

2.   The Batch Convert function of FastStone is much more comprehensive and inclusive and should be used when the basic method does not go far enough for you – Batch Convert is a very powerful function

3.   The Batch Convert function allows you to resize/convert/resample images, for example:

a.    You have a TIFF file that you want to convert to a JPEG, or

b.   You have a RAW file that you want to convert to a JPEG file, or

c.    You want to resize JPEG files, or

d.   You want to Resample to change the number of pixels in an image

4.  
In addition to resizing, Converting and Resampling files, the Batch Converter’s Advanced Options allow you to do all of the following (this tutorial does not cover these features in detail, but I give you a starting point for them in the next section):

a.    Rotate

b.   Crop

c.    Change canvas size – there is a new Expand Mode option that is now available

d.   Change color depth

e.    Adjust images:

(1)  Adjustments can now be applied either before or after resizing

(2)  You can use the Design and Preview button to compare the original and adjusted images side-by-side

f.Change the DPI of images

g.    Add text to images

h.    Add watermarks to images

i.Add borders to images

B.  Use the Batch Convert function to convert RAW files to JPEG files:

1.   Select the Image(s) that you want to convert using Standard Windows Selection Techniques (as described in Appendix A of this tutorial) - I will select a group of mages

2.   Use Batch Convert to convert the images:

a.    Click on Tools on the Menu bar and a dropdown menu will appear

b.   Click on Batch Convert Selected Images and the Batch Image Convert/Rename dialog box  will appear:

(1)  The names of the files that you selected will appear in the Input List window on the right side of the dialog box

(2)  It will look something like this:

c.   
Notice that this dialog box has two tabs (Batch Convert and Batch Rename) and that the Batch Convert tab has been automatically selected

d.   The white window on the left is the Source window - we will ignore this window for this demonstration

e.    The white window on the right is the Input List window:

(1)  The image(s) that I selected will appear in this window

(2)  You can use the Add button and the Source Window to add additional file to the Input List window, and you can also drag and drop files from Windows Explorer to the Input List window

(3)  You can use the Sort Files By box  to sort the files in the Input List

(4)  For the purposes of this exercise, we do not need to make any changes in the Input List window at this time

f.Designate an output format:

(1)  Click on the dropdown arrow at the right end of the Output Format box

and a dropdown menu will appear

(2)  Click on the output format that you want to use - we will click on JPEG Format

(3)  Click on the Settings button that is to the right of the Output Format box and decide if you want to make any changes - we will not make any changes

(4)  Click on the OK button on the Output Format Options dialog box to return to the Batch Image Convert/Rename dialog box

g.    Designate an output folder:

(1)  Save the converted files to their original folder:

(a)
If the Output Folder checkbox is not checked:
the converted files will be saved in the same folder as the original files:

(b)  The original files will not be overwritten if the converted file is a different type than the original file

(c)Use this option with caution to be certain that the original files are not inadvertently overwritten

(2)  Save the converted files to a different folder:

(a)Click on the Output Folder checkbox  to select this option

(b)  Click on the Browse button that is at the right end of the Output Folder box

and the Select A Folder dialog box will appear

(c)Navigate to, and select the folder in which you would like to place the converted file (If you place the converted files in the same folder as the original files, the original files will not be overwritten if the converted file is a different type than the original file) - you can also create a new folder

(d)  Click on the OK button to close the Select A Folder dialog box

h.    If you do not want to rename the image, make sure that there is no checkmark in the Rename checkbox

i.If you want to preview the conversion to check for things like image quality, file size, etc., click on the Conversion Preview button  , then click on the Close button to close the preview window

j.Click on the Convert button  and the Image Convert dialog box will appear with a progress bar showing the progress of the conversion

k.    When the Conversion is complete, click on the Done button and you will return to the Batch Image Convert/Rename dialog box

l.Click on the Close button and you should see the thumbnails for the new files that you just created 

C.  More options:

1.   I have only touched the surface of the options that are available in this very powerful function

2.   In the next section, I touch on some of the Advanced Options

3.   Have fun experimenting with some of the other options

45.  Use Batch Convert to Add Text, Watermarks, Borders, Etc. (for advanced users)

A.  Introduction:

1.   As mentioned in the previous section, the Batch Convert function is very comprehensive

2.   In addition the Resizing, Converting and Resampling files, the Batch Converter’s Advanced Options

3.   allow you to do all of the following:

a.    Rotate

b.   Crop

c.    Change canvas size – there is a new Expand Mode option that is now available

d.   Change color depth

e.    Adjust images:

