## Panel and Image Layout

The primary layout element in Comic Life is the panel. This can be thought of as a box into which you can place an image and whatever other elements such as balloons and captions are needed.

### Add a panel

To add a panel simply drag a panel from the panel well on the Libraries tab. A new panel is added and selected on the page.

### Repositioning a panel

To move a panel simply select it and drag it to the appropriate location. You can use the Arrange->Align menu to quickly position the panel relative to the page.

### Resizing a panel

Select the panel and drag any of the resize handles to change the size. Holding down the Shift key when resizing constrains the dimensions, preventing accidental warping.
Note if the panel is irregular then the resize handles actually change the shape of the panel rather than resizing the panel in a rectangular manner. (See the panel inspector for more information).

### Adding an image to a panel

Once you've positioned and sized your panel you'll want to add an image. Choose an image in the Browser and drag it on top of your panel. Release the mouse button to add the image to the panel. If the panel was empty to start with then the image is scaled to best fill the panel and selected allowing you to adjust its position with the panel. If the panel already contained images than the image is added on top of the existing images. See the Working with images section for more information.
If you have any other elements in the panel notice that the image is dropped behind them as images are always made the background of the panel (unless another image is already the background).

#### Adding multiple images to a panel

By default panels only accept one image at a time - a new image dropped on a panel will replace the current image in that panel. To add a second image to a panel simply hold down the Apple or Cmd key when dropping the image onto the panel and the second image will be added.
The additional image is made smaller than the panel so that you can see it has been added to rather than replacing the original image.
You can move and resize these images within the panel to get the arrangement you need. Use the Bring Forward/Move Backward Arrange menu items to adjust the order in which the images are displayed.
Tip: Dragging images from other applications into Comic Life does not yet support the Apple/Cmd key option. To get around this simply drop the image on to the page first and then move it onto the panel while holding down the Apple/Cmd key.

### Panel Details

The panel details lets you switch between rectangular and polygonal panels.

#### Irregular

Panels are typically rectangular in shape but you can create irregular shaped panels by checking this box. When checked the four corners of the panel are able to be positioned independently allowing you to reshape the panel as needed. You can change the number of sides of the panel from a minimum of 3 (for triangular panels) to a maximum of 8 (for complex polygons).

If you uncheck the box the panel will be converted back to a rectangle that is sized to the maximum bounds of the irregular panel.

#### Lock

Prevents the panel from being moved or resized.

#### Style properties

Use the Style popup menu to pick a different style, or simply experiment until you create a style you like.
If you have made a variation to the selected style, then a pencil-indicator appears next to the style name. Your element is now unique!
If you want to share this new style, then create a New style.
New styles can be created under Style Attributes with the '+ New' button - a sheet appears that lets you name the new style. When you click "OK" the new style is created and the element is set to use the new style. Now you can set other elements to have the same style.
You can also Update the current style - be careful! - this will also change the attributes of every other object (in this style).
The default style cannot be changed, so you will need to create a new style, which you can then use on other elements.

If you don't like your changes, press the Revert button to go back to the original style.