How to Import Bitmap Images

By default, Harmony works with vector images created within its own interface. Vector images are primarily composed of information about the different shapes composing the images, as well as their line and fill colours. This makes them easy to edit and colour, and allows us to resize them without affecting the image quality. In contrast, bitmap images are composed of colour information about each individual pixel composing the image. Hence, they are more fit for very detailed or realistic pictures, but they can not be scaled without losing image quality, and can not be edited as easily as vector images.

Typically, you would need to work with bitmap images if you must create some of your scene assets, such as backgrounds or props, in a different software. To do this, you can import bitmap image files into your Harmony scene.

When importing a bitmap image, you must decide how Harmony must process it. You can choose between the following options:

  • Keep as Original Bitmap : This imports the image exactly as is and ensures that it can not be modified when working on the scene. This is useful for using backgrounds that were created in different software in your project.
  • Import as Toon Boom Bitmap Drawing: This imports the image as is, but allows you to edit it using Harmony's bitmap drawing tools—see About Bitmap Brushes.
  • Import as Toon Boom Vector Drawing : Converts a bitmap into Toon Boom vector art, which can easily be painted and edited using Harmony's vector drawing tools. This can be useful for importing line art scanned or created using a different software.

When importing images or 3D models, or when linking images, the settings used to import are saved in your user settings.

NOTE: You can drag and drop a bitmap image directly from the Library into the scene (Camera) as a quick way of importing a bitmap image. However, you will not have access to all the import options.