Pictavo Users Guide

THEY WILL LOOK BACK TO WHEN THEY LEARNED TO

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SUSPENDED BY HER PIGTAILS, Molly Schmidt (as Amanda Thripp) holds herself still so Wesley Taylor (as Mrs. Trunchbull) can swing her around in circles during the anticipated “Playground Scene” in Matilda the Musical presented by the theatre department in Clark Theatre Oct. 4—29. “People were shocked when I started flying,” Schmidt said. “There were ooooos from the audience, and then we heard cheers. I could tell they were delighted by it even if it looked scary at first. Wes was always terrified he was going to drop me, but I told him just to pull and hang on with all his might.” A senior, Taylor said he wasn’t ever worried. “Even though I dragged her all over the floor when started, she’s such a trooper.”

Hello, friend.

Welcome to yearbook. You’re in good hands, regardless of your experience level.

YOUR TEAM

Behind the scenes of the Pictavo™ platform there’s a whole team of yearbook experts, customer care and tech support lifesavers and programmers constantly working to be there for you, anticipate what you need to produce your book and give you a terrific experience.

Your time is valuable. We won’t bombard you with emails — we promise — so please add us to your address book to receive important updates.

We want to make yearbook simple, intuitive and fun. If you get stuck or need a quick answer, refer to the help menu in the upper right corner. You can also email us at answers@pictavo.com. If you’re just a talk-to-a-person kind of person, we’re here for you. Call us at 800.290.0036.

You’ll always have us in your corner.

YOUR JOB NUMBER

Our production processes rely on an internal tracking number unique to your book. We call this your “job number,” and it helps us look up your account settings faster. Your unique job number is 1234567.

WHICH BROWSER SHOULD YOU USE?

Pictavo™ runs best on Chrome or Safari. When you choose the one that’s best for you, communicate that to others who’ll be working on your book. Because you can work from anywhere, our HTML5 platform tailors your experience based on browser choice, so make sure everyone uses the same one across all devices.

If you’re ready to get started, click here.

Happy Yearbooking!

Browser Choice

Pictavo™ runs best on Chrome or Safari. When you choose the one that’s best for you, communicate that to others who’ll be working on your book. Because you can work from anywhere, our HTML5 platform tailors your experience based on browser choice, so make sure everyone uses the same one across all devices.

Activating Your Pictavo Account

Activate Your Account

You will receive a welcome email from Pictavo asking you to activate your account. Locate your school ID number, or “job number,” in the email.

Signing in

Once you’ve activated your account by clicking the activation link sent to your email, use the associated email address and password you chose to login to Pictavo.

WELCOME, KATIE JOHNSON!

The Pictavo Homepage

This first screen when you login to Pictavo represents the three main functions of yearbook: Designing pages, managing the project and selling.

Build My Book

Plan the content for each page through View Ladder. Jump right into designing pages through Design Book. Add, upload, name, rotate, delete and manage photos through Organize Photos.

Manage My Book

The Adviser Center offers functions available only to the adviser: Set up permission-based users and groups, review book specs, select defaults for page design and monitor project status. Manage your portrait database and student roster within the Student Center.

Sell My Book

Set up your products and pricing through Store Setup. Within Books

Sales you’ll be able to set a sales goal, add cash or check orders and export a sale report for distribution. This section is available if you are using BuyTheYearbook.com

NEW TO ADVISING? NEED A YEARLONG GUIDE? USE OUR NEW, ALLDIGITAL YEARBOOK CURRICULUM. ADVISERS CLICK THE HELP ICON, THEN ADVISER RESOURCES TO VIEW AND DOWNLOAD.

The Pictavo Help Site

Help.Pictavo.com has all of the training resources you need, with additional educational and inspirational materials to keep you and your team on track.

Pictavo Help Tab

We grouped and listed topics into categories that follow the steps you’ll take to complete your book, from Adviser Center Book Setup to Progress and Submission.

Just need step-bystep tutorials to help you get started? Read Pictavo Help or watch video tutorials to get the information you need.

Learn & Inspire Tab

Here, you’ll find flipbooks of art collections and this guide, as well as digital versions of other kit materials. Download social media banners and letter-sized desk ladders and sales sheets.

