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Pictures - Align

Compact player layout Large player layout

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About this lesson

Align pictures precisely on the page.

Lesson versions

Multiple versions of this lesson are available, choose the appropriate version for you:

2016, 2019/365.

Exercise files

Download this lesson’s exercise file.

Pictures - Align.docx
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Quick reference

Pictures - Align

Align pictures precisely on the page with the Align tool.

When to use

Use the Align tool to place a picture exactly center, top, bottom, or many other options.

Instructions:

  1. Begin by opening a Blank publication.
  2. Click the Insert Ribbon,   and click Pictures,
  3. Choose any 3 pictures in your files, or use the accompanying pictures with this video lesson.                                                
  4. Notice the pictures drop alongside the publication into the “Scratch Area”. 
    Ultimately, Picture Placement is your control.  If no Picture Placeholder is used, Publisher inserts to the Scratch Area.                                                                                                            
  5. Move the pictures (click and drag) individually or as one unit onto the publication page.
  6. Align the pictures individually or as one unit by using the Align button. 
    Use CTRL Click to select all the pictures
    click the Picture Tools Ribbon, click the Align tool.                                        
                              
  7. If the list is grayed out (meaning not available to choose), make sure the bottom option is selected:  “Relative to Margin Guides”                                                                           
  8. Now practice using each of the options pictured above on the Align tools list:

       Align Left      Align Center    Align Right        Align Top      Distribute Vertically     Align Middle                                                                                                                                                 

                                                     

 

Computer Tips:

  • “Ctrl + Scroll” to zoom in is faster than pointing to the bottom right zoom controls. Zoom in or out quickly by holding down CTRL and scroll with your mouse wheel. 
  • To un-do anything, simply press “Ctrl + Z”, or click the un-do button on the Quick Access bar: 
  • “Ctrl + A” to select all pictures, text, and other elements on a publication. 
  • Click and Drag a lasso around the pictures to select them all
  • “Ctrl Click” each picture to select certain pics to align simultaneously
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  • 00:05 This lesson is about pictures and alignment, getting them to align
  • 00:08 vertically, or horizontally, or at the top, or the bottom.
  • 00:13 It's kind of all automatic if you happen to know the tool that does the work.
  • 00:17 I'm starting with a blank document, I'll go to my Insert ribbon and Pictures.
  • 00:22 There are a few pictures that come along with the video lesson,
  • 00:24 you're welcome to use those or use a few of your own.
  • 00:26 When I hit Insert, they show up over on the right hand side into the scratch area,
  • 00:31 and because they're all still selected,
  • 00:33 I can actually move them as one unit onto the page.
  • 00:36 Now I'm gonna scroll in, so Ctrl+scroll with my mouse so
  • 00:40 you can see my screen a little better, but I wanna draw your attention to
  • 00:43 the left-hand side, I've got my page navigation activated right over here.
  • 00:47 So no matter how much of my screen you see in the center,
  • 00:50 you'll always see the layout happen over here on the left, and
  • 00:53 I love the page navigation for that feature.
  • 00:56 Now, the pictures are selected, so my Picture Tools ribbon is open,
  • 01:02 and right here this is the Align button, this is the one we're gonna use.
  • 01:06 Now when I click Align, they are all dark and activated and ready to use,
  • 01:10 yours might be gray.
  • 01:11 If they're gray, simply activate the bottom Relative to Margins button, and
  • 01:16 then go back and try it again and you'll see they're all available.
  • 01:20 So let's go ahead and use some of these.
  • 01:22 If I hit Align Left, it shoves them over to the left.
  • 01:26 Now, I know you can't see my whole picture right here, my whole page, but
  • 01:29 you can on the left-hand panel.
  • 01:32 So, now I'm gonna go back to my Align > Align Center.
  • 01:36 Now, go to Align > Align Right.
  • 01:39 And the only way you get to know these buttons is by actually using them.
  • 01:42 Now watch what happens when I hit Align Top.
  • 01:45 It puts them all in the top corner because I took all the pictures aligned top
  • 01:49 because they were all selected, they all obey the command.
  • 01:53 So I'm gonna click on the Align again, and I'm gonna say Distribute Horizontally.
  • 01:56 It's gonna spread them all out across the page.
  • 02:00 Much easier than me clicking and dragging and
  • 02:02 hoping to get them to sit side by side.
  • 02:05 So now I'm gonna hit the Align again and it's already at the top,
  • 02:09 I'm gonna go to the bottom.
  • 02:11 If I scroll down you'll see them at the bottom and
  • 02:13 of course the quick view right over here.
  • 02:16 Hit the Align > Distribute Vertically, look what happened.
  • 02:20 It just spread them out willy-nilly across the screen, each one,
  • 02:24 it decided where it was gonna place it vertically.
  • 02:27 All right, let's go back here.
  • 02:29 Let's go to Align Center, that stacks them in a column.
  • 02:34 And how about Align, let's go Distribute Horizontal and now Align Middle.
  • 02:41 That's gonna line up across the middle.
  • 02:43 So how do you get good at using the alignment tools?
  • 02:45 You practice.
  • 02:47 And maybe you've got just one, so one picture,
  • 02:50 let me click off of them, and now click back on just to select one.
  • 02:53 You can always tell by the handles which one is selected or
  • 02:57 if they're all selected.
  • 02:58 So now at this point I can go back to the Align Bottom and
  • 03:04 push that one to the bottom, you'll see it right over here.
  • 03:07 It just fell down to the bottom.
  • 03:10 Or if I want them all selected or
  • 03:11 maybe I just wanna work with these, I can click and drag through them.
  • 03:15 And hopefully my lasso that I'm using with my mouse will click and
  • 03:20 drag and select them all now.
  • 03:21 All these are selected but not the one on the bottom.
  • 03:24 So now I'll go ahead and click Align Vertical or Distribute Vertical,
  • 03:28 and you can see right here what happens.
  • 03:31 Maybe I do want them all to work together.
  • 03:33 I can actually press Ctrl+a on my keyboard which will select all of them, and
  • 03:37 if I scroll through you can see handles are on all of the pictures.
  • 03:40 And now again, go to my Format > Align and
  • 03:44 I'm gonna hit Align Top or Middle or Center, it's up to you.
  • 03:49 It's an awesome feature to use when you have a purposes to use it.
  • 03:53 So with that, that is our picture alignment tool and I love it.
  • 03:59 All right, thank you.

Lesson notes are only available for subscribers.

Pictures - Size, Layers, Group
04m:40s
Pictures - Adjust, Swap
04m:41s
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