How to Take a Panoramic Picture in PhotoPad

How to Make a Panoramic Photo in PhotoPad

Most smartphones today come equipped with camera settings for taking panoramic photos. The result is always a nice big image that captures much more than a typical photo would. But what if you want to take a panoramic picture with your digital camera or another camera? There is an easy way to create stunning panoramic images yourself even if you don't have a phone with the feature. Lucky for you, a panorama can be created using the Create Panoramic Image dialog in PhotoPad Photo Editing Software

Download PhotoPad for Windows

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How it works

The dialog provides an easy way to combine multiple images with overlapping views to create a single, larger, seamless image. When taking your pictures, stand in one place and move your camera from one side to the other, taking photos as you move along. Overlap is good because PhotoPad will use it to layer the images together. As a general rule of thumb, make sure that each image overlaps the others by about 1/4. The images should be the same size, taken from the same camera and from the same position. This will make it easier for the program to stitch them together.

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Download & Install PhotoPad

PhotoPad is a great photo editing software with many fun features to explore. The panoramic image feature is just one of many projects you can accomplish with this feature-packed program. In order to get started creating your panoramic photo, download and install PhotoPad onto your computer by clicking the button below.

Download PhotoPad for Windows

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Open The Panorama Dialog

Open PhotoPad Photo Editing Software on your computer. From the main menu, click on the Tools tab to view the tool options. Select the option that says Panorama to open the Create Panoramic Image dialog.

Add Images

Click on the button in the dialog that says Add Image(s) to launch the file finder window and import your images into the program. Once loaded, the images will appear in the preview window of raw images. You can change the order of the images from within the dialog as well as add or remove images.

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Preview Panorama

Before constructing the final image, the dialog will allow you to preview the results. Click on the button that says Update Preview to view a preview of the final product. Remember, at least two images are needed to create a panorama. If everything looks good, you can click OK and a new project with the stitched panorama will be created and opened for further editing in PhotoPad.

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Crop Your Image

As a result of how the camera moves when taking the individual pictures, there may be some excess black space left around the final product. From the Home tab, you can select the Crop tool and crop the image to get rid of this. After you have cropped your panorama, you can apply any additional effects to your image before exporting.

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Save & Share

Now that you have successfully created a beautiful panoramic image in PhotoPad Photo Editing Software, you are ready to save it and share it with the world. Click on the Share tab in the main menu to view some of the various sharing options that can be used directly within the program. Alternatively, you can select the File tab and choose Save As...to select where and how you would like to save your image onto your computer. 

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For more on PhotoPad, check out these articles:

• How to Make a Picture Collage
• How to Resize a Picture
• How to Add Text to a Photo
• How to Make a Transparent PNG in PhotoPad

ClickCharts New Flowchart Diagram Maker

Our developers have been busy expanding to our list of software programs. Most recently we came out with a new product for creating flowcharts. This new program is named ClickCharts flowchart software and in just a few clicks it will help you make any type of flow diagram from a company organization chart to an entity relationship diagram. So if you have a processes to outline or an idea to brainstorm a mind map of, download ClickCharts free flowchart maker to create a visual representation of that information that you can easily print out or save as an image file to share with others.

New Mac Digital Photo Slideshow Software

One of our most popular programs, PhotoStage Slideshow Maker is now not only the best slideshow software for Windows but also an easy way to make slideshows with music, photos, video clips, narration and more on Mac OS X. Slideshows are a great way to keep your memories alive and creating dynamic video slideshows couldn't be easier. From Camera to DVD or posting online to share with friends and family follow the easy steps to add your media, enhance your photos and add effects for a professional touch in minutes. Download PhotoStage today to start making your own video picture slideshows and see how easy it is for yourself.

PhotoPad Photo Editor New for Mac OS X

PhotoPad photo editing software is now available for Mac OS X. If you own an Apple computer and have digital photos or pictures you would like to touch up before you share them or print them out you will want to try PhotoPad for a free and easy way to edit your pictures.

Not every photo needs a full-blown airbrushing session. And, just like how not everyone who snaps a photo is a professional; not everyone who wants to edit a photo should have to use software that takes professional know-how. That's where PhotoPad steps in, providing features to touch up blemishes, remove red-eye, adjust the color or brightness, crop or rotate, and more all at your fingertips. So you can make your edits and post your photos before you could even download another photo editor.

Whether you are a Mac or a PC, if you have pictures to edit download PhotoPad picture editing software for your computer today to make your digital photos shine.

Just for Fun: Quotes About Music

A little fun for your Friday, here are a few music quotes we've come across to help inspire you as you are creating music whether on an instrument or with music software.