Pictavo’s Yearbook Curriculum

Learn.Pictavo.com is the one-stop shop for Pictavo’s 180-day instructional curriculum. From photography lessons to final exams, you can find it all on our adviser-only site. Just click the Help icon, then Adviser Resources.

Adviser Resources

Resources specific to advising a yearbook program. Best practices for everything from how to manage and grade photography assignments to ladder planning and yearbook distribution. Need quick access to the tests and answer keys about yearbook’s basic principles? You’ll find them under this heading.

Staff Resources

Individual materials for your staff. Need a PowerPoint that shows breathtaking student photography? We’ve got that. A handout for caption writing? Yep. Class projects that actually generate content for your book? That, too. Use the Staff Resource tab if you want to piecemeal our resources with your tried and true methods.

Your Story Starts Here

Our entire 180-day curriculum, including lesson plans, available to download in weekly chunks.

Browse by Topic

Want to view all of our resources by topic? You’ll find a navigational menu at the bottom of every page. Click the topic to be taken directly to those resources.

Set Grids and Guides

Units of Measure

Option selected will be reflected on the grid and in rulers.

Grid Options

Pick the grid and guides that work best for you.

AMERICAN GRID

Advanced grid for creating modular design

CONVENTIONAL GRID

Standard pica grid

CUSTOMIZABLE GRID

Create your own grid

Tab Alignment Ruler

Displayed just above a text box, the tab alignment ruler is used to set the spacing between tab stops.

Pick Your Fonts

Activate Fonts

Select only fonts you want users to see when creating pages. This ensures users will not pick a font inconsistent with the design and can also help improve overall site performance. Fonts chosen will be available both in the book and in Buy The Yearbook’s ad designer if you sell ads.

Create a Style Guide

Character Styles

Create up to twenty distinct styles for headlines, subheads, body copy and captions by creating Character Styles. Taking the time to set this up at the beginning saves time and ensures consistency when users add text to pages.

Choose a Color Scheme Set Project Colors

Enable only those colors which coordinate with the theme, or art collection, you’ve chosen or created.

WholeBook Looks

Narrow Art Options

Enable only certain designs to ensure a consistent look throughout the book. Doing this will also save time when creating pages because you’ll limit the amount of artwork to search through.

Customize Page Numbers

Position

LOWER CENTER

The bottom and center

LOWER OUTER

The bottom outside corner

UPPER CENTER

The top and center

UPPER OUTER

The upper outside corner

Font

Choose the font for your page numbers.

Minimum Number of Characters

ONE (1)

Single-digits have one character

TWO (01)

Single-digits have two character

THREE (001)

Single-digits have three character

Number Color

BLACK Numbers are black

WHITE

Numbers are white

Background Shape

NONE

No background shape

OVAL

Oval shape on numbers

SQUARE

Square shape on numbers

Both Numbers Appear on

BOTH

Numbers appear on the left and right pages

LEFT

Numbers appear on the left pages only

RIGHT

Numbers appear on the right pages only

SPECIFIC PAGES

Select and unselect the specific pages you wish numbers to appear

Users & Groups

User Management

Manage users and groups for anyone helping with the book. Add and delete users and groups, view their work activity and edit their permissions.

New User

Enter the new user’s name, email address and password. Then assign their individual permissions and page access.

New Group

Create a group name and assign permissions for the members of this group. Assign and unassign users in this window as well.

Send Message

With users selected, advisers can send a message to chosen users from the email associated with their Pictavo account. Personalize the message and click Send.

Edit

Edit an individual user’s account information, permissions or page access. If you’ve created groups for your users, edit group permissions.

Delete

Delete the chosen users from the project.

Project Specs

View Project Specs

View details about your book (e.g., number of pages, number of books to print, binding type, cover type). Contact your yearbook representative to make changes.

Here, you’ll also find due dates for your cover and pages. To keep your originally scheduled ship date you must submit on or before the dates displayed. Status bars indicate your progress.

Cover Personalization

Advisers can adjust the color and location of the chosen personalization option. Talk to your sales rep about your personalization options or to change the option chosen.

