CHAPTER 11
196
Creating Shapes and Text
Creating text
In Photoshop Elements, you use the horizontal
and vertical type tools to create and edit text. Text
appears directly on-screen so you can always see
how it looks in your composition.
You can also use type mask tools to create a
selection in the shape of text. You can then create
different effects and cut-outs with the text.
When you select a type tool, you can choose from
several settings in the options bar. You can set the
font, style, size, and color of the type in the options
bar.
Clicking in an image with a type tool puts the type
tool in edit mode so you can enter and edit text.
You must commit changes to the type before you
can perform other operations, like selecting menu
commands. To determine if the type tool is in edit
mode, look in the options bar—if you see the OK
button
and Cancel button
, the type tool is
in edit mode.
Entering text
You can enter text horizontally or vertically,
depending on which type tool you select. Each line
of text you enter is independent—the length of a
line grows or shrinks as you edit it, but it doesn’t
wrap to the next line (you have to press the Enter
or Return key to create a new line of text).
To enter type:
1
Select the horizontal type tool or the vertical
type tool .
2
Click in the image to set an insertion point for
the type. The small line through the I-beam marks
the position of the type baseline. For horizontal
type, the baseline marks the line on which the type
rests; for vertical type, the baseline marks the
center axis of the type characters.
3
Select additional type options in the options
bar. (See “Formatting text” on page 199.)
4
Enter the characters you want. To begin a new
line, press the Enter key (Windows) or Return key
(Mac OS) to begin a new line.
5
Commit the type layer by doing one of the
following:
•
Click in the image, select a tool in the toolbox,
or click in a palette.
•
Click the OK button
in the options bar.
•
Press the Enter key on the numeric keypad.
The type you entered appears in a new type layer.
Note:
To discard the type layer, click the Cancel
button .
Working with type layers
Once you create a type layer, you can edit the type
and apply layer commands to it. You can change
the orientation of the type, apply anti-aliasing, and
warp the type into a variety of shapes. You can
move, restack, copy, and change the layer options
of a type layer as you do for a normal layer. You can
also make the following changes to a type layer and
still edit its text:
•
Apply transformation commands, except for
Perspective and Distort.
