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ADOBE ILLUSTRATOR CS4
®

Using Adobe® Illustrator® CS4 for Windows® and Mac OS
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Contents
Chapter 1: Resources
Activation and registration
Help and support

............................................................................................ 1

...................................................................................................... 2

Services, downloads, and extras
Illustrator video tutorials
What’s new

........................................................................................ 3

............................................................................................... 4

........................................................................................................... 7

Chapter 2: Workspace
Workspace basics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Customizing the workspace
Tools

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Tool galleries

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Files and templates

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Manage connections to web services
Working with ConnectNow
Using multiple artboards
Viewing artwork

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Rulers, grids, guides, and crop marks
Setting preferences

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Recovery, undo, and automation

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

Chapter 3: Drawing
Drawing basics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Drawing simple lines and shapes
Drawing with the Pencil tool
Drawing with the Pen tool
Editing paths

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

Tracing artwork with Live Trace
Symbols

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

Symbolism tools and symbol sets
Drawing flares

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91

Chapter 4: Color
About color . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Selecting colors

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99

Using and creating swatches

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103

Working with color groups (harmonies)
Kuler panel

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124

Adjusting colors

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125

Chapter 5: Color management
Understanding color management
Keeping colors consistent

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132

Color-managing imported images

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136

USING ADOBE ILLUSTRATOR CS4 v
Contents

Color-managing documents for online viewing
Proofing colors

Color-managing documents when printing
Working with color profiles
Color settings

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148

Chapter 6: Painting
Painting with fills and strokes
Live Paint groups
Brushes

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169

Transparency and blending modes
Gradients

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184

Meshes

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188

Patterns

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191

Chapter 7: Selecting and arranging objects
Selecting objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197
Grouping and expanding objects

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206

Moving, aligning, and distributing objects
Rotating and reflecting objects
Using layers

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215

Locking, hiding, and deleting objects
Stacking objects

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 220

Duplicating objects

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221

Chapter 8: Reshaping objects
Transforming objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224
Scaling, shearing, and distorting objects
Reshape using envelopes
Combining objects

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233

Cutting and dividing objects
Clipping masks

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241

Blending objects

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244

Reshaping objects with effects
Creating 3D objects

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249

Chapter 9: Importing, exporting, and saving
Importing files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257
Importing bitmap images

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261

Importing Adobe PDF files

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263

Importing EPS, DCS, and AutoCAD files
Importing artwork from Photoshop
Saving artwork

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267

Exporting artwork

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 273

Creating Adobe PDF files
Adobe PDF options

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 281

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 285

File information and metadata

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 291

USING ADOBE ILLUSTRATOR CS4 vi
Contents

Chapter 10: Type
Importing text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 293
Creating text

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 294

Creating type on a path

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 301

Scaling and rotating type

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 304

Spelling and language dictionaries
Fonts

Formatting type

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 310

Line and character spacing
Special characters

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 318

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 320

Formatting paragraphs

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323

Hyphenation and line breaks
Tabs

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 305

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 307

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 327

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 329

Character and paragraph styles
Exporting text

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 332

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 334

Formatting Asian characters
Creating composite fonts

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 336

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 344

Updating text from Illustrator 10

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 347

Chapter 11: Creating special effects
Appearance attributes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 349
Working with effects
Summary of effects

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 354
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 357

Drop shadows, glows, and feathering
Creating sketches and mosaics
Graphic styles

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 363

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 365

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 366

Chapter 12: Web graphics
Best practices for creating web graphics
Slices and image maps
SVG

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 371

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 374

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 378

Creating animations

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 381

Optimizing images

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 384

Web graphics optimization options

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 389

Output settings for web graphics

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 401

Chapter 13: Printing
Setting up documents for printing

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 404

Printing color separations

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 409

Printer’s marks and bleed

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 412

PostScript printing

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 414

Printing with color management

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 416

Printing gradients, meshes, and color blends
Printing and saving transparent artwork
Overprinting
Trapping

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 418

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 421

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 428

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 429

Print presets

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 433

USING ADOBE ILLUSTRATOR CS4 vii
Contents

Chapter 14: Automating tasks
Actions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 436
Scripts

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 443

Data-driven graphics

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 444

Chapter 15: Graphs
Creating graphs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 449
Formatting graphs

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 453

Adding pictures and symbols to graphs

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 458

Chapter 16: Keyboard shortcuts
Customizing keyboard shortcuts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 463
Default keyboard shortcuts
Index

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 464

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 476

Chapter 1: Resources
Before you begin working with your software, take a few moments to read an overview of activation and the many
resources available to you. You have access to instructional videos, plug-ins, templates, user communities, seminars,
tutorials, RSS feeds, and much more.
In addition, check out these how-to guides to see examples of how leading designers use Illustrator to create amazing
artwork: www.adobe.com/go/learn_ai_tutorials_howtos_en.

Activation and registration
Help with installation
For help with installation issues, see the Installation Support Center at www.adobe.com/go/cs4install.

License activation
During the installation process, your Adobe software contacts Adobe to complete the license activation process. No
personal data is transmitted. For more information on product activation, visit the Adobe website at
www.adobe.com/go/activation.
A single-user retail license activation supports two computers. For example, you can install the product on a desktop
computer at work and on a laptop computer at home. If you want to install the software on a third computer, first
deactivate it on one of the other two computers. Choose Help > Deactivate.

Register
Register your product to receive complimentary installation support, notifications of updates, and other services.
❖ To register, follow the on-screen instructions in the Registration dialog box, which appears after you install the

software.
If you postpone registration, you can register at any time by choosing Help > Registration.

Adobe Product Improvement Program
After you use your Adobe software a certain number of times, a dialog box may appear asking whether you want to
participate in the Adobe Product Improvement Program.
If you choose to participate, data about your use of Adobe software is sent to Adobe. No personal information is
recorded or sent. The Adobe Product Improvement Program only collects information about which features and tools
you use and how often you use them.
You can opt in to or out of the program at any time:

• To participate, choose Help > Adobe Product Improvement Program and click Yes, Participate.
• To stop participating, choose Help > Adobe Product Improvement Program and click No, Thank You.

USING ADOBE ILLUSTRATOR CS4 2
Resources

ReadMe
A ReadMe file for your software is available on-line and on the installation disc. Open the file to read important
information about topics such as the following:

• System requirements
• Installation (including uninstalling the software)
• Activation and registration
• Font installation
• Troubleshooting
• Customer support
• Legal notices

Help and support
Community Help
Community Help is an integrated environment on Adobe.com that gives you access to community-generated content
moderated by Adobe and industry experts. Comments from users help guide you to an answer.
Community Help draws on a number of resources, including:

• Videos, tutorials, tips and techniques, blogs, articles, and examples for designers and developers.
• Complete on-line product Help, which is updated regularly by the Adobe documentation team.
• All other content on Adobe.com, including knowledgebase articles, downloads and updates, Developer
Connection, and more.
Choose Help > product name Help in the application to access the Help and Support page, the portal to all of the
Community Help content for your product. You can also use the Help search field in some Creative Suite 4
applications, or press F1 (Windows), to access Community Help for your product.
The sites searched by the default Community Help search engine are hand-selected and reviewed for quality by Adobe
and Adobe Community Experts. Adobe experts also work to ensure that the top search results include a mixture of
different kinds of content, including results from on-line product Help.
For more information on using Community Help, see http://help.adobe.com/en_US/CommunityHelp/.
For a video overview of Community Help, see www.adobe.com/go/lrvid4117_xp.

Product Help
Adobe provides a comprehensive user guide for each product in several formats, including on-line product Help, PDF,
and printed book. Results from on-line product Help are included in your results whenever you search Community Help.
If you’re connected to the Internet, the Help menu within the product opens the product Help and Support page by
default. This page is a portal to all of the Community Help content for the product. If you want to consult or search
on-line product Help only, you can access it by clicking the product Help link in the upper-right corner of the Help
and Support page. Be sure to select the This Help System Only option before you do your search.

USING ADOBE ILLUSTRATOR CS4 3
Resources

If you’re not connected to the Internet, the Help menu within the product opens local Help, a subset of the content
available in on-line product Help. Because local Help is not as complete or up-to-date as on-line product Help, Adobe
recommends that you use the PDF version of product Help if you want to stay offline. A downloadable PDF of
complete product Help is available from two places:

• The product’s Help and Support page (upper-right corner of the page)
• Local and web Help (top of the Help interface)
For more information on accessing product help, see http://help.adobe.com/en_US/CommunityHelp/.
If you are working in Adobe InDesign, Photoshop, Illustrator, Flash, Fireworks, or Dreamweaver, and you want to turn
off Community Help so that local Help opens by default, do the following:
1 Open the Connections panel (Window > Extensions > Connections).
2 From the Connections panel menu

, select Offline Options.

3 Select Keep Me Offline and click OK.

Note: When you disable web services from the Connections panel, all other web services (such as Adobe Kuler and Adobe
ConnectNow) are also disabled.

Printed resources
Printed versions of the complete on-line product Help are available for the cost of shipping and handling at
www.adobe.com/go/store.

Support resources
Visit the Adobe Support website at www.adobe.com/support to learn about free and paid technical support options.

Services, downloads, and extras
You can enhance your product by integrating a variety of services, plug-ins, and extensions in your product. You can
also download samples and other assets to help you get your work done.

Adobe creative on-line services
Adobe® Creative Suite® 4 includes new on-line features that bring the power of the web to your desktop. Use these
features to connect with the community, collaborate, and get more from your Adobe tools. Powerful creative on-line
services let you complete tasks ranging from color matching to data conferencing. The services seamlessly integrate
with desktop applications so you can quickly enhance existing workflows. Some services offer full or partial
functionality when you’re offline too.
Visit Adobe.com to learn more about available services. Some Creative Suite 4 applications include these initial
offerings:
Kuler™ panel Quickly create, share, and explore color themes on-line.
Adobe® ConnectNow Collaborate with dispersed working teams over the web, sharing voice, data, and multimedia.
Resource Central Instantly access tutorials, sample files, and extensions for Adobe digital video applications.

For information on managing your services, see the Adobe website at www.adobe.com/go/learn_creativeservices_en.

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Adobe Exchange
Visit the Adobe Exchange at www.adobe.com/go/exchange to download samples as well as thousands of plug-ins and
extensions from Adobe and third-party developers. The plug-ins and extensions can help you automate tasks,
customize workflows, create specialized professional effects, and more.

Adobe downloads
Visit www.adobe.com/go/downloads to find free updates, tryouts, and other useful software.

Adobe Labs
Adobe Labs at www.adobe.com/go/labs gives you the opportunity to experience and evaluate new and emerging
technologies and products from Adobe. At Adobe Labs, you have access to resources such as these:

• Prerelease software and technologies
• Code samples and best practices to accelerate your learning
• Early versions of product and technical documentation
• Forums, wiki-based content, and other collaborative resources to help you interact with like-minded users.
Adobe Labs fosters a collaborative software development process. In this environment, customers quickly become
productive with new products and technologies. Adobe Labs is also a forum for early feedback. The Adobe
development teams use this feedback to create software that meets the needs and expectations of the community.

Adobe TV
Visit Adobe TV at http://tv.adobe.com to view instructional and inspirational videos.

Extras
The installation disc contains a variety of extras to help you make the most of your Adobe software. Some extras are
installed on your computer during the setup process; others are located on the disc.
To view the extras installed during the setup process, navigate to the application folder on your computer.

• Windows®: [startup drive]\Program Files\Adobe\[Adobe application]
• Mac OS®: [startup drive]/Applications/[Adobe application]
To view the extras on the disc, navigate to the Goodies folder in your language folder on the disc. Example:

•

/English/Goodies/

Illustrator video tutorials
Adobe and its partners provide a basic set of video tutorials on Adobe TV and in the Video Workshop on the Adobe
website, in addition to excellent tutorials provided by other members of the community.
Note: Video tutorials on Adobe TV were created for Illustrator CS4. Video tutorials on Video Workshop were created for
Illustrator CS3. Because most features don’t change substantially from one version to the next, most materials created for
Illustrator CS3 are still valid and useful for Illustrator CS4. All video tutorials referred to within this section are still useful
and valid for Illustrator CS4.

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Click any of these links to view a video tutorial that teaches you how to use Illustrator.
Work area and getting started
Introducing Illustrator CS4 (Adobe TV)
Managing the workspace (Adobe TV)
Creating a new document (Adobe TV)
Working with multiple artboards (Adobe TV)
Drawing and painting
Drawing with the Shape, Line, and Eraser tools (Video Workshop)
Drawing with the Pen tool (Video Workshop)
Drawing with the Pencil tool (Video Workshop)
Using the Paintbrush tool (Video Workshop)
Using brushes and blobs (Adobe TV)
Using brushes (Video Workshop)
Using the Blob Brush (Adobe TV)
Filling and stroking (Adobe TV)
Using Live Trace to trace a hand drawn sketch (Video Workshop)
Using Live Paint (Video Workshop)
Using Live Paint (Adobe TV)
Editing objects
Reshaping a path (Adobe TV)
Using control handles (Adobe TV)
Scaling and rotating (Adobe TV)
Scaling, skewing, and rotating (Video Workshop)
Using Appearance and Graphic Styles (Adobe TV)
Creating 3D shapes (Video Workshop)
Selecting and arranging
Using smart guides and key alignment (Adobe TV)
Selecting and manipulating objects (Video Workshop)
Using layers and groups (Video Workshop)
Aligning and distributing objects (Video Workshop)
Working with text
Getting started with text (Adobe TV)
Point and path text (Adobe TV)

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Creating point and area type (Video Workshop)
Creating type on a path (Video Workshop)
Working with Character and Paragraph text and styles (Video Workshop)
Working with Open Type and the Glyphs panel (Video Workshop)
Using text effectively between Illustrator and Flash (Video Workshop)
Using color
Working with color groups and color harmonies (Adobe TV)
Using Kuler color themes (Adobe TV)
Using the Separations Preview (Adobe TV)
Using the Color Guide to find and create color solutions (Video Workshop)
Creating, editing, and experimenting with color groups (Video Workshop)
Assigning and replacing colors in artwork (Video Workshop)
Using smart objects to manage colors (Video Workshop)
Using gradients, masks, and transparency
Working with gradients (Adobe TV)
Working with transparency (Video Workshop)
Working with blend modes (Video Workshop)
Working with opacity masks (Video Workshop)
Working with clipping masks and pathfinder (Video Workshop)
Working with symbols and 9-slice scaling
Using symbols effectively between Illustrator and Flash (Video Workshop)
Understanding 9-slice scaling (Video Workshop)
Using 9-slice scaling (Video Workshop)
Importing, exporting, and saving
Importing and copying and pasting between web applications (Video Workshop)
Creating mobile content in Illustrator (Video Workshop)
Saving files for the web (Video Workshop)
Exporting artboards to Flash (Adobe TV)
Exporting content from Illustrator (Video Workshop)
Creating interactive PDFs (Video Workshop)
Exporting to PDF 1.7 (Video Workshop)
Using Creative Suite applications together
Introducing CS4 Design Premium (Adobe TV)

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Introducing CS4 Web Premium (Adobe TV)
Introducing CS4 Production Premium (Adobe TV)
Using ConnectNow to share your screen (Adobe TV)
Using Adobe Bridge
Introducing Bridge CS4 (Adobe TV)
Working with metadata and keywords (Adobe TV)
Previewing and comparing images (Adobe TV)
Creating a web photo gallery (Adobe TV)
Using Device Central
Introducing Adobe Device Central CS4 (Adobe TV)
Using the online library (Adobe TV)
Managing mobile projects (Adobe TV)
Automating testing of mobile content (Adobe TV)

What’s new
Enriched workspace tools
Multiple artboards in your documents
Create multi-page files containing up to 100 artboards of varying sizes. You can create artboards that overlap, appear
side-by-side, or are stacked on top of one another. You can also save, export and print artboards independently or
together. Multiple artboards have replaced the Crop Area tool. (See “Using multiple artboards” on page 37.)
Tabbed document windows and Document Arrangement panel
Display multiple documents in a tabbed view, or open them side by side so you can easily compare or drag items from
one document to another. Simply click a document’s tab to open it, or click Close (x) on a tab to close it. Use the
intuitive Arrange Documents window to quickly arrange your open documents in a variety of configurations. (See
“Manage Document windows” on page 15.)
Application bar and workspace switcher
The application bar at the top of each Creative Suite application provides menus and options in one easy to access
place. Use the workspace switcher to quickly jump to different workspace configurations to meet your specific needs.
Also along this bar, you can access Adobe Bridge and the document arrangement panel. (See “Workspace overview”
on page 10.)
Practical smart guides
Smart guides are now even more practical with unobtrusive appearance and behaviors. Instant pop-ups appear with
alignment and measurement information, such as deltas between objects and angles of rotation (that you can specify)
when moving or transforming objects. Of course, objects still snap to any alignment you choose to make it easy to
arrange and transform objects exactly how you want. (See “Smart Guides” on page 48.)

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Quick, easy, and obvious key object alignment
The Align panel and Control panel now provide quick access to the key alignment option. A key object is the one object
that you want other objects to align to. You specify a key object by selecting all the objects you want to align, including
the key object, and then clicking again on the key object. When selected, the key object appears with a thick blue
outline, and the Align To Key Object icon appears in the Control panel and Align panel. Simply choose an alignment
option, such as Horizontal Align Left or Vertical Align Center, and all the other selected objects align to the key object.
(See “Align or distribute relative to a key object” on page 210.)

New drawing and color tools
Blob Brush tool for merging paths
Use the Blob Brush to draw paths that merge with existing artwork. The Blob Brush draws paths that are fill only - no
stroke - and can merge with existing artwork that has the same fill, and no stroke. The Blob Brush can merge with
existing artwork that has complicated appearances (as long as there is no stroke on the artwork and the Blob Brush is
set up to paint with the exact same fill and appearance settings). For example, if you’ve created a yellow filled rectangle
with a drop shadow applied, you can set up the Blob Brush with those attributes and then draw a path across the
rectangle, and the two paths will be merged. You can easily select and edit the resulting shape. Use the Blob Brush
together with the Eraser tool for truly intuitive vector painting. (See “Draw and merge paths with the Blob Brush tool”
on page 157.)
Expanded Gradients panel and tool
Using the enhanced Gradient tool, you can interact with gradients on the object itself by adding or changing color
stops, applying transparency to color stops, and changing the direction or angle of a linear or elliptical gradient (also
new in CS4). The Gradient panel now provides a menu of all your saved gradients, direct access to color panels, and
transparency controls for individual color spots, among other things. (See “Gradients” on page 184.)
Transparency in gradients
Create gradients with two or more colors and define the opacity of any or all individual colors. By specifying different
opacity values for the different color stops in your gradient, you can create gradients that fade in or out and reveal or
hide underlying images. (See “Gradients” on page 184.)
Separations Preview panel
Preview your color separations on your monitor before printing to avoid color output surprises such as unexpected
spot colors and unwanted overprinting. The Separations Preview panel lets you easily turn colors on and off so you
can see how blending, transparency, and overprinting will appear in color-separated output. (See “Preview color
separations” on page 410.)

Improved access to core functionality
Clipping masks with clear simplified appearance and access
Adobe Illustrator now displays only the masked area while you are moving or transforming a masked object. Doubleclick the masked object to open it in Isolation mode, where you can view and edit the mask independently of all other
objects. (See “Clipping masks” on page 241 and “Isolate artwork for editing” on page 198.)

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In-panel Appearance editing
Select an item in the Appearance panel to view and use the enhanced full-featured controls. Click hyper-links to open
option dialog boxes for effects, strokes, and fills. Click a visibility icon for any attribute to easily turn it on or off. (See
“Appearance attributes” on page 349.)
Enriched Graphic Styles panel
The newly updated Graphic Styles panel provides you with a quick and easy way to view and apply styles to objects in
your document. Use the Use Text For Preview option to view a style as it appears on text, or right-click a thumbnail to
quickly preview how that style will look on a selected object on the artboard. Effect-only styles now display the outlines
of the object on which the style was created, so you can recognize your effect-only styles at a glance. Merge a style with
an object’s existing style or merge two or more different styles on an object by simply using the Alt or Option key when
applying the style. (See “Graphic styles” on page 366.)

Enhanced integration at export
Support for Flex extensions
Efficiently deliver more editable, workable content to developers for web, interactive, and RIA projects. For instance,
use the Flex Skins for Illustrator to create and export vector skins in the Adobe Flex format. (See “Save in FXG format”
on page 270.)
Multiple artboard export support
Creating documents with multiple artboards now makes it easy to create multi-page documents for exporting. You can
export artboards to any of the following formats: PDF, PSD, SWF, JPEG, PNG, and TIFF. Or import a multiple
artboard Illustrator file into Adobe InDesign or Adobe Flash.You can now easily create multiple-page PDFs. When
exporting to Flash SWF format, multiple artboards export as multiple files. (See “Saving artwork” on page 267 and
“Export artwork” on page 273.)

Chapter 2: Workspace
Welcome to Adobe® Illustrator® CS4. Illustrator gives you an efficient workspace and user interface to create and edit
artwork for print, the web, and mobile devices.
To see a video on using Adobe Illustrator, see www.adobe.com/go/lrvid4015_ai.

Workspace basics
Workspace overview
You create and manipulate your documents and files using various elements, such as panels, bars, and windows. Any
arrangement of these elements is called a workspace. The workspaces of the different applications in Adobe® Creative
Suite® 4 share the same appearance so that you can move between the applications easily. You can also adapt each
application to the way you work by selecting from several preset workspaces or by creating one of your own.
Although the default workspace layout varies in different products, you manipulate the elements much the same way
in all of them.

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E
G

F
H

Default Illustrator workspace
A. Tabbed Document windows B. Application bar C. Workspace switcher D. Panel title bar E. Control panel F. Tools panel G. Collapse To
Icons button H. Four panel groups in vertical dock

• The Application bar across the top contains a workspace switcher, menus (Windows only), and other application
controls. On the Mac for certain products, you can show or hide it using the Window menu.

• The Tools panel contains tools for creating and editing images, artwork, page elements, and so on. Related tools are
grouped.

• The Control panel displays options for the currently selected tool. The Control panel is also known as the options
bar in Photoshop. (Adobe Flash®, Adobe Dreamweaver®, and Adobe Fireworks® have no Control panel.)

• Flash, Dreamweaver, and Fireworks have a Property inspector that displays options for the currently selected
element or tool.

• The Document window displays the file you’re working on. Document windows can be tabbed and, in certain cases,
grouped and docked.

• Panels help you monitor and modify your work. Examples include the Timeline in Flash, the Layers panel in Adobe
Photoshop®, and the CSS Styles panel in Dreamweaver. Panels can be grouped, stacked, or docked.

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• On the Mac, the Application frame groups all the workspace elements in a single, integrated window that lets you
treat the application as a single unit. When you move or resize the Application frame or any of its elements, all the
elements within it respond to each other so none overlap. Panels don’t disappear when you switch applications or
when you accidentally click out of the application. If you work with two or more applications, you can position each
application side by side on the screen or on multiple monitors. If you prefer the traditional, free-form user interface
of the Mac, you can turn off the Application frame. In Adobe Illustrator®, for example, select Window > Application
Frame to toggle it on or off. (In Flash, the Application frame is on permanently. Dreamweaver does not use an
Application frame.)

Hide or show all panels
• (Illustrator, Adobe InCopy®, Adobe InDesign®, Photoshop, Fireworks)To hide or show all panels, including the
Tools panel and Control panel, press Tab.

• (Illustrator, InCopy, InDesign, Photoshop) To hide or show all panels except the Tools panel and Control panel,
press Shift+Tab.
You can temporarily display hidden panels if Auto-Show Hidden Panels is selected in Interface preferences. It’s
always on in Illustrator. Move the pointer to the edge of the application window (Windows®) or to the edge of the
monitor (Mac OS®) and hover over the strip that appears.

• (Flash, Dreamweaver, Fireworks) To hide or show all panels, press F4.

Display panel options
❖ Click the panel menu icon

in the upper-right corner of the panel.

You can open a panel menu even when the panel is minimized.

(Illustrator) Adjust panel brightness
❖ In User Interface preferences, move the Brightness slider. This control affects all panels, including the Control

panel.

Reconfigure the Tools panel
You can display the tools in the Tools panel in a single column, or side by side in two columns. (This feature is not
available in the Tools panel in Fireworks and Flash.)
In InDesign and InCopy, you also can switch from single-column to double-column (or single-row) display by setting
an option in Interface preferences.
❖ Click the double arrow at the top of the Tools panel.

Search For Help box
Use the Search For Help box on the right side of the Application bar to search for Help topics and online content. If
you have an active Internet connection, you can access all content on the Community Help website. If you search for
Help without an active Internet connection, search results are limited to Help content that is included with Illustrator.
1 In the search box, type the name of the item on which you want to search (such as a feature, application, or tool).
2 Press Enter.

All topics available from the Community Help center appear in a separate browser window.

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About screen modes
You can change the visibility of the illustration window and menu bar using the mode options at the bottom of the Tools
panel. To access panels when in Full Screen Mode, position the cursor at the left or right edge of the screen and the
panels will pop up. If you’ve moved them from their default locations, you can access them from the Window menu.
You can choose one of the following modes:

• Normal Screen Mode

displays artwork in a standard window, with a menu bar at the top and scroll bars on the

sides.

• Full Screen Mode With Menu Bar

displays artwork in a full-screen window, with a menu bar at the top and

scroll bars.

• Full Screen Mode

displays artwork in a full-screen window, with no title bar or menu bar.

Using the status bar
The status bar appears at the lower-left edge of the illustration window. It displays any of the following:

• current zoom level
• current tool in use
• current artboard in use
• navigation controls for multiple artboards
• date and time
• number of undos and redos available
• document color profile
• status of a managed file
Click the status bar to do any of the following:

• Change the type of information displayed in the status bar by selecting an option from the Show submenu.
• Show the current file in Adobe Bridge by choosing Reveal In Bridge.
• Access Version Cue® commands.

See also
“Adobe Version Cue” on page 35

Enter values in panels and dialog boxes
You enter values using the same methods in all panels and dialog boxes. You can also perform simple math in any box
that accepts numeric values. For example, if you want to move a selected object 3 units to the right using the current
measurement units, you don’t have to work out the new horizontal position—simply type +3 after the current value
in the Transform panel.

Enter a value in a panel or dialog box
❖ Do any of the following:

• Type a value in the box, and press Enter or Return.
• Drag the slider.

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• Drag the dial.
• Click the arrow buttons in the panel to increase or decrease the value.
• Click in the box and then use the Up Arrow key and Down Arrow key on the keyboard to increase or decrease the
value. Hold down Shift and click an arrow key to magnify the increase rate or decrease rate.

• Select a value from the menu associated with the box.
A

Ways to enter values
A. Arrow buttons B. Text box C. Menu arrow D. Slider E. Dial

Calculate values in a panel or dialog box
1 In a text box that accepts numerical values, do one of the following:

• To replace the entire current value with a mathematical expression, select the entire current value.
• To use the current value as part of a mathematical expression, click before or after the current value.
2 Type a simple mathematical expression using a single mathematical operator, such as + (plus), - (minus), x

(multiplication), / (division), or % (percent).
For example, 0p0 + 3 or 5mm + 4. Similarly, 3cm * 50% equals 3 centimeters multiplied by 50%, or 1.50 cm, and 50pt
+ 25% equals 50 points plus 25% of 50 points, or 62.5 points.
3 Press Enter or Return to apply the calculation.

Control panel overview
The Control panel offers quick access to options related to the objects you select. By default, the Control panel is
docked at the top of the workspace.
Options displayed in the Control panel vary depending on the type of object or tool you select. For example, when you
select a text object, the Control panel displays text-formatting options in addition to options for changing the color,
placement, and dimensions of the object. When a selection tool is active, you can access Document Setup and
Preferences from the Control panel.
A

Control panel
A. Hidden options B. Link to another panel C. Panel menu

When text in the Control panel is blue and underlined, you can click the text to display a related panel or dialog box.
For example, click the word Stroke to display the Stroke panel.

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Change the kinds of controls that appear in the Control panel
❖ Select or deselect options in the Control panel menu.

Open and close a panel or dialog box from the Control panel
1 Click a blue underlined word to open its associated panel or dialog box.
2 Click anywhere outside of the panel or dialog box to close it.

Dock the Control panel at the bottom of the workspace
❖ Choose Dock To Bottom from the Control panel menu.

Convert the Control panel to a floating panel
❖ Drag the gripper bar (located on the left edge of the panel) away from its current position.

To redock the Control panel, drag the gripper bar to the top or bottom of the application window (Windows) or screen
(Mac OS).

Customizing the workspace
Manage windows and panels
You can create a custom workspace by moving and manipulating Document windows and panels. You can also save
workspaces and switch among them.
Note: The following examples use Photoshop for demonstration purposes. The workspace behaves the same in all the
products.
A
B

Narrow blue drop zone indicates Color panel will be docked on its own above the Layers panel group.
A. Title bar B. Tab C. Drop zone

In Photoshop, you can change the font size of the text in the Control panel, in the panels, and in tool tips. Choose a
size from the UI Font Size menu in Interface preferences.

Manage Document windows
When you open more than one file, the Document windows are tabbed.

• To rearrange the order of tabbed Document windows, drag a window’s tab to a new location in the group.
• To undock a Document window from a group of windows, drag the window’s tab out of the group.
• To dock a Document window to a separate group of Document windows, drag the window into the group.

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Note: Dreamweaver does not support docking and undocking Document windows. Use the Document window’s
Minimize button to create floating windows.

• To create groups of stacked or tiled documents, drag the window to one of the drop zones along the top, bottom, or
sides of another window. You can also select a layout for the group by using the Layout button on the Application bar.
Note: Some products do not support this functionality. However, your product may have Cascade and Tile commands
in the Window menu to help you lay out your documents.

• To switch to another document in a tabbed group when dragging a selection, drag the selection over the document’s
tab for a moment.
Note: Some products do not support this functionality.

Dock and undock panels
A dock is a collection of panels or panel groups displayed together, generally in a vertical orientation. You dock and
undock panels by moving them into and out of a dock.
Note: Docking is not the same as stacking. A stack is a collection of floating panels or panel groups, joined top to bottom.

• To dock a panel, drag it by its tab into the dock, at the top, bottom, or in between other panels.
• To dock a panel group, drag it by its title bar (the solid empty bar above the tabs) into the dock.
• To remove a panel or panel group, drag it out of the dock by its tab or title bar. You can drag it into another dock
or make it free-floating.

Navigator panel being dragged out to new dock, indicated by blue vertical highlight

Navigator panel now in its own dock

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You can prevent panels from filling all the space in a dock. Drag the bottom edge of the dock up so it no longer meets
the edge of the workspace.

Move panels
As you move panels, you see blue highlighted drop zones, areas where you can move the panel. For example, you can
move a panel up or down in a dock by dragging it to the narrow blue drop zone above or below another panel. If you
drag to an area that is not a drop zone, the panel floats freely in the workspace.

• To move a panel, drag it by its tab.
• To move a panel group or a stack of floating panels, drag the title bar.
Press Ctrl (Windows) or Command (Mac OS) while moving a panel to prevent it from docking. Press Esc while
moving the panel to cancel the operation.
Note: The dock is stationary and can’t be moved. However, you can create panel groups or stacks and move them
anywhere.

Add and remove panels
If you remove all panels from a dock, the dock disappears. You can create a dock by moving panels to the right edge
of the workspace until a drop zone appears.

• To remove a panel, right-click (Windows) or Control-click (Mac) its tab and then select Close, or deselect it from
the Window menu.

• To add a panel, select it from the Window menu and dock it wherever you want.

Manipulate panel groups
• To move a panel into a group, drag the panel’s tab to the highlighted drop zone in the group.

Adding a panel to a panel group

• To rearrange panels in a group, drag a panel’s tab to a new location in the group.
• To remove a panel from a group so that it floats freely, drag the panel by its tab outside the group.
• To move a group, drag the title bar (the area above the tabs).

Stack floating panels
When you drag a panel out of its dock but not into a drop zone, the panel floats freely. The floating panel allows you
to position it anywhere in the workspace. You can stack floating panels or panel groups so that they move as a unit
when you drag the topmost title bar. (Panels that are part of a dock cannot be stacked or moved as a unit in this way.)

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Free-floating stacked panels

• To stack floating panels, drag a panel by its tab to the drop zone at the bottom of another panel.
• To change the stacking order, drag a panel up or down by its tab.
Note: Be sure to release the tab over the narrow drop zone between panels, rather than the broad drop zone in a title bar.

• To remove a panel or panel group from the stack, so that it floats by itself, drag it out by its tab or title bar.

Resize panels
• To minimize or maximize a panel, panel group, or stack of panels, double-click a tab. You can also single-click the
tab area (the empty space next to the tabs).

• To resize a panel, drag any side of the panel. Some panels, such as the Color panel in Photoshop, cannot be resized
by dragging.

Manipulate panels collapsed to icons
You can collapse panels to icons to reduce clutter on the workspace. In some cases, panels are collapsed to icons in the
default workspace.

Panels collapsed to icons

Panels expanded from icons

• To collapse or expand all panel icons in a dock, click the double arrow at the top of the dock.
• To expand a single panel icon, click it.
• To resize panel icons so that you see only the icons (and not the labels), adjust the width of the dock until the text
disappears. To display the icon text again, make the dock wider.

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• To collapse an expanded panel back to its icon, click its tab, its icon, or the double arrow in the panel’s title bar.
In some products, if you select Auto-Collapse Icon Panels from the Interface or User Interface Options preferences,
an expanded panel icon collapses automatically when you click away from it.

• To add a floating panel or panel group to an icon dock, drag it in by its tab or title bar. (Panels are automatically
collapsed to icons when added to an icon dock.)

• To move a panel icon (or panel icon group), drag the icon. You can drag panel icons up and down in the dock, into
other docks (where they appear in the panel style of that dock), or outside the dock (where they appear as floating,
expanded panels).

Restore the default workspace
• Select the default, Essentials workspace from the workspace switcher in the Application bar.
• (Photoshop) Select Window > Workspace > Essentials (Default).
• (InDesign, InCopy) Select Window > Workspace > Reset [Workspace Name].

Rename or duplicate a workspace
1 Choose Window > Workspace > Manage Workspaces.
2 Do any of the following, and then click OK:

• To rename a workspace, select it, and edit the text.
• To duplicate a workspace, select it, and click the New button.
For a video on customizing the workspace based on different workflows, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0032.

Save and switch workspaces
By saving the current size and position of panels as a named workspace, you can restore that workspace even if you
move or close a panel. The names of saved workspaces appear in the workspace switcher in the Application bar.
In Photoshop, the saved workspace can include a specific keyboard shortcut set and menu set.

Save a custom workspace
1 With the workspace in the configuration you want to save, do one of the following:

• (Photoshop, Illustrator) Choose Window > Workspace > Save Workspace.
• (InDesign, InCopy) Choose Window > Workspace > New Workspace.
• (Dreamweaver) Choose Window > Workspace Layout > New Workspace.
• (Flash) Choose New Workspace from the workspace switcher in the Application bar.
• (Fireworks) Choose Save Current from the workspace switcher in the Application bar.
2 Type a name for the workspace.
3 (Photoshop, InDesign) Under Capture, select one or more options:
Panel Locations Saves the current panel locations.
Keyboard shortcuts Saves the current set of keyboard shortcuts (Photoshop only).
Menus Saves the current set of menus.

4 Click OK or Save.

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Display or switch workspaces
❖ Select a workspace from the workspace switcher in the Application bar.

In Photoshop, you can assign keyboard shortcuts to each workspace to navigate among them quickly.

Delete a custom workspace
• Select Manage Workspaces from the workspace switcher in the Application bar, select the workspace, and then
click Delete. (The option is not available in Fireworks.)

• (Photoshop, InDesign, InCopy) Select Delete Workspace from the workspace switcher.
• (Illustrator) Choose Window > Workspace > Manage Workspaces, select the workspace, and then click the Delete icon.
• (InDesign) Choose Window > Workspace > Delete Workspace, select the workspace, and then click Delete.

(Photoshop) Start with the last or default panel locations
When you start Photoshop, panels can either appear in their original default locations, or appear as you last used them.
In Interface preferences:

• To display panels in their last locations on startup, select Remember Panel Locations.
• To display panels in their default locations on startup, deselect Remember Panel Locations.

Tools
Tools panel overview
The first time you start the application, the Tools panel appears at the left side of the screen. You can move the Tools
panel by dragging its title bar. You can also show or hide the Tools panel by choosing Window > Tools.
You use tools in the Tools panel to create, select, and manipulate objects in Illustrator. Some tools have options that
appear when you double-click a tool. These include tools that let you use type, and select, paint, draw, sample, edit,
and move images.

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You can expand some tools to show hidden tools beneath them. A small triangle at the lower-right corner of the tool
icon signals the presence of hidden tools. To see the name of a tool, position the pointer over it.

Tools panel overview
A

Selection tools

Direct Selection (A)
Group Selection
Magic Wand (Y)

Lasso (Q)
E

Artboard (Shift +O)
B

H
I

Drawing tools

Pen (P)
Add Anchor Point (Shift+)
Delete Anchor (-)
Point
Convert Anchor
Point (Shift+C)

Pencil (N)
Smooth
Path Eraser

Indicates default tool
* Keyboard shortcuts appear in parenthesis

View hidden tools
❖ Hold down the mouse button on the visible tool.

View tool options
❖ Double-click a tool.

Move the Tools panel
❖ Drag its title bar.

Symbol Sprayer
(Shift+S)
Symbol Shifter
Symbol Scruncher
Symbol Sizer
Symbol Spinner
Symbol Stainer
Symbol Screener
Symbol Styler
G

Graph tools
Column Graph (J)
Stacked Column
Graph
Bar Graph
Stacked Bar
Graph
Line Graph
Area Graph
Scatter Graph
Pie Graph
Radar Graph

Blob Brush (Shift+B)
Mesh (U)
Gradient (G)
Eyedropper (I)
Measure
Live Paint Bucket (K)
Live Paint Selection
(Shift+L)
E

Symbol tools

Painting tools
Paintbrush (B)

Line Segment (\)
Arc
Spiral
Rectangular Grid
Polar Grid
Rectangle (M)
Rounded Rectangle
Ellipse (L)
Polygon
Star
Flare

Type (T)
Area Type
Type On a Path
Vertical Type
Vertical Area
Type
Vertical Type
On a Path

Selection (V)
B

Type tools

Reshaping tools
Rotate (R)
Reflect (O)

Slice (Shift+K)
Slice Select

Scale (S)
Shear
Reshape
Warp (Shift-R)
Twirl
Pucker
Bloat
Scallop
Crystallize
Wrinkle
Free Transform (E)
Blend (W)

Slicing and cutting
tools

Eraser (Shift+E)
Scissors (C)
Knife
I

Moving and zooming
tools
Hand (H)
Print Tiling
Zoom (Z)

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Hide the Tools panel
❖ Choose Window > Tools.

Tear off hidden tools into a separate panel
❖ Drag the pointer over the arrow at the end of the hidden tools panel and release the mouse button.

Close a separate tool panel
❖ Click the close button on the panel’s title bar. The tools return to the Tools panel.

Select a tool
❖ Do one of the following:

• Click a tool in the Tools panel. If there is a small triangle at a tool’s lower-right corner, hold down the mouse button
to view the hidden tools, and then click the tool you want to select.

• Hold down Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac OS), and then click a tool to cycle through and select hidden tools.
• Press the tool’s keyboard shortcut. The keyboard shortcut is displayed in its tool tip. For example, you can select
the Move tool by pressing the V key.
To hide tool tips, choose Edit > Preferences > General (Windows) or Illustrator > Preferences > General (Mac OS),
and deselect Show Tool Tips.
A

Selecting a hidden tool
A. Tools panel B. Active tool C. Tear off panel with hidden tools D. Hidden tool triangle E. Tool name and shortcut

Change tool pointers
The mouse pointer for most tools matches the tool’s icon. Each pointer has a different hotspot, where an effect or
action begins. With most tools, you can switch to precise cursors, which appear as cross hairs centered around the
hotspot, and provide for greater accuracy when working with detailed artwork.
❖ Choose Edit > Preferences > General (Windows) or Illustrator > Preferences > General (Mac OS), and select Use

Precise Cursors. Alternatively, press Caps Lock on the keyboard.

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Tool galleries
Illustrator provides many tools for creating and manipulating your artwork. These galleries provide a quick visual
overview for each tool.

Selection tool gallery
Illustrator provides the following selection tools:

The Selection tool (V) selects
entire objects.

The Direct Selection tool (A)
selects points or path
segments within objects.

The Lasso tool (Q) selects
points or path segments
within objects.

The Artboard tool creates
separate artboards for
printing or export.

See also
“Keys for selecting” on page 467

Drawing tool gallery
Illustrator provides the following drawing tools:

The Group Selection tool
selects objects and groups
within groups.

The Magic Wand tool (Y)
selects objects with similar
attributes.

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The Pen tool (P) draws
straight and curved lines to
create objects.

The Add Anchor Point tool
(+) adds anchor points to
paths.

The Delete Anchor Point tool
(-) deletes anchor points
from paths.

The Convert Anchor Point
tool (Shift+C) changes
smooth points to corner
points and vice versa.

The Line Segment tool (\)
draws individual straight
line segments.

The Arc tool draws
individual concave or convex
curve segments.

The Spiral tool draws
clockwise and
counterclockwise spirals.

The Rectangular Grid tool
draws rectangular grids.

The Polar Grid tool draws
circular chart grids.

The Rectangle tool (M)
draws squares and
rectangles.

The Rounded Rectangle tool
draws squares and rectangles
with rounded corners.

The Ellipse tool (L) draws
circles and ovals.

The Polygon tool draws
regular, multi-sided shapes.

The Star tool draws stars.

The Flare tool creates lensflare or solar-flare-like
effects.

The Pencil tool (N) draws
and edits freehand lines.

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The Smooth tool smooths
Bezier paths.

The Path Eraser tool erases
paths and anchor points
from the object.

Type tool gallery
Illustrator provides the following type tools:

The Type tool (T) creates
individual type and type
containers and lets you enter
and edit type.

The Area Type tool changes
closed paths to type
containers and lets you enter
and edit type within them.

The Vertical Area Type tool
changes closed paths to
vertical type containers and
lets you enter and edit type
within them.

The Vertical Type On A Path
tool changes paths to vertical
type paths and lets you enter
and edit type on them.

Painting tool gallery
Illustrator provides the following painting tools:

The Type On A Path tool
changes paths to type paths,
and lets you enter and edit
type on them.

The Vertical Type tool
creates vertical type and
vertical type containers and
lets you enter and edit
vertical type.

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The Paintbrush tool (B)
draws freehand and
calligraphic lines, as well as
art and patterns on paths.

The Mesh tool (U) creates
and edits meshes and mesh
envelopes.

The Gradient tool (G)
adjusts the beginning and
ending points and angle of
gradients within objects, or
applies a gradient to objects.

The Eyedropper tool (I)
samples and applies color,
type, and appearance
attributes, including effects,
from objects.

The Live Paint Bucket tool
(K) paints faces and edges of
Live Paint groups with the
current paint attributes.

The Live Paint Selection
(Shift-L)tool selects faces
and edges within Live Paint
groups.

The Measure tool measures
the distance between two
points.

The Blob Brush tool (ShiftB)draws paths that
automatically expand and
merge calligraphic brush
paths that share the same
color and are adjacent in
stacking order.

Reshaping tool gallery
Illustrator provides the following tools for reshaping objects:

The Rotate tool (R) rotates
objects around a fixed point.

The Reflect tool (O) flips
objects over a fixed axis.

The Scale tool (S) resizes
objects around a fixed point.

The Shear tool skews objects
around a fixed point.

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The Reshape tool adjusts
selected anchor points while
keeping the overall detail of
the path intact.

The Free Transform tool (E)
scales, rotates, or skews a
selection.

The Blend tool (W) creates a
series of objects blended
between the color and shape
of multiple objects.

The Warp tool (Shift+R)
molds objects with the
movement of the cursor (like
molding clay, for example).

The Twirl tool creates
swirling distortions within
an object.

The Pucker tool deflates an
object by moving control
points towards the cursor.

The Scallop tool adds
random curved details to the
outline of an object.

The Crystallize tool adds
random spiked details to the
outline of an object.

The Wrinkle tool adds
wrinkle-like details to the
outline of an object.

The Bloat tool inflates an
object by moving control
points away from the cursor.

Symbolism tool gallery
The symbolism tools let you create and modify sets of symbol instances. You create a symbol set using the Symbol
Sprayer tool. You can then use the other symbolism tools to change the density, color, location, size, rotation,
transparency, and style of the instances in the set.

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The Symbol Sprayer tool
(Shift+S) places multiple
symbol instances as a set on
the artboard.

The Symbol Shifter tool
moves symbol instances

The Symbol Scruncher tool
moves symbol instances
closer together or farther
apart.

The Symbol Sizer tool resizes
symbol instances.

The Symbol Spinner tool
rotates symbol instances.

The Symbol Stainer tool
colorizes symbol instances.

The Symbol Screener tool
applies opacity to symbol
instances.

The Symbol Styler tool
applies the selected style to
symbol instances.

Graph tool gallery
Illustrator provides nine graph tools, each one for creating a different type of graph. The type of graph you choose
depends on the information you want to communicate.
100

80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0

80
A

60
40
20
0
A

The Column Graph tool (J)
creates graphs that compare
values using vertical
columns.

The Stacked Column Graph
tool creates graphs that are
similar to column graphs,
but stacks the columns on
top of one another, instead of
side by side. This graph type
is useful for showing the
relationship of parts to the
total.

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80

The Bar Graph tool creates
graphs that are similar to
column graphs, but positions
the bars horizontally instead
of vertically.

0 20 40 60 80 100

The Stacked Bar Graph tool
creates graphs that are
similar to stacked column
graphs, but stacks the bars
horizontally instead of
vertically.

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100

50
40
30
20
10 20 30 40 50

The Line Graph tool creates
graphs that use points to
represent one or more sets of
values, with a different line
joining the points in each set.
This type of graph is often
used to show the trend of one
or more subjects over a
period of time.

10 20 30 40 50

The Area Graph tool creates
graphs that are similar to
line graphs, but emphasizes
totals as well as changes in
values.

The Scatter Graph tool
creates graphs that plot data
points as paired sets of
coordinates along the x and y
axes. Scatter graphs are
useful for identifying
patterns or trends in data.
They also can indicate
whether variables affect one
another.

The Pie Graph tool creates
circular graphs whose
wedges represent the relative
percentages of the values
compared.

50
40
30
20
10

The Radar Graph tool
creates graphs that compare
sets of values at given points
in time or in particular
categories, and is displayed
in a circular format. This
type of graph is also called a
web graph.

Slicing and cutting tool gallery
Illustrator provides the following tools for slicing and cutting objects:

The Slice tool divides
artwork into separate web
images.

The Slice Selection tool
(Shift-K) selects web slices.

The Eraser tool (Shift-E)
erases any area of the object
over which you drag.

The Scissors tool (C) cuts
paths at specified points.

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The Knife tool cuts objects
and paths.

Moving and zooming tool gallery
Illustrator provides the following tools for moving around in and controlling the view of the artboard:

The Hand tool (H) moves the
Illustrator artboard within
the illustration window.

The Print Tiling tool adjusts
the page grid to control
where artwork appears on
the printed page.

The Zoom tool (Z) increases
and decreases the view
magnification in the
illustration window.

Files and templates
About new document profiles
A document is the space in which you create artwork. In Illustrator, you can create documents destined for many
different types of output. (For information on creating Illustrator documents for video production, see the Enhancing
Video Production PDF at www.adobe.com/go/learn_ai_video.
You start a new document by choosing a new document profile based on your intended output. Each profile includes
preset values for size, color mode, units, orientation, transparency, and resolution. All use one artboard, by default. For
example, the Video And Film Document profile uses pixels instead of points, and you can choose a device-specific crop
area, such as NTSC DV Widescreen, to create a document in the exact dimensions required, with video-safe guides in
place to help you lay out your design for optimal viewing.
If you plan to output your file to a high-end printer, for example if you’re sending it to a service bureau, specify the
Print profile to ensure your artwork and any effects applied to the artwork are set to the proper resolution.
You can choose from the following profiles:
Print Document Uses a default letter size artboard, and provides a variety of other preset print sizes to choose from.

Use this profile if you plan to send this file to a service bureau for output to a high-end printer.

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Web Document Provides preset options optimized for output to the web.
Mobile And Devices Document Creates a small file size that is preset for a specific mobile device. You can choose your
device from the Size menu. Click Device Central to open Adobe Device Central and view the document layout in a
specified device interface.
Video And Film Document Provides several preset video- and film-specific crop area sizes (note that the Artboard
option changes to Crop Size for this profile). Illustrator creates only square pixel files, so to ensure that the sizes are
interpreted correctly in video applications, Illustrator adjusts the Width and Height values. For example, if you choose
NTSC DV Standard, Illustrator uses a pixel size of 654 x 480, which translates to 740 x 480 pixels in video-based
applications.
Basic CMYK Document Uses a default letter size artboard, and provides a variety of other sizes to choose from. Use this
profile if you plan to send a document to multiple types of media. If one of the media types is a service bureau, you’ll
want to manually increase the Raster Effects setting to High.
Basic RGB Document Uses a default 800 x 600 size artboard, and provides a variety of other print-, video-, and web-

specific sizes to choose from. Do not use this option if you plan to send a document to a service bureau or output to a
high-end printer. Use this profile for documents that will be output to mid-level printers, to the web, or multiple types
of media.
For a video on setting up new documents, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0031.

See also
New document video
Video production

Create new documents
You can create new Illustrator documents from a new document profile or from a template. Creating a document from
a new document profile gives you a blank document with the selected profile’s default fill and stroke colors, graphic
styles, brushes, symbols, actions, viewing preferences, and other settings. Creating a document from a template gives
you a document with preset design elements and settings, as well as content, such as cropmarks and guides, for specific
document types, such as brochures or CD covers.
You create a new document from the Welcome screen, or by using File > New or File > Device Central (for mobile
device output). The Welcome screen appears whenever a document is not currently open.
For a video on setting up new documents, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0031.

See also
“About new document profiles” on page 30
“About templates” on page 33
“About transparency” on page 177
“Using Adobe Device Central with Illustrator” on page 372

Create a new document
You can start a new document from the Welcome screen or from the File menu.
1 Do one of the following:

• If Illustrator is already open, choose File > New and choose a New Document Profile in the New Document menu.

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• If the Welcome screen is open, click a document profile from the Create New list.
• If Illustrator is not open, open it and click a document profile from the Create New list in the Welcome screen.
Note: In the Welcome screen, you can Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Mac OS) to open the new document directly
and skip the New Document dialog box.
2 Type a name for your document.
3 Specify the number of artboards for your document, and the order you’d like them laid out on screen:
Grid By Row Arranges multiple artboards in the specified number of rows. Choose the number of rows from the Rows
menu. The default value creates the most square appearance possible with the specified number of artboards.
Grid By Column Arranges multiple artboards in the specified number of columns. Choose the number of columns

from the Columns menu. The default value creates the most square appearance possible with the specified number of
artboards.
Arrange By Row Arranges artboards in one straight row.
Arrange By Column Arranges artboards in one straight column.
Change To Right-To-Left Layout Arranges multiple artboards in the specified row or column format, but displays

them from right to left.
4 Specify the default spacing between artboards. This setting applies to both horizontal and vertical spacing.
5 Specify the default size, units of measure, and layout for all artboards.

Note: Once your document opens, you can customize your artboards by moving and resizing them as desired.
6 Specify the position of the bleed along each side of the artboard. To use different values for different sides, click the

Lock icon

7 Click Advanced to specify the following additional options:

Note: You can change these settings after you create the document by choosing File > Document Setup and specifying new
settings.
Color Mode Specifies the color mode for the new document. Changing the color mode converts the default contents
(swatches, brushes, symbols, graphic styles) of the selected new document profile to a new color mode, resulting in a
color change. Watch for a warning icon when making changes.
Raster Effects Specifies the resolution for raster effects in the document. It is especially important to set this at High
when you plan to output to a high-end printer at high resolution. The Print profile sets this at High by default.
Transparency Grid Specifies the options for the transparency grid for documents that use the Video And Film profile.
Preview Mode Sets the default preview mode for the document (you can change this at any time by using the View

menu):

• Default displays artwork created in the document in vector view with full color. Zoom in/out retains smoothness
in the curves.

• Pixel displays artwork with a rasterized (pixilated) appearance. It does not actually rasterize the content, but
displays a simulated preview, as if the contents were rasters.

• Overprint provides an “ink preview” that approximates how blending, transparency, and overprinting will appear
in color-separated output. (See “About overprinting” on page 428.)
Device Central If you’ve created a document using the Mobile and Devices profile, you can click Device Central to
preview your new document in the mobile device interface.

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Create a new document from a template
1 Do one of the following:

• Choose File > New From Template.
• Choose File > New. In the New Document dialog box, click Templates.
• In the Welcome screen, click From Template in the Create New list.
2 In the New From Template dialog box, locate and select a template, and click New.

About templates
Templates let you create new documents that share common settings and design elements. For example, if you need to
design a series of business cards with a similar look and feel, you can create a template with the desired artboard size,
view settings (such as guides), and print options. The template can also contain symbols for common design elements
(such as logos) and specific sets of color swatches, brushes, and graphic styles.
Illustrator comes with a variety of templates, including templates for letterhead, business cards, envelopes, brochures,
labels, certificates, postcards, greeting cards, and websites.
When a template is selected via the New From Template command, Illustrator creates a new document with identical
content and document settings as the template, but leaves the original template file untouched.

See also
“Create new documents” on page 31

Create a new template
1 Open a new or existing document.
2 Customize the document in any of the following ways:

• Set up the document window as you want it to appear in new documents you create from the template. This
includes the magnification level, scroll position, ruler origin, guides, grids, crop areas, and options in the View
menu.

• Draw or import any artwork you want to appear in new documents you create from the template.
• Delete any existing swatches, styles, brushes, or symbols, you don’t want to retain.
• Create any new swatches, styles, brushes, and symbols, you want in the corresponding panels. You can also import
preset swatches, styles, brushes, symbols, and actions from a variety of libraries that come with Illustrator.

• Create any graph designs you want and add them to the Graph Design dialog box. You can also import preset graph
designs.

• Set the desired options in the Document Setup dialog box and Print Options dialog box.
3 Choose File > Save As Template.
4 In the Save As dialog box, select a location for the file, enter a filename, and click Save.

Illustrator saves the file in AIT (Adobe Illustrator Template) format.

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Specify document setup options
At any point you can change your document’s default setup options for units of measure, transparency grid display,
background color, and type settings such as language, quote style, superscript and subscript size, and exportability. The
Edit Artboards button closes this dialog box and activates the Artboard tool. Use this button if you want to modify
your artboards.
1 Choose File > Document Setup or click the Document Setup button in the Control panel (this button is visible when

nothing is selected).
2 Specify options as desired.

Note: The Simulate Colored Paper option is useful if you plan to print the document on colored paper. For example, if
you draw a blue object on a yellow background, the object appears green. The simulation is performed only when the
transparency grid is not shown.
For specific information on these options, see related topics.

See also
“Change the unit of measurement” on page 47
“View transparency in artwork” on page 177
“Specify curly or straight quotes” on page 314
“Creating superscripts or subscripts” on page 315

Open a file
You can open files that were created in Illustrator as well as files that were created in other applications.

• To open an existing file, choose File > Open. Locate the file, and click Open.
• To open a recently saved file, choose the file from the Open A Recent Item list in the Welcome screen, or choose
File > Open Recent Files, and choose a file from the list.

• To open and preview a file using Adobe Bridge, choose File > Browse In Bridge to open Adobe Bridge. Locate the
file and choose File > Open With > Adobe Illustrator CS4.

See also
“Adobe Version Cue” on page 35
“Importing Adobe PDF files” on page 263
“Importing EPS files” on page 264
“Importing artwork from Photoshop” on page 266

Browse for files using Adobe Bridge
Adobe® Bridge is a cross-platform application included with Adobe® Creative Suite® 4 components that helps you
locate, organize, and browse the assets you need to create print, web, video, and audio content. You can start Bridge
from any Creative Suite component, and use it to access both Adobe and non-Adobe asset types.
❖ To open Adobe Bridge, do one of the following from within Illustrator:

• Choose File > Browse In Bridge.
• Click the Adobe Bridge icon

in the Control panel.

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• Choose Reveal In Bridge from the status bar.
From Adobe Bridge, you can do any of the following:

• Manage image, footage, and audio files: Preview, search, sort, and process files in Bridge without opening individual
applications. You can also edit metadata for files, and use Bridge to place files into your documents, projects, or
compositions.

• Manage your photos: Import and edit photos from your digital camera card, group related photos in stacks, and
open or import Photoshop® Camera Raw files and edit their settings without starting Photoshop.

• Work with Adobe Version Cue®-managed assets.
• Perform automated tasks, such as batch commands.
• Synchronize color settings across color-managed Creative Suite components.
• Start a real-time web conference to share your desktop and review documents.

See also
“Adobe Version Cue” on page 35

Adobe Version Cue
Adobe Version Cue® CS4 is an asset management system that lets designers work collaboratively on a set of common
files without having to change their workflow significantly. Designers can easily track and manipulate multiple
versions of files.
Version Cue handles the following tasks:

• Creating versions of your files
• Enabling workgroup collaboration (file sharing, version control, the ability to check files in and out)
• Organizing files into private or shared projects
• Providing thumbnails so you can browse and view files
• Organizing data so you can view and search on file information, version comments, and file status
• Creating and managing user access, projects, and PDF reviews by way of Version Cue Server Administration
Version Cue consists of two pieces: the Adobe Version Cue Server and Adobe Drive.
Adobe Version Cue Server The Version Cue Server can be installed locally or on a dedicated computer. It hosts
Version Cue projects and PDF reviews.
Adobe Drive Adobe Drive connects to Version Cue CS4 servers. The connected server appears like a hard drive or

mapped network drive in Windows Explorer, Mac OS Finder, and dialog boxes such as Open and Save As.
Note: The “Use Adobe Dialog” option that appears in CS3 applications does not appear in CS4 applications. This option
is no longer necessary. Connecting to the Version Cue Server using Adobe Drive lets you view project files from any
application.
Version Cue is included with Adobe Creative Suite 4 Design Premium and Standard, Adobe Creative Suite 4 Web
Premium and Standard, Adobe Creative Suite 4 Production Premium, and Adobe Creative Suite 4 Master Collection.
Version Cue enables versioning and asset management in all applications, but it includes enhanced features for the
following products: Adobe Flash®, Adobe Illustrator®, Adobe InDesign®, Adobe InCopy®, Adobe Photoshop®, and
Adobe Bridge. When you use any of these applications to open a file stored on a Version Cue server, the file is checked
out automatically. For all other applications, use the context menu to check in and check out files manually.

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For a video on Version Cue, see www.adobe.com/go/lrvid4038_vc. For Version Cue Help, see
www.adobe.com/go/learn_vc_versioncuehelp_cs4.

See also
Version Cue Help
Version Cue video

Manage connections to web services
In Adobe® Creative Suite® 4, the Connections panel lets you manage connections to web services and the locally
installed extensions that interact with them. The Connections panel itself is an extension. Additional extensions
installed with Creative Suite applications include the following:
Adobe ConnectNow Collaborate with dispersed working teams over the web, sharing voice, data, and multimedia.
Kuler™ panel Quickly create, share, and explore color themes online.
Search for Help In the upper-right corner of applications, enter search terms to access Community Help. Community
Help includes Adobe product Help, plus additional content from the design and production communities.

Visit www.adobe.com to learn about additional services and extensions.

Log into Adobe web services
Regardless of which application you use to access the Connections panel, logging in automatically connects you to
services such as ConnectNow meetings.
1 In Adobe InDesign, Photoshop, Illustrator, Flash, Fireworks, or Dreamweaver, choose Window > Extensions >

Connections.
2 Enter your Adobe ID and password. (If you lack an ID or can’t remember it, click the appropriate link.)
3 (Optional) To remain logged in when you restart the computer, select Remember Me On This Computer.
4 Click Log In.

Disable automatic extension updates
By default, the Connections panel automatically updates installed extensions. However, you can disable automatic
updates and instead check for them manually.
1 From the Connections panel menu

, select Update Preferences.

2 Deselect Check For Updates Automatically.
3 Restart any open Adobe Creative Suite applications.

Manually check for updated extensions
❖ From the Connections panel menu

, select Check For Updates.

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Disable web services
If your work environment disallows online connections, you can disable web services. You can also use this option to
disable your product from accessing online Community Help. When you disable web services and search for help, the
product provides results from the local help system only.
Note: Local Help includes only a portion of the full version of online product Help.
1 From the Connections panel menu

, select Offline Options.

2 Select Keep Me Offline.

To disable the Connections panel and web services only in Photoshop, deselect Allow Extensions To Connect in the
Plug-Ins section of the Preferences dialog box.

See also
“Help and support” on page 2

Working with ConnectNow
Working with ConnectNow
Adobe® ConnectNow provides you with a secure, personal online meeting room where you can meet and collaborate
with others via the web in real time. With ConnectNow, you can share and annotate your computer screen, send chat
messages, and communicate using integrated audio. You can also broadcast live video, share files, capture meeting
notes, and control an attendee's computer.
You can access ConnectNow directly from the application interface.
1 Choose File > Share My Screen.
2 In the Share My Screen dialog box, enter your Adobe ID and password, and click Sign In. If you don’t have an

Adobe ID and password, click the Create a Free Adobe ID link at the top of the dialog box.
3 To share your screen, click the Share My Computer Screen button at the center of the ConnectNow application

window.
For complete instructions on using ConnectNow, see
http://help.adobe.com/en_US/Acrobat.com/ConnectNow/index.html.
For a video tutorial about using ConnectNow, see Using ConnectNow to share your screen (7:12). (This
demonstration is in Dreamweaver.)

