Adjusting your workspace

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To increase your efficiency and productivity with Microsoft Expression Media, you can customize the workspace for your workflow needs. You can customize each view of Expression Media (List, Thumbnail, and Media) by using the View Options panel. You can select which metadata to display, the background color, and also the font, size, and color of display text. The View Options panel also has options that apply to some export features, such as printing, contact sheets, and the default HTML gallery theme.

Each view has its own options. For example, changing the text and display options in List view does not change the options in Media view.

To customize the views

  1. Click the tab that corresponds to the view that you want to customize.

  2. Do one of the following:

    • On the Window menu, click Show View Options.

    • Click the View Options icon Cc507784.b538a55d-2772-44d5-b5b5-08afb52a604b(en-us,Expression.10).png on the toolbar.

  3. Adjust the options according to the guidelines in the following section.

  4. If you want to save your visual preferences as a theme, on the AutoFill menu Cc507784.aa6bc5ae-3e0e-484b-a74f-f4ded59056c4(en-us,Expression.10).png, click Save As. If you want to save your settings as the default settings for all new catalogs, click Save as Default.

Font and color options

You can find the following options under Font & Colors in the View Options panel:

  • **Text foreground   **Defines the color of text, field labels, and the media frame.

  • **Background   **Defines the color bar that appears behind text. To make this bar appear transparent, make this color the same as the background color (Thumbnail and Media views only).

  • **Row separator   **Defines the color of the line that separates items in the list (List view only).

List view options

The following options apply to List view only and can be found under Display Options in the View Options panel:

  • Frame media   Adds a one-pixel border around thumbnails. The color of this frame is defined by the Text foreground color option.

  • **Use generic icons   **Changes a rendered icon to a generic icon.

Thumbnail view options

The following options apply to Thumbnail view only and can be found under Display Options in the View Options panel:

  • Field labels   Displays the name of the field next to the displayed text of that field.

  • Center text   Center-aligns the field text.

  • Frame media   Adds a one-pixel border around thumbnails. The color of this frame is defined by the Text Foreground color option.

  • Show scale   Displays the thumbnail size as a percentage of the original media size.

  • **Show ratings and labels   **Displays ratings and labels underneath each thumbnail.

  • Aspect ratio   Adjusts the proportion of all thumbnail containers. These options are valuable for saving space in the media viewing area, depending on the shape of most media in your catalog (Normal [Square], 3:4 Landscape, 4:3 Portrait).

  • Margin   Offers options for a stylized border around all thumbnails. Blank adds a small amount of white space around thumbnails; Shadow adds a drop-shadow to thumbnails; Frame adds a recessed frame around thumbnails.

  • **Thumbnail size   **Adjusts the size of thumbnails, in pixels, using a slider. Dragging the slider to the right increases thumbnail size; dragging the slider to the left decreases thumbnail size.

Media view options

The following options apply to Media view only and can be found under Display Options in the View Options panel:

  • Field labels   Displays the name of the field next to the displayed text of that field.

  • Center text   Center-aligns the field text.

  • **Histogram   **Displays a graph that shows the relative distribution of red, green, and blue pixel densities in an image. It shows the number of pixels with high density on the left (darker colors) and low density on the right (lighter colors).

  • **Show ratings and labels   **Displays ratings and labels underneath each thumbnail.

  • **Size   **Controls the size of the image display through the options in the list.

Field options

The following options apply to the Fields section in the View Options panel in all views:

  • You can add a field to a view by clicking its name in the field list area, which puts a check mark next to the field name. To remove a field, click it again, and the check mark disappears.

  • The order in which fields are displayed is determined by the order in which you select them in the View Options panel.

  • You can change the number of lines displayed for each field by clicking the up or down arrows on any active field. This method is useful for fields that have larger amounts of text, such as Description or Paths.

  • Font styles (Bold, Italic, and Underline) are optional for each field. Font styles can be changed by clicking the style icon Cc507784.1b45257e-8924-4d27-bbd9-c81b421a9bd5(en-us,Expression.10).png that appears next to each field name that has a check mark. You can apply multiple styles at the same time.

Adjust media size in views

You can define the display size of previews in List view and Thumbnail view by clicking the Size menu button Cc507784.bd313b96-ba12-4745-a94f-e5d468ff23a9(en-us,Expression.10).png. You can also define the size of media in the Display Options section of the ViewOptions panel.

To adjust media size in the views

  • Click the Size menu button Cc507784.bd313b96-ba12-4745-a94f-e5d468ff23a9(en-us,Expression.10).png and select the option that applies to the view that you want to adjust. Use the following descriptions as a guide. For thumbnails, if you increase the size beyond the size of thumbnails stored in the catalog (as might be the case if you are using built-in thumbnails), on the Action menu, click Rebuild Item on all the files in the catalog to render the thumbnails at sizes up to 640 pixels.

    • List view   Select from Small (16 pixel) and Large (32 pixel) options. The ViewOptions panel has an option to switch from rendered icons to generic.

    • **Thumbnail view   **Select from a range of thumbnail sizes, from 80 to 640 pixels.

    • **Media view   **Select one of these options: Actual Size, Scale to Fit, Fit Width, Fit Height, Pin Smaller Side, Pin LargerSide, Tile, and Other. If you select Other, you can use the slider to specify a percentage.

      If an image does not fit completely inside the window, the pointer changes to a hand. Use the pointer to drag the image.

    In all views, the Zoom buttons Cc507784.8c1ff121-237c-4fab-bcb5-34e811874689(en-us,Expression.10).png increase or reduce the size of the thumbnails or media.