Archived - iPhoto: How to create a custom constrain value

Learn how to use a custom constrain value with the crop feature of iPhoto.

You can crop a picture by using a custom constrain value. Note that this constrain value is a ratio (such as 2x3), and is not a specific pixel value (such as 1024x768).

To do this in iPhoto 5 and later, choose Custom from the Constrain pop-up menu in the Edit window.

To do this in iPhoto 4 and earlier, edit your photo in a separate Edit window. Control-click on the photo and from the pop-up menu, choose Edit in separate window.

The toolbar of the Edit window includes fields for entering custom constrain values.

If you do not see the toolbar, check the following:

• From the Window menu, choose Show Toolbar.
  

If you see the toolbar, but don't see the custom constrain options, you can easily add them.

1. From the Window menu, choose Customize Toolbar.
   
2. Add the Custom field to the toolbar by dragging it to the toolbar.
   
3. Click Done.
   

Alternatively, you can set iPhoto to always open photos in the separate Edit window when double-clicked:

1. From the iPhoto menu, choose Preferences.
   
2. In the General pane, select the option Opens photo in Edit window from Double-click photo. In iPhoto 2, select the option Opens in separate window.

   

3. Click the close button.
   

When a photo is double-clicked from Organize view, it should now open in a separate Edit window within iPhoto.