[RESOLVED] VS2012 - Add Depth to Form Background

[circuits2]

I have an MDI application with controls situated on the outer edges of the Parent. Only one MdiChild is opened at a time and is set to DockStyle.Fill in the center of the Parent.

I understand how gradients work when painting backgrounds, but the resulting display always appears to be flat and without character. I want to add depth to the Child forms so that their controls appear to be actual objects. I hope that is a clear description of my intent.

How can I paint the background of a Child form to add depth without taking longer to paint than a standard gradient would?

Thanks in advance for any comments or suggestions.

[boops boops]

Hi Circuits,

Here's an example to illustrate a few possibilities in GDI+. Is it the kind of thing you have in mind? If not, an example or a sketch from you would help. I admit I've gone to town a bit especially with those radial lines.



Here's the code I used to generate it:

Public Class Form1

	Private Sub Form1_Load(sender As System.Object, e As System.EventArgs) Handles MyBase.Load
		Me.DoubleBuffered = True
	End Sub

	Private Sub Form1_Resize(sender As Object, e As System.EventArgs) Handles Me.Resize
		Me.Invalidate()
	End Sub

	Private Sub Form1_Paint(sender As Object, e As System.Windows.Forms.PaintEventArgs) Handles Me.Paint
		Dim gradientFocus As New PointF(100, 80)
	
		Using gp As New Drawing2D.GraphicsPath

			'Draw radial gradient
			Dim r As Rectangle = Me.ClientRectangle
			r.Inflate(r.Width \ 2, r.Height \ 2)
			gp.AddEllipse(r)
			gp.Flatten(Nothing, 0.25)
			Dim clrs As New List(Of Color)
			For Each pp In gp.PathPoints
				clrs.Add(Color.FromArgb(20, 0, 50))
			Next
			Using pgb As New Drawing2D.PathGradientBrush(gp)
				pgb.CenterPoint = gradientFocus
				pgb.CenterColor = Color.FromArgb(50, 150, 200)
				pgb.SurroundColors = clrs.ToArray
				e.Graphics.FillRectangle(pgb, Me.ClientRectangle)
			End Using

			'Draw radial lines
			e.Graphics.SmoothingMode = Drawing2D.SmoothingMode.HighQuality
			For i As Integer = 0 To gp.PointCount - 2
				Using pn As New Pen(Color.FromArgb(150, Color.Gold), 1)
					e.Graphics.DrawLine(pn, gradientFocus, gp.PathPoints(i))
				End Using
			Next

		End Using

		'Draw drop shadows for all controls: 
		For Each ctrl As Control In Me.Controls
			Dim r As Rectangle = ctrl.Bounds
			r.Offset(7, 10)
			Using sbr As New SolidBrush(Color.FromArgb(80, Color.Black))
				e.Graphics.FillRectangle(sbr, r)
			End Using
		Next

	End Sub

End Class

More complicated code doesn't necessarily translate directly into slower paint times. Drawing those radial lines takes a little time but double buffering the form helps; try drag-resizing the form to see. The drop shadows are easy to code and quick to paint.

BB

[dunfiddlin]

Ooh, pretty! Those shadows are really effective and so simple! Why didn't I think of that? Just grab that for the code snippets then!

[circuits2]

That's exactly what I was looking for boops! Radials and drop shadows give me the depth I wanted. Thank you!

[MetalInquisitor]

Hi Circuits,

Here's an example to illustrate a few possibilities in GDI+. Is it the kind of thing you have in mind? If not, an example or a sketch from you would help. I admit I've gone to town a bit especially with those radial lines.



Here's the code I used to generate it:

Public Class Form1

	Private Sub Form1_Load(sender As System.Object, e As System.EventArgs) Handles MyBase.Load
		Me.DoubleBuffered = True
	End Sub

	Private Sub Form1_Resize(sender As Object, e As System.EventArgs) Handles Me.Resize
		Me.Invalidate()
	End Sub

	Private Sub Form1_Paint(sender As Object, e As System.Windows.Forms.PaintEventArgs) Handles Me.Paint
		Dim gradientFocus As New PointF(100, 80)
	
		Using gp As New Drawing2D.GraphicsPath

			'Draw radial gradient
			Dim r As Rectangle = Me.ClientRectangle
			r.Inflate(r.Width \ 2, r.Height \ 2)
			gp.AddEllipse(r)
			gp.Flatten(Nothing, 0.25)
			Dim clrs As New List(Of Color)
			For Each pp In gp.PathPoints
				clrs.Add(Color.FromArgb(20, 0, 50))
			Next
			Using pgb As New Drawing2D.PathGradientBrush(gp)
				pgb.CenterPoint = gradientFocus
				pgb.CenterColor = Color.FromArgb(50, 150, 200)
				pgb.SurroundColors = clrs.ToArray
				e.Graphics.FillRectangle(pgb, Me.ClientRectangle)
			End Using

			'Draw radial lines
			e.Graphics.SmoothingMode = Drawing2D.SmoothingMode.HighQuality
			For i As Integer = 0 To gp.PointCount - 2
				Using pn As New Pen(Color.FromArgb(150, Color.Gold), 1)
					e.Graphics.DrawLine(pn, gradientFocus, gp.PathPoints(i))
				End Using
			Next

		End Using

		'Draw drop shadows for all controls: 
		For Each ctrl As Control In Me.Controls
			Dim r As Rectangle = ctrl.Bounds
			r.Offset(7, 10)
			Using sbr As New SolidBrush(Color.FromArgb(80, Color.Black))
				e.Graphics.FillRectangle(sbr, r)
			End Using
		Next

	End Sub

End Class

More complicated code doesn't necessarily translate directly into slower paint times. Drawing those radial lines takes a little time but double buffering the form helps; try drag-resizing the form to see. The drop shadows are easy to code and quick to paint.

BB

Well, this is really cool! I'll be spending a couple of hours having fun tweaking your code.

Kudos boops!