Illustrator Bezier Waggle

A buddy and I noticed what we think is a bug in Illustrator a long time ago. It seems to make its way into each new version of Illustrator

If you make a path with the pen tool, then go back and select the bezier handle with cmd (white arrow tool), then add space bar (to move the anchor point) the other, unselected bezier handle seems to waggle as you move the anchor point, and it gets longer and longer as it goes…

Here is a video… Bug or Feature? you decide!

Illustrator: Create Gradient Mesh from Raster Image

Apparently you can do that now, or maybe you always could have…

Illustrator : Object > Line and Sketch Art

In Illustrator, there’s a new command under the Object menu called Line and Sketch Art. What the heck is it?

Well, apparently, it’s for working with the mobile apps, Adobe Illustrator Line and Adobe Photoshop Sketch..

So there, mystery solved

Illustrator: Curvature tool

There’s a new tool for path drawing, and it’s called the Curvature Tool. I don’ t know if it’s because I’m so used to the pen tool, but this tool feels a bit weird to me. But basically, instead of straightlines being the default, curve lines are the default. you can still draw straight lines, but it takes a bit more work to do so (double click or alt click to change the type of anchor point it’s supposed to be). overall i found it to work pretty well, but it seems to have trouble drawing loops!

Also, if i select a loop (drawn with the pen tool) and with the curvature tool, once i click on the anchor point, it immediately changes it to a normal curve instead!

• click to place anchor points
• Illustrator connects points with curves
• Double click / alt click to change the next anchor point to a straight point
• hover back at previous points to edit
• esc/cmd click to exit tool

Illustrator: Customized Tools Panel

This feature has been kicking around a while, but I just stumbled on it recently. You can customize and create your own Tools Panel in Illustrator!

This is great for those buried subtools that don’t have a default keyboard shortcut (looking at you, polygon tool!) or those tools that I can never find for the occasional use (knife and scissors). you can basically drag any tool from the tools menu into a new tool bar of your own making, and then have a second tool bar!

• To add tools to your own new tool bar, drag it from the default tool bar

• To remove tools from the customized tool bar, drag it out into the artboard (you have to have a document open to do this)

tIllustrator CC 2014 October: Area Type options – auto resizing text box!

Just noticed this while working in illustrator today. there’s a little extra extender tab at the bottom of area type now, with a square tab. Double click on it will automatically resize the text box to fit the text you have! The text box will also auto fit (height) if you create more content! How convenient is that!

Edit: If you go into Area Type Options, there’ll a checkbox for Auto Size. This is the same feature. If you drag to transform the size of the frame at anytime, it turns back to a regular old box

Illustrator CC 2014 : Pen Tool and Drawing Enhancements

I always say, it’s the small things that matter. Illustrator CC 2014 introduces some small, but nice enhancements to the pen tool and other related drawing functions. For those that need/want/love the absolute precision of the pen tool, these are for you!

• Rubber Band Preview:  The pen tool now comes with rubber bands, which lets you preview a curve before clicking on the canvas. This makes it more like photoshop’s pen tool. To disable, go to Preferences > Selection & Anchor display > Enable Rubber Band for Pen Tool Check box
• Paired but Uneven Handles: To draw an anchor point where the bezier handles are paired (in a straight line), but are uneven length, use CMD while drawing to engage this features. Remember, ALT is used to change the tool to draw corner handles. and the default is paired, and handles of the same length. (it’s hard to explain in text!)
• Change Corner Point to Smooth Point: Changing an anchor point from smooth to corner often redrew the lines in an undesired way. Well, no more. Now you can change the corners and still preserve the appearance of the line.
  • Click on the point with the Convert Point Tool (Shift+C) : Deletes the handles and changes it to a regular corner point
  • Option+Click on the handle with the Convert Point tool: Deletes the handle you click on, and redraws the handle as a paired handle. Preserves the other half of the line
  • Click + Drag on the Point: Draws a new, paired handle to draw a new pair of handles.
• Snapping to grid: Snapping to grid means the anchor points snap to the grid. Handles are disengaged and freeee!
• Closing Paths: Clothing paths is easier than ever!
  • Space Bar while closing path – Move the start/end anchor point while you draw.
  • Alt+Click on start/end point to close the shape with disconnected handles. Even if you started the shape with regular handles (I swear this was already a function, gotta double check)

