Introduction to Illustrator

With the release of Illustrator, Adobe has completed a tightly integrated trio of applications (Photoshop, InDesign and now Illustrator) that all work in the same way. Most key commands are the same across all applications, and palettes look and work the same. The applications are truly cross- platform, working virtually identically on both the Macintosh and Windows platforms.

Illustrator We will learn about: Raster and vector images Illustrator's environment Illustrator's tools and palettes Views in Illustrator

Raster vs Vector In the world of computer graphics, there are two types of images - raster and vector. Some programs that create raster images (also known as pixel or paint images) are Photoshop or Paintbrush. Some programs that create vector art (also known as object-oriented art) are Illustrator and FreeHand. Other programs, such as CorelDRAW, have tools to create both raster and vector images.

Raster Images Raster images are made up of a whole lot of tiny dots, called pixels. To illustrate this concept, we will use a sheet of graph paper. Each square on the sheet represents one pixel. Let's start simple and create a black and white circle that is 20 pixels in diameter. The number of pixels determines the resolution of your file. The computer stores this file by recording the exact placement and colour of each pixel. The computer has no idea that it is a circle, only that it is a collection of little dots.

Each pixel has a coordinate, and the contents of that pixel are recorded and saved in a file.

In the previous example, we see each individual pixel, and the circle is very blocky. By adding more pixels, thereby increasing the resolution, we can make that same circle appear smoother because the pixels are much smaller. Of course, the higher your resolution is, the larger your file size will be because the computer has many more pixels to keep track of. Where the problem arises is when you try enlarging a raster image. Because the resolution is set, when you scale the art, in reality, you are just enlarging the pixels, which results in a jaggy (or pixelated) image.

Vector Images Vector art is different in that instead of creating individual pixels, you create objects, such as rectangles and circles. By noting the mathematical coordinates of these shapes, a vector program can store files in a fraction of the space as raster images, and more importantly, be able to scale images to virtually any size without any loss in detail.

Unlike raster images, the vector circle appears smooth at 100% (left) and just as smooth when enlarged 800% (right).

These two graphics shows the differences between an enlarged vector graphic on the left (notice the smooth edges) and an enlarged bitmap graphic on the right (note the jagged edges). Many companies have their logos created as vectors to avoid problems with scaling: A vector graphic logo maintains its high quality appearance at any size.

Drawing Controls Illustrator drawing tools have long been the industry standard for power and versatility, but they’ve also always been a little unnatural and tedious to those who are new to using vector drawing tools. The drawing tools have been improved to allow you to work faster and get better results, starting with Point selection: Simply move your cursor over an anchor point (with the direct selection tool), and it’s enlarged to help you see it better.

The control panel has gained additional tools to help you change curved corners to rounded curves, or back again. You can also connect and remove anchor points quickly with the improved path controls. New tools in the control panel help edit paths.

Erase It Away The Eraser tool lets you erase as easily as you create, even reconnecting paths as you erase over shapes and paths. You can make the eraser larger or smaller by double- clicking the Eraser tool and changing the options in the Eraser Tool Options window. The Eraser tool makes it easy to take away shapes and paths, just where you want.

Isolation Mode This allows you to take selected objects into a mode that protects other artwork. Isolation mode is truly essential if you work on complex artwork and spend a lot of time grouping, hiding, locking, and restacking layers to access objects for editing. To use this new mode, just use the Selection tool to double-click any grouped set of objects. The rest of your artwork becomes inaccessible. This feature is truly a timesaver!

Double click a group using the Selection tool to enter the Isolation mode.

Cropping Tool When the new Crop Area tool is selected, options appear in the Control panel for measure as well as Presets that you can choose from. Want even more control? Double-click the Crop Area tool for additional options.