Adobe illustrator cs4- P7 pptx

CHAPTER 5: ORGANIZING YOUR DRAWING 154 2. Draw a new element. Any new shapes or objects that are created now become part of the group. 3. Press the Escape key on the keyboard to exit isolation mode. Alterna- tively, you can double-click any blank area on the artboard, or you can click any empty area in the gray bar at the top of the document window to exit isolation mode as well (Figure 5.32). Figure 5.32 Icons in the gray bar (referred to as breadcrumbs) help identify where the isolation is in the document’s object hierarchy. Clicking the arrow moves you up the hierarchy one step at a time. In reality, the usefulness of isolation mode extends far beyond working with groups. In Illustrator CS4, Adobe has extended the functionality of isolation mode so it works with individual paths as well. In fact, the whole point of isolation mode is to allow for a way to make quick edits in complex docu- ments. If you have nested groups, each double-click isolates another level of the object hierarchy—even down to individual paths. In addition, when artwork is isolated, it temporarily pops to the front of the stacking order (until you exit isolation mode, when it returns to its place). This makes it easy to perform quick edits to just about any part of a complex illustration without having to constantly lock and unlock other objects that might get in the way. Isolation mode is also useful when working with masks, which we’ll cover in Chapter 9. WORKING WITH LAYERS Layers are nearly identical to groups in concept, but they offer more fl exibil- ity and functionality. Whereas groups are used to combine design elements in a fi le, layers also allow you to organize and combine elements within a fi le. Just as groups can be nested within each other, so can layers. And just as groups are containers that hold contents within them, layers are con- tainers as well. In addition, layers, just like groups, can also have attributes applied to them. As you explore the power of layers in this section, all of these concepts will come to light. TIP The idea for isola- tion mode came from Adobe Flash Professional, which can edit groups and symbols in the same manner. TIP The General panel in Illustrator Prefer- ences contains a setting to disable the ability to isolate a group by double-clicking it. WORKING WITH LAYERS 155 The Signi cance of Layers Don’t be fooled into thinking that layers are just for making  les neat and organized. Quite the contrary—a  le that takes advantage of using layers can bene t from many other features as well: • Layer clipping masks. Illustrator has the ability to make the topmost object in a layer a mask for all items within that layer. • PDF layers. Illustrator can export PDF  les with layers intact, allowing users in Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Reader to interactively turn on and o those layers. Additionally, Adobe InDesign CS4 has the capability to con- trol the visibility of PDF layers. • Photoshop export. When exporting an Illustrator  le to a PSD  le, you can choose to have layers preserved, thus making your  le easier to edit when you bring it into Photoshop. • Transparency. Sometimes artwork with transparency can result in  les that look less than perfect when printed on a high-resolution press—if the  le is built in a certain way. Using layers can signi cantly reduce the number of issues you might encounter when using transparency features. • Animation. When creating art for frame-based animations, such as those used in GIF and SWF (Flash) animations, Illustrator layers serve as frames. Layers are also integral when you are creating art that will be animated in programs such as Flash and Adobe After E ects. • Cascading Style Sheets (CSS). Illustrator layers can be exported as CSS layers when you’re creating web layouts and SVG graphics, allowing for greater  exibility and better support for browser standards. • Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG). Illustrator layers serve as basic build- ing blocks when you’re creating  les that are going to be saved as SVG. Providing structure for SVG  les can help make it easier to animate and edit the SVG  les in a web or wireless environment. • Variables. The XML-based variables feature in Illustrator relies on the organization of layers in your document. Object visibility and naming conventions are all done through the Layers panel. There are plenty of other good reasons to use layers in Illustrator, and you’re sure to  nd yourself using layers more and more. CHAPTER 5: ORGANIZING YOUR DRAWING 156 Using the Layers Panel You’ll start learning to use layers by taking a look at the Layers panel and learning some of its simple functions. Then you’ll put together everything you’ve learned in this chapter to take full advantage of the power found in the Layers panel. By default, all Illustrator documents are created with a single existing layer, called Layer 1. The buttons across the bottom of the panel are used to acti- vate clipping masks (which Chapter 9 will cover in detail), create new lay- ers and new sublayers, and delete layers. To the left of each layer are two boxes—the box on the far left controls layer visibility, whereas the other box enables locking (Figure 5.33). The Layers panel menu contains duplicates of these functions, as well as some other functions that we’ll cover when we talk about animation in Chapter 13, “Web and Mobile Design.” Double-clicking a layer enables you to specify several settings for that layer (Figure 5.34). • Name. Every layer can have its own distinct name. Layer names are important when you’re creating SVG fi les and generally make fi les easier to work with. Naming layers is especially important when you’re