View Deadlines

Adviser’s can view their cover, page and personalization deadlines by clicking the profile icon anywhere in Pictavo.

Calendar

Add events and assignments. View by month, week or day. Entries can be set up as one-time or recurring.

Student Database Roster & Reports

To get started, upload your student roster (database). These are usually maintained by administration. Keep track of the number of times individuals appear in the book by setting a coverage goal. You may generate an index here if you choose to include one.

Access to student roster and portrait database is permission based. If a user does not have permissions, they will have read-only access to the portrait database, and student roster will not display.

Portrait Management

Your school’s photographer will send you the portraits from school picture day. Once portraits have been uploaded to Pictavo, they reside in the Portrait Database within the Student Center.

Portraits may be viewed by Grade or Homeroom. Click either title to change the display.

What is Buy the Yearbook?

Sales Platform

Buy The Yearbook is a secure e-commerce site fully integrated with Pictavo. Parents, students and other community members can purchase yearbooks, student ads and business ads as well as design ads.

If Store Setup does not appear on the home page or in the Adviser Center, and you wish to use Buy the Yearbook, contact your yearbook representative.

Buy the Yearbook

Users View and export the names and email addresses of users who have created accounts on Buy the Yearbook.

Store Setup

Enable Sales

Check the box enabling Buy the Yearbook sales. You’re required to read through information detailing sales tax and service fees.

School Information

Before setting up products, enter information about your school and your store in general.

GRADE/HOMEROOM

Select your preference for grade or homeroom and enter descriptions. Customers purchasing products must select one. This aids in tracking and distribution.

REFUNDS

Enable refunds. Setting is automatically disabled. See our note.

REIMBURSEMENT CHECKS

Enter the address where Buy the Yearbook checks should be sent. This address is most likely your school. Reimbursements are made monthly on all online orders.

TAX RATE

Marketplace laws require sales tax to be collected and remitted in certain states. The tax rate displayed is for your school’s location. However, the rate charged is based on the location in which the purchaser resides and calculated at checkout so it could differ from the percentage shown.

DISCOUNT CODES

You may wish to offer discounts for certain purchasers. Create a promo code, select the discount percentage and click save.

An Additional Note on Refunds

If you use Buy the Yearbook to sell books online, you may if the situation dictates, allow refunds for purchases. We do not suggest allowing refunds to be requested at any time, as it can create unexpected sales shortfalls which may cause you to miss necessary sales goals.

WE ADDED THIS FEATURE

ONLY FOR THE RARE INSTANCES WHERE A REFUND IS JUSTIFIED FOR DUPLICATE PURCHASES.

By default, this option is turned off. We only suggest turning on the ability for refunds when and if a reasonable situation arises where a refund might be considered, like if a parent accidentally purchases products multiple times. Buy The Yearbook has built-in warnings to prevent duplicate purchases. If purchasers input the same email address, a pop-up box will display some of their original order details. They will have to click to continue their purchases.

Even if the option is enabled, refunds will only be processed if:

The refund is requested within 30 days from the date of purchase.

The expected delivery date listed under Project Specifications has not passed.

The order was purchased through Buy the Yearbook (i.e. not manually entered).

We suggest enabling the option only when necessary, then disabling it once the refund request has been processed. You should coordinate closely with the buyer requesting a refund so the option is only available for as long as necessary.

Products Overview

Define the product offering available on Buy the Yearbook. Start by clicking the Add Product button.

Sell a Yearbook

SELECT A CATEGORY

Select the product category and type of product. You can customize the product name and description.

SET A DEADLINE

Set an order deadline. You can also customize the product description to include when books are delivered and the date of the deadline to order.

SET A PRICE

Set a product price. Enable tiered pricing if you plan to alter the price of the yearbook after a certain time.

ENABLE PERSONALIZATION

Decide if you wish to include a personalization option for buyers.

ADD SUPPLEMENTS

If your school sells a supplement for spring sports or other events on campus, add that here.

NUMBER OF BOOKS

The contracted number of books is the number of books available for purchase in your store. When the quantity of books remaining reaches 50, the adviser will receive an email alerting them to such.

