Creating GEL Text

By Gary W. Priester
The Mac® OS X GEL look is still hot even though it was introduced quite some time ago. Creating GEL buttons has already been covered here and covered very well so I thought it would be fun to see if we could create the GEL look in text. Before we get started, however, we need to set a few common parameters. I will be using CorelDRAW® 11 and so some features may be different or may have migrated to different menus, as they often do between versions of CorelDRAW.
As I am creating this tutorial to be seen on the Web, I am going to use Corel's RGB palette, which many of you will remember was the default palette before version 7. The colors are brighter and will produce a better looking effect.

(Figure 1) In the Tools drop down menu, select Color Management… From the Style drop down list, select Optimized for the Web. This sets the color space to RGB.

(Figure 2) From the Layout menu, select Page Setup… In the Page Setup dialog, change the Resolution to 96 dpi (Windows®) or 72 dpi (Macintosh®). These two settings are screen resolution and are the proper 1:1 resolution for viewing on the Web. Even if you plan to output your image for commercial printing, use these two settings to avoid confusion. You can change the resolution before you output your files.

For this tutorial we shall create a GEL symbol for the at character (@). As CorelDRAWing this symbol is a lot harder than it looks, we'll use an Avant Garde @ symbol for a guide.

(Figure 3) Using the Text Tool, click on the page and key in @ in Avant Garde (the CorelDRAW default font). On the Property Bar, change the size to 130 and press Enter to apply the change.

(Figure 4) Press and hold the Freehand Tool to open the Curve Flyout menu. Select the Pen Tool (the fourth from the right). Click and add a series of connected lines as shown here in red. The idea is to place each anchor point in-between the outlines of the @ and to place the control points on logical points from which to create curved line segments. When you have clicked the last control point, double click to let CorelDRAW know you are finished.

(Figure 5) Select the Shape Tool. Click on the outline to select it. Marquee select all the control points by dragging a rectangle around all the points with the Shape Tool. On the Property Bar (the context-sensitive menu at the top of the screen) press the Convert Line to Curve icon. Drag a line segment and pull it like a rubber band until it more or less conforms to the shape of the @ symbol.

(Figure 6) Continue until all the line segments are now gently curves and more or less follow the shape of the @.

(Figure 7) We can fine tune the control points by adjusting the Bezier control handles. Select the outline with the Shape Tool. Click on a control point. Note that two lines with small boxes on the ends appear coming out of each side of the point. These are Bezier control handles with which we can adjust the segments of the outline. You can drag these in or out to make the curve segment longer or shorter and you can rotate them to adjust the angle of the curve segment. Experiment until you get the curve as smooth as possible. The smoothest curves will have both Bezier handles in a straight line. The angle of the handles will also be more or less parallel to the curve.

TIP: Moving the handles can be tricky and inexact if you are not real comfortable using the mouse. Zoom in close. Select a point and then use the arrow keys on your key pad to move the handles. You may also need to set the nudge amount on the Property Bar to 1px. (CorelDRAW's default idea of a nudge is sometimes closer to a shove)!

(Figure 8) You might need an extra control point at the top of the "a" shape. Double click with the Shape Tool to add the point. Continue to fine tune the shape until you have gotten it as close to the shape of the @ symbol as possible. Name and save your CorelDRAWing and take a short eye break.

(Figure 9) Delete the Avant Garde @ symbol. Select the outline. Click and hold on the Outline Tool to open the Outline Flyout. Select the Outline Pen options (the first icon). Change the line width to 16 points. Click the two middle Corner and Line Caps radio buttons to round the ends and the corners. Press OK.

With the outline still selected, select Convert Outline to Object from the Arrange menu.

(Figure 10). From the View menu, select Wireframe or Simple Wireframe. You will notice the original outline has been left behind. As we don't need it anymore, delete it. Return to the View menu and select Enhanced to return to the anti-aliased display mode.

(Figure 11) Select the Interactive Fill Tool icon. From the drop down list of Fill Types on the Property Bar, select Conical. The Interactive Conical Fill controls will appear on the screen. You can drag the ends of the fill path to rotate the fill. You can also double click on the circular portion of the fill path to add more colors. For what we are going to do, just leave everything as is. Click the white box at the end of the fill path, then click the red color on the screen palette. Repeat this for the other end so you now have a red to red conical fill. To the left of the Fill Type drop down list is the Edit Fill icon. Click it to open the Fountain Fill dialog. Select the counter clockwise fill option (indicated with the red ellipse) and press OK to apply the change.

