135
Chapter 7: Wielding the Mighty Pen Tool
If you want to create circles or free-form shapes — such as puddles, or
shapes like those nonslip flower stickers for your bathtub — smooth anchor
points are the way to go. To create a smooth anchor point, click and drag
with the mouse while using the Pen tool. While you drag, direction points
(connected to the anchor point by direction lines) appear on either side of
the anchor point (one at the tip of the Pen, and the other on the opposite
side of the anchor point). Think of those wacky direction points as magnets
pulling the line segment toward them. The line segment bends to follow the
direction point — just that easy, just that simple. (So far.)
Straight-corner anchor points
Straight-corner anchor points function as their name suggests and have both
the following characteristics:
✓ One or two straight lines sticking out of them: In Figure 7-2, for exam-
ple, all the anchor points are Straight-corner anchor points.
✓ No direction points sticking out of them. (Remember, direction points
make curves.)
Think of this type of anchor point as
the corner of an angle that you draw
with a pencil and a protractor. To
create straight-corner anchor points
with the Pen tool, click and release;
do not drag. Promptly release the
mouse button the second you hear
it click.
Use straight-corner anchor points to
draw objects with hard angles — think rectangles and triangles (note the
whole “angle” theme here) — anything that consists entirely of straight lines
and no curves. Snakes, clouds, and country roads are entirely out of the
question.
Curved-corner anchor points
Think of the curved-corner anchor point (also referred to as a cusp point)
as the m-curve anchor point, or the point where the two bumps on a lower-
case m are joined. If you look at this nice lowercase m through a magnifying
glass, you can see a corner, between the two bumps, with curves coming out
from it. The curved-corner anchor point might also remind you of a double
fishhook turned upside down. You need these points to create not just lower-
case m’s, but also hearts (the Valentine variety, as shown in Figure 7-3).
Figure 7-2: Use straight-corner anchor points
when you need straight paths.
12_396568-ch07.indd 13512_396568-ch07.indd 135 9/22/08 9:54:33 PM9/22/08 9:54:33 PM
Please purchase PDF Split-Merge on www.verypdf.com to remove this watermark.
136
Part II: Drawing and Coloring Your Artwork
Consider the possibilities — clovers,
moons (old-fashioned crescents-
with-little-noses), and other shapes
you might see in a cereal bowl.
(Okay, not the blue diamonds —
those you draw with straight-corner
anchor points.) Beware, though, that
curved-corner anchor points are a
little weird. To create one, you have
to modify an existing anchor point
by following these steps:
1. Create a smooth anchor point
while you’re creating a path.
This works best after you draw
at least one line segment.
2. Press Option (Mac)/ Alt
(Windows) and then click and
drag the smooth anchor point.
A direction point appears —
totally independent of the
anchor point — on the oppo-
site side of the point. This new
handle controls where the double-fishhook corner goes. You can drag
the new handle nearer to the first direction point (the one for the origi-
nal smooth anchor point) — or anywhere else — without affecting that
first direction point.
Combination-corner anchor points
If you want to use the Pen tool to draw rounded-corner rectangles — such as
what you see on classic TV screens, archways, cylinders, and your friendly
neighborhood iPhone screen — you need combination-corner anchor points.
The combination blends smooth and straight-corner anchor points. You can
identify a combination-corner anchor point by what you find sticking out of
it: two line segments but only one direction point. This handle curves one
of the line segments while leaving the other segment straight. If you keep in
mind that the handle is controlling the curved segment, not the straight seg-
ment, you’ll have less trouble getting these points to work for you.
Like with curved-corner anchor points (mutant versions of their straight-
corner cousins), you can’t just say, “I want one of those” and poof! have one
appear on-screen. To create the exotic combination-corner anchor point,
Figure 7-3: This heart shows two curved-
corner anchor points.
12_396568-ch07.indd 13612_396568-ch07.indd 136 9/22/08 9:54:33 PM9/22/08 9:54:33 PM
Please purchase PDF Split-Merge on www.verypdf.com to remove this watermark.
