Adobe Illustrator Instructional activity Illustrator is a drawing
Adobe Illustrator Instructional activity Illustrator is a drawing program with many sophisticated tools designed to make your job as an artist easier. Once you learn to use this program, you will be able to create professional artwork on the computer. For today, you will have both this powerpoint and Adobe Illustrator open at the same time. Read the directions on the powerpoint and then complete the task in Adobe Illustrator.
Click on the AI document titled “Select” from the “Stuff from Hern Here” folder. Once open, your screen should look like the one below.
There are several important palettes you might want to have open in your document window. You can open these by clicking on the menu options on the far right of your screen.
Click the selection tool (black arrow) and then click on the outline of the swan. When an object is selected, its outline and anchor points appear.
To change an object in Illustrator in any way, you will have to select it first, so this part is important. To select more than one object, hold the shift key down and click on each part that you want selected. Do this now to select the entire swan.
To deselect the object, simply click on an open space in the document. Next, Try this selection method, simply drag the selection tool so the box (marquee) contains at least a portion of all the objects in the swan. You can quickly select multiple areas this way. Try this now. Deselect the swan now.
Choose the direct-selection tool (white arrow). Click on the lower part of the swan body. To move individual points, click again on a single point. Drag the anchor point to change the curve of the swan. Notice that the points turn blue when they are selected.
We want to drag out the bottom wavy edge of the wing, but not change the top. To do this you need to select multiple anchor points with the white arrow. Select the white arrow, hold down the Shift Key and click on the three anchor points along the bottom curve of the wing. These three points should turn BLUE. (Selected points are blue and non-selected stay white. You can select and deselect points using the white arrow. ) Stretch out the wing as shown
Use the selection tool (black arrow) to select the both waves (Remember: To select multiple things hold shift. ) Go to Object>Group. This function allows you to temporarily make changes to both shapes as if they were one. Move the waves by dragging them under the swan.
Next you will edit the swan text to say your name. Double click the word swan with the black arrow. This allows you to delete swan and type your name. Go to Window> Type>Character. Choose this to display the character menu each time you are using text.
This is what it should look like with your name typed in.
With the name selected, drag it down and place it next to the swan as shown. Start on the next slide and show Mrs. Hern your swan when she comes by.
Now we will draw shapes! Close the Swan without saving and create a new document titled test and your initials in caps lock (mine would be test. LH) Stroke and fill are a new concept you must learn in order to draw in the Illustrator program. FILL is the color inside the shape. You can change the color of the fill or add a gradient for a shaded look. STROKE is the line around the shape. You can change the color and width of it. Currently, the fill is set at a white and the stroke is set at black.
Switch your Fill to none and your Stroke to black by clicking on each box and then clicking on the small boxes below. Choose the shape tool. Drag over with your mouse to display the shape options. Choose the star shape. Drag the shape tool on the blank page; you should draw a 5 -pointed star when you release the mouse.
Set the Fill to red (click the fill box, then the color red from the color palette), Set the Stroke to none With the star tool still selected, Drag out the star, but do NOT release the mouse button. With the mouse button held down, push up on the arrow key five times to add five more points.
Now choose the polygon shape tool. Set the stroke=black, fill=none. Draw the shape (holding shift down will straighten it)
Next, choose the Ellipse tool. Stroke=black, Fill=none. As you drag the ellipse, hold down shift to make a perfect circle. Drag the circle on top of the polygon and select BOTH the circle and the polygon.
Make sure the Polygon and the Circle are selected at the same time (shift-click) Open the align window and click on the align tab.
Vertical Align Center and Horizontal Align Center under the align tab. (This puts the circle perfectly in the middle of the polygon. )
Click on the pathfinder tab (still located in the align window. ) With both the polygon and circle still selected, choose “exclude” from the pathfinder tab. (This will cut out the middle of your circle. )
With the polygon still selected, Click on the fill--choose a color from the swatches palette. Fill the polygon with color. The center circle should be clear. Move the polygon shape so it overlaps the red star you drew, showing that the center is hollow. Double click the fill to. see your color options
To duplicate the polygon shape—select the polygon, the go to Edit>Copy (Ctrl+ C) and then Edit>Paste (Ctrl+ V) Position the second polygon shape to the bottom right of the first. Go to Object>Arrange>Send to back. The polygon should go underneath the star.
Click away from the artwork to deselect it. Next we will draw and shade a vase. Draw a small circle--stroke=black, fill=none Choose the Rectangle tool and draw a long vertical rectangle for the neck of the vase.
Shift-click to select both the circle and the rectangle. Use the Align Window to Horizontal Align Center and Vertical Align Bottom.
Make sure both objects are still selected. Use the Pathfinder Tab to Unite the two objects.
Open the Gradient window.
Select Linear for type. You can then double click on the paint buckets to open additional colors. You can make the gradient any color combination you want. Play with the degree angles to see how you can change the gradient.
Set fill=none, stroke=black. Choose the pen tool. Click once in the window to create a starting point. Release the mouse. Click again slightly above the line to begin making a zigzag line.
Copy/Paste your zigzag line. Choose the select arrow to move it directly under the first.
Select the top zigzag line Choose the type on path tool. Type your name. It should follow along the zigzag line. The line should disappear after you type and deselect.
Minimize your screen and wait for Mrs. Hern to come by so you can show her
- Slides: 31