What is the best way to import an image and then be able to trace or reproduce parts of that image using DraftSight?

I frequently work with hand drawn maps that have been scaned as PDFs as well as arial or satilite photoes that can come in a very wide veriety of formats ranging from common to exotic, but are usually some kind of rastor image.

I am very much a newbie to DraftSight, and have thuse far only used DraftSight to edit drawings previously made with AutoCAD.  I am trying to kick the hyper expensive and bloated program habbit, and make the switch to free/open source/comunity driven alternitives.