AVAILABLE ONLINE

Click the check box to the right of the product to make it available online.

Sell Ads

SELECT A CATEGORY

Select the product category and type of product. Products are named by the size of the ad.

SET A DEADLINE

Set an order deadline.

ENABLE A GRADE

Choose to make ads available only for certain grades. Only for student ads.

SET A PRICE

Set a product price. Enable tiered pricing if you plan to alter the price of the yearbook after a certain time or when quantities are low.

SET A LIMIT

Set the maximum number of products available for purchase or choose not to limit product availability. For business ads, you can also choose to allow the business to say which staffer sold them the ad.

Ladder Icons

Sort

View pages by the users or groups assigned to them, the page status or a specific ladder section.

Navigating Sales Sales Goal

Set a goal for the number of yearbooks you wish to sell and track your progress toward achieving it. Enter a number into the Sales Goal box and click Go.

Current Sales Total

At a glance summary of total orders received by product category, as well as total revenue generated.

Orders

Details for each order can be found in the Orders section. Orders that have been refunded will appear with a strike through the order.

Products

View orders and sales dollars by individual product category. If you choose to enter offline sales (cash or check orders), total sales dollars are broken out for ease of reconciling.

Book Sales Icons COLUMNS Select the data to appear in the order report.

Add Practice Pages

Share

EXPORT For distribution, export an order report.

SORT Change order view by product, payment type, grade or date.

Add practice pages, covers or endsheets for staffers to work on designs before they make it on pages that print. Practice pages are added in spreads and do not change your final page count.

Usage & Tracking

Send high- or lowresolution PDFs of any spreads, the cover or endsheets. Once you’ve selected what to send, choose where and how to send them.

Zoom

EDIT Edit order details and add notes.

TRASH

Delete manually entered orders.

ADD SALE

Add orders received from check or cash sales.

See which users have worked on pages and for how long. Clicking this icon without a spread selected will let users see the history of every page and export the data to a spreadsheet. With a spread selected, click the icon to see the specific page’s history.

DOWNLOAD INVOICE

Select an order to download a PDF of the invoice.

Assign Users

UPLOAD ORDERS

Use our Excel template to enter off-line orders in the correct format.

Once users and groups are added under User Management in the Adviser Center, assign them to pages while on the ladder.

Use the zoom function to change how many pages you see at a time while in ladder or page view.

Full Screen Preview

View the pages of your project in a flipbook.

Page and Ladder

Views

Ladder view arranges your pages as one continuous scroll, while page view shows a series of spreads at once.

Submit

You may submit pages once the status is marked approved. To ensure your ship date, submit them on or before your due date. Find this by clicking the profile icon or under project in the Adviser Center.

As one final check, Pictavo alerts you to any portraits not flowed as well as text and/or image warnings still in place. Exit the submission process and address warnings.

WHEN A PAGE OR SPREAD IS SELECTED, A BLUE OUTLINE APPEARS AROUND THE THUMBNAIL AND A NEW SELECTION OF ICONS, AND SUBSEQUENT FUNCTIONALITY, BECOMES AVAILABLE.

Edit

Jump to the selected pages’ design area. Move

Move the selected pages around on the ladder.

Ready for Approval

Alert the Adviser pages are ready for proofing. Delete Delete the selected page.

Reject

Page is not approved by the Adviser.

Approve

Page is approved by the Adviser. Page status turns blue.

Make Private

Hide the selected page so only the Adviser can see the content. Helpful if a project wants to keep the cover or specific pages secret from users.

Personalize Your Ladder

Ladder Sections

Having sections helps you organize your book. Click New Section to name the category, assign pages and users to it as well as pick its color. Sections can be edited at any time.

From the menu, quickly access practice design areas and live pages. If a page has been assigned to a specific ladder section, it will appear in this menu in the chosen color.

