8.5

• You can use the Character Attributes dialog box (Style > Character).
Applying color and shade to lines
Three methods are available to apply color and shade to lines:
• You can use the Line tab (Item > Modify).
• You can use the Colors palette (View > Show Colors).
• You can apply color, shade, and line gap settings using the Style > Color and Style >
Shade commands.
Working with opacity
Opacity is applied at the color level, so you can specify opacity for just about anything
you can apply a color to, including the first or second color in a blend. This means you
can have different opacities at work on different attributes of the same item — a text box
frame, a background, a picture, and each character of text, for example, can have differing
opacities. When specifying opacity, one thing to consider is how items compose against
each other.
Specifying opacity
Specifying opacity is as easy as specifying the shade of a color. In fact, wherever you can
pick a color — in the Colors palette, the Measurements palette, the Style menu, various
tabs of the Modify dialog box (Item menu), the Character Attributes dialog box (Style >
Character), and more — you can enter an opacity value from 0% (transparent) to 100%
(opaque) in 0.1% increments. To specify opacity for a picture, enter a value in the Opacity
field of the Picture tab (Item > Modify).
Specifying opacity for groups
Keep in mind that when you stack items of varying opacities, the colors are combined and
may produce a buildup of ink. For example, if you place a yellow box with a 30% opacity
in front of a cyan box with 100% opacity, the box in front will become slightly greenish.
You can control this by grouping items and specifying a group opacity rather than
individual item opacities. To do this, use the Group Opacity field in the Group tab of the
Modify dialog box (Item menu). Depending on the effect you want, you may need to
revert the Opacity field for the individual items to 100% (otherwise, each item's opacity
is added to the group's opacity).
182 | A GUIDE TO QUARKXPRESS 8.5: PLUS EDITION
COLOR, OPACITY, AND DROP SHADOWS