Creating a Simple Raster File in Ready2Raster
Ready2Raster can be opened by double-clicking on the Ready2Raster icon on your desktop.
The Shark Logo used in these steps can be downloaded for use at the bottom of this article by clicking on 
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1. When the Ready2Raster program is opened, click on LOAD IMAGE, then navigate to the image that you wish to load.
(Accepted file formats include .png / .jpg / .jpeg / .bmp / .tap / .r2l.)
2. Once the image file is loaded, under Image Properties there will be options displayed to modify the image, such as Rotation, Height, Width, or Maintain Aspect Ratio. To Maintain Aspect Ratio is to retain the width and height of the resized picture to proportion, so the image does not look distorted after it has been resized.
3. The next step will be to convert the image to grayscale. This step allows the user to adjust which parts of the image to burn darker and which parts to leave lighter.
Contrast is the distinction between lighter and darker areas of an image, and it refers to making more obvious the objects or details within an image. Increasing contrast on an image will increase the difference between light and dark areas so light areas will become lighter and dark areas will become darker. Reversely, decreasing the contrast will make lighter and darker areas stay approximately the same but the overall image becomes more "flat" and starts looking as if it were "washed out".
Gamma adjusts the mid tones from tonal scale but keeps the white and black. In other words, gamma optimizes the contrast and brightness in the mid tones.
Brightness refers to the absolute value of colors (tones) lightness/darkness. Increasing brightness of an image will light out all colors so the original light ones will become up to white. Reversely, decreasing brightness will darken all colors so the original shaded ones will become up to black.
Average/Absolute Grayscale represents the minimum and maximum color values, beyond which any value in the image will be treated as full black or full white.
The Average/Absolute setting toggles how the values between those sliders are represented.
"Average" means that all color values between the sliders will be treated as a gradient from black to white.
"Absolute" means that the color values between the sliders will be unaltered, regardless of the positions of the sliders.
"Invert" simply inverts the colors of the final black and white image.
"Dither" runs a dithering algorithm on the final black and white image. This means that the image will be done through a series of black dots, rather than smooth grayscale. This typically leads to better-looking burns for photos when using the 7-watt laser, whereas leaving this option off tends to produce better burns for cartoons or letters.
4. After the Grayscale settings have been set, proceed to the Laser Setup section. The type of machine can be chosen under Machine, type of laser, under Laser Type, type of wood, under Material, and speed of laser movement can be altered on the Grayscale Band line by unchecking the Use Material box and then typing in the desired speed, where Speed _ _ _ _ _ _ inches/minute is displayed. The intensity of the laser can be set by using the Laser Power scroll bar. Other materials can also be added to the Materials Database by clicking on the 3 blue coins icon to the right of Laser Settings.
5. The final step is to preview and save your image. Open Preview and Save to make a final check on the zero position and then click the Save button to save your image.
6. Now a window will appear prompting you to name the file and then click the Save button. It is recommended to save the file to your desktop for a quick and easy location.
7. If an issue is encountered during the creation of your file, this can be reported by clicking on the little gear symbol in the upper right-hand corner of the screen and navigating to the Settings window, where a Report an Issue button is displayed in the lower right-hand corner of the Settings screen. Clicking on that button will open a window where the information of your issue can be recorded and sent to us by filling out the Email, Describe the Issue, and (if necessary) Attach Relevant Files fields and then clicking on the Submit button.