(Figure 12) Make two copies of the rainbow filled shape and set them to one side. We'll need them later on. Change the fill of the original @ to black by selecting the shape then pressing the black color on the screen palette. You can also drag and drop colors from the screen palette onto the object.

Press and hold the Interactive Tool icon to open the Interactive Tools Flyout menu. Select the Contour Tool (the nested squares). If the shape is not selected, select it with the Contour Tool. On the Property Bar press the To Center icon. Change the Contour Offset amount to 1pix.

NOTE: Your shape may have an unfortunate wedge going though it. Mine did. If yours does not then skip this part. Select the shape and from the Arrange menu, select Break Curve Apart. Now marquee select the entire shape. The status bar at the bottom of the screen will tell you how many shapes are selected. You should only have 2. If it shows more, cut the counter (the inside of the "a" shape) to the clipboard (Edit > Cut). Marquee select most of but not all of the shape. If you see a small portion selected, delete it. Paste the shape from the clipboard back onto the shape, select both and from the Arrange menu, select Combine. Your contour should now be successful.

(Figure 13) Select the contour with the Pick Tool (the arrow). Open the Bitmaps menu and select Convert to Bitmap. Use the settings shown above. Press OK to create the bitmap.

(Figure 14) Center the bitmap over the rainbow-filled @ shape. Open the Interactive Tools Flyout menu and select the Transparency Tool (the wineglass icon). From the Property Bar, select Uniform (the default) and from the Transparency Operation drop down list, select Subtract. Change the slider setting to 30%.

(Figure 15) Select both the rainbow-filled shape and the transparent bitmap. Convert these two items to bitmap (Bitmaps menu) using the settings shown).

(Figure 16) Locate one of the duplicate @ shapes which I asked you to set aside. Change the fill to white and apply a black outline. Apply a 1-step, To Inside contour with a 4pix offset amount.

From the Arrange menu, select Break Contour Group Apart. Open the Arrange menu again and select Ungroup. Delete the wider shape (shown in dashed blue line).

(Figure 17) With the shape selected, press the + key to make an in-place duplicate. Move the duplicate 12 pixels to the right and 12 pixels down.

TIP: With nothing selected, change the Nudge amount on the Property bar to 1px. Now use the arrow keys on your computer keypad to move the duplicate shape the precise amount. (You could also set the nudge amount to 12px. Just remember to set it back to a lower amount when you are done).

(Figure 18) Select both shapes and then press the Trim icon on the Property Bar. The cutter shape remains and while nothing seems to have changed, if you drag the underneath shape away, you'll see the top shape has been trimmed out of the bottom shape as shown in blue.

(Figure 19) Duplicate the whole shape by pressing the + key. Move the duplicate shape up and to the left 12 pixels in each direction.

(Figure 20) Select the trimmed out shape and cut it to the clipboard (Edit > Cut). Select the two shapes. On the Property Bar, press Back Minus Front. This is a new path command that does the same function as Trim except it removes the top, or trimmer shape. Paste the shape we just cut to the clipboard back onto the page (Edit > Paste). Save your work and take a short eye break.

(Figure 21) Position the two cutout shapes as shown. Select the top shape and then select the Interactive Fill Tool. From the drop down menu on the Property Bar, select Conical. Make the starting and ending colors Baby Blue. Click the Edit Fill icon which is just to the left of the drop down list of Fill Types, to open the Fountain Fill dialog. Click the Clockwise Fill icon and press OK to close the dialog.

TIP: If you let the cursor rest for a moment over the color squares on the screen palette (or any of the buttons and icons), the color name, or tool or button name, will appear in a balloon under the cursor.

Select the bottom shape and repeat this step except use Spring Green for the start and end colors. The idea here is to create two rainbow gradients, one lighter and one slightly darker which we will use for highlights and reflections.

(Figure 22) Position the top highlight shape over the bitmap as shown. With the highlight shape selected, select Break Curve Apart from the Arrange menu. You will now have a series of separate shapes.

