Introduction to Morpholio Trace with John Wood
Course Tutor: John Wood
Date: 05 & 06 March 2026
Time: 10:00 - 13:00 both days
Please note that this event will be recorded and will be made available to delegates after the event. Once you have booked onto the event you will be sent a Zoom registration link, please complete the registration then you will be sent a link to join the Zoom meeting along with a Zoom information sheet and a Zoom recording and privacy statement.
Overview
Morpholio Trace is a powerful design tool created by architects, for architects. It combines the traditional feel of an architectural drawing board with the flexibility of a digital platform, making it a perfect tool for garden designers who prefer to work with pen and pencil, or those trained on drawing boards rather than computers. While it operates in a fully digital environment, the interface of Morpholio Trace feels uncannily like working on a traditional drawing board, offering a seamless transition for those accustomed to analogue design methods.
What will be taught on this course?
This course will guide you through the fundamentals of Morpholio Trace, showing you how to harness its unique blend of analogue and digital capabilities. Everything you’d expect from a conventional drawing board can be replicated—and enhanced—within this design platform. For instance, you can import topographic surveys as PDFs, trace over them, and design on multiple layers, just as you would with physical tracing paper. The digital nature of Morpholio Trace, however, means you can do so much more: each tracing layer can function as an independent drawing, printable at different scales and paper sizes. This flexibility enables quicker workflows and easier collaboration, as entire project files can be shared and worked on simultaneously.
One of the major advantages of Morpholio Trace is its ability to create accurate survey outlines to scale, based on satellite imagery. It also includes drawing assistance for easily sketching in three-point perspective and it offers a wealth of creative potential for producing hand-drawn-style plans. Whether you prefer working with watercolours, pen-and-ink sketches, or colour washes, this program allows you to bring your artistic vision to life directly on the iPad. You can even import your own colour palettes or sketch over photographs.
Additionally, Morpholio Trace comes with a customisable stencil library. Designers can create their own libraries of stencils (whether it’s planting symbols or technical construction details) which can be stored permanently and reused, greatly improving efficiency and streamlining the design process
By the end of this course, you’ll have the skills to use Morpholio Trace as a highly versatile digital drawing board. You’ll be able to produce both technical and creative designs of a high standard, with the added freedom and versatility that working on an iPad provides. Whether you’re looking to create beautiful hand-drawn renderings or precise technical drawings, Morpholio Trace will enable you to work efficiently while maintaining the craftsmanship and creativity of traditional drawing methods.