Using multiple artboards
Artboard overview
Artboards represent the regions that can contain printable artwork. You resize and set the orientation for your artwork
by choosing settings in the Artboard Options dialog box. (In Illustrator CS3 and earlier, you use the Document Setup
dialog box to change the document size and orientation.)

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You can use artboards as crop areas for printing or placement purposes—they work the same way as crop areas work
in Illustrator CS3. Multiple artboards are useful for creating a variety of things such as multiple page PDFs, printed
pages with different sizes or different elements, independent elements for websites, video storyboards, or individual
items for animation in Adobe Flash or After Effects.
Note: If you created crop areas in a Illustrator CS3 document, the crop areas will be converted to artboards in CS4. You
may be prompted to specify how you want the crop areas to convert.
You can have 1 to 100 artboards per document depending on size. You can specify the number of artboards for a
document when you first create it, and you can add and remove artboards at any time while working in a document.
, and position them anywhere
You can create artboards in different sizes, resize them by using the Artboard tool
on the screen—even overlapping one another.
To see a video on using multiple artboards, see www.adobe.com/go/lrvid4016_ai.
Viewing artboards and the canvas
You can view the page boundaries in relation to an artboard by showing print tiling (View > Show Print Tiling). When
print tiling is on, the printable and nonprintable areas are represented by a series of solid and dotted lines between the
outermost edge of the window and the printable area of the page.
Each artboard is bounded by solid lines and represents the maximum printable area. To hide the artboard boundaries,
choose View > Hide Artboards. The canvas is the area outside the artboard that extends to the edge of the 220 inch
square window. The canvas represents a space on which you can create, edit, and store elements of artwork before
moving them onto an artboard. Objects placed onto the canvas are visible on-screen, but they do not print.
To center an artboard and zoom it to fit the screen, click the artboard number in the status bar, located at the bottom
of the application window.

A
B
C

Illustration window
A. Printable area (determined by the specified printer) B. Canvas C. Artboard

Printing and exporting artboards
All artboards in a document share the same media type format, such as Print. You can print each artboard individually,
tiled, or combined into one page. If you save a multiple-artboard Illustrator document to a previous version of
Illustrator, such as CS3, you can choose to save each artboard as a separate file, along with a master file that includes
all artboards merged.

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You can preview artboards from the print dialog before printing them. The print settings you choose are applied to all
of the artboards you selected to print.
By default all artwork is cropped to an artboard and all artboards print as individual pages. Use the Range option in
the Print dialog box to print specific pages, select Ignore Artboards and specify placement options to combine all art
onto a single page or tile the artwork as desired.

See also
“Change the page size and orientation” on page 407
“Reposition artwork on the page” on page 405
“Tile artwork on multiple pages” on page 406

Artboard options
You open the Artboard Options dialog box by double-clicking the Artboard tool
then clicking Artboard Options button
in the Control panel.

, or clicking the Artboard tool and

Preset Specifies artboard dimensions. These presets set the ruler Pixel Aspect Ratio appropriately for the specified

output.
Width and Height Specifies the size of the artboard.
Orientation Specifies portrait or landscape page orientation.
Constrain Proportions Keeps the aspect ratio of the artboard intact if you manually resize it.
X: and Y: Position Specifies the position of the artboard according to Illustrator’s workspace rulers. To view these

rulers, choose View > Show Rulers.
Show Center Mark Displays a point in the center of the artboard.
Show Cross Hairs Displays cross lines through the center of each side of the artboard.
Show Video Safe Areas Displays guides that represent the areas that fall inside the viewable area of video. You want to

keep all text and art that must be viewable to users inside the video safe areas.
Ruler Pixel Aspect Ratio Specifies the pixel aspect ratio used for the artboard rulers.
Fade Region Outside Artboard Displays the area outside of the artboard a darker shade than the area inside the
artboard when the Artboard tool is active.
Update While Dragging Keeps the area outside of the artboard darker as you drag to resize the artboard. If this is not

selected, the outside area displays in the same color as inside the artboard while resizing.
Artboards Indicates how many artboards exist.

Create an artboard
1 Do any of the following:

• To create a custom artboard, select the Artboard tool

, and drag in the workspace to define the shape, size, and

location.

• To use a preset artboard, double-click the Artboard tool, select a preset in the Artboard Options dialog box, and
click OK. Drag the artboard to position it where you want.

• To create an artboard within an active artboard, hold down Shift and drag using the Artboard tool.

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• To duplicate an existing artboard, select the Artboard tool, click to select the artboard you want to duplicate, and
; then click where you want to place the duplicated
click the New Artboard button in the Control panel
artboard. To create multiple duplicates, Alt-click as many times as you want. Or, using the Artboard tool, Alt-drag
(Windows) or Option-drag (Mac OS) the artboard you want to duplicate.

• To duplicate an artboard with the contents, select the Artboard tool, click to select the Move/Copy Artwork With
Artboard icon on the Control panel

, press Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac OS), and then drag.

If you want the artwork to contain a bleed, make sure that there’s enough artwork beyond the artboard rectangle to
accommodate the bleed.
2 To commit the artboard and exit the artboard-editing mode, click a different tool in the Tools panel or click Esc.

To see a video on using multiple artboards, see www.adobe.com/go/lrvid4016_ai.

Delete an artboard
❖ Click the artboard and press Delete, click Delete

in the Control panel, or click the Delete icon
artboard’s upper-right corner. You can delete all but the last remaining artboard.

in an

Select and view artboards
1 Select the Artboard tool

2 Do any of the following:

• Click an artboard to make it active. (Clicking in or drawing over an artboard using a different tool will also make
the Artboard tool active.) If artboards overlap, the artboard with the left edge closest to the click location becomes
the active artboard.

• To rotate between artboards, press Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac OS) and click an arrow key.
• To view artboards and their contents as outlines, right-click and choose Outline. To see artwork again, right-click
and choose Preview.

Edit artboards
You can create multiple artboards for your document, but only one can be active at a time. When you have multiple
artboards defined, you can view them all by selecting the Artboard tool. Each artboard is numbered for easy reference.
You can edit or delete an artboard at any time, and you can specify different artboards each time you print or export.
1 Select the Artboard tool
2

, click to select an artboard.

Do any of the following:

• To resize the artboard, position the pointer on an edge or corner until the cursor changes to a double-sided arrow,
and then drag to adjust. Or, specify new Width and Height values in the Control panel.

• To change the orientation of the artboard, click the Portrait or Landscape button in the Control panel.
• To rotate between artboards, press Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac OS) and click an arrow key.
• To view artboards and their contents as outlines, right-click and choose Outline. To see artwork again, right-click
and choose Preview.

Move an artboard
1 Select the Artboard tool and click to select an artboard.

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2 Do one of the following:

• To move the artboard and its contents, click to select the Move/Copy Artwork With Artboard icon on the Control
panel
panel.

, and then position the pointer in the artboard and drag. Or, specify new X and Y values in the Control

• To move the artboard without its contents, click to deselect the Move/Copy Artwork With Artboard icon on the
Control panel, and then position the pointer in the artboard and drag. Or, specify new X and Y values in the Control
panel.

Display artboard rulers, center mark, crosshairs, or safe area
You can choose to display a center mark, cross hairs, video safe markers, and rulers around an artboard. Rulers are
useful when you’re working with art intended for export to video. The numbers on the rulers reflect device-specific
pixels, regardless of the measurement unit specified in preferences. The default Pixel Aspect Ratio (PAR) for Illustrator
is 1.0 (for square pixels)—this value changes according to the preset you choose either in the Artboard Options dialog
box or the New Document dialog box.
If you’re using nonsquare pixels, the ruler provides for easier device-specific pixel calculations. For example, if you
specify an artboard of 100 x100 Illustrator points, and you want to know the exact size in device-dependent pixels
before exporting the file for use in a NTSC DV Widescreen, you can set the artboard ruler in Illustrator to use a pixel
aspect ratio of 1.2 (for wide pixels) and the ruler will reflect the change and display the artboard as 83 x100 device pixels
(100/1.2 = 83.333).

Artboard with rulers

Show or hide artboard rulers
1 Choose View > Show Artboard Rulers or Hide Artboard Rulers.
2 (Optional) Set a value for Ruler Pixel Aspect Ratio in the Artboard Options dialog box. (To open this dialog box,

double-click the Artboard tool.)

Display center mark, cross hairs, or video safe areas
1 Double-click the Artboard tool

icon

in the Tools panel, or, with the Artboard tool active, click the Artboard Options

in the Control panel.

2 In the Display section, select the options you’d like displayed in your artboards.

Note: You can also set or remove the center point by clicking the Show Center Mark icon

in the Control panel.

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Viewing artwork
Specify Document Setup options
At any point you can change your document’s default setup options for units of measure, transparency grid display,
background color, and type settings such as language, quote style, superscript and subscript size, bleeds, and
exportability. The Edit Artboards button closes this dialog box and activates the Artboard tool.
1 Choose File > Document Setup, or click the Document Setup button in the Control panel. (This button is available

when nothing is selected.)
2 Specify options as desired.
3 If you want to edit artboards (for instance, to change from portrait to landscape orientation), click Edit Artboards

to enter artboard editing mode.
The Simulate Colored Paper option is useful if you plan to print the document on colored paper. For example, if you
draw a blue object on a yellow background, the object appears green. The simulation is only performed when the
transparency grid is not shown.

See also
“Edit artboards” on page 40
“Change the unit of measurement” on page 47
“View transparency in artwork” on page 177
“Specify curly or straight quotes” on page 314
“Creating superscripts or subscripts” on page 315

About print tiling
By default, Illustrator prints each artboard on a single sheet of paper. However, if the artwork is larger than the page
sizes available on your printer, you can print onto multiple sheets of paper.
Dividing an artboard to fit a printer’s available page sizes is called tiling. You can choose a tiling option in the General
section of the Print dialog box. To view the print tiling boundaries on the artboard, choose View > Show Print Tiling.

Artboard divided into multiple page tiles

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When you divide the artboard into multiple tiles, the pages are numbered from left to right and from top to bottom,
starting with page 1. These page numbers appear on-screen for your reference only; they do not print. The numbers
enable you to print all of the pages in the file or specify particular pages to print.

See also
“Change the page size and orientation” on page 407
“Tile artwork on multiple pages” on page 406

Zoom in or out
There are several ways to zoom in or out of artwork.

• Select the Zoom tool

. The pointer becomes a magnifying glass with a plus sign in its center. Click in the center
of the area that you want to magnify, or hold down Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac OS) and click in the center of
the area that you want to reduce. Each click magnifies or reduces the view to the previous preset percentage.

• Select the Zoom tool and drag a dotted rectangle, called a marquee, around the area you want to magnify. To move
the marquee around the artwork, hold down the spacebar, and continue dragging to move the marquee to a new
location.

• Choose View > Zoom In or View > Zoom Out. Each click magnifies or reduces the view to the next preset
percentage.

• Set the zoom level at the lower-left corner of the main window or in the Navigator panel.
• To display a file at 100%, choose View > Actual Size, or double-click the Zoom tool.
• To fill the window with the selected artboard, choose View > Fit Artboard In Window, or double-click the Hand tool.
• To view everything in the window, choose View > Fit All In Window.

See also
“Moving and zooming tool gallery” on page 30
“Keys for viewing artwork” on page 465

Change the view area
You can bring a different area of the artboard into view by doing any of the following:

• Choose View > Actual Size to see all of your artboards in actual size.
• Choose View > Fit All In Window to zoom out so that all artboards are visible in on the screen.
• Choose View > Fit Artboard In Window to zoom in on the active artboard.
• In the Navigator panel, click the area of the thumbnail display that you want to view in the illustration window.
Alternatively, drag the proxy view area (the colored box) to a different area of the thumbnail display.

• Select the Hand tool

, and drag in the direction you want the artwork to move.

To specify the quality of the display when using the Hand tool, choose Edit > Preferences > Units & Display
Performance (Windows) or Illustrator > Preferences > Units & Display Performance (Mac OS). Drag the Hand Tool
slider left to improve the quality of the view when you move it with the Hand tool, or right to improve the speed at which
you can move the view with the Hand tool.

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See also
“Moving and zooming tool gallery” on page 30
“Keys for viewing artwork” on page 465

Navigator panel overview
You use the Navigator panel (Window > Navigator) to quickly change the view of your artwork using a thumbnail
display. The colored box in the Navigator (called the proxy view area) corresponds to the currently viewable area in
the illustration window.
B

Navigator panel
A. Thumbnail display of artwork B. Panel menu button C. Zoom box D. Zoom Out button E. Proxy preview area F. Zoom slider G. Zoom
In button

You can customize the Navigator panel in the following ways:

• To display artwork outside the boundaries of the artboard in the Navigator panel, click View Artboard Contents
Only from the panel menu to deselect it.

• To change the color of the proxy view area, select panel Options from the panel menu. Select a preset color from
the Color menu, or double-click the color box to choose a custom color.

• To display dashed lines in the document as solid lines in the Navigator panel, select panel Options from the panel
menu and select Draw Dashed Lines As Solid Lines.

See also
“Manage windows and panels” on page 15

View artwork as outlines
By default, Adobe Illustrator sets the view so that all artwork is previewed in color. However, you can choose to display
artwork so that only its outlines (or paths) are visible. Viewing artwork without paint attributes speeds up the time it
takes to redraw the screen when working with complex artwork.
In Outline mode, linked files are displayed by default as outlined boxes with an X inside. To view the contents of linked
files, choose File > Document Setup, and select Show Images In Outline Mode.

• To view all artwork as outlines, choose View > Outline. Choose View > Preview to return to previewing artwork in
color.

• To view all artwork in a layer as outlines, Ctrl-click (Windows) or Command-click (Mac OS) the eye icon for the
layer in the Layers panel. Ctrl-click (Windows) or Command-click (Mac OS) again to return to previewing artwork
when Outline view is enabled and a filled center
when Preview
in color. The eye icon has a hollow center
view is enabled.

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• To view all items in unselected layers as outlines, Alt+Ctrl-click (Windows) or Option+Command-click (Mac OS)
the eye icon for the selected layer. Alternatively, select Outline Others from the Layers panel menu.
You can return all items in the Layers panel to Preview mode by choosing Preview All Layers from the Layers panel
menu.

See also
“Layers panel overview” on page 215

Use multiple windows and views
You can open multiple windows of a single document at the same time. Each window can have different view settings.
For example, you can set one window highly magnified for doing close-up work on some objects and create another
window less magnified for laying out those objects on the page.
(Windows) You can arrange multiple open windows to suit your needs, using options from the Window menu.
Cascade displays windows stacked and descending from the upper-left to the lower-right of the screen; Tile displays
windows edge to edge; Arrange Icons organizes minimized windows within the program window.
An alternative to creating multiple windows is creating multiple views. You can create and store up to 25 views for each
document.
Multiple windows and multiple views differ in the following ways:

• Multiple views are saved with the document, multiple windows are not.
• Multiple windows can be viewed at the same time.
• Multiple views can appear at the same time only if multiple windows are opened to display them in. Changing a
view alters the current windows, it does not open a new one.

Create a new window
❖ Choose Window > New Window.

Create a new view
❖ Set up the view as you want, and then choose View > New View, enter a name for the new view, and click OK.

Rename or delete a view
❖ Choose View > Edit Views.

Switch between views
❖ Select a view name from the bottom of the View menu.

Previewing artwork in its final output medium
Illustrator provides the following ways to preview how aspects of artwork will look when printed or viewed on the web
or a mobile device:
Overprint Preview mode (View > Overprint Preview) Provides an “ink preview” that approximates how blending,

transparency, and overprinting will appear in color-separated output.
Separations Preview mode (Window > Separations Preview) Provides a preview of how the separations will look when

printed.

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Pixel Preview mode (View > Pixel Preview) Approximates how your artwork will appear when it is rasterized and

viewed in a web browser.
Flattener Preview panel (Window > Flattener Preview) Highlights areas of the artwork that meet certain criteria for

flattening when saved or printed.
Soft-proofs Approximate how your document’s colors will appear on a particular type of monitor or output device.
Anti-aliasing Gives vector objects a smoother on-screen appearance and provides a better idea of how vector artwork

will look when printed on a PostScript® printer. Anti-aliasing is helpful because screen resolution is relatively limited,
but vector artwork is often printed at a high resolution. To turn on anti-aliasing, choose Edit > Preferences > General
(Windows) or Illustrator > Preferences > General (Mac OS), select Anti-aliased Artwork, and click OK.
Device Central (File > Device Central) Lets you preview how your document will appear on a particular mobile phone

or device.

See also
“About overprinting” on page 428
“About pixel preview mode” on page 371
“Soft-proof colors” on page 139
“Save For Web & Devices overview” on page 384
“Using Adobe Device Central with Illustrator” on page 372
“Preview which areas of artwork will be flattened” on page 424

Rulers, grids, guides, and crop marks
Use rulers
Rulers help you accurately place and measure objects in the illustration window or in an artboard. The point where 0
appears on each ruler is called the ruler origin.
Document rulers appear at the top and left sides of the illustration window. The default ruler origin is located at the
lower-left corner of the illustration window.
Artboard rulers appear at the top and left sides of the active artboard. The default artboard ruler origin is located at the
lower-left corner of the artboard.

• To show or hide rulers, choose View > Show Rulers or View > Hide Rulers.
• To show or hide artboard rulers, choose View > Show Artboard Rulers or View > Hide Artboard Rulers.
• To change the ruler origin, move the pointer to the upper-left corner where the rulers intersect, and drag the pointer
to where you want the new ruler origin.
As you drag, a cross hair in the window and in the rulers indicates the changing ruler origin.
Note: Changing the ruler origin affects the tiling of patterns.

• To restore the default ruler origin, double-click the upper-left corner where the rulers intersect.

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Change the unit of measurement
The default unit of measurement in Illustrator is points (a point equals .3528 millimeter). You can change the unit that
Illustrator uses for general measurements, strokes, and type. You can override the default unit while entering values in
boxes.

• To change the default unit of measurement, choose Edit > Preferences > Units & Display Performance (Windows)
or Illustrator > Preferences > Units & Display Performance (Mac OS), and then select units for the General, Stroke,
and Type options. If Show Asian Options is selected in the Type preferences, you can also select a unit specifically
for Asian type.
Note: The “General” measurement option affects rulers, measuring the distance between points, moving and
transforming objects, setting grid and guides spacing, and creating shapes.

• To set the general unit of measurement for the current document only, choose File > Document Setup, choose the
unit of measure you want to use from the Units menu, and click OK.

• To change the unit of measurement when entering a value in a box, follow the value by any of the following
abbreviations: inch, inches, in, millimeters, millimetres, mm, Qs (one Q equals 0.25 millimeter), centimeters,
centimetres, cm, points, p, pt, picas, pc, pixel, pixels, and px.
When mixing picas and points, you can enter values as XpY, where X and Y are the number of picas and points (for
example, 12p6 for 12 picas, 6 points).

Use the grid
The grid appears behind your artwork in the illustration window, and it does not print.

• To use the grid, choose View > Show Grid.
• To hide the grid, choose View > Hide Grid.
• To snap objects to gridlines, choose View > Snap To Grid, select the object you want to move, and drag it to the
desired location.
When the object’s boundaries come within 2 pixels of a gridline, it snaps to the point.
Note: When the View > Pixel Preview option is selected, Snap To Grid changes to Snap To Pixel.

• To specify the spacing between gridlines, grid style (lines or dots), grid color, or whether grids appear in the front
or back of artwork, choose Edit > Preferences > Guides & Grid (Windows) or Illustrator > Preferences > Guides &
Grid (Mac OS).

Use guides
Guides help you align text and graphic objects. You can create ruler guides (straight vertical or horizontal lines) and
guide objects (vector objects that you convert to guides). Like the grid, guides do not print.
You can choose between two guide styles—dots and lines—and you can change the color of guides by using either
predefined guide colors or colors you select using a color picker. By default, guides are unlocked so that you can move,
modify, delete, or revert them, but you can choose to lock them into place.

• To show or hide guides, choose View > Guides > Show Guides or View > Guides > Hide Guides.
• To change guide settings, choose Edit > Preferences > Guides & Grid (Windows) or Illustrator > Preferences >
Guides & Grid (Mac OS).

• To lock guides, select View > Guides > Lock Guides.

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Create guides
1 If the rulers aren’t showing, choose View > Show Rulers.
2 Position the pointer on the left ruler for a vertical guide or on the top ruler for a horizontal guide.
3 Drag the guide into position.

You can also convert vector objects to guides by selecting them and choosing View > Guides > Make Guides.
To make working with multiple guides easier, move them into a separate layer.

Move, delete, or release guides
1 If guides are locked, select View > Guides > Lock Guides.
2 Do any of the following:

• Move the guide by dragging or copying.
• Delete the guide by pressing Backspace (Windows) or Delete (Mac OS), or by choosing Edit > Cut or Edit > Clear.
• Delete all guides at once by choosing View > Guides > Clear Guides.
• Release the guide, turning it back into a regular graphic object, by selecting the guide and choosing View > Guides >
Release Guides.

Snap objects to anchor points and guides
1 Choose View > Snap To Point.
2 Select the object you want to move, and position the pointer on the exact point you want to align with anchor points

and guides.
Important: When snapping to a point, the snapping alignment depends on the position of the pointer, not the edges of
the dragged object.
3 Drag the object to the desired location.

When the pointer comes within 2 pixels of an anchor point or guide, it snaps to the point. The pointer changes from
a filled arrowhead to a hollow arrowhead when a snap occurs.

Smart Guides
Smart Guides are temporary snap-to guides that appear when you create or manipulate objects or artboards. They help
you align, edit, and transform objects or artboards relative to other objects, artboards, or both by snap-aligning and
displaying X, Y location and delta values. You can specify the type of smart guides and feedback that appear (such as
measurement labels, object highlighting, or labels) by setting the Smart Guides preferences.
To see a video on using smart guides, see www.adobe.com/go/lrvid4020_ai.

Use Smart Guides
Smart Guides are on by default.
1 Choose View > Smart Guides to turn guides on or off.
2 Use Smart Guides in the following ways:

• When you create an object with the pen or shape tools, use the Smart Guides to position a new object's anchor
points relative to an existing object. Or, when you create a new artboard, use Smart Guides to position it relative to
another artboard or an object.

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• When you create an object with the pen or shape tools, or when you transform an object, use the smart guides’
construction guides to position anchor points to specific preset angles, such as 45 or 90 degrees. You set these angles
in the Smart Guides preferences.

• When you move an object or artboard, use the Smart Guides to align the selected object or artboard to other objects
or artboards. The alignment is based on the geometry of objects and artboards. Guides appear as the object
approaches the edge or center point of other objects.
Note: Press Ctrl (Windows) or Command (Mac OS) to use the alignment behavior from Illustrator CS3, which uses the
center point or edge of one object or artboard.

• When you transform an object, Smart Guides automatically appear to assist the transformation.
You can change when and how Smart Guides appear by setting Smart Guide preferences.
Note: When Snap To Grid or Pixel Preview is turned on, you cannot use Smart Guides (even if the menu command is
selected).

Smart Guide preferences
Choose Edit > Preferences > Smart Guides (Windows) or Illustrator > Preferences > Smart Guides (Mac OS) to set the
following preferences:
Color Specifies the color of the guides.
Alignment Guides Displays guide lines that are generated along the center and edges of geometric objects, artboard,

and bleeds. They are generated when you move objects and when you perform operations such as drawing basic
shapes, using Pen tool, and transforming objects.
Anchor/Path Labels Displays information when paths intersect and when they are centered on an anchor point.
Measurement Labels Displays information for many tools (such as Drawing tools and Text tools) about the current
position the cursor as you position the cursor over an anchor point. While creating, selecting, moving, or transforming
objects it displays the x and y delta from the object’s original location. When you press Shift while using a drawing tool,
the starting location appears.
Object Highlighting Highlights the object below the pointer as you drag around it. The highlight color matches the

object’s layer color.
Transform Tools Displays information when you scale, rotate, and shear objects.
Construction Guides Displays guidelines as you draw new objects. You specify the angles at which you want guidelines

drawn from the anchor points of a nearby object. You can set up to six angles. Type an angle in the selected Angles
box, select a set of angles from the Angles pop-up menu, or select a set of angles from the pop-up menu and change
one of the values in the box to customize a set of angles. The preview reflects your settings.
Snapping Tolerance Specifies the number of points the pointer must be from another object for Smart Guides to take

effect.

Specify crop marks for trimming or aligning
In addition to specifying different artboards to crop artwork for output, you can also create and use multiple sets of
crop marks within your artwork. Crop marks indicate where you want the printed paper to be cut. Crop marks are
useful when you want to create marks around several objects on a page—for example, when printing a sheet of business
cards. They are also helpful for aligning Illustrator artwork that you’ve exported to another application.
Crop marks differ from the artboard in the following ways:

• Artboards specify the printable boundaries of artwork, whereas crop marks don’t affect the printed area at all.

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• You can activate only one artboard at a time, whereas you can create and display multiple crop marks.
• The artboard is indicated by visible but non-printing marks, whereas crop marks are printed with registration black
(so that they print to every separation plate, similar to printer’s marks).
Note: Crop marks do not replace trim marks created with the Marks & Bleed options in the Print dialog box.

Create crop marks around an object
1 Select the object or objects.
2 Choose Effect > Crop Marks.

Delete crop marks
❖ Select Crop Marks in the Appearance panel, and then click the Delete Selected Item icon

Use Japanese-style crop marks
Japanese-style crop marks have double lines, which visually define a default bleed value of 8.5 points (3 millimeters).
1 Choose Edit > Preferences > General (Windows) or Illustrator > Preferences > General (Mac OS).
2 Select Use Japanese Crop Marks, and then click OK.

Measure the distance between objects
The Measure tool calculates the distance between any two points and displays the results in the Info panel.
1 Select the Measure tool

. (Press and hold the Eyedropper tool to see it in the Tools panel.)

2 Do one of the following:

• Click the two points to measure the distance between them.
• Click the first point and drag to the second point. Shift-drag to constrain the tool to multiples of 45°.
The Info panel shows the horizontal and vertical distances from the x and y axes, the absolute horizontal and vertical
distances, the total distances, and the angle measured.

Info panel overview
You use the Info panel (Window > Info) to get information on the area beneath the pointer and on selected objects.

• When an object is selected and a selection tool is active, the Info panel displays the object’s x and y coordinates,
width (W), and height (H). The values for width and height are affected by the Use Preview Bounds option in the
General preferences. When Use Preview Bounds is selected, Illustrator includes the stroke width (and other
attributes such as drop shadows) in the object’s dimensions. When Use Preview Bounds is deselected, Illustrator
measures only the dimensions defined by the object’s vector path.

• When you use the Pen tool or Gradient tool, or when you move a selection, the Info panel displays the change in x
(W), the change in y (H), the distance (D), and the angle

as you drag.

• When you use the Zoom tool, the Info panel displays the magnification factor and the x and y coordinates after you
release the mouse button.

• When you use the Scale tool, the Info panel displays the percentage change in width (W) and height (H) and the
new width (W) and height (H) after the scaling is complete. When you use the rotate or reflect tools, the Info panel
or reflection .
displays the coordinates of the object’s center and the angle of rotation

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• When you use the Shear tool, the Info panel displays the coordinates of the object’s center, the angle of shear
axis

, and the amount of shear

• When you use the Paintbrush tool, the Info panel displays the x and y coordinates and the name of the current
brush.

• Select Show Options from the panel menu or click the double arrow on the panel tab to show values for the fill and
stroke colors of the selected object and the name of any pattern, gradient, or tint applied to the selected object.
Note: If you select multiple objects, the Info panel displays only the information that is the same for all selected objects.

Setting preferences
About preferences
Preferences are options regarding how you want Illustrator to work, including those for display, tools, ruler units, and
exporting information. Your preferences are saved in a file called AIPrefs (Windows) or Adobe Illustrator Prefs
(Mac OS), which is launched each time you start Illustrator.

Open a preferences dialog box
1 Do one of the following:

• (Windows) Choose Edit > Preferences > [preference set name].
• (Mac OS) Choose Illustrator > Preferences > [preference set name].
• With nothing selected, click the Preferences button on the Control panel.
2 To switch to a different preference set, do one of the following:

• Select an option from the menu at the upper-left of the Preferences dialog box.
• Click Next to display the next options, or click Prev to display the previous options.

Reset all preferences to default settings
Resetting preferences can be helpful if you are having problems with the application.
❖ Do one of the following:

• Press and hold Alt+Control+Shift (Windows) or Option+Command+Shift (Mac OS) as you start Illustrator.
Your current settings are deleted.

• Remove or rename the AIPrefs file (Windows) or Adobe Illustrator Prefs file (Mac OS). New preferences files
are created the next time you start Illustrator.
Note: It is safe to remove the entire Adobe Illustrator CS4 Settings folder. This folder contains various preferences
that can be regenerated.

About plug-in modules
Plug-in modules are software programs that add features to Adobe Illustrator. A number of special effects plug-ins
come with your program and are automatically installed in the Plug-ins folder inside the Illustrator folder.

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You can install any commercial plug-in designed for use with Photoshop or Illustrator. To install an Adobe Systems
plug-in module, use the installer if one is provided. Otherwise, drag a copy of the module to the Plug-ins folder inside
the Illustrator folder. Then restart Illustrator for the plug-in to take effect. To install a third-party plug-in module,
follow the installation instructions that came with the plug-in module.
Note: The open architecture of the Adobe Illustrator program allows developers outside of Adobe to create features that
are accessible from within Adobe Illustrator. If you are interested in creating plug-in modules compatible with Adobe
Illustrator, see the Adobe Systems U.S. website at www.adobe.com.

Recovery, undo, and automation
Undo and redo changes
The Undo and Redo commands let you undo or redo operations, allowing you to correct mistakes as you work. You
can undo or redo an operation after you select the Save command (but not if you have closed and then reopened the
file).
❖ Choose Edit > Undo or Edit > Redo.

You can undo an unlimited number of operations (depending on memory) by repeatedly choosing the Undo
command. If an operation cannot be undone, the Undo command is dimmed.

Revert to the last saved version
You can revert a file to the last saved version (but not if you have closed and then reopened the file). You cannot undo
this action.
❖ Choose File > Revert.

Automating tasks
Graphic design is a field characterized by creativity, but there are some aspects of the actual work of illustration that can
be repetitious. In fact, you’ll probably notice that the time you spend placing and replacing images, correcting errors,
and preparing files for printing and web display often reduces the time you have available for doing creative work.
Illustrator provides a variety of ways to automate many of the repetitive tasks you have to do, leaving more time to
concentrate on the creative aspects of your work.
An action is a series of tasks that are recorded while using the Illustrator application—menu commands, tool options,
object selection, and so on. When you play an action, Illustrator performs all of the recorded tasks for you.
Illustrator provides prerecorded actions to assist you in performing common tasks. These actions are installed as a
default set in the Actions panel when you install the Illustrator application.
A script is a series of commands that tells your computer to perform a sequence of operations. These operations may
involve only Illustrator, or they may involve other applications, such as word-processing, spreadsheet, and databasemanagement programs. Illustrator provides default scripts to assist you in performing common tasks. You can access
these scripts by choosing File > Scripts.
Data-driven graphics streamline how designers and developers work together in high-volume publishing
environments.

Chapter 3: Drawing
You draw and modify paths using a set of drawing tools and techniques common to Adobe Illustrator, Adobe®
InDesign®, and Adobe® Photoshop®. Use these applications to draw paths, and freely copy and paste them between
programs. You can also create symbols for use in both Adobe Illustrator and Adobe® Flash® Professional.

Drawing basics
About vector graphics
Vector graphics (sometimes called vector shapes or vector objects) are made up of lines and curves defined by
mathematical objects called vectors, which describe an image according to its geometric characteristics.
You can freely move or modify vector graphics without losing detail or clarity, because they are resolutionindependent—they maintain crisp edges when resized, printed to a PostScript printer, saved in a PDF file, or imported
into a vector-based graphics application. As a result, vector graphics are the best choice for artwork, such as logos, that
will be used at various sizes and in various output media.
The vector objects you create using the drawing and shape tools in Adobe Creative Suite are examples of vector
graphics. You can use the Copy and Paste commands to duplicate vector graphics between Creative Suite components.

See also
“About bitmap images” on page 261

About paths
As you draw, you create a line called a path. A path is made up of one or more straight or curved segments. The
beginning and end of each segment are marked by anchor points, which work like pins holding a wire in place. A path
can be closed (for example, a circle), or open, with distinct endpoints (for example, a wavy line).
You change the shape of a path by dragging its anchor points, the direction points at the end of direction lines that
appear at anchor points, or the path segment itself.
A

D
E

Components of a path
A. Selected (solid) endpoint B. Selected anchor point C. Unselected anchor point D. Curved path segment E. Direction line F. Direction point

Paths can have two kinds of anchor points: corner points and smooth points. At a corner point, a path abruptly changes
direction. At a smooth point, path segments are connected as a continuous curve. You can draw a path using any
combination of corner and smooth points. If you draw the wrong kind of point, you can always change it.

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Points on a path
A. Four corner points B. Four smooth points C. Combination of corner and smooth points

A corner point can connect any two straight or curved segments, while a smooth point always connects two curved
segments.

A corner point can connect both straight segments and curved segments.

Note: Don’t confuse corner and smooth points with straight and curved segments.
A path’s outline is called a stroke. A color or gradient applied to an open or closed path’s interior area is called a fill. A
stroke can have weight (thickness), color, and a dash pattern (Illustrator and InDesign) or a stylized line pattern
(InDesign). After you create a path or shape, you can change the characteristics of its stroke and fill.
In InDesign, each path also displays a center point, which marks the center of the shape but is not part of the actual
path. You can use this point to drag the path, to align the path with other elements, or to select all anchor points on
the path. The center point is always visible; it can’t be hidden or deleted.

About direction lines and direction points
When you select an anchor point that connects curved segments (or select the segment itself), the anchor points of the
connecting segments display direction handles, which consist of direction lines that end in direction points. The angle
and length of the direction lines determine the shape and size of the curved segments. Moving the direction points
reshapes the curves. Direction lines don’t appear in the final output.

After selecting an anchor point (left), direction lines appear on any curved segments connected by the anchor point (right).

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A smooth point always has two direction lines, which move together as a single, straight unit. When you move a
direction line on a smooth point, the curved segments on both sides of the point are adjusted simultaneously,
maintaining a continuous curve at that anchor point.
In comparison, a corner point can have two, one, or no direction lines, depending on whether it joins two, one, or no
curved segments, respectively. Corner point direction lines maintain the corner by using different angles. When you
move a direction line on a corner point, only the curve on the same side of the point as that direction line is adjusted.

Adjusting direction lines on a smooth point (left) and a corner point (right)

Direction lines are always tangent to (perpendicular to the radius of) the curve at the anchor points. The angle of each
direction line determines the slope of the curve, and the length of each direction line determines the height, or depth,
of the curve.

Moving and resizing direction lines changes the slope of curves.

Note: In Illustrator, you can show or hide anchor points, direction lines, and direction points by choosing View > Show
Edges or View > Hide Edges.

Specify direction line and direction point appearance
When working with anchor points and paths, you may sometimes need to see direction lines (handles), while at other
times they may get in the way. You can show or hide direction lines for multiple selected anchor points. For a single
anchor point, the lines always appear.
You can choose to show or hide direction lines on a per-selection basis, or you can set a preference for direction line
display.
For a video on setting direction lines and points, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0037.

See also
“Specify selection preferences” on page 198

Show or hide direction lines for selected anchor points
1 Use the Direct Selection tool to select the desired anchor points.

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2 In the Control panel, click Show Handles For Multiple Selected Anchor Points

Selected Anchor Points

> or Hide Handles For Multiple

Note: You can also set a preference to always show or always hide handles when multiple anchor points are selected.

Set direction point and direction line display preferences
1 Choose Edit > Preferences > Selection & Anchor Display (Windows) or Illustrator > Preferences > Selection &

Anchor Display (Mac OS).
2 In the Anchor Point And Handle Display area, specify any of the following:
Handles Specifies the display of handle end points (direction points):

•

Displays direction points as small solid circles.

•

Displays direction points as large solid circles.

•

Displays direction points as open crosses.

Show Handles When Multiple Anchors Are Selected Displays direction lines on all selected anchor points when you

use the Direct Selection tool or Group Selection tool to select an object. If you don’t select this option, direction
lines are displayed for an anchor point if it is the only anchor point selected on that path, or if the Bezier segment
for the direction line is selected and the anchor point from which the direction line extends is not selected.

Specify anchor point size preferences
1 Choose Edit > Preferences > Selection & Anchor Display (Windows) or Illustrator > Preferences > Selection &

Anchor Display (Mac OS).
2 In the Anchor Point And Handle Display area, specify any of the following:
Anchors Specifies the display of anchor points:

•

Displays both selected and unselected anchor points as small points.

•

Displays selected anchor points as large points and unselected anchor points as small points.

•

Displays both selected and unselected anchor points as large points.

Highlight Anchors On Mouse Over Highlights the anchor point located directly below the mouse cursor.

Drawing simple lines and shapes
Draw straight lines with the Line Segment tool
Use the Line Segment tool when you want to draw one straight line segment at a time. For a video on using the Line
Segment tool, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0036.
1 Select the Line Segment tool

2 Do one of the following:

• Position the pointer where you want the line to begin, and drag to where you want the line to end.
• Click where you want the line to begin, and specify the length and angle of the line. If you want to fill the line
with the current fill color, select Fill Line. Then click OK.

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See also
“Drawing tool gallery” on page 23
“Keys for drawing” on page 466

Draw rectangles and squares
1 Select the Rectangle tool

or the Rounded Rectangle tool

2 Do one of the following:

• To draw a rectangle, drag diagonally until the rectangle is the desired size.
• To draw a square, hold down the Shift key while you drag diagonally until the square is the desired size.
• To create a square or rectangle using values, click where you want the top-left corner to be. Specify a width and
height (and a corner radius for a rounded rectangle), and click OK.
For a video on using shape tools, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0036. For an example of using shape tools to draw
buildings, see www.adobe.com/go/learn_ai_tutorials_shapes_en.

See also
“Drawing tool gallery” on page 23
“Keys for drawing” on page 466

Specify the corner radius of a rounded rectangle
The corner radius determines the roundness of the rectangle’s corners. You can change the default radius for all new
rectangles, and you can change the radius for individual rectangles as you draw them.

• To change the default corner radius, choose Edit> Preferences > General (Windows) or Illustrator > Preferences >
General (Mac OS), and enter a new value for Corner Radius. Alternatively, select the Rounded Rectangle tool, click
in the document window, and enter a new value for Corner Radius. The default radius applies only to new rounded
rectangles you draw, not to existing rounded rectangles.

• To change the corner radius while dragging with the Rounded Rectangle tool, press the Up Arrow key or Down
Arrow key. When the corners are the desired roundness, release the key.

• To create square corners while dragging with the Rounded Rectangle tool, press the Left Arrow key.
• To create the most rounded corners while dragging with the Rounded Rectangle tool, press the Right Arrow key.

Draw ellipses
1 Select the Ellipse tool

2 Do one of the following:

• Drag diagonally until the ellipse is the desired size.
• Click where you want the top-left corner of the ellipse’s bounding box to be. Specify a width and height for the
ellipse, and click OK.
Note: To create a circle, hold down the Shift key while dragging, or if you are specifying dimensions, once you’ve
entered a Width value you can click on the word Height to copy that value into the Height box.
For a video on using shape tools, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0036.

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See also
“Drawing tool gallery” on page 23
“Keys for drawing” on page 466

Draw polygons
1 Select the Polygon tool

2 Do one of the following:

• Drag until the polygon is the desired size. Drag the pointer in an arc to rotate the polygon. Press the Up Arrow
and Down Arrow keys to add and remove sides from the polygon.

• Click where you want the center of the polygon to be. Specify a radius and number of sides for the polygon, and
click OK.
Triangles are polygons too! You can draw one just as you would any other polygon.
For a video on using shape tools, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0036.

See also
“Drawing tool gallery” on page 23
“Keys for drawing” on page 466

Draw stars
1 Select the Star tool

2 Do one of the following:

• Drag until the star is the desired size. Drag the pointer in an arc to rotate the star. Press the Up Arrow and Down
Arrow to add and remove points from the star.

• Click where you want the center of the star to be. For Radius 1, specify the distance from the center of the star
to the star’s innermost points. For Radius 2, specify the distance from the center of the star to the star’s
outermost points. For Points, specify how many points you want the star to have. Then click OK.
For a video on using shape tools, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0036.

See also
“Drawing tool gallery” on page 23
“Keys for drawing” on page 466

Draw arcs
1 Select the Arc tool

2 Do one of the following:

• Position the pointer where you want the arc to begin, and drag to where you want the arc to end.
• Click where you want the arc to begin. In the dialog box, click a square on the reference point locator
determine the point from which the arc is drawn. Then set any of the following options, and click OK.
Length X-Axis Specifies the width of the arc.

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Length Y-Axis Specifies the height of the arc.
Type Specifies whether you want the object to be an open path or a closed path.
Base Along Specifies the direction of the arc. Choose X Axis or Y Axis depending on whether you want to draw

the base of the arc along the horizontal (x) axis or vertical (y) axis.
Slope Specifies the direction of the arc’s slope. Enter a negative value for a concave (inward) slope. Enter a
positive value for a convex (outward) slope. A slope of 0 creates a straight line.
Fill Arc Fills the arc with the current fill color.

Note: To see a dynamic preview of the arc as you set options, double-click the arc tool in the Tools panel.
For a video on using shape tools, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0036.

See also
“Drawing tool gallery” on page 23
“Keys for drawing” on page 466

Draw spirals
1 Select the Spiral tool

2 Do one of the following:

• Drag until the spiral is the desired size. Drag the pointer in an arc to rotate the spiral.
• Click where you want the spiral to begin. In the dialog box, set any of the following options, and click OK.
Radius Specifies the distance from the center to the outermost point in the spiral.
Decay Specifies the amount by which each wind of the spiral should decrease relative to the previous wind.
Segments Specifies how many segments the spiral has. Each full wind of the spiral consists of four segments.
Style Specifies the direction of the spiral.

For a video on using shape tools, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0036.

See also
“Drawing tool gallery” on page 23
“Keys for drawing” on page 466

Draw grids
Use the grid tools to quickly draw rectangular and polar grids. The Rectangular Grid tool creates rectangular grids of
a specified size with a specified number of dividers. The Polar Grid tool creates concentric circles of a specified size
and a specified number of dividers.

See also
“Drawing tool gallery” on page 23
“Keys for drawing” on page 466

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Draw rectangular grids
1 Select the Rectangular Grid tool

2 Do one of the following:

• Drag until the grid is the desired size.
• Click to set the grid’s reference point. In the dialog box, click a square on the reference point locator

determine the point from which the grid is drawn. Then set any of the following options, and click OK.
Default Size Specifies the width and height of the entire grid.
Horizontal Dividers Specifies the number of horizontal dividers you want to appear between the top and bottom

of the grid. The Skew value determines how the horizontal dividers are weighted toward the top or bottom of
the grid.
Vertical Dividers Specifies the number of dividers you want to appear between the left and right sides of the grid.

The Skew value determines how the vertical dividers are weighted to the left or right side.
Use Outside Rectangle As Frame Replaces the top, bottom, left, and right segments with a separate rectangular

object.
Fill Grid Fills the grid with the current fill color (otherwise, the fill is set to none).

Draw circular (polar) grids
1 Select the Polar Grid tool

2 Do one of the following:

• Drag until the grid is the desired size.
• Click to set the grid’s reference point. In the dialog box, click a square on the reference point locator

determine the point from which the grid is drawn. Then set any of the following options, and click OK.
Default Size Specifies the width and height of the entire grid.
Concentric Dividers Specifies the number of circular concentric dividers you want to appear in the grid. The

Skew value determines how the concentric dividers are weighted toward the inside or outside of the grid.
Radial Dividers Specifies the number of radial dividers you want to appear between the center and the
circumference of the grid. The Skew value determines how the radial dividers are weighted counterclockwise or
clockwise on the grid.
Create Compound Path From Ellipses Converts the concentric circles into separate compound paths and fill

every other circle.
Fill Grid Fills the grid with the current fill color (otherwise, the fill is set to none).

Drawing with the Pencil tool
Draw with the Pencil tool
The Pencil tool works primarily the same way in Adobe Illustrator and InDesign. It lets you draw open and closed
paths as if you were drawing with a pencil on paper. It is most useful for fast sketching or creating a hand-drawn look.
Once you draw a path, you can immediately change it if needed.

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Anchor points are set down as you draw with the Pencil tool; you do not determine where they are positioned.
However, you can adjust them once the path is complete. The number of anchor points set down is determined by the
length and complexity of the path and by tolerance settings in the Pencil Tool Preferences dialog box. These settings
control how sensitive the Pencil tool is to the movement of your mouse or graphics-tablet stylus.
For a video on drawing with the Pencil tool in Illustrator, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0039.

See also
Pencil tool in Illustrator video

Draw freeform paths with the Pencil tool
1 Select the Pencil tool

2 Position the tool where you want the path to begin, and drag to draw a path. The Pencil tool

displays a small x

to indicate drawing a freeform path.
As you drag, a dotted line follows the pointer. Anchor points appear at both ends of the path and at various points
along it. The path takes on the current stroke and fill attributes, and remains selected by default.

Draw closed paths with the Pencil tool
1 Select the Pencil tool.
2 Position the tool where you want the path to begin, and start dragging to draw a path.
3 After you’ve begun dragging, hold down Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac OS). The Pencil tool displays a small circle

(and, in InDesign, a solid eraser) to indicate that you’re creating a closed path.
4 When the path is the size and shape you want, release the mouse button (but not the Alt or Option key). After the

path closes, release the Alt or Option key.
You don’t have to position the cursor over the starting point of the path in order to create a closed path; if you release
the mouse button in some other location, the Pencil tool will close the shape by creating the shortest possible line back
to the original point.

Edit paths with the Pencil tool
You can edit any path using the Pencil tool and add freeform lines and shapes to any shape.

Add to a path with the Pencil tool
1 Select an existing path.
2 Select the Pencil tool.
3 Position the pencil tip on an endpoint of the path.

You can tell you’re close enough to the endpoint when the small x next to the pencil tip disappears.
4 Drag to continue the path.

Connect two paths with the Pencil tool
1 Select both paths (Shift-click or drag around the two with the Selection tool).
2 Select the Pencil tool.
3 Position the pointer where you want to begin from one path, and start dragging toward the other path.

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4 After you begin dragging, hold down Ctrl (Windows) or Command (Mac OS). The Pencil tool displays a small

merge symbol to indicate you’re adding to the existing path.
5 Drag onto the endpoint of the other path, release the mouse button, and then release the Ctrl or Command key.

Note: For best results, drag from one path to the other as if you were simply continuing the paths in the direction they
were created.

Reshape paths with the Pencil tool
1 Select the path you want to change.
2 Position the Pencil tool on or near the path to redraw.

You can tell you’re close enough to the path when the small x disappears from the tool.
3 Drag the tool until the path is the desired shape.

Using the Pencil tool to edit a closed shape

Note: Depending on where you begin to redraw the path and in which direction you drag, you may get unexpected results.
For example, you may unintentionally change a closed path to an open path, change an open path to a closed path, or
lose a portion of a shape.

Pencil tool options
Double-click the Pencil tool to set any of the following options:
Fidelity Controls how far you have to move your mouse or stylus before a new anchor point is added to the path. The

higher the value, the smoother and less complex the path. The lower the value, the more the curves will match the
pointer’s movement, resulting in sharper angles. Fidelity can range from 0.5 to 20 pixels.
Smoothness Controls the amount of smoothing applied when you use the tool. Smoothness can range from 0% to

100%. The higher the value, the smoother the path. The lower the value, the more anchor points are created, and the
more the line’s irregularities are preserved.
Fill New Pencil Strokes (Illustrator only) Applies a fill to pencil strokes you draw after selecting this option, but not to

existing pencil strokes. Remember to select a fill before you draw the pencil strokes.
Keep Selected Determines whether to keep the path selected after you draw it. This option is selected by default.
Edit Selected Paths Determines whether or not you can change or merge a selected path when you are within a certain
distance of it (specified with the next option).
Within: _ pixels Determines how close your mouse or stylus must be to an existing path in order to edit the path with

the Pencil tool. This option is only available when the Edit Selected Paths option is selected.

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Drawing with the Pen tool
Draw straight line segments with the Pen tool
The simplest path you can draw with the Pen tool is a straight line, made by clicking the Pen tool to create two anchor
points. By continuing to click, you create a path made of straight line segments connected by corner points.

Clicking Pen tool creates straight segments.

1 Select the Pen tool.
2 Position the Pen tool where you want the straight segment to begin, and click to define the first anchor point (do

not drag).
Note: The first segment you draw will not be visible until you click a second anchor point. (Select the Rubber Band option
in Photoshop to preview path segments.) Also, if direction lines appear, you’ve accidentally dragged the Pen tool; choose
Edit > Undo, and click again.
3 Click again where you want the segment to end (Shift-click to constrain the angle of the segment to a multiple of

45°).
4 Continue clicking to set anchor points for additional straight segments.

The last anchor point you add always appears as a solid square, indicating that it is selected. Previously defined anchor
points become hollow, and deselected, as you add more anchor points.
5 Complete the path by doing one of the following:

• To close the path, position the Pen tool over the first (hollow) anchor point. A small circle appears next to the Pen
tool pointer

when it is positioned correctly. Click or drag to close the path.

Note: To close a path in InDesign, you can also select the object and choose Object > Paths > Close Path.

• To leave the path open, Ctrl-click (Windows) or Command-click (Mac OS) anywhere away from all objects.
To leave the path open, you can also select a different tool, or choose Select > Deselect in Illustrator or Edit > Deselect
All in InDesign.

Draw curves with the Pen tool
You create a curve by adding an anchor point where a curve changes direction, and dragging the direction lines that
shape the curve. The length and slope of the direction lines determine the shape of the curve.
Curves are easier to edit and your system can display and print them faster if you draw them using as few anchor points
as possible. Using too many points can also introduce unwanted bumps in a curve. Instead, draw widely spaced anchor
points, and practice shaping curves by adjusting the length and angles of the direction lines.
1 Select the Pen tool.
2 Position the Pen tool where you want the curve to begin, and hold down the mouse button.

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The first anchor point appears, and the Pen tool pointer changes to an arrowhead. (In Photoshop, the pointer changes
only after you’ve started dragging.)
3 Drag to set the slope of the curve segment you’re creating, and then release the mouse button.

In general, extend the direction line about one third of the distance to the next anchor point you plan to draw. (You
can adjust one or both sides of the direction line later.)
Hold down the Shift key to constrain the tool to multiples of 45°.

Drawing the first point in a curve
A. Positioning Pen tool B. Starting to drag (mouse button pressed) C. Dragging to extend direction lines

4 Position the Pen tool where you want the curve segment to end, and do one of the following:

• To create a C-shaped curve, drag in a direction opposite to the previous direction line. Then release the mouse
button.

Drawing the second point in a curve
A. Starting to drag second smooth point B. Dragging away from previous direction line, creating a C curve C. Result after releasing mouse
button

• To create an S-shaped curve, drag in the same direction as the previous direction line. Then release the mouse
button.

Drawing an S curve
A. Starting to drag new smooth point B. Dragging in same direction as previous direction line, creating an S curve C. Result after releasing
mouse button

(Photoshop only) To change the direction of the curve sharply, release the mouse button, and then Alt-drag
(Windows) or Option-drag (Mac OS) the direction point in the direction of the curve. Release the Alt (Windows) or
Option (Mac OS) key and the mouse button, reposition the pointer where you want the segment to end, and drag in the
opposite direction to complete the curve segment.

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5 Continue dragging the Pen tool from different locations to create a series of smooth curves. Note that you are

placing anchor points at the beginning and end of each curve, not at the tip of the curve.
Alt-drag (Windows) or Option-drag (Mac OS) direction lines to break out the direction lines of an anchor point.
6 Complete the path by doing one of the following:

• To close the path, position the Pen tool over the first (hollow) anchor point. A small circle appears next to the Pen
tool pointer

when it is positioned correctly. Click or drag to close the path.

Note: To close a path in InDesign, you can also select the object and choose Object > Paths > Close Path.

See also
“HSB” on page 96

Mix overlapping colors
You can use blending modes, the Hard Mix effect, or the Soft Mix effect to mix overlapping colors.
Blending modes Provide many options for controlling overlapping colors, and should always be used in place of Hard

Mix and Soft Mix for artwork containing spot colors, patterns, gradients, text, or other complex artwork.
Hard Mix effect Combines colors by choosing the highest value of each of the color components. For example, if Color

1 is 20% cyan, 66% magenta, 40% yellow, and 0% black; and Color 2 is 40% cyan, 20% magenta, 30% yellow, and 10%
black, the resulting hard color is 40% cyan, 66% magenta, 40% yellow, and 10% black.
Soft Mix effect Makes the underlying colors visible through the overlapping artwork, and then divides the image into
its component faces. You specify the percentage of visibility you want in the overlapping colors.

You can apply blending modes to individual objects, whereas you must apply the Hard Mix and Soft Mix effects to
entire groups or layers. Blending modes affect both the fill and stroke of an object, whereas the Hard and Soft Mix
effects result in removal of an object’s stroke.
Note: In most cases, applying the Hard Mix or Soft Mix effect to objects painted using a mix of process and spot colors
converts the color to CMYK. In the case of mixing a non-global process RGB color with a spot RGB color, all spot colors
are converted to a non-global process RGB color.

See also
“Apply Pathfinder effects” on page 234
“About blending modes” on page 182
“Targeting items for appearance attributes” on page 350

Mix colors using the Hard Mix effect
1 Target the group or layer.
2 Choose Effect > Pathfinder > Hard Mix.

Mix colors using the Soft Mix effect
1 Target the group or layer.
2 Choose Effect > Pathfinder > Soft Mix.
3 Enter a value between 1% and 100% in the Mixing Rate text box to determine the percentage of visibility you want

in the overlapping colors, and click OK.

130

Chapter 5: Color management
A color management system reconciles color differences among devices so that you can be reasonably certain of the
colors your system ultimately produces. Viewing color accurately allows you to make sound color decisions
throughout your workflow, from digital capture through final output. Color management also allows you to create
output based on ISO, SWOP, and Japan Color print production standards.

Understanding color management
Why colors sometimes don’t match
No device in a publishing system is capable of reproducing the full range of colors viewable to the human eye. Each
device operates within a specific color space that can produce a certain range, or gamut, of colors.
A color model determines the relationship between values, and the color space defines the absolute meaning of those
values as colors. Some color models (such as CIE L*a*b) have a fixed color space because they relate directly to the way
humans perceive color. These models are described as being device-independent. Other color models (RGB, HSL, HSB,
CMYK, and so forth) can have many different color spaces. Because these models vary with each associated color space
or device, they are described as being device-dependent.
Because of these varying color spaces, colors can shift in appearance as you transfer documents between different
devices. Color variations can result from differences in image sources; the way software applications define color; print
media (newsprint paper reproduces a smaller gamut than magazine-quality paper); and other natural variations, such
as manufacturing differences in monitors or monitor age.
RGB
CMYK
A

Color gamuts of various devices and documents
A. Lab color space B. Documents (working space) C. Devices

What is a color management system?
Color-matching problems result from various devices and software using different color spaces. One solution is to
have a system that interprets and translates color accurately between devices. A color management system (CMS)
compares the color space in which a color was created to the color space in which the same color will be output, and
makes the necessary adjustments to represent the color as consistently as possible among different devices.

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A color management system translates colors with the help of color profiles. A profile is a mathematical description of
a device’s color space. For example, a scanner profile tells a color management system how your scanner “sees” colors.
Adobe color management uses ICC profiles, a format defined by the International Color Consortium (ICC) as a crossplatform standard.
Because no single color-translation method is ideal for all types of graphics, a color management system provides a
choice of rendering intents, or translation methods, so that you can apply a method appropriate to a particular graphics
element. For example, a color translation method that preserves correct relationships among colors in a wildlife
photograph may alter the colors in a logo containing flat tints of color.
Note: Don’t confuse color management with color correction. A color management system won’t correct an image that
was saved with tonal or color balance problems. It provides an environment where you can evaluate images reliably in
the context of your final output.

See also
“About color profiles” on page 143
“About rendering intents” on page 152

Do you need color management?
Without a color management system, your color specifications are device-dependent. You might not need color
management if your production process is tightly controlled for one medium only. For example, you or your print
service provider can tailor CMYK images and specify color values for a known, specific set of printing conditions.
The value of color management increases when you have more variables in your production process. Color
management is recommended if you anticipate reusing color graphics for print and online media, using various kinds
of devices within a single medium (such as different printing presses), or if you manage multiple workstations.
You will benefit from a color management system if you need to accomplish any of the following:

• Get predictable and consistent color output on multiple output devices including color separations, your desktop
printer, and your monitor. Color management is especially useful for adjusting color for devices with a relatively
limited gamut, such as a four-color process printing press.

• Accurately soft-proof (preview) a color document on your monitor by making it simulate a specific output device.
(Soft-proofing is subject to the limitations of monitor display, and other factors such as room lighting conditions.)

• Accurately evaluate and consistently incorporate color graphics from many different sources if they also use color
management, and even in some cases if they don’t.

• Send color documents to different output devices and media without having to manually adjust colors in
documents or original graphics. This is valuable when creating images that will eventually be used both in print and
online.

• Print color correctly to an unknown color output device; for example, you could store a document online for
consistently reproducible on-demand color printing anywhere in the world.

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Creating a viewing environment for color management
Your work environment influences how you see color on your monitor and on printed output. For best results, control
the colors and light in your work environment by doing the following:

• View your documents in an environment that provides a consistent light level and color temperature. For example,
the color characteristics of sunlight change throughout the day and alter the way colors appear on your screen, so
keep shades closed or work in a windowless room. To eliminate the blue-green cast from fluorescent lighting, you
can install D50 (5000° Kelvin) lighting. You can also view printed documents using a D50 lightbox.

• View your document in a room with neutral-colored walls and ceiling. A room’s color can affect the perception of
both monitor color and printed color. The best color for a viewing room is neutral gray. Also, the color of your
clothing reflecting off the glass of your monitor may affect the appearance of colors on-screen.

• Remove colorful background patterns on your monitor desktop. Busy or bright patterns surrounding a document
interfere with accurate color perception. Set your desktop to display neutral grays only.

• View document proofs in the real-world conditions under which your audience will see the final piece. For
example, you might want to see how a housewares catalog looks under the incandescent light bulbs used in homes,
or view an office furniture catalog under the fluorescent lighting used in offices. However, always make final color
judgements under the lighting conditions specified by the legal requirements for contract proofs in your country.

Keeping colors consistent
About color management in Adobe applications
Adobe color management helps you maintain the appearance of colors as you bring images in from external sources,
edit documents and transfer them between Adobe applications, and output your finished compositions. This system
is based on conventions developed by the International Color Consortium, a group responsible for standardizing
profile formats and procedures so that consistent and accurate color can be achieved throughout a workflow.
By default, color management is turned on in color-managed Adobe applications. If you purchased the Adobe Creative
Suite, color settings are synchronized across applications to provide consistent display for RGB and CMYK colors.
This means that colors look the same no matter which application you view them in.

Color settings for Adobe Creative Suite are synchronized in a central location through Adobe Bridge.

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If you decide to change the default settings, easy-to-use presets let you configure Adobe color management to match
common output conditions. You can also customize color settings to meet the demands of your particular color
workflow.
Keep in mind that the kinds of images you work with and your output requirements influence how you use color
management. For example, there are different color-consistency issues for an RGB photo printing workflow, a CMYK
commercial printing workflow, a mixed RGB/CMYK digital printing workflow, and an Internet publishing workflow.

Basic steps for producing consistent color
1. Consult with your production partners (if you have any) to ensure that all aspects of your color management
workflow integrate seamlessly with theirs.

Discuss how the color workflow will be integrated with your workgroups and service providers, how software and
hardware will be configured for integration into the color management system, and at what level color management
will be implemented. (See “Do you need color management?” on page 131.)
2. Calibrate and profile your monitor.

A monitor profile is the first profile you should create. Seeing accurate color is essential if you are making creative
decisions involving the color you specify in your document. (See “Calibrate and profile your monitor” on page 145.)
3. Add color profiles to your system for any input and output devices you plan to use, such as scanners and
printers.

The color management system uses profiles to know how a device produces color and what the actual colors in a
document are. Device profiles are often installed when a device is added to your system. You can also use third-party
software and hardware to create more accurate profiles for specific devices and conditions. If your document will be
commercially printed, contact your service provider to determine the profile for the printing device or press condition.
(See “About color profiles” on page 143 and “Install a color profile” on page 145.)
4. Set up color management in Adobe applications.

The default color settings are sufficient for most users. However, you can change the color settings by doing one of the
following:

• If you use multiple Adobe applications, use Adobe® Bridge to choose a standard color management configuration
and synchronize color settings across applications before working with documents. (See “Synchronize color
settings across Adobe applications” on page 134.)

• If you use only one Adobe application, or if you want to customize advanced color management options, you can
change color settings for a specific application. (See “Set up color management” on page 134.)
5. (Optional) Preview colors using a soft proof.

After you create a document, you can use a soft proof to preview how colors will look when printed or viewed on a
specific device. (See “About soft-proofing colors” on page 138.)
Note: A soft proof alone doesn’t let you preview how overprinting will look when printed on an offset press. If you work
with documents that contain overprinting, turn on Overprint Preview to accurately preview overprints in a soft proof. For
Acrobat, the Overprint Preview option is automatically applied.

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6. Use color management when printing and saving files.

Keeping the appearance of colors consistent across all of the devices in your workflow is the goal of color management.
Leave color management options enabled when printing documents, saving files, and preparing files for online
viewing. (See “Printing with color management” on page 141 and “Color-managing documents for online viewing” on
page 137.)