(Figure 23) Using the Freehand or the Pen Tool, CorelDRAW a single diagonal line through the bitmap image as shown. Select the top left most shape. Select the Interactive Transparency Tool and from the drop down list of Transparency Types, pick Circular. Select Add from the Transparency Operations drop down list. Drag the dashed arrow portion of the fill until the center of the circle is over the area where the diagonal line passes though the top of the @ shape. Click on the outside color, which is now white and change this to black by clicking the black square on the screen palette. Click on the inside color square and change the black to white. We have just made the center opaque and the outside transparent which is the opposite of the default setting.

NOTE: Black represents 100% transparency and white represents 0% or no transparency. You can also click the start or ending square and move the slider on the Property Bar to adjust the amount of transparency. Shades of gray represent various amounts of transparency.

(Figure 24) Select the next shape (directly over the "a"). From the Effects menu, select Copy Effect… Lens From… A large black arrow cursor will appear. Click the first highlight shape to which you applied transparency. Adjust the transparency so the lightest portion is centered on the red diagonal line and the diameter is similar in size to the first circular transparency.

(Figure 25) Repeat this last step and copy the lens effect to the other shapes. When you are finished, select all the highlight elements and group them.

(Figure 26) Position the bottom shape, which we will call the reflection, as shown. Break the Curve Apart. Apply a Circular, Multiply transparency reversing the starting and ending transparency percentages and centering the darkest portion of the circular transparency on the red diagonal line.

(Figure 27) Copy the lens effect to the other shapes and adjust the center and diameter of the transparency. Group all the reflection elements. Save your work and take a short eye break. We're almost done.

(Figure 28) Locate the other duplicate you made of the vector @ shape. CorelDRAW a rectangle around the @ to the size shown. Set the fill and outline to none.

Select both the rectangle and the rainbow-filled @. Convert these to Bitmap but do not select the Transparent Background option.

(Figure 29) With the bitmap selected, select Bitmaps > Blur > Gaussian. Apply a 7 pixel Gaussian Blur.

(Figure 30) Position the blurred bitmap over the other elements. Apply a Uniform, Subtract 50% Transparency. Move the blurred bitmap until the shape appears to the right and down from the shapes beneath it.

If the @ were indeed filled with rainbow-colored GEL and we placed the @ on a white sheet of paper and let light shine though it, we would get the same diffused color effect as we have achieved by placing the transparent blurred bitmap on top.

And that's all there is too it. If you have any comments or questions, feel free to drop me a line at Gary W. Priester

Blossoming Ideas for Cool Distortion Effects

By Steve Bain
CorelDRAW 11's distortion effects are superb for applying controlled changes to an objects' shape-all the while allowing the object to remain in the vector world. There are several different types of distortion effects you can apply in CorelDRAW 11 - ranging from subtle to downright vicious - thanks to the complex mathematical algorithms on which each type of distortion is based.
Understanding Distortion Effects
Before we get too far along, let's gain an understanding of how these effects work with a little background information. As with other effects in CorelDRAW 11, distortions are applied using the Interactive Distortion Tool. You'll find it in the Toolbox grouped with other interactive tools. The effects you apply using this tool are dynamic, so they can be applied without losing the original object properties and may be edited at any time, saved as custom distortion presets, copied between objects, or cleared altogether.
A few other facts will help you in your distortion adventures. First, you may apply multiple distortion effects to a single object, meaning each distortion builds on the last. Once a distortion exists on your page, you may clear it in incremental steps, or copy it between objects. The condition of the object path - including the number of nodes it's comprised of - determines the basic shape of the resulting distortion. Also, there are three basic modes of distortion you can choose from using Property Bar options, each of which features overlapping variables.
The sheer number of variables and the wild results they create can make distortion effects tricky to use. In fact, you can easily while away more than a few hours creating practical drawing applications. To experience the power of this undervalued effect, let's explore a few relatively simple projects you can try to create some of the objects in this project.
Distortions Naturally
The Interactive Distortion Tool is great for quickly emulating natural or organic-style path effects which would otherwise be next to impossible to create manually, making it perfect for the objects shown next.
Let's start by creating the flower objects to represent, and follow up with variations of the same idea.

1. Begin by drawing a circular ellipse roughly three inches in diameter using the Ellipse Tool. Holding your Ctrl key as you draw will constrain its shape. With the circle complete and still selected, press the Convert to Curves button in the Property Bar to delete the ellipse properties. Drag a copy of this object aside by right-clicking as you drag it using the Pick Tool. The copy will serve as a template for a later step.
   