Workspace Navigation

HOME

Return to the homepage

SAVE

Saves page changes

LADDER

Return to the Ladder

TYPE ICON

Draw or drop a text box

PHOTO BOX

Draw or drop a photo box

SHAPE

Draw or drop a shape box

LINE TOOL

Draw or drop a line

PHOTOS

View photos and albums

ZOOM

Click to zoom into a specific area of your choice, or click the caret for additional zoom tools

COLLECTIONS

Our cohesive, predesigned full book looks

PORTFOLIO

View saved modules and templates

ART

Individual backgrounds, templates, snippets and accents

UNDO

Undo last action

REDO

Redo last action

ADD PORTRAIT GRID

Place a portrait panel

DRAGGING HAND TOOL

Quickly move across the workspace

PREVIEW

See a proof of your page

SETTINGS

Open workspace settings

Trim

Your pages will be trimmed where the white lines intersect.

Safety Margin

The green line around each page represents a safety margin. Keep text and faces in photos inside the green lines to avoid being trimmed off during production.

Ruler

Display rulers on the left and top of the workspace to help align spread objects.

Gutter

The inside edges of the pages (center of the spread) are bound during production, making that area difficult to see. Keep text, faces and important elements outside the gutter.

Grid

To help with alignment, a non-printing grid appears behind all objects. Grid lines remain visible through backgrounds. You may set the grid to picas or inches.

Bleed

The gray border represents the bleed line. Objects meant to run (or “bleed”) off the page must touch the outside edge or extend past the gray line.

Pasteboard

The non-printing workspace surrounding a page or spread used to store objects (e.g., images, accents, photo boxes) not yet positioned on a page.

These pages are linked. Link your pages at the gutter to design a spread, or unlink to design one page at a time.

The Pictavo Workspace

Workspace Tools Flyout

When designing pages, click the Flyout icon to display thumbnails of all pages. From here, navigate to any page without going back to the ladder. Simply doubleclick a page to open it. To exit, click on the icon again. You will return to the last page on which you were working.

Comments

Add comments to pages. Comments can be assigned to users and will appear as a task within the user’s task list.

Save History

Revert to previously saved versions of your pages.

Share & PDF

Create PDFs to download, proof and share.

Help

Navigate to Pictavo’s help site. Advisers can also access the curriculum through this icon.

Profile

Quickly view account settings or tasks. Advisers can click here to access the Adviser Center and view deadlines.

Settings Icon

Certain design settings can be turned on and off while working on a page. Specifically, when you click the Settings icon, you can turn on and off Ruler and Smart Guides, Snap To function and how the page is viewed.

Smart Guides

With the hand tool, click and drag on the left and top rulers to add a smart guide to your page. Smart guides will only appear on pages in which they were placed.

Zoom Tool

The default setting when you click the zoom tool. The Zoom Marquee function allows you to zoom into a specific area of the page.

Zoom Marquee

The default setting when you click the zoom tool. The Zoom Marquee function allows you to zoom into a specific area of the page by clicking and dragging over the area you wish to zoom.

Fit to Window

The Fit to Window zoom function resizes your spread to your browser’s window size automatically. Alternatively, you can use the Control + Zero keyboard shortcut.

Zoom Slider

The Zoom Slider allows you to zoom in and out precisely to the percentage you want.

Maximize/Minimize

Minimize and maximize the contextual menu.

Link

With an object near the gutter of a spread, link or unlink pages.

Types of Art

Templates

A predesigned layout which may include art, photo boxes or a portrait grid. Access templates through Portfolio.

Backgrounds

Art designed to fill the entire page, usually with a subtle texture or pattern.

Snippets

Interchangeable template pieces to create your own layouts.

Accents

Individual pieces of artwork to complement your layout.

Colorable Art

Just like a coloring book! Artwork containing a color wheel icon appears in black and white. Place it on the page and change its colors by using the fill color feature in the Effects palette.

Favorites

Favorite an individual piece of art for it to appear in the Favorites folder.

Exclusive

Art may or may not appear in this category, depending if your yearbook representative offers custom artwork. If your yearbook rep creates custom art pieces specifically for you, it will be uploaded into the Exclusive category.

Shapes

Artwork to embellish your design or change the shape of an image. Once a shape is added to a page, users can change color, opacity and other functions in the effects panel. Shapes are black by default.

Photo Boxes

Fun shapes in which images can be placed. Photo boxes are only used to hold images, and should not be used as graphic elements. Photo boxes are gray by default.