PhotoStage Android Slideshow App

The Android releases are continuing, now one of our long-time favorites, and the best slideshow software, PhotoStage, is now available for Android tablets. So you can make and share slideshows of your vacations before you return home. Quickly combine photos, video clips, music, record narration and more to make fun slideshows that will make everyone wish they were there too. You can download it now from the Google Play app store.

Best Method to Easily Resize Photos with Pixillion

If you have a bunch of photos from your last vacation or night out, you may want to share them all with friends and family. But, you may find that your batch of photos is too large to email. The solution is easy, you can resize or rotate all your digital photos in bulk with a Pixillion image resizer and converter. If you will be editing photos you could resize them as you go, but the more pictures you have, the more time you can save by doing a batch photo resize.

So, to resize your photos, simply add them all to the list in Pixillion. At the bottom of the window click on Effects to open the format options. Here you can use the drop-down menu under Scale to set the photo resizing options. Once that is selected click OK to save your options. You only need to set this once, the effect(s) will be applied to all of the photos being converted in a batch, so Select All—or all the photos you want to apply those changes to—and click Convert. That is all there is to it. Pixillion photo converter will process all of the selected photos and save the newly resized photos for you ready for you to email, upload, and share.

Video Review of the Best Slideshow Software: PhotoStage

You may already know that TopTenReviews has honored our PhotoStage SlideShow Software, naming it The Best Slideshow Software. Now take a look at their video review, including a look at some of the very easy-to-use features that helped make it number one.

Fast and Free Photo Red-Eye Removal

We've all seen it—those glowing or red eyes on an otherwise great photo. There are numerous solutions out there to correct this common problem, but if that is all you want to do, you don't want to spend a lot or be forced to learn about photo editing and navigation in a fancy photo program. PhotoPad photo editor is free and user-friendly, and will help you remove all the red eyes from your pictures, and more.

To eliminate those red eyes, click the Red-Eye button on the Effects tab, then click the red spot on your photo. A blue circle will appear, and you can adjust the circle size by dragging the edge, or move the circle around by clicking inside the circle and dragging. For greater accuracy, zoom in on the eye first. That's all there is to it. Download PhotoPad to try it out and explore the other easy-to-use photo touch-up features.

G is for Graphics

NCH Software ABCs Series

Graphics, photos, pictures and images: we are a very visual society between the tv and media we consume, to the pictures we share online. NCH graphics, image and photo software is available to help you edit photos, convert image formats or add pictures to other projects with software like Disketch CD and DVD labeling software to add that finishing visual touch to your discs.

Also included in our graphics software are some programs that might not immediately jump to mind because they are used in a business environment. Our graphics team also works on Barillo barcode generator and CardWorks business card software. Graphics are important not only in media but also in a professional setting, and we plan to expand the graphic tools we offer in the future to include even more useful applications. For example, we are currently in the early stages of development on a program for creating flow charts and diagrams. Our current range of graphics software includes:

• Barillo barcode generator
  
• CardWorks business card software
  
• Disketch CD DVD label software
  
• PhotoPad photo editing software
  
• Pixillion image converter
  

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Don't Panic, Photo Recovery Software

If you take a lot of photos, you have probably experienced that moment of panic when you connect one of your memory cards to your computer and you don't see anything there. Where could the photos be? Oh no! This should have lots of pictures from my vacation to Bali and my daughter’s ballet recital on it! What happened?!? First make sure you are looking at the right memory card, and if you are, before you mourn the loss of those photos, there still might be hope.

When electronic files get "deleted," whether they were on a memory card or a hard disk, the space they occupy is typically only flagged as free to have something else saved there. So recovering a "deleted" or "missing" file is only a matter of using a program like Orion Photo Recovery Software to scan for the pictures that have been mistakenly flagged as free space. With Orion, you can search your computer or any external device, such as a memory card or your camera, for these files, restoring them to their former visible glory for you to share, print and save.

Make A Seasonal Slideshow

There is something nostalgic about this time of year. Shopping for gifts, making holiday plans, going to parties. And between the parties, presents, and traditions—like sitting on Santa's lap, cutting a Christmas tree, decking the halls, or cooking the special family recipes that only come out once a year—there are also a lot of photos to share.

But what if this year, instead of posting hundreds of individual pictures to Facebook, you combined all your favorites into a slideshow that will warm the heart? PhotoStage Slideshow Creator, rated the best slideshow software by TopTenReviews, makes it easy to combine your memories into a truly magical movie slideshow starring none other than your family. TopTenReviews recently posted an article that runs down how to make a personalized winter slideshow with PhotoStage. With its easy-to-use interface, the most important thing is just to come to the table with your imagination, ready to play with and perfect your slideshow.

