The magazine of the Melbourne PC User Group
Corel Print and Photo House
Bernadette Houghton
 bernieh@iaccess.com.au

Corel Print and Photo House (CPPH) is a simple, cheap and fun graphics package. If you have only an occasional need for graphics or don't need the power of a full-featured program, CPPH may suit you. Aimed at home and small business users, the package includes a mammoth collection of templates and sample files; if you're a little artistically challenged like me, you'll definitely appreciate this.

To toss around a few statistics, CPPH has

  • 1600 samples (running the gamut of cards, labels, calendars, business stationery, menus and so on)
  • 1000 photos
  • 1000 phrases
  • 150 fonts
  • 7000 clipart images
  • 200 backdrops
  • 70 borders
  • A range of templates based on PaperDirect paper designs.
W henever I read such wondrous statistics, I can't help feeling that I'm getting a good deal - Corel surely has some wily marketing experts! Even so, CPPH is an easy-to-use program that you can quickly re-learn if you haven't used it in a while.


Figure 1. Print House's main screen, with the Notebook's first page 


Figure 2. Typical Notebook help with Print House

CPPH includes two programs

  • Corel Print House 2, a vector drawing program
  • Corel Photo House, Corel's new bitmap-editing program.
W hile Print House on its own is a good product, the inclusion of Photo House rounds it out.

Corel Print House

Print House's main feature is the Notebook (Figures 1 and 2). This has two main functions: context-sensitive help for the current task, and visual catalogues of ready-made images and styles that you can drag and drop onto your drawing. You can also add your own styles (colouring, line, shape, shadow and text) and images. Although the Notebook remains visible at all times, you can work directly with Print House's tools, or use Wizards to take you through specific tasks (Figures 3 and 4). If you get lost at any point or are unsure what to do next, the Key icon on the toolbar will return you to the first page of the Notebook; from here you can get your bearings once again. The online help is also quite good and expands on the Notebook's context-sensitive assistance.


Figure 3. Creating a new project with the Create Wizard


Figure 4. Using Print House's Namelist Wizard

Print House's drawing tools include Text, Freehand, Rectangle, Ellipse, Polygon and Table, as well as a powerful Shaper, with which you can manipulate objects as Bezier curves. While the tools are few in number, you can manipulate them in various ways for different effects; a quick glance at the Notebook will tell you the possibilities of your current tool. Once you've drawn your objects, you can colour, rotate, stack, align and perform most other basic drawing operations on them.

Other highlights include the ability to perform mail merges using Print House's Namelist databases, and video paper-folding demonstrations. If you're familiar with Print House from earlier versions, you'll be interested in the new features of version 2. These include the ability to mould text and bitmaps into shapes, a new Fit Text to Path command and colourful new rainbow fills. There is also a new Align and Distribute command for arranging objects, support for continuous feed paper, and enhanced Table and Namelist features.

Corel Photo House

If you're not familiar with bitmap-editing software, you may be wondering what you can do with Photo House. A few ideas:

  • Convert a colour photo to greyscale, then colour it again to get a hand-painted effect
  • Add deceased Uncle Joe to the family group photo
  • Change Uncle Mick's sober black tie to a dashing rainbow hue
  • Remove the rabbit ears from unsuspecting Auntie Myrtle
  • Correct photo problems such as blurriness, red eyes and scratches
  • Create your own bitmaps from scratch
  • Include your photos in your Print House projects.
P hoto House's interface is similar to Print House's, so if you're familiar with Print House you'll feel comfortable quickly - there is a similar Notebook, with a similar drag-and-drop interface and context-sensitive help (Figure 5). Photo House's catalogues include Colours, Brushes, Effects and Photos. The tools are Eyedropper (which enables you to select a colour from your image), Eraser, Flood Fill, Brush, Spray Can and Clone (which enables you to duplicate part of an image). For each tool you can adjust the brush type, size, angle, transparency, feathering and ink flow rate (Figure 6).


Figure 5. Photo House's main screen


Figure 6. Customising Photo House's tools
Unlike vector-based drawing programs, which require you to select objects to work on, bitmap-editing programs like Photo House require you to select areas. You can work on a whole image, but very often you want to constrain your changes to a particular area; good selection tools are therefore important. Photo House has two selection tools: Rectangle and Freehand. Unfortunately, these tools are quite tricky; if you make a mistake, for instance, you must start all over again - you can't simply adjust the selected area.

Photo House's retouching tools include Sharpen, Remove Dust and Scratches, Brightness/Contrast, Reduce Speckles, Remove Red Eyes, Replace Colours and Simplify Colours (Figure 7). A useful online Photo Retouching Guide advises you which of these tools to use for specific problems, and how to use them. There are also 14 special effects, including Sketch, Psychedelic, Page Curl and Emboss (Figure 8).


Figure 7. Adjusting brightness/contract/intensity with Photo House


Figure 8. Applying a special effect with Photo House

What you see on Photo House's screen is basically what you get. All tools and effects are directly accessible either from the Notebook or the toolbars; you don't have to use the menus at all. There are no toolbar flyouts, the tools and dialog boxes are very simple, and you can preview effects before applying them. Despite Photo House's simplicity, you can definitely create some very smart - and fun - effects. You do need to cultivate a keen eye and steady hand, though, for good area selection.

Assessment

CPPH is easy - and great fun - to use. To get the full benefit, it's best (but not essential) to have a colour printer. Apart from some minor quirks (and a major shortcoming with the Photo House selection tools), CPPH works well. There are plenty of sample files which you can use as they are, or change to suit yourself. Many of the samples are nothing special, but there are a few real gems. Print House and Photo House complement each other well, and there are enough features to allow you to create some powerful effects - but not so many that you'll be overwhelmed. On the whole, a terrific program for the occasional or novice user.

Reprinted from the August 1997 issue of PC Update, the magazine of Melbourne PC User Group, Australia

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