How to set shadows for plot area or axis in chart using XlsIO?

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This article explains how to set a shadow to the plot area in a chart using XlsIO.

What is Plot Area?

The plot area in a chart or graph refers to the area of the chart that graphically displays the data being charted. The plot area of a 2D chart contains the data markers, gridlines, data labels, trendlines, and optional chart items placed in the chart area. Whereas the plot area of a 3D chart contains all the above items along with walls, floor, axes, axis titles, and tick-mark labels in the chart.

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Shadow for Plot Area Set Using XlsIO

Code snippet to set shadow to plot area in chart using XlsIO

// Set shadow to plot area
chart.PlotArea.Shadow.ShadowColor = System.Drawing.Color.DarkOrange;
chart.PlotArea.Shadow.Size = 100;
chart.PlotArea.Shadow.Angle = 45;
chart.PlotArea.Shadow.Distance = 10;

Steps to add shadow to plot area in chart

Initialize Chart

Create a chart object by calling the worksheet.Charts.Add method and specify the chart type to ExcelChartType.Line enum value.

// Create the chart
IChartShape chart = worksheet.Charts.Add();
// Set chart type to Line
chart.ChartType = ExcelChartType.Line;

Assign Data

Set a range of data from the worksheet to the chart’s DataRange property. To plot the series values in columns and categories in rows, set the chart’s IsSeriesInRows property to false.

// Set region of chart data
chart.DataRange = worksheet["A1:D6"];
// Set chart series in columns for the assigned data region
chart.IsSeriesInRows = false;

Apply chart elements

Add basic chart elements like the chart title, legend and data labels.

ChartTitle of the chart object.
Set TRUE to the chart’s HasLegend property, to show the legend.

// Set Chart Title
chart.ChartTitle = "Line Chart";
// Set Legend
chart.HasLegend = true;
chart.Legend.Position = ExcelLegendPosition.Bottom;
// Set datalabels
IChartSerie serie1 = chart.Series[0];
serie1.DataPoints.DefaultDataPoint.DataLabels.IsValue = true;

Set shadow to plot area

Set shadow to the plot area in the chart using properties in IShadow.

// Set shadow to plot area
chart.PlotArea.Shadow.ShadowColor = System.Drawing.Color.DarkOrange;
chart.PlotArea.Shadow.Size = 100;
chart.PlotArea.Shadow.Angle = 45;
chart.PlotArea.Shadow.Distance = 10;

Applicable Properties for a Shadow of Plot Area in Chart

Basic properties applicable for a shadow of the plot area in a chart

1. Angle

2. Blur

3. Distance

4. HasCustomShadowStyle

5. ShadowColor

6. ShadowInnerPresets

7. ShadowOuterPresets

8. ShadowPrespectivePresets

9. Size

10. Transperency

Note:

We can set a shadow to the plot area in the chart using the CustomShadowStyles method as well.

Download Complete Sample

Download input file with data

The following C#/VB complete code snippet explains how to set a shadow to the plot area in a chart using XlsIO.

using Syncfusion.XlsIO;
using System.Reflection;
using System.IO;
 
namespace ChartSample
{
    class Program
    {
        static void Main(string[] args)
        {
            using (ExcelEngine excelEngine = new ExcelEngine())
            {
                IApplication application = excelEngine.Excel;
                application.DefaultVersion = ExcelVersion.Excel2016;
 
                // Open existing workbook with data entered
                Assembly assembly = typeof(Program).GetTypeInfo().Assembly;
                Stream fileStream = assembly.GetManifestResourceStream("ChartSample.InputTemplate.xlsx");
                IWorkbook workbook = application.Workbooks.Open(fileStream);
                IWorksheet worksheet = workbook.Worksheets[0];
 
                // Initialize chart
                IChartShape chart = worksheet.Charts.Add();
                chart.ChartType = ExcelChartType.Line;
 
                // Assign data
                chart.DataRange = worksheet["A1:D6"];
                chart.IsSeriesInRows = false;
 
                // Apply chart elements
                // Set chart title
                chart.ChartTitle = "Line Chart";
 