Whether you want set your photos to your favorite holiday songs, record the family caroling, or add captions or narrations, you have complete creative control to tell the story of any memorable holiday, moment or event. If a picture is worth a thousand words, a slideshow is easily worth ten thousand, and with easy sharing options, lots of transitions, and dynamic features, there is no better way to create a slideshow than with PhotoStage Slideshow Maker.

Create Your Own Photo Mosaics for the Holidays

Give a unique and personalized gift this holiday season as well as share and preserve memories, make a photo mosaic image with PhotoPad photo editing software. The photo mosaic feature is similar to the collage feature but it builds a larger, composite image out of your photo collection using many small images. Unlike the mosaic posters and photos you may have seen on sale at the mall, the mosaics you make with PhotoPad can contain dozens of pictures all of your family and friends.

This a really fun tool to play with since there are a lot of different options and settings to experiment with as you edit the photo mosaic to get the results you want. You can change the numbers of tiles, swap out the template image which is the "big picture," change the folder that the tile images will be taken from, and the size of the image. I changed the background color of the image and made the mosaic smaller to add border around my mosaic.

On the Insert tab of PhotoPad's menu, click the mosaic button and select the image that will be used as the template for the mosaic. The level of detail in the mosaic is proportional to the number of images in the Tile Collection folder and the number of tile columns and rows specified in the Mosaic Image Properties. The default amount of tiles is rather low, so I recommend increasing the initial numbers. I also encountered mixed results when I only had 20 images in my Tile Collection folder. I saw a much greater variation in my final mosaic image when I had dozens of images in the Tile Collection folder, so make sure you give PhotoPad a good variety of photos to choose from.

PhotoPad is free, so download PhotoPad today and try out the mosaic feature. And if you like PhotoPad, check out more of our software gift ideas including PhotoStage slideshow software for another fun way to combine your photos into a unique and personal gift.

Wedding Slideshow Creation with PhotoStage

One of the the truly wonderful things about PhotoStage slideshow software is that it can be used for so many different things. We've had stories in our blog about making stop-motion videos, digital storytelling, making a music video and more. PhotoStage is ideal for preserving memories of all kinds of events, and one of the big events that more and more users are beginning to use PhotoStage for is making a wedding slideshow to share with friends, family, guests and more.

The Daily Wedding Blog recently wrote about creating wedding slideshows with PhotoStage as a digital addition to the traditional framed photo and photo album that couple keeps. Just one of the great things about putting together a slideshow is how easy they are to share, whether you post the finished slideshow to Facebook or burn them to a DVD and send them out with your thank yous. The possibilities are endless and there is no reason to limit yourself. You may only get one wedding album, but there is no reason you can't make multiple wedding slideshows, maybe one for the bridesmaids that also includes pictures from the bachelorette party and another version for the groomsmen. If you're getting married we hope you will use PhotoStage for making wedding slideshows, and for more inspiration and tips on planning a wedding without breaking the bank visit the Daily Wedding Blog.

Convert and Compress Files

Whether you're on a Mac or a PC, these conversion applications cover nearly every file type you'll run into, making them the most complete and reliable software for converting and compressing files out there.

Switch Audio File Converter

For your music, presentations, or audio projects, Switch Audio Converter lets you put your music anywhere at any time. Convert music for your iPod, PSP or phone. Compress audio to save hard drive space. Create a ringtone on your phone by converting the format, or even extract audio from video files.

Prism Video File Converter

Your computer might only be able to open certain video file types. Use Prism Video Converter to ensure you'll always be able to watch your videos. With Prism you have complete control over video settings such as compression and encoder rates, resolution, frame rate, and size output. You can also batch convert thousands of files at once and preview videos before conversion.

Pixillion Image File Converter

Pixillion isn't just image conversion software, there are many additional settings to make adjustments to your images while converting including adding watermarks, adjust the image quality, size or resolution, or even crop and rotate photos.

Express Zip File Compression Software

Express Zip is currently the only application on this list that is only available for Windows, but it is an extremely valuable compression tool. Use Express Zip archiving software to create, manage, and extract zipped files and folders. Plus extract files from a variety of other archive formats including rar, cab, iso, tar, and 7z or convert those archives into zip files. You can also easily email zipped files from the program or simply compress files to save disk space.

Slideshow Software Doesn’t Have to Be Difficult

As further proof that PhotoStage is the best slideshow software, we can now add a 5 star review from the editors at CNET to its accolades. We strive to make our software easy and intuitive and were thrilled to have the editors comment that "PhotoStage Slideshow Producer shows that slideshow makers don't need to be difficult to use to produce great results," and going on to say:

"We were pleasantly surprised to find that PhotoStage offers a narration feature that let us add our own music to our slideshow; you can even record your own voice, if you have a microphone. The Save step gave us numerous options for saving our newly created slideshow, including saving it as a Flash file, DVD movie, or a data disc, or we could save it to our hard drive or portable device. It took a few seconds to save, but in no time, we were able to play our newly created slideshow back. PhotoStage Slideshow Producer will appeal to users of all skill levels."

