preview

Create Audio Waveforms with the Scribble Effect

Jan 25th in Effects, Tools & Tips by Cheryl Graham

Some people might think of Illustrator’s Scribble effect as child’s play. In fact, one of its presets is called “Childlike.” But by tweaking its custom settings, the Scribble effect can be used to produce an infinite array of visual effects &mdash some with a single line. This is an easy tutorial that will get you started with the Scribble effect. What you do with it after that is limited only by your imagination. Let’s get started!

Continue Reading

preview

How to Create a 3D Marker in Illustrator

Dec 29th in Tools & Tips by Mac Krebernik

There are many ways to create a marker in Adobe Illustrator, but this might be one of the quickest. It only takes three paths, some text for the imprint and a 3D effect to create a semi-realistic and freely rotatable marker. So let’s get started!

Continue Reading

preview

The Secrets of the Appearance Panel: Multiple Fills

Dec 24th in Effects, Tools & Tips by Diana Berg

In this tutorial, we’ll explore the Adobe Illustrator Appearance panel and learn to create objects that look like groups of many shapes, but consist of only one shape with multiple fills applied, with no brushes used. We’ll dive really deep into the the Appearance panel and unlock its secrets. Illustrator enthusiasts will love this detailed tutorial!

Continue Reading

preview

A Comprehensive Guide to the Pathfinder Panel

Dec 21st in Tools & Tips by Cheryl Graham

You’ve probably used the Pathfinder panel to combine shapes and make new ones. But do you often find yourself clicking (and undoing) each icon in the panel until you get the look you want? Wouldn’t it be easier to take some time and learn exactly what each function does? Here’s a look at the über-useful Pathfinder panel. The Pathfinder Effects, which are found under the Effects menu, are covered in video format in this tutorial.

Continue Reading

preview

How to Create Interactive PDFs in InDesign Using Hyperlinks

Dec 11th in Designing, Tools & Tips by Lauren Krause

There are several ways to make PDFs interactive when building them in InDesign. The easiest and probably most widely used way is to make hyperlinks that jump to pages within the current document, to pages in another document or to web pages. InDesign hyperlinks can be confusing, frustrating and even intimidating if you’re just trying to figure things out intuitively, so let’s take a close look at how to create hyperlinks in InDesign and export them into interactive PDFs.

Continue Reading

preview

Pre-flight Illustrator Files with Phantasm CS

Dec 9th in Tools & Tips by Cheryl Graham
9

Get your documents ready for printing. This is a special tutorial sponsored by Astute Graphics that incorporates the use of their high-quality Phantasm CS (Studio or Publisher) Illustrator Pugins. Phantasm CS contains powerful print preview tools. We’ll use Phantasm’s tools to find and correct potential printing problems, ensuring the best possible output of our vector artwork!

Continue Reading

preview

Everything You Ever Want to Know About Creating Seamless Patterns in Illustrator

Dec 7th in Effects, Tools & Tips by Diana Berg

Adobe Illustrator patterns makes your work process easier and the result prettier. Every vector professional must know the secrets and details about using seamless patterns, as well as many approaches to creating them. In this tutorial I dive into the anatomy of patterns in Adobe Illustrator, analyzing numerous existing methods of creating a seamless pattern fill, from the easiest ones to the most complex ones.

Continue Reading

Preview

Smoothly Shift Winter Colors, While Creating an Icy, Vector Landscape

Nov 25th in Illustration, Tools & Tips by Jonathan

Handle color changes and variations with ease by following this intermediate level tutorial. This is a special tutorial sponsored by Astute Graphics that incorporates the use of their high-quality Phantasm CS range Illustrator Pugins. We’ll work with Phantasm’s color shifting tools: Hue/Saturation and and Shift to Color, while we learn to contrast shapes when composing natural, vector scenes!

Continue Reading

preview

How to Create a Climbing Rope Pattern Brush

Nov 10th in Designing, Tools & Tips by Mac Krebernik

A simple 2-point-path can be transformed into a powerful Pattern Brush. The virtual Climbing Rope may not save your life, but the technique behind this tutorial may help save a lot of time. Let’s get started!

Continue Reading

preview

How to Create Roads and Rail Tracks on a Path

Oct 19th in Effects, Tools & Tips by Diana Berg

In this tutorial, we’ll make a semi-realistic road and rail track that actually consists of one single path each. Although it looks impossible, there are not any brushes and no need for any effects to be applied, but you could use some effect if you want. The secret is hidden in a tricky combination of multiple strokes. Intrigued? Read more!

Continue Reading

Page 1 of 512345»