Line Tool

The Line tool has been moved from Shapes to its own icon below shapes. Click and drag from the icon, or draw anywhere on the page while its selected. Change the color and thickness to your liking.

Collections

Pictavo offers a variety of art collections (or themes) consisting of coordinating design elements that, when put together, create a cohesive look.

Each collection’s artwork is separated into folders by backgrounds, templates, snippets and accents. Simply drag and drop the design onto your page.

Portfolio

Save custom modules and templates here to easily use elsewhere.

MODULES

Groupings of interchangeable elements that match our exclusive American Grid.™

TEMPLATES

Whole-page designs into which you may add photos and copy. Choose from our extensive library or create your own.

FLIPBOOKS OF OUR ART COLLECTIONS CAN BE VIEWED AT HELP.PICTAVO.COM. ENVISION

TEMPLATE B8T9008 IS SHOWN ABOVE.

Type Tool

The Type icon on the toolbar allows you to choose how you want to place type. While on a page, click the caret on the Text icon on the left-hand side of the page design toolbar to select either Draw a Box or Drop a Box. Whether you draw or drop a text box onto your page, the box will place empty. The default setting is Helvetica Neue Regular 10-point with 12-point leading.

Editing Tools

Options vary by selection

EDIT

Edit selected object

LINK/UNLINK

Link and unlink pages

COPY

Copy selected object(s)

CUT

Cut selected objects(s)

PASTE

Paste selected object(s)

PASTE IN PLACE

Paste selected object(s) in place

LOCK/UNLOCK

Lock or unlock object(s) on the page

GROUP/UNGROUP

Group or ungroup selected objects together

CROP/EDIT

Enable cropping functions

Draw a Text Box

When selected, the draw a text box feature allows you to accurately draw a text box to your desired size on the page.

Drop a Text Box

The drop a text box feature allows you to put a text box anywhere on the page.

MULTIPLE SELECT TOOL Select multiple objects at once CONVERT TO BACKGROUND/REVERT FROM BACKGROUND

Make selected image the background

REMOVE PICTURE

Remove a photo from its photo box

DELETE

Delete object

Properties Palette

Options affecting the size and location of the object selected. Some actions not available for all selections.

SIZE

Adjust size of the selected object. You can also lock and unlock the aspect ratio

POSITION

Find location on page

FLIP & ROTATE

Manipulate object

OPACITY

Control transparency

ARRANGEMENT

Bring object forward or send backward

ALIGNMENT & SPACING

Align objects to each other & space evenly

NAME, DPI & USED ON PAGES

View the name of a selected object, the resolution and which pages it has been used on

Type Settings

Options affecting type in a selected box.

FONT Change the font

WEIGHT

Change the thickness

SIZE & COLOR

Change the size and color

CHARACTER SPACING

Change the spacing between letters

LEADING

Change the spacing between lines

ENABLE TAB ALIGNMENT

Align objects to each other & space evenly

COLUMN

Change the number of columns in the text box

TYPE SCALING

Vertically or horizontally scale the font

ALIGNMENT

Change the alignment of the text box

ALL CAPS & UNDERLINE

SAVE AS NEW STYLE

Users with permission can save text settings as a character style

Character Styles

Character styles add consistency to your pages, while also making it easier to format content. Only advisers or users with permission can add character styles to a book. Be sure to activate any font you wish to use before setting up character styles. Users with permission can create character styles from Book Setup or while on a page.

Effects Palette

Options to further enhance the object selected. Some actions not available for all selections.