137
Chapter 7: Wielding the Mighty Pen Tool
modify an existing smooth or straight-corner anchor point. Which type you
modify depends on where you want the curve to go:
✓ If you want the curve before the anchor point (the existing line seg-
ment is curved), you modify a smooth anchor point.
✓ If you want the curve after the
anchor point (the existing line
segment is straight), you modify
a straight-corner anchor point.
Figure 7-4 shows a combination-
corner anchor point in the middle
of a path.
Starting with a smooth path
To create a combination-corner anchor point from a smooth one (so that the
curve precedes the anchor point), follow these steps, shown in Figure 7-5:
1. Click and drag the Pen tool.
Start in the upper-left quarter
of a blank Illustrator document.
When you’re there, click and
drag up and to the right for your
first drag.
2. Click and drag the Pen tool at
another location to create a
curved line.
Start your second drag at a
place roughly parallel to your
original starting point and about
an inch to the right, dragging
down and to the right.
To see what you’re doing, you have to draw at least one line segment
before you change the anchor point. That’s the rule!
When you complete Step 2, the most recent line segment ends in a
smooth anchor point.
3. Click (don’t drag!) the smooth anchor point that appeared after you
clicked and dragged in Step 2.
The direction point (handle) that extended out from the anchor point
disappears.
Figure 7-4: A combination-corner anchor point.
1) Click and drag up and to the right
2) Click and drag down and to the right
3) Click once
4) Click once
Figure 7-5: Steps for creating the path shown
in Figure 7-4 when starting with a smooth path.
12_396568-ch07.indd 13712_396568-ch07.indd 137 9/22/08 9:54:33 PM9/22/08 9:54:33 PM
Please purchase PDF Split-Merge on www.verypdf.com to remove this watermark.
138
Part II: Drawing and Coloring Your Artwork
4. Move the mouse pointer to a place about an inch to the right of the
most recent anchor point and click.
A straight path segment (straight because it’s free from the influence of
the direction point) appears. After you click, the two direction points
(handles) disappear from the curved line that you drew in Step 2. The
anchor point from which you drew your new straight segment is a com-
bination-corner anchor point.
Starting with a straight path
To create a combination-corner anchor point from a straight-corner anchor
point (so the curve comes after the anchor point), follow these steps, as
shown in Figure 7-6:
1. Using the Pen tool, click once
and (without dragging) click
again in a nearby location in
the document.
To get a path that resembles
the straight path on the right
side of Figure 7-4, start in the
upper-right quarter of a blank
Illustrator document, and click
once.
2. Move the mouse pointer to the
left and click (again without
dragging).
A straight path segment appears. You need this line segment so that
you can see the difference in the path as you change the straight-corner
anchor point to a combination-corner anchor point.
3. Click the straight-corner anchor point you just created; hold down the
mouse button and drag.
To get an image that resembles the one in Figure 7-4, drag up and
slightly to the left.
A new, single direction point (handle) extends from the anchor point.
4. Click in another location and drag away from the anchor point.
Click a spot to the left of the previous anchor point, and then drag down
and slightly to the left.
A curved path segment appears. The anchor point between the straight
and curved line segments is now a combination-corner anchor point.
4) Click and drag down and to the left
3) Click and drag up and to the left
2) Click once
1) Click once
Figure 7-6: Steps for starting with a straight
path to draw the path from Figure 7-4.
12_396568-ch07.indd 13812_396568-ch07.indd 138 9/22/08 9:54:34 PM9/22/08 9:54:34 PM
Please purchase PDF Split-Merge on www.verypdf.com to remove this watermark.
139
Chapter 7: Wielding the Mighty Pen Tool
Creating Straight Lines with the Pen Tool
Using logic as valid as any followed by Holmes and Watson (not to mention
Spock), you can deduce that you use straight-corner anchor points to draw
straight lines with the Pen tool. Elementary. . . .
Harrumph. Elementary or not, you should jolly well see this marvel in action.