   
2. Apply color to your original circle using a customized Radial Fountain Fill. You could use the Interactive Fill Tool, but to do it quickly and precisely, press F11 to open the Fountain Fill dialog. Choose Radial as the type, and click Custom under Color Blend. Using the Custom Fountain options, set the position 0 color marker to white and the position 100 marker to 100 percent magenta. Add a new position marker at 65 and color it 100 percent magenta also (as shown next). Remove any outline properties.
   
   
   
   
3. Choose the Interactive Distortion Tool. Using Property Bar options choose Zipper as the distortion mode. Enter 17 as the Amplitude, 4 as the Frequency, click the Smooth button and press Enter to apply the effect. This will add a slight wave to the circle path (shown next).
   
   
   
   
4. For the concentric flower petals, create copies of the object in a centered arrangement. To create the first copy quickly, choose the Pick Tool, hold Shift while dragging any corner object handle slightly toward the center of the object, and click your right mouse button to make the copy. Repeat this action to create enough copies to nearly fill the area (roughly 13 in our example). Then randomly rotate each of the object copies slightly to offset them (as shown next with black outlines). To quickly rotate any object using the Pick Tool, you can click any selected object a second time to enter rotation/skew mode and drag any of the corner rotation handles.
   
   
   
   
5. Next, we'll apply a series of distortions in sequence to the template circle created earlier. Using the Interactive Distortion Tool, choose Zipper mode, click the Random button and enter an Amplitude value of 30 and a Frequency value of 5 and press Enter. Then, choose Push and Pull mode, enter 20 as the Amplitude value and press Enter to complete the distortion. Your template circle now has the distortion you need (shown next).
   
   
   
   
6. Switch to the Pick Tool momentarily and marquee-select all the objects in your flower petal arrangement. Choose the Interactive Distortion Tool again, click the Copy Distortion Properties button and click your circle copy after the targeting cursor appears. The distortion is copied to your petal objects (as shown next) and your arrangement is now a flowering shape.
   
   

Impressive Variations
By varying the distortion values in your arrangement of objects, you can quickly create a wide variety of flower styles. Follow this next example using the same objects to create a dramatically intricate effect and experience the real power of this effect.

1. Using the Interactive Distortion Tool, choose your template circle and clear the current distortion effects by clicking the Clear Distortion button two times. Apply a Push and Pull mode distortion with an Amplitude of 5. Then apply a Zipper distortion with the Random and Smooth buttons clicked, set the Amplitude to 100, and the Frequency to 20. Your template circle now features a slightly wavier path (as shown next).
   
   
   
   
   
2. Use the Pick Tool to marquee-select all flower petal objects. Press F11 to open the Fountain Fill dialog and change the custom fountain fill options as follows: Position 0=Red, position 40=Yellow, position 100=Yellow and click OK to close the dialog (shown next).
   
   
   
   
3. With the objects still selected, choose the Interactive Distortion Tool. Click the Clear Distortion button once to return the flower petals to their earlier wavy path shape. Use the Copy Distortion Properties button and target your template circle. This time a warning dialog (shown next) will appear to let you know the effect you are applying is complex-click OK to proceed.
   
   
   
   
4. Remove any outline properties applied to your objects and the effect is complete. In the example shown next, the distortion is applied and resembles a flower with intricately spiked petals and a complex path structure.
   
   

Combining Distortions with Blends
You can create yet another variation on the flower illustration by combining a distortion effect with a blend effect. The steps may be shorter, but the effect is no less impressive. The procedure involves first distorting an ellipse and blending with a scaled copy. Here's how it's done:

1. Start by drawing a circle roughly 3 inches in diameter using the Ellipse Tool (hold Ctrl to constrain its shape). Using the Pick Tool, convert the circle to curves (Ctrl+Q). Choose the Shape Tool and hold Shift+Ctrl while clicking any of the four path nodes to select all the nodes. Then, press the "+" key on your numeric key pad two times to automatically add 12 more evenly spaced nodes to the path (as shown next).
   
   
   
   
2. Choose the Interactive Distortion Tool and choose Push and Pull mode and apply an Amplitude to -50 (a negative value). Fill the object with 100 percent Yellow. Using the Pick Tool, create a centered copy roughly 10 percent of the original by dragging any corner handle inwards while holding the Shift key and clicking your right mouse button. Fill the copy with Red (as shown next).
   