– CNET

You can read the complete review of PhotoStage Slideshow Software on download.com, or download it now to get started making your own slideshow presentations right away.

Pixillion Mac Image Converter Software

One of the things NCH is best known for is our converting software. Take virtually any audio file and make it an mp3 for your iPod with Switch MP3 Converter, and not being able to watch a video on your computer is never a problem when you have Prism Video Converter. Video files in particular used to plague me at home on my Mac because of platform compatibility issues. Now Mac users can add another converter to their arsenal with Pixillion Image Converter which recently had its first Mac release.

What makes Pixillion great is that it isn't just another conversion program, additional options allow you crop, resize, rotate and compress your digital photos during conversion. And for any photographers out there not only can you batch convert but you can add watermarks to protect your images as well. So if you have photos, and we know you do, take a look at Pixillion Image Converter to help you reformat your pictures.

PhotoStage: The Best Slideshow Software

PhotoStage photo slideshow software is an excellent and easy way to take your photos and create stunning movies of your cherished memories and events. You don't have to take our word for it: TopTenReviews just awarded PhotoStage the Gold award, proclaiming it the best slideshow software. They describe PhotoStage Slideshow Producer as "intuitive and savvy photo slideshow software that enables you to assemble artistic, personalized picture slideshows with total ease," going on to say:

"PhotoStage really does an outstanding job of bridging the gap between ease of use and multifaceted functionality. The photo slideshow application delivers a well-supplied feature set that is easy to utilize, and we were able to create an entire slideshow without any difficulty. Furthermore, we loved how clean and sophisticated the user interface is; it seems more akin to a sleek graphic design tool than a basic slideshow maker. Such a seamless melding between ease of use and an advanced appearance and feature set makes the photo slideshow software a viable option for both casual and tech-savvy users."
– TopTenReviews

Read the complete review of PhotoStage slideshow software on the TopTenReviews website. Or download a copy of the software today and get started making photo slideshows right away. As TopTenReviews pointed out, the "easy drag-and-drop functionality make the software simple to use and it delivers high-definition output quality," so you won't regret having this application on hand for turning your digital photos into stunning movie slideshows to share with family and friends.

Video Tutorial: Simple Slideshow Software in Action

See how easy it is to bring your digital photos to life and share your favorite memories with family and friends with PhotoStage slideshow creation software. Our recently finished PhotoStage video tutorial walks you through the process so you can see how easy it is to combine images, video clips, music and narration into a truly memorable slideshow movie.

Download PhotoStage slideshow software today to start making your own custom multimedia presentation to share with friends and family and preserve your memories.

PhotoPad: Proving that Change Can be Good

PhotoPad Image and Photo Editor has a new look. It now uses tabs to sort the categories of features, effects, and filters to make more efficient use of the toolbar. Each time you click a new tab, the toolbar displays the options associated with that tab:



Remember when we first started seeing tabs in our Internet browser windows? At first we had to get over the impulse to keep numerous windows open and play the memory game with the task bar, but we recognized the convenience they provided us. Now we’re getting used to tabs atop some programs, such as Word and Excel, which Microsoft calls a ribbon. The initial change was stilting to those of us who had become experts at navigating the labyrinth of menus and options, but we’re starting to get used to this change too.

My point is, even though we resist it, without change we wouldn’t grow and develop.

When developing software, the rule of thumb is to stick with what people are comfortable with, or what they are used to seeing. That way, people won’t spend too much time looking around the interface before they can actually start using their new program. Another rule of thumb is to do what is best for your users. Sometimes these rules clash, and decisions have to be made. That’s what happened with PhotoPad.

PhotoPad is a product with lots of features, options, and cool buttons. Imagine all the possible photo manipulations there are, and then imagine designing a program that will organize all those features into the most user-friendly way possible. Then imagine that you are going to add features to the program over time, and need to plan for where those features might go. Enter tabs. They allow us to display many more options along the toolbar than one static toolbar would.

I know a lot of you are dubious. If you never got used to the Microsoft ribbon, and you really miss the menus. But believe me, everything that was in the menu is now on this tab, and the tabs require much less fine motor control over the mouse than using menus would. I happen to be a great fan of the new look.

Let us know what you think about the tabs, and look for them in more NCH Software products in the future. Let’s embrace change!