COLOR

Change the object color

OUTLINE

Enable a stroke around text in the text box

BORDER SIZE

Choose outline thickness

ADJUSTMENTS

Control brightness and contrast, and turn to sepia or black and white

DROP SHADOW, DISTANCE & BLUR

Apply a visual effect and customize color, placement and crispness

Keyboard Shortcuts

Book Navigation

SHIFT + CTRL + 1

Go to the Home Page

SHIFT + CTRL + 2

Open Page Designer

SHIFT + CTRL + 3

Go to the Ladder

Workspace

Shortcuts

R

Lock and Group Objects

CTRL + L

Lock Object

SHIFT + CTRL + L

Unlock Object

CTRL + G

Group Objects

SHIFT + CTRL + G

Ungroup Objects

HOLD SHIFT AND CLICK

Open Art Palette

T

Open Text Palette

I

Open Photos Palette

W

Hide/Show Grids and Guides

CTRL + P

Share Page/Print

CTRL + S

Save

CTRL + A

Select All

Text Shortcuts

CTRL + U

Underline

SHIFT + CTRL + >

Enlarge Text

SHIFT + CTRL + <

Reduce or Shrink Text

Undo, Redo, Copy and Paste

CTRL + Z

SHIFT + CTRL + Z

Select multiple spread elements at once

HOLD CTRL AND CLICK

Select an element underneath another Arrange Objects

CTRL + UP ARROW

Bring Forward

SHIFT + CTRL + UP

ARROW

Bring to Front

CTRL + DOWN ARROW

Send Backward

SHIFT + CTRL + DOWN

ARROW

Send to Back

Zoom Shortcuts

CONTROL OR COMMAND AND + (PLUS)

Zoom to where the cursor is located or on selected elements

CONTROL OR COMMAND AND 1, 2, 3 OR 4

Zoom to where the cursor is located or on selected elements in increments of 100, 200, 300 or 400 percent respectively

CONTROL OR COMMAND AND 0 (ZERO)

Fit the spread to window

CONTROL OR COMMAND AND - (MINUS)

Zoom out from where the cursor is located or on selected elements

Add Default Portrait Grid on Page

Open the page you’ve designated for portraits. Click on the add portrait grid icon in the left navigation to place a default portrait grid onto the page. Use this grid as a placeholder while adding other elements to the page or creating custom templates for later use. Click the edit icon or double-click the portrait flow to customize.

CREATE CUSTOM TEMPLATES OR HAVE PICTAVO FLOW PORTRAITS FOR YOU. THE TEMPLATE SHOWN ABOVE IS BASICS D7T3993.

Designing a Portrait Page

Customize

Portrait Grid

The Portrait Settings palette opens when you add a portrait grid to a page. Adjust columns and rows, make name-related selections, alter spacing between portraits, adjust text color, sizing and font style. You can also do this after portraits are flowed.

COLUMNS & ROWS

Change the number of portraits on a page

POSITION

Change where portrait names live

ASPECT RATIO

Change the size

SPACING

Change the vertical and horizontal space between portraits

REMEMBER MY CHANGES

Check this box if you designed one portrait template and want to make that the default

REFLOW THIS GROUP

Reflow portraits

Flow Portraits

To flow your portraits, select the portrait grid, then click on the flow group icon in the Portrait Settings palette. Select a flow group (groups are directly tied to the portrait database you receive from your photographer). Expand the Change Flow Order menu to include nonstudents (e.g., principal, teacher) in the flow. Lastly, check the box to flow the portrait group onto multiple pages if needed.

Flow Group

After flowing portraits, each flow group will appear in either a Partially Flowed Groups or Flowed Groups list. Pay close attention to the Partially Flowed Groups list — individuals within these groups did not flow onto the page and therefore will not be included in the book.

Remove Individual Portraits

Create more room for candids or text by removing individual portrait boxes in the layout. Double-click the grid or use the edit icon to allow editing. Use the subtraction button to remove portrait boxes and the addition button to add them back.

Organize Photos

Photos

Photos uploaded by you and your staff. Photos can be uploaded from your system or Google Drive directly into the All Photos album to be organized later or into specific albums you’ve created.

Albums

Categorizing photos will save you time. There’s no right or wrong way to do it.

Images dragged directly onto a page, versus being uploaded into an album first, appear in the Uncategorized album.

Create sub-folders from within an album. Click on New Album and title it.

Create album topics ahead of time in Photos and Shared Photos (to help those using YBKpix).

If you know you’re not going to use certain shared photos, place them in the hidden album so they don’t appear when searching images.

Student and business ad albums exist for all ad sizes. When ads are submitted, the file will be placed in its corresponding album. All ads submitted will also be placed in the All Ads album.

