Making wallpaper

Let's assume you have an image that you like exactly as it is. Here is how you turn it into wallpaper on the Mac and on Windows.

On Windows

Navigate to your Control Panels (Start⇒Settings⇒Control Panel)

Open the Display control panel and select the Desktop tab.

Select the Browse button and navigate to the picture you want to use.

Select the Open button. The Browse window will close and you'll be back in the Display control panel.

You'll see a preview of your image in the picture of the computer monitor. Play with the position drop-down to see whether "Tile", "Center" or "Stretch" gives you the effect you want.

Select "OK" to set the desktop to use the picture you selected.

On Macintosh

The commands to make wallpaper on the Mac are similar. Select "System Preferences" from the "Apple" menu and find the "Desktop & Screen Saver" preference.

In the "Desktop & Screen Saver" preference panel, make sure that the Desktop tab is selected:

Use list on the left to find the picture you want. Notice that any albums you've created in iPhoto are already in the list. If the folder you want is not in the list, select "Choose Folder..." to find it.

Once you find your image, click the "Choose" button. Your image will now be centered on the desktop.

My wallpaper is too big!

If you haven't edited your image before using it as wallpaper, most likely it will be too big and you won't see the entire image. The "Preparing images for the screen" tutorials will teach you how to make your images smaller as well as correct any color and exposure problems.