Illustrator Template

Do you have certain graphic elements (eg. logos, symbols, icons, etc.), Color Swatches, Graphic Styles, and Art Brushes that you commonly use in Illustrator? If your answer is yes, this tutorial might be helpful to you.


Required: Illustrator CS

Introduction

I personally use Adobe Illustrator alot, to save my time and work more efficiently, I have created serveral custom Libraries Illustrator Templates. I have one template with only RGB Color Swatches, one with CMYK Color Swatches, and one with minimal Library items. The minimal Libraries template has removed all unused/unwanted Library items and is use to create my Illustrator tutorial source file. This way I can cut down on the file size because each Library item in your file costs memory. The templates store the Color & Gradient Swatches, Art Brushes, and Graphic Styles that I commonly use in my illustration. Imagine the time it will cost if I need to remove all unused Libraries every time I create a new tutorial file. Or I need to open up an existing file to copy the Color Swatches & Graphic Styles that I want.

Illustrator Template can store: Artboard setting, Color/Gradient Swatches, Graphic Styles, Symbols, Layers, graphic placeholders, and more. For full detailed information on Illustrator Template, please read Illustrator’s Help files.

1.Create Your Custom Libraries

Most of you probably already know how to create Libraries, so I’m not going to explain all the details. Creating your Libraries is very easy, just drag your object in the Library pallate or select the object and click on the New icon. To remove your Library items, select the items that you want to remove and click on the Trash Can icon.

2.Save Your Template

After you’ve done with the Libraries, go to File > Save as Template and name your template that is best describe the content/setting of the file, ie. RGB Color Setting, For Print.

3.New From Template

Now go to File > New From Template and Adobe Illustrator will create a new file with all the setting you’ve created in your template.

Conclusion

Start making Illustrator Template now and save your working time!

Inking in Adobe Illustrator

Inking in Adobe Illustrator

I will concentrate most of my tutorial on Illustrator because that is the software that I use myself. I will be inking the sketch. which you can see here.

1. 
   

   Getting Started

   
   
   
   
   
Create a new document in Illustrator. Place your sketch by going to File–>Place.
In the resulting window, find your sketch file, check the box that says “Template,” then click Okay.
Your sketch will be placed at the center of your document at 50% transparency on a locked layer.

2. 
   

   Creating Your Panels

   
   
   
   
   
1. 
   
   Select the Rectangle tool. Draw a rectangle that covers your document.
   
   
   
2. 
   
   Make sure you have a stroke on your box, and no fill (so you can see your sketch underneath).
   
   
   

3. 
   
   Use the Rectangle tool to draw in your panels (for simplicity, my demo here only has one panel). If your panels have an irregular shape, you can also use the other shape tools or the pen tool.
   
   
   
 
4. 
   
   When you are finished, Select All (Command+A) to select all your shapes. Then go to the Pathfinder window. If you do not see it, go to Window–>Pathfinder. Find the button that says “Exclude overlapping shape areas” and click on it.
   
   
   

5. 
   
   All of the shapes you’ve drawn will now be combined into one shape. Thicken the stroke and change the fill color to white (or black, for a “frame” look). You can see that your panels have been cut out of your larger rectangle shape, so you can see your sketches in all the panels.
   
   
   

6. 
   
   If you need to tweak the size or position of your panels, use the Direct Selection tool (the white arrow) and click on the center of the panel. Then use the free transform tool to modify it.
   
   
   

3. 
   

   Inking Your Drawing

   
   
   
   
   
The Pencil and the Brush
There will be two main tools that you will be using to ink your drawing: the pencil tool and the brush tool. For more geometric shapes, you might also dabble with the pen and shape tools, but it will mostly be the pencil and brush if you are going for the traditional hand-drawn look.
The Pencil – If you were to draw a stroke with this tool, it would be a thin line with no variation in width. It is not good for drawing lines, but it useful for drawing organic shapes. I use it mostly for solid black areas.
The Brush – If you were to draw a stroke with the brush, you get a nice calligraphic line. This is the tool you use for drawing your lines.
Because of the nature of these tools, remember a couple simple rules:
If you’re using the Pencil tool, use no stroke and a black fill. If you’re using the Brush tool, use a black stroke, with no fill.

The Inking Process
• 
  
  Lock your panel layer so you don’t accidentally ruin it.
  
  
  
• 
  
  Create a new layer and place it underneath your panel layer.
  
  
  
You can now draw on this layer. Any strokes that you make “outside the lines” will be hidden by the frame of your panel layer.
• 
  
  Tool Settings
  
  
  
You can change the settings of either the brush or the pencil by double-clicking on it in the Tool palette.

You can also change the shape and size of your brush by double-clicking on its icon in the Brush palette (Window–>Brushes).

Use brushes of different sizes to get a good variety of line in your drawing. It is easier to make a bunch of brushes beforehand so you don’t have to change settings all the time.
You can find more detailed instructions about this process in one of my previous tutorials:http://danidraws.com/2006/12/13/video-notes-bake-sale-brush-tool/
• 
  
  Use the Brush tool and start inking your lines. Vary the thickness of your line to give it some interest.
  