Shared Photos

Photos contributed through YBKpix. Enable photo sharing in Organize Photos. Users authorized to view photos uploaded through YBKpix can view them in the Shared Photos album.

Photo Tools

Select an image to enable photo tools

SELECT A photo will have a blue border and check box to signify it has been selected

FAVORITE Favorite a photo to add a copy to the Favorites album

ROTATE Rotate an image 90º in either direction

HIDE

Hide images from being seen by users (only available in Shared Photos)

EDIT NAME

Rename photos so they are easier to find later

Ads

Student or business ads created and submitted through Buy the Yearbook. This folder displays only if your school is selling ads using Buy the Yearbook.

Tagging Photos

Window Displays when a photo is selected. Identify individuals or topics in photos for coverage reporting and indexing.

What is YBKpix?

Photo sharing platform YBKpix.com is our safe and secure website for parents, students and other community members to upload photos for consideration in the book.

Enable photo sharing by clicking on the three dots to the right of Shared Photos. Then check the Shared Photos Enabled box.

Open Shared Photo Settings to establish a maximum number of photos each user can submit, set an end date for receiving photos and require names of individuals featured in photos.

TAG Tag an image with a student’s name and event keywords

DOWNLOAD Save images to your computer

PREVIEW Show larger preview of selected image

DELETE Delete selected images

Ask members of your school community for their photos!

87% of parents surveyed in 2021 shared they would like to contribute photos to the yearbook.

Ad Status

When ads are purchased through Buy The Yearbook, there are three indicators with corresponding necessary tools.

Ad Not Submitted

Send reminder email to purchaser

Edit Preview

Ad Submitted

Send back

Edit

Download Preview

Note: If the thumbnail says “No High Res Images,” the ad has been submitted and is still uploading.

Move to Photos

Ad Copied to Photos

Download Preview

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FACES AND TEXT ARE IN THE GUTTER

Page Proofing

Before submitting your book, proof it thoroughly. Enlist teachers to proof names. Use the Share & PDF feature in the ladder section to email pages to them. They know if all students are accounted for and if names are spelled correctly.

Make sure each student and faculty member is shown in the portrait section only once.

Ensure names and images are not obscured by art, objects nor dark or busy backgrounds. Watch for page numbers overlapping text or images.

Check spelling and punctuation accuracy, paying close attention to student names, the name of your school as well as the words “principal” and “sophomore.”

Proofing Best Practices

Check the Gutter

Keep text, faces and other important elements outside the center of the spread (also called gutter). Otherwise, they will be impacted during the book binding process.

FACES AND TEXT ARE OUT OF THE GUTTER

Check the table of contents for accurate page numbers and section titles.

Watch for Placeholder Text

Delete unused text boxes to avoid printing placeholder text, such as “add a headline” or “lorem ipsum” which automatically appear in new text boxes.

Avoid Common Mistakes

Keep portrait names from extending outside the green safety margin or run the risk of them being trimmed. Be cautious of text difficult to read due to color choices.

Beware of portraits with placeholder text for names and portrait grids running off the page.

Page Submission Page Submission

Be on the lookout for difficult to read text because of color choices, dark or busy backgrounds and art obscuring names and portraits.

You may submit pages once the status is marked approved. To ensure your ship date, submit them on or before your due date. You can find this in the project specifications section of the Adviser Center.

As one final check, Pictavo alerts you to any portraits not flowed as well as text and/or image warnings still in place. Exit the submission process and address warnings.

SEE A LIST OF WARNINGS FOR EACH PAGE IN LADDER VIEW

TEXT BOX EXTENDS OUTSIDE GREEN SAFETY MARGIN

HEADLINE DOESN’T FIT INSIDE TEXT BOX

BODY COPY DOESN’T FIT INSIDE TEXT BOX

WORD EITHER MISSPELLED OR NOT FOUND IN DICTIONARY

IMAGE IS LOW RESOLUTION AND SHOULD BE REPLACED WITH A HIGHER QUALITY IMAGE OBJECT EXTENDS PAST GREEN SAFETY MARGIN AND MAY BE TRIMMED DURING

PRODUCTION

NOT ALL PORTRAITS IN FLOW GROUP APPEAR