Note: You can print this (or any page) from your web browser by selecting File/Print. This information is provided for your personal use only and is not to be redistributed without permission of the author. This tip was written for Photoshop 3 or 4 or Paint Shop Pro version 3.0 or 4.1

Add Text to Clipart in Photoshop

example of text

In the collection of downloadable art here at mccannas.com, you'll find a number of blank icon templates. You can easily customize any of these blank templates by adding text. Once you discover how simple it is to add text to clip art, you may want to experiment with adding text to photos, backgrounds, etc.

How to start? First, make sure that the clip art is in RGB 24 bit color before you make any changes to it. In Photoshop 3 select Mode/RGB. In Photoshop 4 select Image/Mode/RGB. In PaintShop Pro, select Colors/Increase Color Depth/24 bit. You will want to change the colors to 24bit for almost any manipulations that you do to clipart.

To add text to the clip art in Photoshop, select a foreground color that will provide good contrast to the artwork (so that the type will be easy to read) and select the text tool and click the text tool on the image. This will open the Text dialog box. Make sure the Anti-Aliasing checkbox is checked (for crisp type) and select the typeface you want your text to appear in. Because web graphics display at such a low resolution, you will want to use a simple, bold typeface for clarity.

Select OK once you've chosen a typeface. You will be able to reposition the type by dragging it or by using the arrow keys on the keyboard to nudge the text into position exactly. In Photoshop 4, use the Ctrl (Command on the Mac) key along with the arrow keys to position the type precisely.

Add Text to Clipart in Paint Shop Pro

To add text to clip art in PaintShop Pro, select a foreground color, and click the type tool on the image. This will open the Text dialog box. Make sure that Anti-Aliasing is selected for crisper, easy to read type. You can also select the Shadow checkbox, which will automatically add a drop shadow to the type (as seen in the example to the right). Select a typeface, and click the OK button.

You can also use these steps to add a symbol from a symbol typeface like Zapf Dingbats or Wingdings. You might want to browse the type links to find some cool typefaces.

To save the clip art as a gif file, in Photoshop 3 select Mode/Indexed, in Photoshop 3 select Image/Mode/Indexed and then save the file as a .gif file. In PaintShop Pro, select Colors/Decrease Color Depth, and select a color depth for the image. Then save the file as a .gif image.

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