I am trying to design a business card. I created a line of text with Xara 3D Maker and now I don't know how to add it to the card I'm creating. Please help.
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I am trying to design a business card. I created a line of text with Xara 3D Maker and now I don't know how to add it to the card I'm creating. Please help.
Welcome to TalkGraphics Genechr
What program are you using to create the card?
Microsoft Office Picture Manager
as far as I can see MOPM will open all the usual image formats - though I do not know if a gif will be animated or not; I have MOPM on my computer, as it comes with Office 2010, but I don't use it
so export your text from xara 3d maker in image format - as it's a business card I am assuming you do not need it animated, so PNG format should be best - if you do not want a background, you will probably have to select the right setting to preserve the transparency when you export if it does not do this by default [I don't have the latest xara 3D maker - I have ver 6 but not on the computer I am using at the moment]
You will need to Export the text in a format such as PNG or BMP.
I don't have Xara 3D installed on my computer at the moment. Maybe one of the members who does can give you the steps.
I can save it in any format and it looks like PNG is the best. I hope someone can let me know the steps it takes to complete this. Thanks for your help.
having had a quick look at the help file I don't think microsoft office picture manager is an editing program in the real sense of the word - all it seems to be able to do is adjust an existing picture - not add things to it
you would maybe be better off opening your card in microsoft paint and then pasting in your saved PNG text, at least that will let you combine the two
or using a made for purpose graphics editor
I don't know if this will help or not but you might have a look at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iNtD6QKr0a8
Thanks for the suggestion. The text I'd like to use is hard for me to create. Is there someone here I could sent it to and explain how I'd go about making it look like my sample. I don't want you to do it for me, just let me know how it was done. I cropped out the text I want to use but don't know how to create it. Can someone help.
if you have a sample post it up here...
Attachment 101063 The text on this card is what I am trying to create. I cropped it out and I want to replace it with my own text. Can you help? Just give me the steps I need to accomplish this. I don't need animation. I just want to crop and replace. I'll use Microsoft Paint if that's what it takes.
use paint
put rectangles over the text you want to hide - fill white - outline none
then place new text over the rectangles
does that help
[as this is business card I am assuming you have permission to use that image...]
Can I create the kind of text pictured here with Xara 3D Maker? If so , con you show me how this is done? I know I can hide the original text but can't create the new text and replace it.
or The Gimp http://www.gimp.org/downloads/ which is a much more powerful free program, but you will have to download it. There are quite a number of freeware programs out there which you might like such as paint.net http://www.getpaint.net/ or Project DogWaffle http://www.thebest3d.com/dogwaffle/free/. there is one that Gare likes but can't remember the name of it. In my opinion all I listed are exceptional and free programs, all have good tutorials although the gimp might be the best.
something like that is probably possible, but it would be a whole losd easier in xara photo and graphic designer or some other graphics design editor, it's not what Xara 3D is for it is not 3D text
what you have is either
two lines of text, one 'yellow' one black placed over each other - or one line of black text with either a 'yellow' outline or a contour, maybe some bevel
it's difficult to be sure without a higher resolution image
EDIT - Larry has given you some alternative editors... :)
Downloaded the Gimp program. I can edit my card but still can't get the text I'm trying to create. Do you know the steps to accomplish that using Gimp? It's black text surrounded by a gold border like the one pictured in my example.
sorry, it's been a while now since I used gimp [no longer use linux] I can't remember the text feature or the tools well enough
in principle you could place one row of text above another of larger font size, but it would take careful alignment - you might need some shadowing or blur too...
also the letters need to be spaced right, so it may be better to create it letter by letter rather than word by word
Looking at your image, here is what you need to do to get the text.
1.Type your text.
2 From the colors option select font face and set that to black or whatever color you want.
3.To get the outline, Color option and set to font sides and pick the color you want.
4.Go to bevels and set to whatever you want, and set the depth to something like 50 I used a square bevel.
5.Change animation to swing 1 and uncheck all the boxes so there is really no animation and export animation. Depending on how much text you have you may have to change from change font size at top from fit to width to 30 or lower.
That should get you something fairly close.
Why export as animation, that's the only way I can get it with no background. Even png and gif seem to export with a background.
Attachment 101065
I think there's an option in the export dialog box that needs to be ticked/unticked Larry - at least with version 6... [assuming you are not using a trial version]
I have the new version, I believe. I got it yesterday. I'm a newbie to the max. When I start Xara 3D Maker it starts out with an animation. How do I get to the point where I can add my own text and go to
"font face".
Thanks handrawn that link should help. Don't know for sure but it should.
Wizard, which program did you use to get this effect? Is it Xara 3d Maker or one of the ones suggested above.
Xara 3d Maker
I think I got it. Just a few questions. It's in 3D. How do I get it to look like Wizard's example and how to I put it into my PNG?
ok post up what you have done so far and we can see what else needs doing
Attachment 101075 I think this is it. I just want to know how to add it to my card. (The last thing I uploaded).
it is still a question of masking out the original text with the new text
as I don't have the program I cannot open the file, but hopefully Larry, or someone else who has will and point you in the right direction
meanwhile in principle:
you save from xara 3d as a png - it should have a white background by default
you open both your card and your png in gimp
you copy/paste your text in gimp to the card document so you can position it over the card - if the white background is not sufficient to cover original text you will need to put a white rectangle [or other shape as appropriate] between the card and the text to complete the masking out
almost certainly the text will not be the right size - you can adjust this in xara 3D on the info bar at the top, increasing the point size increases the size of the text - it should be bigger in gimp so you can reduce it there to fit exactly - not smaller because increasing it's size in gimp will not work so well [if you are really lucky it will fit first time... but]
that's about as much help as I can give as I don't have the programs
good luck :)
Thanks for your help. You got me this far and I really appreciate what you've done. When I go to, save as, I can only save it as Xara3D(*x3d). How do I save it as a PNG?
sorry that should have been 'export' - there is a difference [at least in these programs]
saving saves your work [as x3d] - export just copies it out in a different format...
Attachment 101081 This is the final attempt. I think that does it. Thanks for all your help.
happy to help :)
if it were me I would consider tweaking the text just slightly so that the top of the secondline is not quite so close to the line down the middle - but at the end of the day that's a personal thing maybe, might be more noticable in print is all