designing templates. A fi le littered with layers named Layer 1, Layer 2, Layer 3, and so on, can make editing a challenging task. Figure 5.33 All  les are created with a blank layer in the Layers panel. Layer Color Visibility Icon Lock Icon Layer Name Make/Release Clipping Mask Create New Layer Create New Layer WORKING WITH LAYERS 157 • Color. This setting is a bit deceiving because it doesn’t add a fi ll color to the layer but instead defi nes the selection color used for the layer. When you select an object in Illustrator, the path of that object is highlighted so that you see what is selected. By assigning different colors to each layer, you can tell what objects belong to which layer by selecting the object and observing the highlight color. Setting a layer color to black or really light colors generally isn’t a good idea because you won’t be able to differentiate a selection from a regular path. A layer’s color also appears along the left side of the layer name in the Layers panel. • Template. This setting is used specifi cally when you want to manually trace placed images. Setting a layer as a template automatically locks the layer, disables printing of that layer, and sets the Dim Images to setting to 50 percent. Although this makes it easier to see and draw over placed images, the new Live Trace feature makes this option less important. • Show. This setting controls layer visibility (whether the art on a layer is shown or hidden) and performs the same function as clicking the vis- ibility icon in the Layers panel. • Preview. This setting controls the preview setting for the chosen layer. By default, Preview mode in Illustrator is turned on, but deselecting this option displays the layer in Outline mode. • Lock. This setting controls layer locking and performs the same func- tion as clicking the lock/unlock icon in the Layers panel. Locking a layer effectively prevents you from selecting any object on that layer. • Print. By default, all layers in a fi le will print. However, Illustrator allows you to deselect this option to create a nonprinting layer. This can be useful when you want to add instructions to a template fi le or to explain how a fi le should be folded or printed but you don’t want those instructions to print. Layers that have the Print option deselected appear in italic in the Layers panel. Figure 5.34 The Layer Options dialog box allows you to specify settings for each layer—most notably, the name of the layer. TIP Option-click (Alt-click) the visibility icon of a layer to hide all other layers with one click. Option-click (Alt-click) once more to show all layers again. The same shortcut applies to the lock icon as well. To change layer visibility for multiple layers, you can click and drag across several layers. CHAPTER 5: ORGANIZING YOUR DRAWING 158 • Dim Images to. This option lets you defi ne an Opacity setting for how placed images appear on your screen. By making placed images dim, you can make it easier to manually trace them. This feature is often used in tandem with the Template function. Con guring the Layers Panel The Layers panel in Illustrator displays more than just layers—it also displays all the objects in your  le. Many people are confused and think that all elements displayed in the Layers panel are layers. (It’s called the Layers panel, so can you really blame them?) It’s actually pretty easy to determine what is a layer and what is an object—layers appear with a shaded gray background, and objects appear with a white background (Figure 5.35). This functionality that was added way back in Illustrator 9, and it allows a user to locate any object from the Layers panel. Figure 5.35 In the Layers panel, objects have white backgrounds, and layers have gray backgrounds. If you  nd that the level of detail o ered by the Layers panel is beyond the needs of your simple design tasks, you can set the behavior of the Layers panel to match the functionality that existed prior to Illustrator 9. Choose Panel Options from the Layers panel menu, and select the Show Layers Only check box (Figure 5.36). This hides all objects from the Layers panel. Additionally, you can turn o layer thumbnails (which will signi - cantly enhance performance). For documents that have lots of layers (such as maps, for example), you might also choose the Small option for Row Size. One caveat to these options is that they are document-speci c, which means you need to change these settings for each document. Figure 5.36 The Show Layers Only option keeps the Layers panel from displaying objects. WORKING WITH LAYERS 159 Understanding Object Hierarchy When a layer contains artwork, a disclosure triangle appears just to the left of the layer. Clicking this triangle reveals the contents of the layer within the Layers panel (Figure 5.37). Every object that appears in an Illustrator document appears listed in the Layers panel. As you learned earlier in this chapter, the order in which items appear has signifi cance—it indicates the stacking order, or object hierarchy, of the fi le. Objects that appear at the bottom of the Layers panel are drawn fi rst, and therefore they appear at the bottom of the object stacking order. Figure 5.37 Clicking a disclosure triangle reveals the raw power of the Layers panel—the ability to view the entire object hierarchy of a  le. You can drag items listed in the Layers panel to adjust where they sit in the stacking order. Dragging an object from the bottom of the Layers panel to the top of the panel places that object at the top of the stacking order. It’s important to note that each layer and each group also maintain their own stacking orders. The Layers panel basically represents the stacking order of the entire fi le. You can create nested