  
  

• 
  
  Use the Pencil tool to block in your solid black areas.
  
  
  

• 
  
  Fill in further details, texture, and hatching.
  
  
  

Envelope Distort

Tutorial Details

• Program: Adobe Illustrator CS4.
• Difficulty: Beginner/ 
• Estimated Completion: Half hour

1. Envelope distort is a pretty cool effect you can do in Illustrator for many logo designs, text effects, and other ways to bring your shapes and text in a stylish way. First of all I have an example here with my shapes. Let’s say that is my logo design for now.

2. Now to do an envelope distort, have the object selected (all the object you want to distort), and then go to OBJECT > ENVELOPE DISTORT and then from the menu that slides out you have about 3 different options of envelope distorts that you can use: 
Make with Warp 
Make with Mesh
Make with Top Object

3. The envelope warp option is where you can already choose an pre-made style in Illustrator. The dialog box you see here enables you to control the style in more detail. Play around with it.

4. Result with “Make with Warp”.

5. You can grab anchor points after you do that and adjust the warp on your own.

6. And here is my final result after anchor point adjustment.

7. Envelope mesh option is kind of like what you can do with a 3D program if you have experience in 3D. However in Illustrator it’s an mesh for 2D flat plain surfaces. The dialog box here enables you to create column and rows like a table or spreadsheet. You then take the anchor points and move it around at your own creativity.

8. “Make with object on top” is the last option you have, where you can create a distortion based on the object that is laid out on top.

9. Viola! Created it using a circle object on top of my object underneath.

10. Now in the same menu, there is an option called EDIT CONTENTS. This allows you to go back and expose the content underneath of your distortion and move the object around for your liking.

11. So again, I grab my anchor points just like the other envelope options, and adjust the anchor points respectively.

12. Now there is another menu option under the envelope distort option called expand. This allows you to expand the object as an editable object. After you EXPAND the object, make sure to UNGROUP the object to make individual objects selectable. (OR you can just use the white arrow tool and delete.) You can now go in and delete or adjust anchor points as you wish after the distortion was applied.

13. Complete result after expanding the distorted object.

Tracing Photo ! Easy as 123

Tracing Photo

Tutorial Details

• Program: Adobe Illustrator CS4.
• Difficulty: Beginner/ 
• Estimated Completion: Half hour

Place a photo

First place a photo in Layer 1 by File > Place or Copy & Paste from clip board. Double click on Layer 1 to change the Layer Options. Set Dim Images to: 30% and lock layer.

2.Start tracing

Make a new layer (Layer 2). Hold down Ctrl key and click on the eye icon of Layer 2 to view Layer 2 in Outline mode.

Use the Pen Tool and start tracing the basic features of the girl. While you are tracing, there are couple shortcut keys you should know in order to work more faster.

These shortcuts are:

• Ctrl+[ = Send Backward (This will send object back 1 step)
• Ctrl+] = Bring Forward (This will bring object front 1 step)
• Ctrl+Shift+[ = Send to Back (This will send object all the way to the back)
• Ctrl+Shift+] = Bring to Front (This will bring object all the way to the front)
• Ctrl+F = Paste in Front (This will paste object in front with same position)

3.Make shadow

Draw a new path as shown (top). Then Copy the base path of the face and Paste in Front. Select the copied base path and the new path, open your Pathfinder, Alt-click onIntersect shape areas.

Use the same technique from previous step and make all shadow paths for the overall illustration. You don’t have to get into the details yet, one simple shadow path of each part is good enough (ie. eye, lips, shirt, body, etc). Remember to use Ctrl+C for copy; and Ctrl+Fto paste object in front. Trust me, this will save you a lot of time!

4.Fill in base color

Now fill in the base color for the face, eye, lips, and eyebrow.

5.Shadow gradient

Fill the shadow path of the face with a Gradient (white-skin tone) and select Multiply for Blending Mode.

Select the other shadow paths and use the Eyedropper Tool to copy the gradient fill of the main shadow path.

For the lip and eye shadow, use the Eyedropper to copy the base fill and select Multiply Blending Mode.

6.Body

Use the same technique, copy the gradient fill for the body. Note you might to adjust the gradient of each shadow path to blend in with the overall illustration.

7.Hair

Pretty much the same, fill 1 path with the gradient, then use the Eyedropper Tool to copy the fill.

8.Shirt

Same technique as the previous steps.

9.Skirt

Fill the skirt with a blue gradient, then use the Eyedropper Tool to copy the fill for the shadow.

10.Hair details

Now you can add more details to the hair. Make shadow effect by adding Multiply paths. Add some highlights by using lighter gradient color. If you want, you can add more details to the clothes, lips, or add a cool tattoo on her body.

Final

After you get used to this tracing technique, you can basically trace anything!

Thnx Alot for Visiting !

Happy new Year !

Adil