Synchronize color settings across Adobe applications
If you use Adobe Creative Suite, you can use Adobe Bridge to automatically synchronize color settings across
applications. This synchronization ensures that colors look the same in all color-managed Adobe applications.
If color settings are not synchronized, a warning message appears at the top of the Color Settings dialog box in each
application. Adobe recommends that you synchronize color settings before you work with new or existing documents.
1 Open Bridge.

To open Bridge from a Creative Suite application, choose File > Browse. To open Bridge directly, either choose Adobe
Bridge from the Start menu (Windows) or double-click the Adobe Bridge icon (Mac OS).
2 Choose Edit > Creative Suite Color Settings.
3 Select a color setting from the list, and click Apply.

If none of the default settings meet your requirements, select Show Expanded List Of Color Setting Files to view
additional settings. To install a custom settings file, such as a file you received from a print service provider, click Show
Saved Color Settings Files.

Set up color management
1 Do one of the following:

• (Illustrator, InDesign, Photoshop) Choose Edit > Color Settings.
• (Acrobat) Select the Color Management category of the Preferences dialog box.
2 Select a color setting from the Settings menu, and click OK.

The setting you select determines which color working spaces are used by the application, what happens when you
open and import files with embedded profiles, and how the color management system converts colors. To view a
description of a setting, select the setting and then position the pointer over the setting name. The description appears
at the bottom of the dialog box.
Note: Acrobat color settings are a subset of those used in InDesign, Illustrator, and Photoshop.
In certain situations, such as if your service provider supplies you with a custom output profile, you may need to customize
specific options in the Color Settings dialog box. However, customizing is recommended for advanced users only.
Note: If you work with more than one Adobe application, it is highly recommended that you synchronize your color
settings across applications. (See “Synchronize color settings across Adobe applications” on page 134.)

See also
“Customize color settings” on page 148

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Change the appearance of CMYK black (Illustrator, InDesign)
Pure CMYK black (K=100) appears jet black (or rich black) when viewed on-screen, printed to a non-PostScript
desktop printer, or exported to an RGB file format. If you prefer to see the difference between pure black and rich black
as it will appear when printed on a commercial press, you can change the Appearance Of Black preferences. These
preferences do not change the color values in a document.
1 Choose Edit > Preferences > Appearance Of Black (Windows) or [application name] > Preferences > Appearance

Of Black (Mac OS).
2 Choose an option for On Screen:
Display All Blacks Accurately Displays pure CMYK black as dark gray. This setting allows you to see the difference

between pure black and rich black.
Display All Blacks As Rich Black Displays pure CMYK black as jet black (RGB=000). This setting makes pure black and
rich black appear the same on-screen.

3 Choose an option for Printing/Exporting:
Output All Blacks Accurately When printing to a non-PostScript desktop printer or exporting to an RGB file format,
outputs pure CMYK black using the color numbers in the document. This setting allows you to see the difference
between pure black and rich black.
Output All Blacks As Rich Black When printing to a non-PostScript desktop printer or exporting to an RGB file format,

outputs pure CMYK black as jet black (RGB=000). This setting makes pure black and rich black appear the same.

Managing process and spot colors
When color management is on, any color you apply or create within a color-managed Adobe application automatically
uses a color profile that corresponds to the document. If you switch color modes, the color management system uses
the appropriate profiles to translate the color to the new color model you choose.
Keep in mind the following guidelines for working with process and spot colors:

• Choose a CMYK working space that matches your CMYK output conditions to ensure that you can accurately
define and view process colors.

• Select colors from a color library. Adobe applications come with several standard color libraries, which you can load
using the Swatches panel menu.

• (Illustrator, and InDesign) Turn on Overprint Preview to get an accurate and consistent preview of spot colors.
• (Acrobat, Illustrator, and InDesign) Use Lab values (the default) to display predefined spot colors (such as colors
from the TOYO, PANTONE, DIC, and HKS libraries) and convert these colors to process colors. Using Lab values
provides the greatest accuracy and guarantees the consistent display of colors across Creative Suite applications. If
you want the display and output of these colors to match earlier versions of Illustrator or InDesign, use CMYK
equivalent values instead. For instructions on switching between Lab values and CMYK values for spot colors,
search Illustrator or InDesign Help.
Note: Color-managing spot colors provides a close approximation of a spot color on your proofing device and monitor.
However, it is difficult to exactly reproduce a spot color on a monitor or proofing device because many spot color inks exist
outside the gamuts of many of those devices.

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Color-managing imported images
Color-managing imported images (Illustrator, InDesign)
How imported images are integrated into a document’s color space depends on whether or not the image has an
embedded profile:

• When you import an image that contains no profile, the Adobe application uses the current document profile to
define the colors in the image.

• When you import an image that contains an embedded profile, color policies in the Color Settings dialog box
determine how the Adobe application handles the profile.

See also
“Color management policy options” on page 150

Using a safe CMYK workflow
A safe CMYK workflow ensures that CMYK color numbers are preserved all the way to the final output device, as
opposed to being converted by your color management system. This workflow is beneficial if you want to
incrementally adopt color management practices. For example, you can use CMYK profiles to soft-proof and hardproof documents without the possibility of unintended color conversions occurring during final output.
Illustrator and InDesign support a safe CMYK workflow by default. As a result, when you open or import a CMYK
image with an embedded profile, the application ignores the profile and preserves the raw color numbers. If you want
your application to adjust color numbers based on an embedded profile, change the CMYK color policy to Preserve
Embedded Profiles in the Color Settings dialog box. You can easily restore the safe CMYK workflow by changing the
CMYK color policy back to Preserve Numbers (Ignore Linked Profiles).
You can override safe CMYK settings when you print a document or save it to Adobe PDF. However, doing so may
cause colors to be reseparated. For example, pure CMYK black objects may be reseparated as rich black. For more
information on color management options for printing and saving PDFs, search in Help.

See also
“Color management policy options” on page 150

Preparing imported graphics for color management
Use the following general guidelines to prepare graphics for being color-managed in Adobe applications:

• Embed an ICC-compliant profile when you save the file. The file formats that support embedded profiles are JPEG,
PDF, PSD (Photoshop), AI (Illustrator), INDD (InDesign), Photoshop EPS, Large Document Format, and TIFF.

• If you plan to reuse a color graphic for multiple final output devices or media, such as for print, video, and the web,
prepare the graphic using RGB or Lab colors whenever possible. If you must save in a color model other than RGB
or Lab, keep a copy of the original graphic. RGB and Lab color models represent larger color gamuts than most
output devices can reproduce, retaining as much color information as possible before being translated to a smaller
output color gamut.

See also
“Embed a color profile” on page 146

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View or change profiles for imported bitmap images (InDesign)
InDesign allows you to view, override, or disable profiles for imported bitmap images. This may be necessary when
you are importing an image containing no profile or an incorrectly embedded profile. For example, if the scanner
manufacturer’s default profile was embedded but you have since generated a custom profile, you can assign the newer
profile.
1 Do one of the following:

• If the graphic is already in layout, select it and choose Object > Image Color Settings.
• If you’re about to import the graphic, choose File > Place, select Show Import Options, select and open the file, and
then select the Color tab.
2 For Profile, choose the source profile to apply to the graphic in your document. If a profile is currently embedded,

the profile name appears at the top of the Profile menu.
3 (Optional) Choose a rendering intent, and then click OK. In most cases, it’s best to use the default rendering intent.

Note: You can also view or change profiles for objects in Acrobat.

See also
“Convert document colors to another profile (Photoshop)” on page 147

Color-managing documents for online viewing
Color-managing documents for online viewing
Color management for online viewing is very different from color management for printed media. With printed
media, you have far more control over the appearance of the final document. With online media, your document will
appear on a wide range of possibly uncalibrated monitors and video display systems, significantly limiting your control
over color consistency.
When you color-manage documents that will be viewed exclusively on the web, Adobe recommends that you use the
sRGB color space. sRGB is the default working space for most Adobe color settings, but you can verify that sRGB is
selected in the Color Settings dialog box (Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign) or the Color Management preferences
(Acrobat). With the working space set to sRGB, any RGB graphics you create will use sRGB as the color space.
When working with images that have an embedded color profile other than sRGB, you should convert the image’s
colors to sRGB before you save the image for use on the web. If you want the application to automatically convert the
colors to sRGB when you open the image, select Convert To Working Space as the RGB color management policy.
(Make sure that your RGB working space is set to sRGB.) In Photoshop and InDesign, you can also manually convert
the colors to sRGB using the Edit > Convert To Profile command.
Note: In InDesign, the Convert To Profile command only converts colors for native, not placed, objects in the document.

See also
“About color working spaces” on page 148
“Color management policy options” on page 150

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Color-managing PDFs for online viewing
When you export PDFs, you can choose to embed profiles. PDFs with embedded profiles reproduce color consistently
in Acrobat 4.0 or later running under a properly configured color management system.
Keep in mind that embedding color profiles increases the size of PDFs. RGB profiles are usually small (around 3 KB);
however, CMYK profiles can range from 0.5 to 2 MB.

See also
“Printing with color management” on page 141

Color-managing HTML documents for online viewing
Many web browsers do not support color management. Of the browsers that do support color management, not all
instances can be considered color-managed because they may be running on systems where the monitors are not
calibrated. In addition, few web pages contain images with embedded profiles. If you manage a highly controlled
environment, such as the intranet of a design studio, you may be able to achieve some degree of HTML color
management for images by equipping everyone with a browser that supports color management and calibrating all
monitors.
You can approximate how colors will look on uncalibrated monitors by using the sRGB color space. However, because
color reproduction varies among uncalibrated monitors, you still won’t be able to anticipate the true range of potential
display variations.

Proofing colors
About soft-proofing colors
In a traditional publishing workflow, you print a hard proof of your document to preview how its colors will look when
reproduced on a specific output device. In a color-managed workflow, you can use the precision of color profiles to
soft-proof your document directly on the monitor. You can display an on-screen preview of how your document’s
colors will look when reproduced on a particular output device.
Keep in mind that the reliability of the soft proof depends upon the quality of your monitor, the profiles of your
monitor and output devices, and the ambient lighting conditions of your work environment.
Note: A soft proof alone doesn’t let you preview how overprinting will look when printed on an offset press. If you work
with documents that contain overprinting, turn on Overprint Preview to accurately preview overprints in a soft proof. For
Acrobat, the Overprint Preview option is automatically applied.

Using a soft proof to preview the final output of a document on your monitor
A. Document is created in its working color space. B. Document’s color values are translated to color space of chosen proof profile (usually the
output device’s profile). C. Monitor displays proof profile’s interpretation of document’s color values.

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Soft-proof colors
1 Choose View > Proof Setup, and do one of the following:

• Choose a preset that corresponds to the output condition you want to simulate.
• Choose Custom (Photoshop and InDesign) or Customize (Illustrator) to create a custom proof setup for a specific
output condition. This option is recommended for the most accurate preview of your final printed piece.
2 Choose View > Proof Colors to toggle the soft-proof display on and off. When soft proofing is on, a check mark

appears next to the Proof Colors command, and the name of the proof preset or profile appears at the top of the
document window.
To compare the colors in the original image and the colors in the soft proof, open the document in a new window before
you set up the soft proof.

Soft-proof presets
Working CMYK Creates a soft proof of colors using the current CMYK working space as defined in the Color Settings

dialog box.
Document CMYK (InDesign) Creates a soft proof of colors using the document’s CMYK profile.
Working Cyan Plate, Working Magenta Plate, Working Yellow Plate, Working Black Plate, or Working CMY Plates
(Photoshop) Creates a soft proof of specific CMYK ink colors using the current CMYK working space.
Macintosh RGB or Windows RGB (Photoshop and Illustrator) Creates a soft proof of colors in an image using either a

standard Mac OS or Windows monitor as the proof profile space to simulate. Both options assume that the simulated
device will display your document without using color management. Neither option is available for Lab or CMYK
documents.
Monitor RGB (Photoshop and Illustrator) Creates a soft proof of colors in an RGB document using your current

monitor color space as the proof profile space. This option assumes that the simulated device will display your
document without using color management. This option is unavailable for Lab and CMYK documents.
Color Blindness (Photoshop and Illustrator) Creates a soft proof that reflects colors visible to a person with color

blindness. The two soft proof options, Protanopia and Deuteranopia, approximate color perception for the most
common forms of color blindness. For more information, see “Soft-proof for color blindness (Photoshop and
Illustrator)” on page 140.

Custom soft-proof options
Device To Simulate Specifies the color profile of the device for which you want to create the proof. The usefulness of

the chosen profile depends on how accurately it describes the device’s behavior. Often, custom profiles for specific
paper and printer combinations create the most accurate soft proof.
Preserve CMYK Numbers or Preserve RGB Numbers Simulates how the colors will appear without being converted to

the color space of the output device. This option is most useful when you are following a safe CMYK workflow.
Rendering Intent (Photoshop and Illustrator) When the Preserve Numbers option is deselected, specifies a rendering
intent for converting colors to the device you are trying to simulate.
Use Black Point Compensation (Photoshop) Ensures that the shadow detail in the image is preserved by simulating the

full dynamic range of the output device. Select this option if you plan to use black point compensation when printing
(which is recommended in most situations).
Simulate Paper Color Simulates the dingy white of real paper, according to the proof profile. Not all profiles support

this option.

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Simulate Black Ink Simulates the dark gray you really get instead of a solid black on many printers, according to the

proof profile. Not all profiles support this option.
In Photoshop, if you want the custom proof setup to be the default proof setup for documents, close all document
windows before choosing the View > Proof Setup > Custom command.

Soft-proof for color blindness (Photoshop and Illustrator)
Color Universal Design (CUD) ensures that graphical information is conveyed accurately to people with various types
of color vision, including people with color blindness. Several countries have guidelines that require CUD-compliant
graphics in public spaces.
The most common types of color blindness are protanopia (reduced sensitivity to red) and deuteranopia (reduced
sensitivity to green). A third of color blind people are affected strongly; the remainder have milder forms of color
blindness.

A. Original image B. Color-blind proof C. Optimized design

To determine whether a document is CUD-compliant, do the following:
1 Convert the document to RGB color mode, which provides the most accurate soft-proofs for color blindness.
2 (Optional) To simultaneously view the original document and a soft-proof, choose Window > New Window

(Illustrator) or Window > Arrange > New Window (Photoshop).
3 Choose View > Proof Setup > Color Blindness, and then choose either Protanopia-type or Deuteranopia-type. (To

comply with CUD, check your document in both views.)
In Photoshop, you can print the proof. For more information, search for “Print a hard proof” in Photoshop Help.
If objects are difficult to distinguish in color blind proofs, adjust the design by doing any of the following:

• Change color brightness or hue:
• Pure red tends to appear dark and muddy; orange-red is easier to recognize.
• Bluish green is less confusing than yellowish green.
• Gray may be confused with magenta, pale pink, pale green, or emerald green.
• Avoid the following combinations: red and green; yellow and bright green; light blue and pink; dark blue and
violet.

• Avoid red items on dark-colored backgrounds, or white items on yellow or orange-red backgrounds.
• Apply different patterns or shapes.
• Add white, black, or dark-colored borders on color boundaries.
• Use different font families or styles.

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Save or load a custom proof setup
1 Choose View > Proof Setup > Custom.
2 Do either of the following:

• To save a custom proof setup, click Save. To ensure that the new preset appears in the View > Proof Setup menu,
save the preset in the default location.

• To load a custom proof setup, click Load.

Soft-proof colors (Acrobat)
1 Choose Advanced > Print Production > Output Preview.
2 Choose the color profile of a specific output device from the Simulation Profile menu.
3 Choose a soft-proof option:
Simulate Black Ink Simulates the dark gray you really get instead of a solid black on many printers, according to the

proof profile. Not all profiles support this option.
Simulate Paper Color Simulates the dingy white of real paper, according to the proof profile. Not all profiles support

this option.

Color-managing documents when printing
Printing with color management
Color management options for printing let you specify how you want Adobe applications to handle the outgoing
image data so the printer will print colors consistent with what you see on your monitor. Your options for printing
color-managed documents depend on the Adobe application you use, as well as the output device you select. In
general, you have the following choices for handling colors during printing:

• Let the printer determine colors.
• Let the application determine colors.
• (Photoshop and InDesign) Do not use color management. In this workflow, no color conversion occurs. You may
also need to turn off color management in your printer driver. This method is useful primarily for printing test
targets or generating custom profiles.

Letting the printer determine colors when printing
In this workflow, the application does no color conversion, but sends all necessary conversion information to the
output device. This method is especially convenient when printing to inkjet photo printers, because each combination
of paper type, printing resolution, and additional printing parameters (such as high-speed printing) requires a
different profile. Most new inkjet photo printers come with fairly accurate profiles built into the driver, so letting the
printer select the right profile saves time and alleviates mistakes. This method is also recommended if you are not
familiar with color management.
If you choose this method, it is very important that you set up printing options and turn on color management in your
printer driver. Search Help for additional instructions.

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If you select a PostScript printer, you can take advantage of PostScript color management. PostScript color
management makes it possible to perform color composite output or color separations at the raster image processor
(RIP)—a process called in-RIP separations—so that a program need only specify parameters for separation and let the
device calculate the final color values. PostScript color-managed output workflows require an output device that
supports PostScript color management using PostScript Level 2 version 2017 or later, or PostScript Lanuage Level 3.

Letting the application determine colors when printing
In this workflow, the application does all the color conversion, generating color data specific to one output device. The
application uses the assigned color profiles to convert colors to the output device’s gamut, and sends the resulting
values to the output device. The accuracy of this method depends on the accuracy of the printer profile you select. Use
this workflow when you have custom ICC profiles for each specific printer, ink, and paper combination.
If you choose this option, it is very important that you disable color management in your printer driver. Letting the
application and the printer driver simultaneously manage colors during printing results in unpredictable color. Search
Help for additional instructions.

Obtaining custom profiles for desktop printers
If the output profiles that come with your printer don’t produce satisfactory results, you obtain custom profiles in the
following ways:

• Purchase a profile for your type of printer and paper. This is usually the easiest and least expensive method.
• Purchase a profile for your specific printer and paper. This method involves printing a profiling target on your
printer and paper, and providing that target to a company that will create a specific profile. This is more expensive
than purchasing a standard profile, but can provide better results because it compensates for any manufacturing
variations in printers.

• Create your own profile using a scanner-based system. This method involves using profile-creation software and
your own flatbed scanner to scan the profiling target. It can provide excellent results for matte surface papers, but
not glossy papers. (Glossy papers tend to have fluorescent brighteners in them that look different to a scanner than
they do in room light.)

• Create your own profile using a hardware profile-creation tool. This method is expensive but can provide the best
results. A good hardware tool can create an accurate profile even with glossy papers.

• Tweak a profile created using one of the previous methods with profile-editing software. This software can be
complex to use, but it lets you correct problems with a profile or simply adjust a profile to produce results more to
your taste.

See also
“Install a color profile” on page 145

Color-managing PDFs for printing
When you create Adobe PDFs for commercial printing, you can specify how color information is represented. The
easiest way to do this is using a PDF/X standard; however, you can also specify color-handling options manually in the
Output section of the PDF dialog box. For more information about PDF/X and how to create PDFs, search Help.

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In general, you have the following choices for handling colors when creating PDFs:

• (PDF/X-3) Does not convert colors. Use this method when creating a document that will be printed or displayed
on various or unknown devices. When you select a PDF/X-3 standard, color profiles are automatically embedded
in the PDF.

• (PDF/X-1a) Converts all colors to the destination CMYK color space. Use this method if you want to create a pressready file that does not require any further color conversions. When you select a PDF/X-1a standard, no profiles
are embedded in the PDF.

• (Illustrator and InDesign) Converts colors that have embedded profiles to the destination color space, but preserves
the numbers for those colors without embedded profiles. You can manually select this option in the Output section
of the PDF dialog box. Use this method if the document contains CMYK images that aren’t color-managed and you
want to make sure that the color numbers are preserved.
Note: All spot color information is preserved during color conversion; only the process color equivalents convert to the
designated color space.

See also
“Using a safe CMYK workflow” on page 136

Working with color profiles
About color profiles
Precise, consistent color management requires accurate ICC-compliant profiles of all of your color devices. For
example, without an accurate scanner profile, a perfectly scanned image may appear incorrect in another program,
simply due to any difference between the scanner and the program displaying the image. This misleading
representation may cause you to make unnecessary, time-wasting, and potentially damaging “corrections” to an
already satisfactory image. With an accurate profile, a program importing the image can correct for any device
differences and display a scan’s actual colors.
A color management system uses the following kinds of profiles:
Monitor profiles Describe how the monitor is currently reproducing color. This is the first profile you should create
because viewing color accurately on your monitor allows for critical color decisions in the design process. If what you
see on your monitor is not representative of the actual colors in your document, you will not be able to maintain color
consistency.
Input device profiles Describe what colors an input device is capable of capturing or scanning. If your digital camera

offers a choice of profiles, Adobe recommends that you select Adobe RGB. Otherwise, use sRGB (which is the default
for most cameras). Advanced users may also consider using different profiles for different light sources. For scanner
profiles, some photographers create separate profiles for each type or brand of film scanned on a scanner.
Output device profiles Describe the color space of output devices like desktop printers or a printing press. The color

management system uses output device profiles to properly map the colors in a document to the colors within the
gamut of an output device’s color space. The output profile should also take into consideration specific printing
conditions, such as the type of paper and ink. For example, glossy paper is capable of displaying a different range of
colors than matte paper.
Most printer drivers come with built-in color profiles. It’s a good idea to try these profiles before you invest in custom
profiles.

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Document profiles Define the specific RGB or CMYK color space of a document. By assigning, or tagging, a document

with a profile, the application provides a definition of actual color appearances in the document. For example, R=127,
G=12, B=107 is just a set of numbers that different devices will display differently. But when tagged with the Adobe
RGB color space, these numbers specify an actual color or wavelength of light–in this case, a specific color of purple.
When color management is on, Adobe applications automatically assign new documents a profile based on Working
Space options in the Color Settings dialog box. Documents without assigned profiles are known as untagged and
contain only raw color numbers. When working with untagged documents, Adobe applications use the current
working space profile to display and edit colors.

B
C
D

Managing color with profiles
A. Profiles describe the color spaces of the input device and the document. B. Using the profiles’ descriptions, the color management system
identifies the document’s actual colors. C. The monitor’s profile tells the color management system how to translate the document’s numeric
values to the monitor’s color space. D. Using the output device’s profile, the color management system translates the document’s numeric values
to the color values of the output device so the correct appearance of colors is printed.

See also
“Calibrate and profile your monitor” on page 145
“Letting the printer determine colors when printing” on page 141
“Obtaining custom profiles for desktop printers” on page 142
“About color working spaces” on page 148

About monitor calibration and characterization
Profiling software can both calibrate and characterize your monitor. Calibrating your monitor brings it into
compliance with a predefined standard—for example, adjusting your monitor so that it displays color using the
graphics arts standard white point color temperature of 5000° K (Kelvin). Characterizing your monitor simply creates
a profile that describes how the monitor is currently reproducing color.
Monitor calibration involves adjusting the following video settings:
Brightness and contrast The overall level and range, respectively, of display intensity. These parameters work just as

they do on a television. A monitor calibration utility helps you set an optimum brightness and contrast range for
calibration.

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Gamma The brightness of the midtone values. The values produced by a monitor from black to white are nonlinear—
if you graph the values, they form a curve, not a straight line. Gamma defines the value of that curve halfway between
black and white.
Phosphors The substances that CRT monitors use to emit light. Different phosphors have different color

characteristics.
White point The color and intensity of the brightest white the monitor can reproduce.

Calibrate and profile your monitor
When you calibrate your monitor, you are adjusting it so it conforms to a known specification. Once your monitor is
calibrated, the profiling utility lets you save a color profile. The profile describes the color behavior of the monitor—
what colors can or cannot be displayed on the monitor and how the numeric color values in an image must be
converted so that colors are displayed accurately.
1 Make sure your monitor has been turned on for at least a half hour. This gives it sufficient time to warm up and

produce more consistent output.
2 Make sure your monitor is displaying thousands of colors or more. Ideally, make sure it is displaying millions of

colors or 24-bit or higher.
3 Remove colorful background patterns on your monitor desktop and set your desktop to display neutral grays. Busy

patterns or bright colors surrounding a document interfere with accurate color perception.
4 Do one of the following to calibrate and profile your monitor:

• In Windows, install and use a monitor calibration utility.
• In Mac OS, use the Calibrate utility, located on the System Preferences/Displays/Color tab.
• For the best results, use third-party software and measuring devices. In general, using a measuring device such as a
colorimeter along with software can create more accurate profiles because an instrument can measure the colors
displayed on a monitor far more accurately than the human eye.
Note: Monitor performance changes and declines over time; recalibrate and profile your monitor every month or so. If
you find it difficult or impossible to calibrate your monitor to a standard, it may be too old and faded.
Most profiling software automatically assigns the new profile as the default monitor profile. For instructions on how
to manually assign the monitor profile, refer to the Help system for your operating system.

Install a color profile
Color profiles are often installed when a device is added to your system. The accuracy of these profiles (often called
generic profiles or canned profiles) varies from manufacturer to manufacturer. You can also obtain device profiles from
your service provider, download profiles from the web, or create custom profiles using professional profiling
equipment.

• In Windows, right-click a profile and select Install Profile. Alternatively, copy the profiles into the
WINDOWS\system32\spool\drivers\color folder.

• In Mac OS, copy profiles into the /Library/ColorSync/Profiles folder or the
/Users/[username]/Library/ColorSync/Profiles folder.
After installing color profiles, be sure to restart Adobe applications.

See also
“Obtaining custom profiles for desktop printers” on page 142

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Embed a color profile
To embed a color profile in a document you created in Illustrator, InDesign, or Photoshop, you must save or export
the document in a format that supports ICC profiles.
1 Save or export the document in one of the following file formats: Adobe PDF, PSD (Photoshop), AI (Illustrator),

INDD (InDesign), JPEG, Photoshop EPS, Large Document Format, or TIFF.
2 Select the option for embedding ICC profiles. The exact name and location of this option varies between

applications. Search Adobe Help for additional instructions.

Embed a color profile (Acrobat)
You can embed a color profile in an object or an entire PDF. Acrobat attaches the appropriate profile, as specified in
the Convert Colors dialog box, to the selected color space in the PDF. For more information, see the color conversion
topics in Acrobat Help.

Changing the color profile for a document
There are very few situations that require you to change the color profile for a document. This is because your
application automatically assigns the color profile based on the settings you select in the Color Settings dialog box. The
only times you should manually change a color profile are when preparing a document for a different output
destination or correcting a policy behavior that you no longer want implemented in the document. Changing the
profile is recommended for advanced users only.
You can change the color profile for a document in the following ways:

• Assign a new profile. The color numbers in the document remain the same, but the new profile may dramatically
change the appearance of the colors as displayed on your monitor.

• Remove the profile so that the document is no longer color-managed.
• (Acrobat, Photoshop and InDesign) Convert the colors in the document to the color space of a different profile.
The color numbers are shifted in an effort to preserve the original color appearances.

Assign or remove a color profile (Illustrator, Photoshop)
1 Choose Edit > Assign Profile.
2 Select an option, and click OK:
Don’t Color Manage This Document Removes the existing profile from the document. Select this option only if you are

sure that you do not want to color-manage the document. After you remove the profile from a document, the
appearance of colors is defined by the application’s working space profiles.
Working [color model: working space] Assigns the working space profile to the document.
Profile Lets you select a different profile. The application assigns the new profile to the document without converting
colors to the profile space. This may dramatically change the appearance of the colors as displayed on your monitor.

See also
“Changing the color profile for a document” on page 146

Assign or remove a color profile (InDesign)
1 Choose Edit > Assign Profiles.

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2 For RGB Profile and CMYK Profile, select one of the following:
Discard (Use Current Working Space) Removes the existing profile from the document. Select this option only if you
are sure that you do not want to color-manage the document. After you remove the profile from a document, the
appearance of colors is defined by the application’s working space profiles, and you can no longer embed a profile in
the document.
Assign Current Working Space [working space] Assigns the working space profile to the document.
Assign Profile Lets you select a different profile. The application assigns the new profile to the document without
converting colors to the profile space. This may dramatically change the appearance of the colors as displayed on your
monitor.

3 Choose a rendering intent for each type of graphic in your document. For each graphic type, you can choose one

of the four standard intents, or the Use Color Settings Intent, which uses the rendering intent currently specified in
the Color Settings dialog box. For more information on rendering intents, search in Help.
The graphic types include the following:
Solid Color Intent Sets the rendering intent for all vector art (solid areas of color) in InDesign native objects.
Default Image Intent Sets the default rendering intent for bitmap images placed in InDesign. You can still override this
setting on an image-by-image basis.
After-Blending Intent Sets the rendering intent to the proofing or final color space for colors that result from

transparency interactions on the page. Use this option when your document includes transparent objects.
4 To preview the effects of the new profile assignment in the document, select Preview, and then click OK.

See also
“Changing the color profile for a document” on page 146
“View or change profiles for imported bitmap images (InDesign)” on page 137

Convert document colors to another profile (Photoshop)
1 Choose Edit > Convert To Profile.
2 Under Destination Space, choose the color profile to which you want to convert the document’s colors. The

document will be converted to and tagged with this new profile.
3 Under Conversion Options, specify a color management engine, a rendering intent, and black point and dither

options (if available). (See “Color conversion options” on page 151.)
4 To flatten all layers of the document onto a single layer upon conversion, select Flatten Image.
5 To preview the effects of the conversion in the document, select Preview.

See also
“Changing the color profile for a document” on page 146

Convert document colors to Multichannel, Device Link, or Abstract color
profiles (Photoshop)
1 Choose Edit > Convert To Profile.

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2 Click Advanced. The following additional ICC profile types are available under Destination Space:
Multichannel Profiles that support more than four color channels. These are useful when printing with more than four inks.
Device Link Profiles that transform from one device color space to another, without using an intermediate color space
in the process. These are useful when specific mappings of device values (like 100% black) are required.
Abstract Profiles that enable custom image effects. Abstract profiles can have LAB/XYZ values for both input and

output values, which enables generation of a custom LUT to achieve the desired special effect.
Note: Gray, RGB, LAB, and CMYK color profiles are grouped by category in Advanced view. They are combined on the
Profile menu in Basic view.
3 To preview the effects of the conversion in the document, select Preview.

See also
“Changing the color profile for a document” on page 146

Convert document colors to another profile
You convert colors in a PDF using the Convert Colors tool on the Print Production toolbar. For more information, see
the color conversion topics in Acrobat Help.

Color settings
Customize color settings
For most color-managed workflows, it is best to use a preset color setting that has been tested by Adobe Systems.
Changing specific options is recommended only if you are knowledgeable about color management and very confident
about the changes you make.
After you customize options, you can save them as a preset. Saving color settings ensures that you can reuse them and
share them with other users or applications.

• To save color settings as a preset, click Save in the Color Settings dialog box. To ensure that the application displays
the setting name in the Color Settings dialog box, save the file in the default location. If you save the file to a different
location, you must load the file before you can select the setting.

• To load a color settings preset that’s not saved in the standard location, click Load in the Color Settings dialog box,
select the file you want to load, and click Open.
Note: In Acrobat, you cannot save customized color settings. To share customized color settings with Acrobat, you must
create the file in InDesign, Illustrator, or Photoshop, and then save it in the default Settings folder. It will then be available
in the Color Management category of the Preferences dialog box. You can also add settings manually to the default
Settings folder.

About color working spaces
A working space is an intermediate color space used to define and edit color in Adobe applications. Each color model
has a working space profile associated with it. You can choose working space profiles in the Color Settings dialog box.

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A working space profile acts as the source profile for newly created documents that use the associated color model. For
example, if Adobe RGB (1998) is the current RGB working space profile, each new RGB document that you create will
use colors within the Adobe RGB (1998) gamut. Working spaces also determine the appearance of colors in untagged
documents.
If you open a document embedded with a color profile that doesn’t match the working space profile, the application
uses a color management policy to determine how to handle the color data. In most cases, the default policy is to
preserve the embedded profile.

See also
“About missing and mismatched color profiles” on page 150
“Color management policy options” on page 150

Working space options
To display working space options in Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign, choose Edit > Color Settings. In Acrobat,
select the Color Management category of the Preferences dialog box.
To view a description of any profile, select the profile and then position the pointer over the profile name. The
description appears at the bottom of the dialog box.
RGB Determines the RGB color space of the application. In general, it’s best to choose Adobe RGB or sRGB, rather

than the profile for a specific device (such as a monitor profile).
sRGB is recommended when you prepare images for the web, because it defines the color space of the standard
monitor used to view images on the web. sRGB is also a good choice when you work with images from consumer-level
digital cameras, because most of these cameras use sRGB as their default color space.
Adobe RGB is recommended when you prepare documents for print, because Adobe RGB’s gamut includes some
printable colors (cyans and blues in particular) that can’t be defined using sRGB. Adobe RGB is also a good choice
when working with images from professional-level digital cameras, because most of these cameras use Adobe RGB as
their default color space.
CMYK Determines the CMYK color space of the application. All CMYK working spaces are device-dependent,
meaning that they are based on actual ink and paper combinations. The CMYK working spaces Adobe supplies are
based on standard commercial print conditions.
Gray (Photoshop) or Grayscale (Acrobat) Determines the grayscale color space of the application.
Spot (Photoshop) Specifies the dot gain to use when displaying spot color channels and duotones.

Note: In Acrobat, you can use the color space in an embedded output intent instead of a document color space for viewing
and printing. For more information on output intents, see Acrobat Help.
Adobe applications ship with a standard set of working space profiles that have been recommended and tested by
Adobe Systems for most color management workflows. By default, only these profiles appear in the working space
menus. To display additional color profiles that you have installed on your system, select Advanced Mode (Illustrator
and InDesign) or More Options (Photoshop). A color profile must be bi-directional (that is, contain specifications for
translating both into and out of color spaces) in order to appear in the working space menus.
Note: In Photoshop, you can create custom working space profiles. However, Adobe recommends that you use a standard
working space profile rather than create a custom profile. For more information, see the Photoshop support
knowledgebase at www.adobe.com/support/products/photoshop.html.

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About missing and mismatched color profiles
For a newly created document, the color workflow usually operates seamlessly: Unless specified otherwise, the
document uses the working space profile associated with its color mode for creating and editing colors.
However, some existing documents may not use the working space profile that you have specified, and some existing
documents may not be color-managed. It is common to encounter the following exceptions to your color-managed
workflow:

• You might open a document or import color data (for example, by copying and pasting or dragging and dropping)
from a document that is not tagged with a profile. This is often the case when you open a document created in an
application that either does not support color management or has color management turned off.

• You might open a document or import color data from a document that is tagged with a profile different from the
current working space. This may be the case when you open a document that was created using different color
management settings, or scanned and tagged with a scanner profile.
In either case, the application uses a color management policy to decide how to handle the color data in the document.
If the profile is missing or does not match the working space, the application may display a warning message,
depending on options you set in the Color Settings dialog box. Profile warnings are turned off by default, but you can
turn them on to ensure the appropriate color management of documents on a case-by-case basis. The warning
messages vary between applications, but in general you have the following options:

• (Recommended) Leave the document or imported color data as it is. For example, you can choose to use the
embedded profile (if one exists), leave the document without a color profile (if one doesn’t exist), or preserve the
numbers in pasted color data.

• Adjust the document or imported color data. For example, when opening a document with a missing color profile,
you can choose to assign the current working space profile or a different profile. When opening a document with
a mismatched color profile, you can choose to discard the profile or convert the colors to the current working space.
When importing color data, you can choose to convert the colors to the current working space in order to preserve
their appearance.

Color management policy options
A color management policy determines how the application handles color data when you open a document or import
an image. You can choose different policies for RGB and CMYK images, and you can specify when you want warning
messages to appear. To display color management policy options, choose Edit > Color Settings.
To view a description of a policy, select the policy and then position the pointer over the policy name. The description
appears at the bottom of the dialog box.
RGB, CMYK, And Gray (Gray option is available for Photoshop only.) Specifies a policy to follow when bringing colors

into the current working space (either by opening files or importing images into the current document). Choose from
the following options:

• Preserve Embedded Profiles Always preserves embedded color profiles when opening files. This is the
recommended option for most workflows because it provides consistent color management. One exception is if you’re
concerned about preserving CMYK numbers, in which case you should select Preserve Numbers (Ignore Linked
Profiles) instead.
• Convert To Working Space Converts colors to the current working space profile when opening files and importing
images. Select this option if you want to force all colors to use a single profile (the current working space profile).
• Preserve Numbers (Ignore Linked Profiles) This option is available in InDesign and Illustrator for CMYK.
Preserves color numbers when opening files and importing images, but still allows you to use color management to

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view colors accurately in Adobe applications. Select this option if you want to use a safe CMYK workflow. In InDesign,
you can override this policy on a per-object basis by choosing Object > Image Color Settings.

• Off Ignores embedded color profiles when opening files and importing images, and does not assign the working
space profile to new documents. Select this option if you want to discard any color metadata provided by the original
document creator.
Profile Mismatches: Ask When Opening Displays a message whenever you open a document tagged with a profile
other than the current working space. You will be given the option to override the policy’s default behavior. Select this
option if you want to ensure the appropriate color management of documents on a case-by-case basis.
Profile Mismatches: Ask When Pasting Displays a message whenever color profile mismatches occur as colors are
imported into a document through pasting or dragging-and-dropping. You will be given the option to override the
policy’s default behavior. Select this option if you want to ensure the appropriate color management of pasted colors
on a case-by-case basis.
Missing Profiles: Ask When Opening Displays a message whenever you open an untagged document. You will be given
the option to override the policy’s default behavior. Select this option if you want to ensure the appropriate color
management of documents on a case-by-case basis.

Color conversion options
Color conversion options let you control how the application handles the colors in a document as it moves from one
color space to another. Changing these options is recommended only if you are knowledgeable about color
management and very confident about the changes you make. To display conversion options, choose Edit > Color
Settings, and select Advanced Mode (Illustrator and InDesign) or More Options (Photoshop). In Acrobat, select the
Color Management category of the Preferences dialog box.
Engine Specifies the Color Management Module (CMM) used to map the gamut of one color space to the gamut of

another. For most users, the default Adobe (ACE) engine fulfills all conversion needs.
To view a description of an engine or intent option, select the option and then position the pointer over the option
name. The description appears at the bottom of the dialog box.
Intent (Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign) Specifies the rendering intent used to translate one color space to another.

Differences between rendering intents are apparent only when you print a document or convert it to a different
working space.
Use Black Point Compensation Ensures that the shadow detail in the image is preserved by simulating the full dynamic

range of the output device. Select this option if you plan to use black point compensation when printing (which is
recommended in most situations).
Use Dither (Photoshop) Controls whether to dither colors when converting 8-bit-per-channel images between color
spaces. When the Use Dither option is selected, Photoshop mixes colors in the destination color space to simulate a
missing color that existed in the source space. Although dithering helps to reduce the blocky or banded appearance of
an image, it may also result in larger file sizes when images are compressed for web use.
Compensate For Scene-Rendered Profiles (Photoshop) Compares video contrast when converting from scene to

output profiles. This option reflects default color management in After Effects.

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About rendering intents
A rendering intent determines how a color management system handles color conversion from one color space to
another. Different rendering intents use different rules to determine how the source colors are adjusted; for example,
colors that fall inside the destination gamut may remain unchanged, or they may be adjusted to preserve the original
range of visual relationships when translated to a smaller destination gamut. The result of choosing a rendering intent
depends on the graphical content of documents and on the profiles used to specify color spaces. Some profiles produce
identical results for different rendering intents.
In general, it is best to use the default rendering intent for the selected color setting, which has been tested by Adobe
Systems to meet industry standards. For example, if you choose a color setting for North America or Europe, the
default rendering intent is Relative Colorimetric. If you choose a color setting for Japan, the default rendering intent is
Perceptual.
You can select a rendering intent when you set color conversion options for the color management system, soft-proof
colors, and print artwork:
Perceptual Aims to preserve the visual relationship between colors so it’s perceived as natural to the human eye, even

though the color values themselves may change. This intent is suitable for photographic images with lots of out-ofgamut colors. This is the standard rendering intent for the Japanese printing industry.
Saturation Tries to produce vivid colors in an image at the expense of color accuracy. This rendering intent is suitable

for business graphics like graphs or charts, where bright saturated colors are more important than the exact
relationship between colors.
Relative Colorimetric Compares the extreme highlight of the source color space to that of the destination color space

and shifts all colors accordingly. Out-of-gamut colors are shifted to the closest reproducible color in the destination
color space. Relative Colorimetric preserves more of the original colors in an image than Perceptual. This is the
standard rendering intent for printing in North America and Europe.
Absolute Colorimetric Leaves colors that fall inside the destination gamut unchanged. Out-of-gamut colors are
clipped. No scaling of colors to destination white point is performed. This intent aims to maintain color accuracy at
the expense of preserving relationships between colors and is suitable for proofing to simulate the output of a
particular device. This intent is particularly useful for previewing how paper color affects printed colors.

Advanced controls in Photoshop
In Photoshop you display advanced controls for managing color by choosing Edit > Color Settings and selecting More
Options.
Desaturate Monitor Colors By Determines whether to desaturate colors by the specified amount when displayed on
the monitor. When selected, this option can aid in visualizing the full range of color spaces with gamuts larger than
that of the monitor. However, this causes a mismatch between the monitor display and the output. When the option
is deselected, distinct colors in the image may display as a single color.
Blend RGB Colors Using Gamma Controls how RGB colors blend together to produce composite data (for example,

when you blend or paint layers using Normal mode). When the option is selected, RGB colors are blended in the color
space corresponding to the specified gamma. A gamma of 1.00 is considered “colorimetrically correct” and should
result in the fewest edge artifacts. When the option is deselected, RGB colors are blended directly in the document’s
color space.
Note: When you select Blend RGB Colors Using Gamma, layered documents will look different when displayed in other
applications than they do in Photoshop.

153

Chapter 6: Painting
To help you add visual interest to your artwork, Adobe Illustrator provides calligraphic, scatter, art, and pattern
brushes. In addition, you can use the Live Paint feature, to paint different path segments and fill enclosed paths with
different colors, patterns, or gradients. Using opacity, masks, gradients, blends, meshes, and patterns provides limitless
opportunities for creativity.

Painting with fills and strokes
Painting methods
Illustrator provides two methods of painting: assigning a fill, stroke, or both to an entire object, and converting the
object to a Live Paint group and assigning fills or strokes to the separate edges and faces of paths within it.
Paint an object
After you draw an object, you assign a fill, stroke, or both to it. You can then draw other objects that you can paint
similarly, layering each new object on top of the previous ones. The result is something like a collage made out of
shapes cut from colored paper, with the look of the artwork depending on which objects are on top in the stack of
layered objects.
For a video on using brushes, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0044.
Paint a Live Paint group
With the Live Paint method, you paint more like you would with a traditional coloring tool, without regard to layers
or stacking order, which can make for a more natural workflow. All objects in a Live Paint group are treated as if they
are part of the same flat surface. This means you can draw several paths and then color separately each area enclosed
by these paths (called a face). You can also assign different stroke colors and weights to portions of a path between
intersections (called an edge). The result is that, much like a coloring book, you can fill each face and stroke each edge
with a different color. As you move and reshape paths in a Live Paint group, the faces and edges automatically adjust
in response.

An object consisting of a single path painted with the existing method has a single fill and a single stroke (left). The same object converted to a
Live Paint group can be painted with a different fill for each face and a different stroke for each edge (right).

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Painting an object the traditional way leaves some areas that cannot be filled (left). Painting a Live Paint group with gap detection (center) lets
you avoid gaps and overprinting (right).

For a video on using Live Paint, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0042. For a video on painting techniques with the
Paintbrush tool, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0038.

See also
“About Live Paint” on page 161

About fills and strokes
A fill is a color, pattern, or gradient inside an object. You can apply fills to open and closed objects and to faces of Live
Paint groups.
A stroke can be the visible outline of an object, a path, or the edge of a Live Paint group. You can control the width and
color a stroke. You can also create dashed strokes using Path options, and paint stylized strokes using brushes.
Note: When working with Live Paint groups, you can apply a brush to an edge only if you add a stroke to the group using
the Appearance panel.
The current fill and stroke colors are displayed in the Tools panel.

Fill and Stroke controls

See also
“Keys for painting objects” on page 468
“Select colors using the Color Picker” on page 101

Fill and Stroke controls
Controls for setting the fill and stroke are available in the Tools panel, the Control panel, and the Color panel.
You can use any of the following controls in the Tools panel to specify color:
Fill button
Stroke button

Double-click to select a fill color using the Color Picker.
Double-click to select a stroke color using the Color Picker.

Swap Fill And Stroke button

Click to swap colors between the fill and stroke.

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Default Fill And Stroke button
Color button

Click to apply the last-selected solid color to an object with a gradient fill or no stroke or fill.
Click to change the currently selected fill to the last-selected gradient.

Gradient button
None button

Click to return to the default color settings (white fill and black stroke).

Click to remove the selected object’s fill or stroke.

You can also specify color and stroke for a selected object by using the following controls in the Control panel:
Fill color Click to open the Swatches panel or Shift-click to open an alternate color mode panel, and choose a color.
Stroke color Click to open the Swatches panel or Shift-click to open an alternate color mode panel, and choose a color.
Stroke panel Click the word Stroke to open the Stroke panel and specify options.
Stroke weight Choose a stroke weight from the pop-up menu.

Apply a fill color to an object
You can apply one color, pattern, or gradient to an entire object, or you can use Live Paint groups and apply different
colors to different faces within the object.
1 Select the object.
2 Click the Fill box in the Tools panel or the Color panel. Doing so indicates that you want to apply a fill rather than

a stroke.

Fill box

3 Select a fill color by doing one of the following:

• Click a color in the Control panel, Color panel, Swatches panel, Gradient panel, or a swatch library.
• Double-click the Fill box and select a color from the Color Picker.
• Select the Eyedropper tool and Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Mac OS) an object to apply the current
attributes, including the current fill and stroke.

• Click the None button

to remove the object’s current fill.

You can quickly apply color to an unselected object by dragging a color from the Fill box, Color panel, Gradient panel,
or Swatches panel onto the object. Dragging does not work on Live Paint groups.

See also
“Select items in Live Paint groups” on page 164
“Paint with the Live Paint Bucket tool” on page 167

Stroke an object
You use the Stroke panel (Window > Stroke) to specify whether a line is solid or dashed, the dash sequence if it is
dashed, the stroke weight, the stroke alignment, the miter limit, and the styles of line joins and line caps.

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Stroke panel with options showing

You can apply stroke options to an entire object, or you can use Live Paint groups and apply different strokes to
different edges within the object.

See also
“Workspace overview” on page 10
“Select items in Live Paint groups” on page 164
“Paint with the Live Paint Bucket tool” on page 167

Apply a stroke color, width, or alignment
1 Select the object. (To select an edge in a Live Paint group, use the Live Paint Selection tool.)
2 Click the Stroke box in the Tools panel, the Color panel, or the Control panel. Doing so indicates that you want to

apply a stroke rather than a fill.

Stroke box

3 Select a color from the Color panel, or a swatch from the Swatches panel or Control panel. Alternatively, double-

click the Stroke box to select a color using the Color Picker.
If you want to use the current color in the Stroke box, you can simply drag the color from the Stroke box onto the object.
Dragging does not work on Live Paint groups.
4 Select a weight in the Strokes panel or Control panel.
5 If the object is a closed path (and not a Live Paint group), choose an option from the Stroke panel to align the stroke

along the path:

•

Align Stroke To Center

•

Align Stroke To Inside

•

Align Stroke To Outside

Note: If you try to align paths that use different stroke alignments, the paths may not exactly align. Make sure the path
alignment settings are the same if you need the edges to match up exactly when aligned.

Create dotted or dashed lines
You can create a dotted or dashed line by editing an object’s stroke attributes.
1 Select the object.

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2 In the Stroke panel, select Dashed Line. If the Dashed Line option isn’t showing, choose Show Options from the

Stroke panel menu.
3 Specify a dash sequence by entering the lengths of dashes and the gaps between them.

The numbers entered are repeated in sequence so that once you have established the pattern, you don’t need to fill in
all the text boxes.
4 Select a cap option to change the ends of the dashes. The Butt Cap

Round Cap

option creates square-ended dashes; the
option creates rounded dashes or dots; the Projecting Cap
option extends the ends of dashes.

6-point dashed lines with dash gaps of 2, 12, 16, 12
A. Butt cap B. Round cap C. Projecting cap

Change the caps or joins of a line
A cap is the end of an open line; a join is where a straight line changes direction (turns a corner). You can change the
caps and joins of a line by changing the object’s stroke attributes.
1 Select the object.
2 In the Stroke panel, select a cap option and a join option.

If the options aren’t showing, choose Show Options from the panel menu.
Butt Cap

Creates stroked lines with squared ends.

Round Cap

Creates stroked lines with semicircular ends.

Creates stroked lines with squared ends that extend half the line width beyond the end of the line.
This option makes the weight of the line extend equally in all directions around the line.

Projecting Cap

Miter Join
Creates stroked lines with pointed corners. Enter a miter limit between 1 and 500. The miter limit
controls when the program switches from a mitered (pointed) join to a beveled (squared-off) join. The default miter
limit is 4, which means that when the length of the point reaches four times the stroke weight, the program switches
from a miter join to a bevel join. A miter limit of 1 results in a bevel join.
Round Join
Bevel Join

Creates stroked lines with rounded corners.
Creates stroked lines with squared corners.

Draw and merge paths with the Blob Brush tool
Use the Blob Brush tool to paint filled shapes that you can intersect and merge with other shapes of the same color.
The Blob Brush tool uses the same default brush options as calligraphic brushes. (See “Calligraphic brush options” on
page 173.)

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Path created with a Calligraphy brush (left); path created with the Blob Brush tool (right)

To see a video on using the Blob Brush tool, see www.adobe.com/go/lrvid4018_ai. To see an example of using the Blob
Brush to create a complex drawing, see www.adobe.com/go/learn_ai_tutorials_blob_brush_en.

See also
“Paintbrush tool options” on page 171

Blob Brush tool guidelines
When using the Blob Brush tool, keep the following guidelines in mind:

• To merge paths, they must be adjacent in stacking order.
• The Blob Brush tool creates paths with a fill and no stroke. If you want your Blob Brush paths to merge with existing
artwork, make sure that the artwork has the same fill color and no stroke.

• When drawing paths with the Blob Brush tool, new paths merge with the topmost matching path encountered. If
the new path touches more than one matching path within the same group or layer, all of the intersecting paths are
merged together.

• To apply paint attributes (such as effects or transparency) to the Blob Brush tool, select the brush and set the
attributes in the Appearances panel before you start drawing.

• You can use the Blob Brush tool to merge paths created by other tools. To do this make sure that the existing
artwork does not have a stroke; then set up the Blob Brush tool to have the same fill color, and draw a new path that
intersects all of the paths that you want to merge together.

Create merged paths
Remember that paths with strokes cannot be merged.
1 Select the path into which you want to merge a new path.
2 In the Appearances panel, deselect New Art Has Basic Appearance. When this option is deselected, the Blob Brush

tool uses the attributes of the selected artwork.
3 Select the Blob Brush tool

, and make sure it uses the same appearances as the selected artwork.

4 Draw paths that intersect with the artwork. If the paths don’t merge, check to make sure that the Blob Brush tool’s

attributes exactly match the existing path attributes, and that neither uses a stroke.

Blob Brush tool options
Double-click the Blob Brush tool in the Tools panel and set any of the following options:
Keep Selected Specifies that when you draw a merged path, all paths are selected and remain selected as you continue

to draw. This option is useful for viewing all paths that are included in the merged path. When you select this option,
the Selection Limits Merge option is disabled.

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Selection Limits Merge Specifies that if artwork is selected, the Blob Brush merges only with the selected artwork. If

nothing is selected, the Blob Brush merges with any matching artwork.
Fidelity Controls how far you have to move your mouse or stylus before Illustrator adds a new anchor point to the

from 0% to 100%; the higher the percentage, the smoother the path.
Size Determines the size of the brush.
Angle Determines the angle of rotation for the brush. Drag the arrowhead in the preview, or enter a value in the Angle

text box.
Roundness Determines roundness of the brush. Drag a black dot in the preview away from or toward the center,

or enter a value in the Roundness text box. The higher the value, the greater the roundness.

Convert strokes to compound paths
Converting a stroke to a compound path lets you modify the outline of the stroke. For example, you can create a stroke
with a varied width or divide the stroke into pieces.
1 Select the object.
2 Choose Object > Path > Outline Stroke.

The resulting compound path is grouped with the filled object. To modify the compound path, first ungroup it from
the fill or select it with the Group Selection tool.
Use the Layers panel to identify the contents of a group.

See also
“About compound paths” on page 238
“Group or ungroup objects” on page 206

Add arrowheads to lines
Arrows are similar to brush strokes; that is, the arrows change location, direction, and color along with the line, but
they cannot be edited separately.
1 Select an object or group (or target a layer in the Layers panel).

Note: You can add arrowheads to a Live Paint group as a whole, but not to individual paths within Live Paint groups.
2 Choose Effect > Stylize > Add Arrowheads.
3 Choose from various arrowhead designs for the start and end of the line by clicking the forward and back buttons

below the Start and End arrow boxes. The start and end of the line refer to the order in which the line was drawn.
4 To rescale the size of an arrowhead, enter the percentage you want in the Scale text box. This scales the arrowhead

relative to the stroke weight of the line.
5 Click OK.

Note: To remove an arrowhead, select the object, click the Add Arrowheads effect in the Appearance panel, and set the
effect to None; then click OK.

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See also
“Targeting items for appearance attributes” on page 350
“About effects” on page 354

Remove the fill or stroke from an object
1 Select the object.
2 Click the Fill box or the Stroke box in the Tools panel. Doing so indicates whether you want to remove the object’s

fill or its stroke.
3 Click the None button in the Tools panel, the Color panel, or the Swatches panel.

Note: You can also click the None icon in the Fill menu or the Stroke Color menu in the Control panel.
A
B
C

Fill and Stroke boxes
A. Fill box B. Stroke box C. None button

Select objects with the same fill and stroke
You can select objects that have the same attributes, including fill color, stroke color, and stroke weight.
Note: The Select > Same > Fill Color, Stroke Color, and Stroke Weight commands work within a Live Paint group when
you select a face or edge with the Live Paint Selection tool; other Select > Same commands do not work. You cannot select
same objects both inside and outside a Live Paint group at the same time.

• To select objects with the same fill and stroke, select one of the objects, click the Select Similar Objects button
in the Control panel and choose what you want to base your selection on in the menu that appears.

• To select all objects with the same fill or stroke color, select an object with that fill or stroke color, or choose the
color from the Color panel or Swatches panel. Then choose Select > Same and click Fill Color, Stroke Color, or Fill
& Stroke on the submenu.

• To select all objects with the same stroke weight, select an object with that stroke weight or choose the stroke weight
from the Stroke panel. Then choose Select > Same > Stroke Weight.

• To apply the same selection options using a different object (for example, if you have already selected all red objects
using the Select > Same > Fill Color command and now you want to search for all green objects), select a new object
and then choose Select > Reselect.
To consider the tint of an object when selecting based on color, choose Edit > Preferences > General (Windows) or
Illustrator > Preferences > General (Mac OS), and then choose Select Same Tint %. With this option selected, if you
select an object filled with a 50% tint of PANTONE Yellow C and choose Select > Same > Fill Color, Illustrator selects
only those objects filled with a 50% tint of that color. With this option deselected, objects with any tint of PANTONE
Yellow C are selected.

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Create multiple fills and strokes
You use the Appearance panel to create multiple fills and strokes for the same object. Adding multiple fills and strokes
to an object is the basis for creating many interesting effects. For example, you can create a second, narrower stroke on
top of a wide stroke, or you can apply an effect to one fill but not the other.
1 Select one or more objects or groups (or target a layer in the Layers panel).
2 Select Add New Fill or Add New Stroke from the Appearance panel menu. Alternatively, select a fill or stroke in the

Appearance panel, and click the Duplicate Selected Item button

3 Set the color and other properties for the new fill or stroke.

Note: It may be necessary to adjust the position of the new fill or stroke in the Appearance panel. For example, if you
create two strokes of different widths, make sure that the narrower stroke is above the wider stroke in the Appearance
panel.

See also
“Targeting items for appearance attributes” on page 350
“Appearance panel overview” on page 349

Live Paint groups
About Live Paint
Converting your artwork to Live Paint groups allows you to color them freely, as you would a drawing on canvas or
paper. You can stroke each path segment with a different color and fill each enclosed path (note, not just closed paths)
with a different color, pattern, or gradient.
Live Paint is an intuitive way to create colored drawings. It lets you use the full range of Illustrator’s vector drawing
tools, but treats all the paths you draw as though they are on the same flat surface. That is, none of the paths is behind
or in front of any other. Instead, the paths divide the drawing surface up into areas, any of which can be colored,
regardless of whether the area is bounded by a single path or by segments of multiple paths. The result is that painting
objects is like filling in a coloring book or using watercolors to paint a pencil sketch.
Once you’ve made a Live Paint group, each path remains fully editable. When you move or adjust a path’s shape, the
colors that had been previously applied don’t just stay where they were, like they do in natural media paintings or
image editing programs. Instead, Illustrator automatically reapplies them to the new regions that are formed by the
edited paths.

Adjusting Live Paint paths
A. Original B. Live Paint group C. Paths adjusted, Live Painting reflows

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The paintable parts of Live Paint groups are called edges and faces. An edge is the portion of a path between where it
intersects with other paths. A face is the area enclosed by one or more edges. You can stroke edges and fill faces.
Take, for example, a circle with a line drawn across it. As a Live Paint group, the line (edge) dividing the circle creates
two faces in the circle. You can fill each face and stroke each edge with a different color using the Live Paint Bucket tool.

Circle and line (left) compared to circle and line after conversion to a Live Paint group and filling faces and stroking edges (right).

Note: Live Paint takes advantage of multiprocessors, which help Illustrator perform the operations more quickly.
For a video on using Live Paint, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0042.

See also
“Painting methods” on page 153
“About fills and strokes” on page 154

Live Paint limitations
Fill and paint attributes are attached to faces and edges of a Live Paint group—not to the actual paths that define them,
as in other Illustrator objects. Because of this, some features and commands either work differently or are not
applicable to paths inside a Live Paint group.
Features and commands that work on an entire Live Paint group, but not on individual faces and edges
• Transparency

• Effects
• Multiple fills and strokes from the Appearance panel
• Object > Envelope Distort
• Object > Hide
• Object > Rasterize
• Object > Slice > Make
• Make Opacity Mask (in the Transparency panel menu)
• Brushes (You can apply brushes to an entire Live Paint group if you add a new stroke to the group using the
Appearance panel.)
Features that don’t work on Live Paint groups
• Gradient meshes

• Graphs
• Symbols from the Symbols panel
• Flares

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• Align Stroke options from the Stroke panel
• The Magic Wand tool
Object commands that don’t work on Live Paint groups
• Outline Stroke

• Expand (You can use the Object > Live Paint > Expand command instead.)
• Blend
• Slice
• Clipping Mask > Make
• Create Gradient Mesh
Other commands that don’t work on Live Paint groups
• Pathfinder commands

• File > Place
• View > Guides > Make
• Select > Same >Blending Mode, Fill & Stroke, Opacity, Style, Symbol Instance, or Link Block Series
• Object > Text Wrap > Make

Create Live Paint groups
When you want to color objects using different colors for each edge, or intersection, convert the artwork into a Live
Paint Group.
Certain types of objects, such as type, bitmap images, and brushes, cannot be directly made into Live Paint groups. You
first need to convert these objects into paths. For example, if you try to convert an object that uses brushes or effects,
the complex visual appearance is lost in the conversion to Live Paint. However, you can retain much of the appearance
by first converting the objects to regular paths and then converting the resulting paths to Live Paint.
Note: When you convert artwork to a Live Paint group, you cannot return the artwork to its original state. You can
expand the group into its individual components, or release the group back to its original paths with no fill and a .5 black
stroke.
For a video on using Live Paint, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0042.

See also
“Keys for working with Live Paint groups” on page 469

Create a Live Paint group
1 Select one or more paths, compound paths, or both.
2 Do one of the following:

• Choose Object > Live Paint > Make.
• Select the Live Paint Bucket tool

and click the selected object.

Note: Certain properties may be lost in the conversion to a Live Paint group, such as transparency and effects, while other
objects cannot be converted (such as type, bitmap images, and brushes).

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Convert objects to Live Paint groups
❖ Do any of the following for objects that do not directly convert to Live Paint groups:

• For type objects, choose Type > Create Outlines. Then make the resulting paths into a Live Paint group.
• For bitmap images, choose Object > Live Trace > Make And Convert To Live Paint.
• For other objects, choose Object > Expand. Then make the resulting paths into a Live Paint group.

Expand or release a Live Paint group
Releasing a Live Paint group changes it to one or more ordinary paths with no fill and a .5-point black stroke.
Expanding a Live Paint group changes it to one or more ordinary paths that are visually similar to the Live Paint group,
but are now separate filled and stroked paths. You can use the Group Selection tool to select and modify these paths
separately.

Live Paint group before (left) and after expanding and dragging to separate faces and edges (right)

Live Paint group before (left) and after Release command applied (right)

1 Select the Live Paint group.
2 Do one of the following:

• Choose Object > Live Paint > Expand.
• Choose Object > Live Paint > Release.

Select items in Live Paint groups
Use the Live Paint Selection tool
to select individual faces and edges in a Live Paint group. Use the Selection tool
to select the entire Live Paint group, and the Direct Selection tool to select paths inside a Live Paint group. When
you’re working in a complex document, you can isolate a Live Paint group so that it is easy to select the exact face or
edge you want.
Choose a selection tool depending on what you want to affect in a Live Paint group. For example, use the Live Paint
Selection tool to apply different gradients across different faces in a Live Paint group, and use the Selection tool to
apply the same gradient across the entire Live Paint group.

