About graphic objects in Microsoft Graph

Adding pictures You can copy pictures and scanned photographs from other programs and locations and paste them in a Microsoft Graph chart. How to insert an imported picture.

Editing pictures There are two types of pictures: bitmaps, which usually look like photographs, and metafiles, which usually look like illustrations.

Bitmaps are made up of dots and can't be ungrouped. When you select a bitmap, the Picture toolbar appears with tools you can use to crop the picture, add a border to it, and adjust its brightness and contrast.

Metafiles can be ungrouped, converted to drawing objects, and then edited with Microsoft Graph drawing tools. Most illustrations, or clip art, are in metafile format. To ungroup and convert clip art to a drawing object, select it and click Ungroup on the Draw menu (Drawing toolbar). You can then change it just as you can any other object you draw. For example, you might insert a clip art image of a person, ungroup it, change the color of the person's clothing, and then add the modified image to another clip art image.

Drawing your own pictures You can also draw your own pictures by using the tools on the Drawing toolbar. You can add and combine ready-made AutoShapes, or draw your own lines, scribbles, and freeforms.

More information

Show or hide the drawing toolbar

Add a circle, square or other AutoShape

About freeforms and curves

Graphics filters Microsoft Graph recognizes a wide variety of picture formats. Because all Office programs share the same graphics filters, if you installed a graphics filter when you installed another Office program — Word, for example — you can use that same filter in this program. Learn about how to install graphics filters.