 

Illustrator CC 2014: Live Rectangles and Rounded Rectangles

Rectangles are serious business. In the previous version of CC, Adobe introduced the Corner widget, which allowed us to change the type of corner a rectangle had and the radius, and so on. In this version of CC, that idea is taken further with the idea of Live Shapes. And by live shapes I mean, Live Rectangles.  Honestly, I can’t tell the difference too much between a live shape and a regular shape, but I honestly suspect it has to do with how well it plays at being a CSS object. It works exactly like the live corners in the previous version, but with a bit more control. The Corner widget still exists, but now the same set of controls are extra special when applied to a rectangle. Really, think of this as an extension of Live Corners feature.

First of all, a Live Rectangle is treated differently than a regular rectangle by Illustrator. This is indicated a few different ways

• In the layers panel, a live rectangle is noted as <Rectangle>
• The bounding box is different (See picture. Live object is on the left)
• “Rectangle Properties” section will show up in the Transform Panel for a Live Rectangle
• You can change a rectangle into a live rectangle to a regular rectangle by going to Object > Shape > Convert to Rectangle. For instance, if you are opening up an older illustrator file
• You can change a live rectangle to a regular rectangle by going to Object > Shape > Expand Rectangle. 
• You can still access the individual anchor points like always, but if you change something manually. It’s no longer live. You’ve killed it.

Transform Panel

All rectangles created are automatically Live Rectangles. And as such, the Transform Panel will display a special Rectangle Properties for the rectangle. Some of this may look redundant to the basic properties, and may sometimes be the same value, but they are not the same thing.

• W Value and H Value indicates the size of the bounding box. So if your object is rotated, or you have multiple items in the selection. this is what the W Value and H Value shows.
• Rotate can be thought of as a command. Rotate this selection this many degrees. This field has no memory and will reset to zero.
• Rectangle Width and Rectangle Height, Rectangle Angle, and anything in the Rectangle Properties section, is a property of the rectangle.
• Rectangle Angle is the a stored value of the object. When you rotate your rectangle, the value is stored here.
• Scale Rectangle Corners – The corner radius of live rectangles do not change by default. Check this box if you want it to.
• Show on Rectangle Creation is an option from the fly out menu. It makes the Transform panel pop up to the top whenever you draw a rectangle. How neat is that.

There you have it. A new type of rectangle that’s almost exactly like the old one!

 

Adobe Illustrator Nomenclature: Illustrator CC 2014

I KNEW versioning was going to be a problem going forward when Creative Cloud (CC) came along. At first CS6 was Creative Cloud. Then, Creative Cloud was creative cloud. Then came the updates, which I didn’t really keep track of. But now, in June of 2014, there is Creative Cloud 2014. Nevermind that there was a Creative Cloud update in January of 2014 also. All that aside, this is what the names of the things are. Just so I don’t get it mixed up

Illustrator CC 2014 = Illustrator 2014.0.0 = Illustrator 18.0.0

 

Can you believe we are on Illustrator 18!

Also, Cool new illustration for the splash screen. I guess Lion now, instead of Venus. (or maybe it changes, i don’t know, i’ve only launched the program twice).

Illustrator CC: Move objects in perspective along with the perspective grid.

I made a bunch of posts back when the Perspective Grid Tool was introduced in CS5. Check them out Here.

But there’s been a big cool new improvement!. It used to be that if you shifted the vanishing points on your perspective grid, then everything you drew is now shifted and no longer aligned. Well, no more! Now, you can set it so when you change the vanishing point, the attached artwork will shift as well

• Enable “Lock station point” under View > Perspective Grid > Lock Station Point. Remember the station point is where the two vanishing points come together at the front. this effectively ‘locks’ the angle between your two and three point perspectives.
• When Lock Station Point is enabled, ovine the bashing point will shift the other vanishing point accordingly.
• In the latest version of Illustrator, changing the vanishing point will change the artwork as well.
• Still can’t place raster art though