layers by dragging one layer into another layer. You can do the same with groups, which makes it easy to organize your artwork even after the art is created. In fact, this method of dragging items within the Layers panel makes it possible to move objects from one group and place them into another group (Figure 5.38 on the next page). As you learned ear- lier in this chapter, groups can have attributes applied to them; this becomes signifi cant because when you’re moving an object into a group that has an attribute applied to it, that object takes on the attributes of the group. The reverse applies as well, so simply moving an object from one layer to another or into or out of a group can change the appearance of the art in your fi le. NOTE In the Layers panel, layers and sub- layers appear with shaded backgrounds, and objects appear with white back- grounds. CHAPTER 5: ORGANIZING YOUR DRAWING 160 Using Layers and Appearances When an object is selected, a small colored square appears in the far right end of the Layers panel. Small squares indicate that an object is selected, and larger squares indicate that all objects on a layer are selected (layers with small squares indicate that only some elements on that layer are selected). You can move an object from one layer to another simply by dragging the square into the desired layer. Holding the Option (Alt) key while dragging the square moves a copy of the object into the desired layer. If you take another look at the Layers panel, you’ll notice that to the right of every item listed is a small circle, called the target indicator (Figure 5.39). If you remember, we spoke earlier about how the target controls where attri- butes are applied. If you take the same examples we used earlier, the ones of identical design elements of which one is grouped and one is not, you can clearly see how targeting works. Figure 5.38 When you’re dragging layers in the Layers panel, black arrows on the left and right indicate that you’re moving a layer into another layer rather than above or below it. Figure 5.39 The little circles that appear on the right side of each layer are target indicators. WORKING WITH LAYERS 161 In the Layers panel, ungrouped design elements appear listed as separate paths, whereas the grouped design element appears as objects nested inside a group (Figure 5.40). When you select the fi rst design element, a double circle appears on each of the individual paths, indicating that those paths are targeted (Figure 5.41). Now select the grouped design element, and you’ll see that although the objects are selected, the group is targeted (Figure 5.42). Figure 5.40 A quick look at the Layers panel reveals the hierarchy of the  le. Layer 1 contains four path objects and a group. The group con- tains four path objects. Figure 5.41 Selecting the path objects also targets the four individual paths. The large squares to the right indicate the objects are selected, and the small square to the right of the layer indicates that some objects on the layer, but not all of them, are selected. Figure 5.42 When select- ing the group, the smart targeting feature targets the group, not the objects. Notice the double circle target indicator appears only on the group, not the objects. CHAPTER 5: ORGANIZING YOUR DRAWING 162 Now add a drop shadow to each of the design elements. A quick glance at the Layers panel now shows that some of the target indicators are shaded or fi lled, whereas some of the target indicators are hollow (Figure 5.43). Hollow circles indicate that the item listed has a basic appearance, whereas fi lled circles indicate that a complex appearance exists on that object. Just by looking at the Layers panel, you can tell that the second design element has some kind of effect applied to the group. This is your fi rst indication that ungrouping such a group will result in a change in appearance—without having to even select it fi rst. You can manually target groups or layers by clicking the target indicator for that object. For example, just as you learned how to apply a stroke to a group earlier in this chapter, you can click the target circle of a layer and then add a new stroke to that layer. By moving the Stroke attribute beneath the contents of the layer in the Appearance panel, all objects that appear on that layer will have a stroke at the perimeter. When you move a shape into such a layer, the object automatically appears to have a stroked appearance, and likewise, when you move an object out of the layer, that stroked appear- ance disappears. The important concept to remember is that taking a quick look at the Layers panel and scanning for fi lled target circles helps you fi nd complex appear- ances in the fi le. In this way, you won’t accidentally change a fi le’s appear- ance just by grouping or ungrouping objects. The Appearance panel is also useful in helping you understand how fi les are built because it displays how complex appearances were added to the fi le. Figure 5.43 Shaded target indicators show where com- plex appearances exist. TIP Dragging a  lled target circle from one layer or object to another e ectively copies the complex appearance and applies it to the object to which you are dragging it. PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER 163 PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER The importance of the Appearance panel is obvious. Without it, you have no way to edit multiple attributes applied to an object, you have no way to edit attributes that are applied to groups or layers, and you have no way to edit the properties of a live effect. The importance of the Layers panel is equally apparent. Without it, you have no way to understand the hierarchy of a fi le, and you have no