(1)  Adjustments can now be applied either before or after resizing

(2)  You can use the Design and Preview button to compare the original and adjusted images side-by-side

f.Change the DPI of images

g.    Add text to images

h.    Add watermarks to images

i.Add borders to images 

4.   I consider these functions to be beyond the basic level, so I have not covered them in detail - however:

a.    I have decided to include a section on Watermarks as an example of just one of the advanced functions so that you can get an idea of just how powerful they can be

b.   See the next section of this tutorial called Use Batch Convert to place Watermarks on Images (for advanced users)

5.   I have included this section to make you aware of some of the advanced functions that are available in FastStone Image Viewer

6.   I think you will be able to take over from there

B.  Use the Advanced Options of Batch Convert:

1.   Select the Image(s) that you want to convert using Standard Windows Selection Techniques (as described in Appendix A of this tutorial)

2.   Use Batch Convert’s Advanced functions:

a.    Click on one of the selected images and a shortcut menu will appear

b.   Use Batch Convert to convert the images:

(1)  Click on Tools on the Menu bar and a dropdown menu will appear

(2)  Click on Batch Convert Selected Images and the Batch Image Convert/Rename dialog box  will appear and the selected files will be in the Input List window

(3)  You can use the Add button and the Source Window to add additional file to the Input List window, and you can also drag and drop files from Windows Explorer to the Input List window

(4)  You can use the Sort Files By box to sort the files in the Input List

c.    Click on the Advanced Options button  and the Advanced Options dialog box will appear

d.   Click on the applicable tab

e.    Click on the applicable checkbox to select that option and the applicable window will appear

f.Select the options that you would like to use

g.    If you would like to use another set of the Advanced Options, click on another tab and repeat these steps

h.    When you are finished making selections, make sure that green dots appear only on the tabs for the options that you want to use and then click on the OK button and you will return to the Batch Image Convert/Resample dialog box

i.Make the desired selections in the Output Format and Output Folder sections

j.Select any of the other options that you want to use

k.    Click on the Start button and FastStone will go to work – it may take some time to process all of the images, so be patient

l.Click on the Done button and the files will be saved in the folder that you specified

46.  Use Batch Convert to Add a Watermark to Images (for advanced users)

A.  Introduction:

1.   Please refer to the previous section for a more complete introduction to advanced uses for the Batch Convert/Resize/Resample function of FastStone

2.   In this section I will briefly describe how to use the Batch Convert function to add a watermark to images

3.   I will not cover this topic to the fullest extent because that would be way beyond the scope of this tutorial

4.   I will walk you through one example (giving brief comments about the options that are available) and let it up to you to experiment with those other options

5.   It might be helpful for you to follow my instructions on a step-by-step basis

6.   This example assumes that you have already prepared a watermark:

a.    I have not included instructions on how to create a watermark

b.   I will use the watermark that comes with the FastStone program when you install it

c.    You can use the FastStone watermark or a watermark that you have created to follow along in this tutorial

B.  Use Batch Convert to add a watermark to images:

1.   Select the images to which you would like to add a watermark:

a.    Open the folder that contains the images to which you would like to add a watermark

b.   Use Standard Windows Selection Techniques (as described in Appendix A) to select the images to which you would like to add a watermark

2.   Open the Batch Convert window:

a.    Click on Tools on the Menu bar and a dropdown menu will appear

b.   Click on Batch Convert Selected Images and the Batch Image Convert/Rename dialog box will appear

c.    This window has two tabs

(1)  The Batch Convert tab should already be selected

(2)  If the Batch Convert tab is NOT selected, click on it to select it

d.   This window is very comprehensive - it has the following sections:

(1)  On the top are the two tabs

(2) 
On the left there is an Image Source bar that looks something like this:

(a)The Textbox contains the path to the applicable folder

(b)  To the right of the Textbox are normal-type control buttons

(c)The first control button is an ellipses - you can click on this ellipses to select a new or additional source folder

(3)  On the left is a large white window File List window that contains the names of all of the image files that are included in the folder that is indicated in the Textbox of the Source bar

(4)  On the left, at the bottom, is an Image Format bar that indicates the file-types to be included in the File List window

(5) 
On the right, near the top, is the Input List window that looks something like this:

(a)The Input List window contains the name of the image files on which the watermark will be placed:

·   The files that appear in the Input List when you open the Batch Image Convert/Rename dialog box are the files that you selected before opening the dialog box

·   You can use the buttons that are in the middle of the dialog box to add or remove images from the Input List