   
   
   
3. Switch to the Interactive Blend Tool and drag between the two objects to create a default blend effect. Using Property Bar options, set the Blend Steps to 20, click the Apply button, and the effect is complete as shown next.
   
   

Creating Mixed Greens
What would a flower garden be without some greenery? The intricate detail on leaves is another ideal candidate for CorelDRAW's distortion effect. To simulate the serrated edges found on leaf shapes, follow these quick steps:

1. Using the Ellipse Tool, create a tall, thin ellipse roughly 3 inches tall and half an inch wide and convert it to curves (Ctrl+Q). Using the Shape Tool, change the top two curves to straight lines by clicking each line and clicking the Convert Curve to Line button in the Property Bar. The result will be a teardrop-shaped object (as shown next).
   
   
   
   
2. With the object still selected, fill the object with a dark green color. Then, choose the Interactive Fill Tool and drag upwards from bottom to top to apply a default Linear fountain fill. Click to select the top fill marker and apply a light green color. Remove any outline colors applied to the shape.
   
   
3. Choose the Interactive Distortion Tool and choose Zipper mode. Apply an Amplitude of 50 and a Frequency of 30 to create the initial distortion. To control the direction of the serrated edges, drag the diamond-shaped interactive marker to the top of the object. Notice the serrated points are now angled upwards (shown next).
   
   

These steps will create one variation on the leaf shape. But, you can quickly create more by varying the Amplitude and Frequency values as well as adjusting the width or height of the object (as shown next). As a finishing touch, stems are easily created using a series of blended paths. To do this, create a path and apply a thick line width (such as 8 points) colored dark green. Press the "+" key on your numeric key pad to create a copy and change this path's outline to a thin width (such as hairline) colored light green. Using the Pick Tool, select both paths and open the Blend docker (choose Window, Dockers, Blend). Enter 5 as the Number of Steps and click Apply to create the blend effect (as shown next).
Steve Bain is an award-winning illustrator and designer, and author of nearly a dozen books including CorelDRAW The Official Guide.

Snap to It with CorelDRAW® 12

By Steve Bain
If you've ever fumbled around trying to align your cursor to something, you can bid this frustrating task farewell. CorelDRAW® 12 object snapping has been re-designed with nine new modes to give you maximum snapping control that works together with the program's new Dynamic Guides.

Now you can instantly snap to text baselines, object nodes, edges, midpoints, centers and ellipse quadrants; or snap to ellipse tangents, perpendicular angles or angles specified as Dynamic Guide paths. For example, you can snap the baseline of a text object to a rectangle, like this:


You can also quickly draw a line between precise points on two separate objects, like this:



For the record, the effect of snapping is like holding a magnet near metal. As the magnet draws closer, it's drawn toward the metal and the attraction becomes stronger until the magnet eventually "snaps" to it.

When using CorelDRAW 12, two things can serve as magnets: the point at which you grab an object or your current drawing tool cursor. The "metal" that these points are drawn toward can be a guideline, a grid line, a new Dynamic Guide path or a specific point on another object.

Object snapping saves considerable time when moving or transforming shapes, or when creating lines or curves. It enables you to control how and where the snapping action occurs and eliminates the aggravation of fumbling with alignments, or guessing at angles and distances. If you've already used grids or guidelines to snap to, you'll appreciate the productivity boost this gives you.

Welcome to Snapping
CorelDRAW 12 delivers a mix of reliable existing and brand new snap features. If you're new to CorelDRAW, it may help you to know a bit about some of the existing snap actions you can activate and how to use them.

Snap to Grid – To have your drawing shapes and tool cursors snap and align to your document grid, choose View/Snap to Grid; press Ctrl+Y to toggle the feature on and off; or click the Snap to Grid button on the Property Bar (shown next). When objects snap to a grid, they snap to the grid lines as well as the grid line intersection points.



Snap to Guidelines – To activate guideline snapping, choose View/Snap to Guidelines or click the Snap to Guidelines button on the Property Bar (shown next). Guidelines are created by dragging from your vertical or horizontal rulers (they can also be slanted), or by using Presets with automated scripts in the Guidelines Presets page of the Options dialog box.



Snap to Objects – To have your objects or cursors snap to and align with other objects, choose View/Snap to Objects; press Alt+Z; or click the Snap to Objects button on the Property Bar (shown next). You can set snap points using new snap modes option in the Snap to Objects page of the Options dialog box.