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See also
“Isolate artwork for editing” on page 198

Select faces and edges
The Live Paint Selection tool pointer changes to the face pointer
when it’s positioned over a face, the edge
pointer when it’s positioned over an edge, or the x pointer when it’s positioned outside of a Live Paint group.
❖ Select the Live Paint Selection tool, and then:

• To select an individual face or edge, click a face or edge.
• To select multiple faces and edges, drag a marquee around the items you want to select. Partial selections are
included.

• To select all contiguous faces that are not separated by a painted edge, double-click a face.
• To select faces or edges with the same fill or stroke, triple-click an item. Or click once, choose Select > Same, and
then choose Fill Color, Stroke Color, or Stroke Weight on the submenu.

• To add items to, or remove items from, the current selection, Shift-click or Shift-drag a marquee around the items.

Select a Live Paint group
❖ Using the Selection tool, click the group.

Select an original path within a Live Paint group
❖ Using the Direct Selection tool, click a path inside the Live Paint group.

Isolate a Live Paint group from the rest of the artwork
❖ Using the Selection tool, do one of the following:

• Double-click the group.
• Select the group, and then click the Isolate Selected Group button

in the Control panel.

Modify Live Paint groups
When you modify a path in a Live Paint group, Illustrator colors the modified or new faces and edges using fills and
strokes from the existing group. If the results are not what you expect, you can reapply the colors you want using the
Live Paint Bucket tool.

Live Paint group before (left) and after adjusting paths (right)

When you delete edges, the fill floods across any newly expanded face. For example, if you delete a path that divides a
circle in half, the circle is filled with one of the fills previously in the circle. You can sometimes help guide the results.
For instance, before deleting a path that divides a circle, first move it so that the fill you want to keep is larger than the
fill you want to remove.

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Live Paint group before (left) and after selecting and deleting a path (right)

Save the fill and stroke colors used in Live Paint groups in the Swatches panel. That way, if a change loses a color you
want to keep, you can select its swatch and use the Live Paint Bucket tool to reapply the fill or stroke.

See also
“Isolate artwork for editing” on page 198

Add paths to a Live Paint group
As you add more paths to the Live Paint group, you can fill and stroke the new faces and edges that are created.

Live Paint group before (left) and after adding a new path and painting the new faces and edges created by it (right)

❖ Do any of the following:

• Using the Selection tool, double-click a Live Paint group (or click the Isolate Selected Group button in the Control
panel) to put the group into isolation mode. Then draw another path. Illustrator adds the new path to the Live Paint
when you’re done adding new paths.
group. Click the Exit Isolation Mode button

• Select a Live Paint group and the paths you want to add to it. Then choose Object > Live Paint > Merge, or click
Merge Live Paint in the Control panel.

• In the Layers panel, drag one or more paths into a Live Paint group.
Note: Paths inside a Live Paint group may not exactly align with similar or identical paths outside the Live Paint group.

Resize an individual object or path
❖ Do one of the following:

• Using the Direct Selection tool, click the path or object to select it. Then choose the Selection tool and click the path
or object again to edit it.

• Using the Selection tool, double-click the Live Paint Group to put it into isolation mode. Then click a path or object
to edit it.

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Painting

Paint with the Live Paint Bucket tool
The Live Paint Bucket tool lets you paint faces and edges of Live Paint groups with the current fill and stroke attributes.
The tool pointer displays as either one or three color squares, which represent the selected fill or stroke color and, if
you’re using colors from a swatch library, the two colors adjacent to the selected color in the library. You can access
the adjacent colors, as well as the colors next to those, and so on, by pressing the left or right arrow key.
1 Select the Live Paint Bucket tool

2 Specify the fill color or stroke color and size you want.

Note: If you select a color from a the Swatches panel, the pointer changes to display three colors . The selected color is
in the middle, and the two adjacent colors are on either side. To use an adjacent color, click the left or right arrow key.
3 To paint a face, do any of the following:

• Click a face to fill it. (When the pointer is over a face, it changes to a half-filled paint bucket

and highlight lines

surround the inside of the fill.)

• Drag across multiple faces to paint more than one face at a time.
• Double-click a face to fill across unstroked edges into adjacent faces (flood fill).
• Triple-click a face to fill all faces that currently have the same fill.
To switch to the Eyedropper tool and sample fills or strokes, Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Mac OS) the fill or
stroke you want.
4 To paint an edge, double-click the Live Paint Bucket tool and select Paint Strokes, or temporarily toggle to the Paint

Strokes option, by pressing Shift; and then do any of the following:

• Click an edge to stroke it. (When the pointer is over an edge, it changes to a paint brush

and the edge is

highlighted.)

• Drag across multiple edges to stroke more than one edge at a time.
• Double-click an edge to stroke all connected edges of the same color (flood stroke).
• Triple-click an edge to stroke all edges of the same stroke.
Note: Pressing Shift lets you quickly toggle between painting only strokes and only fills. You can also specify these changes
in the Live Paint Bucket Options dialog box. If you currently have both the Paint Fills option and the Paint Strokes option
selected, pressing Shift switches to Paint Fills only. (This can be helpful when you are trying to fill a small face surrounded
by stroked edges.)

See also
“Fill and Stroke controls” on page 154
“Apply a fill color to an object” on page 155
“Stroke an object” on page 155

Live Paint Bucket options
The Live Paint Bucket options let you specify how the Live Paint Bucket tool works, choosing whether to paint just
fills, just strokes, or both, as well as how to highlight faces and edges as you move the tool over them. You can see these
options by double-clicking the Live Paint Bucket tool.
Paint Fills Paints the faces of Live Paint groups.
Paint Strokes Paints the edges of Live Paint groups.

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Cursor Swatch Preview Displays when you choose a color from the Swatches panel. The Live Paint Bucket tool pointer

appears as three color swatches: the selected fill or stroke color plus the color directly to the left and right of it in the
Swatches panel.
Highlight Outlines the face or edge the cursor is currently over. Faces are highlighted with a thick line and edges are

highlighted with a thin line.
Color Sets the color for the highlight. You can choose a color from the menu or click the paint swatch to specify a
custom color.
Width Specifies how thick to make the highlight.

Close gaps in Live Paint groups
Gaps are small spaces between paths. If paint leaks through and paints faces you did not intend, you probably have a
gap in your artwork. You can create a new path that closes the gap, edit existing paths to close the gap, or adjust the
gap options in the Live Paint group.
You can avoid gaps in your Live Paint artwork by overdrawing paths (that is, extending them past each other). You
can then select and delete the excess edges that result, or apply a stroke of “None” to them.

Highlight gaps in a Live Paint group
❖ Choose View > Show Live Paint Gaps.

This command highlights any gaps found on the currently selected Live Paint group, based on your gap options
settings for that group.

Set Live Paint gap options
❖ Choose Object > Live Paint > Gap Options and specify any of the following:
Gap Detection When selected, Illustrator recognizes gaps in Live Paint paths and prevents paint from flowing through

them. Note that this may slow Illustrator when working on large, complex Live Paint groups. In this case, you can
choose Close Gaps With Paths to help speed Illustrator up again.
Paint Stops At Sets the size of the gap paint can’t flow through.
Custom Specifies a custom Paint Stops At gap size.
Gap Preview Color Sets the color for previewing gaps in Live Paint groups. You can choose a color from the menu, or

click the color well next to the Gap Preview Color menu to specify a custom color.
Close Gaps With Paths When selected, inserts unpainted paths into your Live Paint group to close gaps (rather than

simply preventing paint from flowing though the gaps). Note that since these paths are unpainted, it may appear gaps
are still there even though they have been closed.
Preview Displays currently detected gaps in Live Paint groups as colored lines, based on the preview color you chose.

Gap rules for merged Live Paint groups
When you merge Live Paint groups that have different gap settings, Illustrator uses the following rules to handle the gaps:

• If gap detection is off in all groups in the selection, gaps are closed and gap detection is turned on with Paint Stops
At set to Small Gaps.

• If gap detection is on and the same for all groups in the selection, gaps are closed and the gap setting is preserved.

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• If gap detection is mixed for the selection, gaps are closed and the gap settings of the bottommost Live Paint group
are preserved (if gap detection is on for that group). If the bottommost group has gap detection turned off, gap
detection is turned on and Paint Stops At is set to Small Gaps.

Brushes
About brushes
Brushes let you stylize the appearance of paths. You can apply brush strokes to existing paths, or you can use the
Paintbrush tool to draw a path and apply a brush stroke simultaneously.
There are four types of brushes in Illustrator—calligraphic, scatter, art, and pattern. You can achieve the following
effects using these brushes:
Calligraphic brushes Create strokes that resemble those drawn with the angled point of a calligraphic pen and are

drawn along the center of the path. When you use the Blob Brush tool, you can paint with a calligraphic brush and
automatically expand the brush stroke into a fill shape that merges with other filled objects of the same color that
intersect or are adjacent in stacking order.
Scatter brushes Disperse copies of an object (such as a ladybug or a leaf) along the path.
Art brushes Stretch a brush shape (such as Rough Charcoal) or object shape evenly along the length of the path.
Pattern brushes Paint a pattern—made of individual tiles—that repeats along the path. Pattern brushes can include

up to five tiles, for the sides, inner corner, outer corner, beginning, and end of the pattern.

Sample brushes
A. Calligraphic brush B. Scatter brush C. Art brush D. Pattern brush

Scatter brushes and Pattern brushes can often achieve the same effect. However, one way in which they differ is that
Pattern brushes follow the path exactly, while Scatter brushes do not.

Arrows in a Pattern brush bend to follow the path (left), but arrows remain straight in a Scatter brush (right).

For a video on using brushes, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0044.

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See also
“Draw and merge paths with the Blob Brush tool” on page 157

Brushes panel overview
The Brushes panel (Window > Brushes) displays brushes for the current file. Whenever you select a brush in a brush
library, it is automatically added to the Brushes panel. Brushes that you create and store in the Brushes panel are
associated only with the current file, which means that each Illustrator file can have a different set of brushes in its
Brushes panel.

See also
“Keys for the Brushes panel” on page 472

Show or hide a type of brush
❖ Choose any of the following from the panel menu: Show Calligraphic Brushes, Show Scatter Brushes, Show Art

Brushes, Show Pattern Brushes.

Change the view of brushes
❖ Choose Thumbnail View or List View from the panel menu.

Change the order of brushes in the Brushes panel
❖ Drag a brush to a new location. You can move brushes only within their type. For example, you cannot move a

Calligraphic brush to the Scatter brush area.

Duplicate a brush in the Brushes panel
❖ Drag the brush onto the New Brush button

or choose Duplicate Brush from the Brushes panel menu.

Delete the brushes from the Brushes panel
❖ Select the brushes and click the Delete Brush button

. You can select brushes that aren’t used in a document by
choosing Select All Unused from the Brushes panel menu.

Work with brush libraries
Brush libraries (Window > Brush Libraries > [library]) are collections of preset brushes that come with Illustrator. You
can open multiple brush libraries to browse through their contents and select brushes. You can also open brush
libraries using the Brushes panel menu.
To automatically open a brush library when you start Illustrator, choose Persistent from the brush library’s panel
menu.

Copy brushes from a brush library to the Brushes panel
❖ Drag the brushes to the Brushes panel or choose Add To Brushes from the brush library’s panel menu.

Import brushes into the Brushes panel from another file
❖ Choose Window > Brushes Libraries > Other Library and select the file.

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Create new brush libraries
1 Add the brushes you want to the Brushes panel, and delete any brushes you don’t want.
2 Choose Save Brush Library from the Brushes panel menu, and place the new library file in one of the following

folders so that it will appear in the Brush Libraries menu when you restart Illustrator:

• (Windows XP) Documents and Settings/User/Application Data/Adobe/Adobe IllustratorCS4 Settings/Brush
• (Windows Vista) User/AppData/Roaming/Adobe/Adobe Illustrator CS4 Settings/Brush
• (Mac OS) Library/Application Support/Adobe/Adobe Illustrator CS4/Brush
Note: If you place the file in a different folder, you can open the library by choosing Window > Brush Libraries > Other
Library and selecting the library file.

Apply brush strokes
You can apply brush strokes to a path created with any drawing tool, including the Pen tool, Pencil tool, or basic shape
tools.
❖ Do one of the following:

• Select the path, and then select a brush in a brush library, the Brushes panel, or the Control panel.
• Drag a brush onto the path. If the path already has brush strokes applied to it, then the new brush replaces the old
brush.
If you want to apply a different brush to the path and want to use the brush stroke settings used with the original brush,
hold down Alt (Win) or Option (Mac OS) when clicking the new brush you want to apply.

Draw paths and apply brush strokes simultaneously
1 Select a brush in a brush library or the Brushes panel.
2 Select the Paintbrush tool

3 Position the pointer where you want the brush stroke to begin, and drag to draw a path. A dotted line follows the

pointer as you drag.
4 Do one of the following:

• To draw an open path, release the mouse button when the path is the desired shape.
• To draw a closed shape, hold down Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac OS) as you drag. The Paintbrush tool displays
a small loop

. Release the mouse button (but not the Alt or Option key) when you are ready to close the shape.

Illustrator sets down anchor points as you draw. The number of anchor points is determined by the length and
complexity of the path and by the Paintbrush tolerance settings.
To adjust the shape of a brushed path after you finish drawing it, first select the path. Then position the Paintbrush
tool on the path, and drag until the path is the desired shape. You can use the technique to extend a brushed path as
well as change the shape of the path between the existing end points.

Paintbrush tool options
Double-click the Paintbrush tool to set the following options:
Fidelity Controls how far you have to move your mouse or stylus before Illustrator adds a new anchor point to the

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Smoothness Controls the amount of smoothing that Illustrator applies when you use the tool. Smoothness can range

from 0% to 100%; the higher the percentage, the smoother the path.
Fill New Brush Strokes Applies a fill to the path. This option is most useful when drawing closed paths.
Keep Selected Determines whether Illustrator keeps the path selected after you draw it.
Edit Selected Paths Determines whether you can change an existing path with the Paintbrush tool.
Within: _ pixels Determines how close your mouse or stylus must be to an existing path to edit the path with the
Paintbrush tool. This option is only available when the Edit Selected Paths option is selected.

Remove brush strokes
1 Select a brushed path.
2 In the Brushes panel, choose Remove Brush Stroke from the panel menu or click the Remove Brush Stroke

button

Convert brush strokes to outlines
You can convert brush strokes into outlined paths to edit the individual components of a brushed path.
1 Select a brushed path.
2 Choose Object > Expand Appearance.

Illustrator places the components of the expanded path in a group. Within the group are a path and a subgroup
containing the brush stoke outlines.

Create or modify brushes
You can create new calligraphic, scatter, art, and pattern brushes based on your own settings. For scatter, art, and
pattern brushes, you must first create the artwork you want to use. Follow these guidelines when creating artwork for
brushes:

• The artwork cannot contain gradients, blends, other brush strokes, mesh objects, bitmap images, graphs, placed
files, or masks.

• For art and pattern brushes, the artwork cannot contain type. To achieve a brush-stroke effect with type, create an
outline of the type and then create a brush with the outline.

• For pattern brushes, create up to five pattern tiles (depending on the brush configuration), and add the tiles to the
Swatches panel.

See also
“About patterns” on page 191
“Create corner tiles for brush patterns” on page 195

Create a brush
1 For scatter and art brushes, select the artwork you want to use. For pattern brushes, you can select the artwork for

the side tile, but it isn’t necessary.
2 Click the New Brush button

in the Brushes panel. Alternatively, drag the selected artwork to the Brushes panel.

3 Select the type of brush you want to create, and click OK.

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4 In the Brush Options dialog box, enter a name for the brush, set brush options, and click OK.

Modify a brush
• To change the options for a brush, double-click the brush in the Brushes panel. Set the brush options and click OK.
If the current document contains brushed paths that use the modified brush, a message appears. Click Apply To
Strokes to change pre-existing strokes. Click Leave Strokes to leave pre-existing strokes unchanged, and apply the
modified brush to new strokes only.

• To change the artwork used by a scatter, art, or pattern brush, drag the brush into your artwork and make the
changes you want. Then Alt-drag (Windows) or Option-drag (Mac OS) the modified brush onto the original brush
in the Brushes panel.

• To modify a brushed path without updating the corresponding brush, select the path and click the Options Of
Selected Object button

in the Brushes panel.

Brush options
You can specify different options for the different types of brushes. To change the options for a brush, double-click the
brush in the Brushes panel.
Scatter, Art, and Pattern brushes all have identical options for colorization.

Calligraphic brush options
Angle Determines the angle of rotation for the brush. Drag the arrowhead in the preview, or enter a value in the Angle box.
Roundness Determines roundness of the brush. Drag a black dot in the preview away from or toward the center,

or enter a value in the Roundness box. The higher the value, the greater the roundness.
Diameter Determines the diameter of the brush. Use the Diameter slider, or enter a value in the Diameter box.

The pop-up list to the right of each option lets you control variations in the shape of the brush. Select one of the
following options:

• Fixed Creates a brush with a fixed angle, roundness, or diameter.
• Random Creates a brush with random variations in angle, roundness, or diameter. Enter a value in the Variation
box to specify the range within which the brush characteristic can vary. For example, when the Diameter value is 15
and the Variation value is 5, the diameter can be 10, or 20, or any value in between.
• Pressure Creates a brush that varies in angle, roundness, or diameter based on the pressure of a drawing stylus.
This option is most useful when used with Diameter. It is available only if you have a graphics tablet. Enter a value in
the Variation box to specify how much more or less than the original value the brush characteristic will vary.
For example, when the Roundness value is 75% and the Variation value is 25%, the lightest stroke is 50% and the
heaviest stroke is 100%. The lighter the pressure, the more angular the brush stroke.
• Stylus Wheel Creates a brush that varies in diameter based on manipulation of the stylus wheel. This option is
intended to be used with an airbrush pen that has a stylus wheel on its barrel and with a graphics tablet that can detect
that pen.
• Tilt Creates a brush that varies in angle, roundness, or diameter based on the tilt of a drawing stylus. This option is
most useful when used with Roundness. It is available only if you have a graphics tablet that can detect how close to
vertical the pen is.
• Bearing Creates a brush that varies in angle, roundness, or diameter based on the bearing of the pen. This option
is most useful when used to control the angle of calligraphic brushes, especially when you’re using the brush like a
paintbrush. It is available only if you have a graphics tablet that can detect the direction in which the pen is tilted.

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• Rotation Creates a brush that varies in angle, roundness, or diameter based on how the drawing stylus pen tip is
rotated. This option is most useful when used to control the angle of calligraphic brushes, especially when you’re using
the brush like a flat pen. It is available only if you have a graphics tablet that can detect this type of rotation.

Colorization options for scatter, art, and pattern brushes
The colors that a scatter, art, or pattern brush paints depend on the current stroke color and the colorization method
of the brush. To set the colorization method, select one of the following options in the Brush Options dialog box:
None Displays colors as they appear in the brush in the Brushes panel. Choose None to keep a brush the same colors
as in the Brushes panel.
Tints Displays the brush stroke in tints of the stroke color. Portions of the art that are black become the stroke color,
portions that aren’t black become tints of the stroke color, and white remains white. If you use a spot color as the
stroke, Tints generates tints of the spot color. Choose Tints for brushes that are in black and white, or when you want
to paint a brush stroke with a spot color.
Tints And Shades Displays the brush stroke in tints and shades of the stroke color. Tints and Shades maintains black
and white, and everything between becomes a blend from black to white through the stroke color. Because black is
added you may not be able to print to a single plate when using Tints and Shades with a spot color. Choose Tints and
Shades for brushes that are in grayscale.
Hue Shift Uses the key color in the brush artwork, as shown in the Key Color box. (By default, the key color is the most
prominent color in the art.) Everything in the brush artwork that is the key color becomes the stroke color. Other
colors in the brush artwork become colors related to the stroke color. Hue Shift maintains black, white, and gray.
Choose Hue Shift for brushes that use multiple colors. To change the key color, click the Key Color eyedropper, move
the eyedropper to the preview in the dialog box, and click the color you want to use as the key color. The color in the
Key Color box changes. Click the eyedropper again to deselect it.

For information and samples about each choice, click Tips.

Scatter brush options
Size Controls the size of the objects.
Spacing Controls the amount of space between objects.
Scatter Controls how closely objects follow the path independently on each side of the path. The higher the value, the
farther the objects are from the path.
Rotation Controls the angle of rotation of the objects.
Rotation Relative To Sets the angle of rotation for scattered objects relative to the page or the path. For example, if you

select Page, at 0° of rotation, objects point to the top of the page. If you select Path, at 0° of rotation, objects are tangent
to the path.
The pop-up list to the right of each option lets you control variations in the shape of the brush. Select one of the
following options:

• Fixed Creates a brush with a fixed size, spacing, scattering, and rotation.
• Random Creates a brush with random variations in size, spacing, scattering, and rotation. Enter a value in the
Variation box to specify the range within which the brush characteristic can vary. For example, when the Diameter
value is 15 and the Variation value is 5, the diameter can be 10, or 20, or any value in between.
• Pressure Creates a brush that varies in angle, roundness, or diameter based on the pressure of a drawing stylus.
This option is available only if you have a graphics tablet. Enter a value in the rightmost box, or use the Maximum

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slider. Pressure uses the Minimum value for the lightest tablet pressure and the Maximum value for the heaviest
pressure. When you choose this setting for Diameter, the heavier the stroke, the larger the objects.

• Stylus Wheel Creates a brush that varies in diameter based on manipulation of the stylus wheel. This option is
available only if you have a graphics tablet that has a stylus wheel on its barrel and can detect input from that pen.
• Tilt Creates a brush that varies in angle, roundness, or diameter based on the tilt of a drawing stylus. It is available
only if you have a graphics tablet that can detect how close to vertical the pen is.

• Bearing Creates a brush that varies in angle, roundness, or diameter based on the pressure of a drawing stylus. This
option is most useful when used to control the angle of brushes. It is available only if you have a graphics tablet that
can detect the direction in which the pen is tilted.
• Rotation Creates a brush that varies in angle, roundness, or diameter based on how the drawing stylus pen tip is
rotated. This option is most useful when used to control the angle of brushes. It is available only if you have a graphics
tablet that can detect this type of rotation.

Art brush options
Width Adjusts the width of the art relative to its original width.
Proportional Preserves proportions in scaled art.
Direction Determines the direction of the artwork in relation to the line. Click an arrow to set the direction:

place the left side of the art is the end of the stroke;
to place the right side of the art is the end of the stroke;
place the top of the art is the end of the stroke;
to place the bottom of the art is the end of the stroke.

to
to

Flip Along or Flip Across Change the orientation of the art in relation to the line.

Pattern brush options
Scale Adjusts the size of tiles relative to their original size.
Spacing Adjusts the space between tiles.
Tile buttons Let you apply different patterns to different parts of the path. Click a tile button for the tile you want to

define, and select a pattern swatch from the scroll list. Repeat to apply pattern swatches to other tiles as needed.
Note: You must add the pattern tiles you want to use to the Swatches panel before you set pattern brush options. After
you create a pattern brush, you can delete the pattern tiles from the Swatches panel if you don’t plan to use them for
additional artwork.

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Tiles in a pattern brush
A. Side tile B. Outer Corner tile C. Inner Corner tile D. Start tile E. End tile

Flip Along or Flip Across Changes the orientation of the pattern in relation to the line.
Fit Determines how the pattern fits on the path: Stretch To Fit lengthens or shortens the pattern tile to fit the object.

This option can result in uneven tiling. Add Space To Fit adds blank space between each pattern tile to apply the
pattern proportionally to the path. Approximate Path fits tiles to the closest approximate path without changing the
tiles. This option applies the pattern slightly inside or outside the path, rather than centered on the path, to maintain
even tiling.

Fit options
A. Stretch To Fit B. Add Space To Fit C. Approximate Path

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Transparency and blending modes
About transparency
Transparency is such an integral part of Illustrator that it’s possible to add transparency to your artwork without
realizing it. You can add transparency to artwork by doing any of the following:

• Lowering the opacity of objects so that underlying artwork becomes visible.
• Using opacity masks to create variations in transparency.
• Using a blending mode to change how colors interact among overlapping objects.
• Applying gradients and meshes that include transparency.
• Applying effects or graphic styles that include transparency, such as drop shadows.
• Importing Adobe Photoshop files that include transparency.
For a video on working with transparency, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0054.
For more information on working with transparency across Adobe Creative Suite, see
www.adobe.com/go/learn_ai_transparency_pdf.

See also
Transparency tutorial
“Printing and saving transparent artwork” on page 421
“About blending modes” on page 182

Transparency panel overview
You use the Transparency panel (Window > Transparency) to specify the opacity and blending mode of objects, to
create opacity masks, or to knock out a portion of one object with the overlying portion of a transparent object.

See also
“Workspace overview” on page 10

Show all options in the Transparency panel
❖ Choose Show Options from the panel menu.

Show a thumbnail of the selected object in the Transparency panel
❖ Choose Show Thumbnail from the panel menu. Or, click the double triangle on the panel’s tab to cycle through the

display sizes.

View transparency in artwork
It’s important to be aware of when you’re using transparency, because you need to set some extra options when
printing and saving transparent artwork. To view transparency in your artwork, display a checkered background grid
to identify transparent areas of your artwork.
1 Choose View > Show Transparency Grid.
2 (Optional) Choose File > Document Setup, and set transparency grid options.

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Note: You can also change the artboard color to simulate what your artwork will look like if printed on colored paper.

Change the opacity of artwork
You can change the opacity of a single object, the opacity of all objects in a group or layer, or the opacity of an object’s
fill or stroke.
1 Select an object or group (or target a layer in the Layers panel).

If you want to change the opacity of a fill or stroke, select the object, and then select the fill or stroke in the Appearance
panel.
2 Set the Opacity option in the Transparency panel or Control panel.

To select all objects that use a specific opacity, select an object with that opacity, or deselect everything and enter the
opacity value in the Transparency panel. Then choose Select > Same > Opacity.
If you select multiple objects in a layer and change the opacity setting, the transparency of overlapping areas of the
selected objects will change relative to the other objects and show an accumulated opacity. In contrast, if you target a
layer or group and then change the opacity, the objects in the layer or group are treated as a single object. Only objects
outside and below the layer or group are visible through the transparent objects. If an object is moved into the layer or
group, it takes on the layer’s or group’s opacity, and if an object is moved outside, it doesn’t retain the opacity.

Individual objects selected and set to 50% opacity (left) compared to layer targeted and set to 50% opacity (right)

See also
“Targeting items for appearance attributes” on page 350
“Appearance panel overview” on page 349
“Printing and saving transparent artwork” on page 421

Create a transparency knockout group
In a transparency knockout group, the elements of a group do not show through each other.

Group with Knockout Group option deselected (left) compared to selected (right)

1 In the Layers panel, target the group or layer you want to turn into a knockout group.

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2 In the Transparency panel, select Knockout Group. If this option isn’t visible, select Show Options from the panel menu.

Selecting the Knockout Group option cycles it through three states: on (check mark), off (no mark), and neutral
(square with a line through it). Use the neutral option when you want to group artwork without interfering with the
knockout behavior determined by the enclosing layer or group. Use the off option when you want to ensure that a layer
or a group of transparent objects will never knock each other out.

See also
“Targeting items for appearance attributes” on page 350
“Printing and saving transparent artwork” on page 421

Use opacity masks to create transparency
You use an opacity mask and a masking object to alter the transparency of artwork. The opacity mask (also referred to
as masked artwork) provides the shape through which other objects show. The masking object defines which areas are
transparent and the degree of transparency. You can use any colored object or raster image as the masking object.
Illustrator uses the grayscale equivalents of the colors in the masking object for the opacity levels in the mask. Where
the opacity mask is white, the artwork is fully visible. Where the opacity mask is black, the artwork is hidden. Shades
of gray in the mask result in varying degrees of transparency in the artwork.
A

Creating an opacity mask
A. Underlying objects B. Opacity mask artwork C. Masking object filled with black-to-white gradient D. C moved over the area of B and
masking B

When you create the opacity mask, a thumbnail of the masking object appears in the Transparency panel to the right
of the thumbnail of the masked artwork. (If these thumbnails aren’t visible, choose Show Thumbnails from the panel
menu.) By default, the masked artwork and the masking object are linked (as shown by a link between the thumbnails
in the panel). When you move the masked artwork, the masking object moves along with it. However, when you move
a masking object, the masked artwork doesn’t move. You can unlink the mask in the Transparency panel to lock the
mask in place and move the masked artwork independently of it.

Transparency panel displays opacity mask thumbnails: left thumbnail represents the opacity mask, right thumbnail represents masking objects

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You can move masks between Photoshop and Illustrator. Opacity masks in Illustrator convert to layer masks in
Photoshop, and vice versa.
Note: You cannot enter isolation mode when working in mask-editing mode, or vice versa.
For a video on working with opacity masks, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0056.

See also
“Printing and saving transparent artwork” on page 421
“Targeting items for appearance attributes” on page 350

Create an opacity mask
1 Select a single object or group, or target a layer in the Layers panel.
2 Open the Transparency panel and, if necessary, choose Show Options from the panel menu to see the thumbnail

images.
3 Double-click directly to the right of the thumbnail in the Transparency panel.

An empty mask is created and Illustrator automatically enters mask-editing mode
4 Use the drawing tools to draw a mask shape.
5 Click the masked artwork’s thumbnail (left thumbnail) in the Transparency panel to exit mask-editing mode.

Note: The Clip option sets the mask background to black. Therefore, black objects, such as black type, used to create an
opacity mask with the Clip option selected will not be visible. To see the objects, use a different color or deselect the Clip
option.

Convert an existing object into an opacity mask
❖ Select at least two objects or groups, and choose Make Opacity Mask from the Transparency panel menu. The

topmost selected object or group is used as the mask.

Edit a masking object
You can edit a masking object to change the shape or transparency of the mask.
1 Click the masking object’s thumbnail (right thumbnail) in the Transparency panel.
2 Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Mac OS) the mask thumbnail to hide all other artwork in the document

window. (If the thumbnails aren’t visible, choose Show Thumbnails from the panel menu.)
3 Use any of the Illustrator editing tools and techniques to edit the mask.
4 Click the masked artwork’s thumbnail (left thumbnail) in the Transparency panel to exit mask-editing mode.

Unlink or relink an opacity mask
• To unlink a mask, target the masked artwork in the Layers panel, and then click the link symbol

between the
thumbnails in the Transparency panel. Alternatively, select Unlink Opacity Mask from the Transparency panel
menu.

The masking object is locked in position and size, and the masked objects can be moved and resized independently of
the mask.

• To relink a mask, target the masked artwork in the Layers panel, and then click the area between the thumbnails in
the Transparency panel. Alternatively, select Link Opacity Mask from the Transparency panel menu.

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Deactivate or reactivate an opacity mask
You can deactivate a mask to remove the transparency it creates.

• To deactivate a mask, target the masked artwork in the Layers panel, and then Shift-click the masking object’s
thumbnail (right thumbnail) in the Transparency panel. Alternatively, select Disable Opacity Mask from the
Transparency panel menu. When the opacity mask is deactivated, a red x appears over the mask thumbnail in the
Transparency panel.

• To reactivate a mask, target the masked artwork in the Layers panel, and then Shift-click the masking object’s
thumbnail in the Transparency panel. Alternatively, select Enable Opacity Mask from the Transparency panel menu.

Remove an opacity mask
❖ Target the masked artwork in the Layers panel, and then select Release Opacity Mask from the Transparency panel

menu.
The masking object reappears on top of the objects that were masked.

Clip or invert an opacity mask
1 Target the masked artwork in the Layers panel.
2 Select either of the following options in the Transparency panel:
Clip Gives the mask a black background which crops the masked artwork to the boundaries of the masking object.
Deselect the Clip option to turn off the clipping behavior. To select clipping for new opacity masks by default, select
New Opacity Masks Are Clipping from the Transparency panel menu.
Invert Mask Reverses the luminosity values of the masking object, which reverses the opacity of the masked artwork.

For example, areas that are 90% transparent become 10% transparent after the mask is inverted. Deselect the Invert
Mask option to return the mask to the original state. To invert all masks by default, select New Opacity Masks Are
Inverted from the Transparency panel menu.
If these options aren’t visible, select Show Options from the panel menu.

Use transparency to shape a knockout
You can use the Opacity & Mask Define Knockout Shape option to make a knockout effect proportional to the object’s
opacity. In areas of the mask that are close to 100% opacity, the knockout effect will be strong; in areas with less opacity,
the knockout effect will be weaker. For example, if you use a gradient-masked object as a knockout, the underlying
object will be knocked out progressively, as if it were being shaded by a gradient. You can create knockout shapes with
both vector and raster objects. This technique is most useful for objects that use a blending mode other than Normal.
1 Do one of the following:

• To use an opacity mask to shape the knockout, select the masked artwork, and then group it with the objects you
want to knock out.

• To use the alpha channel of a bitmap object to shape the knockout, select a bitmap object that contains
transparency, and then group it with the objects you want to knock out.
2 Select the group.
3 In the Transparency panel, select Knockout Group until the option displays a checkmark.
4 Among the grouped objects, target the masking objects or transparent image in the Layers panel.
5 In the Transparency panel, select Opacity & Mask Define Knockout Shape.

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Knocking out shapes using a bitmap object
A. Original artwork B. Darken blending mode applied to the word “PEARS”, and Group option selected C. Opacity & Mask Define Knockout
shape option applied to word

See also
“Printing and saving transparent artwork” on page 421
“Targeting items for appearance attributes” on page 350

About blending modes
Blending modes let you vary the ways that the colors of objects blend with the colors of underlying objects. When you
apply a blending mode to an object, the effect of the blending mode is seen on any objects that lie beneath the object’s
layer or group.
It’s helpful to think in terms of the following color terminology when visualizing a blending mode’s effect:

• The blend color is the original color of the selected object, group, or layer.
• The base color is the underlying color in the artwork.
• The resulting color is the color resulting from the blend.

Topmost object with Normal blending (left) compared to Hard Light blending mode (right)
A. Base colors in underlying objects at 100% opacity B. Blend color in topmost object C. Resulting colors after applying the Hard Light
blending mode to the topmost object

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For a video on working with blending modes, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0055. To see an example of how blending
modes and gradients can be used to create comic book-inspired characters with depth and color, see
www.adobe.com/go/learn_ai_tutorials_blendingmode_en and www.adobe.com/go/learn_ai_tutorials_depth_en.
Illustrator provides the following blending modes:
Normal Paints the selection with the blend color, without interaction with the base color. This is the default mode.
Darken Selects the base or blend color—whichever is darker—as the resulting color. Areas lighter than the blend color

are replaced. Areas darker than the blend color do not change.
Multiply Multiplies the base color by the blend color. The resulting color is always a darker color. Multiplying any

color with black produces black. Multiplying any color with white leaves the color unchanged. The effect is similar to
drawing on the page with multiple magic markers.
Color Burn Darkens the base color to reflect the blend color. Blending with white produces no change.
Lighten Selects the base or blend color—whichever is lighter—as the resulting color. Areas darker than the blend color

are replaced. Areas lighter than the blend color do not change.
Screen Multiplies the inverse of the blend and base colors. The resulting color is always a lighter color. Screening with
black leaves the color unchanged. Screening with white produces white. The effect is similar to projecting multiple
slide images on top of each other.
Color Dodge Brightens the base color to reflect the blend color. Blending with black produces no change.
Overlay Multiplies or screens the colors, depending on the base color. Patterns or colors overlay the existing artwork,

preserving the highlights and shadows of the base color while mixing in the blend color to reflect the lightness or
darkness of the original color.
Soft Light Darkens or lightens the colors, depending on the blend color. The effect is similar to shining a diffused

spotlight on the artwork.
If the blend color (light source) is lighter than 50% gray, the artwork is lightened, as if it were dodged. If the blend color
is darker than 50% gray, the artwork is darkened, as if it were burned in. Painting with pure black or white produces a
distinctly darker or lighter area but does not result in pure black or white.
Hard Light Multiplies or screens the colors, depending on the blend color. The effect is similar to shining a harsh

spotlight on the artwork.
If the blend color (light source) is lighter than 50% gray, the artwork is lightened, as if it were screened. This is useful
for adding highlights to artwork. If the blend color is darker than 50% gray, the artwork is darkened, as if it were
multiplied. This is useful for adding shadows to artwork. Painting with pure black or white results in pure black or
white.
Difference Subtracts either the blend color from the base color or the base color from the blend color, depending on

which has the greater brightness value. Blending with white inverts the base-color values. Blending with black
produces no change.
Exclusion Creates an effect similar to but lower in contrast than the Difference mode. Blending with white inverts the

base-color components. Blending with black produces no change.
Hue Creates a resulting color with the luminance and saturation of the base color and the hue of the blend color.
Saturation Creates a resulting color with the luminance and hue of the base color and the saturation of the blend color.

Painting with this mode in an area with no saturation (gray) causes no change.
Color Creates a resulting color with the luminance of the base color and the hue and saturation of the blend color. This
preserves the gray levels in the artwork and is useful for coloring monochrome artwork and for tinting color artwork.

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Luminosity Creates a resulting color with the hue and saturation of the base color and the luminance of the blend
color. This mode creates an inverse effect from that of the Color mode.

Note: The Difference, Exclusion, Hue, Saturation, Color, and Luminosity modes do not blend spot colors—and with most
blending modes, a black designated as 100% K knocks out the color on the underlying layer. Instead of 100% black, specify
a rich black using CMYK values.

Change the blending mode of artwork
1 Select an object or group (or target a layer in the Layers panel).

If you want to change the blending mode of a fill or stroke, select the object, and then select the fill or stroke in the
Appearance panel.
2 In the Transparency panel, choose a blending mode from the pop-up menu.

You can isolate the blending mode to a targeted layer or group in order to leave objects beneath unaffected. To do this,
select the target icon to the right of a group or layer in the Layers panel that contains an object using a blending mode.
In the Transparency panel, select Isolate Blending. (If the Isolate Blending option isn’t visible, select Show Options
from the Transparency panel menu.)

Group (star and circle) with Isolate Blending option deselected (left) compared to selected (right)

To select all objects that use the same blending mode, select an object with that blending mode, or deselect everything
and choose the blending mode in the Transparency panel. Then choose Select > Same > Blending Mode.
For a video on working with blending modes, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0055.

See also
“Targeting items for appearance attributes” on page 350
“Printing and saving transparent artwork” on page 421
“Transparency panel overview” on page 177
“Appearance panel overview” on page 349

Gradients
Use gradient fills to apply a graduated blend of colors as you would apply any other color. Creating a gradient fill is a
good way to create a smooth color gradation across one or more objects. You can save a gradient as a swatch to make
it easy to apply the gradient to multiple objects.
Note: if you want to create a single, multicolored object on which colors can flow in different directions use a mesh object.
For a video on using gradients to enhance your drawings, see www.adobe.com/go/lrvid4017_ai.

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To see examples of using gradients, see www.adobe.com/go/learn_ai_tutorials_gradients_en and
www.adobe.com/go/learn_ai_tutorials_elliptical_gradients_en and
www.adobe.com/go/learn_ai_tutorials_depth_en.
To see an example of using gradients and blending modes, see the tutorial at
www.adobe.com/go/learn_ai_tutorials_blendingmode_en.

See also
Gradients tutorial
“Blending objects” on page 244
“Blend colors” on page 126
“Meshes” on page 188
“Printing gradients, meshes, and color blends” on page 418

Gradient panel and Gradient tool overview
You can use the Gradient panel (Window > Gradient) or the Gradient tool to apply, create, and modify gradients.
Gradient colors are defined by a series of stops along the gradient slider. A stop marks the point at which a gradient
changes from one color to the next, and is identified by a square below the gradient slider. The squares display the color
currently assigned to each gradient stop. With a radial gradient, the leftmost gradient stop defines the center point’s
color fill, which radiates outward to the color of the rightmost gradient stop.
Using the options in the Gradient panel or with the Gradient tool, you can specify the number and location of stops,
angle in which the colors display, aspect ratio of an elliptical gradient, and the opacity of each color.
Gradient panel
In the Gradient panel, the Gradient Fill box displays the current gradient colors and gradient type. When you click the
Gradient Fill box, the selected object is filled with the gradient. Directly to the right of this box is the Gradient menu
that lists all the default and presaved gradients from which you can choose. At the bottom of the list is a Save Gradient
that you can click to save the current gradient settings as a swatch.
button
By default, the panel includes a start and end color box, but you can add more color boxes by clicking anywhere along
the gradient slider. Double-clicking a gradient stop opens the gradient stop color panel where you can choose a color
from the Color panel or Swatches panel.
It’s helpful to show all options when working with the panel (choose Show Options from the panel menu).
G
A
B
C
D
E

Gradient panel
A. Gradient Fill box B. Gradient menu C. Reverse colors D. Midpoints E. Color stop F. Opacity G Panel menu H. Delete stop

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Gradient tool
You use the Gradient tool to add or edit gradients. When you click the Gradient tool in an unselected, nongradient
filled object it fills the object with the last used gradient. The Gradient tool also provides most of the same features as
the Gradient panel. When you select a gradient filled object and select the Gradient tool, a gradient annotator appears
in the object. You can use the gradient annotator to modify the angle, location, and spread of a linear gradient or the
focal point, origin, and spread of a radial gradient. If you position the tool directly over the gradient annotator, it
becomes a slider (same as in the Gradient panel) with gradient stops and location indicators. You can click the gradient
annotator to add new gradient stops, double-click individual gradient stops to specify new colors and opacity settings,
or drag gradient stops to new locations.
When you position the pointer over the gradient annotator and the rotation cursor appears
you can drag to
reposition the angle of the gradient. Dragging the circular end of the gradient slider repositions the origin of the
gradient, and dragging the arrow end increases or decreases the range of the gradient.
To hide or show the gradient annotator, choose View > Hide Gradient Annotator or View > Show Gradient Annotator.

Clicking a gradient stop on the gradient annotator in the object opens a color options dialog box for the gradient.

Apply or edit a gradient
After you apply a gradient to an object, you can quickly and easily replace or edit the gradient.

Apply a gradient to an object
❖ Select an object and do one of the following:

• To apply the last used gradient, click the Gradient box

in the Tools panel or the Gradient Fill box in the

Gradient panel.

• To apply the last used gradient to an unselected object that currently does not contain a gradient, click the object
with the Gradient tool

• To apply a preset or previously saved gradient, choose a gradient from the Gradient menu in the Gradient panel
or click a gradient swatch in the Swatches panel.
To display only gradients in the Swatches panel, click the Show Swatch Kinds button
Gradient Swatches.

and choose Show

Create an elliptical gradient
You can create linear, radial, or elliptical gradients. When you change the aspect ratio for a radial gradient, it becomes
an elliptical gradient for which you can also change the angle and make it tilt.
1 In the Gradient panel, choose Radial from the Type menu.
2 Specify an Aspect Ratio value other than 100%.
3 To tilt the ellipse, specify an Angle value other than 0.

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Modify the colors in a gradient
1 Do one of the following:

• To modify a gradient without filling an object with it, deselect all objects and double-click the Gradient tool or
click the gradient box at the bottom of the Tools panel.

• To modify an object’s gradient, select the object, and open the Gradient panel.
• To modify a preset gradient, select a gradient from the Gradient menu in the Gradient panel. Or, click a gradient
swatch in the Swatches panel, and then open the Gradient panel.
2 To change the color of a stop, do any of the following:

• Double-click a gradient stop (in either the Gradient panel or the selected object), and specify a new color in the
panel that appears. You can change the panel that appears by clicking the Color or Swatches icon along the left.
Click outside the panel to accept the selection.

• Drag a color from the Color panel or the Swatches panel onto the gradient stop.
Note: If you create a gradient between spot colors, you must deselect Convert To Process in the Separation Setup dialog
box to print the gradient in individual spot color separations.
3 To add intermediate colors to a gradient, drag a color from the Swatches panel or the Color panel onto the gradient

slider in the Gradient panel. Or, click anywhere below the gradient slider, and then select a color as you would for
the starting or ending color.
4 To delete an intermediate color, drag the square off the gradient slider or select it and click the Delete button

in the Gradient panel.
5 To adjust the location of colors in the gradient, do any of the following:

• To adjust the midpoints of the gradient’s color stops (the point at which two color stops are 50%), drag a diamond
icon located above the slider or select the icon and enter a value from 0 through 100 in the Location box.

• To adjust the endpoints of the gradient’s color stops, drag the leftmost or rightmost gradient stop below the
gradient slider.

• To reverse the colors in the gradient, click Reverse Gradient

in the Gradient panel.

6 To change the opacity of a gradient color, click a color stop in the Gradient panel, and specify a value in the Opacity

box. When a gradient stop has an Opacity value less than 100%, the stop appears with a
checkered in the gradient slider.

, and the color appears

7 Click the New Swatch button in the Swatches panel to save the new or modified gradient as a swatch. Or, drag the

gradient from the Gradient panel or Tools panel to the Swatches panel.

Apply a gradient across multiple objects
1 Fill all the objects with a gradient.
2 Select all of the objects that you want filled.
3 Using the Gradient tool, do one of the following:

• To create a gradient with one gradient slider, click in the artboard where you want the gradient to start, and drag
to where you want the gradient to end.

• To create a gradient with a gradient slider for every selected object, click in the artboard where you want the
gradient to start, and Alt-drag to where you want the gradient to end. You can then adjust the different gradient
sliders for the different objects. (Multiple gradient sliders are only created for simple paths.)

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Change gradient direction, radius, or origin
Once you have filled an object with a gradient, you can use the Gradient tool and the gradient annotator (slider) inside
the object to modify the gradient by drawing a new fill path. This tool lets you change the direction of a gradient, the
origin, and the beginning point and endpoint of a gradient.
1

Select the gradient-filled object.

2 Select the Gradient tool

and do any of the following:

• To change the direction of a linear gradient, click where you want the gradient to start and drag in the direction
you want it to appear. Or, position the Gradient tool on the gradient annotator in the object, and when the
cursor changes to the rotation icon , drag to set the angle of the gradient.
Note: You can also change the direction by setting a new value in the Angle box in the Gradient panel.

• To change the radius of a radial or elliptical gradient, position the Gradient tool on the arrow of gradient
annotator in the object and drag to set the radius.

• To change the origin of the gradient, position the Gradient tool on the beginning of the gradient annotator in
the object and drag it to the desired location.

• To change the radius and angle at the same time, Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Mac OS) the end point,
and drag to the new location.
Note: If the gradient annotator (gradient slider) does not appear when you position the Gradient tool in an object
that has a gradient, choose View > Show Gradient Annotator.

Changing gradient radius and angle at the same time

Meshes
A mesh object is a multicolored object on which colors can flow in different directions and transition smoothly from
one point to another. When you create a mesh object, multiple lines called mesh lines crisscross the object and provide
a way to easily manipulate color transitions on the object. By moving and editing points on the mesh lines, you can
change the intensity of a color shift, or change the extent of a colored area on the object.
At the intersection of two mesh lines is a special kind of anchor point called a mesh point. Mesh points appear as
diamonds and have all of the same properties as anchor points but with the added capability of accepting color. You
can add and delete mesh points, edit the mesh points, or change the color associated with each mesh point.
Anchor points also appear in the mesh (differentiated by their square rather than diamond shape), and can be added,
deleted, edited, and moved as with any anchor points in Illustrator. Anchor points can be placed on any mesh line; you
can click an anchor point and drag its direction lines to modify it.
The area between any four mesh points is called the mesh patch. You can also change the color of the mesh patch using
the same techniques as changing colors on a mesh point.

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A
B

C
D

Diagram of a mesh object
A. Mesh line B. Mesh patch C. Mesh point D. Anchor point

Create mesh objects
You can create mesh objects from vector objects, with the exception of compound paths and text objects. You cannot
create mesh objects from linked images.
To improve performance and redraw speed, keep the size of mesh objects to a minimum. Complex mesh objects can
greatly reduce performance. Therefore, it is better to create a few small, simple mesh objects than to create a single,
complex mesh object. When converting complex objects, use the Create Mesh command for the best results.
Note: When printing mesh objects, spot colors are preserved for EPS, PDF, and PostScript output.
For more information on creating a gradient mesh object, see the Achieve photo realism with Gradient Mesh tutorial
at www.adobe.com/go/learn_ai_tutorials_gradientmesh.

See also
Gradient mesh
“Apply a gradient to an object” on page 186

Create a mesh object with an irregular pattern of mesh points
1 Select the Mesh tool

, and select a fill color for the mesh points.

2 Click where you want to position the first mesh point.

The object is converted to a mesh object with the minimum number of mesh lines.
3 Continue clicking to add additional mesh points. Shift-click to add a mesh point without changing to the current

fill color.

Create a mesh object with a regular pattern of mesh points
1 Select the object and choose Object > Create Gradient Mesh.
2 Set the number of rows and columns, and select the direction of the highlight from the Appearance menu:
Flat Applies the object’s original color evenly across the surface, resulting in no highlight.
To Center Creates a highlight in the center of the object.
To Edge Creates a highlight on the edges of the object.

3 Enter a percentage of white highlight to apply to the mesh object. A value of 100% applies maximum white highlight

to the object; a value of 0% applies no white highlight to the object.

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Convert a gradient-filled object to a mesh object
1 Select the object and choose Object > Expand.
2 Select Gradient Mesh, and click OK.

The selected object is converted to a mesh object that takes the shape of the gradient, either circular (radial) or
rectangular (linear).

Convert a mesh object back to a path object
❖ Select the mesh object, choose Object > Path > Offset Path, and then enter zero for the offset value.

Edit mesh objects
You can edit a mesh object by adding, deleting, and moving mesh points; changing the color of mesh points and mesh
patches; and converting the mesh object back to a regular object.
❖ Edit a mesh object by doing any of the following:

• To add a mesh point, select the Mesh tool

and select a fill color for the new mesh points. Then click anywhere

in the mesh object.

• To delete a mesh point, Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Mac OS) the mesh point with the Mesh tool.
• To move a mesh point, drag it with the Mesh tool or Direct Selection tool. Shift-drag a mesh point with the Mesh
tool to keep the mesh point on a mesh line. This is a convenient way to move a mesh point along a curved mesh
line without distorting the mesh line.

Dragging to move mesh point (left) compared to Shift- dragging with the Mesh tool to constrain the point to the mesh line (right)

• To change the color of a mesh point or patch, Select the mesh object, and then drag a color from the Color panel
or Swatches panel onto the point or patch. Or, deselect all objects and select a fill color. Then select the mesh object
and use the Eyedropper tool to apply the fill color to mesh points or patches.

Adding color to a mesh point (left) compared to adding color to a mesh patch (right)

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Patterns
About patterns
Illustrator comes with many patterns that you can access in the Swatches panel and in the Illustrator Extras folder on
the Illustrator CD. You can customize existing patterns and design patterns from scratch with any of the Illustrator
tools. Patterns intended for filling objects (fill patterns) differ in design and tiling from patterns intended to be applied
to a path with the Brushes panel (brush patterns). For best results, use fill patterns to fill objects and brush patterns to
outline objects.
When designing patterns, it helps to understand how Adobe Illustrator tiles patterns:

• All patterns tile from left to right from the ruler origin (by default, the bottom left of the artboard) to the opposite
side of the artwork. To adjust where all patterns in your artwork begin tiling, you can change the file’s ruler origin.

• Fill patterns typically have only one tile.
• Brush patterns can consist of up to five tiles—for the sides, outer corners, inner corners, and the beginning and end
of the path. The additional corner tiles enable brush patterns to flow smoothly at corners.

• Fill patterns tile perpendicular to the x axis.
• Brush patterns tile perpendicular to the path (with the top of the pattern tile always facing outward). Also, corner
tiles rotate 90° clockwise each time the path changes direction.

• Fill patterns tile only the artwork within the pattern bounding box—an unfilled and unstroked (non-printing)
rectangle backmost in the artwork. For fill patterns, the bounding box acts as a mask.

• Brush patterns tile artwork within the pattern bounding box and protruding from or grouped with it.

See also
“About fills and strokes” on page 154

Guidelines for constructing pattern tiles
Follow these general guidelines for constructing pattern tiles:

• To make the pattern less complex so that it prints more rapidly, remove any unnecessary detail from the pattern
artwork, and group objects that are painted with the same color so that they are adjacent in the stacking order.

• As you create your pattern tile, zoom in on the artwork to align elements more accurately, and then zoom out from
the artwork for the final selection.

• The more complex the pattern, the smaller should be the selection used to create it; however, the smaller the
selection (and the pattern tile it creates), the more copies are needed to create the pattern. Thus, a 1-inch-square
tile is more efficient than a 1/4-inch-square tile. If you are creating a simple pattern, you can include multiple copies
of the object within the selection intended for the pattern tile.

• To create simple line patterns, layer stroked lines of varying widths and colors, and place an unfilled, unstroked
bounding box behind the lines to create a pattern tile.

• To make an organic or textural pattern appear irregular, vary the tile artwork subtly for a more realistic effect. You
can use the Roughen effect to control variations.

• To ensure smooth tiling, close paths before defining the pattern.
• Enlarge your artwork view and check for flaws before defining a pattern.

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• If you draw a bounding box around the artwork, make sure that the box is a rectangle, that it is the backmost object
of the tile, and that it is unfilled and unstroked. To have Illustrator use this bounding box for a brush pattern, make
sure that nothing protrudes from it.
Follow these additional guidelines when creating brush patterns:

• When possible, confine artwork to an unpainted bounding box so that you can control how the pattern tiles.
• Corner tiles must be square and have the same height as side tiles to align properly on the path. If you plan to use
corner tiles with your brush pattern, align objects in the corner tiles horizontally with objects in the side tiles so that
the patterns tile correctly.

• Create special corner effects for brush patterns using corner tiles.

See also
“Apply a fill color to an object” on page 155

Create pattern swatches
1 Create artwork for the pattern.
2 (Optional) To control the spacing between pattern elements or to clip out portions of the pattern, draw a pattern

bounding box (an unfilled rectangle) around the artwork you want to use as a pattern. Choose Object > Arrange >
Send To Back to make the rectangle the backmost object. To use the rectangle as a bounding box for a brush or fill
pattern, fill and stroke it with None.
3 Use the Selection tool to select the artwork and bounding box (if any) that will make up the pattern tile.
4 Do one of the following:

• Choose Edit > Define Pattern, enter a name in the New Swatch dialog box, and click OK. The pattern displays in
the Swatches panel.

• Drag the artwork to the Swatches panel.

See also
“Guidelines for constructing pattern tiles” on page 191
“About swatches” on page 103

Create seamless geometric patterns
1 Make sure that Smart Guides are turned on and that Snap To Point is selected in the View menu.
2 Select the geometric object. For precise positioning, position the Direct Selection tool on one of the object’s anchor

points.
3 Begin dragging the object vertically from one of its anchor points; then press Alt+Shift (Windows) or Option+Shift

(Mac OS) to copy the object and constrain its movement.
4 When the copy of the object has snapped into place, release the mouse button and then release the keys.
5 Using the Group Selection tool, Shift-click to select both objects, and begin dragging the objects horizontally by one

of their anchor points; then press Alt+Shift (Windows) or Option+Shift (Mac OS) to create a copy and constrain
the move.

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Select both objects (left) and drag to create a copy (right).

6 When the copy of the object has snapped into place, release the mouse button, and then release the keys.
7 Repeat steps 2 through 6 until you’ve built the pattern you want.
8 Use the Rectangle tool

to do one of the following:

• For a fill pattern, draw a bounding box from the center point of the upper left object to the center point of the lower
right object.

• For a brush pattern, draw a bounding box that surrounds the objects and coincides with their outer boundaries. If
the pattern is to be a corner tile, hold down Shift as you drag to constrain the bounding box to a square.

Bounding box for a fill pattern (left) compared to the bounding box for a brush pattern (right)

9 Paint the geometric objects the desired color.
10 Save the geometric objects as a pattern swatch.

Construct irregularly textured patterns
1 Choose View > Snap To Point.
2 Draw a bounding box. If you are creating a brush pattern, skip to step 13.
3 Draw the texture with the objects or lines that intersect only the left side of the bounding rectangle.
4 Using the Direct Selection tool, select the texture and the rectangle, and place the pointer on the lower left corner

of the rectangle.
5 Drag the rectangle to the right; then press Alt+Shift (Windows) or Option+Shift (Mac OS) to create a copy and to

constrain the move.

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Draw texture on the left side of bounding box (left), and then copy texture and rectangle (right).

When the upper left corner point of the copy snaps to the upper right corner point of the bounding box, release the
mouse button, and then release the keys.
If you know the exact dimensions of the bounding box, you can select only the textures and use the Move command
to specify a horizontal move the width of the rectangle. Be sure to click Copy instead of OK in the Move dialog box.
6 Click outside the rectangle to deselect it.
7 Select the right rectangle, and delete it.
8 Continue drawing your texture with only the objects or lines that intersect the top side of the rectangle.
9 When you finish with the top side only, select all of the lines or objects crossing the top side and the bounding box;

then press Alt+Shift (Windows) or Option+Shift (Mac OS) and drag downward to create a copy and to constrain
the move.

Draw texture on top side of bounding box (left), and then copy texture and rectangle (right).

10 When the upper left corner point of the copy snaps to the lower left corner point of the rectangle, release the mouse

button and then the keys.
11 Deselect everything.
12 Select the lower rectangle and any objects that don’t cross the top rectangle, and delete them.
13 Using the Pencil tool, fill the middle of the rectangle with your texture. Be careful not to intersect any of the

rectangle edges. Paint the texture.
14 Save the artwork and rectangle as a pattern swatch.

Defining artwork and rectangle as a pattern (left) compared to filling an area with the pattern (right)

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Create corner tiles for brush patterns
Corner tiles lend special border effects when applying brush patterns. You can create corner tiles from scratch, or you
can use a brush pattern’s side tile as the basis for designing complementary outer and inner (reflected –135°) corner
tiles.
1 Choose File > Open, locate a brush pattern file (supplied with Adobe Illustrator) that you want to use, and click Open.
2 Choose Window > Brushes. Select the tile you want to use, and drag it to the center of your artwork.
3 If the tile does not have a square bounding box, create a box that completely encompasses the artwork, the same

height as the side tile. (Side tiles can be rectangular.) Fill and stroke the box with None, and choose Object >
Arrange > Send To Back to make the box backmost in your artwork. (The bounding box helps you align the new
tile.)
4 Select the tile and the bounding box.
5 To create an outer corner tile, use the Rotate tool

to rotate the tile and its bounding box 180°. Skip this step to

create an inner corner tile.

Pasted tile (left) compared to same tile rotated 180° (right)

6 Using the Rotate tool, Alt+Shift-click (Windows) or Option+Shift-click (Mac OS) the lower left corner of the

bounding box. Enter a value of 90°, and click Copy to create a copy flush left of the first tile. This tile becomes the
corner tile.
7 Using the Selection tool, drag the left tile down by the top right anchor point, pressing Alt+Shift (Windows) or

Option+Shift (Mac OS) to make a copy and constrain the move so that you create a third tile beneath the second.
When the copy’s upper right anchor point snaps to the corner tile’s lower right anchor point, release the mouse
button and Alt+Shift (Windows) or Option+Shift (Mac OS).
You use the third copy for alignment.

Rotate 90° and copy left tile (left), and then Alt-drag (Windows) or Option-drag (Mac OS) a corner tile to make a copy beneath it (right).

8 Select the artwork in the right tile. Drag it to the left, pressing Alt+Shift (Windows) or Option+Shift (Mac OS) so

that the right-tile artwork overlaps that in the corner tile.

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Copy (left) and move upper right tile over corner tile (right).

9 Edit the corner tile so that its artwork lines up vertically and horizontally with the tiles next to it. Select and delete any

portions of the tile that you do not want in the corner, and edit the remaining art to create the final outer corner tile.

Deleting unnecessary elements (left) produces a final outer corner tile (right).

10 Select all of the tile parts including the bounding box.
11 Save the new pattern as a swatch.
12 Double-click the new pattern swatch to bring up the Swatch Options dialog box, name the tile as a variation of the

original (for example, use the suffix “outer”), and click OK.

See also
“Create or modify brushes” on page 172
“Brush options” on page 173

Modify patterns
1 Make sure that nothing is selected in your artwork.
2 In the Swatches panel, select the pattern swatch you want to modify.
3 Drag the pattern swatch onto your artboard, and edit the pattern tile on the artboard.
4 Select the pattern tile, and Alt-drag (Windows) or Option-drag (Mac OS) the modified pattern on top of the old

pattern swatch in the Swatches panel.
The pattern is replaced in the Swatches panel and is updated in the current file.

See also
“Swatches panel overview” on page 103
“Transform an object’s patterns” on page 225

197

Chapter 7: Selecting and arranging objects
Organizing and laying out your artwork in Adobe Illustrator is made easy with tools that enable you to select, position,
and stack objects precisely. Tools are available that let you measure and align objects; group objects so that they are
treated as a single unit; and selectively isolate, lock, or hide objects.

Selecting objects
Options for selecting objects
Before you can modify an object, you need to distinguish it from the objects around it. You do that by selecting the
object. Once you’ve selected an object, or a part of an object, you can edit it.
Illustrator provides the following selection methods and tools:
Isolation mode Lets you quickly isolate a layer, sublayer, path, or group of objects, from all other art in your document.
When in isolation mode, all nonisolated objects in the document appear dimmed and are not selectable or editable.
Layers panel Lets you quickly and precisely select individual or multiple objects. You can select a single object (even

if it’s in a group), all objects within a layer, and entire groups.
Lets you select objects and groups by clicking or dragging over them. You can also select groups
within groups and objects within groups.
Selection tool

Lets you select individual anchor points or path segments by clicking on them, or select an
entire path or group by selecting any other spot on the item. You can also select one or more objects in a group of
objects.
Direct Selection tool

Note: When in outline mode, the Direct Selection tool may select imported graphics that are near the tool’s pointer. To
avoid selecting unwanted graphics, lock or hide the graphics before making the selection.
Lets you select an object within a group, a single group within multiple groups, or a set of
groups within the artwork. Each additional click adds all objects from the next group in the hierarchy.
Group Selection tool

Lasso tool

Lets you select objects, anchor points, or path segments by dragging around all or part of the object.