warning as to when a simple action such as grouping or ungrouping will change a fi le’s appearance. But it’s deeper than that. The Appearance panel is like the Matrix—you can look at it and see the underlying makeup of any Illustrator fi le. By using the Layers and Appearance panels together, you can quickly and effi ciently reverse-engineer any fi le you receive (Figure 5.44). If you’re a production artist who needs to know every detail about a fi le or if you’re trying to trou- bleshoot a particular fi le, these two panels will be your best friends. Throughout the chapters of this book, you’ll see how features such as clipping and opacity masks, envelope distortions, and placed images are all easily identifi ed in the Layers panel. You’ll also learn the importance of using layers when you’re creating content you’re planning to animate in Flash or with the SWF export feature in Illustrator. Figure 5.44 Don’t trust everything you see on the artboard. By using both the Appearance panel and the Layers panel, you will be able to see exactly how any art was created and, most importantly, how to edit it quickly. [...]... in Adobe Photoshop CS4 and Adobe InDesign CS4 as well, choose Save Swatch Library as ASE instead (Figure 6.11) ASE stands for Adobe Swatch Exchange, and you can import those colors into Photoshop or InDesign (in all versions starting with CS2) Adobe Swatch Exchange currently supports only solid-color swatches, not gradients or patterns Figure 6.11 You can open an Adobe Swatch Exchange file with Illustrator, ... New Color Group Delete Color Group CREATING AND USING COLOR IN ILLUSTRATOR 175 Working with Libraries Illustrator files can contain all kinds of attributes including colors, gradients, patterns, symbols, brushes, and graphic styles You can save each of these attributes as libraries so that you can share them between Illustrator documents Illustrator makes the process of managing libraries easy by incorporating...This page intentionally left blank Chapter Six Coloring Artwork At one time, Adobe Illustrator (back in version 1.1) was black and white only Then, Illustrator 88 introduced color features Of course, back then, few designers could even afford to buy a color monitor Technology eventually caught up, and color plays... abilities we take for granted; however, the challenges of working with color are still present In this chapter, you’ll learn about creating color in Adobe Illustrator CS4 and applying it to your artwork, as well as a variety of ways to edit or modify colors Illustrator features a collection of powerful inspirational tools that you can use to develop color harmonies and custom color palettes; you’ll explore... your number For example, if you try entering 485 for Pantone 485, you’ll find that instead Illustrator takes you directly to Pantone 1485 To get Pantone 485, you will have to type a space before the numbers 485 Why? That’s a great question I’m glad you asked Teri Pettit, an engineer on the Illustrator team at Adobe, offers the following explanation: “What the search command does is first look for a... colors to the document’s Swatches panel Figure 6.10 You can load swatch libraries right from the Swatches panel Libraries appear in hierarchical format according to how they’re organized within the Adobe Illustrator CS4/Presets/en_US/ Swatches folder NOTE Commercial color libraries such as Pantone, Toyo, and Trumatch appear listed in the Color Books submenu You can get newer Pantone GOE libraries from... fills that Illustrator supports: gradients and patterns If the Swatches panel seems a bit cluttered with all these types of swatches, you can click the Show Swatch Kinds icon at the bottom of the panel to limit the display to a specific swatch type (Figure 6.2) Figure 6.2 You can set the Swatches panel to display all kinds of swatches or just solid colors You can create a new color swatch in Illustrator. .. always be specifying color as a combination of primary colors When working in Illustrator, you’ll find that, likewise, you define colors by mixing values of CMYK or RGB Of course, you can define and apply colors in plenty of ways Some ways are more efficient than others, and some offer specific benefits More so, some color features in Illustrator apply specifically to certain kinds of workflows and may even be... When you select an object that is filled with a gradient and you switch to the Gradient tool, Illustrator displays a fill path that shows the start and end points of the gradient (Figure 6.20) When you move your pointer over the fill path, it expands to reveal an entire functional gradient slider, or widget (Adobe refers to this as the Gradient Annotator, and you can control its appearance by choosing... (covered later in this chapter) or when using the Live Paint Bucket tool (covered in Chapter 4, “Creative Drawing”) Figure 6.6 Grouping swatches makes it easy to organize colors CREATING AND USING COLOR IN ILLUSTRATOR 173 As with swatches, you can create a new group of swatches in several ways: • With nothing selected, click the New Color Group icon at the bottom of the Swatches panel to create an empty . export PDF  les with layers intact, allowing users in Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Reader to interactively turn on and o those layers. Additionally, Adobe InDesign CS4 has the capability to con- trol. intentionally left blank Chapter Six Coloring Artwork At one time, Adobe Illustrator (back in version 1.1) was black and white only. Then, Illustrator 88 introduced color features. Of course, back. chapter, you’ll learn about creating color in Adobe Illustrator CS4 and applying it to your artwork, as well as a variety of ways to edit or modify colors. Illustrator features a collection of powerful