How to Convert an Image to a Graphic Symbol in Adobe Flash CS4

Symbols in Adobe Flash CS4 are a great way to reduce the amount of work you need for a drawing, animation etc. and save on file size which is very important if you are uploading your flash file to the web. You can store your symbols in your library and call upon them when you need them as you need them. Here is how you convert an image to a graphic symbol in Adobe Flash CS4.

  1. Open Flash and select ActionScript 3.0. If you have an existing Flash project that you would like to use that is fine but for this tutorial I am going to open a new project and draw a simple box on the screen that will be converted.
  2. Step 2

    From your tools panel select some type of object to draw on the screen. You can make it whatever you want. I chose a rectangle. The colors and size are irrelevant to this exercise to you can make your object any color and size. Now go ahead and draw an image on the stage.

  3. Step 3

    In order to convert any image it has to be selected. You do this by clicking the select tool from tools panel and then selecting the image. You will know when your object is selected as it will looked grayed out. Go ahead and select the image. It should look like the picture associated with this step.

  4. Step 4

    From the main menu select “Modify” then select “Convert to Symbol”, you can also press the F8 key on your keyboard.

  5. Step 5

    The “Convert to Symbol” window will appear. Give your symbol a distinct name in the “Name” textbox which defaults to “Symbol 1″, and in the “Type” dropdown box select “Graphic”.

  6. Step 6

    Click the OK button to accept your changes and return to the stage.

  7. Step 7

    Your graphic symbol is now created. Flash will automatically put this symbol into your library so you can access it again for further use.