How to Create a Radial Gradient Filter over an Image in InkScape

This post continues from the previous post about creating transparent gradient filters over images in InkScape. These kinds of radial gradient images can be used for product collections. Although this post shows how to use this effect using the radial gradient within a circle, you can do the same within a rectangular shape.

• Import an image
• Draw a circle over the image. For richer colors in the result, make the color of the circle a lighter color (like white or close to white). Conversely, chose a darker color.

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White gradient

Red gradient

• Select and right click on the circle. As shown below, select the 'Fill and Stroke' option 

• In the 'Fill and Stroke' dialog box, select the 'radial gradient' option

• In the lower part of that 'Fill and Stroke' dialog box, increase the 'Blur' effect as highlighted in the encircled section in the image below. This effect will soften and blur the edges rather than create a hard circular edge. When increasing the blur, the black handle bars around the object will extend. Ensure they never extend outside the straight edges of the image.

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• Select the image and gradient section. As pictured below, dotted borders will appear around both (to indicate that you have made the selection correctly).  
• From the top menu bar, select 'Object', 'Mask' and 'Set'

• The result will look like this

White gradient

• Create a rectangle (that you can use as a label). Place that rectangle to the back of the image by selecting 'Object' and then 'Lower to Bottom'.

Related Articles

• Transparent gradient filters over images in InkScape

Gradient Transparent Filters Over Images in InkScape

A gradient filter can be used in many creative ways on an ecommerce store. For instance, you may apply your logo color consistently as the gradient color over images to be used for product collections. Furthermore, this technique may also be used to create gradient backgrounds for background slides for home page slideshows and more.

• Set the printable space

• Import an image (optional)

• Select the 'rectangle and squares' tool as pictured below

• Create a rectangle over the image by holding and dragging the highlighted corner. In this example, the bottom right corner has been highlighted with a blue square. Cover the image completely.

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• Change the color of the rectangle by clicking on the 'select and transform objects' tool (as pictured below to the left). Then select the color from the palette that appears at the bottom of the screen (as pictured below to the right). I chose light blue.

• If you had selected the rectangle as in the previous step, it should change to your chosen color
• Select the 'create and edit gradients' tool (as pictured below)

• Click on one end of the rectangle (marked by the white square on the middle left side), then hold and drag the cursor (indicated by the blue dot) away from the first click point.

• You can change the color of the gradient at this point by first selecting the gradient element using the 'select and transform' tool. Then click on the 'gradient' tool. Notice the highlighted box that connects the 2 lines. In this case, it is blue.

 

• Click on the color you want in the selection of colors at the bottom of the screen. The hexadecimal code will appear (as pictured below). The color of the main inner color will change in object. The main color (in the center of the object) will change as shown in the image.

Select the color

The main color (in the middle of the object) changes accordingly

• To change the secondary gradient color, ie the color on the outer edges of the image, notice the line that extends from the box you used in the previous step. At its end is a circle that is like the cursor for the secondary gradient color. Select that circle as shown below until it is filled with a color. As in the previous step, select the color you wish from the collection at the bottom of the page. In the image below, I chose blue. 

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Related Articles

• How to Convert Images into Radial Gradient Images in InkScape (for product collection pages)

How to Resize Page Dimensions in InkScape

When you open InkScape, the entire space that appears on the screen is called the 'canvas'. InkScape allows you to use anywhere within that canvas as a workspace for anything; different versions, notes to yourself and so on.

However, not all of this workspace will appear in the final print job that you save as a png, PDF or other file. This is because the contents within the outline of the box pictured below is the only part of the canvas that will appear on print jobs. 

In that case, all of only the lower of the 2 rectangles pictured below will appear in the final rendition. 

You can change the dimensions of the print area in InkScape to popular or any customized dimensions for homepage slides, collection images, favicons and so on. Here is how. 

To set the page dimensions (before you start working) ... or to resize the page dimensions (after your project is done as pictured below)

You may want to make the page margins fit your work

• If you want to resize the page to fit content, you can either remove extraneous work from the workspace or be prepared to select only those elements that must be within the new page boundaries.
• File
• Select the 'page' tab
• Document Properties. (Sometimes, the dialog box for this option does not appear at this point. This is likely because a user on your computer has already pinned it on your dock for quick reference (by minimizing versus closing the window). You will find its link, usually written in vertical letters among your other pinned options in the upper right corner of your screen). If the dialog box appears but small and attached to the dock, you can disconnect it by hovering over the title bar until the pointer cursor turns to a hand. Drag the hand away from the dock at that point.  
• Note the highlighted places where you can alter the settings

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• The top section 'General' refers to the units displayed on your workspace ruler. As an option, change this to reflect the unit that is more significant to your project.
• In the 'page size' section, scroll through and select a preset dimension if one suits your project. Most people need custom sizes. Alternatively, look below that box. 
• Select the orientation (portrait or landscape)
• In the 'custom size' section; 
• select the measuring unit (like 'px' for pixels, 'in' for inches, etc. Pixels are suitable for onscreen projects. Inches and millimeters are for physical printed documents in the US and Europe respectively.)
• Manually enter the dimensions in figures. -- OR --
• If you want to resize the page to content, do the following.
• Click '+ Resize page to content'
  
• Click the button 'Resize page to drawing or selection'
  
• The change should happen instantaneously.
• Similarly, if the desired content extends beyond the page boundaries, select all the desired items with your mouse and  selected the 'resize page to content' button.
  
  
  
  
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CONTENT RELATED TO USING INKSCAPE

• How to give attribution for free material used under a creative commons license
• InkScape is a free downloadable program with functions that are comparable with Adobe Illustrator (AI). It is therefore a noteworthy alternative.

How to create a donut hole in InkScape

• Create the outer object. In this case, I used a rectangle
• Create the inner object that will shape the hole. In this case, I used an elongated circle. The circle should be on top of the first object.
• From within the top menu, select 'Path' and then 'Difference' to get the following result

Change Line Height of text in InkScape

• Select the text element whose paragraph line height you wish to change.
• Click 'Edit' in the top level menu
• Select 'XML Editor ...' (from the drop down menu) to see the following XML Editor. 
• Find and click the 'line-height' text (pictured below in the encircled text). To find 'lie-height', you may need to scroll to the right of the top right window. However, you can edit that line only in the bottom right window (pictured below with the pink fill). To be able to edit that line, you must click the line in the top right window.
• In this example, I had already edited the lines. The default if usually 1.25. Type over the value to whatever value you prefer. In some text elements, the values appear as percentages like 125%. 
• Click the 'Set' button (in the right corner of the border between the 2 right side windows). The line height of the text should change at this point.