Drawing Tools -
Part 3

1. Paint Bucket: This tool, which was also described on the panels page, is basically used to fill a selected piece with a full color, gradient, or bitmap style.

Dropper: The dropper tool allows a user to sample the fill or line of a shape that is currently located on the stage. Then you can apply it to another part on the stage. Meaning: if you import a graphic or like a certain color that is not easy to find on the stroke panel. Then use the dropper tool to click on the color you want and that color will then be located in the tool bar, under the active fill color.

Eraser: . The erase tool does exactly that, it erases, but it can erase certain sections of the stage (or object in stage) without touching anything else. This tools gives options erase exactly what they are called: erase normal (erases everything), erase fills, erase lines, erase selected (erases currently selected area), and erase inside.

Hand: One purpose: moves the entire stage where ever you want it. This also can be done, of course, with the use the scroll bars but not as easily. Very useful for when you want to see a part of the stage that is not visible if you are zoomed in close. TALK TO THE HAND!!!!

Zoom: . Zooms in and out to get a closer or farther view of the stage. Can zoom in up to 2000% or can be shrunk to as low as 8%.

I hope that gave you a quick reference to the drawing tools used in Flash. Remember it is not a wise idea to import all of your graphics, so an intermediate knowledge of these tools will only make your movie that much better.

Exercise: Check out these graphics that were drawn with only using the tools in Flash (click here). The purpose of this exercise is to use various tools to create a vector graphic, but try to create the exact ones that were created. Challenge!!

Click here if you want to try to duplicate these much more CHALLENGING graphics. YES, they were all created in Flash using the simple drawing tools.

Copyright © 2001, Bloomsburg University Virtual Training Help Center.
All rights reserved. This material may not be used without written permission.
Contact Dr. Mary Nicholson at mjnich@bloomu.edu

Revised: October 2001