                // Set legend
                chart.HasLegend = true;
                chart.Legend.Position = ExcelLegendPosition.Bottom;
 
                // Set dataLabels
                IChartSerie serie1 = chart.Series[0];
                IChartSerie serie2 = chart.Series[1];
                IChartSerie serie3 = chart.Series[2];
 
                serie1.DataPoints.DefaultDataPoint.DataLabels.IsValue = true;
                serie2.DataPoints.DefaultDataPoint.DataLabels.IsValue = true;
                serie3.DataPoints.DefaultDataPoint.DataLabels.IsValue = true;
 
                // Set shadow to plot area
                chart.PlotArea.Shadow.ShadowColor = System.Drawing.Color.DarkOrange;
                chart.PlotArea.Shadow.Size = 100;
                chart.PlotArea.Shadow.Angle = 45;
                chart.PlotArea.Shadow.Distance = 10;
              
                // Positioning the chart in the worksheet
                chart.TopRow = 8;
                chart.LeftColumn = 1;
                chart.BottomRow = 23;
                chart.RightColumn = 8;
 
                // Saving the workbook
                Stream stream = File.Create("Output.xlsx");
                workbook.SaveAs(stream);
            }
        }
    }
}

Imports Syncfusion.XlsIO
Imports System.Reflection
Imports System.IO
 
Namespace ChartSample
 
    Class Program
 
        Private Shared Sub Main(ByVal args() As String)
            Dim excelEngine As ExcelEngine = New ExcelEngine
            Dim application As IApplication = excelEngine.Excel
            application.DefaultVersion = ExcelVersion.Excel2016
 
            'Open existing workbook with data entered
            Dim assembly As Assembly = GetType(Program).GetTypeInfo.Assembly
            Dim fileStream As Stream = assembly.GetManifestResourceStream("ChartSample.InputTemplate.xlsx")
            Dim workbook As IWorkbook = application.Workbooks.Open(fileStream)
            Dim worksheet As IWorksheet = workbook.Worksheets(0)
 
            'Initialize chart
            Dim chart As IChartShape = worksheet.Charts.Add
            chart.ChartType = ExcelChartType.Line
 
            'Assign data
            chart.DataRange = worksheet("A1:D6")
            chart.IsSeriesInRows = False
 
            'Apply chart elements
            'Set chart title
            chart.ChartTitle = "Line Chart"
 
            'Set legend
            chart.HasLegend = True
            chart.Legend.Position = ExcelLegendPosition.Bottom
 
            'Set dataLabels
            Dim serie1 As IChartSerie = chart.Series(0)
            Dim serie2 As IChartSerie = chart.Series(1)
            Dim serie3 As IChartSerie = chart.Series(2)
 
            serie1.DataPoints.DefaultDataPoint.DataLabels.IsValue = True
            serie2.DataPoints.DefaultDataPoint.DataLabels.IsValue = True
            serie3.DataPoints.DefaultDataPoint.DataLabels.IsValue = True
 
            'Set shadow to plot area
            chart.PlotArea.Shadow.ShadowColor = System.Drawing.Color.DarkOrange
            chart.PlotArea.Shadow.Size = 100
            chart.PlotArea.Shadow.Angle = 45
            chart.PlotArea.Shadow.Distance = 10
 
            'Positioning the chart in the worksheet
            chart.TopRow = 8
            chart.LeftColumn = 1
            chart.BottomRow = 23
            chart.RightColumn = 8
 
            'Saving the workbook
            Dim stream As Stream = File.Create("Output.xlsx")
            workbook.SaveAs(stream)
        End Sub
    End Class
End Namespace

Take a moment to peruse the documentation where you can find basic Excel document processing options along with the features like import and export data, chart, formulas, conditional formatting, data validation, tables, pivot tables and, protect the Excel documents, and most importantly, the PDF, CSV and Image conversions with code examples.

Conclusion

I hope you enjoyed learning about How to set shadows for plot area or axis in chart using XlsIO.

You can refer to our XIsIO’s feature tour page to learn about its other groundbreaking features. Explore our UG documentation and online demos to understand how to manipulate data in Excel documents.

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How to set shadows for plot area or axis in chart using XlsIO?

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