Magic Wand tool

Lets you select objects of the same color, stroke weight, stroke color, opacity, or blending mode

by clicking the object.
Lets you select faces (areas enclosed by paths) and edges (portions of paths between
intersections) of Live Paint groups.
Live Paint Selection tool

Selection commands (located in the Select menu) Let you quickly select or deselect all objects, and select objects based

on their position relative to other objects. You can select all objects of a specific type or that share specific attributes,
and save or load selections. You can also select all objects in the active artboard.
To temporarily activate the last-used selection tool (Selection tool, Direct-Selection tool, or Group Selection tool) when
using another type of tool, hold down Ctrl (Windows) or Command (Mac OS).
For a video on selecting and manipulating objects, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0034.

See also
“Select paths, segments, and anchor points” on page 67

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Specify selection preferences
Selecting paths and points in complex images can be challenging. Using the Selection and Anchor Display preferences,
you can specify the tolerance for pixel selection and choose other options that can make selection easier for a particular
document.
1 Choose Edit > Preferences > Selection & Anchor Display (Windows) or Illustrator > Preferences > Selection &

Anchor Display (Mac OS).
2 Specify any of the following Selection options:
Tolerance Specifies the pixel range for selecting anchor points. Higher values increase the width of the area around

an anchor point that you can click to select it.
Object Selection By Path Only Specifies whether you can select a filled object by clicking anywhere in the object or

whether you have to click a path.
Snap To Point Snaps objects to anchor points and guides. Specify the distance between the object and anchor point

or guide when the snap occurs.

See also
“Select filled objects” on page 202
“Specify anchor point size preferences” on page 56

Isolate artwork for editing
Isolation mode isolates objects so that you can easily select and edit particular objects or parts of objects. You can
isolate any of the following: layers, sublayers, groups, symbols, clipping masks, compound paths, gradient meshes,
paths, and brushes (for editing brush definitions).
In Isolation mode, you can delete, replace, and add new art relative to the isolated art. As soon as you exit isolation
mode, replaced or new art is added at the same location as the original isolated art. Isolation mode automatically locks
all other objects so that only the objects in isolation mode are affected by the edits you make— you don’t need to worry
about what layer an object is on, nor do you need to manually lock or hide the objects you don’t want affected by your
edits.
Note: When you edit a symbol’s definition, the symbol appears in isolation mode. (See “Edit or redefine a symbol” on
page 86.)

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Isolating the pear group.

When isolation mode is active, the isolated object appears in full color, while the rest of the artwork appears dimmed.
The isolated object’s name and location (sometimes referred to as bread crumbs) appears in the isolation mode border,
and the Layers panel displays only the artwork in the isolated sublayer or group. When you exit isolation mode, the
other layers and groups reappear in the Layers panel.
You can view isolated objects in outline mode or preview mode.
For a video on using layers and isolation mode, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0041.

Isolate a path, object, or group
❖ Do one of the following:

• Double-click the path or group using the Selection tool.
• Select the group, object, or path and click the Isolate Selected Object button

in the Control panel.

• Right-click (Windows) or Control-click (Mac OS) the group and choose Isolate Selected Group.
• Right-click (Windows) or Control-click (Mac OS) the path and choose Isolate Selected Path.
• Select the group, object, or path in the Layers panel and choose Enter Isolation Mode from the Layers panel
menu or click the Isolate Selected Object button in the Control panel.

Isolate a path inside a group
1 Select the path by using the Direct-Selection tool or by targeting it in the Layers panel.
2 Click the Isolate Selected Object button

in the Control panel.

Isolate a layer or sublayer
❖ Select the layer or sublayer in the Layers panel, and choose Enter Isolation Mode from the Layers panel menu.

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Exit isolation mode
❖ Do one of the following:

• Press Esc.
• Click the Exit Isolation Mode button

one or more times (if you’ve isolated a sublayer, one click takes you
back a level, two clicks exits isolation mode).

• Click anywhere in the isolation mode bar.
• Click the Exit Isolation Mode button

in the Control panel.

• Using the Selection tool, double-click outside of the isolated group.
• Right-click (Windows) or Control-click (Mac OS) and choose Exit Isolation Mode.

Select objects using the Layers panel
1 In the Layers panel, locate the object you want to select. You may have to click a toggle arrow to expand a layer or

group, or scroll up or down in the panel to locate the object.
2 Do any of the following:

• To select individual objects, click in the object’s selection column (between the target button and the scroll bar).
Shift-click to add or to remove objects from the selection.

• To select all artwork in a layer or group, click in the layer’s or group’s selection column.
• To select all artwork in a layer based on the currently selected artwork, choose Select > Object > All On Same
Layers.
Selection color boxes appear next to each selected item in the panel.
For a video on working with layers, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0041.

See also
“Layers panel overview” on page 215

Select objects with the Selection tool
1 Select the Selection tool

2 Do either of the following:

• Click an object.
• Drag a marquee around part or all of one or more objects.
3 To add or remove objects from the selection, hold down Shift and click or drag around the objects you want to add

or remove.

Dragging over objects to select them

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When the Selection tool is over an unselected object or group, it changes to . When it is over a selected object or
group, the tool changes to . When it is over an anchor point on an unselected object, a hollow square appears
next to the arrow
.
For a video on selecting objects, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0034.

See also
“Keys for selecting” on page 467

Select objects with the Lasso tool
1 Select the Lasso tool

2 Drag around or across the objects.

Select objects with the Magic Wand tool
Use the Magic Wand tool to select all objects in a document with the same or similar fill attributes (such as color and
pattern).
You can customize the Magic Wand tool to select objects based on stroke weight, stroke color, opacity, or blending
mode. You can also change the tolerances used by the Magic Wand tool to identify similar objects.

See also
“Workspace overview” on page 10

Select objects based on fill color with the Magic Wand tool
1 Select the Magic Wand tool

2 Do one of the following:

• To create a new selection, click the object containing the attributes you want to select. All objects with the same
attributes that were clicked are selected.

• To add to the current selection, press Shift and click another object containing the attributes you want to add.
All objects with the same attributes that were clicked are also selected.

• To subtract from the current selection, press Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac OS) and click the object containing
the attributes you want to subtract. All objects with the same attributes are removed from the selection.

Customize the Magic Wand tool
1 Do one of the following to open the Magic Wand panel:

• Double-click the Magic Wand tool in the Tools panel.
• Choose Window > Magic Wand.
2 To select objects according to their fill color, select Fill Color, and then enter a Tolerance value between 0 and 255

pixels for RGB or 0 and 100 pixels for CMYK.
Low tolerance values select objects that are very similar to the object you click; higher tolerance values select objects
with a broader range of the selected property.

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3 Choose Show Stroke Options from the Magic Wand panel menu, and do any of the following:

• To select objects according to their stroke color, select Stroke Color, and then enter a Tolerance value between
0 and 255 pixels for RGB or 0 and 100 pixels for CMYK.

• To select objects according to their stroke weight, select Stroke Weight, and then enter a Tolerance value
between 0 and 1000 points.
4 Choose Show Transparency Options from the Magic Wand panel menu and do any of the following:

• To select objects according to their transparency or blending mode, select Opacity, and then enter a Tolerance
value between 0 and 100%.

• To select objects according to their blending mode, select Blending Mode.

Select filled objects
The Object Selection By Path Only preference determines whether you can select a filled object by clicking anywhere
within the object’s area with the Selection or Direct Selection tools, or whether you must click a path segment or anchor
point with these tools. By default, this preference is off. In some cases, you may want to turn the preference on—for
example, when you work with overlapping filled objects and you want to easily select underlying objects.
Note: The Object Selection By Path Only preference is not applicable when selecting unfilled objects or when viewing
artwork as outlines. In these cases, you can never select an object by clicking inside the object’s path. (See “View artwork
as outlines” on page 44.)

With Object Selection By Path Only deselected, clicking inside the object and dragging selects and moves an object.

With Object Selection By Path Only selected, dragging with the Direct Selection tool selects points and segments within a marquee.

❖ Choose Edit > Preferences > Selection & Anchor Display (Windows) or Illustrator > Preferences > Selection &

Anchor Display (Mac OS), and select Object Selection By Path Only.

Select groups and objects in a group
Once objects are grouped, selecting any part of the group with the Selection tool or the Lasso tool selects the entire
group. If you are unsure whether an object is a part of a group, select it with the Selection tool.

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The Direct-Selection tool and Lasso tool let you select a single path or object that is part of one group or several groups.
If you have groups of objects within other groups, you can select the next group in the grouping hierarchy by using the
Group-Selection tool. Each successive click adds another subset of grouped objects to the selection.

See also
“Group or ungroup objects” on page 206

Select one or more groups with the Selection tool
1 Select the Selection tool

2 Do one of the following to any object that’s within the group:

• Click the object.
• Drag around part or all of the object.
3 To add or remove a group to the selection, hold down Shift while clicking the group to add or remove.

Select objects and groups within groups with the Selection tool
1 Select the Selection tool

2 Double-click a group. The group appears in isolation mode.
3 Do any of the following:

• Double-click to select further down into the group structure.
Double-clicking is a handy way to select objects (as opposed to faces and edges) within a Live Paint group.

• Click to select an object within the selected group.
• Draw to add an object to the selected group.
4 Double-click outside the group to deselect the group.

Select a single object within a group
1 Do one of the following:

• Select the Group Selection tool
• Select the Lasso tool

, and click the object.

, and drag around or across the object’s path.

• Select the Direct Selection tool

, and click within the object, or drag a marquee around part or all of the object’s path.

2 To add or remove an object or group to or from the selection (with any selection tool), hold down Shift and select

the object to add or remove.

Select objects and groups with the Group Selection tool
1 Select the Group Selection tool

, and click an object that’s within the group you want to select. The object is

selected.
2 To select the object’s parent group, click the same object again.
3 Click the same object again to select additional groups that are grouped with the selected group until you have

selected everything you want to include in your selection.

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The first click with the Group Selection tool selects an object in a group (left); the second click selects the object’s group (right).

The third click adds the next group to the selection (left); the fourth click adds the third group (right).

Select faces and edges in a Live Paint group
You select faces and edges of a Live Paint tool using the Live Paint Selection tool. If you want to select the entire Live
Paint group, simply click it with the Selection tool.
1 Select the Live Paint Selection tool

2 Move the tool over the Live Paint group until the face or edge you want to select is highlighted. (When the Live

Paint Selection tool is over an edge, the tool changes to

3 Do any of the following:

• Click to select the highlighted face or edge.
• Drag a marquee around multiple faces or edges. Any face or edge that is fully or partially enclosed by the
marquee is included in the selection.

• Double-click a face or edge to select all connected faces/edges of the same color (flood select).
• Triple-click a face or edge to select all faces/edges of the same color (select same).
If you have difficulty selecting a small face or edge, magnify the view or set the Live Paint Selection tool options
to select only fills or strokes.
4 To add or remove faces and edges from the selection, hold down Shift and click the faces/edges you want to add or

remove.
To switch to the Eyedropper tool and sample fills and strokes, Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Mac OS) the
fill and stroke you want.

See also
“About Live Paint” on page 161
“Keys for working with Live Paint groups” on page 469

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Live Paint Selection tool options
You access the Live Paint selection tool options by double-clicking the tool in the Tools panel.
Select Fills Selects the faces (the area within edges) of Live Paint groups.
Select Strokes Selects the edges of Live Paint groups.
Highlight Outlines the face or edge the cursor is currently over.
Color Sets the color for the highlight. You can choose a color from the menu or click the paint swatch to specify a
custom color.
Width Specifies how thick to make the selection highlight.

Select the next object in the stacking order
You can select an object above or below a selected object in the stacking order. These commands do not work when in
isolation mode.
❖ To select the nearest object above or below the selected object, choose Select > Next Object Above or Select > Next

Object Below.

Select objects by characteristic
You can select objects based on various groupings, including by formatting attribute, by layer, or by kind, such as brush
strokes or clipping masks.
1 To select all objects in a file, choose Select > All. (To deselect all objects, choose Select > Deselect.)

Note: Using any selection tool, you can also deselect all objects by clicking or dragging at least 2 pixels away from any
object.
2 To select all objects with the same attributes, select one with the attribute you want, choose Select > Same, and then

choose an attribute from the list (Blending Mode, Fill & Stroke, Fill Color, Opacity, Stroke Color, Stroke Weight,
Style, Symbol Instance, or Link Block Series).
You can also use the Magic Wand tool to select all objects with the same color, stroke weight, stroke color, opacity,
or blending mode.
3 To select all objects of a certain kind, deselect all artwork, choose Select > Object, and then choose an object type

(Brush Strokes, Clipping Masks, Stray Points, or Text Objects).

Repeat or invert a selection
• To repeat the last selection command used, choose Select > Reselect.
• To select all unselected objects, and deselect all selected objects, choose Select > Inverse.

Save a selection
1 Select one or more objects, and choose Select > Save Selection.
2 In the Save Selection dialog box, type a name in the Name text box, and click OK.

You can reload a saved selection by choosing the selection name from the bottom of the Select menu. You can also
delete or rename a selection by choosing Select > Edit Selection.

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Grouping and expanding objects
Group or ungroup objects
You can combine several objects into a group so that the objects are treated as a single unit. You can then move or
transform a number of objects without affecting their attributes or relative positions. For example, you might group
the objects in a logo design so that you can move and scale the logo as one unit.
Grouped objects are stacked in succession on the same layer of the artwork and behind the frontmost object in the
group; therefore, grouping may change the layering of objects and their stacking order on a given layer. If you select
objects in different layers and then group them, the objects are grouped in the layer of the topmost selected object.
Groups can also be nested—that is, they can be grouped within other objects or groups to form larger groups. Groups
appear as items in the Layers panel. You can use the Layers panel to move items in and out of groups.
1 Select the objects to be grouped or the group to be ungrouped.
2 Choose either Object > Group or Object > Ungroup.

See also
“Layers panel overview” on page 215

Expand objects
Expanding objects enables you to divide a single object into multiple objects that make up its appearance. For example,
if you expand a simple object, such as a circle with a solid-color fill and a stroke, the fill and the stroke each become a
discrete object. If you expand more complex artwork, such as an object with a pattern fill, the pattern is divided into
all of the distinct paths that created it.
You typically expand an object when you want to modify the appearance attributes and other properties of specific
elements within it. In addition, expanding objects may be helpful when you want to use an object that is native to
Illustrator (such as a mesh object) in a different application that doesn’t recognize the object.

Before (left) and after (right) expanding an object that has a fill and stroke

Expanding is particularly helpful if you are having difficulty printing transparency effects, 3D objects, patterns,
gradients, strokes, blends, flares, envelopes, or symbols.
1 Select the object.
2 Choose Object > Expand.

If the object has appearance attributes applied to it, the Object > Expand command is dimmed. In this case, choose
Object > Expand Appearance and then choose Object > Expand.
3 Set options, and then click OK:
Object Expands complex objects, including live blends, envelopes, symbol sets, and flares.

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Fill Expands fills.
Stroke Expands strokes.
Gradient Mesh Expands gradients to a single mesh object.
Specify Sets the tolerance for color values between color stops. Higher numbers help maintain a smooth color

transition; low numbers can create a more banded appearance.
Hold down Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac OS) as you choose Object > Expand to expand a gradient using the
settings last entered in the Expand dialog box.

Moving, aligning, and distributing objects
Move objects
You can move objects by dragging them with specific tools, by using the arrow keys on the keyboard, or by entering
precise values in a panel or dialog box.
You can use snapping to help you position objects as you move them. For example, you can snap the pointer to guides
and anchor points and snap object boundaries to gridlines. You can also use the Align panel to position objects in
relation to each other.
You can then use the Shift key to constrain the movement of one or more objects so that they move in a precise
horizontal, vertical, or diagonal direction relative to the current orientation of the x and y axes. You can also use the
Shift key to rotate objects in multiples of 45°.

Hold down Shift while dragging or drawing to limit movement to the nearest 45° angle.

See also
“Use the grid” on page 47
“Rotate objects” on page 211
“Transform panel overview” on page 224

Move or duplicate an object by pasting
1 Select one or more objects.
2 Choose Edit > Cut to move the selection or Edit > Copy to duplicate the selection.
3 To paste an object into another file, open the file. (To paste between layers, see “Pasting objects between layers” on

page 209.)
4 Choose one of the following commands:
Edit > Paste DEFINITION

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Pastes the object into the center of the active window.
Edit > Paste In Front Pastes the object directly in front of the selected object.
Edit > Paste In Back Pastes the object directly in back of the selected object.

Move an object by dragging
1 Select one or more objects.
2 Drag the object to a new location.

If a selected object is filled, you can drag from anywhere on the object. If a selected object is unfilled, if you are
viewing artwork as outlines, or if the Object Selection By Path Only preference is selected, you must drag from the
object’s path. (See “Duplicate selections using drag and drop” on page 222.)
You can use the Snap To Point command in the View menu to have the cursor snap to an anchor point or guide
when you drag an object within 2 pixels of the anchor point or guide.

Move an object using the arrow keys
1 Select one or more objects.
2 Press the arrow key for the direction in which you want to move the object. Press Shift+arrow to move the object

ten times the value specified by the Keyboard Increment preference.
The distance the object moves each time you press an arrow key is determined by the Keyboard Increment
preference. The default distance is 1 point (1/72 of an inch, or .3528 millimeter). To change the Keyboard
Increment preference, choose Edit > Preferences > General (Windows) or Illustrator > Preferences > General
(Mac OS).

Move an object by a specific distance
1 Select one or more objects.
2 Choose Object > Transform > Move.

When an object is selected, you can also double-click the Selection, Direct Selection, or Group Selection tool to open
the Move dialog box.
3 Do any of the following:

• To move the object left or right, enter either a negative value (moves left) or a positive value (moves right) in the
Horizontal text box.

• To move the object up or down, enter either a negative value (moves down) or positive value (moves up) in the
Vertical text box.

• To move the object by an angle that’s relative to the object’s x axis, enter either a positive angle
(counterclockwise movement) or a negative angle (clockwise movement) in the Distance or Angle text box. You
can also enter values between 180° and 360°; these values are converted to their corresponding negative values
(for example, a value of 270° is converted to –90°).
4 If the objects contain a pattern fill, select Patterns to move the pattern. Deselect Objects if you want to move the

pattern but not the objects.
5 Click OK, or click Copy to move a copy of the objects.

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90
45

135

180
–135

–45
–90

Directions relative to the x axis

Move an object using x and y coordinates
1 Select one or more objects.
2 In the Transform panel or Control panel, enter new values in either the X or Y text box, or both.

To change the reference point, click a white square on the reference point locator

before you enter the values.

Move multiple objects at once
1 Select one or more objects.
2 Choose Object > Transform > Transform Each.
3 Set the distance you want to move the selected objects in the Move section of the dialog box.
4 Do one of the following:

• To move the objects by the specified amounts, click OK.
• To move the objects randomly, but no more than the specified amounts, select the Random option. For example,
if you draw a brick wall and want the bricks to appear slightly offset from each other instead of perfectly aligned,
you could select the Random option. Then click OK.

Paste an object relative to other objects
1 Select the object you want to paste.
2 Choose Edit > Copy or Edit > Cut.
3 Select the object in front or in back of which you want to paste.
4 Choose Edit > Paste In Front or Edit > Paste In Back.

If you paste more than one object, all pasted objects appear in front or in back of the selected artwork. However,
the relative painting order among the individual pasted objects remains the same.

Pasting objects between layers
The Paste Remembers Layers option determines where artwork is pasted in the layer hierarchy. By default, Paste
Remembers Layers is off, and artwork is pasted into whichever layer is active in the Layers panel. When Paste
Remembers Layers is on, artwork is pasted into the layer from which it was copied, regardless of which layer is active
in the Layers panel.
You set this option by selecting Paste Remembers Layers from the Layers panel menu. A check mark displays when
the option is on.
Turn on Paste Remembers Layers if you’re pasting artwork between documents and you want to automatically place
it into a layer of the same name as that from which it originated. If the target document does not have a layer of the
same name, Illustrator creates a new layer.

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See also
“Layers panel overview” on page 215

Align and distribute objects
You use the Align panel (Window > Align) and the align options in the Control panel to align or distribute selected
objects along the axis you specify. You can use either the object edges or anchor points as the reference point, and you
can align to a selection, an artboard, or a key object. A key object is one specific object in a selection of multiple objects.
The Align options are visible in the Control panel when an object is selected. If they do not appear, choose Align from
the Control panel menu.
By default, Illustrator calculates alignment and distribution based on the objects’ paths. However, when working with
objects that have different stroke weights, you can use the edge of the stroke to calculate alignment and distribution
instead. To do this, select Use Preview Bounds from the Align panel menu.
For a video on aligning and distributing objects, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0035.

See also
“Workspace overview” on page 10
“Using multiple artboards” on page 37

Align or distribute relative to the bounding box of all selected objects
1 Select the objects to align or distribute.
2 In the Align panel or Control panel, select Align To Selection

, and then click the button for the type of

alignment or distribution you want.

Align or distribute relative to one anchor point
1 Click the Direct-Selection tool, hold down Shift, and select the anchor points you want to align or distribute. The

last anchor point you select becomes the key anchor point.
The Align To Key Anchor

option is automatically selected in the Align panel and Control panel.

2 In the Align panel or Control panel, click the button for the type of alignment or distribution you want.

Align or distribute relative to a key object
1 Select the objects to align or distribute.
2 Click again on the object you want to use as a key object (you don’t need to hold down Shift as you click this time).

A blue outline appears around the key object, and Align To Key Object
panel and Align panel.

is automatically selected in the Control

3 In the Align panel or Control panel, click the button for the type of alignment or distribution you want.

Note: To stop aligning and distributing relative to an object, click again on the object to remove the blue outline, or
choose Cancel Key Object from the Align panel menu.

Align or distribute relative to an artboard
1 Select the objects to align or distribute.
2 Using the Selection tool, Shift-click in the artboard you want to use to activate it. The active artboard has a darker

outline than the others.

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3 In the Align panel or Control panel, select Align To Artboard

, and then click the button for the type of

alignment or distribution you want.

Distribute objects by specific amounts
You can distribute objects using exact distances between their paths.
1 Select the objects to distribute.
2 In the Align panel, enter the amount of space to appear between objects in the Distribute Spacing text box.

If the Distribute Spacing options aren’t displayed, select Show Options from the panel menu.
3 Use the Selection tool

to click the path of the object you want the other objects to distribute around. The object
you click will remain fixed in its position.

4 Click either the Vertical Distribute Space button or the Horizontal Distribute Space button.

Rotating and reflecting objects
Rotate objects
Rotating an object turns it around a fixed point that you designate. The default reference point is the object’s center
point. If you have multiple objects in a selection, the objects will rotate around a single reference point, which is the
center point of the selection or bounding box by default. To rotate each object around its own center point, use the
Transform Each command.

Results of Rotate tool (left) compared to Transform Each command (right)

See also
“Transform panel overview” on page 224
“Move objects” on page 207
“Scale objects” on page 226

Rotate an object using the bounding box
1 Select one or more objects.
2 With the Selection tool

pointer changes to

, move the pointer outside the bounding box and near a bounding box handle so that the
, and then drag.

Rotate an object with the Free Transform tool
1 Select one or more objects.
2 Select the Free Transform tool

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3 Position the pointer anywhere outside the bounding box so that the pointer changes to

, and then drag.

Rotate an object with the Rotate tool
1 Select one or more objects.
2 Select the Rotate tool

3 Do any of the following:

• To rotate the object around its center point, drag in a circular motion anywhere in the document window.
• To rotate the object around a different reference point, click once anywhere in the document window to
reposition the reference point. Then move the pointer away from the reference point and drag in a circular
motion.

• To rotate a copy of the object instead of the object itself, hold down Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac OS) after
you start to drag.
For finer control, drag farther from the object’s reference point.

Rotate an object by a specific angle
You can control the exact angle of rotation with the Rotate command.
1 Select one or more objects.
2 Do one of the following:

• To rotate around a different reference point, select the Rotate tool. Then Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click
(Mac OS) where you want the reference point to be in the document window.

• To rotate around the center point, choose Object > Transform > Rotate, or double-click the Rotate tool.
3 Enter the rotation angle in the Angle text box. Enter a negative angle to rotate the object clockwise; enter a positive

angle to rotate the object counterclockwise.
4 If the objects contain a pattern fill, select Patterns to rotate the pattern. Deselect Objects if you want to rotate the

pattern but not the objects.
5 Click OK, or click Copy to scale a copy of the objects.

To place multiple copies of the object in a circular pattern around a reference point, move the reference point away
from the center of the object, click Copy, and then repeatedly choose Object > Transform > Transform Again.

Rotate an object with the Transform panel
1 Select one or more objects.
2 Do one of the following:

• To rotate the object around its center point, enter a value for the Angle option in the panel.
• To rotate the object around a different reference point, click a white square on the reference point locator
the panel, and enter a value for the Angle option.
You can also call up the Transform panel by clicking X, Y, W, or H in the Control panel.

Rotate multiple objects individually
1 Select the objects to rotate.
2 Choose Object > Transform > Transform Each.

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3 Do either of the following in the Rotate section of the dialog box:

• Click the angle icon or drag the angle line around the icon.
• In the Angle text box, enter an angle between –360° and 360°.
4 Click OK, or click Copy to rotate a copy of each object.

Rotate the x and y axes of a document
By default, the x and y axes are parallel to the horizontal and vertical sides of the document window.
1 Choose Edit > Preferences > General (Windows) or Illustrator > Preferences > General (Mac OS).
2 Specify an angle in the Constrain Angle text box. A positive angle rotates the axes counterclockwise; a negative

angle rotates the axes clockwise.
Rotating the axes is useful if your artwork consists of elements that are rotated to the same angle, such as a logo and
text displayed on a 20° angle. Instead of rotating each element you add to the logo, you can simply rotate the axes
by 20°. Everything you draw is created along the new axes.
y

20
x

Object aligned with default axes (left) compared to alignment with axes rotated 20° (right)

The following objects and actions are not affected by the new axes:

• Objects that already exist
• Rotating and blending
• Drawing with the Pencil or Live Trace tool

Reflect or flip objects
Reflecting an object flips the object across an invisible axis that you specify. You can reflect objects using the Free
Transform tool, the Reflect tool, or the Reflect command. If you want to specify an axis from which to reflect, use the
Reflect tool.
To create a mirror image of an object, you can copy while reflecting.

Reflect an object with the Free Transform tool
1 Select the object to reflect.
2 Select the Free Transform tool

3 Do one of the following:

• Drag a handle of the bounding box past the opposite edge or handle until the object is at the desired level of
reflection.

• To maintain the object’s proportions, hold down Shift while dragging a corner handle past the opposite handle.

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Reflect an object with the Reflect tool
1 Select the object.
2 Select the Reflect tool

3 To draw the invisible axis across which you want the object to reflect, click anywhere in the document window to

set one point of the axis. The pointer changes to an arrowhead.
4 Position the pointer at another point to define the invisible axis, and do one of the following:

• Click to set the second point of the invisible axis. When you click, the selected object flips over the defined axis.

Click to set one point of the axis (left), then click again to set the other axis point and reflect the object across the axis (right).

• To reflect a copy of the object, hold down Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac OS) and click to set the second point
of the invisible axis.

• Adjust the axis of reflection by dragging instead of clicking. Shift-drag to constrain the angle by 45°. As you drag,
the invisible axis of reflection rotates around the point you clicked in step 3 and an outline of the object appears
reflected. When the outline is in the desired position, release the mouse button.

Dragging the second point of the reflect axis to rotate the axis

For finer control, drag farther from the object’s reference point.

Reflect by specifying an axis
1 Select the object to reflect.

• To reflect the object around the object’s center point, choose Object > Transform > Reflect or double-click the
Reflect tool

• To reflect the object around a different reference point, Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Mac OS)
anywhere in the document window.
2 In the Reflect dialog box, select the axis across which you want the object to be reflected. You can reflect an object

across a horizontal, a vertical, or an angled axis.
3 If the object contains patterns and you want to reflect the patterns, select Patterns. (To reflect only the patterns,

deselect Objects.)
4 To preview the effect before you apply it, select Preview.

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5 Do one of the following:

• To reflect the object, click OK.
• To reflect a copy of the object, click Copy.

Using layers
About layers
When creating complex artwork, it’s a challenge to keep track of all the items in your document window. Small items
get hidden under larger items, and selecting artwork becomes difficult. Layers provide a way to manage all the items
that make up your artwork. Think of layers as clear folders that contain artwork. If you reshuffle the folders, you
change the stacking order of the items in your artwork. You can move items between folders and create subfolders
within folders.
The structure of layers in your document can be as simple or complex as you want it to be. By default, all items are
organized in a single, parent layer. However, you can create new layers and move items into them, or move elements
from one layer to another at any time. The Layers panel provides an easy way to select, hide, lock, and change the
appearance attributes of artwork. You can even create template layers, which you can use to trace artwork, and
exchange layers with Photoshop.
For a video on using layers and groups, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0041. For information on using layers to create
animations, see www.adobe.com/go/learn_ai_tutorials_layers_en.

See also
Using layers to create animations

Layers panel overview
You use the Layers panel (Window > Layers) to list, organize, and edit the objects in a document. By default, every new
document contains one layer, and each object you create is listed under that layer. However, you can create new layers
and rearrange items to best suit your needs.
By default, Illustrator assigns a unique color (up to nine colors) to each layer in the Layers panel. The color displays
next to the layer name in the panel. The same color displays in the illustration window in the bounding box, path,
anchor points, and center point of a selected object. You can use this color to quickly locate an object’s corresponding
layer in the Layers panel, and you can change the layer color to suit your needs.
When an item in the Layers panel contains other items, a triangle appears to the left of the item’s name. Click the
triangle to show or hide the contents. If no triangle appears, the item contains no additional items.
A B

C D

Layers panel
A. Visibility column B. Edit column C. Target column D. Selection column

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The Layers panel provides columns to the left and right of the listings. Click in a column to control the following
characteristics:
Visibility column Indicates whether items in the layers are visible

template

layers or outline

or hidden (blank space), or whether they are

layers.

Edit column Indicates whether items are locked or unlocked. The lock icon

indicates that the item is locked and
cannot be edited; a blank space indicates that the item is unlocked and can be edited.
Target column Indicates whether items are targeted for application of effects and edit attributes in the Appearance

panel. When the target button appears as a double ring icon (either
indicates that the item is not targeted.

), the item is targeted; a single ring icon

Selection column Indicates whether items are selected. A color box appears when an item is selected. If an item, such
as a layer or group, contains some objects that are selected and other objects that are unselected, a smaller selection
color box appears next to the parent item. If all of the objects within the parent item are selected, the selection color
boxes are the same size as the marks that appear next to selected objects.

You can use the Layers panel to display some items as outlines and other items as they will appear in the final artwork.
You also can dim linked images and bitmap objects to make it easier to edit artwork on top of the image. This is
especially useful when tracing a bitmap image.

Display options for layered artwork
A. Object displayed in Outline view B. Bitmap object dimmed to 50% C. Selected object displayed in Preview view

See also
“Workspace overview” on page 10
“View artwork as outlines” on page 44
“Trace artwork” on page 77

Change the display of the Layers panel
1 Choose panel Options from the Layers panel menu.
2 Select Show Layers Only to hide paths, groups, and collective elements in the Layers panel.
3 For Row Size, select an option to specify the height of rows. (To specify a custom size, enter a value between 12 and

100.)
4 For Thumbnails, select a combination of layers, groups, and objects for which to display thumbnail previews.

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Note: Displaying thumbnails in the Layers panel may result in slow performance when you are working with complex
files. Turn off layer thumbnails to improve performance.

Set layer and sublayer options
1 Do one of the following:

• Double-click the item name in the Layers panel.
• Click the item name and choose Options For from the Layers panel menu.
• Choose New Layer or New Sublayer from the Layers panel menu.
2 Specify any of the following:
Name Specifies the name of the item as it appears in the Layers panel.
Color Specifies the layer’s color setting. You can either choose a color from the menu or double-click the color
swatch to select a color.
Template Makes the layer a template layer.
Lock Prevents changes to the item.
Show Displays all artwork contained in the layer on the artboard.
Print Makes the artwork contained in the layer printable.
Preview Displays the artwork contained in the layer in color instead of as outlines.
Dim Images Reduces the intensity of linked images and bitmap images contained in the layer to the specified

percentage.

Create a new layer
1 In the Layers panel, click the name of the layer above which (or in which) you want to add the new layer.
2 Do one of the following:

• To add a new layer above the selected layer, click the Create New Layer button

in the Layers panel.

• To create a new sublayer inside the selected layer, click the Create New Sublayer button

in the Layers panel.

To set options when you create a new layer, choose New Layer or New Sublayer from the Layers panel menu.

Move an object to a different layer
1 Select the object.
2 Do one of the following:

• Click the name of the desired layer in the Layers panel. Then choose Object > Arrange > Send To Current Layer.
• Drag the selected-art indicator

, located at the right of the layer in the Layers panel, to the layer you want.

You can move objects or layers into a new layer by selecting them and choosing Collect In New Layer from the
Layers panel menu. Hold down Ctrl (Windows) or Command (Mac OS) to select nonadjacent items; hold down
Shift to select adjacent items.

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Release items to separate layers
The Release To Layers command redistributes all of the items in a layer into individual layers and can build new objects
in each layer based on the object’s stacking order. You can use this feature to prepare files for web animation work.
1 In the Layers panel, click the name of a layer or group.
2 Do one of the following:

• To release each item to a new layer, choose Release To Layers (Sequence) from the Layers panel menu.
• To release items into layers and duplicate objects to create a cumulative sequence, choose Release To Layers
(Build) from the Layers panel menu. The bottommost object appears in each of the new layers, and the topmost
object only appears in the topmost layer. For example, assume Layer 1 contains a circle (bottommost object), a
square, and a triangle (topmost object). This command creates three layers—one with a circle, square, and
triangle; one with a circle and square; and one with just a circle. This is useful for creating cumulative animation
sequences.

Release To Layers (Build) command creates new layers.

Consolidate layers and groups
Merging and flattening layers are similar in that they both let you consolidate objects, groups, and sublayers into a
single layer or group. With merging, you can select which items you want to consolidate; with flattening, all visible
items in the artwork are consolidated in a single layer. With either option, the stacking order of the artwork remains
the same, but other layer-level attributes, such as clipping masks, aren’t preserved.

• To merge items into a single layer or group, hold down Ctrl (Windows) or Command (Mac OS) and click the
names of the layers or groups that you want to merge. Alternatively, hold down Shift to select all listings in between
the layer or group names you click. Then, select Merge Selected from the Layers panel menu. Note that items will
be merged into the layer or group that you selected last.
Layers can only merge with other layers that are on the same hierarchical level in the Layers panel. Likewise,
sublayers can only merge with other sublayers that are within the same layer and at the same hierarchical level.
Objects can’t be merged with other objects.

• To flatten layers, click the name of the layer into which you want to consolidate the artwork. Then select Flatten
Artwork from the Layers panel menu.

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Locate an item in the Layers panel
When you select an item in your document window, you can quickly locate the corresponding item in the Layers panel
using the Locate Object command. This command is especially helpful for locating items in collapsed layers.
1 Select an object in the document window. If you select more than one object, the frontmost object in the stacking

order will be located.
2 Choose Locate Object from the Layers panel menu. This command changes to Locate Layer if the Show Layers Only

panel option is selected.

Locking, hiding, and deleting objects
Lock or unlock objects or layers
Locking objects prevents you from selecting and editing them. You can quickly lock multiple paths, groups, and
sublayers by locking their parent layer.

• To lock objects, click the edit column button (to the right of the eye icon) in the Layers panel for the object or layer
you want to lock. Drag across multiple edit column buttons to lock multiple items. Alternatively, select the objects
you want to lock, and then choose Object > Lock > Selection.

• To unlock objects, click the lock icon

in the Layers panel for the object or layer you want to unlock.

You can also use the following commands to lock and unlock objects:

• To lock all objects that overlap the area of the selected object and that are in the same layer, select the object, and
then choose Object > Lock > All Artwork Above.

• To lock all layers other than the layer that contains a selected item or group, choose Object > Lock > Other Layers
or choose Lock Others from the Layers panel menu.

• To lock all the layers, select all the layers in the Layers panel, and then choose Lock All Layers from the panel menu.
• To unlock all objects in the document, choose Object > Unlock All.
• To unlock all objects within a group, select an unlocked and visible object within the group. Hold down Shift+Alt
(Windows) or Shift+Option (Mac OS) and choose Object > Unlock All.

• If you locked all layers, choose Unlock All Layers from the Layers panel menu to unlock them.
Note: The Lock menus are disabled when you’re in isolation mode.

See also
“Layers panel overview” on page 215

Hide or show objects or layers
Choose from the following methods:

• In the Layers panel, click the eye icon

next to the item you want to hide. Click again to redisplay the item. If you
hide a layer or group, all items in the layer or group are hidden.

• Drag across multiple eye icons to hide multiple items.
• Select an object you want to hide, and choose Object > Hide > Selection.
• To hide all objects above an object in a layer, select the object and choose Object > Hide > All Artwork Above.

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• To hide all unselected layers, choose Hide Others from the Layers panel menu, or Alt-click (Windows) or
Option-click (Mac OS) the eye icon for the layer you want to show. Alternatively, to hide all other layers other than
the layer that contains the selected object or group, choose Object > Hide > Other Layers.

• To show all objects, choose Object > Show All. All previously hidden objects are shown. Any previously selected
objects are selected.

• To show all layers and sublayers, select Show All Layers from the Layers panel menu. Hidden objects aren’t
displayed by this command, only hidden layers.

• To show all objects within a group, select an unlocked and visible object in the group. Hold down Shift+Alt
(Windows) or Shift+Option (Mac OS) and choose Object > Show All.
Note: The Show All and Hide menus are disabled when you’re in isolation mode.

See also
“Layers panel overview” on page 215

Delete objects
❖ Do one of the following:

• Select the objects and then press Backspace (Windows) or Delete.
• Select the objects and then choose Edit > Clear or Edit > Cut.
• Select the items you want to delete in the Layers panel, and then click the Delete icon

. Alternatively, drag the
item name in the Layers panel to the Delete icon in the panel, or choose Delete “Layer name” from the Layers
panel menu.

Deleting a layer also deletes all artwork that is in the layer. For example, if you delete a layer that contains sublayers,
groups, paths, and clipping sets, all those elements will be deleted along with the layer.
Note: A document must have a least one layer. If a document has only one layer, the Delete icon and Delete command
are not available.

See also
“Layers panel overview” on page 215

Stacking objects
Specify where to add new objects in the stacking order
Illustrator stacks successively drawn objects, beginning with the first object drawn. How objects are stacked
determines how they display when they overlap. You can change the stacking order (also called the painting order) of
objects in your artwork at any time using either the Layers panel or Object > Arrange commands.
❖ In the Layers panel, do either of the following:

• Click the name of the object above which you want to add the new object.
• To add the new object to the top of a layer or group, click the layer or group name.
In Windows, Alt+Ctrl-click anywhere in the layer list, and type the name or number of the layer you want to
select. (For example, you can type 30 to go to layer 30.)

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Change the stacking order using the Layers panel
The stacking order of objects corresponds to the hierarchy of items in the Layers panel. Artwork at the top of the Layers
panel is at the front of the stacking order, while artwork at the bottom of the Layers panel is at the back of the stacking
order. Within a layer, objects are also stacked hierarchically. By creating multiple layers in your artwork, you can
control how overlapping objects are displayed.
❖ Do any of the following:

• Drag the item’s name and release the mouse button when black insertion marks appear in the desired position.
Black insertion marks appear either between two other items in the panel or on the left and right edges of a layer
or group. Items that are released over a layer or group are moved above all other objects in the item.

• Click in the item’s selection column (between the target button and the scroll bar), drag the selection color box
to a different item’s selection color box, and release the mouse button. If the item’s selection color box is dragged
to an object, the item is moved above the object; if it’s dragged to a layer or group, the item is moved above all
other objects in the layer or group.

• To reverse the order of items in the Layers panel, hold down Ctrl (Windows) or Command (Mac OS) and click
the names of the items whose order you want to reverse. The items must be at the same level in the layer
hierarchy. For example, you can select two top-level layers, but you cannot select two paths that are in different
layers. Then select Reverse Order from the Layers panel menu.
Note: You cannot move a path, group, or collective element to the top position in the Layers panel—only layers can
reside at the top of the layer hierarchy.

See also
“Layers panel overview” on page 215

Change the stacking order using commands
❖ Do any of the following:

• To move an object to the top or bottom position in its group or layer, select the object you want to move and
choose Object > Arrange > Bring To Front or Object > Arrange > Send To Back.

• To move an object by one object to the front or one object to the back of a stack, select the object you want to
move, and choose Object > Arrange > Bring Forward or Object > Arrange > Send Backward.
For an example of how changing the stacking order in an illustration changes the design, see
www.adobe.com/go/learn_ai_tutorials_depth_en. This tutorial is available only in English.

Duplicating objects
Duplicate objects by dragging
1 Select one or more objects.
2 Select the Selection, Direct Selection, or Group Selection.
3 Alt-drag (Windows) or Option-drag (Mac OS) the selection (but not a handle on the bounding box).

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Duplicate objects by using the Layers panel
You can quickly duplicate objects, groups, and entire layers by using the Layers panel.
1 Select the items you want to duplicate in the Layers panel.
2 Do one of the following:

• Choose Duplicate “Layer name” from the Layers panel menu.
• Drag the item in the Layers panel to the New Layer button

at the bottom of the panel.

• Start to drag the item to a new position in the Layers panel, and then hold down Alt (Windows) or Option
(Mac OS). Release the mouse button when the indicator is in the position where you want to place the duplicated
item. If you release the mouse button when the indicator is pointing to a layer or group, the duplicated item is
added to the top of the layer or group. If you release the mouse button when the indicator is between items, the
duplicated item will be added in the specified position.

Duplicate selections using drag and drop
You can use the Clipboard to transfer selections between an Illustrator file and other Adobe software including Adobe
Photoshop, Adobe GoLive®, and Adobe InDesign. The Clipboard is particularly useful for importing paths because
paths are copied to the Clipboard as PostScript language descriptions. Artwork copied to the Clipboard is pasted in
PICT format in most applications. However, some applications take the PDF version (such as InDesign) or the AICB
version. PDF preserves transparency; AICB lets you specify whether you want to preserve the overall appearance of
the selection or copy the selection as a set of paths (which can be useful in Photoshop).
To specify copying preferences, choose Edit > Preferences > File Handling & Clipboard (Windows) or Illustrator >
Preferences > File Handling & Clipboard (Mac OS). Select PDF, AICB, or both. If you select AICB, select Preserve
Paths to discard any transparency in the copied artwork or Preserve Appearance And Overprints to flatten any
transparency, maintain the copied artwork’s appearance, and preserve overprinted objects.

Drag and drop artwork into a Photoshop document
1 Select the artwork you want to copy.
2 Open the Photoshop document into which you want to copy the selection.
3 Do one of the following:

• To copy the artwork into Photoshop as bitmap images, drag the selection toward the Photoshop window, and
when a black outline appears, release the mouse button. To position the selection in the center of the Photoshop
image, hold down Shift before dragging the selection. By default, selected objects are copied as bitmap images
to the active layer.

• To copy vector artwork into Photoshop as paths, hold down Ctrl (Windows) or Command (Mac OS), and drag
the selection to the Photoshop document. When you release the mouse button, the selection becomes a
Photoshop path.

Drag and drop artwork from Photoshop into Illustrator
1 Open the Photoshop document from which you want to copy.
2 Select the artwork you want to copy.
3 Select the Move tool

and drag the selection from Photoshop into the Illustrator file.

Drag and drop artwork to the desktop (Mac OS only)
1 Select the artwork you want to copy.

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2 Drag the selection onto the desktop.

Selections are copied to the desktop as a picture clipping, which can be dragged and dropped into the desired
document. Picture clippings are converted to PICT format when dragged to the desktop.

Offset duplicate objects
You can create a replica of an object, set off from the selected object by a specified distance, by using the Offset Path
command or Offset Path effect. Offsetting objects is useful when you want to create concentric shapes or make many
replications of an object with regular distances between each replication.
You can offset an object’s path relative to its original path by using the Offset Path effect in the Effect menu. This effect
is useful for converting a mesh object into a regular path. For example, if you have released an envelope, or want to
convert a mesh shape for use in another application, apply the offset path command with an offset value of 0, and then
delete the mesh shape. You can then edit the remaining path.

See also
“About effects” on page 354
“Stroke an object” on page 155

Offset objects using the Offset Path command
1 Select one or more objects.
2 Choose Object > Path > Offset Path.
3 Specify the offset distance, line join type, and miter limit.
4 Click OK.

Offset objects using the Offset Path effect
1 Select one or more objects.
2 Choose Effect > Path > Offset Path.
3 Specify the offset distance, line join type, and miter limit.
4 Click OK.

Offset objects using keyboard
1 Select one or more objects.
2 Hold down Alt and press an arrow key.

A duplicate object is created, and is offset by the Keyboard Increment value specified in the General preferences. The
location of the new object is determined by the arrow key you used.
Note: If a duplicate is not created, make sure that the Keyboard Increment preference is set to a value other than zero.

224

Chapter 8: Reshaping objects
You can easily modify an object’s size or shape in Adobe Illustrator by using tools and commands, or by applying
effects and masks. You can also easily create 3D objects.

Transforming objects
Transforming
Transforming encompasses moving, rotating, reflecting, scaling, and shearing objects. You can transform objects using
the Transform panel, Object > Transform commands, and specialized tools. You can also perform many types of
transformations by dragging the bounding box for a selection.
Sometimes you may want to repeat the same transformation several times, especially when you are copying objects.
The Transform Again command in the Object menu lets you repeat a move, scale, rotate, reflect, or shear operation as
many times as you want, until you perform a different transform operation.
Use the Info panel to view the current dimensions and position of your selection as you transform it.
For a video on scaling, skewing, and rotating objects, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0040.

See also
“Transform panel overview” on page 224
“Scale objects” on page 226
“Shear objects” on page 228
“Move objects” on page 207
“Rotate objects” on page 211
“Reflect or flip objects” on page 213

Transform panel overview
The Transform panel (Window > Transform) displays information about the location, size, and orientation of one or
more selected objects. By typing new values, you can modify the selected objects, their pattern fills, or both. You can
also change the transformation reference point and lock the object’s proportions.
All values in the panel refer to the bounding boxes of the objects except for the X and Y values, which refer to the
selected reference point.
Note: The reference point locator in the Transform panel specifies an object’s reference point only when you transform
the object by changing the values in the panel. Other methods of transforming (such as using the Scale tool) use the object’s
center point or the pointer location as the reference point.

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A
B
C

Transform panel
A. Reference point locator B. Panel menu C. Lock proportions icon

Transform an object’s patterns
When you move, rotate, reflect (flip), scale, or shear an object that is filled with a pattern, you can transform just the
object, just the pattern, or both the object and pattern. Once you transform an object’s fill pattern, all patterns that you
subsequently apply to that object are transformed the same way.

• To specify how you want to transform patterns when using the Transform panel, select an option from the panel
menu: Transform Object Only, Transform Pattern Only, or Transform Both.

• To specify how you want to transform patterns when using a transform command, set the Objects and Patterns
options in the corresponding dialog box. For example, select Patterns and deselect Objects if you want to transform
the pattern but not the object.

• To transform patterns but not objects when using a transform tool, hold down the tilde key (~) while dragging. The
borders of the object appear to be transformed, but when you release the mouse button, the borders snap back to
their original configuration, leaving only the pattern transformed.

• To prevent patterns from transforming when using transform tools, choose Edit > Preferences > General
(Windows) or Illustrator > Preferences > General (Mac OS) and deselect Transform Pattern Tiles.

• To return an object’s fill pattern to its original state, fill the object with a solid color, and then reselect the desired
pattern.

Transform using the bounding box
When you select one or more objects with the Selection tool, a bounding box displays around them. Use the bounding
box to easily move, rotate, duplicate, and scale objects by dragging the object or a handle (one of the hollow squares
along the bounding box).

• To hide the bounding box, choose View > Hide Bounding Box.
• To show the bounding box, choose View > Show Bounding Box.
• To reorient the bounding box after you rotate it, choose Object > Transform > Reset Bounding Box.

Selected objects before (left) compared to after (right) scaling using the bounding box

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Scaling, shearing, and distorting objects
Scale objects
Scaling an object enlarges or reduces it horizontally (along the x axis), vertically (along the y axis), or both. Objects
scale relative to a reference point which varies depending on the scaling method you choose. You can change the
default reference point for most scaling methods, and you can also lock the proportions of an object.
By default, strokes and effects are not scaled along with objects. To scale strokes and effects, choose Edit >
Preferences > General (Windows) or Illustrator > Preferences > General (Mac OS), and select Scale Strokes & Effects.
If you want to choose whether to scale strokes and effects on a case-by-case basis, use the Transform panel or the Scale
command to scale objects.

The Scale Strokes & Effects option scales the object, the drop shadow effect, and the stroke (left); only the object scales when this option is off
(right).

See also
“Reshaping tool gallery” on page 26
“Transform using the bounding box” on page 225
“Transform panel overview” on page 224

Scale objects with the Scale tool
1 Select one or more objects.
2 Select the Scale tool

3 Do any of the following:

• To scale relative to the object’s center point, drag anywhere in the document window until the object is the desired size.
• To scale relative to a different reference point

, click where you want the reference point to be in the document
window, move the pointer away from the reference point, and then drag until the object is the desired size.

• To maintain the object’s proportions as it scales, hold down Shift as you drag diagonally.
• To scale the object along a single axis, hold down Shift as you drag vertically or horizontally.
For finer control over scaling, start dragging farther from the reference point.

Scale objects with the bounding box
1 Select one or more objects.
2 Select the Selection tool or the Free Transform tool

3 Drag a bounding box handle until the object is the desired size.

Objects scale relative to the opposite handle of the bounding box.

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4 Do any of the following to control the scaling behavior:

• To maintain the object’s proportions, hold down Shift as you drag.
• To scale relative to the object’s center point, hold down Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac OS) as you drag.

Scale objects to a specific width and height
1 Select one or more objects.
2 In the Transform panel, enter a new value in the Width (W) or Height (H) box, or both.

You can do any of the following before you enter a value to control the scaling behavior:

• To maintain the objects’ proportions, click the lock proportions button

• To change the reference point for scaling, click a white square on the reference point locator

• To scale stroked paths and any size-related effects along with the object, select Scale Strokes & Effects from the panel
menu.
You can also maintain proportions by entering a value in the W or H box, and then pressing Ctrl (Windows) or
Command (Mac OS) while you press Enter.

Scale objects by a specific percentage
1 Select one or more objects.
2 Do one of the following:

• To scale from the center, choose Object > Transform > Scale or double-click the Scale tool

• To scale relative to a different reference point, select the Scale tool and Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click
(Mac OS) where you want the reference point to be in the document window.
3 In the Scale dialog box, do one of the following:

• To maintain the object’s proportions as it scales, select Uniform, and enter a percentage in the Scale text box.
• To scale the height and width separately, select Non-Uniform, and enter a percentage in the Horizontal and Vertical
text boxes.
The scale factors are relative to the reference point and can be negative or positive.
4 To scale stroked paths and any size-related effects along with the object, select Scale Strokes & Effects.
5 If the objects contain a pattern fill, select Patterns to scale the pattern. Deselect Objects if you want to scale the

pattern but not the objects.
6 Click OK, or click Copy to scale a copy of the objects.

Scale multiple objects
1 Select the objects.
2 Choose Object > Transform > Transform Each.
3 Set percentages for horizontal and vertical scaling in the Scale section of the dialog box.
4 To change the reference point, click a white square on the reference point locator
5 Click OK, or click Copy to scale a copy of each object.

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Shear objects
Shearing an object slants, or skews, the object along the horizontal or vertical axis, or a specified angle that’s relative
to a specified axis. Objects shear relative to a reference point which varies depending on the shearing method you
choose and can be changed for most shearing methods. You can lock one dimension of an object as you shear it, and
you can shear one object or multiple objects simultaneously.
Shearing is useful for creating cast shadows.

Shearing relative to the center (left) compared to shearing relative to a user-defined reference point (right)

See also
“Reshaping tool gallery” on page 26
“Transform panel overview” on page 224

Shear objects with the Shear tool
1 Select one or more objects.
2 Select the Shear tool

3 Do one of the following:

• To shear relative to the object’s center, drag anywhere in the document window.
• To shear relative to a different reference point

, click anywhere in the document window to move the reference
point, move the pointer away from the reference point, and then drag until the object is at the desired slant.

• To shear along the object’s vertical axis, drag anywhere in the document window in an up or down direction. To
constrain the object to its original width, hold down Shift.

• To shear along the object’s horizontal axis, drag anywhere in the document window in a left or right direction. To
constrain the object to its original height, hold down Shift.

Shear objects with the Shear command
1 Select one or more objects.
2 Do one of the following:

• To shear from the center, choose Object > Transform > Shear or double-click the Shear tool

• To shear from a different reference point, select the Shear tool and Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Mac OS)
where you want the reference point to be in the document window.
3 In the Shear dialog box, enter a shear angle from -359 to 359. The shear angle is the amount of slant applied to the

object in a clockwise direction and is relative to a line that’s perpendicular to the shear axis.
4 Select the axis along which to shear the object.

If you chose an angled axis, enter a value between –359 and 359, relative to the horizontal axis.

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5 If the objects contain a pattern fill, select Patterns to move the pattern. Deselect Objects if you want to move the

pattern but not the objects.
6 Click OK, or click Copy to shear a copy of the objects.

Shear objects with the Free Transform tool
1 Select one or more objects.
2 Select the Free Transform tool

3 Do one of the following:

• To shear along the object’s vertical axis, start dragging the middle-left or middle-right bounding-box handle, and
then hold down Ctrl+Alt (Windows) or Option+Command (Mac OS) as you drag up or down. You can also hold
down Shift to constrain the object to its original width.

• To shear along the object’s horizontal axis, start dragging the top-middle or bottom-middle bounding-box handle
and then hold down Ctrl+Alt (Windows) or Option+Command (Mac OS) as you drag right or left. You can also
hold down Shift to constrain the object to its original height.

Shear objects with the Transform panel
1 Select one or more objects.
2 In the Transform panel, enter a value in the Shear text box.

To change the reference point, click a white square on the reference point locator

before you enter the value.

You can also call up the Transform panel by clicking X, Y, W, or H in the Control panel.

Distort objects
You can distort objects by using the Free Transform tool or a liquify tool. Use the Free Transform tool when you want
to distort freely; use a liquify tool if you want to take advantage of specific preset distortions such as twirls, puckers, or
wrinkles.

See also
“Transform using the bounding box” on page 225
“Reshaping objects with effects” on page 248
“Reshaping tool gallery” on page 26

Distort objects with the Free Transform tool
1 Select one or more objects.
2 Select the Free Transform tool

3 Start dragging a corner handle on the bounding box (not a side handle), and then do one of the following:

• Hold down Ctrl (Windows) or Command (Mac OS) until the selection is at the desired level of distortion.
• Hold down Shift+Alt+Ctrl (Windows) or Shift+Option+Command (Mac OS) to distort in perspective.

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Distorting in perspective

Distort objects using a liquify tool
You cannot use liquify tools on linked files or objects that contain text, graphs, or symbols.
1 Select a liquify tool, and click or drag over the objects you want to distort.
2 (Optional) To isolate the distortion to specific objects, select the objects before using the tool.
3 (Optional) To change the size of the tool cursor and set other tool options, double-click the liquify tool and specify

any of the following:
Width and Height Controls the size of the tool cursor.
Angle Controls the orientation of the tool cursor.
Intensity Specifies the rate of change for the distortion. Higher values equal faster changes.
Use Pressure Pen Uses the input from a tablet or pen instead of the Intensity value. If you don’t have a pressuresensitive tablet attached, this option is dimmed.
Complexity (Scallop, Crystallize, and Wrinkle tools) Specifies how closely the results of the particular brush are spaced
on the object’s outline. This is closely tied with the Detail value.
Detail Specifies the spacing between points introduced into the object’s outline (higher values space points closer

together).
Simplify (Warp, Twirl, Pucker, and Bloat tools) Specifies how much you want to reduce the superfluous points that do

not measurably affect the overall appearance of the shape.
Twirl Rate (Twirl tool only) Specifies the rate at which the twirl is applied. Enter a value between –180° and 180°.

Negative values twirl the object clockwise and positive values twirl counterclockwise. The object twirls faster with
values that are closer to either –180° or 180°. To twirl slowly, specify a rate close to 0°.
Horizontal and Vertical (Wrinkle tool only) Specifies how far apart the control points are placed.
Brush Affects Anchor Points, Brush Affects In Tangent Handles, or Brush Affects Out Tangent Handles (Scallop,
Crystallize, Wrinkle tools) Enables the tool brush to make changes to these properties.

Reshape using envelopes
About envelopes
Envelopes are objects that distort or reshape selected objects. You can make an envelope out of an object on your
artboard, or you can use a preset warp shape or a mesh grid as an envelope. You can use envelopes on any object except
graphs, guides, or linked objects.

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Mesh grid envelope

Envelope created from another object

The Layers panel lists envelopes as . Once you apply an envelope, you can continue to edit the original
objects. You can also edit, delete, or expand an envelope at any time. You can edit an envelope shape or the enveloped
object, but not both at the same time.

Distort objects using an envelope
1 Select one or more objects.
2 Create the envelope using one of the following methods:

• To use a preset warp shape for the envelope, choose Object > Envelope Distort > Make With Warp. In the Warp
Options dialog box, select a warp style and set options.

• To set up a rectangular grid for the envelope, choose Object > Envelope Distort > Make With Mesh. In the Envelope
Mesh dialog box, set the number of rows and columns.

• To use an object as the shape of the envelope, make sure the object is at the top of the stacking order for the selected
object. If it’s not, use the Layers panel or an Arrange command to move it up, and reselect all the objects. Then
choose Object > Envelope Distort > Make With Top Object.
3 Reshape the envelope by doing any of the following:

• Drag any anchor point on the envelope with the Direct Selection or Mesh tool.
• To delete anchor points on the mesh grid, select an anchor point with either the Direct Selection or Mesh tools, and
then press Delete.

• To add anchor points to the mesh grid, click on the grid with the Mesh tool.
To apply a stroke or fill to an envelope, use the Appearance panel.

See also
“Reshaping objects with effects” on page 248
“Envelope options” on page 232

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Edit the contents of an envelope
1 Select the envelope and do one of the following:

• Click the Edit Contents button

in the Control panel.

• Choose Object > Envelope Distort > Edit Contents.
Note: If your envelope consists of grouped paths, click the triangle to the left of the entry in the Layers panel
to view and target the path you want to edit.
2 Edit it as desired.

Note: When you modify the contents of an envelope, the envelope shifts to recenter the results with the original content.
3 To return the object to its enveloped state, do one of the following:

• Click the Edit Envelope button

in the Control panel.

• Choose Object > Envelope Distort > Edit Envelope.

See also
“Envelope options” on page 232

Reset an envelope
1 Select the envelope.
2 Do one of the following:

• To reset or switch to a preset warp style, choose a new warp style and set options in the Control panel. If desired,
click the Envelope Options button

to open the dialog box and set more options.

• To reset or switch to a mesh grid envelope, choose Object > Envelope Distort > Reset With Mesh. Specify the
number of rows and columns for the mesh grid. Select Maintain Envelope Shape to keep the warp shape intact.

Remove an envelope
You can remove envelopes by either releasing them or expanding them. Releasing an enveloped object creates two
separate objects: the object in its original state and the envelope shape. Expanding an enveloped object removes the
envelope, but the object retains its distorted shape.

• To release an envelope, select the envelope, and choose Object > Envelope Distort > Release.
• To expand an envelope, select the envelope, and choose Object > Envelope Distort > Expand.

Envelope options
Envelope options determine how art is distorted to fit the envelope. To set envelope options, select the envelope object
in the Control panel, or choose Object > Envelope Distort > Envelope
and click the Envelope Options button
Options.
Anti-Alias Smooths rasters when distorted with an envelope. Deselecting Anti-Alias can decrease the time it takes to

distort rasters.
Preserve Shape Using Specifies how rasters preserve their shape when distorted by nonrectangular envelopes. Select

Clipping Mask to use a clipping mask on the raster, or Transparency to apply an alpha channel to the raster.
Fidelity Specifies how precisely you want the object to fit the envelope mold. Increasing the Fidelity percentage can

add more points to the distorted paths and increase the time it takes to distort the objects.

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Distort Appearance Distorts appearance attributes (such as applied effects or graphic styles) along with an object’s

shape.
Distort Linear Gradients Distorts linear gradients along with an object’s shape.
Distort Pattern Fills Distorts patterns along with an object’s shape.

Note: If you expand the envelope with a Distort option selected, the respective property is expanded separately.