·   I will include only the files that we selected before we opened the dialog box

(6)  On the right side of the dialog box, the next section allows you to select the Output Format:

(a)Use the dropdown arrow at the right end of the box to select an output format - I will use the default option which is JPEG

(b)  Use the Settings button that is to the right of the box to apply setting - I used the default settings

(7) 
On the right side of the dialog box, the next section allows you to designate an Output Folder into which the images with the watermarks will be placed - it looks something like this:

(a)I want to setup a new subfolder to hold the images with the watermarks

(b)  To do this I click on the Browse button and navigate to the folder that contains the original images

(c)I click on the Create Folder button and create a subfolder called Watermarked Images and click on the OK button to return to the dialog box

(d)  The path to the new folder should now appear in the Output Folder text box

(8)  On the right side of the dialog box, use the Advanced Options button to designate the watermark to be used and for other settings:

(a)Click on the Advanced Options button

,

and the Advanced Options dialog box will appear - WOW! Talk about choices!!!

(b)  If any of the tabs (other than the Watermarks tab) has a green dot on it:

·   Click on the applicable tab

·   Click on the checkbox for that tab to disable that function

(c)Click on the Watermark tab and click on the checkbox to enable the watermark function and the settings that were last used (or the default settings) will appear

(d)  Now we have even more settings to play with - isn't this fun?

(e)Use the ellipses on the right end of the Watermark Image textbox to navigate to the folder that contains the watermark that you want to use and select it - I have navigated to and selected the FastStone logo that is included when you install the FastStone program - it should be in the same place on your computer

(f)  Use the dropdown arrow at the right end of the Position box  to select the location at which you want to watermark logo to appear - I selected center

(g)
The following graphic shows the other settings that I used:

(h)At the bottom of the window are buttons that allow you to Save and/or Load options - I ignored these buttons, but you may find them very useful

(i)  At the bottom of the window is a small Conversion Preview button  - click on this button if you want to see a preview of your conversion

(j)  After you think you are happy with your settings, click on the OK button to return to the Batch Image Convert/Rename dialog box

(9) 
Complete the settings, including the Rename settings - here are the settings that I used:

(10)If you want to do another preview, click on the Conversion Preview button

(11)Click on the Convert button and the Image Convert dialog box will appear - it will show the progress of the conversion

(12)After the conversion is complete, click on the Done button and a copy of the images with the watermarks on them will be in the folder that you specified as the Output folder

(13)That's all there is to it!!

C.  Change the size of the Watermark - optional and advanced:

1.   Now that you have added your watermark to images you may want to make it larger or smaller - can you do this???

2.   The answer is yes ……… but

3.   Here's comes the technical stuff

4.   The size of the watermark is relative to the resolution of the watermark as compared with the resolution of the image on which it will be placed

5.   If the watermark is the same resolution as the image, the watermark will be the same size as the image

6.   If the resolution of the watermark is greater or less than the image the watermark will be larger or smaller that the image

7.   In the example that we used above, the resolution of the watermark was much less than the resolution of the image so the watermark appeared to be very small when it appeared on the images

8.   To change the size of the watermark relative to the size of the image, you can change the resolution of either the image or the watermark

9.   You can use FastStone to change the resolutions - this topic is covered briefly in other sections of this tutorial - more than that is way beyond the scope of this tutorial

47.  Change the EXIF and/or the File Timestamp(s) on Images

A.  Introduction:

1.   This feature allows you to change the Timestamp(s) on image files

2.   You can change just the File Timestamp(s), just the EXIF Timestamp(s), or both Timestamp(s)

B.  Change the File Timestamp on Image files:

1.   Select one or more images using Standard Windows Selection techniques

2.   Click on Tools on the Menu bar and a dropdown menu will appear

3.   Click on Change Timestamp and the Change Timestamp dialog box will appear

4.   Click on the dropdown arrow at the right end of the Change box

 and a dropdown menu will appear

5.  
Click on File Timestamp and the File Timestamp window will appear:

6.   Make your selection by clicking on the applicable radio button

7.   Click on the Apply to Selected File(s) button

  and the File Timestamp on the selected image(s) will be changed

C.  Change the EXIF Timestamp (and the File Timestamp, if desired) on Image files:

1.   Select one or more images using Standard Windows Selection techniques

2.   Click on Tools on the Menu bar and a dropdown menu will appear

3.   Click on Change Timestamp and the Change Timestamp dialog box will appear

4.   Click on the dropdown arrow at the right end of the Change box

and a dropdown menu will appear

5.  
Click on EXIF Timestamp and the EXIF Timestamp window will appear:

6.   Decide how you want to change the EXIF Timestamp and click on the appropriate radio button

7.   Depending on which method of change that you select, additional information may be required

8.   Use the Update File Timestamp With New Date checkbox

to indicate whether or not you want you want to select this option

9.   Click on the Apply to Selected File(s) button

 and the File Timestamp on the selected image(s) will be changed

48.  Resize/Resample Images (for advanced users)

A.   An easier method to Resize Images?

1.   Some people find that the steps as outline in the section of this tutorial called, Send Images in E-Mail Messages - Semi-Automated Method, are easier to follow and accomplish everything they are trying to do