To draw a triangle with the Pen tool using straight-corner anchor points (see
Figure 7-7), just follow these steps:
1. With the Pen tool, click (do
not drag) in the Document
window.
An anchor point appears after
you release the mouse button.
(Cute, isn’t it? But lonely; it
needs friends.)
2. Click (don’t drag) somewhere
below and a little to the right
of the first anchor point.
After you release the mouse
button, a line appears between
the first and second anchor
points. They’re joined, open,
and ready to rock. You created a fine-looking path.
3. Click (don’t drag!) somewhere a bit to the left of the second anchor
point.
A stunning-looking angle appears. Maybe it’s a skateboard ramp. Maybe
it’s a less-than sign flopped over, worn out from all those equations.
4. Put your cursor on the first anchor point and click that puppy.
You created a triangle! Congratulations! Euclid would be proud.
Well, okay, you’ve heard this tune before, but once more with feeling: Do
not drag if you want straight lines. If you drag, you’re going to get curves. In
fact, not dragging to get straight lines is probably harder than dragging to
get curves. (If you want to take a break and go drag something, be my guest;
you’ve earned it.)
You can create right angles and 45° angles with the Pen tool by holding down
the Shift key when you click each point with the Pen tool. If you’re close to
45° away from the last click, you’ll get a 45° angle. If you’re closer to 90° from
the last click, you’ll get a 90° angle.
Figure 7-7: Draw a triangle with the Pen tool.
12_396568-ch07.indd 13912_396568-ch07.indd 139 9/22/08 9:54:34 PM9/22/08 9:54:34 PM
Please purchase PDF Split-Merge on www.verypdf.com to remove this watermark.
140
Part II: Drawing and Coloring Your Artwork
Open and Closed Paths
Paths in Illustrator are open or closed — one or the other, with nothing in
between. Open and closed paths differ in the following ways:
✓ Open: An open path has endpoints. It starts in one place and ends in
another place — clearly a line segment, and not a polygon.
✓ Closed: A closed path has no starting point and no endpoint. Like that
psychotic bunny in the battery commercial, it just keeps going and going
in the same place — clearly the boundary of a solid shape. (Think of
complete circles, Möbius strips, and so forth.)
Creating artwork with the Pen tool is much easier if you set your fill color
to None, regardless of the final color you’re going to fill your artwork with.
(To set the fill color to None, click the Fill square in either the Tools panel
or the Color panel and then click the box with a red slash in it.) When you
use the Pen tool with a fill color selected, Illustrator treats every line you
make as though it were a completed object by drawing a temporary, invisible
line straight from the first anchor point in the path to the last anchor point,
and then fills the enclosed area with the selected fill color. This is confusing
at best because it hides parts of the path that you are creating and creates
an object that appears to change shape completely with every click of the
mouse. To avoid this mess, set your fill color to None while you create your
path and change the fill color when the path is complete.
Creating Super-Precise Curves with the Pen Tool
The Illustrator Pen tool is a model of precision and accuracy. With it, you can
draw virtually anything (or draw anything virtually). That is, of course, after
you master drawing curves.
The Pen isn’t designed to be maddening (as far as I know), but using it to
draw successful curves does seem to require a psychological breakthrough.
Illustrator users who struggle to figure out the Pen tool by themselves, with-
out the handy guide you hold in your hands, might slog through months (or
even years) of frustration before the breakthrough occurs. They happen
upon shapes and curves that work for them — and then they finally “get it.”
Therefore, I vow to spare you the pain of all that trial and error. The following
sections begin this noble quest, in which you find the knight. . . .
Taming the draggin’
(Sorry about the bad pun.) Where do you want your curve to go? Just drag in
that direction. I know, I know, I told you not to drag. But in that situation, you
12_396568-ch07.indd 14012_396568-ch07.indd 140 9/22/08 9:54:35 PM9/22/08 9:54:35 PM
Please purchase PDF Split-Merge on www.verypdf.com to remove this watermark.