Combining objects
Methods of combining objects
You can combine vector objects to create shapes in a variety of ways in Illustrator. The resulting paths or shapes differ
depending on the method you use to combine the paths.
Pathfinder effects
Pathfinder effects let you combine multiple objects using one of ten interaction modes. Unlike compound shapes, you
can’t edit the interactions between objects when you use a Pathfinder effect.
Compound shapes
Compound shapes let you combine multiple objects and specify how you want each object to interact with the other
objects. Compound shapes are more versatile than compound paths because they provide four kinds of interactions:
add, subtract, intersect, and exclude. In addition, the underlying objects are not changed, so you can select each object
within a compound shape to edit it or change its interaction mode.
Compound paths
Compound paths let you use an object to cut a hole in another object. For example, you can create a doughnut shape
from two nested circles. Once you create a compound path, the paths act as grouped objects. You can select and
manipulate the objects separately using the Direct Selection tool or Group Selection tool; or you can select and edit the
combined path.
Note: You can also add to an object by using the Blob Brush tool. When you use this brush, paths you paint are added to
adjacent paths that use identical fill attributes. (See “Draw and merge paths with the Blob Brush tool” on page 157.)

Pathfinder panel overview
You use the Pathfinder panel (Window > Pathfinder) to combine objects into new shapes.
The top row of buttons in the panel, called shape modes, let you control the interaction between components of a
compound shape. You can choose from the following shape modes:
Add To Shape Area Adds the area of the component to the underlying geometry.
Subtract from Shape Area Cuts out the area of the component from the underlying geometry.
Intersect Shape Areas Uses the area of the component to clip the underlying geometry as a mask would.
Exclude Overlapping Shape Areas Uses the area of the component to invert the underlying geometry, turning filled

regions into holes and vice versa.

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Shape modes
A. All components in Add mode B. Subtract mode applied to squares C. Intersect mode applied to squares D. Exclude mode applied to squares

The bottom row of buttons in the panel, called Pathfinder effects, let you create final shape combinations on the first
click. (See “Apply Pathfinder effects” on page 234.)

Pathfinder options
You can set Pathfinder Options from the Pathfinder panel menu or by double-clicking a Pathfinder effect in the
Appearance panel.
Precision Affects how precisely the Pathfinder effects calculate an object’s path. The more precise the calculation, the

more accurate the drawing and the more time is required to generate the resulting path.
Remove Redundant Points Removes unnecessary points as you click a Pathfinder button.
Divide And Outline Will Remove Unpainted Artwork Deletes any unfilled objects in the selected artwork as you click

the Divide or Outline button.

Apply Pathfinder effects
Pathfinder effects let you create new shapes out of overlapping objects. You can apply Pathfinder effects by using the
Effects menu or the Pathfinder panel.

• Pathfinder effects in the Effects menu can only be applied to groups, layers, and text objects. After you apply the
effect, you can still select and edit the original objects. You can also use the Appearance panel to modify or remove
the effect.

• Pathfinder effects in the Pathfinder panel can be applied to any combination of objects, groups, and layers. The final
shape combination is created when you click a pathfinder button; after that, you cannot edit the original objects. If
the effect results in multiple objects, they are automatically grouped together.
For a video on using Pathfinder effects and clipping masks and how to import clipping masks into Flash, see
www.adobe.com/go/vid0057.

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See also
“Methods of combining objects” on page 233
“Group or ungroup objects” on page 206
“Move an object to a different layer” on page 217
“Targeting items for appearance attributes” on page 350

Apply a Pathfinder effect using the Effects menu
1 Do one of the following:

• Group together the objects you want to use, and select the group.
• Move the objects you want to use into a separate layer, and target the layer.
2 Choose Effect > Pathfinder and choose a Pathfinder effect.

To quickly apply the same Pathfinder effect again, choose Effect > Apply [effect].

Apply a Pathfinder effect using the Pathfinder panel
1 Select the objects to which you want to apply the effect.

To apply a Pathfinder effect to a group or layer, target the group or layer.
2 In the Pathfinder panel, click a pathfinder button (in the bottom row), or Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click

(Mac OS) a Shape Mode button (in the top row).

Summary of Pathfinder effects
Add Traces the outline of all objects as if they were a single, merged object. The resulting shape takes on the paint
attributes of the top object.
Intersect Traces the outline of the region overlapped by all the objects.
Exclude Traces all nonoverlapping areas of the objects, and makes overlapping areas transparent. Where an even

number of objects overlap, the overlap becomes transparent. Where an odd number of objects overlap, the overlap
becomes filled.
Subtract Subtracts the frontmost objects from the backmost object. You can use this command to delete areas of an

illustration by adjusting the stacking order.
Minus Back Subtracts the objects in back from the frontmost object. You can use this command to delete areas of an

illustration by adjusting the stacking order.
Divide Separates a piece of artwork into its component filled faces (a face is an area undivided by a line segment).

Note: When you use the Divide button in the Pathfinder panel, you can use the Direct Selection or Group Selection tool
to manipulate the resulting faces independently of each other. You can also choose to delete or preserve unfilled objects
when applying the Divide command.
Trim Removes the part of a filled object that is hidden. It removes any strokes and does not merge objects of the same
color.
Merge Removes the part of a filled object that is hidden. It removes any strokes and merges any adjoining or

overlapping objects filled with the same color.
Crop Divides artwork into its component filled faces, and then deletes all the parts of the artwork that fall outside the

boundary of the topmost object. It also removes any strokes.

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Outline Divides an object into its component line segments, or edges. This command is useful for preparing artwork

that needs a trap for overprinting objects. (See “Create a trap” on page 430.)
Note: When you use the Outline button in the Pathfinder panel, you can use the Direct Selection or Group Selection tool
to manipulate each edge independently. You can also choose to delete or preserve unfilled objects when applying the
Outline command.
Hard Mix Combines colors by choosing the highest value of each of the color components. For example, if Color 1 is

20% cyan, 66% magenta, 40% yellow, and 0% black; and Color 2 is 40% cyan, 20% magenta, 30% yellow, and 10% black,
the resulting hard color is 40% cyan, 66% magenta, 40% yellow, and 10% black.
Soft Mix Makes the underlying colors visible through the overlapping artwork, and then divides the image into its
component faces. You specify the percentage of visibility you want in the overlapping colors.
Trap Compensates for potential gaps between colors in artwork by creating a small area of overlap (called a trap)

between two adjoining colors.

See also
“Mix overlapping colors” on page 129
“Trapping” on page 429

About compound shapes
A compound shape is editable art consisting of two or more objects, each assigned a shape mode. Compound shapes
make it easy to create complex shapes because you can precisely manipulate the shape mode, stacking order, shape,
location, and appearance of each path included.
Compound shapes act as grouped objects and appear as items in the Layers panel. You can use
the Layers panel to show, select, and manipulate the contents of a compound shape—for example, to change the
stacking order of its components. You can also use the Direct Selection tool or the Group Selection tool to select
components of a compound shape.
When you create a compound shape, it takes on the paint and transparency attributes of the topmost component in
Add, Intersect, or Exclude mode. Subsequently, you can change the paint, style, or transparency attributes of the
compound shape. Illustrator facilitates this process by automatically targeting the whole compound shape when you
select any part of it, unless you explicitly target a component in the Layers panel.

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Working with compound shapes
A. Original objects B. Compound shape created C. Individual shape modes applied to each component D. Style applied to entire compound
shape

Work with compound shapes
Creating a compound shape is a two-part process. First, you establish a compound shape in which all components have
the same shape mode. Then, you assign shape modes to the components until you obtain the desired combination of
shape areas.

Create a compound shape
1 Select all the objects you want to be part of the compound shape.

You can include paths, compound paths, groups, other compound shapes, blends, text, envelopes, and warps in a
compound shape. Any open paths you select are automatically closed.
2 Do one of the following:

• In the Pathfinder panel, Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Mac OS) a Shape Modes button. Each component
of the compound shape is assigned the shape mode you select.

• Select Make Compound Shape from the Pathfinder panel menu. Each component of the compound shape is
assigned the Add mode by default.
3 Change the shape mode of any component by selecting it with the Direct Selection tool or Layers panel and clicking

a Shape Mode button.
Note that you never need to change the mode of the backmost component, because its mode is not relevant to the
compound shape.
To sustain maximum performance, create complex compound shapes by nesting other compound shapes (containing
up to about 10 components each) instead of using many individual components.

Modify a compound shape
1 Use the Direct Selection tool or Layers panel to select an individual component of the compound shape.
2 Look for the highlighted Shape Mode button in the Pathfinder panel to identify which mode is currently applied to

a selected component.

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Note: If you’ve selected two or more components that use different modes, question marks appear on the Shape Mode
buttons.
3 In the Pathfinder panel, click a different Shape Mode button.

Release and expand a compound shape
Releasing a compound shape separates it back into separate objects. Expanding a compound shape maintains the shape
of the compound object, but you can no longer select the individual components.
1 Select the compound shape using the Selection tool or Layers panel.
2 Do one of the following:

• Click Expand in the Pathfinder panel.
• Choose Expand Compound Shape from the Pathfinder panel menu.
The compound shape is converted to a or item in the Layers panel, depending on the shape
mode it used.

• Choose Release Compound Shape from the Pathfinder panel menu.

Move compound shapes between Illustrator and Photoshop
The shape layers and layer clipping paths (vector masks) in Adobe Photoshop are types of compound shapes. You can
import shape layers and layer clipping paths into Illustrator as compound shapes and continue to manipulate them.
In addition, you can export compound shapes to Photoshop. Keep the following in mind when using compound
shapes with Photoshop:

• Only compound shapes that reside at the top level of the layer hierarchy are exported to Photoshop as shape layers.
• A compound shape painted with a stroke using a join other than round, or with a weight in points that is not an
integer, is rasterized when exported to the PSD file format.

About compound paths
A compound path contains two or more paths that are painted so that holes appear where paths overlap. When you
define objects as a compound path, all objects in the compound path take on the paint and style attributes of the
backmost object in the stacking order.
Compound paths act as grouped objects and appear as items in the Layers panel. Use the Direct
Selection tool or the Group Selection tool to select part of a compound path. You can manipulate the shape of
individual components of a compound path, but you cannot change appearance attributes, graphic styles, or effects
for individual components, and you cannot manipulate components individually in the Layers panel.
If you want more flexibility in the compound path creation, you can create a compound shape and then expand it.

Cut a hole in an object using a compound path
1 Select the object to use as a hole, and position it so that it overlaps the object to cut. Repeat for any additional objects

you want to use as holes.
2 Select all the objects you want to include in the compound path.
3 Choose Object > Compound Path > Make.

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Apply fill rules to compound paths
You can specify whether a compound path is a nonzero winding path or an even-odd path.
Nonzero winding fill rule Uses mathematical equations to determine if a point is outside or inside a shape. Illustrator

uses the nonzero winding rule as the default rule.
Even-odd fill rule Uses mathematical equations to determine if a point is outside or inside a shape. This rule is the

more predictable rule because every other region within an even-odd compound path is a hole, regardless of path
direction. Some applications, such as Adobe Photoshop, use the even-odd rule by default, so compound paths
imported from these applications will use the even-odd rule.
Self-intersecting paths are paths that intersect themselves. You can choose to make these paths either nonzero winding
or even-odd, depending on how you want them to look.

Self-intersecting path with Use Non-Zero Winding Fill Rule (left) compared with Use Even-Odd Fill Rule (right)

When you create a nonzero winding compound path, you can specify whether overlapping paths appear with holes or
are filled by clicking a Reverse Path Direction button in the Attributes panel.

Fill rules
A. Four circular paths B. Circular paths selected, converted into compound path C. Reverse Path Direction applied to innermost path

Change the fill rule for a compound path
1 Select the compound path using the Selection tool or Layers panel.
2 In the Attributes panel, click the Use Non-Zero Winding Fill Rule button

button

or the Use Even-Odd Fill Rule

Change a hole in a compound path to a filled area
1 Make sure that the compound path uses the nonzero winding fill rule.
2 With the Direct Selection tool, select the part of the compound path to reverse. Do not select the entire compound path.
3 In the Attributes panel, click the Reverse Path Direction Off button

button

or the Reverse Path Direction On

Return a compound path to its original components
1 Select the compound path using the Selection tool or Layers panel.
2 Choose Object > Compound Path > Release.

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Cutting and dividing objects
Methods for cutting, dividing, and trimming objects
Illustrator provides the following methods to cut, divide, and trim objects:
Divide Objects Below command Acts as a cookie cutter or stencil, using a selected object to cut through other objects,

discarding the original selection. To use this command, choose Object > Path > Divide Objects Below.
Cut Path At Selected Anchor Point button
Cuts a path at the anchor point and the one anchor point becomes two
anchor points with one located directly on top of the other. To access this button, select one or more anchor points
with the Direct Selection tool and locate the button in the Control panel.

Cuts objects along a freehand path you draw with the tool, dividing objects into their component filled
faces (a face is an area undivided by a line segment).

Knife tool

Scissors tool

Splits a path, graphics frame, or empty text frame at an anchor point or along a segment.

Split Into Grid command Lets you divide one or more objects into multiple rectangular objects arranged in rows and

columns. You can precisely change the height, width, and gutter size between rows and columns, and quickly create
guides for laying out artwork. To use this command, choose Object > Path > Split Into Grid.
Compound paths and compound shapes Let you use an object to cut a hole in another object.
Pathfinder effects Provide various ways to divide and trim overlapping objects.
Clipping masks Let you use an object to hide portions of other objects.

See also
“About clipping masks” on page 241
“About compound shapes” on page 236
“About compound paths” on page 238
“Cut a hole in an object using a compound path” on page 238
“Apply Pathfinder effects” on page 234
“Split a path” on page 76

Cut objects with the Divide Objects Below command
1 Select the object to use as a cutter, and position it so that it overlaps the objects to cut.
2 Choose Object > Path > Divide Objects Below.

Cut objects with the Knife tool
1 Select the Knife tool

2 Do one of the following:

• To cut in a curved path, drag the pointer over the object.
• To cut in a straight path, hold down Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac OS) as you click on the artboard with the Knife
tool, and then drag.

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See also
“Slicing and cutting tool gallery” on page 29

Divide an object into a grid
1 Select the object.

If you select more than one object, the resulting grid of objects uses the appearance attributes of the topmost object.
2 Choose Object > Path > Split Into Grid.
3 Enter the number of rows and columns you want.
4 (Optional) Do any of the following:

• To set the size of each row and column, enter values for Height and Width.
• To set the amount of space that separates rows from one another and columns from one another, enter values for
Gutter.

• To change the dimensions of the entire grid of objects, enter values for Total.
• To add guides along the row and column edges, select Add Guides.
5 Click OK.

See also
FreeHand migration

Place (import) files
The Place command is the primary method of importing, because it provides the highest level of support for file formats,
placement options, and color. After you place a file, use the Links panel to identify, select, monitor, and update it.
1 Open the Illustrator document into which you want to place the artwork.
2 Choose File > Place, and select the file you want to place.
3 Select Link to create a link to the file, or deselect Link to embed the artwork in the Illustrator document.

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4 Click Place.
5 If applicable, do one of the following:

• If you place a PDF file with multiple pages, you can choose which page you want to place and how to crop the
artwork.

• If you embed an Adobe® Photoshop® file, you can choose how to convert layers. If the file contains layer comps,
you can also choose which version of the image to import.
For a video on importing files into Illustrator, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0033. For a video on importing and copying
and pasting between web applications, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0193.

See also
“Adobe Version Cue” on page 35
“About linked and embedded artwork” on page 257
“Adobe PDF placement options” on page 263
“Photoshop import options” on page 266

Links panel overview
You use the Links panel to see and manage all linked or embedded artwork. The panel displays a small thumbnail of
the artwork and uses icons to indicate artwork’s status.
Note: If you’re working with files from an Adobe Version Cue project, the Links panel displays additional file information.

A
B
C
D
E
F

Links panel
A. Transparency interaction B. Missing artwork C. Embedded artwork D. Modified artwork E. Linked artwork F. Adobe stock photo comp
image

See also
“Adobe Version Cue” on page 35
“Workspace overview” on page 10

File status options for the Links panel
A linked file can appear in the Links panel in any of the following ways:
Up-to-date An up-to-date file displays only the file’s name and (in Adobe® InDesign®) its page in the document.

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Modified A modified file is one for which the version of the file on disk is more recent than the version in your

document. This would occur, for example, when someone modifies a Photoshop graphic that you have already placed
into Illustrator.
Missing A missing file is one for which the graphic is no longer in the location from which it was imported, although

it may still exist somewhere. This can happen if someone moves the original file to a different folder or server after it’s
been imported into a document. You can’t know whether a missing file is up to date until its original is located. If you
print or export a document when this icon is displayed, the file may not print or export at full resolution.
Embedded Embedding the contents of a linked file suspends management operations for that link.

Work with the Links panel
• To display the panel, choose Window > Links. Each linked file and embedded file is identified by name.
• To select and view a linked graphic, select a link and then click the Go To Link button

, or choose Go To Link

in the Links panel menu. The display is centered around the selected graphic.

• To change the size of the thumbnails, select panel Options from the Links panel menu, and select an option for
displaying thumbnails.

• To sort links in a different order, choose the desired Sort command in the panel menu.
• To hide thumbnails, select panel Options from the Links panel menu, and choose None.
• To view DCS Transparency information, select panel Options from the Links panel menu, and choose Show DCS
Transparency Interactions.

View and save metadata via the Links panel
If a linked or embedded file contains metadata, you can view the metadata using the Links panel. You cannot edit or
replace metadata associated with a linked file; however, you can save a copy of the metadata in a template and apply it
to other files.
1 Select a file in the Links panel and choose Link File Info from the panel menu.
2 To save the metadata as a template, choose Save Metadata Template in the pop-up menu at the top of the dialog

box showing the metadata.

See also
“About metadata” on page 291

View file information about linked or embedded artwork
❖ Do any of the following:

• Double-click the link in the Links panel. Alternatively, select the link and select Link Information from the panel
menu.
Note: Don’t confuse “Link information” with “Link File Info” in the Links panel menu; “File Info” refers to
metadata.

• Select the linked artwork in the illustration window. In the Control panel, click the file name and choose Link
Information.
To locate linked or embedded artwork in the document window, select a link and click the Go To Link button.
Alternatively, select Go To Link from the panel menu.

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Update modified links
• To update specific links, in the Links panel select one or more modified links
button

, and then click the Update Link

or choose Update Link from the Links panel menu.

• To update specific links, select the linked artwork in the illustration window. In the Control panel, click the
filename, and then choose Update Link.
Note: By default, Illustrator prompts you to update a link if the source file changes. To specify that you want to update
links automatically or manually, choose Edit > Preferences > File Handling & Clipboard (Windows) or Illustrator >
Preferences > File Handling & Clipboard (Mac OS), and set the Update Links option.

Restore a single missing link or replace link with a different source file
You can restore or replace a missing link—one that shows the missing-link icon
file with a different source file.

in the Links panel—or any linked

1 Select the linked artwork on the page, or select a link name in the Links panel.
2 Do one of the following:

• In the Links panel, click the Relink button

, or choose Relink from the panel menu.

• Click the linked filename in the Control panel, and then choose Relink. (To access this option, you must select
the image in the artwork.)
3 In the dialog box that appears, do one of the following:

• Locate and select a replacement file.
• Type the first, or first few, letters of the name of the desired replacement file to locate the file.
4 Click Place.

Note: If all of a document’s missing links are located in the same folder, you can restore all of them at once. In the Links
panel, select all of the missing links, and then restore one of them; the Place dialog box stays open for you to reselect each one.

Set placement options for linked artwork
1 Do one of the following:

• Select the linked artwork in the illustration window. In the Control panel, click the filename and choose
Placement Options.

• In the Links panel, select the link and choose Placement Options from the panel menu.
2 Select an option for Preserve.

If you select an option other than Transforms or Bounds, you can select a point on the Alignment icon from which
you want to align the artwork, relative to the bounding box. If you want to keep the artwork from overlapping the
bounding box, select Clip To Bounding Box.

See also
“Links panel overview” on page 258
“About linked and embedded artwork” on page 257
“Control panel overview” on page 14

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Embed a linked file
Rather than linking to a file that you’ve placed in a document, you can embed (or store) the file within the document.
When you embed a file, you break the link to the original. Without the link, the Links panel doesn’t alert you when the
original has changed, and you cannot update the file automatically.
Keep in mind that embedding a file, rather than linking to the original, increases the document file size.
1 Select a file in the Links panel, and choose Embed Image from the panel menu.
2 Select the linked artwork in the illustration window. In the Control panel, click the Embed button.

The file remains in the Links panel marked with the embedded-link icon

Unembed or relink an embedded file
1 Select one or more embedded files in the Links panel.
2 Click the Relink button

or select Relink in the Links panel menu, locate and select the original file, and click

Place.

Edit original artwork
The Edit Original command lets you open most graphics in the application in which you created them so that you can
modify them as necessary. Once you save the original file, the document in which you linked it is updated with the new
version.
1 Do any of the following:

• In the Links panel, select the link and click the Edit Original button

. Alternatively, choose Edit Original

from the panel menu.

• Select the linked artwork on the page, and choose Edit > Edit Original.
• Select the linked artwork on the page, and click the Edit Original button in the Control panel.
2 After making changes in the original application, save the file.

Importing bitmap images
About bitmap images
Bitmap images—technically called raster images—use a rectangular grid of picture elements (pixels) to represent
images. Each pixel is assigned a specific location and color value. When working with bitmap images, you edit pixels
rather than objects or shapes. Bitmap images are the most common electronic medium for continuous-tone images,
such as photographs or digital paintings, because they can more efficiently represent subtle gradations of shades and
color.
Bitmap images are resolution-dependent—that is, they contain a fixed number of pixels. As a result, they can lose detail
and appear jagged if they are scaled to high magnifications on-screen or if they are printed at a lower resolution than
they were created for.

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3:1

24:1

Example of a bitmap image at different levels of magnification

Bitmap images sometimes require large amounts of storage space, and often need to be compressed to keep file sizes
down when used in certain Creative Suite components. For instance, you compress an image file in its original
application before you import it into a layout.
Note: In Adobe Illustrator, you can create bitmap effects in your artwork using effects and graphic styles.

See also
“About vector graphics” on page 53

Image resolution guidelines for final output
Bitmap images contain a fixed number of pixels, usually measured in pixels per inch (ppi). An image with a high
resolution contains more, and therefore smaller, pixels than an image of the same printed dimensions with a low
resolution. For example, a 1-inch-by-1-inch image with a resolution of 72 ppi contains a total of 5184 pixels (72 pixels
wide x 72 pixels high = 5184). The same 1-inch-by-1-inch image with a resolution of 300 ppi would contain a total of
90,000 pixels.
For imported bitmap images, image resolution is determined by the source file. For bitmap effects, you can specify a
custom resolution. To determine the image resolution to use, consider the medium of final distribution for the image.
The following guidelines can help you determine your requirements for image resolution:
Commercial printing Commercial printing requires 150 to 300 ppi (or more) images, depending on the press (dpi) and

screen frequency (lpi) you’re using; always consult your prepress service provider before making production decisions.
Because commercial printing requires large, high-resolution images, which take more time to display while you’re
working with them, you may want to use low-resolution versions for layout and then replace them with highresolution versions at print time.
In Illustrator and InDesign, you can work with low resolution versions by using the Links panel. In InDesign you can
choose either Typical or Fast Display from the View > Display Performance menu; in Illustrator you can choose
View > Outline, or change settings in the Display Performances preferences. Alternatively, if your service provider
supports Open Prepress Interface (OPI), they may provide low-resolution images to you.
Desktop printing Desktop printing usually requires images within the range of 72 ppi (for photographs printed on

a 300 ppi printer) to 150 ppi (for photographs printed on devices up to 1000 ppi). For line art (1-bit images), make sure
that the resolution of your graphics matches the resolution of the printer.
Web publishing Because online publishing generally requires images with pixel dimensions that fit the intended
monitor, the images are usually less than 500 pixels wide and 400 pixels tall, to leave room for browser window controls
or such layout elements as captions. Creating an original image at screen resolution—96 ppi for Windows–based
images, and 72 ppi for Mac OS–based images—lets you see the image as it will likely appear when viewed from a typical
web browser. When you’re publishing online, the only times you’re likely to need resolutions above those ranges are
when you want viewers to be able to zoom in for more detail in a PDF document, or when you’re producing a
document for printing on demand.

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Importing Adobe PDF files
Importing Adobe PDF files
Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) is a versatile file format that can represent both vector and bitmap data. You
can bring artwork from PDF files into Illustrator using the Open command, the Place command, the Paste command,
and the drag-and-drop feature.

• Use the Place command with the Link option selected to import a PDF file (or one page of the PDF if it is a multipage document) as a single image. You can modify the linked image using transformation tools; however, you
cannot select and edit its individual components.

• Use the Open command or the Place command with the Link option deselected to edit the contents of a PDF file.
Illustrator recognizes the individual components in the PDF artwork and lets you edit each component as a discrete
object.

• Use the Paste command or the drag-and-drop feature to import selected components from a PDF file, including
vector objects, bitmap images, and text.
Note: If you are color-managing artwork in a document, embedded PDF images are part of the document and
therefore color-managed when sent to a printing device. In contrast, linked PDF images are not color-managed, even
if color management is turned on for the rest of the document.

See also
“About linked and embedded artwork” on page 257

Adobe PDF placement options
When you place an Adobe PDF file, you specify which page you want to import. You also choose how to crop the
artwork by selecting a Crop To option:
Bounding Box Places the PDF page’s bounding box, or the minimum area that encloses the objects on the page,
including page marks.
Art Places the PDF only in the area defined by a rectangle that the author created as placeable artwork (for example,

clip art).
Crop Places the PDF only in the area that is displayed or printed by Adobe Acrobat.
Trim Identifies the place where the final produced page will be physically cut in the production process, if trim marks

are present.
Bleed Places only the area that represents where all page content should be clipped, if a bleed area is present. This
information is useful if the page is being output in a production environment. Note that the printed page may include
page marks that fall outside the bleed area.
Media Places the area that represents the physical paper size of the original PDF document (for example, the
dimensions of an A4 sheet of paper), including page marks.

See also
“Place (import) files” on page 257

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Importing monotone, duotone, and tritone images from Adobe PDF files
When you import artwork from an Adobe PDF file, it’s possible to introduce data that you can’t create within
Illustrator. This is called non-native art and includes monotone, duotone, and tritone images. You can also generate
non-native art within Illustrator by using the Flatten Transparency command to preserve spot colors.
Illustrator’s ability to preserve non-native art is useful in many situations. For example, Illustrator maintains the spot
color information in linked PDF files when you output color separations.
By default, non-native art is labeled in the Layers and Appearance panels. You can select, move,
save, and perform basic transformations (such as scaling, rotating, or skewing) on non-native art. However, you
cannot select and edit its individual components. In addition, you must rasterize non-native art before editing it with
the liquify tools.
To convert non-native art to an Illustrator object, choose Object > Rasterize.

See also
“Importing Adobe PDF files” on page 263
“Rasterize a vector object” on page 273

Importing EPS, DCS, and AutoCAD files
Importing EPS files
Encapsulated PostScript (EPS) is a popular file format for transferring vector artwork between applications. You can
bring artwork from EPS files into Illustrator using the Open command, the Place command, the Paste command, and
the drag-and-drop feature.
Keep the following in mind when working with EPS artwork:

• When you open or embed an EPS file that was created in another application, Illustrator converts all objects to
native Illustrator objects. However, if the file contains data that Illustrator doesn’t recognize, some loss of data may
occur. As a result, unless you need to edit the individual objects in an EPS file, it’s best to link to the file rather than
open or embed it.

• EPS format does not support transparency; therefore, it is not a good choice for placing transparent artwork from
other applications into Illustrator. Instead, use PDF 1.4 format for this purpose.

• You may receive an error message when printing or saving artwork that includes linked EPS files, if those files were
saved in binary format (for example, in Photoshop's default EPS format). In this case, resave the EPS files in ASCII
format, embed the linked files into the Illustrator artwork, print to a Binary print port instead of an ASCII print
port, or save the artwork in AI or PDF format instead of EPS format.

• If you are color-managing artwork in a document, embedded EPS images are part of the document and therefore
color-managed when sent to a printing device. In contrast, linked EPS images are not color-managed, even if color
management is turned on for the rest of the document.

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• If you import an EPS color that has the same name as a color in your document but a different definition, Illustrator
displays an alert. Select Use Linked File’s Color to replace the color in your document with the EPS color in the
linked file. All objects using this color in your document will get updated appropriately. Select Use Document’s
Color to leave the swatch as is and resolve all color conflicts using the document’s color. The EPS preview cannot
be changed, so the preview may be incorrect, but it will print to the correct plates. Selecting Apply to All will resolve
all color conflicts, using the definition either of the document or the linked file, depending on which option you
choose.

• Occasionally you may encounter a warning when opening an Illustrator document containing embedded EPS
images. If the application cannot find the original EPS image, you will be prompted to extract the EPS image. Select
the Extract option in the dialog box; the image will be extracted into the same directory as the current document.
Although the embedded file does not preview in the document, the file will now print correctly.

• By default, linked EPS files are displayed as a high resolution preview. If a linked EPS file isn’t visible in the
document window, it may be because the file’s preview is missing. (Previews are sometimes lost when transferring
EPS files saved with PICT previews from Mac OS to Windows.) To restore the preview, resave the EPS file with a
TIFF preview. If performance is negatively affected when you place the EPS, reduce the preview resolution: choose
Edit > Preferences > File Handling & Clipboard (Windows) or Illustrator > Preferences > File Handling &
Clipboard (Mac OS), and select Use Low Resolution Proxy For Linked EPS.

See also
“About linked and embedded artwork” on page 257
“Save in EPS format” on page 269

Importing DCS files
Desktop Color Separation (DCS) is a version of the standard EPS format. The DCS 1.0 format supports only CMYK
images while the DCS 2.0 format supports multichannel CMYK files as well as multiple spot inks. (These spot inks
appear as spot colors in Illustrator’s Swatches panel.) Illustrator recognizes clipping paths in Photoshop-created DCS
1.0 and DCS 2.0 files. You can link DCS files in Illustrator, but you can’t embed or open them.
To see DCS transparency interactions in the Links panel, choose Panel Options from the Links panel menu and select
Show DCS Transparency Interactions.

Importing AutoCAD files
AutoCAD files include both DXF and DWG formats. You can import AutoCAD files from version 2.5 through version
2006. During import, you can specify scale, unit mapping (custom unit for interpreting all the length data in the
AutoCAD file), whether to scale lineweights, which layout to import, and whether to center the artwork.
Illustrator supports most AutoCAD data, including 3D objects, shapes and paths, external references, region objects,
spline objects (mapped to Bezier objects that retain the original shape), raster objects, and text objects. When
importing an AutoCAD file that contains external references, Illustrator reads the contents of the reference and places
it at the appropriate locations in the Illustrator file. If an external reference is not found, the Missing Link dialog box
opens so you can search for and retrieve the file.

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Importing artwork from Photoshop
Importing artwork from Photoshop
You can bring artwork from Photoshop (PSD) files into Illustrator using the Open command, the Place command, the
Paste command, and the drag-and-drop feature.
Illustrator supports most Photoshop data, including layer comps, layers, editable text, and paths. This means that you
can transfer files between Photoshop and Illustrator without losing the ability to edit the artwork. For easy transfer of
files between the two applications, adjustment layers that have visibility turned off are imported (though inaccessible)
into Illustrator and restored when exported back to Photoshop.
Spot colors (up to 31 spot channels per file) import as a single N-Channel raster image, which is placed over the process
color image. The spot colors are added to the swatches panel as custom colors with the same name as in Photoshop.
Imported spot colors separate correctly.
Duotone PSD files import as flat raster images with a 256-indexed colorspace and an N-Channel colorspace containing
all of the duotone inks. Because Illustrator uses an N-Channel, blending mode interactions set in Photoshop may
appear differently in Illustrator. Ink colors from old color libraries are set to gray.
In cases where Illustrator must convert the Photoshop data, a warning message appears. For example, when importing
a 16-bit Photoshop file, Illustrator warns you that the image will be imported as an 8-bit, flat composite.

Photoshop import options
When you open or place a Photoshop file that contains multiple layers, you can set the following options:
Layer Comp If the Photoshop file contains layer comps, specifies which version of the image to import. Select Show

Preview to display a preview of the selected layer comp. The Comments text box displays comments from the
Photoshop file.
When Updating Link Specifies how to handle layer visibility settings when updating a linked Photoshop file that

includes layer comps.

• Keep Layer Visibility Overrides Updates the linked image based on the state of layer visibility in the layer comp
when you originally placed the file.

• Use Photoshop’s Layer Visibility Updates the linked image based on the current state of layer visibility in the
Photoshop file.
Convert Photoshop Layers To Objects And Make Text Editable Where Possible Preserves as much layer structure and

text editability as possible without sacrificing appearance. However, if the file includes features that Illustrator doesn’t
support, Illustrator preserves the appearance of the artwork by merging and rasterizing layers. For example:

• Layer sets that use the Dissolve blending mode as well as all layers in clipping masks get merged into single layers.
• Adjustment layers and layers that use a Knockout option are merged with the underlying layers, as are layers that
contain transparent pixels and use the Color Dodge, Color Burn, Difference, Linear Burn, Linear Dodge, Vivid
Light, Linear Light, or Pin Light blending mode.

• Layers that use layer effects may be merged; however, the specific merging behavior depends on the blending mode
of the layer, the presence of transparent pixels, and the layer’s blending options.

• Hidden layers that require merging are discarded.
Note: The Convert Photoshop Layers To Objects And Make Text Editable Where Possible option is not available when
you link to a Photoshop file.

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Flatten Photoshop Layers To A Single Image And Preserve Text Appearance Imports the file as a single bitmap image.
The converted file retains no individual objects, except for the document clipping path (if one exists). Opacity is
retained as part of the main image, but is not editable.
Import Hidden Layers Imports all layers from the Photoshop file, even those that are hidden. This option is not
available when linking to a Photoshop file.
Import Slices Preserves any slices that are included in the Photoshop file. This option is available only when opening

or embedding a file that includes slices.

Move part of an image from Photoshop to Illustrator
1 In Photoshop, select the pixels you want to move. For more information, see Photoshop Help.
2 Do one of the following:

• Copy the selection in Photoshop and paste it in Illustrator. If a layer mask is active when you choose the Copy
command, Photoshop copies the mask rather than the main layer.

• Select the Move tool in Photoshop, and drag the selection to Illustrator. Illustrator fills transparent pixels with
white.

Move paths from Photoshop to Illustrator
1 In Photoshop, use the Path Component Selection tool or the Direct Selection tool to select the paths you want to

move.
You can select any path or path segment that appears in the Paths panel, including shape vector masks, work paths,
and saved paths. For more information on selecting paths, see Photoshop Help.
2 Either copy and paste or drag the path to Illustrator.
3 In the Paste Options dialog box, choose whether to paste the path as a compound shape or a compound path.

Pasting as a compound path is faster, but may result in some loss of editability.
To import all paths (but no pixels) from a Photoshop document, choose File > Export > Paths To Illustrator (in
Photoshop). Then open the resulting file in Illustrator.

Saving artwork
About saving artwork
When you save or export artwork, Illustrator writes the artwork data to a file. The structure of the data depends on the
file format that you select.
There are five basic file formats—AI, PDF, EPS, FXG, and SVG—to which you can save artwork. These formats are
called native formats because they can preserve all Illustrator data, including multiple artboards. (For PDF and SVG
formats, you must select the Preserve Illustrator Editing Capabilities options to preserve all Illustrator data.) EPS and
FXG can save individual artboards as separate files. SVG saves the active artboard only; however, the content from all
artboards is displayed.
You can also export artwork in a variety of file formats for use outside of Illustrator. These formats are called nonnative formats because Illustrator will not be able to retrieve all of the data if you reopen the file in Illustrator. For this
reason, it is recommended that you save artwork in AI format until you are finished creating it, and then export the
artwork to the desired format.

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Note: You may receive an error message when saving artwork that includes linked EPS files, if those files were saved in
binary format (for example, in Photoshop's default EPS format). In this case, resave the EPS files in ASCII format, embed
the linked files into the Illustrator artwork, or save the artwork in AI or PDF format instead of EPS format.
For a video on creating mobile content in Illustrator, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0207. For a video on saving for the
web, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0063. For a video on exporting content from Illustrator, including an overview on
different formats and when you should use them, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0062.

See also
“About Adobe PDF” on page 281

Save in Illustrator format
If your document contains more than one artboard and you want to save to a previous version of Illustrator, you can
choose to save each artboard as a separate file or combine the content from all artboards into a single file.
1 Choose File > Save As or File > Save A Copy.
2 Type a filename, and choose a location for the file.
3 Choose Illustrator (*.AI) as the file format, and click Save.
4 In the Illustrator Options dialog box, set the desired options and click OK:
Version Specifies the version of Illustrator with which you want your file to be compatible. Legacy formats don’t

opposed to just the characters used in the document) based on how many of the font’s characters are used in the
document. For instance, if a font contains 1,000 characters but the document only uses 10 of those characters, you
may decide that embedding the font is not worth the extra file size.
Create PDF Compatible File Saves a PDF representation of the document in the Illustrator file. Select this option if

you want the Illustrator file to be compatible with other Adobe applications.
Include Linked Files Embeds files that are linked to the artwork.
Embed ICC Profiles Creates a color-managed document.
Use Compression Compresses PDF data in the Illustrator file. Using compression increases the time required to

save the document, so deselect this option if you’re experiencing very slow (8 to 15 minute) save times.
Save Each Artboard To A Separate File Saves each artboard as a separate file. This option is available only if you

chose to save to a version other than CS4. A separate master file that includes all of the artboards is also created. All
of the content that touches an artboard is included with the file for that artboard. If artwork needs to be shifted to
fit it onto a single artboard, a warning appears to let you know. If you don’t select this option, the artboards are
combined into a single document and are converted to object guides and (in Illustrator CS3) crop areas. The
artboard used for the saved file is based on the size of the default document startup profile.
Transparency options Determines what happens to transparent objects when you choose a version of Illustrator
format earlier than 9.0. Select Preserve Paths to discard transparency effects and reset transparent artwork to 100%
opacity and Normal blending mode. Select Preserve Appearance And Overprints to preserve overprints that don’t
interact with transparent objects. Overprints that interact with transparent objects are flattened.

Important: If your artwork contains complex, overlapping areas and you require high-resolution output, click Cancel
and specify rasterization settings before continuing.

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See also
“Adobe Version Cue” on page 35
“About color profiles” on page 143
“Rasterization options” on page 355

Save in EPS format
Virtually all page layout, word-processing, and graphic applications accept imported or placed encapsulated
PostScript (EPS) files. The EPS format preserves many of the graphic elements you can create with Adobe Illustrator,
which means that EPS files can be reopened and edited as Illustrator files. Because EPS files are based on the PostScript
language, they can contain both vector and bitmap graphics. If your artwork contains multiple artboards, these
artboards are preserved when you save to EPS format.
1 If your artwork contains transparency (including overprints) and you require high-resolution output, choose

Window > Flattener Preview to preview the effects of flattening.
2 Choose File > Save As or File > Save A Copy.
3 Type a filename, and choose a location for the file.
4 Choose Illustrator EPS (*.EPS) as the file format, and click Save.
5 If you want create separate files for each artboard, click Use Artboards, and select All or specify a range. Separate

files are saved with a master EPS file containing all artboards. If you deselect this option, a single EPS file is created
with all artboards preserved.
6 In the EPS Options dialog box, set the desired options and click OK:
Version Specifies the version of Illustrator with which you want your file to be compatible. Legacy formats don’t

support all the features in the current version of Illustrator. Therefore, when you select a version other than the
current version, some options for saving aren’t available, and certain kinds of data will be changed. Be sure to read
the warnings at the bottom of the dialog box so that you are aware of how the data will be changed.
Format Determines the characteristics of the preview image that is saved in the file. The preview image is displayed
in applications that cannot display EPS artwork directly. If you don’t want to create a preview image, choose None
from the Format menu. Otherwise, select a black-and-white or color format.

If you select TIFF (8-bit Color) format, select a background option for the preview image:

• Transparent Produces a transparent background.
• Opaque Produces a solid background. (Select Opaque if the EPS document will be used in a Microsoft Office
application.)
Transparency options Determines what happens to transparent objects and overprints. The available options
change depending on the format version you select at the top of the dialog box.

If you choose a CS format, specify how to save overlapping colors that are set to overprint, and select a preset (or
set of options) for flattening transparency. Click Custom to customize the flattener settings.
If you choose a Legacy format earlier than 8.0, select Preserve Paths to discard transparency effects and reset
transparent artwork to 100% opacity and Normal blending mode. Select Preserve Appearance and Overprints to
preserve overprints that don’t interact with transparent objects. Overprints that interact with transparent objects
are flattened.
Embed Fonts (For Other Applications) Embeds all fonts that contain appropriate permissions from the font vendor.
Embedding fonts ensures that the original font is displayed and printed if the file is placed into another application,

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such as Adobe InDesign. However, if the file is opened in Illustrator on a computer that does not have the font
installed, the font will be faux or substituted. This is to prevent illegal use of the embedded font.
Note: Selecting the Embed Fonts option increases the size of the saved file.
Include Linked Files Embeds files that are linked to the artwork.
Include Document Thumbnails Creates a thumbnail image of the artwork. The thumbnail is displayed in the

Illustrator Open and Place dialog boxes.
Include CMYK PostScript In RGB Files Allows RGB color documents to be printed from applications that do not

support RGB output. When the EPS file is reopened in Illustrator, the RGB colors are preserved.
Compatible Gradient And Gradient Mesh Printing Enables older printers and PostScript devices to print gradients
and gradient meshes by converting gradient objects to JPEG format. Selecting this option can slow printing on
printers that don’t have problems with gradients.
Adobe PostScript® Determines what level of PostScript is used to save the artwork. PostScript Language Level 2
represents color as well as grayscale vector and bitmap images, and supports RGB, CMYK, and CIE-based color
models for both vector and bitmap graphics. PostScript Language Level 3 provides additional functionality to
Language Level 2, including the ability to print mesh objects when printing to a PostScript® 3™ printer. Because
printing to PostScript Language Level 2 devices converts gradient mesh objects to bitmap images, it is preferable to
print artwork that contains gradient mesh objects to a PostScript 3 printer.

See also
“Preview which areas of artwork will be flattened” on page 424
“Adobe Version Cue” on page 35
“Printing and saving transparent artwork” on page 421
“About overprinting” on page 428

Save in FXG format
When creating structured graphics in Illustrator for use in Adobe Flex®, you can save in the Flash XML Graphics
format (FXG). FXG is a graphics file format based on a subset of MXML, the XML-based programming language used
by the FLEX framework. You can use FXG files in applications such as Adobe Flex Builder to develop rich internet
applications and experiences. When saving as FXG, images must be under 6,777,216 total pixels and less than 8192
pixels in width or height.
For more information on using these formats, see the Adobe Flex website at www.adobe.com/products/flex.
1 Choose File > Save As or File > Save A Copy.
2 Type a filename, and choose a location for the file.
3 Choose FXG (*.FXG) as the file format, and click Save.
4 In the FXG Options dialog box, set the desired options and click OK.

Save in SVG format
SVG is a vector format that produces high-quality, interactive web graphics. There are two versions of the SVG
formats: SVG and Compressed SVG (SVGZ). SVGZ can reduce file sizes by 50% to 80%; however, you cannot edit
SVGZ files using a text editor.

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When you save artwork in an SVG format, mesh objects are rasterized. In addition, images that have no alpha channel
are converted to the JPEG format. Images with an alpha channel are converted to the PNG format. If your document
contains multiple artboards and you save to SVG, the active artboard is preserved. You cannot save individual
artboards as separate SVG files.
For a video on creating mobile content in Illustrator, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0207.
1 If the artwork contains any SVG effects, select each item to which an SVG effect has been applied, and move the

effect to the bottom of the Appearance panel (just above the Opacity entry). If other effects follow an SVG effect,
the SVG output will consist of a raster object. In addition, if the artwork contains multiple artboards, select the
artboard you want to export.
2 Choose File > Save As or File > Save A Copy.
3 Type a filename, and choose a location for the file.
4 Choose SVG (*.SVG) or SVG Compressed (*.SVGZ) as the file format, and click Save.
5 In the SVG Options dialog box, set the desired options and click OK:
SVG Profiles Specifies the SVG XML Document Type Definition for the exported file.

• SVG 1.0 and SVG 1.1 Suitable for SVG files that will be viewed on a desktop computer. SVG 1.1 is the full version
of the SVG specification, of which SVG Tiny 1.1, SVG Tiny 1.1 Plus, and SVG Basic 1.1 are subsets.
• SVG Basic 1.1 Suitable for SVG files that will be viewed on medium powered devices, such as handheld devices.
Keep in mind that not all handhelds support the SVG Basic profile. As a result, selecting this option does not
guarantee that the SVG file will be viewable on all handhelds. SVG Basic does not support nonrectangular clipping
and some SVG filter effects.
• SVG Tiny 1.1 and SVG Tiny 1.1+ Suitable for SVG files that will be viewed on small devices, such as mobile
phones. Keep in mind that not all mobile phones support the SVG Tiny and SVG Tiny Plus profiles. As a result,
selecting either of these options does not guarantee that the SVG file will be viewable on all small devices.
• SVG Tiny 1.2 Suitable for SVG files that will be viewed on a variety of devices ranging from PDAs and mobile
phones to laptops and desktop computers.
SVG Tiny does not support gradients, transparency, clipping, masks, symbols, patterns, underline text, strike
through text, vertical text, or SVG filter effects. SVG Tiny Plus includes the ability to display gradients and
transparency, but does not support clipping, masks, symbols, or SVG filter effects.
For additional information on SVG profiles, see the SVG specification on the World Wide Web Consortium
(W3C) website (www.w3.org).
Font Type Specifies how fonts are exported:

• Adobe CEF Uses font hinting for better rendering of small fonts. This font type is supported by the Adobe SVG
Viewer but may not be supported by other SVG viewers.
• SVG Does not use font hinting. This font type is supported by all SVG viewers.
• Convert To Outlines Converts type to vector paths. Use this option to preserve the visual appearance of type in
all SVG Viewers.
Font Subsetting Controls which glyphs (characters of a particular font) are embedded in the exported SVG file.
Choose None from the Subsetting menu if you can rely on the necessary fonts being installed on end-user systems.
Choose Only Glyphs Used to include only glyphs for text that exists in the current artwork. The other values
(Common English, Common English + Glyphs Used, Common Roman, Common Roman + Glyphs Used, All
Glyphs) are useful when the textual content of the SVG file is dynamic (such as server-generated text or userinteractive text).

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Image Location Determines whether raster images are embedded directly in the file or linked to the exported JPEG

or PNG images from the original Illustrator file. Embedding images increases file size but ensures that rasterized
images will always be available.
Preserve Illustrator Editing Capabilities Preserves Illustrator-specific data by embedding an AI file in the SVG file

(resulting in a larger file size). Select this option if you plan to reopen and edit the SVG file in Illustrator. Note that
if you make manual changes to the SVG data, the changes are not reflected when you reopen the file. This is because
Illustrator reads the AI portion of the file, not the SVG portion.
CSS Properties Determines how style attributes are saved in the SVG code. The default method, Presentation
Attributes, applies properties at the highest point in the hierarchy, which allows the most flexibility for specific edits
and transformations. The Style Attributes method creates the most readable files but may increase the file size.
Choose this method if the SVG code will be used in transformations—for example, transformations using
Extensible Stylesheet Language Transformation (XSLT). The Style Attributes method results
in faster rendering times and reduced SVG file size. The Style Elements method is used when sharing files with
HTML documents. By selecting Style Elements, you can then modify the SVG file to move a style element into an
external style sheet file that is also referenced by the HTML file; however, the Style Elements option also results in
slower rendering speeds.
Decimal Places Specifies the precision of vector data in the SVG file. You can set a value of 1–7 decimal places. A

higher value results in a larger file size and increased image quality.
Encoding Determines how characters are encoded in the SVG file. UTF (Unicode Transformation Format)

encoding is supported by all XML processors. (UTF-8 is an 8-bit format; UTF-16 is a 16-bit format.) ISO 8859-1
and UTF-16 encoding do not preserve file metadata.
Optimize For Adobe SVG Viewer Maintains the highest level of Illustrator data while still allowing the SVG file to
be manually edited. Select this option to take advantage of faster rendering for features such as SVG filter effects.
Include Adobe Graphics Server Data Includes all information needed for variable substitution in the SVG file.
Include Slicing Data Includes slice locations and optimization settings.
Include XMP Includes XMP metadata in the SVG file. Choose File > Info or use the Bridge Browser to enter

metadata.
Output Fewer Elements Allows Illustrator to ignore auto-kerning settings during export, which results in

a file with fewer elements. Select this option to create an SVG file that is more editable and compact.
Deselect this option if maintaining the appearance of auto-kerned text is critical.
Use Element For Text On Path Exports text on a path as a element. However, note that the
text may appear differently in the SVG Viewer than it does in Illustrator since this export mode will not always be
able to maintain visual parity. In particular, overflow text will be visible in the SVG Viewer.
Show SVG Code Displays the code for the SVG file in a browser window.
Web Preview Displays the SVG file in a browser window.
Device Central Opens the file in Device Central for previewing on a particular mobile phone or device.

See also
“About SVG” on page 378
“Optimize an image for the web” on page 386
“Adobe Version Cue” on page 35
“Using Adobe Device Central with Illustrator” on page 372

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“About metadata” on page 291
“About data-driven graphics” on page 444

Save artwork for Microsoft Office
The Save For Microsoft Office command lets you create a PNG file that you can use in Microsoft Office applications.
1 Choose File > Save For Microsoft Office.
2 In the Save For Office dialog box, select a location for the file, enter a filename, and click Save.

If you want to customize PNG settings, such as for resolution, transparency, and background color, use the Export
command instead of the Save For Microsoft Office command. You can also save artwork in PNG format using the
Save For Web & Devices command.

See also
“Optimize an image for the web” on page 386

Changing vector graphics to bitmap images
About rasterization
Rasterization is the process of changing a vector graphic to a bitmap image. During rasterization, Illustrator converts
the graphic’s paths into pixels. The rasterization options you set determine the size and other characteristics of the
resulting pixels.
You can rasterize individual vector objects using the Object > Rasterize command or the Rasterize effect. You can also
rasterize an entire document by exporting it to a bitmap format, such as JPEG, GIF, or TIFF.

See also
“About raster effects” on page 355
“Rasterization options” on page 355

Rasterize a vector object
1 Select one or more objects.
2 Do one of the following:

• To permanently rasterize the objects, choose Object > Rasterize.
• To create the appearance of rasterization without changing the objects’ underlying structure, choose Effect >
Rasterize.
3 Set rasterization options (see “Rasterization options” on page 355), and click OK.

Exporting artwork
Export artwork
1 Choose File > Export.
2 Select a location for the file, and enter a filename.

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3 Select a format from the Save As Type (Windows) or Format (Mac OS) pop-up menu.
4 Click Save (Windows) or Export (Mac OS).

For a video on exporting content from Illustrator, including an overview on different formats and when you should
use them, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0062.

See also
“About saving artwork” on page 267
“Optimize an image for the web” on page 386
“Adobe Version Cue” on page 35

File formats for exporting artwork
Note: You can export multiple artboards only to the following formats: SWF, JPEG, PSD, PNG, and TIFF.
AutoCAD Drawing and AutoCAD Interchange File (DWG and DXF) AutoCAD Drawing is the standard file format for

saving vector graphics created in AutoCAD. AutoCAD Interchange File is a drawing interchange format for exporting
AutoCAD drawings to or importing drawings from other applications. For more information, see “AutoCAD export
options” on page 275.
Note: By default, white strokes or fills in Illustrator artwork are exported to the AutoCAD formats as black strokes or fills;
and black strokes or fills in Illustrator are exported to the AutoCAD format as white.
BMP A standard Windows image format. You can specify a color model, resolution, and anti-alias setting for

rasterizing the artwork, as well as a format (Windows or OS/2) and a bit depth to determine the total number of colors
(or shades of gray) that the image can contain. For 4-bit and 8-bit images using Windows format, you can also specify
RLE compression.
Enhanced Metafile (EMF) Widely used by Windows applications as an interchange format for exporting vector

graphics data. Illustrator may rasterize some vector data when exporting artwork to EMF format.
JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group) Commonly used to save photographs. JPEG format retains all color

information in an image but compresses file size by selectively discarding data. JPEG is a standard format for
displaying images over the web. For more information, see “JPEG export options” on page 278. You can also save an
image as a JPEG file using the Save For Web & Devices command.
Note: Artifacts, such as wave-like patterns or blocky areas of banding, are added to a file each time you save the file as a
JPEG. Always save JPEG files from the original image, not from a previously saved JPEG.
Macintosh PICT Used with Mac OS graphics and page-layout applications to transfer images between applications.

PICT is especially effective at compressing images with large areas of solid color.
Flash (SWF) A vector-based graphics format for interactive, animated web graphics. You can export artwork to the

Flash (SWF) format for use in web design, and view the artwork in any browser equipped with the Flash Player plug-in.
For more information, see “Flash export options” on page 276. You can also save an image as an SWF file using the
Save For Web & Devices command (see “SWF optimization options (Illustrator)” on page 398), and you can export
text as Flash Dynamic or Input text (see “Tag text for export to Flash” on page 334). In addition to exporting artwork
in Flash format, you can copy Illustrator artwork and paste it into Flash. The fidelity of artwork is maintained across
the clipboard.
You can create vector artwork for Flex skins in Adobe Illustrator and export it using the Create Flex Skin script. Flex
skins and extensions for Illustrator are available from http://www.adobe.com/go/flex_skinning. For more information
about Flex skins and Flex Builder, see the Flex documentation on Adobe.com.

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Photoshop (PSD) The standard Photoshop format. If your artwork contains data that cannot be exported to

Photoshop format, Illustrator preserves the appearance of the artwork by merging the layers in the document or by
rasterizing the artwork. As a result, there may be times when layers, sublayers, compound shapes, and editable text are
not preserved in the Photoshop file, even though you selected the appropriate export option. For more information,
see “Photoshop export options” on page 279.
PNG (Portable Network Graphics) Used for lossless compression and for display of images on the web. Unlike GIF,

PNG supports 24-bit images and produces background transparency without jagged edges; however, some web
browsers do not support PNG images. PNG preserves transparency in grayscale and RGB images. For more
information, see “PNG export options” on page 279. You can also save an image as a PNG file using the Save For Web
& Devices command.
Targa (TGA) Designed for use on systems that use the Truevision® video board. You can specify a color model,

resolution, and anti-alias setting for rasterizing the artwork, as well as a bit depth to determine the total number of
colors (or shades of gray) that the image can contain.
Text Format (TXT) Used to export text in an illustration to a text file. (See “Export text to a text file” on page 334.)
TIFF (Tagged-Image File Format) Used to exchange files between applications and computer platforms. TIFF is a
flexible bitmap image format supported by most paint, image-editing, and page-layout applications. Most desktop
scanners can produce TIFF files. For more information, see “TIFF export options” on page 280.
Windows Metafile (WMF) An intermediate exchange format for 16-bit Windows applications. WMF format is
supported by almost all Windows drawing and layout programs. However, it has limited vector graphics support, and
wherever possible, EMF format should be used in place of WMF format.

See also
“About saving artwork” on page 267
“Export artwork” on page 273

AutoCAD export options
When you export artwork to either DXF or DWG format, you can set the following options:
AutoCAD Version Specifies the earliest version of AutoCAD that supports the exported file.
Scale Enter values for Scale Units to specify how Illustrator interprets length data when writing the AutoCAD file.
Scale Lineweights Scales the lineweights, along with the rest of the drawing, in the exported file.
Number of Colors Determines the color depth of the exported file.
Raster File Format Specifies whether images and objects that are rasterized during export are saved in PNG or JPEG format.

Only PNG supports transparency; if you need to preserve appearance to the maximum extent possible, choose PNG.
Preserve Appearance Select if you need the appearance to be maintained and don’t need to make edits to the exported

file. Selecting this option may lead to a significant loss of editability. For example, text may be outlined and effects will
be rasterized. You can select this option or Maximum Editability, but not both.
Maximum Editability Select if the need to edit the file in AutoCAD outweighs the need for maintaining appearance.

This option may lead to significant loss of appearance, especially if you’ve applied style effects. You can select this
option or Preserve Appearance, but not both.
Export Selected Art Only Exports only the artwork in the file that is selected at the time of export. If no artwork is

selected, a blank file is exported.

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Alter Paths For Appearance Changes the paths in AutoCAD to maintain the original appearance, if necessary. For
example, if during the export, a path overlaps other objects and changes their appearance, this option alters the path
to maintain the objects’ appearance.
Outline Text Converts all text to paths before export to maintain appearance. Illustrator and AutoCAD may interpret
text attributes differently. Select this option to maintain maximum visual fidelity (at the cost of editability). If you need
to edit the text in AutoCAD, don’t select this option.

Flash export options
When you export artwork to SWF format, you can set the following Basic and Advanced options. You can export
multiple artboards to SWF format. For a video on exporting SWF files from Illustrator, see
www.adobe.com/go/vid0214. (For a video on importing Illustrator files into Flash, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0197,
and for a video on using Flash and Illustrator together, see www.adobe.com/go/lrvid4099_xp.)
At any time, you can click Web Preview to preview the file in the default web browser (Flash Player browser plug-in
should be installed for the browser), or click Device Central to preview the file in Flash Player on a particular mobile
phone or device.
Note: If your goal is to bring Illustrator artwork into a Flash document, you can simply paste it in. All paths, strokes,
gradients, text (specify Flash Text), masks, effects (such as drop shadow on text), and symbols are maintained. In
addition, you can specify how layers are imported when pasting: as Flash layers, frames, or graphic symbols. For a video
on importing and copying and pasting between web applications, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0193.
Before you click Save (Windows) or Export (Mac OS) in the Export dialog box, specify how to export multiple
artboards. If you want to export artboards as separate SWF files, select Use Artboards in the Export dialog box. To
export only a range of artboards, specify the range. Then click Save (Windows) or Export (Mac OS) and specify the
following options:
Preset Specifies the preset option settings file to use for exporting. If you change the default settings, this option

changes to Custom. You can save a custom option settings as a new preset for reuse with other files. To save option
settings as a preset, click Save Preset.
Export As Specifies how to convert Illustrator layers:

• AI File To SWF File Exports the artwork to a single frame. Select this option to preserve layer clipping masks.
• AI Layers To SWF Frames Exports the artwork on each layer to a separate SWF frame, creating an animated SWF.
• AI Layers To SWF Files Exports the artwork on each layer to a separate SWF file. The result is multiple SWF files,
each containing a single frame with the artwork from a single Illustrator layer.
• AI Layers To SWF Symbols Converts the artwork on each layer to a symbol and exports it to a single SWF file. AI
layers are exported as SWF Movie Clip symbols. The symbols are named using their corresponding layer names. For
a video on using symbols effectively between Illustrator and Flash, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0198.
• AI Artboards To SWF Files Exports each of the selected artboards to a separate SWF file. This is the only option
available when you choose to preserve multiple artboards in the Save As dialog box. If you save a preset with this option
selected, you can use that saved preset only on files with multiple artboards.
Version Specifies the version of Flash Player for browsing imported files. The Compress File option isn’t available in

Flash version 5 and earlier. Dynamic Text and Input Text aren’t available in version 3 and earlier.
Clip To Artboard Size Exports the Illustrator artwork within the selected artboard’s borders) to the SWF file. Any

artwork outside the borders will be clipped off. This option is checked and disabled when exporting multiple artboards.
Preserve Appearance Select Preserve Appearance to flatten artwork to a single layer before export. Selecting this

option limits the editability of the file.

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Compress File Compresses the SWF data, resulting in a smaller file size. Note that Flash players prior to Flash Player

6 can’t open or display compressed files. Don’t use this option if you’re not sure what version of the Flash player the
file will be viewed on.
Export Symbols In The Panel Exports all the symbols in the Symbols panel. If a symbol doesn’t have an active instance

in the artwork, the symbol isn’t included in the exported frames; however, it is available for use in the Flash Symbol
Library within the Flash Authoring environment.
Export Text As Outlines Converts type to vector paths. Use this option to preserve the visual appearance of type in all

Flash players. If you prefer to have maximum text editing ability, deselect this option. (For a video on using text
effectively between Flash and Illustrator, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0199.
Ignore Kerning Information For Text Exports text without the kerning values.
Include Metadata Exports the metadata associated with the file. Exported XMP information is minimized to keep file
size small. For example, thumbnails aren’t included.
Protect From Import Prohibits users from modifying the exported SWF file.
Password Type a password to protect the file from being opened by unauthorized users or in applications other than

Adobe Flash.
Curve Quality Determines the accuracy of the Bezier curves. A lower value decreases the exported file size with a slight
loss of curve quality. A higher value increases the accuracy of the Bezier curve reproduction, but results in a larger file size.
Background Color Specifies a background color for the exported SWF file.
Local Playback Security Specifies whether you want the file to access only local files or network files during playback.

To specify Advanced options, click Advanced and specify any of the following:
Image Format Determines how the artwork is compressed. Lossless compression maintains the highest image quality

but creates a large SWF file. Lossy (JPEG) compression creates a smaller SWF file but adds artifacts to the image. Select
Lossless if you intend to continue to work on the file (or files) in Flash; select Lossy if you’re exporting the final SWF file.
JPEG Quality Specifies the amount of detail in the exported image. The higher the quality, the larger the file size. (This
option is available only if you choose Lossy compression.)
Method Specifies the type of JPEG compression that is used. Baseline (Standard) applies the standard type of

compression, while Baseline Optimized applies additional optimization. (These options are available only if you
choose Lossy compression.)
Resolution Adjusts the screen resolution for bitmap images. Resolution for exported SWF files can be 72 to 600 pixels

per inch (ppi). Higher resolution values result in better image quality but larger file sizes.
Frame Rate Specifies the rate at which the animation will be played in Flash Player. (This option is available only for

AI Layers To SWF Frames.)
Looping Causes the animation to loop continuously, rather than play once and then stop, when played in Flash Player.
(This option is available only for AI Layers To SWF Frames.)
Animate Blends Specifies whether or not to animate blended objects. Selecting this option produces the same results
as manually releasing blended objects to layers before you export. Blends are always animated from start to end
irrespective of the layer order.