2.   If you choose to use a more conventional method to Resize and Resample images, read on

B.  Introduction:

1.   The Resize/Resample function is used to increase or decrease the number of pixels in an image

2.   Most people use their image editing program to increase or decrease the number of pixels in an image, but FastStone can also be used

3.   Users may want to increase the number of pixels in an image when they want to make a large print and the image does not have enough pixels to produce a nice looking print - increasing the number of pixels may or may not improve the appearance of the print

4.   Users may want to decrease the number of pixels in an image when it is going to be used on a Web page

5.   There any many other reasons for increasing or decreasing the number of pixels in an image

6.   I will cover the basics of this function by decreasing the number of pixels in an image

C.  Resize/Resample an image:

1.   We will reduce the size of an image to a maximum width of 120 pixels

2.   Click on the image that you want to resize/resample

3.  
Click on the Resize/Resample Image icon  on the Control Bar and the Resize/Resample dialog box will appear - it will look something like this:

4.   Change the settings on the Resize/Resample dialog box:

a.    Take a minute to look at the various options - most advanced users should be able to figure them out

b.   Since we want to reduce the pixel-width of this image to 120 pixels:

(1)  Make sure that the Preserve Aspect Ration checkbox  is checked

(2) 
Click on the radio button in front of Pixels, if it is not already selected, and enter the amount of 120 in the Width box that is on the Pixels line - it should look like this:
(since the Preserve Aspect Ratio checkbox is checked, the Height is automatically computed)

(3)  Click on the OK button and the image will be resized (but not yet saved)

(4)  Click on the Save As icon  on the Options bar and the Save As dialog box will appear

(5)  Use the Save As dialog box to rename the image and/or to designate a new location for the image - we will simply rename the image by adding the letters Web to the file name

(6)  Click on the Save button and the resized/resampled image will appear

49.  FastStone's Settings Window

A.  Introduction:

1.   This window is extremely comprehensive

2.   It provides a way for the user to change many of FastStone's default settings and to make other system changes

3.   I have covered bits and pieces of this window in various places throughout this tutorial

4.   The use of the other settings (which can be extreme useful) are beyond the scope of this tutorial

5.   After you have become familiar with FastStone, you may want to spend some time learning more about how you can customize FastStone to better fit your work habits

50.  Functions of FastStone that were Not Covered

A.  Explanation:

1.   Although I have not covered all of FastStone’s functions, I have attempted to cover most of the more significant ones

2.   Hopefully you will become familiar enough with the program to investigate other functions on your own

51.  Appendix A - Standard Window Selection Techniques

A.  Throughout this tutorial, you will see instructions to use Standard Windows Selection Techniques. This is what we mean:

1.   To select any one thumbnail:

a.    Click on the thumbnail

2.   To select all of the thumbnails that are in the open folder:

a.    Using menu choices:

(1)  Click on Edit on the Menu bar and a dropdown menu will appear

(2)  Click on Select All on the dropdown menu

b.    Using keyboard shortcut keys:

(1)  Hold down the Ctrl key

(2)  Press the letter “A” key (easy to remember - “Control All” to select all)

3.   To select a group of thumbnails that are next to each other in the open folder

a.    Click on the first thumbnail in the group to highlight it

b.   Hold down the Shift key

c.    Click on the last thumbnail in the whole group and the whole group will be selected

4.   To select multiple thumbnails when they are not next to each other in the open folder:

a.    Hold down the Ctrl key

b.   Click on each thumbnail that you want to select

5.   You can also select groups of thumbnails by using the Lasso technique if you are familiar with that technique

Technical Support

If you need technical support, send an email message to:

support@faststone.org

If you contact FastStone, please remember to thank them for this fine program

Feedback On This Tutorial

This tutorial has been created as a public service. To contact the author of this tutorial, send an email message to Bill Westerhoff at:

DimageCD@gmail.com