Do your layout then select Export/blueprint from the file menu then you can color that in and map it with graphics, anything, and with any graphics program you like. Translucent? no, not really here, but there are ways around that.
Drawing your own playfields on your originals is special, and you will find that, but more commonly you will see clip art gathered and pasted in.
Free graphics programs, oh yeah. Paint comes with windows, Gimp is advanced, inkscape in vector style, plus hundreds, if not thousands more on the net. It's well worth the search and trying and dumping some if you need one.
Bob is right. At a point after you start working with it, and stick with it, something is going to click, and you are going to know that you can can do a lot of the things you are imagining, and it is not all study every step of the way, you will find it addicting like he said, and relaxing, creative, and rewarding. We have seen unique things come in members first tables. There is much more to the program than meets the eye, and I think everybody that works with it brings something unique and wonderful.