If you select Animate Blends, select a method for exporting the blend:

• In Sequence Exports each object in the blend to a separate frame in the animation.
• In Build Builds up a cumulative sequence of objects in the animation frames. For example, the bottommost object
in the blend appears in each of the frames, and the topmost object in the blend appears only in the last frame.

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Layer Order Determines the timeline of the animation. Select Bottom Up to export layers starting with the
bottommost layer in the Layers panel. Select Top Down to export layers starting with the topmost layer in the Layers
panel. (This option is available only for AI Layers To SWF Frames.)
Export Static Layers Specifies one or more layers or sublayers to be used as static content in all the exported SWF
Frames. Content from the selected layers or sublayers will be present as background art in every exported SWF frame.
(This option is only available for AI Layers To SWF Frames.)

See also
“About Flash graphics” on page 381
“Create Flash animations” on page 382
“Using multiple artboards” on page 37
“Working with Illustrator and Flash” on page 383

JPEG export options
If your document contains multiple artboards, specify how to export the artboards before you click Save (Windows)
or Export (Mac OS) in the Export dialog box. To export each artboard as a separate JPEG file, select Use Artboards in
the Export dialog box. To export only a range of artboards, specify the range. Then click Save (Windows) or Export
(Mac OS) and specify the following options:
Quality Determines the quality and size of the JPEG file. Choose an option from the Quality menu or enter a value

between 0 and 10 in the Quality text box.
Color Model Determines the color model of the JPEG file.
Method and Scans Select Baseline (“Standard”) to use a format recognized by most web browsers, Baseline Optimized

for optimized color and a slightly smaller file size, Progressive to display a series of increasingly detailed scans (you
specify how many) as the image downloads. Baseline Optimized and Progressive JPEG images are not supported by
all web browsers.
Depth Determines the resolution of the JPEG file. Choose Custom to specify a resolution.
Anti-Alias Removes jagged edges in the artwork by supersampling it. Deselecting this option helps maintain the hard

edges of line art when it is rasterized.
Imagemap Generates code for image maps. If you select this option, select Client-side (.html) or Server-side (.map) to

determine the type of file that is generated.
Embed ICC Profiles Saves ICC profiles in the JPEG file.

See also
“About colors in digital graphics” on page 94
“Optimize an image for the web” on page 386
“About color profiles” on page 143

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Photoshop export options
If your document contains multiple artboards, specify how to export the artboards before you click Save (Windows)
or Export (Mac OS) in the Export dialog box. To export each artboard as a separate PSD file, select Use Artboards in
the Export dialog box. To export only a range of artboards, specify the range. Then click Save (Windows) or Export
(Mac OS) and specify the following options:
Color Model Determines the color model of the exported file. Exporting a CMYK document as RGB, or vice versa, may

cause unexpected changes in the appearance of transparent areas, especially those that include blending modes. If you
change the color model, you must export the artwork as a flat image (the Write Layers option isn’t available).
Resolution Determines the resolution of the exported file.
Flat Image Merges all layers and exports the Illustrator artwork as a rasterized image. Choosing this option preserves

the visual appearance of the artwork.
Write Layers Exports groups, compound shapes, nested layers, and slices as separate, editable Photoshop layers.

Nested layers that are more than five levels deep are merged into a single Photoshop layer. Select Maximum Editability
to export transparent objects (that is, objects with an opacity mask, a constant opacity less than 100%, or a blending
mode other than Normal) as live, editable Photoshop layers.
Preserve Text Editability Exports horizontal and vertical point type in layers (including nested layers up to five levels

deep) to editable Photoshop type. If doing so compromises the appearance of the artwork, you can deselect this option
to rasterize the text instead.
Maximum Editability Writes each top-level sublayer to a separate Photoshop layer if doing so doesn’t compromise the

appearance of the artwork. Top-level layers become Photoshop layer sets. Transparent objects remain editable
transparent objects. Also creates a Photoshop shape layer for each compound shape in a top-level layer if doing so
doesn’t compromise the appearance of the artwork. To write compound shapes with solid strokes, change the Join type
to Round. Whether or not you select this option, all layers over 5 levels deep are merged into a single Photoshop layer.
Note: Illustrator cannot export compound shapes that have graphic styles, dashed strokes, or brushes applied to them.
Such compound shapes become rasterized.
Anti-Alias Removes jagged edges in the artwork by supersampling it. Deselecting this option helps maintain the hard

edges of line art when it’s rasterized.
Embed ICC Profiles Creates a color-managed document.

See also
“Image resolution guidelines for final output” on page 262
“About colors in digital graphics” on page 94
“Stroke an object” on page 155

PNG export options
If your document contains multiple artboards, specify how to export the artboards before you click Save (Windows)
or Export (Mac OS) in the Export dialog box. To export each artboard as a separate PNG file, select Use Artboards in
the Export dialog box. To export only a range of artboards, specify the range. Then click Save (Windows) or Export
(Mac OS) and specify the following options:
Resolution Determines the resolution of the rasterized image. Higher resolution values result in better image quality

but larger file sizes.

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Note: Some applications open PNG files at 72 ppi, regardless of the resolution you specify. In such applications, the
dimensions of the image will be altered. (For example, artwork saved at 150 ppi will be over twice as large as artwork
saved at 72 ppi.) Therefore, only change the resolution when you know the target application supports non-72-ppi
resolutions.
Color Specifies a color for filling transparency. Choose Transparent to preserve transparency, White to fill
transparency with white, Black to fill transparency with black, or Other to select another color for filling transparency.
Anti-Alias Removes jagged edges in the artwork by supersampling it. Deselecting this option helps maintain the hard

edges of line art when it is rasterized.
Interlaced Displays low-resolution versions of the image as the file downloads in a browser. Interlacing makes

download time seem shorter, but also increases file size.

See also
“Image resolution guidelines for final output” on page 262
“Optimize an image for the web” on page 386

TIFF export options
If your document contains multiple artboards, specify how to export the artboards before you click Save (Windows)
or Export (Mac OS) in the Export dialog box. To export each artboard as a separate TIFF file, select Use Artboards in
the Export dialog box. To export only a range of artboards, specify the range. Then click Save (Windows) or Export
(Mac OS) and specify the following options:
Color Model Determines the color model of the exported file.
Resolution Determines the resolution of the rasterized image. Higher resolution values result in better image quality

but larger file sizes.
Anti-Alias Removes jagged edges in the artwork by supersampling it. Deselecting this option helps maintain the hard

edges of line art when it is rasterized.
LZW Compression Applies LZW compression, a lossless compression method that does not discard detail from the
image. Select this option to produce a smaller file.
Byte Order Determines the appropriate sequence of bytes for writing the image file, based on the platform you choose.

Illustrator and most recent applications can read files using the byte order for either platform. However, if you don’t
know what kind of program the file may be opened in, select the platform on which the file will be read.
Embed ICC Profiles Creates a color-managed document.

See also
“Image resolution guidelines for final output” on page 262
“About colors in digital graphics” on page 94

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Creating Adobe PDF files
About Adobe PDF
Portable Document Format (PDF) is a universal file format that preserves the fonts, images, and layout of source
documents created on a wide range of applications and platforms. Adobe PDF is the standard for the secure, reliable
distribution and exchange of electronic documents and forms around the world. Adobe PDF files are compact and
complete, and can be shared, viewed, and printed by anyone with free Adobe Reader® software.
Adobe PDF is highly effective in print publishing workflows. By saving a composite of your artwork in Adobe PDF,
you create a compact, reliable file that you or your service provider can view, edit, organize, and proof. Then, at the
appropriate time in the workflow, your service provider can either output the Adobe PDF file directly, or process it
using tools from various sources for such post-processing tasks as preflight checks, trapping, imposition, and color
separation.
When you save in Adobe PDF, you can choose to create a PDF/X-compliant file. PDF/X (Portable Document Format
Exchange) is a subset of Adobe PDF that eliminates many of the color, font, and trapping variables that lead to printing
problems. PDF/X may be used wherever PDFs are exchanged as digital masters for print production—whether at the
creation or output stage of the workflow, as long as the applications and output devices support PDF/X.
Adobe PDFs can solve the following problems associated with electronic documents:
Common problem

Adobe PDF solution

Recipients can't open files because they don't have the
applications used to create the files.

Anyone, anywhere can open a PDF. All you need is the free Adobe
Reader software.

Combined paper and electronic archives are difficult to search,
take up space, and require the application in which a document
was created.

PDFs are compact and fully searchable, and can be accessed at any
time using Reader. Links make PDFs easy to navigate.

Documents appear incorrectly on handheld devices.

Tagged PDFs allow text to reflow for display on mobile platforms
such as Palm OS®, Symbian™, and Pocket PC® devices.

Documents with complex formatting are not accessible to visually Tagged PDFs contain information on content and structure, which
impaired readers.
makes them accessible on-screen readers.

Create Adobe PDF files
You can create different types of PDF files from within Illustrator. You can create multipage PDFs, layered PDFs, and
PDF/x-compliant files. Layered PDFs allow you to save one PDF with layers that can be used in different contexts.
PDF/X-compliant files ease the burden of color, font, and trapping issues.
For a video on creating PDFs from Creative Suite applications, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0209. For a video on
exporting to PDF 1.7 for review or prepress purposes, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0210. For a video on creating
interactive PDFs, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0211.

See also
“Adobe PDF presets” on page 283
“Setting Adobe PDF options” on page 285
“Color management and PDF/X options for PDF” on page 288
“Color-managing PDFs for printing” on page 142

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Create an Adobe PDF
1 Choose File > Save As or File > Save A Copy.
2 Type a filename, and choose a location for the file.
3 Choose Adobe PDF (*.PDF) as the file format, and click Save.
4 Either choose a preset from the Adobe PDF Preset menu, or select a category from the list on the left of the dialog

box and then customize the options.
5 Click Save PDF.

To reset options to the default, hold down Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac OS) and click Reset.

Create a multiple-page Adobe PDF
1 Draw multiple artboards in a document.
2 Choose File > Save As, and select Adobe PDF for Save As Type.
3 Do one of the following:

• To save all of the artboards to one PDF, select All.
• To save a subset of the artboards to one PDF, select Range, and type the range of artboards.
4 Click Save, and set additional PDF options in the Save Adobe PDF dialog box.
5 Click Save PDF.

Create a layered Adobe PDF
Adobe InDesign and Adobe Acrobat both provide features for changing the visibility of layers in an Adobe PDF file.
By saving a layered PDF file in Illustrator, you allow your illustration to be used in different contexts. For example,
rather than creating multiple versions of the same illustration for a multilanguage publication, you can create one PDF
file that contains text for all languages.
1 Set up your illustration so that the adjustable elements (those you want to show and hide) are in separate top-level

layers, not nested within sublayers.
For example, if you’re creating an illustration to be repurposed for multiple languages, put the text for each
language in a different top-level layer.
2 Save the file in Adobe PDF format.
3 In the Save Adobe PDF dialog box, choose Acrobat 8 (1.7) or Acrobat 7 (1.6) for Compatibility.
4 Select Create Acrobat Layers from Top-Level Layers, set additional PDF options, and click Save PDF.

Create an Adobe PDF/X-compliant file
PDF/X (Portable Document Format Exchange) is an ISO standard for graphic content exchange that eliminates many
of the color, font, and trapping variables that lead to printing problems. Illustrator supports PDF/X-1a (for a CMYK
workflow), PDF/X-3 (for a color-managed workflow), and PDF/X-4 (for a color-managed workflow with added
support for preserving transparency as live rather than flattened).
You can create a PDF/X-compliant file during the process of saving a PDF file.
1 In the Save Adobe PDF dialog box, choose a PDF/X preset, or choose a PDF/X format from the Standard menu.
2 Click Output on the left side of the Save Adobe PDF dialog box, and set PDF/X options.

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Adobe PDF presets
A PDF preset is a group of settings that affect the process of creating a PDF. These settings are designed to balance file
size with quality, depending on how the PDF will be used. Most predefined presets are shared across Adobe Creative
Suite components, including InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop, and Acrobat. You can also create and share custom
presets for your unique output requirements.
A few of the presets listed below are not available until you move them—as needed—from the Extras folder (where
they are installed by default) to the Settings folder. Typically, the Extras and Settings folders are found in (Windows
Vista) ProgramData\Adobe\AdobePDF, (Windows XP) Documents and Settings\All Users\Application
Data\Adobe\Adobe PDF, or (Mac OS) Library/Application Support/Adobe PDF. Some presets are not available in
some Creative Suite components.
The custom settings are found in (Windows XP) Documents and Settings/[username]/Application
Data/Adobe/Adobe PDF/Settings, (Windows Vista) Users/[username]/AppData/Roaming/Adobe/Adobe
PDF/Settings, or (Mac OS) Users/[username]/Library/Application Support/Adobe/Adobe PDF/Settings.
Review your PDF settings periodically. The settings do not automatically revert to the default settings. Applications
and utilities that create PDFs use the last set of PDF settings defined or selected.
High Quality Print Creates PDFs for quality printing on desktop printers and proofing devices. This preset uses PDF

1.4 (Windows) or PDF 1.6 (Mac OS), downsamples color and grayscale images to 300 ppi and monochrome images to
1200 ppi, embeds subsets of all fonts, leaves color unchanged, and does not flatten transparency (for file types capable
of transparency). These PDFs can be opened in Acrobat 5.0 and Acrobat Reader 5.0 and later. In InDesign, this preset
also creates tagged PDFs.
Illustrator Default (Illustrator only) Creates a PDF in which all Illustrator data is preserved. PDFs created with this

preset can be reopened in Illustrator without any loss of data.
Oversized Pages (Acrobat only) Creates PDFs suitable for viewing and printing of engineering drawings larger than

200 x 200 inches. These PDFs can be opened in Acrobat and Reader 7.0 and later.
PDF/A-1b: 2005 (CMYK and RGB) (Acrobat only) Used for long-term preservation (archival) of electronic documents.

PDF/A-1b uses PDF 1.4 and converts all colors to either CMYK or RGB, depending on which standard you choose.
These PDFs can be opened in Acrobat and Reader versions 5.0 and later.
PDF/X-1a (2001 and 2003) PDF/X-1a requires all fonts to be embedded, the appropriate marks and bleeds to be
specified, and color to appear as CMYK, spot colors, or both. Compliant files must contain information describing the
printing condition for which they are prepared. PDF files created with PDF/X-1a compliance can be opened in Acrobat
4.0 and Acrobat Reader 4.0 and later.

PDF/X-1a uses PDF 1.3, downsamples color and grayscale images to 300 ppi and monochrome images to 1200 ppi,
embeds subsets of all fonts, creates untagged PDFs, and flattens transparency using the High Resolution setting.
Note: The PDF/X1-a:2003 and PDF/X-3 (2003) presets are placed on your computer during installation but are not
available until you move them from the Extras folder to the Settings folder.
PDF/X-4 (2008) In Acrobat 8, this preset is called PDF/X-4 DRAFT to reflect the draft state of the ISO specification at

Acrobat ship time. This preset is based on PDF 1.4, which includes support for live transparency. PDF/X-4 has the
same color management and International Color Consortium (ICC) color specifications as PDF/X-3. You can create
PDF/X-4-compliant files directly with Creative Suite 3 components (Illustrator, InDesign, and Photoshop). In Acrobat
8, use the Preflight feature to convert PDFs to PDF/X-4 DRAFT.
PDF files created with PDF/X-4 compliance can be opened in Acrobat 7.0 and Reader 7.0 and later.
Press Quality Creates PDF files for high-quality print production (for example, for digital printing or for separations
to an imagesetter or platesetter), but does not create files that are PDF/X-compliant. In this case, the quality of the

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content is the highest consideration. The objective is to maintain all the information in a PDF file that a commercial
printer or print service provider needs in order to print the document correctly. This set of options uses PDF 1.4,
converts colors to CMYK, downsamples color and grayscale images to 300 ppi and monochrome images to 1200 ppi,
embeds subsets of all fonts, and preserves transparency (for file types capable of transparency).
These PDF files can be opened in Acrobat 5.0 and Acrobat Reader 5.0 and later.
Note: Before creating an Adobe PDF file to send to a commercial printer or print service provider, find out what the
output resolution and other settings should be, or ask for a .joboptions file with the recommended settings. You might
need to customize the Adobe PDF settings for a particular provider and then provide a .joboptions file of your own.
Rich Content PDF Creates accessible PDF files that include tags, hyperlinks, bookmarks, interactive elements, and

layers. This set of options uses PDF 1.5 and embeds subsets of all fonts. It also optimizes files for byte serving. These
PDF files can be opened in Acrobat 6.0 and Adobe Reader 6.0 and later. (The Rich Content PDF preset is in the Extras
folder.)
Note: This preset was called eBook in earlier versions of some applications.
Smallest File Size Creates PDF files for displaying on the web, an intranet, or for email distribution. This set of options

uses compression, downsampling, and a relatively low image resolution. It converts all colors to sRGB and embeds
fonts. It also optimizes files for byte serving.
These PDF files can be opened in Acrobat 5.0 and Acrobat Reader 5.0 and later.
Standard (Acrobat only) Creates PDF files to be printed to desktop printers or digital copiers, published on a CD, or

sent to a client as a publishing proof. This set of options uses compression and downsampling to keep the file size
down, but also embeds subsets of all (allowed) fonts used in the file, converts all colors to sRGB, and prints to a medium
resolution. Note that Windows font subsets are not embedded by default. PDF files created with this settings file can
be opened in Acrobat 5.0 and Acrobat Reader 5.0 and later.
For more information about shared PDF settings for Creative Suite components, see the PDF Integration Guide on
the Creative Suite DVD.

Customize PDF presets
Although the default PDF presets are based on best practices, you may discover that your workflow, or perhaps your
printer’s workflow, requires specialized PDF settings that aren’t available via any of the built-in presets. If this is the
case, you or your service provider can create custom presets.
1 Choose Edit > Adobe PDF Presets.
2 Do one of the following:

• To create a new preset, click New. If you want to base the new preset on an existing preset, select the preset first.
• To edit an existing custom preset, select the preset and click Edit. (You cannot edit the default presets.)
• To delete a preset, select it and click Delete.
• To save a preset in a location other than the default Settings folder in the Adobe PDF folder, select it and click
Save As. Specify a location and click Save.
3 Set the PDF options, and click OK.

Alternatively, you can create a custom preset when you save a PDF file by clicking Save Preset at the bottom of the Save
Adobe PDF dialog box.
If you want to share your presets with a colleague, select one or more presets and click Export. The presets are saved
to a separate .joboptions file, which you can then transfer to your colleague via e-mail or over your computer network.

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See also
“Setting Adobe PDF options” on page 285

Load PDF presets
Illustrator comes with supplementary PDF presets (.joboptions) files. You may also receive custom PDF presets files
from service providers and colleagues.
❖ To load PDF presets into all of your Creative Suite 4 applications, do one of the following:

• Double-click the .joboptions file.
• Choose Edit > Adobe PDF Presets. Click Import, and select the .joboptions file you want to load.

Adobe PDF options
Setting Adobe PDF options
Adobe PDF options are divided into categories. Changing any option causes the name of the preset to change to
Custom. The categories are listed on the left side of the Save Adobe PDF dialog box, with the exception of the Standard
and Compatibility options, which are at the top of the dialog box.
Standard Specifies a PDF standard for the file.
Compatibility Specifies a PDF version for the file.
General Specifies basic file options.
Compression Specifies if artwork should be compressed and downsampled, and if so, which method and settings to use.
Marks and Bleeds Specifies printer’s marks and the bleed and slug areas. Although the options are the same as in the

Print dialog box, the calculations are subtly different because PDF is not output to a known page size.
Output Controls how colors and PDF/X output intent profiles are saved in the PDF file.
Advanced Controls how fonts, overprinting, and transparency are saved in the PDF file.
Security Adds security to the PDF file.
Summary Displays a summary of the current PDF settings. To save the summary as an ASCII text file, click Save

Summary.

About PDF/X standards
PDF/X standards are defined by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). PDF/X standards apply to
graphic content exchange. During PDF conversion, the file that is being processed is checked against the specified
standard. If the PDF will not meet the selected ISO standard, a message appears, asking you to choose between
canceling the conversion or going ahead with the creation of a non-compliant file. The most widely used standards for
a print publishing workflow are several PDF/X formats: PDF/X-1a, PDF/X-3, and PDF/X-4.
Note: For more information on PDF/X, see the ISO website and the Adobe website.

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General options for PDF
You can set the following options in the General section of the Save Adobe PDF dialog box:
Description Displays the description from the selected preset, and provides a place for you to edit the description. You

can paste a description from the clipboard. Editing the description of a preset appends the word “(modified)” to the
preset name. Conversely, changing the settings in a preset prepends the description with “[Based on ].”
Preserve Illustrator Editing Capabilities Saves all Illustrator data in the PDF file. Select this option if you want to be

able to reopen and edit the PDF file in Adobe Illustrator.
Important: The Preserve Illustrator Editing Capabilities option counteracts aggressive compression and downsampling.
If file size is a concern, deselect this option.
Embed Page Thumbnails Creates a thumbnail image of artwork. The thumbnail is displayed in the Illustrator Open or

Place dialog boxes.
Optimize For Fast Web View Optimizes the PDF file for faster viewing in a web browser.
View PDF After Saving Opens the newly-created PDF file in the default PDF viewing application.
Create Acrobat Layers From Top-level Layers Saves Illustrator’s top-level layers as Acrobat layers within the PDF file.
This allows Adobe Acrobat 6, 7, and 8 users to generate multiple versions of the document from a single file.

Note: This option is only available when Compatibility is set to Acrobat 6 (1.5), Acrobat 7 (1.6), and Acrobat 8 (1.7).

See also
“About Adobe PDF” on page 281
“Printing and saving transparent artwork” on page 421
“Create Adobe PDF files” on page 281

Compression and downsampling options for PDF
When saving artwork in Adobe PDF, you can compress text and line art, and compress and downsample bitmap
images. Depending on the settings you choose, compression and downsampling can significantly reduce the size of a
PDF file with little or no loss of detail and precision.
The Compression area of the Save Adobe PDF dialog box is divided into three sections. Each section provides the
following options for compressing and resampling color, grayscale, or monochrome images in your artwork.
Important: The Preserve Illustrator Editing Capabilities option (in the General preferences area) counteracts aggressive
compression and downsampling. If file size is a concern, deselect this option.
Downsampling If you plan to use the PDF file on the web, use downsampling to allow for higher compression. If you
plan to print the PDF file at high resolution, do not use downsampling. Deselect the option to disable all downsampling
options.

Downsampling refers to decreasing the number of pixels in an image. To downsample color, grayscale, or
monochrome images, choose an interpolation method—average downsampling, bicubic downsampling, or
subsampling—and enter the desired resolution (in pixels per inch). Then enter a resolution in the For Images Above
text box. All images with resolution above this threshold will be downsampled.
The interpolation method you choose determines how pixels are deleted:

• Average Downsampling Averages the pixels in a sample area and replaces the entire area with the average pixel
color at the specified resolution.

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• Subsampling Chooses a pixel in the center of the sample area and replaces the entire area with that pixel color.
Subsampling significantly reduces the conversion time compared with downsampling but results in images that are
less smooth and continuous.
• Bicubic Downsampling Uses a weighted average to determine pixel color, which usually yields better results than
the simple averaging method of downsampling. Bicubic is the slowest but most precise method, resulting in the
smoothest gradations.
Compression Determines the type of compression that is used. The Automatic option automatically sets the best

possible compression and quality for the artwork contained in the file. For most files, this option produces satisfactory
results. Use Automatic (JPEG) if you need the greatest compatibility. Use Automatic (JPEG2000) for superior
compression.

• ZIP compression Works well on images with large areas of single colors or repeating patterns, and for black-andwhite images that contain repeating patterns. ZIP compression can be lossless or lossy, depending on the Quality
setting.
• JPEG compression Is suitable for grayscale or color images. JPEG compression is lossy, which means that it removes
image data and may reduce image quality; however, it attempts to reduce file size with a minimal loss of information.
Because JPEG compression eliminates data, it can achieve much smaller file sizes than ZIP compression.
• JPEG2000 Is the new international standard for the compression and packaging of image data. Like JPEG
compression, JPEG2000 compression is suitable for grayscale or color images. It also provides additional advantages,
such as progressive display.
• CCITT and Run Length compression Are only available for monochrome bitmap images. CCITT (Consultative
Committee on International Telegraphy and Telephony) compression is appropriate for black-and-white images and
any images scanned with an image depth of 1 bit. Group 4 is a general-purpose method that produces good
compression for most monochrome images. Group 3, used by most fax machines, compresses monochrome bitmaps
one row at a time. Run Length compression produces the best results for images that contain large areas of solid black
or white.
Image Quality Determines the amount of compression that is applied. The available options depend on the

compression method. For JPEG Compression, Illustrator provides Minimum, Low, Medium, High, and Maximum
Quality options. For ZIP compression, Illustrator provides 4-bit and 8-bit Quality options. If you use 4-bit ZIP
compression with 4-bit images, or 8-bit ZIP compression with 4-bit or 8-bit images, the ZIP method is lossless; that is,
data is not removed to reduce file size, so image quality is not affected. Using 4-bit ZIP compression with 8-bit data
can affect the quality, however, because data is lost.
Tile Size This option is only enabled when its corresponding Compression setting is JPEG2000. It determines the size

of the tiles for progressive display.
Compress Text And Line Art Applies compression to all text and line art in the file. This method results in no loss of

detail or quality.

See also
“About Adobe PDF” on page 281

Mark and bleed options for PDF
Bleed is the amount of artwork that falls outside of the printing bounding box, or outside the crop marks and trim
marks. You can include bleed in your artwork as a margin of error—to ensure that the ink extends all the way to the
edge of the page after the page is trimmed or to ensure that an image can be stripped into a keyline in a document.

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The Marks & Bleed area of the Save Adobe PDF dialog box lets you specify the extent of the bleed and add a variety of
printer’s marks to the file.
All Printer’s Marks Enables all printer’s marks (Trim Marks, Registration Marks, Color Bars, and Page Information)

in the PDF file.
Printer Mark Type Lets you choose Roman printer’s marks, or Japanese marks for pages printed in Asian languages.
Trim Marks Places a mark at each corner of the trim area to indicate the PDF trim box boundaries.
Trim Mark Weight Determines the stroke weight of the trim marks.
Registration Marks Places marks outside the artboard for aligning the different separations in a color document.
Offset Determines the distance of all printer’s marks from the edge of the artboard. The trim marks are at the edge of

the space determined by the offset.
Color Bars Adds a small square of color for each spot or process color. Spot colors converted to process colors are

represented using process colors. Your service provider uses these marks to adjust ink density on the printing press.
Page Information Places page information outside the artboard of the page. Page information includes the filename,

page number, current date and time, and color separation name.
Use Document Bleed Settings uses the document’s bleed settings instead of the bleed settings in this dialog box.
Bleed Top, Bottom, Left, Right Controls the bleeds for the artwork. When the

button is selected, these four values

are proportional—editing one will update the values in the other three.

See also
“About Adobe PDF” on page 281

Color management and PDF/X options for PDF
You can set the following options in the Output section of the Save Adobe PDF dialog box. Interactions between
Output options change depending on whether Color Management is on or off and which PDF standard is selected.
Color Conversion Specifies how to represent color information in the Adobe PDF file. When you convert color objects
to RGB or CMYK, also select a destination profile from the pop-up menu. All spot color information is preserved
during color conversion; only the process color equivalents convert to the designated color space.

• No Conversion Preserves color data as is. This is the default when PDF/X-3 is selected.
• Convert To Destination (Preserve Numbers) Preserves color numbers for untagged content in the same color space
as the destination profile (by assigning the destination profile, not converting to it). All other content is converted to
the destination space. This option is not available if color management is turned off. Whether the profile is included
or not is determined by the Profile Inclusion Policy.
• Convert To Destination Converts all colors to the profile selected for Destination. Whether the profile is included
or not is determined by the Profile Inclusion Policy.
Note: When Convert to Destination is selected, and the Destination doesn’t match the document profile, a warning icon
appears beside the option.
Destination Describes the gamut of the final RGB or CMYK output device, such as your monitor or a SWOP
standard. Using this profile, Illustrator converts the document’s color information (defined by the source profile in the
Working Spaces section of the Color Settings dialog box) to the color space of the target output device.
Profile Inclusion Policy Determines whether a color profile is included in the file.

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Output Intent Profile Name Specifies the characterized printing condition for the document. An output intent profile

is required for creating PDF/X-compliant files. This menu is only available if a PDF/X standard (or preset) is selected
in the Save Adobe PDF dialog box. The available options depend on whether color management is on or off. For
example, if color management is off, the menu lists available printer profiles. If color management is on, the menu lists
the same profile selected for Destination Profile (provided it is a CMYK output device), in addition to other predefined
printer profiles.
Output Condition Name Describes the intended printing condition. This entry can be useful for the intended receiver

of the PDF document.
Output Condition Identifier A pointer to more information on the intended printing condition. The identifier is
automatically entered for printing conditions that are included in the ICC registry.
Registry Name Indicates the web address for more information on the registry. The URL is automatically entered for
ICC registry names.
Mark as Trapped Indicates the state of trapping in the document. PDF/X compliance requires a value of True
(selected) or False (deselected). Any document that doesn’t meet the requirement will fail PDF/X compliance
checking.

See also
“About Adobe PDF” on page 281
“Color-managing PDFs for printing” on page 142

Font and flattening options for PDF
You can set the following options in the Advanced section of the Save Adobe PDF dialog box:
Subset Embedded Fonts When Percent Of Characters Used Is Less Than Specifies when to embed the entire font (as

opposed to just the characters used in the document) based on how many of the font’s characters are used in the
document. For instance, if a font contains 1,000 characters but the document only uses 10 of those characters, you may
decide that embedding the font is not worth the extra file size.
Overprints Specifies how to save overlapping colors that are set to overprint. You can choose to preserve the

overprinting or discard the overprinting. If Compatibility (at the top of the dialog box) is set to Acrobat 4 (PDF 1.3),
you can also choose to simulate overprinting by flattening the artwork.
Preset If Compatibility (at the top of the dialog box) is set to Acrobat 4 (PDF 1.3) and the artwork contains

transparency, you can specify a preset (or set of options) for flattening transparency. Alternately, click Custom to
customize the flattener settings.
Note: Acrobat 5 (PDF 1.4), Acrobat 6 (PDF 1.5), and Acrobat 7 (PDF 1.6) automatically preserve transparency in
artwork. As a result, the Preset and Custom options are not available for these levels of compatibility.

See also
“About Adobe PDF” on page 281
“Printing and saving transparent artwork” on page 421
“About overprinting” on page 428

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Adding security to PDF files
When saving as PDF, you can add password protection and security restrictions, limiting not only who can open the
file, but also who can copy or extract contents, print the document, and more.
A PDF file can require passwords to open a document (document open password) and to change security settings
(permissions password). If you set any security restrictions in your file, you should set both passwords; otherwise,
anyone who opens the file could remove the restrictions. If a file is opened with a permissions password, the security
restrictions are temporarily disabled.
The RC4 method of security from RSA Corporation is used to password-protect PDF files. Depending on the
Compatibility setting (in the General category), the encryption level will be high or low.
Note: Adobe PDF presets don’t support passwords and security settings. If you select passwords and security settings in
the Export Adobe PDF dialog box, and then click Save Preset, the passwords and security settings won’t be preserved.

Security options
You can set the following options when you create a PDF or when you apply password protection to a PDF. Options
vary depending on the Compatibility setting. Security options are not available for PDF/X standards or presets.
Compatibility Sets the type of encryption for opening a password-protected document. Acrobat 6 and later lets you

enable metadata for searching.
Be aware that anyone using an earlier version of Acrobat cannot open a PDF document with a higher compatibility
setting. For example, if you select the Acrobat 8 option, the document cannot be opened in Acrobat 6.0 or earlier.
Require Password To Open The Document Select this option to require users to type the password you specify to open

the document.
Document Open Password Specify the password that users must type to open the PDF file.

Note: If you forget a password, there is no way to recover it from the document. It’s a good idea to store passwords in a
separate secure location in case you forget them.
Use A Password To Restrict Editing Security And Permissions Settings Restricts access to the PDF file’s security
settings. If the file is opened in Adobe Acrobat, the user can view the file but must enter the specified Permissions
password in order to change the file’s Security and Permissions settings. If the file is opened in Illustrator, Photoshop,
or InDesign, the user must enter the Permissions password, since it is not possible to open the file in a view-only mode.
Permissions Password Specify a password that is required to change the permissions settings. This option is available

only if the previous option is selected.
Printing Allowed Specifies the level of printing that users are allowed for the PDF document.

• None Prevents users from printing the document.
• Low Resolution (150 dpi) Lets users print at no higher than 150-dpi resolution. Printing may be slower because
each page is printed as a bitmap image. This option is available only if the Compatibility option is set to Acrobat 5 (PDF
1.4) or later.
• High Resolution Lets users print at any resolution, directing high-quality vector output to PostScript and other
printers that support advanced high-quality printing features.
Changes Allowed Defines which editing actions are allowed in the PDF document.

• None Prevents users from making any changes to the document that are listed in the Changes Allowed menu, such
as filling in form fields and adding comments.

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• Inserting, Deleting, And Rotating Pages Lets users insert, delete, and rotate pages, and create bookmarks and
thumbnails. This option is only available for high (128-bit RC4 or AES) encryption.
• Filling In Form Fields, And Signing Lets users fill in forms and add digital signatures. This option doesn’t allow
them to add comments or create form fields. This option is only available for high (128-bit RC4 or AES) encryption.
• Commenting, Filling In Form Fields, And Signing Lets users add comments and digital signatures, and fill in forms.
This option doesn’t allow users to move page objects or create form fields.
• Any Except Extracting Of Pages Lets users edit the document, create and fill in form fields, and add comments and
digital signatures.
Enable Copying of Text, Images, And Other Content Lets users to select and copy the contents of a PDF.
Enable Text Access For Screen Reader Devices For The Visually Impaired Lets visually impaired users read the
document with screen readers, but doesn’t allow users to copy or extract the document’s contents. This option is
available only for high (128-bit RC4 or AES) encryption.
Enable Plaintext Metadata Allows users to copy and extract content from the PDF. This option is only available when

Compatibility is set to Acrobat 6 or later. Selecting this option allows storage/search systems and search engines to
access metadata stored in the document.

File information and metadata
About metadata
Metadata is a set of standardized information about a file, such as author name, resolution, color space, copyright, and
keywords applied to it. For example, most digital cameras attach some basic information to an image file, such as
height, width, file format, and time the image was taken. You can use metadata to streamline your workflow and
organize your files.
About the XMP standard
Metadata information is stored using the Extensible Metadata Platform (XMP) standard, on which Adobe Bridge,
Adobe Illustrator, Adobe InDesign, and Adobe Photoshop are built. Adjustments made to images with Photoshop®
Camera Raw are stored as XMP metadata. XMP is built on XML, and in most cases the metadata is stored in the file.
If it isn’t possible to store the information in the file, metadata is stored in a separate file called a sidecar file. XMP
facilitates the exchange of metadata between Adobe applications and across publishing workflows. For example, you
can save metadata from one file as a template, and then import the metadata into other files.
Metadata that is stored in other formats, such as Exif, IPTC (IIM), GPS, and TIFF, is synchronized and described with
XMP so that it can be more easily viewed and managed. Other applications and features (for example, Adobe Version
Cue) also use XMP to communicate and store information such as version comments, which you can search using
Adobe Bridge.
In most cases, the metadata remains with the file even when the file format changes (for example, from PSD to JPG).
Metadata also remains when files are placed in an Adobe document or project.
If you’re a C++ or Java developer, use the XMP Toolkit SDK to customize the processing and exchange of metadata.
If you’re an Adobe Flash or Flex developer, use the XMP File Info SDK to customize the File Info dialog box. For more
information, visit the Adobe website.

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Working with metadata in Adobe Bridge and Adobe Creative Suite components
Many of the powerful Adobe Bridge features that allow you to organize, search, and keep track of your files and
versions depend on XMP metadata in your files. Adobe Bridge provides two ways of working with metadata: through
the Metadata panel and through the File Info dialog box.
In some cases, multiple views exist for the same metadata property. For example, a property may be labeled Author in
one view and Creator in another, but both refer to the same underlying property. Even if you customize these views
for specific workflows, they remain standardized through XMP.

Document Info panel overview
You use the Document Info panel to see listings of general file information and object characteristics, as well as the
number and names of graphic styles, custom colors, patterns, gradients, fonts, and placed art. To display the panel,
choose Window > Document Info.

• To view a different type of information, select an option from the panel menu: Document, Objects, Graphic Styles,
Brushes, Spot Color Objects, Pattern Objects, Gradient Objects, Fonts, Linked Images, Embedded Images, and Font
Details.

• To view information on only the selected object, choose Selection Only from the panel menu. Leaving this option
deselected lists information about the entire document.

• To save a copy of the file information as a text file, choose Save from the panel menu. Specify a name and location,
and then click Save.

• To view artboard dimensions, click the Artboard tool, choose Document from the panel menu, and then click to
select the artboard you want to view.

See also
“Workspace overview” on page 10

293

Chapter 10: Type
Among the most powerful aspects of Adobe Illustrator are its type features. You can add a single line of type to your
artwork, create columns and rows of text, flow text into a shape or along a path, and work with letterforms as graphic
objects. The fonts you choose and the settings you select in Illustrator for leading, kerning, and spacing before and after
paragraphs are examples of decisions you can make about the appearance of the text in your artwork.
You can create type by using one of three methods: Point type begins where you click and expands in a horizontal or
vertical line as you enter characters. Area type (also called paragraph type) uses the boundaries of an object to control
the flow of characters. Type on a path flows along the edge of an open or closed path.

Importing text
You can import text into your artwork from a file that was created in another application. Illustrator supports the
following formats for importing text:

• Microsoft® Word for Windows 97, 98, 2000, 2002, 2003, and 2007
• Microsoft Word for Mac OS X, 2004, and 2008
• RTF (Rich Text Format)
• Plain text (ASCII) with ANSI, Unicode, Shift JIS, GB2312, Chinese Big 5, Cyrillic, GB18030, Greek, Turkish, Baltic,
and Central European encoding
One advantage of importing text from a file, rather than copying and pasting it, is that imported text retains its
character and paragraph formatting. For example, text from an RTF file retains its font and style specifications in
Illustrator. You can also set encoding and formatting options when importing text from a plain text file.
Important: When importing text from Microsoft Word and RTF files, make sure that the fonts used in the file are
available on your system. Missing fonts and font styles—including fonts that have the same name but different formats
(Type 1, TrueType, or CID)—may cause unexpected results. On Japanese systems, differences in character sets may
prevent text that was entered in Windows from appearing on-screen in Mac OS.

Import text into a new file
1 Choose File > Open.
2 Select the text file you want to open, and click Open.

Import text into an existing file
1 Choose File > Place. Select the text file you want to import, and click Place.
2 If you are placing a plain text (.txt) file, do the following, and then click OK:

• Specify the character set and platform that were used to create the file.
• Select an Extra Carriage Returns option to determine how Illustrator processes extra carriage returns in the file.
• Select the Extra Spaces option if you want Illustrator to replace strings of spaces in the file with tabs. Enter the
number of spaces to be replaced by a tab.

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Creating text
Enter text at a point
Point type is a horizontal or vertical line of text that begins where you click and expands as you enter characters. Each
line of text is independent—the line expands or shrinks as you edit it, but doesn’t wrap to the next line. Entering text
this way is useful for adding a few words to your artwork.
1 Select the Type tool

or the Vertical Type tool

The pointer changes to an I-beam within a dotted box. The small horizontal line near the bottom of the I-beam
marks the position of the baseline, on which the text rests.
2 (Optional) Set text-formatting options in the Control panel, Character panel, or Paragraph panel.
3 Click where you want the line of text to begin.

Important: Be sure not to click an existing object, because doing so converts the type object into area type or type on
a path. If an existing object is located where you want to enter text, lock or hide the object.
4 Enter the text. Press Enter or Return to begin a new line of text within the same type object.
5 When you finish entering text, click the Selection tool

to select the type object. Alternatively, Ctrl-click

(Windows) or Command-click (Mac OS) the text.
Note: For more information about working with type in Illustrator, see the Working with Type white paper at
www.adobe.com/go/learn_ai_type.

See also
“Creating type on a path” on page 301

Enter text in an area
Area type (also called paragraph type) uses the boundaries of an object to control the flow of characters, either
horizontally or vertically. When the text reaches a boundary, it automatically wraps to fit inside the defined area.
Entering text this way is useful when you want to create one or more paragraphs, such as for a brochure.
1 Define the bounding area:

• Select the Type tool

or the Vertical Type tool

, and drag diagonally to define a rectangular bounding area.

• Draw the object you want to use as the bounding area. (It doesn’t matter if the object has stroke or fill attributes,
because Illustrator automatically removes them.) Then select the Type tool , the Vertical Type tool
Type tool
, or the Vertical Area Type tool
and click anywhere on the object’s path.

, the Area

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Creating a type area by dragging (top) compared to converting an existing shape to a type area (bottom)

Note: If the object is an open path, you must use the Area Type tool to define the bounding area. Illustrator draws an
imaginary line between the endpoints of the path to define the boundaries.
2 (Optional) Set text-formatting options in the Control panel, Character panel, or Paragraph panel.
3 Enter the text. Press Enter or Return to begin a new paragraph.
4 When you finish entering text, click the Selection tool

to select the type object. Alternatively, Ctrl-click

(Windows) or Command-click (Mac OS) the text.
If you enter more text than can fit within an area, a small box containing a plus symbol (+) appears near the bottom of
the bounding area.

Example of overflow text

You can resize the text area or extend the path to display the overflow text. You can also thread the text into another
object.
For a video on creating point and area type, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0045. For more information about working
with type in Illustrator, see the Working with Type white paper at www.adobe.com/go/learn_ai_type.

See also
“Creating type on a path” on page 301

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Resize a text area
❖ Do one of the following:

• Select the type object using the Selection tool or Layers panel, and drag a handle on the bounding box.

Resizing a text area with the Selection tool

• Select the edge or corner of the type path with the Direct Selection tool

. Then drag to adjust the shape of the path.

Adjusting the type path using the Direct Selection tool is easiest when you’re in Outline view.

Resizing a type area with the Direct Selection tool

• Select the type object using the Selection tool or Layers panel, and choose Type > Area Type Options. Enter values
for Width and Height, and click OK. If the text area is not a rectangle, these values determine the dimensions of the
object’s bounding box.

Change the margin around a text area
When working with an area type object, you can control the margin between the text and the bounding path. This
margin is referred to as the inset spacing.
1 Select an area type object.
2 Choose Type > Area Type Options.
3 Specify a value for Inset Spacing, and click OK.

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Type without inset spacing (left) compared to type with inset spacing (right)

Raise or lower the first baseline in a text area
When working with an area type object, you can control the alignment of the first line of text with the top of the object.
This alignment is referred to as the first baseline offset. For example, you can make text stick up above the top of the
object or fall a specific distance below the top of the object.

Type with First Baseline set to Cap Height (left) compared to type with First Baseline set to Leading (right)

1 Select an area type object.
2 Choose Type > Area Type Options.
3 For First Baseline, choose one of the following options:
Ascent The height of the “d” character falls below the top of the type object.
Cap Height The tops of uppercase letters touch the top of the type object.
Leading Uses the text’s leading value as the distance between the baseline of the first line of text and the top of the type

object.
x Height The height of the “x” character falls below the top of the type object.
Em Box Height The top of the em box in Asian fonts touches the top of the type object. This option is available

regardless of the Show Asian Options preference.
Fixed Specifies the distance between the baseline of the first line of text and the top of the type object in the Min box.
Legacy Uses the first baseline default used in Adobe Illustrator 10 or earlier.

4 For Min, specify the value for the baseline offset.

See also
“Shift the baseline” on page 318
“Display Asian type options” on page 336

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Create rows and columns of text
1 Select an area type object.
2 Choose Type > Area Type Options.
3 In the Rows and Columns sections of the dialog box, set the following options:
Number Specifies the number of rows and columns you want the object to contain.
Span Specifies the height of individual rows and the width of individual columns.
Fixed Determines what happens to the span of rows and columns if you resize the type area. When this option is
selected, resizing the area can change the number of rows and columns, but not their width. Leave this option
deselected if you want row and column widths to change when you resize the type area.

Options for resizing rows and columns
A. Original columns B. Columns resized with Fixed selected C. Columns resized with Fixed deselected

Gutter Specifies the distance between rows or columns.

4 In the Options section of the dialog box, select a Text Flow option to determine how text flows between rows and

columns: By Rows

or By Columns

5 Click OK.

Fit a headline across the full width of a type area
1 Select a type tool, and click in the paragraph you want to fit across the type area.
2 Choose Type > Fit Headline.

Note: If you change the formatting of the type, be sure to reapply the Fit Headline command.

Threading text between objects
To thread (or continue) text from one object to the next, you link the objects. Linked type objects can be of any shape;
however, the text must be entered in an area or along a path (not at a point).
Each area type object contains an in port and an out port, which enable you to link to other objects and create a linked
copy of the type object. An empty port indicates that all the text is visible and that the object isn’t linked. An arrow in
a port indicates that the object is linked to another object. A red plus sign in an out port indicates that the object
contains additional text. This remaining unseen text is called overflow text.

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Ports on linked type objects

You can break threads and have the text flow into either the first or the next object, or you can remove all threads and
have the text stay in place.
Note: When working with threaded text, it can be useful to see the threads. To view threads, choose View > Show Text
Threads and then select a linked object.

See also
“Enter text in an area” on page 294

Thread text
1 Use the Selection tool to select an area type object.
2 Click the in port or the out port of the selected type object. The pointer changes to the loaded text icon

3 Do one of the following:

• To link to an existing object, position the pointer on the object’s path. The pointer changes to a

. Click the path

to link the objects.

• To link to a new object, click or drag on an empty part of the artboard. Clicking creates an object of the same size
and shape as the original; dragging lets you create a rectangular object of any size.
Another method for threading text between objects is to select an area type object, select the object (or objects) you
want to thread to, and then choose Type > Threaded Text > Create.

Remove or break threads
1 Select a linked type object.
2 Do any of the following:

• To break the thread between two objects, double-click the port on either end of the thread. The text flows into the
first object.

• To release an object from a text thread, choose Type > Threaded Text > Release Selection. The text flows into the
next object.

• To remove all threads, choose Type > Threaded Text > Remove Threading. The text stays in place.

Wrap text around an object
You can wrap area text around any object, including type objects, imported images, and objects you draw in Illustrator.
If the wrap object is an embedded bitmap image, Illustrator wraps the text around opaque or partially opaque pixels
and ignores fully transparent pixels.

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Wrapping is determined by the stacking order of objects, which you can view in the Layers panel by clicking the
triangle next to the layer name. To wrap text around an object, the wrap object must be in the same layer as the text
and located directly above the text in the layer hierarchy. You can drag contents up or down in the Layers panel to
change hierarchy.

A
B

Text wrapped around objects
A. Wrap objects B. Wrapped text

See also
“Enter text in an area” on page 294
“Stacking objects” on page 220
“Creating type on a path” on page 301

Wrap text
1 Make sure that the following conditions are true for the type you want to wrap:

• It is area type (typed in a box).
• It is in the same layer as the wrap object.
• It is located directly under the wrap object in the layer’s hierarchy.
Important: If the layer contains multiple type objects, move any that you don’t want to wrap around the wrap object
either into another layer or above the wrap object.
2 Select the object or objects around which you want the text to wrap.
3 Choose Object > Text Wrap > Make.

Set wrap options
You can set wrap options before or after you wrap the text.
1 Select the wrap object.
2 Choose Object > Text Wrap > Text Wrap Options and specify the following options:
Offset Specifies the amount of space between the text and the wrap object. You can enter a positive or negative value.
Invert Wrap Wraps the text around the reverse side of the object.

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Unwrap text from an object
1 Select the wrap object.
2 Choose Object > Text Wrap > Release.

Delete empty type objects from your artwork
Deleting unused type objects makes your artwork easier to print and reduces the file size. You can create empty type
objects, for example, if you inadvertently click the Type tool in the artwork area and then choose another tool.
1 Choose Object > Path > Clean Up.
2 Select Empty Text Paths, and click OK.

Creating type on a path
Type on a path flows along the edge of an open or a closed path. When you enter text horizontally, the characters are
parallel to the baseline. When you enter text vertically, the characters that are perpendicular to the baseline. In either
case, the text flows in the direction in which points were added to the path.

Enter text on a path
1 Do one of the following:

• To create horizontal text along a path, select the Type tool

or the Type On A Path tool

• To create vertical text along a path, select the Vertical type tool

or the Vertical Type On A Path tool

2 (Optional) Set text-formatting options in the Control panel, Character panel, or Paragraph panel.
3 Position the pointer on the path, and click. (It doesn’t matter if the path has stroke or fill attributes, because

Illustrator automatically removes them.)
Note: If the path is closed, rather than open, you must use the Type On A Path tool.
4 Enter the text.
5 When you finish entering text, click the Selection tool

to select the type object. Alternatively, Ctrl-click

(Windows) or Command-click (Mac OS) the text.
If you enter more text than can fit within an area or along a path, a small box containing a plus symbol (+) appears
near the bottom of the bounding area.

Example of overflow text

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You can resize the text area or extend the path to display the overflow text. You can also thread the text into another
object.
For a video on creating type on a path, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0046. For more information about working with
type in Illustrator, see the Working with Type white paper at www.adobe.com/go/learn_ai_type.

Move or flip text along a path
1 Select the path type object.

A bracket appears at the beginning of the type, at the end of the path, and at the midpoint between the start and end
brackets.
2 Position the pointer over the type’s center bracket until a small icon appears next to the pointer

3 Do one of the following:

• To move text along the path, drag the center bracket along the path. Hold down Ctrl (Windows) or Command
(Mac OS) to prevent the type from flipping to the other side of the path.

Moving type along a path

• To flip the direction of text along a path, drag the bracket across the path. Alternatively, choose Type > Type On A
Path > Type On A Path Options, select Flip, and click OK.

Flipping type along a path

To move type across a path without changing the direction of the type, use the Baseline Shift option in the Character
panel. For example, if you created type that runs from left to right across the top of a circle, you can enter a negative
number in the Baseline Shift text box to drop the type so that it flows inside the top of the circle.
For a video on creating type on a path, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0046.

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See also
“Shift the baseline” on page 318

Apply effects to type on a path
Path type effects let you distort the orientation of characters on a path. You must first create type on a path before you
can apply these effects.
1 Select the path type object.
2 Do one of the following:

• Choose Type > Type On A Path and select an effect from the submenu.
• Choose Type > Type On A Path > Type On A Path Options. Then select an option from the Effect menu, and
click OK.
Note: Applying the Gravity effect to text on a perfectly circular path creates a result that looks like the default Rainbow
effect. It performs as expected on paths that are oval, square, rectangular or otherwise irregularly shaped.

Path type effects
A. Rainbow B. Skew C. 3D Ribbon D. Stair Step E. Gravity

Adjust the vertical alignment of type on a path
1 Select the type object.
2 Choose Type > Type On A Path > Type On A Path Options.
3 Choose an option from the Align To Path menu to specify how to align all characters to the path, relative to a font’s

total height:
Ascender Aligns along the font’s top edge.
Descender Aligns along the font’s bottom edge.
Center Aligns along the point halfway between the font’s ascender and descender.
Baseline Aligns along the baseline. This is the default setting.

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Note: Characters without ascenders or descenders (such as a letter e) or a baseline (such as an apostrophe) are vertically
aligned with characters that have ascenders, descenders, and baselines. These font dimensions are permanently specified
by the font designer.
For more control over vertical alignment, use the Baseline Shift option in the Character panel. For example, type a
negative value in the Baseline Shift box to lower the type.

See also
“Shift the baseline” on page 318

Adjust character spacing around sharp turns
When characters flow around a sharp curve or acute angle, they fan out in such a way that there may appear to be extra
space between them. You can tighten the spacing of characters on curves using the Spacing option in the Type On A
Path Options dialog box.
1 Select the type object.
2 Choose Type > Type On A Path > Type On A Path Options.
3 For Spacing, type a value in points. Higher values remove the extra space from between characters positioned on

sharp curves or angles.

Type without spacing adjustment (left) compared to type with spacing adjustment (right)

Note: The Spacing value has no effect on characters positioned on straight segments. To change spacing of characters
anywhere along the path, select them, and then apply kerning or tracking.

Scaling and rotating type
Selecting type for transformations
You can rotate, reflect, scale, and shear type just as you do other objects. However, how you select the type affects the
transformation results:

• To transform the type along with its bounding path, select the type object and use the Rotate tool to rotate the object
and text.

• To transform just the bounding path, but not the type it contains, select the type object and drag with the Selection tool.

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Rotated type path (left) compared to rotated type and path (right)

See also
“Transforming objects” on page 224

Adjust the scale of type
You can specify the proportion between the height and width of the type, relative to the original width and height of
the characters. Unscaled characters have a value of 100%. Some type families include a true expanded font, which is
designed with a larger horizontal spread than the plain type style. Scaling distorts the type, so it is generally preferable
to use a font that is designed as condensed or expanded, if one is available.
1 Select the characters or type objects you want to change. If you don’t select any text, the scale applies to new text

you create.
2 In the Character panel, set the Vertical Scaling option

or the Horizontal Scaling option

Rotate type
• To rotate the characters within a type object by a specific number of degrees, select the characters or type objects
you want to change. (If you don’t select any text, the rotation applies to new text you create.) In the Character panel,
.
set the Character Rotation option

• To change horizontal type to vertical type, and vice versa, select the type object and choose Type > Type
Orientation > Horizontal or Type > Type Orientation > Vertical.

• To rotate an entire type object (both the characters and the type bounding box), select the type object and use the
bounding box, Free Transform tool, Rotate tool, Rotate command, or Transform panel to perform the rotation.

• To rotate multiple characters in vertical Asian text, use the tate-chu-yoko option to rotate multiple characters.

See also
“Character panel overview” on page 312
“Use tate-chu-yoko” on page 338
“Rotate objects” on page 211

Spelling and language dictionaries
Check spelling
1 Choose Edit > Check Spelling.
2 To set options for finding and ignoring words, click the arrow icon at the bottom of the dialog box and set the

options as desired.
3 Click Start to begin checking the spelling.

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4 When Illustrator displays misspelled words or other possible errors, do one of the following:

• Click Ignore or Ignore All to continue spell-checking without changing a certain word.
• Select a word from the Suggestions list or type the correct word in the top box, and then click Change to change
only that occurrence of the misspelled word. You can also click Change All to change all occurrences of the
misspelled word in your document.

• Click Add to have Illustrator store an acceptable but unrecognized word in the dictionary so that subsequent
occurrences are not considered misspellings.
5 When Illustrator finishes checking your document, click Done.

Illustrator can check for spelling errors in a variety of languages, based on the language that you assign to words.

Edit the spelling dictionary
1 Choose Edit > Edit Custom Dictionary.
2 Do any of the following, and click Done:

• To add a word to the dictionary, type the word in the Entry box, and click Add.
• To remove a word from the dictionary, select the word in the list, and click Delete.
• To modify a word in the dictionary, select the word in the list. Then type the new word in the Entry box, and click
Change.

Assign languages to text
Illustrator uses Proximity language dictionaries for both spelling and hyphenation. Each dictionary contains hundreds
of thousands of words with standard syllable breaks. You can assign a language to an entire document or apply a
language to selected text.

Examples of hyphenation for different languages
A. “Glockenspiel” in English B. “Glockenspiel” in Traditional German C. “Glockenspiel” in Reformed German

Apply a language to all text
1 Choose Edit > Preferences > Hyphenation (Windows) or Illustrator > Preferences > Hyphenation (Mac OS).
2 Select a dictionary from the Default Language pop-up menu, and click OK.

Assign a language to selected text
1 Select the text.
2 In the Character panel, choose the appropriate dictionary from the Language menu. If the Language menu isn’t

showing, choose Show Options from the Character panel menu.

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About Unicode
Illustrator supports Unicode, a standard that assigns a unique number to every single character, no matter which
language or type of computer you use. Unicode is:
Portable Letters and numbers will not change when you move the file from one workstation to another. Adding a
foreign language to a document doesn’t cause confusion, because foreign characters have their own designations that
don’t interfere with the encoding from other languages in the same project.
Platform-neutral Because Windows and Macintosh operating systems now support Unicode, moving a file between
the two platforms is easier. No longer will you need to proofread an Illustrator file just because you moved to it a
Windows computer from a Macintosh computer or vice versa.
Robust Because Unicode-compliant fonts offer a larger number of potential characters, specialty type characters are
readily available.
Flexible With Unicode support, substituting a typeface in a project won’t result in substituted characters. With a
Unicode-compliant font, a g is a g no matter which typeface is used.

All of these things make it possible for a French designer to design for a client in Korea and hand the job off to a partner
in the United States without having to struggle with the text. All the U.S. designer needs to do is enable the correct
language in the operating system, load the foreign-language font, and continue the project.

Fonts
About fonts
A font is a complete set of characters—letters, numbers, and symbols—that share a common weight, width, and style,
such as 10-pt Adobe Garamond Bold.
Typefaces (often called type families or font families) are collections of fonts that share an overall appearance, and are
designed to be used together, such as Adobe Garamond.
A type style is a variant version of an individual font in a font family. Typically, the Roman or Plain (the actual name
varies from family to family) member of a font family is the base font, which may include type styles such as regular,
bold, semibold, italic, and bold italic.
In addition to the fonts installed on your system, you can also use the fonts installed in these folders:
Windows Program Files/Common Files/Adobe/Fonts
Mac OS Library/Application Support/Adobe/Fonts

If you install a Type 1, TrueType, OpenType, or CID font into the local Fonts folder, the font appears in Adobe
applications only.

OpenType fonts
OpenType fonts use a single font file for both Windows® and Macintosh® computers, so you can move files from one
platform to another without worrying about font substitution and other problems that cause text to reflow. They may
include a number of features, such as swashes and discretionary ligatures, that aren’t available in current PostScript
and TrueType fonts.
OpenType fonts display the

icon.

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When working with an OpenType font, you can automatically substitute alternate glyphs, such as ligatures, small
capitals, fractions, and old style proportional figures, in your text.
A

Regular (left) and OpenType (right) fonts
A. Ordinals B. Discretionary ligatures C. Swashes

OpenType fonts may include an expanded character set and layout features to provide richer linguistic support and
advanced typographic control. OpenType fonts from Adobe that include support for central European (CE) languages
include the word “Pro,” as part of the font name in application font menus. OpenType fonts that don’t contain central
European language support are labeled “Standard,” and have an “Std” suffix. All OpenType fonts can also be installed
and used alongside PostScript Type 1 and TrueType fonts.
For more information on OpenType fonts, see www.adobe.com/go/opentype.

Previewing fonts
You can view samples of a font in the font family and font style menus in the Character panel and other areas in the
application from where you can choose fonts. The following icons are used to indicate different kinds of fonts:

• OpenType
• Type 1
• TrueType
• Multiple Master
• Composite
You can turn off the preview feature or change the point size of the font names or font samples in Type preferences.

Select a font family and style
1 Select the characters or type objects you want to change. If you don’t select any text, the font applies to new text you

create.
2 Select a font family and style using the Control panel, Type menu, or Character panel:

• In the Control panel, set the Font and Font Style options.
• In the Type menu, select a name from the Font or Recent Fonts submenu. Using the Font menu is convenient
because it displays a preview of the available fonts.

• In the Character panel, set the Font Family and Font Style options. In addition to choosing a name from the pop-up
menus, you can click the current name and type in the first few characters of the name you want.
To change the number of fonts in the Recent Fonts submenu, choose Edit > Preferences > Type (Windows) or
Illustrator > Preferences > Type (Mac OS), and set the Number Of Recent Fonts option.

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Specify a typeface size
By default, typeface size is measured in points (a point equals 1/72 of an inch). You can specify any typeface size from
0.1 to 1296 points, in 0.001-point increments.
1 Select the characters or type objects you want to change. If you don’t select any text, the typeface size applies to new

text you create.
2 Do one of the following:

• In the Character panel or Control bar set the Font Size option.
• Choose a size from the Type > Size menu. Choosing Other lets you type a new size in the Character panel.
You can change the unit of measurement for type in the Preferences dialog box.

Find and replace fonts
1 Choose Type > Find Font.

Move the Find Font dialog box so that you can see all the text in your document.
2 Select the name of a font you want to find in the top section of the dialog box. The first occurrence of the font is

highlighted in the document window.
3 Select a replacement font in the bottom section of the dialog box. You can customize the list of replacement fonts

by doing the following:

• Choose an option from the Replace With Font From pop-up menu: Document to list only the fonts that are used
in the document or System to list all fonts on your computer.

• Select the kinds of fonts you want to include in the list; deselect the kinds of fonts you don’t want to include.
4 Do one of the following:

• Click Change to change just one occurrence of the selected font.
• Click Change All to change all occurrences of the selected font.
When there are no more occurrences of a font in your document, its name is removed from the Fonts in Document list.
5 Repeat steps 2 through 4 to find and replace a different font.
6 Click Done to close the dialog box.

Note: When you replace a font using the Find Font command, all other type attributes remain the same.

Work with missing fonts
If a document uses fonts not installed on your system, an alert message appears when you open it. Illustrator indicates
which fonts are missing and substitutes missing fonts with available matching fonts.

• To substitute missing fonts with a different font, select the text that uses the missing font and apply any other
available font.

• To make missing fonts available in Illustrator, either install the missing fonts on your system or activate the missing
fonts using a font management application.

• To highlight substituted fonts in pink, choose File > Document Setup, and select Highlight Substituted Fonts (and
Highlighted Substituted Glyphs, if desired), and then click OK.

