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      Creating and Editing Primary Shapes in LightBurn

      Rectangles, Ellipses, and Polygons as Design Foundations

      Primary Shapes—rectangles, ellipses, and polygons—are fundamental tools for building designs. These shapes can be used individually or combined with other objects to create complex designs.

      What Are Primary Shapes?

      • Rectangles and Squares: Editable with adjustable corner radius.
      • Ellipses and Circles: Flexible for creating ovals or perfect circles.
      • Polygons: Configurable with any number of sides (triangles, pentagons, hexagons, etc.).

      These shapes are Built-in Shapes, meaning they retain editable properties like corner radius for rectangles or the number of sides for polygons, even after creation.

      Shape Creation

      Ref-PrimaryShapes-InToolsToolbar

      Tools and Shortcuts

      Access Primary Shape tools from:

      • Tools Toolbar
      • Tools Menu
      • Keyboard Shortcuts:
        • Rectangle/Square: Ctrl/Cmd + R
        • Ellipse/Circle: Ctrl/Cmd + E
        • Polygon: No default shortcut; select from the toolbar.

      How to Draw a Shape

      1. Select a Primary Shape tool.
      2. Click, hold, and drag in your Workspace to create the shape.
      3. Modifiers:
        • Hold Ctrl/Cmd: Draw the shape from the center outward.
        • Hold Shift: Constrain the shape to its regular form (square, circle, or equal-sided polygon).
        • Hold Ctrl/Cmd + Shift: Combine both effects.

      Editing Primary Shapes

      Primary Shapes can be modified through:

      • Shape Properties Window
      • Control Handles in the Workspace

      Dimensions

      • Adjust Width and Height via:
        • Shape Properties Window
        • Numeric Edits Toolbar

      Corner Radius (Rectangles Only)

      • Round Corners: Adjust the corner radius while maintaining proportionality.

      Ref-Radius-AddToRectangle

      • How to Edit:
        • Select the rectangle and hold Ctrl/Cmd.
        • Drag the blue control handle near a corner:
          • Drag outward to increase the radius.
          • Drag inward to decrease it.
          • Drag vertically for an inverted radius effect.
        • Alternatively, set the radius numerically in the Shape Properties Window.

      Ref-BuiltInShapes-CornerRadius

      Number of Sides (Polygons Only)

      • Customize Shape: Change the number of sides to create different polygons (e.g., triangle, hexagon, octagon).

      Ref-BuiltInShapes-Sides

      • How to Edit:
        • Adjust sides in the Shape Properties Window.
        • Or hold Ctrl/Cmd and drag the purple control handle near the polygon to interactively modify the sides.

      Ref-BuiltInShapes-SidesControl

      Node Editing for Primary Shapes

      To edit the nodes of a Primary Shape, you must Convert to Path.

      • What Happens:
        • This conversion permanently removes editable properties (e.g., Corner Radius, number of sides).
        • You gain the ability to modify individual nodes for fine-tuned adjustments.

      Tips for Using Primary Shapes

      1. Foundation of Designs: Use Primary Shapes as building blocks for more complex compositions.
      2. Shape Refinement: Combine the Draw Lines and Edit Nodes tools to enhance the details.
      3. Retain Properties: Avoid converting to a path unless detailed node editing is necessary.

      Summary

      Primary Shapes—rectangles, ellipses, and polygons—are versatile tools in LightBurn, offering adjustable properties for efficient design. By mastering creation, editing, and control handle adjustments, you can create precise and complex graphics effortlessly. Save node editing for advanced customization to maintain flexibility during the design process.