Using a tracing image
When creating a parts file, you may want to base it on an image from another source, or you may want to draw it by hand first and scan it in. This is entirely an optional way to work. If you want to do this, you can import the image in the form of a JPEG or PNG file into the parts file as a tracing image.
(Note: Comic Strip Factory won’t help you with the scanning. For this you can use Image Capture, which is in your Applications folder, or the software that came with your scanner.)
Importing a tracing image
To import a tracing image, you can either drag it from the Finder into the parts document window, or use the Open Tracing Image… command in the View menu. The image will show up superimposed on your parts document. It also shows up when you are editing parts in the part editor. You can’t directly manipulate this image, even accidentally, but you can trace it with the part editor’s drawing tools.
Adjusting a tracing image
There is a good chance that the tracing image is not the same size as you want the parts you trace from it to be. You can scale your parts after you trace them, but the recommended approach is to scale the tracing image to the size you want to use, then trace the image. You can still zoom in in the part editor to make tracing easier. To scale the tracing image, choose Tracing Image Settings… from the View menu.
You may want to adjust the transparency of the tracing image as well. The tracing image is drawn in front of the parts you are drawing, but in a transparent mode so you can see both at once. You can adjust the level of opacity in the Tracing Image Settings dialog to optimize this double image.
Sometimes you will want to hide the tracing image to see how your work is coming, since the tracing image being present can give you a false impression of how much detail you have included in the actual part. You can hide or show the tracing image with the Show Tracing Image command in the View menu.
Removing the tracing image
When you are entirely done tracing your tracing image, you can remove it with Remove Tracing Image in the View menu. The parts file can only have one tracing image at a time, but you can switch between multiple images just by importing a new one, which will also remove the existing one.