Dynamic Guides – This new feature uses the selected snap modes that we'll explore next. Press the Dynamic Guides button in the Property Bar (shown next) or choose View/Dynamic Guides (Alt+Shift+D) to toggle Dynamic Guides on or off.



Maximum Object Snapping Power
Here's where object snapping really takes a new turn. The new snap modes enable you to snap to more points on your objects, and offer live feedback by showing onscreen symbols and screen tips.

While object snapping is turned on, your objects and cursors use snap modes to determine where to snap. You can customize these using options in the Snap to Objects pane of the Options dialog box (shown next), accessed by choosing View/Snap to Objects Setup.



For object snapping to happen, two steps are involved: your cursor must be dragging or drawing something, and it must be at or near snap points on another object. (This also includes an object being dragged from its original position to a new position.) When your cursor connects with snapping points on the other object, the snapping action occurs. As you get accustomed to using this feature, you'll wonder how you ever did without it.

Custom-select options in the Snap to Objects dialog box to set your snap behavior exactly how you need it. Here's how each of the options control snapping:

Snap to Objects On – Click this to turn Snap to Objects on or off.


Snapping Threshold – This menu enables you to set the snapping sensitivity, based on pixel proximity to snap points. Choose Medium (the default), Low or High, where Low reduces the snapping distance and High increases it, like this:



Show Snap Location Marks – This toggles the display of the icon markers identifying each snap point type on various objects. This is great to use for identifying specific snap points in a crowded clusters of objects, like this:



Screen Tip – While the Show Snap Locations Marks option is selected, use Screen Tip to control whether or not the text label that identifies the current snap point is displayed.

Customize Where Objects Snap
The mode list (shown next) in the Snap to Objects dialog box includes nine specialized object snap modes. They can be toggled on or off individually when you want to quickly snap to certain object points but ignore others. The icon list beside each of the modes acts as a symbol legend to show how each snap point is indicated on your screen when using the Show Snap Location Marks option. You can also use buttons in this dialog box to quickly activate or deactivate all the options in the list at once.



Each of the modes causes object or cursor snapping in the following ways:

Nodes – Use this mode to snap an object or your cursor where nodes exist (shown as square markers) on any object type or any open or closed path.


Intersection – Use this mode to activate snapping where the outline paths of two objects intersect (shown as a diamond marker) or where the guide paths of two object snap points cross, like this:



Midpoint – Use this mode to snap to the point at the exact center between any two nodes (shown using a triangular marker) on an object or path.

Quadrant – This mode activates snapping to the precise left, right, top or bottom edge point of an ellipse object (shown as a stylized circle symbol), or the visible quadrants on an ellipse set to the Pie or Arc state.

Edge – Choose this mode to snap to anywhere on the outline path of an object (shown as a stylized square symbol).

Center – This mode activates snapping to the dead center origin of closed-path objects (indicated as a target dot symbol) based on their width and height.


Text Baseline – The baseline of text is the imaginary line on which each character appears to rest. If you create text and image layouts, this invaluable mode will activate snapping to anywhere on text baselines (shown as a stylized solid diamond symbol). Both Artistic and Paragraph text objects are valid objects even if the text is formatted in multiple lines, as shown here:



On a slightly higher object snapping level for geometry lovers, the next two modes add tangent and perpendicular actions to the mix. Both help when drawing with line tools to define node positions. Here's how they work:

Tangent – A tangent is a straight line that only touches to align with the edge of a curve. You can use this mode to snap your drawing tool cursor to a point on a tangent (shown as a circle-and-line symbol) from a curve or ellipse, like this:



Perpendicular – A perpendicular line creates a right angle (90 degrees) from another line or curve plane. Choose this mode to snap your drawing tool cursor to a point perpendicular from a point on an existing line or curve (shown as a typical right-angle symbol), or to a point on the guide path aligning with open or closed lines and curves, ellipse objects, or ellipses set to Pie or Arc, as shown here:



The ideal way to familiarize yourself with what each mode does is to activate an object (Alt+Z), and practice by selecting only one active mode at a time. When you do, be sure to turn off all other snapping (Ctrl+Y) as well as Dynamic Guides (Alt+Shift+D). That way, you'll get a clear view of the real snapping power you have at your fingertips with this new feature.

Steve Bain is an award-winning illustrator and designer, and author of nearly a dozen books including CorelDRAW: The Official Guide.