Fireworks CS6 Workshop

In this workshop you’ll learn all about the interface, tools, and workflow of Fireworks CS6, as well as how it integrates with other applications. The contents of this course include:

Introducing Fireworks
In this introductory chapter you’ll get an overview of what will be covered in the course and learn how to use the project files that are included.

The Fireworks Interface
When you first open Fireworks, you are presented with tabs, windows, panels, tools, and a myriad of menu items. In this chapter we’ll review each of these features and along the way I’ll give you tips, tricks, and techniques that will have you using Fireworks in what seems like a very short time.

Vector Drawing in Fireworks
Fireworks is also a drawing tool that contains some pretty powerful features. In this chapter you’ll learn how to draw shapes and add gradients, textures, patterns, filters, and more.

Working with Bitmaps
Images tell a story, and this chapter shows you how the imaging tools in Fireworks can make that story effective and engaging. Starting with basic skills like importing and scaling, the chapter moves through color correction, retouching, and other intermediate imaging techniques.

Image Retouching and Color Correction
No image is perfect. In this lesson you will gain solid first-hand knowledge of how to approach image retouching and color correction in Fireworks.

Masking in Fireworks
Masking is a great way of changing how an image appears without affecting the original image. In this chapter you will learn how to easily create vector and bitmap masks using a variety of methods. You will also discover how strokes and gradient files can provide you with amazing results.

Working with Text
Text is more than “that gray stuff that goes around the pictures.” This chapter will walk you through the major text features and techniques available to you in Fireworks.

Creating Symbols in Fireworks
If you are looking to supercharge your workflow, Fireworks symbols are just the answer. In a world of rapid prototyping, the ability to reuse content — vectors, text, bitmaps, buttons, and animations — in current and future projects is one of the most powerful features of Fireworks. In this chapter we will examine how symbols are created, where they are stored, and how they can be shared among projects and team members.

Wireframing
Wireframing means setting up the structure of a project before you start working on it. In this chapter we’ll start by drawing wireframe designs on a piece of paper and work through using Fireworks templates, creating your own wireframing symbols, and even extending Fireworks by adding a really neat Fireworks extension. The chapter ends with you building a wireframe and understanding the wireframe process from analog to digital.

Creating for Edge and Mobile
This chapter looks at the options Fireworks offers for preparing images for use in Adobe Edge and creating images to be used on mobile devices like smartphones and tablets.

The Endgame
You have many options for how to save a document, and which ones you choose will depend on how and where the document is intended to be used. In this chapter we will explore the process I call the “endgame”: Ensuring that the document is optimized for its final use, whether that is video, web animations, or anything in between.

The lessons are wrapped in a feature-rich interface that lets you jump to any topic and bookmark individual sections for later review. Full-Screen mode provides a hi-def, immersive experience, and Watch-and-Work mode shrinks the video into a small window so you can play the videos alongside your application. Also included are exercise files that give you an easy way to try out the techniques you learn.