MACROMEDIA FIREWORKS MX 2004-USING FIREWORKS Use Manual page 40

You can apply filters from the Filters menu to pixel selections, but not Live Effects. You can,
however, define an area of a bitmap and create a separate bitmap from it, and then apply a Live
Effect to it.
If you apply a filter to a selected vector object using the Filters menu, Fireworks converts the
selection to a bitmap.
To apply a Live Effect to an area defined by a bitmap selection marquee:
Choose a bitmap selection tool and draw a selection marquee.
1
Choose Edit > Cut.
2
Choose Edit > Paste.
3
Fireworks pastes the selection exactly where the pixels were originally located, but the selection
is now a separate bitmap object.
Click the thumbnail of the new bitmap object in the Layers panel to select the bitmap object.
4
Apply a Live Effect from the Property inspector.
5
Fireworks applies the Live Effect only to the new bitmap object, simulating the application of a
filter to a pixel selection.
Note: Although Live Effects are more flexible, large numbers of Live Effects in a document can
slow down Fireworks performance. For more information, see Fireworks Help.
Adjusting tonal range
You can use the Levels and Curves features to adjust a bitmap's tonal range. With Levels, you can
correct bitmaps that contain a high concentration of pixels in the highlights, midtones, or
shadows. Or you can use Auto Levels and let Fireworks adjust the tonal range for you. If you want
more precise control over a bitmap's tonal range, you can use the Curves feature, which lets you
adjust any color along the tonal range without affecting other colors.
Using the Levels feature
A bitmap with a full tonal range should have an even number of pixels in all areas. The
Levels feature corrects bitmaps with a high concentration of pixels in the highlights, midtones,
or shadows.
corrects an excess of light pixels, which makes the image look washed out.
Highlights
corrects an excess of pixels in the midtones, which makes the image bland.
Midtones
corrects an excess of dark pixels, which hides much of the detail.
Shadows
40 Chapter 2: Working with Bitmaps