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Scribus => Beginner Talk => Topic started by: dezcat on November 28, 2017, 03:31:49 PM

Title: Scaling an image after cropping?
Post by: dezcat on November 28, 2017, 03:31:49 PM
I'm starting to get comfortable with the way Scribus deals with image sizing to frame and sizing frame to image, but what does one do after one crops an image, then wants to scale it up or down?  Can this be done?
Title: Re: Scaling an image after cropping?
Post by: GarryP on November 28, 2017, 04:05:56 PM
In Scribus you don't really crop an image. You can set the size and shape of the frame you are displaying the image in, and you can use an image clip path for images that have them, but you can't "crop" as such.

Scaling of the image can be done using the Scale settings in PP / Image. Scaling of the frame can be done in the same way you would scale any other frame or object.
Title: Re: Scaling an image after cropping?
Post by: utnik on November 28, 2017, 05:17:00 PM
hi dezcat

as an addition to garry's answer:
if you really crop an image (outside of scribus), you can – of course – scale it up and down by scaling the frame, as long as the image is scaled to fit the frame size. (proportional scaling should be activated...)

utnik
Title: Re: Scaling an image after cropping?
Post by: dezcat on November 29, 2017, 04:58:08 AM
So...is it the design of the Scribus workflow that we crop our images before placing them in our designs?
...or as we work..crop outside of Scribus?
Title: Re: Scaling an image after cropping?
Post by: utnik on November 29, 2017, 05:29:18 AM
hi dezcat

Quote from: dezcat on November 29, 2017, 04:58:08 AM
So...is it the design of the Scribus workflow that we crop our images before placing them in our designs?

well, usually not mine, but a possible one...
but when i try to imagine a case when i would like to crop an image in another size than i finally use it, i would consider to crop it outside of scribus. (and when i just use a tiny part of a big image, i do so to keep the .pdf file smaller, as otherwise the whole image will be embedded...)

utnik
Title: Re: Scaling an image after cropping?
Post by: Nermander on November 29, 2017, 05:31:24 PM
I think there is a feature request for lossless cropping at PDF export. Because today Scribus will embed the full image into the PDF, even if only a fraction of the image is visible in the frame.

Title: Re: Scaling an image after cropping?
Post by: inkuser on November 29, 2017, 06:05:50 PM
I'm happy making the change in my workflow, and in fact, I do go through and re-size my images to match what I"m showing in my design. If an image is at 80% of full size, I use Gimp to adjust that image to 80% at the same cropping.

However, when I am still in the act of designing, I like to be able to crop and scale as I want to.

For now, I'm using the free scaling feature under properties > Image
Title: Re: Scaling an image after cropping?
Post by: GarryP on November 30, 2017, 09:43:15 AM
It seems like more than one patch to crop JPGs - and maybe other image types - on export was available back in 2011 https://bugs.scribus.net/view.php?id=9799 but nothing seems to have come of it. There are also other Mantis tickets for this sort of thing.

If the purpose of such cropping is to make the size of the exported PDF smaller then "dumb" cropping - simply creating a new cropped image for every instance where a smaller image is needed - might not work all the time but it will probably be good in most cases.
Title: Re: Scaling an image after cropping?
Post by: dezcat on November 30, 2017, 04:30:01 PM
With respect, *one* of the purposes of cropping is to reduce the file size.

However, design isn't a simple matter of placing images to size and calling it done. It involves trying things out to see how they look, and this includes changing size and position of graphic elements and type.

It would be a good and useful thing to add the ability to crop images in Scribus to the list of features to add.

Until it is added, there is a way - albeit klunky - to achieve cropping of the kind under discussion.
Title: Re: Scaling an image after cropping?
Post by: utnik on November 30, 2017, 05:59:15 PM
hi dezcat

Quote from: dezcat on November 30, 2017, 04:30:01 PM...It would be a good and useful thing to add the ability to crop images in Scribus to the list of features to add.

this feature is on the wishlist for a long time – but together with more urgent things...
...feel free to write a script, a patch or at least an exact description of the way it should look like...

utnik
Title: Re: Scaling an image after cropping?
Post by: dezcat on December 01, 2017, 02:48:20 AM
Quote from: utnik on November 30, 2017, 05:59:15 PM
hi dezcat

Quote from: dezcat on November 30, 2017, 04:30:01 PM...It would be a good and useful thing to add the ability to crop images in Scribus to the list of features to add.

this feature is on the wishlist for a long time – but together with more urgent things...
...feel free to write a script, a patch or at least an exact description of the way it should look like...

utnik

I can respect and understand that. Scribus is by far more positive than not.

Thanks to all who chimed in!
Title: Re: Scaling an image after cropping?
Post by: dezcat on December 02, 2017, 08:16:09 PM
OK..wanted to share this.I may have found a workflow to do what I'm talking about...

Since Scribus fields can execute math, you simply scale up the size of the image box, then apply the same multiplier to the image size.

In plain language, if I crop the image the way I like it, but want to enlarge or shrink that *crop,*, I multiply the size of the box, say by 2 (link the aspect ratio) then do the same for the image (aspect ratio also linked).

The only problem with this method is that the image moves relative to the box, but all you have to do is scootch it over.

The image doesn't always change position inside the image box after doing this procedure..I'll have to experiment more to see if there's a pattern.

Of course, mind the "center of change" when resizing the box..if you want the top left corner to stay put, click that radio button.

Not ideal, but way less fiddling around than what I'd been doing before, and the sizing gets nailed.
Title: Re: Scaling an image after cropping?
Post by: kleajmp on May 24, 2020, 06:03:13 PM
This is the only big disadvantage of Scribus against InDesign, designers like to crop and resize independently and on the fly. Therefore inDesign has the white and black arrow. Black for the crop box and white for the content. I noticed the "E"-tool works like the white arrow but the Scribus select tool ("C"-tool) does not allow to resize the cropbox together with the content, for that you need to change the "scaling"-mode under "properties > image" which also screws your previous crop.

Hope the developers will change this behaviour in the future or just add a "free-transform" tool.
Title: Re: Scaling an image after cropping?
Post by: utnik on May 24, 2020, 06:28:42 PM
hi dezcat

i'm sorry – i misunderstood your question years ago. i thought, it was about really cropping the images (cutting away what overlaps the border of the frame...)
if you press the 'alt' key while you scale a frame in scribus, the content will be scaled with the frame.

utnik