Roger Wambolt describes how to use the new features in CorelDraw Graphics Suite 2019 to elevate a client’s design
In March, CorelDraw released Graphics Suite 2019. As well as now offering a version that is compatible with macOS systems, the company also included a number of innovative new features, as Corel’s senior product trainer, Roger Wambolt, explains. “So, you’ve just come out of a great meeting with a client who’s looking for a custom T-shirt design and you want to get the ball rolling. Creating a picture-perfect mock-up is the ideal way to get everyone on the same page and show off your design.
“In this scenario, the customer has delivered the graphics, but they’re hoping you’ll give it some additional creative options. Whether you’re creating artwork, a mock-up or output, CorelDraw Graphics Suite gives you the graphics power you need to get it done quickly. “This step-by-step takes advantage of the new Non-Destructive Effects feature introduced in CorelDraw Graphics Suite 2019. Non-Destructive Effects lets you adjust any effect you’ve applied to your project – all while protecting the original artwork file. Effects can be turned on and off and even rearranged to get the look you want. Plus, once you’ve created a look you’d like to use again, it’s easy to apply them to other projects or save them as a style sheet for the next time.
“With Non-Destructive Eects, you can experiment and make changes to your file while preserving the original. Let’s say the client has asked you to update the artwork to something with a slightly different look. Perhaps you want to experiment with adding Blur, Crystalize, and Shadow to the design, but then you realize you want to drop the Crystalize effect while keeping everything else. With Non-Destructive Effects, the process is seamless.
“In this tutorial, we’ll explore using Non-Destructive Effects in CorelDraw Graphics Suite 2019 for Mac (these effects are available in the Windows version of the suite too). And of course, with the capabilities of the full graphics suite at your disposal, you’ll have all the editing tools you need to create a mock-up that gives your client a life- like picture of the final result.”
To learn more about Graphic Suite 2019 and to get a free trial, visit CorelDraw’s website.
Special thanks to Bartowski Design who provided the original artwork for this step-by-step tutorial
STEP-BY-STEP: DESIGNING USING COREL
(1) With the flexibility of Non-Destructive Effects, it’s easy to apply effects to a graphic and then modify the effects without altering the original artwork
(2) Go from the Effects menu to Texture > Elephant Skin. Set the ‘Age’ and colour
(3) Add the Plastic effect from Effects > Texture > Plastic to give the object some depth. Here you can set the Highlight, Depth and Smoothness, as well as the direction and colour of the light
(4) Next, go from the Window menu to Inspectors and then to Properties. You can also right-click on the object and select Properties
(5) In the Properties Inspector, click on the Effects tab to see the effects applied to the object
(6) We can edit, hide or delete the effect
(7) Click on the ‘+’ to add additional effects to the selected object
(8) With the third effect, Impressionist, added, the design is starting to take on the look we’re trying to achieve. Thanks to Non-Destructive Effects, we can experiment without harming the original artwork
(9) With a click, we can turn off the Elephant Skin effect just to see what another option would look like
(10) Select the effects stack in the Properties Inspector on the Effects tab to drag and drop any or all effects onto other elements in the design. This saves time
(11) Then to easily re-use this look again, right-click to create a style from the effects stack
(12) This style can then be applied to other elements in the same document or saved out as a style sheet and brought into other files – a great way to ensure consistency across projects
(13) The final printed design
