What is the Dropper?

The Dropper: Images Always at Hand
When images are dragged into the collage, they are attached to the cursor, like this:

Dropper3

This is the 'Dropper.' It indicates:

•	which image is about to be dropped (the baby in the chair, in this case);

•	where the picture will be dropped (directly above the point of the tan cursor);

•	whether that picture will appear as a new frame or replace the contents of an existing frame (a new frame, in this case);

•	how many and which pictures remain to be dropped (8 pictures in this case);

•	which is the next picture to be dropped (the baby in the turquoise shirt, in this case);

•	file information (name, size) and options before dropping.

This ability to see which image is next in line gives you enormous power over how images are selected.

In particular you can:

•	re-order the pictures before they are dropped;

•	remove pictures that you do not want to drop;

•	stop dropping and then start up again later if you choose;

•	change the size of the image before dropping.

•	drop more than one copy of the same image;

•	and create a new frame to hold an image without leaving the dropping mode.

Dropping images
To drop an image that is attached to the cursor, click your left mouse button.

•	If you drop the image on top of an existing image, the existing image and the first image in the dropper will be swapped.

•	If you drop the image into an empty frame, the frame will be filled with the new image.

•	If you drop the image over empty canvas, the image will appear in a new frame.

Skipping images
During dropping, you can scroll through the list of pictures that are waiting to be dropped:

•	Roll the mouse wheel up or down;

•	Press the left or right arrow keys.

This allows you to skip a picture that you do not want to drop, and move to the next or previous image in the drop order.

Removing images from the dropper
To remove the image that is about to be dropped,

•	Press the 'Del' key on your keyboard.

Note that your original picture on your hard disk is not affected -- FotoFusion never changes or deletes your source images.

Stopping/restarting dropping
You can suspend the dropping operation at any time by pressing 'ESC" on your keyboard. This will leave the images in the dropper, but not visible.

To continue dropping them, either:

•	Press the 'D' key, or

•	Click the button and click on the 'Add Images To Canvas' button (even if there are no images present in the bucket):

Resizing images while dropping
You can change the size of the an image that you are about to drop if you have a mouse with a wheel.

While the dropper is activated, hold Ctrl and dial the mouse wheel up and down to change the size of the image. When you are satisfied with the size of the image, release the mouse button to drop the resized image.

An alternative method to drop images at a particular size is to draw a frame for them as you drop them.

Dropping multiple copies of the same image
You can drop more than one copy of an image onto the canvas.

Simply hold the Ctrl key down as you release your mouse button. A copy of the image will be placed on the canvas but not be removed from the dropper, thereby allowing you to place additional copies on the canvas.

Adding a frame while dropping
A true FotoFusion power tool is the ability to add a frame while dropping images. It allows you to determine the shape and size of the frame into which the image will be dropped.

If you want to add a new frame to the collage, as you are currently dropping images:

•	Press and hold down the 'F' key, then move the mouse to the top left corner of where you would like the new frame to be.

•	Press the left mouse button and hold it down.

•	Drag the mouse down and to the right, defining a new frame as you go.

•	Release the mouse button when you are finished drawing the new frame.

Result: you will create a new frame atop the existing collage, and the picture next in line in the dropper will be placed into your newly created frame automatically.

Picking Up Images
You can also pick up images to place back into the dropper to move them to other frames or save them for later:

•	Select a frame. Either:

o	Click 'P' on your keyboard,

o	or click on the image number,

o	or right-mouse-down on an image, and select "Pick up selected"

Any of these techniques will pick up the selected image, holding it in the dropper for use elsewhere. You can then add the image back to the canvas as you would any other image in the dropper.

Default Image Sizes
You may find that images, when dragged into a free-form canvas, appear too large or too small.

The reason for this is that the default canvas DPI (typically 300 DPI) is being used to calculate the size of the image you are dragging in.

DPI

Suppose that you are creating a canvas with an aspect ratio of 10x10. Perhaps you intend to print it at 10"x10" on a printer which can handle 300 DPI.

You can always change your mind later and change the resolution up or down by changing the settings located in the CANVAS SETTINGS dialogue box. For example, to print the image as a poster at 10x10 feet, you can choose 10'x10' canvas by default.

Take the above situation of a 10" x 10" canvas at 300 DPI: if you were to bring in an image from a web page (say, 100 pixels x 100 pixels), it would appear quite small on the canvas you have created. This is because 100 pixels takes up only 1/3rd of an inch at 300 DPI, making it appear quite tiny on the larger canvas.

When creating a canvas, it helps to know what sort of images you will be working with, and what the target output type will be. You can then set the default canvas DPI to a reasonable value (96 DPI for web pages, 300 DPI for printed media) and have useful default frame sizes when the canvas is populated with images.

If you need to change the default DPI for the canvas, follow the procedure described here.