Text effects

Add depth to a text object with a one-click preset, then fine-tune stroke, shadow, and letter case by hand. Both live without leaving the canvas.

Quick overview

1. Select a text object.
2. Open the Text panel's Text effects row (Alt+2) for one-click presets.
3. Click a preset to apply a matching stroke, shadow, and paint order in one step.
4. Open the right panel's Text Effects accordion to fine-tune stroke, shadow, or letter case manually. All of it stacks with whatever preset you applied.

Detailed reference

One-click presets

Preset	Effect
None	Clears stroke and shadow, restores a plain fill
Shadow	A soft, close drop shadow
Lift	A softer, larger shadow set further down, for a raised look
Hollow	Fill removed, outline only
Splice	An outline plus a hard-edged offset duplicate in the fill color
Echo	A soft trailing copy offset behind the text
Glow	An even blur in every direction, no offset
Neon	A colored outline and glow together, for a lit-sign look

The first time you apply a preset, the text's original fill color is remembered, so switching between presets, or back to None, never loses your color. Hollow and Splice remove the fill and draw the outline in that remembered color; Glow and Neon build the glow from it too. Applying a preset also updates the manual controls below, so the accordion always shows the effect's current values.

Manual controls

Found in the right panel under Text Effects, visible only when a text object is selected.

Outline / stroke

Setting	Range	Default
Stroke width	0-5 px	0 (off)
Stroke color	Any color	-

The outline draws behind the fill, so it shows only on the outside edge of each character instead of covering the interior.

Shadow

Setting	Range	Default
Toggle	On / off	Off
Blur	0-20 px	4
Offset X	-10 to 10 px	2
Offset Y	-10 to 10 px	2
Shadow color	Any color	-

Blur, offset, and color apply only while the toggle is On. Turning it Off clears the shadow entirely.

Letter case

Button	Effect
UPPERCASE	Converts every character to uppercase
lowercase	Converts every character to lowercase
Title Case	Capitalizes the first letter of each word

Letter case rewrites the text content itself, not just how it displays. Exported or copied text keeps the new casing.

Where to find them

Control	Location
One-click presets	Text panel, Text effects row
Stroke, shadow, letter case	Right panel, Text Effects accordion (text objects only)

Step by step

Apply a preset, then fine-tune it

1. Select a text object.
2. Open the Text panel (Alt+2) and click into the Text effects row.
3. Click a preset card, for example Neon. It sets the stroke, glow, and paint order in one step, using the text's own color.
4. Open the right panel's Text Effects accordion. The controls now reflect the preset (Neon shows a small stroke width and the Shadow toggle On).
5. Nudge Blur, Offset X/Y, or Stroke width. Changes are live on the canvas.

Build an outline and shadow by hand

1. Select a text object and open the right panel Text Effects accordion.
2. Under Outline / Stroke, set Stroke width from 1 to 5 and pick a Stroke color. The outline draws behind the fill, so only the outer edge shows.
3. Under Shadow, click the toggle to On.
4. Set Blur (0 to 20), Offset X and Offset Y (-10 to 10), and a Shadow color.
5. The stroke and shadow stack together on the same object.

Layer a preset and a manual tweak

1. In the Text panel, apply the Hollow preset for an outline-only look.
2. Open the Text Effects accordion, turn Shadow On, and add a soft blur.
3. You now have a hollow outline with a drop shadow, beyond what any single preset gives.

Change letter case

1. Select a text object and open the Text Effects accordion.
2. Under Letter Case, click AA (uppercase), aa (lowercase), or Aa (title case).
3. The characters themselves are rewritten, so exported or copied text keeps the new casing.

Remove an effect

1. To clear everything, apply the None preset in the Text panel. It restores the plain fill and drops stroke and shadow, keeping your original color.
2. To remove only the shadow, open the accordion and toggle Shadow Off.
3. To remove only the outline, set Stroke width to 0.

Apply an effect to a whole group

Select a group (for example a text style preset or a font pairing) and click a one-click effect. It applies to every text line inside the group at once, with no need to ungroup first.

Common tasks

Goal	How
Lit-sign headline	Neon preset, then raise Blur in the accordion
Outline-only title	Hollow preset, or set Stroke width over a transparent fill
Subtle depth	Shadow or Lift preset
Retro offset	Splice or Echo preset
All-caps label	Letter Case, AA
Strip all effects	None preset

Troubleshooting

Nothing happens when you click a preset

A one-click effect needs a text object selected first. With nothing selected you get "Select a text first, then pick an effect"; with a non-text object selected you get "Select a text object". Select the text (or a group that contains text) and try again.

The glow is not the color of the preview card

Preset cards show a generic "Ag" swatch. On the canvas, Glow and Neon build the outline and glow from the text's own fill color, not the color shown on the card. Change the text fill to change the glow color.

A heavy stroke swallows thin text

The stroke draws behind the fill, so on a hairline or very light font a large stroke can cover most of each character. Lower the Stroke width (the manual control caps at 5), or pick a heavier font.

Shadow values seem to do nothing

Blur, offset, and shadow color apply only while the Shadow toggle is On. Turning it Off drops the shadow entirely; turn it back On to restore your values.

Keyboard shortcuts

Shortcut	Action
Alt+2	Open the Text panel

Tips

Start from a preset, then adjust

Presets set stroke, shadow, and paint order together, faster than dialing in each value by hand. Apply one, then open the Text Effects accordion to nudge the blur or offset.

Case has no separate undo toggle

Uppercase, lowercase, and title case rewrite the actual characters. To go back, retype the text or apply a different case, there is no dedicated revert button.

Related

• Text and typography for fonts, sizing, and alignment
• Shapes for stroke and shadow on non-text objects
• Properties panel for the full styling reference