Trace / Contour an image with white edges in PTCreate Pro (LX610).

Trace / Contour an image with white edges in PTCreate Pro (LX610).

If all or part of the outer edge of the image you want to print has white areas, the trace function of PTCreate Pro will not be able to see the contrast so that it can create your cut line.   This tutorial explains how to import a modified secondary image that you will use only for tracing.   All images used for this tutorial are attached at the bottom of this tutorial. 

1. Import your print image by dragging and dropping or clicking the Import button.

2. Select the image to trace it. Click the Trace Button. You can see that it does not detect the outer edge because it is mainly white.



3. We need to modify the print image so that PTCreate can see the edges. This can be done in Photoshop, Illustrator, Paint, Paint 3D, Canva, Snag it, or any graphic or photo editing software.   It does NOT matter what the image looks like as long as the shape remains the same and is outlined by a color other than white.

4. Using Canva (Free program - www.canva.com), you can adjust the Highlights and Whites to turn the white in the image a light gray. Save the image as a new name to differentiate it from the print version.   This works best if the background is transparent. You can usually make the background transparent easily using other tools in the program.



5. Using Snag it Editor and other paid software, you can use the Color Replacement tool to convert all white areas to any color, such as dark gray. This works best if the background is transparent. You can usually make the background transparent easily using other tools in the program.



6. Now that you have your modified image ready, you can import it back into PTCreate Pro. To avoid confusion, it is best to temporarily hide the print image in PTCreate.  Go to the Layers panel and click the eye to hide any layer.



7. Import your modified image by dragging and dropping or clicking the import button. Set the size and position to match the original print images you imported in step one. You'll need to set the width the same on each image and ensure Keep Proportions is checked. Finally, center each object vertically and horizontally. 



8. Select the image and choose Trace. You can see the results are much better this time.  



9. Now, Hide the modified image we traced and Unhide the original print file we want to print. 



10. As with any traced object, it may need some tweaking. First, we'll want to inset the offset slightly, so we are not cutting right on the edge of the print and to fix the circle in the center. It is always best to over bleed your printed image slightly, so the cut does have to be perfect every time. Go to the Path Menu and choose Offset Path. 



11. Finally, you can nudge the cut position slightly using the nudge arrows.



Article ID: 090822