Google has revolutionized the office environment with Google’s cloud-based documents, challenging the superiority of Office applications like Word and Excel with reasonable success. However, one little-known tool in the Google Docs arsenal is Google’s drawing tool called Google Drawings
What is Google Pictures? It’s not a full-featured Photoshop replacement, but if you’re looking for a quick and easy-to-use drawing tool to create new diagrams or diagrams on the web, Google Drawings may be the tool you need. To draw on Google using Google Drawings, all you need is a Google account – it’s completely free to use.
What is Google Drawings?
Google Pictures isn’t new – it has been around since 2010. It allows you to create charts, shapes, and other drawings that can then be used in other Google Docs apps like Google Slides. You can also freely share, publish and export images on the Internet or to other software on your PC or Mac.
Don’t expect a complete set of image editing tools from Google Drawings because it’s not a full-fledged graphics editor like GIMP or Photoshop. Google Drawings simply don’t have this functionality – it’s pretty straightforward, with image-editing features similar to Google Sheets, but with its own design canvas.
It looks more like a replacement for Microsoft Visio, the diagramming software that comes with Office, than anything else. However, the difference between Visio and Google Drawings is cost – you can use this Google drawing app for free.
How to Draw with Google Using Google Drawings
Fortunately, Google Pictures isn’t that hard to learn. If you’ve ever used a tool from the Google Docs suite, the interface will feel very familiar to you, as it uses the same menu bar style you’ll see in Google Sheets, Slides, and other Google apps.
– – /
To start using Google Drawings, go to the Google Drawings website and sign in with your Google account.
- If you’ve never used Google Pictures before, a blank picture will automatically appear. You can open existing pictures by clicking File> Open and selecting the previous picture from your Google Drive storage.
- Google Drawings allows you to insert text boxes, various shapes, tables, charts, charts and graphs, just to name a few. To insert any of them, you will need to go to the “Insert” tab and select one of the options.
- To add a new shape, for example, you need to click Insert> Shape, select a shape type (such as arrows) and click one of the visual styles. Then you can draw the shape using your mouse or trackpad.
- To add a basic text box, click Insert> Text Box and draw a text box using your mouse or trackpad. After creating a text box, you can add text to it using your keyboard.
- You can also insert external images into your drawing, which allows you to manipulate them or use them in conjunction with text, shapes, and other objects. To do this, click Insert> Image and choose one of the available options. You can upload an image from your computer, select it from Google Drive storage, and also search the web using Google’s built-in image search.
- You can use line objects to link images or objects together. To do this, click Insert> Line and use your mouse or trackpad to create a line object at the location you selected.
- To save a drawing, you need to give it a name. Click on the gray, untitled drawing box at the top of the Google Drawings window and enter a name that will be memorable. After that, your drawing will be automatically saved with this name in your Google Drive.
Create advanced diagrams and graphics in Google Drawings
In addition to basic shapes and image editing capabilities, Google Drawings can be used to create more complex drawings that use diagrams, tables, and diagrams.
- To insert a new chart into Google Drawings, click Insert> Charts, then choose a chart style from the menu that appears on the right, confirming the number of levels as well as the color. You will then be able to edit the diagram as soon as it is inserted into the picture.
- To insert a table, click Insert> Table and select the required number of columns and rows. The table will automatically be inserted into your drawing, where you can move it around and start adding data.
- You can also import graphs and charts from Google Sheets or create them directly in Google Pictures. To do this, click Insert> Charts, then select the type of chart or graph you want to create. Click From Sheets to insert a chart from an existing Google Sheets spreadsheet.
Share and export graphics in Google Drawings
Like other Google apps, Google Drawings allows you to share and export diagrams with others. You can share the file for others to view or edit, publish your drawing online, or export it to your computer as an SVG, PNG, JPEG, or PDF file.
- If you want to export the drawing to your computer, click File> Download and choose one of the file format options.
- To share your image with others, click the Share button in the upper left corner, and then enter their email addresses in the People field that appears after. Or, click the Get Share Link button to copy a direct link to your image so that people can view or edit your drawing anonymously. When finished, click Finish.
- To publish your picture as a public file on the Internet so that you can embed it on other web pages, click File> Publish On The Web.
- You can select the size of the published drawing image in the Reference tab by choosing a size from the Image Size drop-down menu, and then copy the direct URL to your drawing at that size.
- To embed a published image on the web, click the Embed tab in the Publish to Web window. You can then select and copy the shown HTML code to paste it correctly into the web page.
- Click the Stop Posting button to remove the picture from the web at any time in the future.
Explore your creativity with Google Docs
All the apps in the Google Docs arsenal allow you to edit photos and images, but only Google Drawings allows you to use Google to draw on a drawing canvas, just like you would use a real photo editing tool like Photoshop. It is more of a replacement for Microsoft Visio than Photoshop, but still worth paying attention to.
There are, of course, other ways to use Google Docs. You can use it to create a new resume using Google Docs templates and even use the built-in sharing tools to create a simple web page for free.
What are your favorite apps in the Google Docs suite? Let us know in the comments below.
–
Comment on “Google Draw: A Full Guide For Beginners”