Alpha is, like in many other graphic programs, basically what transparency is called in Flash. It's one of the most useful things that you have to know if you want to work with Flash effectively.
Here's an example of transparent objects:
[three transparent rectangles rotating. Notice how their colors change when they overlap each other]
An easy way to get transparent objects
i. Create a new Flash document.
ii. Draw something on the stage - for example, a rectangle. You can do that by means of the Rectangle Tool (press R).
iii. Once its on the stage, there are two ways to make it transparent:
a) The first and easier one is select what you've just drawn, and press Shift + F9 to make the Color Mixer Panel appear. In the bottommost field in this Panel, next to "Alpha:" you can no doubt see "100%". This is the alpha (transparency) property of our object. Either by means of dragging down the arrow, or numerically, by typing in whatever value you want, make it around 40%.
[color mixer enables you to change the alpha of objects that are fills]
b) The other way is just to make our rectangle a symbol and then make the symbol transparent.
i. To do that, select the object you've drawn and press F8 to convert it to a movieclip.
ii. Then, select it and press Ctrl + F3. If you did that, the Properties Window should now be visible on your screen. In this window, you need to find the label "Color:", which is somewhere in the upper-right corner. Click on it and find Alpha in the drop-down menu. Once you're there, just drag down the arrow to make your symbol transparent.
[click on the drop-down menu labeled "Color:" and then find "alpha" to change the alpha property of a given symbol]
Viola! It's finished. You should by now know how to create a transparent objects.
Below you can see some cool examples of alpha use:
1.
[ the shadow on the face of this yogin is in fact a black polygon, the alpha of which is 15%)
2.
[thanks to its transparency, the bubble looks quite realistic]
3.
[a window like this looks way better if transparent ]
I hope you've enjoyed this tutorial. Click here to find more useful Flash tutorials!
