Creating specific custom shape in Publisher

[cleaser]

Hi, following on from this forum post where I asked for help with cutting a specific shape out of a picture, I am looking to create the same silhouette, but as an outlined shape. Attached is an image of what I'm trying to achieve, with the red line being the shape I want to create. Essentially taking a 'notch' out of the current box.

The shape must have the same rounded corners as the current box, as I am using multiple boxes like that in the publication. I have tried creating an outline in Designer persona with the pencil tool but this started getting laborious and I couldn't work out how to perfectly match the roundness of the corners. Could someone please tell me how else I could go about doing this?

Note: this is not a text box border, but a shape with text layer inside of it. (I feel I have more freedom working in this way).

Thanks for any help you may be able to give.

[v_kyr]

So as far as I understand you here, your problem is still to create that outline shape, even people already showed in that other thread how to do it?

That should be usually easy to do, especially with Designer. - But let me ask if the result should look someting like these here (the white areas), where you will reuse the area then for placing on some logo, so to say something similar in a sort of cutout look like for these templates here?

[cleaser]

Hi there,

 

Unfortunately I forgot to attach the screenshot I meant to include in the original post. It's attached here. I'm trying to work out how I can make the same kind of shape I did as a picture frame, but as a vector / shape outline. The grey box will be a QR code, I want the blue stroke to go around it, with rounded corners.

 

I'm aware this may also be possible as a text frame border.

 

Thanks

 

 

[Oufti]

9 hours ago, cleaser said:

I am looking to create the same silhouette, but as an outlined shape.

You select your image and in the Fill box in the contextual toolbar, you choose transparent. 

N.B. You have the option to transform any Curve in Picture frame or Text frame and vice versa in the menu Layers. 

[v_kyr]

Also take a look at some tutorials here, like for example some from TrentL here in the forum's tutorials section, which show you how to deal with the shape builder, boolean & compounds, image clipping ... and related things for the tasks you have to do.

...

 

[cleaser]

9 hours ago, Oufti said:

You select your image and in the Fill box in the contextual toolbar, you choose transparent. 

N.B. You have the option to transform any Curve in Picture frame or Text frame and vice versa in the menu Layers. 

Thank you for this info. I'm aware of how to make a shape fill transparent. I'm trying to work out how to make the shape of the box you have made in your example, with the cut out in the bottom right corner. Can you please let me know how you made it?

[v_kyr]

42 minutes ago, cleaser said:

I'm trying to work out how to make the shape of the box you have made in your example, with the cut out in the bottom right corner.

Thomaso already showed in that other thread ...

 

[cleaser]

36 minutes ago, v_kyr said:

Thomaso already showed in that other thread ...

 

I have tried using the same steps but it's not working for shapes/rectangles unfortunately. I'm going to use the pencil tool in the designer persona and try to make the box that way

[Oufti]

1 hour ago, cleaser said:

Can you please let me know how you made it?

Following the 2d example shown by @thomaso, with some rounded rectangles, adding and subtracting via the Layers menu > Geometry. 

 

If you have problems with this method, it would be better to pursue in your ancient thread… 

[thomaso]

47 minutes ago, cleaser said:

I have tried using the same steps but it's not working for shapes/rectangles unfortunately.

What step doesn't work for you? – The example was created of "Rounded Rectangle" shape objects only. Then the Geometry options turn the objects of type "Rounded Rectangle" into "Curve" objects, maintaining them as vector.

 

19 hours ago, cleaser said:

I'm aware this may also be possible as a text frame border.

I recommend not to use such a shape as text frame since it will cause text indents for the lines near the rounded corners. Alternatively you may use a separate rectangular text frame + assign a right indent only for the text at the notch of your custom shape.

 

[v_kyr]

43 minutes ago, cleaser said:

I have tried using the same steps but it's not working for shapes/rectangles unfortunately.

That works to build that shape. Here's a fast go, I show in ADe instead from which you can take that shape also over to APub and add some stroke around if needed. Or you do it all in APub. - You can also use Thomaso's drawing as a locked background template and lower it's opacity if wanted.

 

 

 

[thomaso]

Once you created a resulting shape with the wanted corner radius then you can use the Node Tool to adjust its width / height without influencing the corner radius. Just make sure you select the relevant nodes only before dragging them.

Holding the Shift key pressed while dragging helps to maintain just horizontal or vertical movement of the selected nodes.

Alternatively to dragging the nodes you can also move them with the arrow keys on your keyboard or enter a value in the Transform Panel for the wanted move, e.g. by typing "+ 15 mm" behind a current value for X to move them to the right by 15 mm.

[cleaser]

@Oufti@thomaso@v_kyr, thanks so much for your helpful insights. Now I see where I was going wrong. I have successfully managed to create the shape. Thanks again!!

[thomaso]

2 minutes ago, cleaser said:

Now I see where I was going wrong.

Where was it?

[cleaser]

2 minutes ago, thomaso said:

Where was it?

I did not create a shape made up of other shapes as shown in the first image you posted - that is what got me there, first adding the shapes together to create the outline, then subtracting them. I will remember that ! Thanks again