141
Chapter 7: Wielding the Mighty Pen Tool
were making straight lines. What’s even less helpful, dragging is perhaps the
most anti-intuitive action imaginable for creating curves. Regardless, I charge
into the fray.
If you click and drag with the intent to create a curve, you get what looks
like a straight line, as shown in Figure 7-8. (Weird, isn’t it?) Oddly enough,
the “line” you get is twice as long as the distance you drag, extending in
two directions from the spot where you initially click. After you release the
mouse button, this “line” is still a straight line and still no curve in sight.
At this stage, what do you suppose
is the most natural thing in the world
to do? Sure — it’s to drag in another
direction (typically at a 90° angle)
from where you last released the
mouse. And what are the most natu-
ral results? An ugly, curvy bump;
a new “straight” line extending in
both directions from the second
anchor point; and a sudden yearning
to direct a few choice expletives at
Illustrator.
The problem is the second anchor
point. Instead of clicking and dragging at a spot near where you first released
the mouse button (a big no-no), you always click and drag (you don’t have to
drag, but I get to that later) away from where you released the mouse button
which will get you a nice smooth curve like the one shown in Figure 7-9. You
understood correctly — away. Weird, isn’t it?
Figure 7-9: A nice smooth flowing curve, generated by the Pen tool.
To create a lovely, flowing curve for your own purposes, just follow these steps:
1. Click and drag with the Pen tool.
A line extends from the anchor point where you clicked. That’s okay; it’s
supposed to happen that way.
Figure 7-8: When creating a curve, drag out
a straight line; the arrow shows the direction
of the drag.
12_396568-ch07.indd 14112_396568-ch07.indd 141 9/22/08 9:54:35 PM9/22/08 9:54:35 PM
Please purchase PDF Split-Merge on www.verypdf.com to remove this watermark.
142
Part II: Drawing and Coloring Your Artwork
The line you see is actually a set of two direction points (connected to
the curve by direction lines), cleverly disguised as lines with little control-
handle boxes at each end. Whether you call them direction points or
control handles, lines, or boxes, they don’t print out. They’re just tools
for controlling the direction of the line segment that you’re drawing.
2. Without clicking, place your cursor away from both the anchor point
and the direction points. Then click and drag in the direction oppo-
site the direction you dragged to create the first anchor point.
At this stage, the best approach is to place that second click perpendicu-
lar to the direction lines. Note that as you drag, you can actually see the
curve between the two anchor points take shape and change. If you drag
the same distance that you dragged for the first anchor point, you create
an even-looking curve.
3. Finally, place your cursor away from the second point, still moving
away from the first anchor point, and click and drag back in the same
direction you dragged for the first anchor point.
After you release the mouse button, you see an S shape (or a backward
S, depending on which way you first dragged). Rejoice! If you don’t see
the S or reverse-S shape, breathe deeply, count to 10, and try again,
exercising superhuman patience and care. Think Clark Kent.
Remember that whole song and dance about pressing the Shift key so that
new anchor points appear angled at 45° relative to the last anchor point?
Well, you can also use the Shift key to constrain the angle of control-handle
lines to 45°, if you prefer. This action lets you make much more accurate
curves than by drawing freestyle. Just don’t press and hold the Shift key until
after you begin dragging with the Pen tool. If you press the Shift key before
you drag — and release the key while you’re dragging — you get the 45°
anchor point. If you continue to hold down the Shift key, you get the whole
shebang: 45° control-handle lines as well as the anchor point.
Following the one-third rule
The optimal distance to drag a direction point from an anchor point is about
one-third the distance you expect that line segment to be. So, for instance, if
you plan to draw a curve that’s about three inches long, drag the direction
point out about one inch from the anchor point.
The one-third rule is perfect for creating the most natural, organic-looking
curves possible. Breaking the rule can have the following dismal results:
✓ If you drag too little, you get curves that are too shallow around the
middle of the line segment and too sharp at the anchor points.
✓ If you drag too much, you get curves that are quite sharp (like Dead
Man’s Curve) around the middle of the line segment and too straight
around the anchor points (like that curve on the right in Figure 7-10).
12_396568-ch07.indd 14212_396568-ch07.indd 142 9/22/08 9:54:37 PM9/22/08 9:54:37 PM
Please purchase PDF Split-Merge on www.verypdf.com to remove this watermark.
143
Chapter 7: Wielding the Mighty Pen Tool
Fortunately, on the left, Figure 7-10 shows a “perfect” curve created with the
proper use of direction point lines set to one-third the length of the path.
Because you can use the Direct Selection tool (the hollow arrow) to adjust
the position of the direction points after they’re drawn, try to follow the one-
third rule whenever possible. Doing so might keep you out of trouble (and
your vocabulary fit for sensitive listeners).
Figure 7-10: (Left) Anchor points with direction point lines one-third the
distance along the path. (Right) Dragging too much.
Following rules for the other two-thirds
The one-third rule is the most important rule when you’re using the Pen tool
to draw curves. Of course, you still have to deal with the other two-thirds of
the line segment; that’s where a few humble rules can serve you well. Even if
you don’t plan to follow them right away — because you’re still at that awk-
ward, rebellious age — you at least want to be familiar with these rules:
✓ Drag in the direction of the path. Dragging back toward the line seg-
ment you just drew results in hard-to-control curves and awkward-
appearing line segments between the previous anchor point and the
anchor point you’re working with. If you need to go back toward the line
segment, place an anchor point closer to the previous anchor point you
created. Figure 7-11 shows what happens to a path when you drag the
wrong way . . . back towards the last point.
Figure 7-11: The 2nd point (on the right) was created by dragging to the
left, resulting in this odd path.
12_396568-ch07.indd 14312_396568-ch07.indd 143 9/22/08 9:54:38 PM9/22/08 9:54:38 PM
Please purchase PDF Split-Merge on www.verypdf.com to remove this watermark.
144
Part II: Drawing and Coloring Your Artwork
✓ Focus on the upcoming segment as well as the current one. You might
notice that the line segment between the prior anchor point and the cur-
rent anchor point can distract you because it changes while you drag.
If you concentrate only on this line segment, the direction point you’re
dragging out for the next line segment probably won’t be the right length
or angle. You must master the past, present, and future when you use
the Pen tool. (Aside from that, it isn’t hard at all.)
✓ Don’t overcompensate for a misdrawn curve. If you mess up on that
last outgoing direction point, don’t try to “fix” the line segment with the
anchor point you’re currently dragging. Instead, focus on the next seg-
ment; try to ignore the goof-up for now. You can always use the Direct
Selection tool to fix the poor thing after you finish the path. Chapter 6
has the lowdown on how you can adjust your path after you draw it.
✓ Use different lengths for each direction point, as necessary. This rule
is the exception to the previous two rules. (You knew there had to be an
exception.) If you click and drag and get a segment just right — only to real-
ize that the next segment requires a longer or shorter control-handle line
but the same angle —
release the mouse button when the segment is just right.
Then click the same anchor point again and drag in the same direction
as you previously dragged. Note that as you change the angle of the
direction point on the “other” side (where the previous segment is),
you aren’t changing the length of that direction point line. And you can
match the angle pretty easily because you can see both “before” and
“after” versions of the previous line segment.
✓ Place anchor points at curve transitions. A curve transition is a place
where the curve changes. Maybe it changes direction (going from clock-
wise to counterclockwise or vice versa). Maybe the curve gets smaller
or larger. Figure 7-12 shows a nice curvy path with anchor points placed
properly at the transitions.
Figure 7-12: This path has points placed at the “correct” locations for the best possible curve.
12_396568-ch07.indd 14412_396568-ch07.indd 144 9/22/08 9:54:40 PM9/22/08 9:54:40 PM
Please purchase PDF Split-Merge on www.verypdf.com to remove this watermark.
Không có nhận xét nào:
Đăng nhận xét