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Formatting type
Selecting type
Selecting characters lets you edit them, format them using the Character panel, apply fill and stroke attributes to them,
and change their transparency. You can apply these changes to one character, a range of characters, or all characters
in a type object. When characters are selected, they are highlighted in the document window and the word
“Characters” appears in the Appearance panel.
Selecting a type object lets you apply global formatting options to all the characters in the object, including options
from the Character and Paragraph panels, fill and stroke attributes, and transparency settings. In addition, you can
apply effects, multiple fills and strokes, and opacity masks to a selected type object. (This is not possible for individually
selected characters.) When a type object is selected, a bounding box appears around it in the document window and
the word “Type” appears in the Appearance panel.
Selecting a type path lets you adjust its shape and apply fill and stroke attributes to it. This level of selection is not
available for point type. When a type path is selected, the word “Path” appears in the Appearance panel.

See also
“Keys for working with type” on page 470
“Selection tool gallery” on page 23

Select characters
❖ Select any type tool, and do one of the following:

• Drag to select one or more characters. Shift-drag to extend or reduce the selection.
• Position the pointer in a word, and double-click to select that word.
• Position the pointer in a paragraph, and triple-click to select the entire paragraph.
• Select one or more characters, and choose Select > All to select all the characters in the type object.

Select type objects
Selecting a type object lets you apply global formatting options to all the characters in the object, including options
from the Character and Paragraph panels, fill and stroke attributes, and transparency settings. In addition, you can
apply effects, multiple fills and strokes, and opacity masks to a selected type object. (This is not possible for individually
selected characters.) When a type object is selected, a bounding box appears around it in the document window and
the word “Type” appears in the Appearance panel.
❖ Do any of the following:

• In the document window, click the type with the Selection tool

or the Direct Selection tool

. Shift-click to select

additional type objects.

• In the Layers panel, locate the type object you want to select and then click its right edge, between the target button
and the scroll bar. Shift-click at the right edge of items in the Layers panel to add or remove objects to the existing
selection.

• To select all type objects in a document, choose Select > Object > Text Objects.

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Select a type path
Selecting a type path lets you adjust its shape and apply fill and stroke attributes to it. This level of selection is not
available for point type. When a type path is selected, the word “Path” appears in the Appearance panel.
Selecting a type path is easiest when you’re in Outline view.
1 Select the Direct Selection tool

or the Group Selection tool

2 If the type object is selected, click outside the object’s bounding box to deselect it.
3 Click the type path, being careful not to click the characters. (If you do click a character, you will select the type

object instead of the type path.)
Note: The Type Object Selection By Path Only preference determines the sensitivity of the selection tools when selecting
type objects in the document window. When this preference is selected, you must click directly on the type path to select
the type. When this preference is deselected, you can click the type or the path to select the type. You can set this preference
by choosing Edit > Preferences > Type (Windows) or Illustrator > Preferences > Type (Mac OS).

Find and replace text
1 Choose Edit > Find and Replace.
2 Enter the text string you want to find and, if desired, the text string with which to replace it.

You can choose a variety of special characters from the pop-up menus to the right of the Find and Replace With
options.
3 To customize how Illustrator searches for the specified text string, select any of the following options:
Match Case Searches only for text strings that exactly match the uppercase and lowercase text in the Find box.
Find Whole Word Searches only for entire words that match the text in the Find box.
Search Backwards Searches the file from the bottom to the top of the stacking order.
Check Hidden Layers Searches for text in hidden layers. When this option is deselected, Illustrator ignores text in

hidden layers.
Check Locked Layers Searches for text in locked layers. When this option is deselected, Illustrator ignores text in

locked layers.
4 Click Find to begin the search.
5 If Illustrator finds an instance of the text string, do one of the following:

• Click Replace to replace the text string, then click Find Next to find the next instance.
• Click Replace & Find to replace the text string and find the next instance.
• Click Replace All to replace all instances of the text string in the document.
6 Click Done to close the dialog box.

To find the next instance of a text string when the Find And Replace dialog box is closed, choose Edit > Find Next.

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Change the color and appearance of characters
You can change the color and appearance of type objects by applying fills, strokes, transparency settings, effects, and
graphic styles. The text remains editable as long as you don’t rasterize it.
1 Do one of the following:

• To change the appearance of specific characters in a type object, select the characters.
• To change the appearance of all characters in a type object, or to apply multiple fills and strokes, select the type
object.

• To fill or stroke a type path, select the type path.
2 Apply fills, strokes, transparency settings, effects, and graphic styles as desired.

When you change the color of a type object, Illustrator overwrites the attributes of individual characters in the type
object.
Use the Control panel to quickly change the color of selected type.

See also
“About appearance attributes” on page 349

Character panel overview
You use the Character panel (Window > Type > Character) to apply options for formatting individual characters in
your documents. When type is selected or when the Type tool is active, you can also use options in the Control panel
to format characters.
For a video on working with character and paragraph styles, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0047.
A

Character panel
A. Font B. Font Style C. Font Size D. Kerning E. Horizontal Scale F. Baseline Shift G. Leading H. Tracking I. Vertical Scale J. Character
Rotation K. Language

A. Font B. Font Style C. Font Size D. Align left E. Align center F. Align right

By default, only the most commonly used options are visible in the Character panel. To show all options, choose Show
Options from the options menu. Alternatively, click the double triangle on the panel’s tab to cycle through the display
sizes.

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See also
“Keys for working with type” on page 470
“Workspace overview” on page 10

Underline or strike through text
1 Select the type you want to underline or strike through. If you don’t select any text, the setting applies to new text

you create.
2 Do one of the following:

• To underline type, click the Underline button

in the Character panel.

• To strike through type, click the Strikethrough button

in the Character panel.

The default weight of an underline and strikethrough depends on the size of the type.

Apply all caps and small caps
When you format text as small caps, Illustrator automatically uses the small-cap characters designed as part of the font,
if available. Otherwise, Illustrator synthesizes the small caps using scaled-down versions of the regular capital letters.

Regular capital letters (top) compared to small-cap letters (bottom)

1 Select the characters or type objects you want to change. If you don’t select any text, the setting applies to new text

you create.
2 Choose All Caps or Small Caps from the Character panel menu.

To specify the size for synthesized small caps, choose File > Document Setup. For Small Caps, type a percentage of the
original font size for text to be formatted as small caps. (The default value is 70%.)
To change the capitalization style of text to uppercase, lowercase, title case, or sentence case, use the Type > Change
Case command.

See also
“Character panel overview” on page 312

Change capitalization styles
1 Select the characters or type objects you want to change.
2 Choose one of the following in the Type > Change Case submenu:
UPPERCASE to change all characters to uppercase.

Note: The UPPERCASE command causes discretionary ligatures to revert to normal text. This also occurs with the Title
Case and Sentence Case commands when a discretionary ligature appears at the beginning of a word.
lowercase to change all characters to lowercase.

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Title Case to capitalize the first letter of each word.
Sentence Case to capitalize the first letter of each sentence.

Note: The Sentence Case command assumes that the period (.), exclamation point (!), and question mark (?) characters
mark the ends of sentences. Applying Sentence Case may cause unexpected case changes when these characters are used
in other ways, as in abbreviations, filenames, or URLs. In addition, proper names may become lowercase.
If you’re using an OpenType font, you may want to take advantage of All Caps formatting to create more elegant type.

See also
“Apply all caps and small caps” on page 313

Specify curly or straight quotes
Typographer’s quotes, often referred to as curly quotes, blend in with the curves of the font. Typographer’s quotes are
traditionally used for quotation marks and apostrophes. Straight quotes are traditionally used as abbreviations for feet
and inches.
❖ Choose File > Document Setup, and do one of the following; then click OK:

• To use straight quotes, deselect Use Typographer’s Quotes.
• To use typographer’s quotes, select Use Typographer’s Quotes, choose the language for which you want to set
quotes, and choose options for Double Quotes and Single Quotes.
Note: You can set quote options for multiple languages. These quotes are applied to text based on the language you assign
using the Character panel or Default Language preference.
You can use the Smart Punctuation command to replace straight quotes with typographer’s quotes.

See also
“Assign languages to text” on page 306
“Use smart punctuation” on page 317

Set anti-aliasing options for type
When you save artwork in a bitmap format—such as JPEG, GIF, or PNG—Illustrator rasterizes all objects at 72 pixels
per inch and applies anti-aliasing to them. However, if your artwork contains type, the default anti-aliasing settings
may not produce the desired results. Illustrator provides several options specifically for rasterizing type. To take
advantage of these options, you must rasterize type objects before you save the artwork.
1 Select the type object, and do one of the following:

• To permanently rasterize the type, choose Object > Rasterize.
• To create the appearance of rasterization without changing the object’s underlying structure, choose Effect >
Rasterize.
2 Choose an anti-aliasing option:
None Applies no anti-aliasing and maintains the hard edges of type when it is rasterized.
Art Optimized (Supersampling) Default option that rasterizes all objects, including text objects by the specified

resolution and applies anti-aliasing to them. Default resolution is 300 pixels per inch.

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Type Optimized (Hinted) Applies anti-aliasing that is best suited to type. Anti-aliasing reduces the appearance of
jagged edges in the rasterized image and gives type a smoother on-screen appearance. However, it can also make small
text difficult to read.

Creating superscripts or subscripts
Superscript and subscript text (also called superior and inferior text) is reduced-size text that is raised or lowered in
relation to a font’s baseline.
When you create superscript or subscript type, Illustrator applies a predefined baseline shift value and typeface size.
The values applied are percentages of the current font size and leading, and are based on settings in the Type section
of the Document Setup dialog box.

See also
“OpenType fonts” on page 307
“OpenType panel overview” on page 321

Create superscripts or subscripts in regular fonts
1 Select the type you want to change. If you don’t select any type, any new text you create will be rendered as

superscripts or subscripts.
2 Choose Superscript or Subscript from the Character panel menu.

Create superscripts or subscripts in OpenType fonts
1

Select the characters you want to change to superscript or subscript. If you don’t select any text, the setting applies
to new text you create.

2 Make sure that an OpenType font is selected. One way to determine if a font is an OpenType font is to look in the

Type > Font menu; OpenType fonts display the

icon.

3 In the OpenType panel, choose an option from the Position pop-up menu:
Default Position Uses the default position for the current font.
Superscript/Superior Uses raised characters (if available in the current font).
Subscript/Inferior Uses lowered characters (if available in the current font).
Numerator Uses characters designed as fraction numerators (if available in the current font).
Denominator Uses characters designed as fraction denominators (if available in the current font).

Change the size and position of superscripts or subscripts
❖ Choose File > Document Setup, specify the following values for Superscript and Subscript, and then click OK:

• For Size, type a percentage of the font size for superscripted and subscripted text.
• For Position, type a percentage of the regular leading to specify how much the superscript and subscript text will
move.

Convert type to outlines
You can turn type into a set of compound paths, or outlines, that you can edit and manipulate as you would any other
graphic object. Type as outlines are useful for changing the look of large display type, but they are rarely useful for body
text or other type at small sizes.

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Font outline information comes from the actual font files installed on your system. When you create outlines from
type, characters are converted in their current positions; they retain all graphics formatting such as their stroke and fill.

Modifying a letterform
A. Original type object B. Type converted to outlines, ungrouped, and modified

Note: You can’t convert bitmap fonts or outline-protected fonts to outlines.
When you convert type to outlines, the type loses its hints—instructions built into fonts to adjust their shape so that
your system displays or prints them optimally at a wide range of sizes. If you plan to scale the type, adjust its point size
before converting.
You must convert all the type in a selection; you cannot convert a single letter within a string of type. To convert a
single letter into an outline, create a separate type object containing only that letter.
1 Select the type object.
2 Choose Type > Create Outlines.

Choose a number style in OpenType fonts
1 To change the style of existing numbers, select the characters or type objects you want to change. If you don’t select

any text, the setting applies to new text you create.
2 Make sure that an OpenType font is selected.
3 In the OpenType panel, choose an option from the Figures pop-up menu:
Default Figure Uses the default style for the current font.
Tabular Lining Uses full-height figures all of the same width (if available for the current font). This option is

appropriate in situations where numbers need to line up from one line to the next, as in tables.
Proportional Lining Uses full-height figures with varying widths (if available for the current font). This option is
recommended for text that uses all caps.
Proportional Oldstyle Uses varying-height figures with varying widths (if available for the current font). This option

is recommended for a classic, sophisticated look in text that doesn’t use all caps.
Tabular Oldstyle Uses varying-height figures with fixed, equal widths (if available for the current font). This option is
recommended when you want the classic appearance of old-style figures, but need them to align in columns, as in an
annual report.

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See also
“OpenType fonts” on page 307
“OpenType panel overview” on page 321

Format fractions and ordinals in OpenType fonts
When using an OpenType font, you can automatically format ordinal numbers with superscript characters (for
). Characters such as the superscript “a” and “o” in the Spanish words segunda ( ) and segundo ( ) are
example,
also typeset properly. You can also convert numbers separated by a slash (such as 1/2) to a shilling fraction (such as ).
1 Select the characters or type objects to which you want to apply the setting. If you don’t select any text, the setting

applies to new text you create.
2 Make sure that an OpenType font is selected.
3 In the OpenType panel, click the Ordinals button to enable or disable ordinals or the Fractions button to enable or

disable fractions. These buttons have an effect only if ordinals and fractions are available in the font.

See also
“OpenType fonts” on page 307
“OpenType panel overview” on page 321

Use smart punctuation
The Smart Punctuation command searches for keyboard punctuation characters and replaces them with their
typographic equivalents. In addition, you can use the Smart Punctuation command to globally insert ligatures and
fractions, if the font includes these characters.
If you’re using an OpenType font, use the OpenType panel instead of the Smart Punctuation dialog box to typeset
ligatures and fractions.
1 If you want to replace characters in specific text, rather than all text in the document, select the desired text objects

or characters.
2 Choose Type > Smart Punctuation.
3 Select one or more of the following options:
ff, fi, ffi Ligatures Renders ff, fi, or ffi letter combinations as ligatures.
ff, fl, ffl Ligatures Renders ff, fl, or ffl letter combinations as ligatures.
Smart Quotes Changes straight keyboard quotation marks into curly quotes.

Note: The Smart Quotes option always replaces straight quotes with curly quotes, regardless of the Double Quotes and
Single Quotes settings in the Document Setup dialog box.
Smart Spaces Eliminates multiple spaces after a period.
En, Em Dashes Replaces a double keyboard dash with an en dash and a triple keyboard dash with an em dash.
Ellipses Replaces three keyboard periods with ellipsis points.
Expert Fractions Replaces separate characters used to represent fractions with their single-character equivalents.

4 Select Entire Document to replace text symbols in the entire file or Text Only to replace symbols only in selected text.
5 (Optional) Select Report Results to see a list of the number of symbols replaced.

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6 Click OK to search for and replace selected characters.

See also
“Use ligatures and contextual alternates” on page 322

Line and character spacing
Set the leading
The vertical space between lines of type is called leading (rhymes with sledding). Leading is measured from the baseline
of one line of text to the baseline of the line above it. Baseline is the invisible line on which most letters sit.
The default auto-leading option sets the leading at 120% of the typeface size (for example, 12-point leading for
10-point type). When auto-leading is in use, the leading value appears in parentheses in the Leading menu of the
Character panel. You can change this default auto-leading by choosing Justification from the Paragraph panel menu
and specifying a percentage from 0 to 500.
By default, leading is a character attribute, which means that you can apply more than one leading value within the
same paragraph. The largest leading value in a line of type determines the leading for that line.
Note: When working with horizontal Asian type, you can specify how leading is measured, either from baseline to
baseline or from the top of one line to the top of the next.
1 Select the characters or type objects you want to change. If you don’t select any text, the leading applies to new text

you create.
2 In the Character panel, set the Leading option

(

for vertical text).

Shift the baseline
Use Baseline Shift to move selected characters up or down relative to the baseline of the surrounding text. Shifting the
baseline is especially useful when you’re hand-setting fractions or adjusting the position of a picture font.
1 Select the characters or type objects you want to change. If you don’t select any text, the shift applies to new text

you create.
2 In the Character panel, set the Baseline Shift option. Positive values move the character’s baseline above the baseline

of the rest of the line; negative values move it below the baseline.

-6

-2

Type with different Baseline Shift values

Kern and track
Kerning is the process of adding or subtracting space between specific pairs of characters. Tracking is the process of
loosening or tightening the spacing between the characters in selected text or an entire block of text.

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You can automatically kern type using metrics kerning or optical kerning. Metrics kerning (also called Auto kerning)
uses kern pairs, which are included with most fonts. Kern pairs contain information about the spacing of specific pairs
of letters. Some of these are: LA, P., To, Try, Ta, Tu, Te, Ty, Wa, WA, We, Wo, Ya, and Yo. Metrics kerning is set as
the default so that specific pairs are automatically kerned when you import or type text.
Some fonts include robust kern-pair specifications. However, when a font includes only minimal built-in kerning or
none at all, or if you use two different typefaces or sizes in one or more words on a line, you may want to use the optical
kerning option. Optical kerning adjusts the spacing between adjacent characters based on their shapes.

Kerning and tracking options
A. Original text B. Text with optical kerning C. Text with manual kerning between W and a D. Text with tracking E. Cumulative kerning
and tracking

You can also use manual kerning, which is ideal for adjusting the space between two letters. Tracking and manual
kerning are cumulative, so you can first adjust individual pairs of letters, and then tighten or loosen a block of text
without affecting the relative kerning of the letter pairs.
When you click to place the insertion point between two letters, kerning values appear in the Character panel. Metrics
and optical kerning values (or defined kern pairs) appear in parentheses. Similarly, if you select a word or a range of
text, the tracking values appear in the Character panel.
Tracking and kerning are both measured in 1/1000 em, a unit of measure that is relative to the current typeface size.
In a 6-point font, 1 em equals 6 points; in a 10-point font, 1 em equals 10 points. Kerning and tracking are strictly
proportional to the current typeface size.
Note: Values for kerning and tracking affect Japanese text, but normally these options are used to adjust the aki between
roman characters.

Adjust kerning
❖ Do any of the following:

• To use a font’s built-in kerning information for selected characters, select Auto or Metrics for the Kerning option
in the Character panel.

• To automatically adjust the spacing between selected characters based on their shapes, select Optical for the
Kerning option in the Character panel.

• To adjust kerning manually, place an insertion point between two characters, and set the desired value for the
Kerning option in the Character panel. (Note that if a range of text is selected, you can’t manually kern the text.
Instead, use tracking.)
Press Alt+Left/Right Arrow (Windows) or Option+Left/Right Arrow (Mac OS) to decrease or increase the kerning
between two characters.

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• To turn off kerning for selected characters, set the Kerning option in the Character panel to 0 (zero).

Adjust tracking
1 Select the range of characters or the type object that you want to adjust.
2 In the Character panel, set the Tracking option.

Turn fractional character widths off or on
By default, the software uses fractional character widths between characters. This means that the spacing between
characters varies, and will sometimes use only fractions of whole pixels.
In most situations, fractional character widths provide the best spacing for type appearance and readability. However,
for type in small sizes (less than 20 points) displayed online, fractional character widths could cause type to run
together or have too much extra space, making it difficult to read.
Turn off fractional widths when you want to fix type spacing in whole-pixel increments and prevent small type from
running together. The fractional character width setting applies to all characters on a type layer—you cannot set the
option for selected characters.
❖ Do any of the following:

• To set type spacing for the entire document in whole-pixel increments, choose System Layout from the Character
panel menu.

• To re-enable fractional character widths, choose Fractional Widths from the Character panel menu.

Special characters
About character sets and alternate glyphs
Typefaces include many characters in addition to the ones you see on your keyboard. Depending on the font, these
characters can include ligatures, fractions, swashes, ornaments, ordinals, titling and stylistic alternates, superior and
inferior characters, old-style figures, and lining figures. A glyph is a specific form of a character. For example, in certain
fonts, the capital letter A is available in several forms, such as swash and small cap.
There are two ways to insert alternate glyphs:

• The Glyphs panel lets you view and insert glyphs from any typeface.
• The OpenType panel lets you set up rules for using glyphs. For example, you can specify that you want to use
ligatures, titling characters, and fractions in a given text block. Using the OpenType panel is easier than inserting
glyphs one at a time and ensures a more consistent result. However, the panel works only with OpenType fonts.

Glyphs panel overview
You use the Glyphs panel (Window > Type > Glyphs) to view the glyphs in a font and insert specific glyphs in your
document.
By default, the Glyphs panel displays all the glyphs for the currently selected font. You can change the font by selecting
a different font family and style at the bottom of the panel. If any characters are currently selected in your document,
you can display alternate characters by selecting Alternates For Current Selection from the Show menu at the top of
the panel.

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Glyphs panel
A. Show menu B. Font family C. Font style D. Zoom buttons

When you select an OpenType font in the Glyphs panel, you can restrict the panel to display certain kinds of glyphs
by selecting a category from the Show menu. You can also display a pop-up menu of alternate glyphs by clicking the
triangle in the lower right corner of the glyph box where applicable.

Pop-up menu for alternate glyphs

For a video on working with the Glyphs panel and the OpenType panel, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0048.

See also
“Workspace overview” on page 10

Insert or replace a character using the Glyphs panel
1 To insert a character, click with a type tool to place the insertion point where you want to enter the character, and

then double-click the character you want to insert in the Glyphs panel.
2 To replace a character, choose Alternates For Current Selection from the Show pop-up menu, select a character in

your document using a type tool. Double-click a glyph in the Glyphs panel, if one is available.
Note: Additional replacement options are available for Asian glyphs.

OpenType panel overview
You use the OpenType panel (Window > Type > OpenType) to specify how you want to apply alternate characters in
OpenType fonts. For example, you can specify that you want to use standard ligatures in new or existing text.
Keep in mind that OpenType fonts vary greatly in the kinds of features they offer; not all options in the OpenType
panel are available in every font. You can view the characters in a font using the Glyphs panel.

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I
J
K

OpenType panel
A. Standard Ligatures B. Contextual Alternates C. Discretionary Ligatures D. Swash E. Stylistic Alternates F. Titling Alternates G. Ordinals
H. Fractions I. panel menu J. Figure type K. Character position

Note: Additional features may be available for Asian OpenType fonts.
You can access additional commands and options in the OpenType panel menu in the upper right corner of the panel.
For a video on working with the Glyphs panel and the Open Type panel, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0048.

See also
“Set Asian OpenType font attributes” on page 336
“Workspace overview” on page 10

Highlight alternate glyphs in the text
1 Choose File > Document Setup.
2 Select Highlight Substituted Glyphs, and click OK. Substituted glyphs in the text are highlighted.

Use ligatures and contextual alternates
Ligatures are typographic replacement characters for certain letter pairs. Most fonts include ligatures for standard
letter pairs such as fi, fl, ff, ffi, and ffl. In addition, some fonts include discretionary ligatures for letter pairs such as ct,
st, and ft. Although the characters in ligatures appear to be joined, they are fully editable and do not cause the spell
checker to flag a word erroneously.
Contextual alternates are alternate characters included in some script typefaces to provide better joining behavior. For
example, when using Caflisch Script Pro with contextual alternates enabled, the letter pair “bl” in the word “bloom” is
joined so that it looks more like handwriting.
1 Select the characters or type objects to which you want to apply the setting. If you don’t select any text, the setting

applies to new text you create.
2 Make sure that an OpenType font is selected.
3 In the OpenType panel, do any of the following:

• Click the Standard Ligatures button to enable or disable ligatures for standard letter pairs (such as fi, fl, ff, ffi, and
ffl).

• Click the Discretionary Ligatures button to enable or disable optional ligatures (if available in the current font).
• Click the Contextual Alternates button to enable or disable contextual alternates (if available in the current font).

See also
“OpenType fonts” on page 307
“OpenType panel overview” on page 321

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Use swashes, titling alternates, or stylistic alternates
Many OpenType fonts include stylized characters that let you add decorative elements to type. Swashes are characters
with exaggerated flourishes. Titling alternates are characters (usually all in capitals) designed for use in large-size
settings, such as titles. Stylistic alternates are stylized characters that create a purely esthetic effect.
1 Select the characters or type objects to which you want to apply the setting. If you don’t select any text, the setting

applies to new text you create.
2 Make sure that an OpenType font is selected.
3 In the OpenType panel, do one of the following:

• Click the Swash button to enable or disable swash characters (if available in the current font).
• Click the Stylistic Alternates button to enable or disable stylistic alternates (if available in the current font).
• Click the Titling Alternates button to enable or disable titling alternates (if available in the current font).

See also
“OpenType fonts” on page 307
“OpenType panel overview” on page 321

Show or hide nonprinting characters
Nonprinting characters include hard returns (line breaks), soft returns (line breaks), tabs, spaces, nonbreaking spaces,
double-byte characters (including spaces), discretionary hyphens, and the end-of-text character.
To make the characters visible as you format and edit type, choose Type > Show Hidden Characters. A check mark
indicates that nonprinting characters are visible.

Formatting paragraphs
Paragraph panel overview
You use the Paragraph panel (Window > Type > Paragraph) to change the formatting of columns and paragraphs.
When type is selected or when the Type tool is active, you can also use options in the Control panel to format
paragraphs.
For a video on working with character and paragraph styles, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0047.
A

C
D

Paragraph panel (all options shown)
A. Alignment and Justification B. Left Indent C. First Line Left Indent D. Space Before Paragraph E. Hyphenation F. Right Indent G. Space
After Paragraph

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A. Font B. Font Style C. Font Size D. Align left E. Align center F. Align right

By default, only the most commonly-used options in the Paragraph panel are visible. To show all options, choose Show
Options from the panel menu. Alternatively, click the double triangle on the panel’s tab to cycle through the display
sizes.

See also
“Workspace overview” on page 10
“Keys for working with type” on page 470

Align text
Area type and type on a path can be aligned with one or both edges of a type path.
1 Select the type object or insert the cursor in the paragraph you want to change.

If you don’t select a type object or insert the cursor in a paragraph, the alignment applies to new text you create.
2 In the Control panel or Paragraph panel, click an alignment button.

Justify text
Text is justified when it is aligned with both edges. You can justify all text in a paragraph either including or excluding
the last line.
1 Select the type object or insert the cursor in the paragraph you want to justify.

If you don’t select a type object or insert the cursor in a paragraph, the justification applies to new text you create.
2 In the Paragraph panel, click a justification button.

Adjust word and letterspacing in justified text
You can precisely control how Adobe applications space letters and words and scale characters. Adjusting spacing is
especially useful with justified type, although you can also adjust spacing for unjustified type.
1 Insert the cursor in the paragraph you want to change, or select a type object or frame to change all of its paragraphs.
2 Choose Justification from the Paragraph panel menu.
3 Enter values for Word Spacing, Letter Spacing, and Glyph Spacing. The Minimum and Maximum values define a

range of acceptable spacing for justified paragraphs only. The Desired value defines the desired spacing for both
justified and unjustified paragraphs:
Word Spacing The space between words that results from pressing the spacebar. Word Spacing values can range from
0% to 1000%; at 100%, no additional space is added between words.
Letter Spacing The distance between letters, including kerning or tracking values. Letter Spacing values can range
from -100% to 500%: at 0%, no space is added between letters; at 100%, an entire space width is added between letters.
Glyph Scaling The width of characters (a glyph is any font character). Glyph Spacing values can range from 50% to 200%.

Spacing options are always applied to an entire paragraph. To adjust the spacing in a few characters, but not an entire
paragraph, use the Tracking option.

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4 Set the Single Word Justification option to specify how you want to justify single-word paragraphs.

In narrow columns, a single word can occasionally appear by itself on a line. If the paragraph is set to full justification,
a single word on a line may appear to be too stretched out. Instead of leaving such words fully justified, you can center
them or align them to the left or right margins.

Indent text
Indention is the amount of space between text and the boundary of a type object. Indention affects only the selected
paragraph or paragraphs, so you can easily set different indentions for different paragraphs.
You can set indents using the Tabs panel, the Control panel, or the Paragraph panel. When working with area type,
you can also control indention using tabs or by changing the inset spacing for the type object.
When working with Japanese type, you can use the mojikumi setting instead of the Paragraph panel to specify the
indent for the first line. If you specify the indent for the first line in the Paragraph panel, and specify mojikumi settings
for the first line indent, the text is placed inside the total of both indents.

See also
“Paragraph panel overview” on page 323
“Change the margin around a text area” on page 296

Set indents using the Paragraph panel
1 Using the Type tool

, click in the paragraph you want to indent.

2 Adjust the appropriate indent values in the Paragraph panel. For example, do the following:

• To indent the entire paragraph one pica, type a value (such as 1p) in the Left Indent box

• To indent only the first line of a paragraph one pica, type a value (such as 1p) in the First Line Left Indent box

• To create a hanging indent of one pica, type a positive value (such as 1p) in the Left Indent box and type a negative
value (such as -1p) in the First Line Left Indent box.

Set an indent using the Tabs panel
1 Using the Type tool

, click in the paragraph you want to indent.

2 Do one of the following to the indent markers

in the Tabs panel:

• Drag the top marker to indent the first line of text. Drag the bottom marker to indent all but the first line. Ctrl-drag
(Windows) or Command-drag (Mac OS) the bottom marker to move both markers and indent the entire
paragraph.

First-line indent (left) and no indent (right)

• Select the top marker and type a value for X to indent the first line of text. Select the bottom marker and type a value
for X to move all but the first sentence.

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Create a hanging indent
In a hanging indent, all the lines in a paragraph are indented except for the first line. Hanging indents are especially
useful when you want to add inline graphics at the beginning of the paragraph, or when you want to create a bulleted list.

No indent (left) and hanging indent (right)

1 Using the Type tool

, click in the paragraph you want to indent.

2 In the Control panel or the Tabs panel, specify a left indent value greater than zero.
3 To specify a negative first-line left indent value, do one of the following:

• In the Paragraph panel, type a negative value for the first-line left indent

• In the Tabs panel, drag the top marker to the left, or the bottom marker to the right.

Adjust paragraph spacing
1 Insert the cursor in the paragraph you want to change, or select a type object to change all of its paragraphs. If you

don’t insert the cursor in a paragraph or select a type object, the setting applies to new text you create.
2 In the Paragraph panel, adjust the values for Space Before(

) and Space After (

Note: If a paragraph begins at the top of a column, no extra space is added before the paragraph. In this case, you can
increase the leading of the first line of the paragraph or change the inset spacing for the type object.

See also
“Paragraph panel overview” on page 323
“Set the leading” on page 318

Hanging punctuation
Hanging punctuation makes the edges of text appear more even by moving punctuation marks outside the paragraph
margins.

Paragraph without hanging punctuation (left) compared to paragraph with hanging punctuation (right)

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Illustrator provides the following options for hanging punctuation:
Roman Hanging Punctuation Controls the alignment of punctuation marks for a specific paragraph. When Roman

Hanging Punctuation is turned on, the following characters appear 100% outside the margins: single quotes, double
quotes, hyphens, periods, and commas; the following characters appear 50% outside the margins: asterisks, tildes,
ellipses, en dashes, em dashes, colons, semicolons. To apply this setting, insert the cursor in the paragraph and select
Roman Hanging Punctuation from the Paragraph panel menu.
Optical Margin Alignment Controls the alignment of punctuation marks for all paragraphs within a type object. When
Optical Margin Alignment is turned on, roman punctuation marks as well as the edges of letters (such as W and A)
hang outside the text margins so that the type looks aligned. To apply this setting, select the type object and choose
Type > Optical Margin Alignment.
Burasagari Controls the alignment of double-byte punctuation marks (available in Chinese, Japanese, and Korean

fonts). These punctuation marks are not affected by the Roman Hanging Punctuation option or Optical Margin
Alignment option.
Keep in mind that the paragraph alignment determines the margin from which the punctuation hangs. For left-aligned
and right-aligned paragraphs, punctuation hangs off the left and right margin, respectively. For top-aligned and
bottom-aligned paragraphs, punctuation hangs off the top and bottom margin, respectively. For centered and justified
paragraphs, punctuation hangs off both margins.
Note: When a punctuation character is followed by a quotation mark, both characters hang.

See also
“Paragraph panel overview” on page 323
“Specify a burasagari option” on page 343

Hyphenation and line breaks
Adjust hyphenation automatically
The settings you choose for hyphenation affect the horizontal spacing of lines and the aesthetic appeal of type on a
page. Hyphenation options determine whether words can be hyphenated and, if so, what breaks are allowable.
1 To use automatic hyphenation, do any of the following:

• To turn automatic hyphenation on or off, select or deselect the Hyphenate option in the Paragraph panel.
• To apply hyphenation to specific paragraphs, first select only the paragraphs that you want to affect.
• To choose a hyphenation dictionary, choose a language from the Language menu at the bottom of the Character
panel.
2 To specify options, choose Hyphenation from the Paragraph panel menu, and specify the following options:
Words Longer Than _ Letters Specifies the minimum number of characters for hyphenated words.
After First _ Letters And Before Last _ Letters Specifies the minimum number of characters at the beginning or end of
a word that can be broken by a hyphen. For example, by specifying 3 for these values, aromatic would be hyphenated
as aro- matic instead of ar- omatic or aromatic.
Hyphen Limit Specifies the maximum number of consecutive lines on which hyphenation may occur. Zero means
unlimited consecutive hyphens are allowed at ends of lines.

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Hyphenation Zone Specifies a distance from the right edge of a paragraph, demarcating a portion of the line where

hyphenation is not allowed. A setting of 0 allows all hyphenation. This option applies only when you use the Adobe
Single-line Composer.
Hyphenate Capitalized Words Select to prevent capitalize words from being hyphenated.

Note: Hyphenation settings apply only to Roman characters; double-byte characters available in Chinese, Japanese, and
Korean fonts are not affected by these settings.

Use the hyphenation dictionary
Illustrator uses Proximity language dictionaries to determine when to hyphenate words. These dictionaries let you
specify a different language for as little as a single character of text. You can select a default dictionary and customize
the dictionary in the Preferences dialog box.
1 Choose Edit > Preferences > Hyphenation (Windows) or Illustrator > Preferences > Hyphenation (Mac OS).
2 Do any of the following:

• To choose a default hyphenation dictionary, select an option for Default Language, and click OK.
• To add a word to the exceptions list, type the word in the New Entry box, and click Add.
• To remove a word from the exceptions list, select the word, and click Delete.

Prevent words from breaking
You can prevent words from breaking at the end of lines—for example, proper names or words that could be misread
when hyphenated. You can also keep multiple words or groups of words together—for example, clusters of initials and
a last name.
1 Select the characters you want to prevent from breaking.
2 Choose No Break from the Character panel menu.

Note: If you apply the No Break option to too many adjacent characters, the text may wrap in the middle of a word.
However, if you apply the No Break option to more than a single line of text, none of the text will appear.

Composition methods
The appearance of type on the page depends on a complex interaction of processes called composition. Using the word
spacing, letterspacing, glyph spacing, and hyphenation options you’ve selected, Adobe applications evaluate possible
line breaks and choose the one that best supports the specified parameters.
You can choose between two composition methods: the Adobe Every-line Composer and the Adobe Single-line
Composer. Both methods evaluate possible breaks and choose the one that best supports the hyphenation and
justification options you’ve specified for a given paragraph. The composition method affects only the selected
paragraph or paragraphs, so you can easily set different composition methods for different paragraphs.
Every-line Composer
The Every-line Composer considers a network of break points for a range of lines and thus can optimize earlier lines
in the paragraph in order to eliminate especially unattractive breaks later on.
The Every-line Composer approaches composition by identifying possible break points, evaluating them, and
assigning a weighted penalty based on the following principles:

• For left-, right-, or center-aligned text, lines that fall closer to the right side are favored and have a lower penalty.

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• For justified text, the highest importance is given to evenness of letter and word spacing.
• Hyphenation is avoided when possible.
Single-line Composer
The Single-line composer offers a traditional approach to composing type one line at a time. This option is useful if
you want manual control over how lines break. The Single-line Composer uses the following principles when
considering a breakpoint:

• Longer lines are favored over shorter lines.
• In justified text, compressed or expanded word spacing is preferable to hyphenation.
• In nonjustified text, hyphenation is preferable to compressed or expanded letterspacing.
• If spacing must be adjusted, compression is better than expansion.
To choose one of these methods, select it from the Paragraph panel menu. To apply the method to all paragraphs,
first select the type object; to apply the method to the current paragraph only, first insert the cursor in that
paragraph.

Tabs
Tabs panel overview
You use the Tabs panel (Window > Type > Tabs) to set tab stops for a paragraph or type object.
A

Tabs panel
A. Tab alignment buttons B. Tab position C. Tab leader box D. Align On box E. Panel menu F. Tab ruler G. Snap panel above frame

You can access additional commands and options in the Tabs panel menu. To use this menu, click the triangle in the
upper right corner of the panel.

See also
“Workspace overview” on page 10
“Change the unit of measurement” on page 47

Align the Tabs panel with a selected type object
You can position the Tabs panel anywhere in the work area; however, it is usually helpful to align the Tabs panel with
a type object.
❖ Click the magnet icon

. The Tabs panel moves directly above the selected text object, with the zero point aligned
with the left margin. If necessary, you can drag the resize button at the lower right corner of the panel to expand or
reduce the ruler.

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Snap tab stops to the ruler units
By default, you can position tab stops anywhere along the tab ruler.
❖ Choose Snap To Unit from the panel menu or hold down Shift as you drag a tab stop.

Change the units of measure for the tab ruler
The units of measure for the tab ruler are defined by the General units settings specified in the Units & Display
Performance preferences (for all files) or by the units specified in the Document Setup dialog box (for the current file).

• To change the units of measure for all files, specify a new value for General Units in the Units & Display
Performance preferences.

• To change the units of measure for the current file, specify a new units value in the Document Setup dialog box.

Set tabs
Tab stops apply to an entire paragraph. When you set the first tab, Illustrator deletes all default tab stops to the left of
that stop. As you set more tab stops, Illustrator deletes all default tabs between the tabs you set.
1 Insert the cursor in a paragraph, or select a type object to set tab stops for all paragraphs in the object.
2 In the Tabs panel, click a tab-alignment button to specify how text aligns relative to the tab’s position:
Left-Justified Tab to align horizontal text to the left, keeping the right margin ragged.
Center-Justified Tab to center text on the tab mark.
Right-Justified Tab to align horizontal text to the right, keeping the left margin ragged.
Bottom-Justified Tab to align vertical text to the bottom margin, keeping the top margin ragged.
Top-Justified Tab to align vertical text to the top margin, keeping the bottom margin ragged.
Decimal-Justified Tab to place text in alignment with a specified character, such as a period or a dollar sign. This
option is useful for creating columns of numbers.

You can change the alignment of any tab by simply selecting it and clicking one of these buttons.
3 Do one of the following:

• Click a location on the tab ruler to position a new tab stop.
• Type a position in the X box (for horizontal text) or Y box (for vertical text), and press Enter or Return. If the X or
Y value is selected, press the Up Arrow or Down Arrow key to increase or decrease the tab value by 1 point,
respectively.
Note: When you use the tab ruler, you cannot set tab stops in increments smaller than 1. However, if you specify a position
in the X or Y box, you can set stops at intervals as small as 0.01 point.
4 Repeat steps 2 and 3 to add additional tab stops.

Note: For information on setting indents using the Tabs panel, see “Indent text” on page 325.

Repeat tabs
The Repeat Tab command creates multiple tabs based on the distance between the tab and the left indent or the
previous tab stop.
1 Click an insertion point in the paragraph.
2 In the Tabs panel, select a tab stop on the ruler.

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3 Choose Repeat Tab from the panel menu.
C
A
B

Repeated tabs
A. Tab-alignment buttons B. Tab stop on the ruler C. Panel menu

Move tabs
1 In the Tabs panel, select a tab stop on the ruler.
2 Do one of the following:

• Type a new location in the X box (for horizontal text) or Y box (for vertical text), and press Enter or Return.
• Drag the tab to a new location.
• To move all tab stops simultaneously, Ctrl-drag (Windows) or Command-drag (Mac OS) a tab.
As you move a tab stop, a visual guide appears in the selected text.

Remove tabs
❖ Do one of the following:

• Drag the tab off the tab ruler.
• Select the tab, and choose Delete Tab from the panel menu.
• To return to the default tab stops, choose Clear All from the panel menu.

Specify characters for decimal tabs
You use decimal tabs to align text with a character you specify, such as a period or a dollar sign.
1 In the Tabs panel, create or select a decimal tab

on the tab ruler.

2 In the Align On box, type the character to which you want to align. You can type or paste any character. Make sure

that the paragraphs you’re aligning contain that character.

Text aligned using a decimal tab

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Add tab leaders
A tab leader is a repeated pattern of characters, such as a series of dots or dashes, between a tab and the following text.
1 In the Tabs panel, select a tab stop on the ruler.
2 Type a pattern of as many as eight characters in the Leader box, and then press Enter or Return. The characters you

entered repeat across the width of the tab.
3 To change the font or other formatting of the tab leader, select the tab character in the text frame, and use the

Character panel or Type menu to apply formatting.

Character and paragraph styles
About character and paragraph styles
A character style is a collection of character-formatting attributes that you can apply to a selected range of text. A
paragraph style includes both character- and paragraph-formatting attributes, and can be applied to a selected
paragraph or range of paragraphs. Using character and paragraph styles saves time and ensures consistent formatting.
You use the Character Styles and Paragraph Styles panels to create, apply, and manage character and paragraph styles.
To apply a style, simply select text and click a style name in one of the panels. If you don’t select any text, the style
applies to new text you create.
C
A
B

Paragraph Styles panel
A. Style name B. Style with additional formatting (overrides) C. Panel menu D. New Style button E. Delete icon

When you select text or insert the cursor in text, the active styles are highlighted in the Character Styles and Paragraph
Styles panels. By default, every character in a document is assigned the Normal Character Style and every paragraph is
assigned the Normal Paragraph Style. These default styles are the building blocks for all other styles you create.
A plus sign next to a style name indicates that there are overrides to the style. An override is any formatting that doesn’t
match the attributes defined by the style. Any time you change settings in the Character and OpenType panel, you
create an override to the current character style; likewise, when you change settings in the Paragraph panel, you create
an override to the current paragraph style.
For a video about using character and paragraph styles in Illustrator, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0047.

See also
Using styles in Illustrator video

Create character or paragraph styles
1 If you want to base the new style on the formatting of existing text, select the text.

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2 In the Character Styles panel or the Paragraph Styles panel, do one of the following:

• To create a style with the default name, click the Create New Style button.
• To create a style with a custom name, choose New Style in the panel menu. Type a name, and click OK.
To create a copy of a character or paragraph style, drag the style onto the New Style button.

Edit character or paragraph styles
You can change the definition of the default character and paragraph styles, as well as any new styles you create. When
you change the definition of a style, all of the text formatted with that style changes to match the new style definition.
1 In the Character Styles panel or the Paragraph Styles panel, do one of the following:

• Select the style in the panel, and choose Character Style Options from the Character Styles panel menu or Paragraph
Style Options from the Paragraph Styles panel menu.

• Double-click the style name.
Note: Double-clicking applies the style to any selected text or, if no text is selected, sets the style for any new text you type.
If you don’t want to apply the style, hold down Shift+Ctrl (Windows) or Shift+Command (Mac OS) when you doubleclick the style name.
2 On the left side of the dialog box, select a category of formatting options and set the options you want. You can

switch to a different group of formatting options by selecting a different category.
If you need more information about any of the formatting options, search for the option name in Help.
3 When you finish setting options, click OK.

Remove style overrides
A plus sign next to the style name in the Character Styles panel or the Paragraph Styles panel indicates that there are
overrides to the style. An override is any formatting that doesn’t match the attributes defined by the style. There are
several ways to remove style overrides:

• To clear overrides and return text to the appearance defined by the style, reapply the same style or choose Clear
Overrides from the panel menu.

• To clear overrides when applying a different style, Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Mac OS) the style name.
• To redefine the style and maintain the current appearance of the text, select at least one character of the text and
choose the Redefine Style command from the panel menu.
If you use styles to maintain consistent formatting, you should probably avoid overrides. If you’re formatting quick,
one-time-only text, these overrides pose no problem.

Delete character or paragraph styles
When you delete styles, the appearance of paragraphs tagged with the style doesn’t change, but their formatting is no
longer associated with a style.
1 Select the style name or names in the Character Styles panel or the Paragraph Styles panel.
2 Do one of the following:

• Choose Delete Character Style or Delete Paragraph Style from the panel menu.
• Click the Delete icon

at the bottom of the panel.

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• Drag the style to the Delete icon at the bottom of the panel.
To delete all unused styles, choose Select All Unused from the panel menu, and then click the Delete icon.

Load character and paragraph styles from another Illustrator document
1 In the Character Styles panel or the Paragraph Styles panel, do one of the following:

• Choose Load Character Styles or Load Paragraph Styles from the panel menu.
• Choose Load All Styles from the panel menu to load both character and paragraph styles.
2 Double-click the Illustrator document containing the styles you want to import.

Exporting text
Export text to a text file
1 Using a type tool, select the text you want to export.
2 Choose File > Export.
3 In the Export dialog box, select a location for the file and enter a filename.
4 Choose Text Format (TXT) as the file format.
5 Enter the name of the new text file in the name box, and click Save (Windows) or Export (Mac OS).
6 Choose a platform and encoding method, and click Export.

Tag text for export to Flash
You can export text from Illustrator to Adobe Flash in a variety of ways. You can export text as a static, dynamic, or
input text. Dynamic text also allows you to specify a URL for the site that will open when a user clicks the text. For
more information about dynamic and input text, see Flash Help.
Flash text can contain point text, area text, or text on a path; all text is converted to area text in SWF format. Bounding
boxes remain the same and any transformations applied to them are preserved in SWF format. Threaded text objects
are exported individually —if you want to tag and export all objects in a thread, make sure that you select and tag each
one. Overflow text is imported into Flash Player intact.
Once you tag text, you can import it into Flash by either exporting the text from Illustrator or copying and pasting the text.
For a video on using text effectively between Illustrator and Flash, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0199.
Note: Tagging or untagging text does not change the original text in Illustrator. You can change the tag at anytime
without altering the original.
1 Select a text object and click Flash Text in the Control panel.
2 In the Flash Text panel, select one of the following from the Type menu:
Static Text Exports text to Flash Player as a regular text object that cannot be changed dynamically or programatically
in Flash. The content and appearance of static text are determined when you author the text.
Dynamic Text Exports the text as Dynamic text, which can update programatically at run time through Action script
commands and tags. You can use dynamic text for sports scores, stock quotes, news headlines, and similar purposes
in which you want the text to update dynamically.

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Input Text Exports the text as Input text, which is the same as Dynamic text, but also allows users to edit the text in Flash
Player. You use input text for forms, surveys, or other similar purposes in which you want users to input or edit text.

3 (Optional) Enter an instance name for the text object. If you do not enter an instance name, the default name of the

text object in the Layers panel is used in Flash to manipulate the text object.
4 Specify a Rendering Type. The Use Device Fonts option converts glyphs to device fonts (anti-aliasing is not

available for device fonts).
Note: Font names are normally used verbatim and passed directly to the playback platform’s font system to locate the
font. However, there are several special indirect font names that are mapped to different font names depending on the
playback platform. These indirect mappings are hard-coded into each platform-specific port of Flash Player, and the fonts
for each platform are chosen from among system default fonts or other fonts that are likely to be available. As a secondary
consideration, the indirect mappings are specified to maximize the similarity of indirect fonts across platforms.
Animation Optimizes text for output to animation.
Readability Optimizes text for readability.
Custom Lets you specify custom values for Thickness and Sharpness of text.
Use Device Fonts Converts glyphs to device fonts. Anti-aliasing is not available for device fonts.
_sans, _serif, and _typewriter Map western indirect fonts across platforms to ensure a similar appearance.
Gothic, Tohaba (Gothic Mono), and Mincho Map Japanese indirect fonts across platforms to ensure a similar

appearance.
Note: For more information on indirect fonts, see the Flash specification document, which you can find on Adobe.com.
5 (Optional) Select any of the following:
Selectable

Makes the exported text selectable in Flash.

Show Border Around Text

Makes the text borders visible in Flash.

Opens the Character Embedding dialog box so that you can embed specific characters in
the text object. You can choose the characters you want to embed from the provided list, type the characters in the
Include These Characters text box, click Auto Fill to automatically select characters that need to be embedded, or do
any combination of these.

Edit Character Options

(Optional) If you tagged the text as Dynamic text, you can specify the URL of the page you want to open when the
text is clicked, and then choose a target window to specify where you want to load the page:

_self Specifies the current frame in the current window.
_blank Specifies a new window.
_parent Specifies the parent of the current frame.
_top Specifies the top-level frame in the current window.

7 If you tagged the text as Input Text, specify the Maximum Characters that can be typed into the text object.

Once you tag text as Flash text, you can select all such text at once by choosing Select > Object > Flash Dynamic Text
or Flash Input Text.

See also
Flash text video
“Flash export options” on page 276
“SWF optimization options (Illustrator)” on page 398

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Formatting Asian characters
Note: To enable support for GB18030 fonts for Simplified Chinese in Windows XP, see the readme file in the Illustrator
CS4\Simplified Chinese\Goodies\Optional Extensions\GB18030 folder.

Display Asian type options
By default, Illustrator hides Asian type options in the Character panel, Paragraph panel, OpenType panel, and Type
menu.
1 Choose Edit > Preferences > Type (Windows) or Illustrator > Preferences > Type (Mac OS).
2 Select Show Asian Options, and click OK.

You can also control how font names are displayed (in English or in the native language) by selecting or deselecting
Show Font Names in English.
Note: Your operating system must support the languages in which you wish to work. Consult your system software
manufacturer for more information.

See also
“About Unicode” on page 307

Set Asian OpenType font attributes
Asian OpenType fonts may include a number of features that aren’t available in current PostScript and TrueType
fonts. In addition, Asian OpenType fonts provide alternate glyphs for many characters.
1 Select the characters or type objects to which you want to apply the setting. If you don’t select any text, the setting

applies to new text you create.
2 Make sure that an OpenType font is selected.

Look in the Type > Font menu; OpenType fonts display the

icon.

3 In the OpenType panel, set any of the following options:
Proportional Metrics Kerning is according to the proportional metrics of the font.
H or V Style Switches hiragana fonts, which have different glyphs for horizontal and vertical such as contracted

sounds, double consonants, and phonetic indexes.
Roman Italics Changes half-width alphanumerics to italics.

See also
“About character sets and alternate glyphs” on page 320
“OpenType fonts” on page 307
“OpenType panel overview” on page 321

Replace Asian characters with a different glyph form
1 Select the characters you want to replace.

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2 Choose an option from the Glyphs panel menu. If you don’t see the following options, select Show Asian Options

in the Type preferences. If an option is dimmed, the glyph form is not available for the current font:
Traditional Forms Replaces the selected characters with traditional forms.
Expert Forms Replaces the selected characters with their expert forms.
JIS 04 Forms Replaces the selected characters with JIS 04 forms.
JIS 90 Forms Replaces the selected characters with JIS 90 forms.
JIS 78 Forms Replaces the selected characters with JIS 78 forms.
JIS 83 Forms Replaces the selected characters with JIS 83 forms.
Monospaced Half-Width Forms Changes the glyphs of the selected Latin characters to monospace hankaku (half

width).
Monospaced Third-Width Forms Changes the glyphs of the selected Latin characters to monospace third width.
Monospaced Quarter-Width Forms Changes the glyphs of the selected Latin characters to monospace quarter width.

To revert an alternate glyph to its default form, select it and choose Revert To Default Forms from the Glyphs panel
menu. You cannot use this method to revert alternate glyphs that were applied using a character style.

See also
“About character sets and alternate glyphs” on page 320
“Glyphs panel overview” on page 320
“Display Asian type options” on page 336

Specify how leading is measured in Asian type
1 Select the paragraphs you want to adjust.
2 Choose a leading option from the Paragraph panel menu.
Top-to-top Leading Measures the spacing between lines of type from the top of one line to the top of the next line.
When you use top-to-top leading, the first line of type in a paragraph is aligned flush with the top of the bounding box.
Bottom-to-bottom Leading For horizontal type, measures the space between lines of type from the type baseline.

When you use bottom-to-bottom leading, space appears between the first line of type and the bounding box. A check
mark indicates which option is selected.
Note: The leading option you choose does not affect the amount of leading between lines, only how the leading is
measured.

Rotate half-width characters in vertical text
The direction of half-width characters, such as roman text or numbers, changes in vertical text. By default, half-width
characters are rotated individually.
If you don’t want half-width characters to rotate, deselect Standard Vertical Roman Alignment from the Character
panel menu.

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Roman text before and after rotation

See also
“Display Asian type options” on page 336
“Rotate type” on page 305

Use tate-chu-yoko
Tate-chu-yoko (also called kumimoji and renmoji) is a block of horizontal type laid out within vertical type lines. Using
tate-chu-yoko makes it easier to read half-width characters such as numbers, dates, and short foreign words in vertical
text.

Numerals without tate-chu-yoko (left) compared to numerals rotated with tate-chu-yoko (right)

1 Select characters and choose Tate-chu-yoko from the Character panel menu. (Select it again to turn Tate-chu-yoko off.)
2 Select any of the following tate-chu-yoko settings from the Character panel menu:
Up/Down Specifies a positive value to move the text up and a negative value to move it down.
Left/Right Specifies a positive value to move the text to the right and a negative value to move it to the left.

Use tsume or tracking in the Character panel to adjust the character spacing for tate-chu-yoko.
Note: If the Tate-chu-yoko option isn’t showing, you need to select Show Asian Options in the Type preferences.

See also
“Kern and track” on page 318
“Display Asian type options” on page 336

Use aki
Aki is the white space before or after a character. Usually, fixed spacing is applied between the characters based on the
mojikumi setting for a paragraph. You can change the mojikumi setting for special characters using the Insert Aki
options in the Character panel. For example, to add a space before an opening parenthesis, use the Insert Aki (Left)
option.

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Parenthesis without aki (left) compared to parenthesis with aki (right)

❖ Select the characters you want to adjust with the Type tool, and do any of the following in the Character panel:

• To add aki before or after a character, choose the amount of aki you want to add from the Insert Aki (Left)

or
Insert Aki (Right)
menu in the Character panel. For example, if you specify 2bu, half a full-width space is added,
and if you specify 4bu, a quarter of a full-width space is added.

• To compress the aki between characters, specify a percentage for Tsume

. The higher the percentage, the

narrower the aki between characters.
If you don’t see the Insert Aki or Tsume options, select Show Asian Options in the Type preferences.

Character without tsume (left) compared to character with tsume (right)

See also
“Display Asian type options” on page 336

Use warichu
The Warichu option in the Character panel decreases the typeface size of selected text to a percentage of the original
and stacks the type—horizontally or vertically, according to the orientation—on multiple lines.

Vertical and horizontal text with warichu

1 Select text and choose Warichu from the Character panel menu. (Select it again to turn it off.)

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2 Select any of the following warichu settings from the Character panel menu:
Lines Specifies how many lines of text will appear as warichu characters.
Line Gap Determines the distance between the lines of warichu characters.
Scale Sets the size of warichu characters as a percentage of the size of the parent text.
Alignment Specifies the alignment of warichu characters. For example, in a vertical frame grid, selecting Top will align
the beginning of the warichu characters at the top of the frame. The alignment proxy shows how the warichu text
appears relative to the parent text.
Line Breaking Options Specifies the minimum number of characters required before and after the line breaks to start

a new line.

See also
“Display Asian type options” on page 336

Use mojisoroe to align Asian characters
Mojisoroe is the alignment of characters in Asian type. When a line of text contains different sizes of characters, you
can specify how to align text to the largest characters in the line: to the top, center, or bottom of the embox (right,
center, and left for vertical frames), to the roman baseline, or to the top or bottom of the ICF box (right or left for
vertical frames). The ICF is the space where characters can be placed.

Character alignment options
A. Small characters aligned to the bottom B. Small characters aligned to the middle C. Small characters aligned to the top

❖ In the Character panel menu, choose an option from the Character Alignment submenu:
Roman Baseline Aligns the small characters in a line to the large character.
Embox Top/Right, Embox Center, or Embox Bottom/Left Aligns the small characters in a line to the specified position
of the large character’s embox. In vertical text frames, Embox Top/Right aligns the text to the right of the embox, and
Embox Bottom/Left aligns the text to the left of the embox.
ICF Top/Right and ICF Bottom/Left Aligns the small characters in a line to the ICF specified by the large characters. In

vertical text frames, ICF Top/Right aligns the text to the right of the ICF, and ICF Bottom/Left aligns the text to the
left of the ICF.

Use mojikumi
Mojikumi specifies Japanese text composition for spacing of Japanese characters, roman characters, punctuation,
special characters, line start, line end, and numbers. You can also specify paragraph indents.

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The existing character spacing rules in Illustrator follow the Japanese Industrial Standards (JIS) specification,
JISx4051-1995. You can select from the predefined mojikumi sets provided by Illustrator.
Furthermore, you can create specific mojikumi sets. In a new mojikumi set, you can edit the settings for spacing that
you use a lot, such as the spacing between a period and subsequent opening parenthesis. For example, you might create
an interview format in which you want to have an em dash before a question, and answers enclosed in parentheses.

See also
“Display Asian type options” on page 336

Select a mojikumi set for a paragraph
1 In the Character panel, set Kerning to zero.
2 In the Paragraph panel, choose an option from the Mojikumi Set pop-up menu:
None Turns off the use of mojikumi.
YakumonoHankaku Uses half-width spacing for punctuation.
GyoumatsuYakumonoHankaku Uses full-width spacing for most characters except the last character in the line.

YakumonoHankaku (left) and GyoumatsuYakumonoHankaku (right)

GyoumatsuYakumonoZenkaku Uses full-width spacing for most characters and the last character in the line.
YakumonoZenkaku Uses full-width spacing for punctuation.

GyoumatsuYakumonoZenkaku (left) and YakumonoZenkaku (right)

Create a mojikumi set
1 Do one of the following:

• Choose Type > Mojikumi Settings.
• Choose Mojikumi Settings from the Mojikumi Set pop-up menu in the Paragraph panel.
2 Click New in the Mojikumi Settings dialog box.
3 Enter a name for the new mojikumi set, specify the existing set on which the new set will be based, and click OK.
4 Choose Use Percentage (%) or Bu from the Units pop-up menu.

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5 Specify Desired, Minimum, and Maximum values for each option. The Minimum value is used to compress lines

for kinsoku (specify a value less than the Desired value). The Maximum value is used to spread lines for fully
justified text (specify a value greater than the Desired value).
Depending on the character type, you can specify the same values for Desired, Minimum, and Maximum if you don’t
want to change the spacing.
6 Click Save or OK to save the settings. Click Cancel if you don’t want to save the settings.

When you compose Japanese text with a lot of half-width spaces or roman parentheses, problems relating to text
composition increase. We recommend that you avoid using roman parentheses, and use full-width parentheses for
Japanese composition. Only use roman parentheses when using relatively long English sentences in Japanese text, or when
a more serious problem results if you don’t use roman parentheses.

Work with mojikumi sets
❖ In the Mojikumi Settings dialog box, do any of the following:

• To export a set, click Export, select a location for the file, type a filename, and click Save. Illustrator saves the file in
MJK format.

• To import a set, click Import, select an MJK file, and click Open.
• To delete a set, choose it from the Mojikumi pop-up menu and then click Delete. All the text to which the mojikumi
set was applied will return to the default settings.
Note: You cannot delete predefined mojikumi sets.

Use kinsoku
Kinsoku specifies line breaks for Japanese text. Characters that cannot be placed at the beginning or end of a line are
known as kinsoku characters. Illustrator has hard kinsoku sets and soft kinsoku sets and Photoshop has weak and
maximum sets. Soft or weak kinsoku sets omit long vowel symbols and small hiragana characters. You can use these
existing sets, or add or delete kinsoku characters to create new sets.
You can also define hanging characters for hanging Japanese punctuation and define characters that cannot be split
when a line is exceeded.
You can specify whether to push in or push out text so that kinsoku characters are not placed inappropriately.

See also
“Display Asian type options” on page 336

Select kinsoku settings for a paragraph
❖ In the Paragraph panel, choose an option from the Kinsoku Set pop-up menu:
None Turns off the use of kinsoku shori.
Soft or Hard Prevents selected characters from beginning or ending a line.

Create a kinsoku set
1 Do one of the following:

• Choose Type > Kinsoku Shori Settings.
• Choose Kinsoku Settings from the Kinsoku Set pop-up menu in the Paragraph panel.
2 In the Kinsoku Shori Settings dialog box, click New Set.

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3 Enter a name for the kinsoku set, specify the existing set on which the new set will be based, and click OK.
4 To add a character to a field, select the field, and do one of the following:

• Enter a character in the Input box, and click Add.
• Specify the code system (Shift JIS, JIS, Kuten, or Unicode), enter the code, and click Add.
5 To delete a character in a field, select the character and click Delete. Alternatively, press Backspace (Windows) or

Delete (Mac OS).
6 To check the character code currently selected, select Shift JIS, JIS, Kuten, or Unicode, and display the code system.
7 Click Save or OK to save the settings. Click Cancel if you don’t want to save the settings.

Use kinsoku sets
❖ In the Kinsoku Shori Settings dialog box, do any of the following:

• To export a kinsoku set, click Export. Select a location for the file, enter a filename, and click Save.
Illustrator saves the file in KSK format.

• To import a kinsoku set, click Import. Select a KSK file, and click Open.
• To delete a kinsoku set, choose the kinsoku set you want to delete from the pop-up menu. Then click Delete Set.
Note: You cannot delete predefined kinsoku settings.

Specify a kinsoku line-breaking option
Kinsoku shori or mojikumi must be selected to use the following line-breaking options.
❖ From the Paragraph panel menu, choose Kinsoku Shori Type and then choose one of the following methods:
Push In First Moves characters up to the previous line to prevent prohibited characters from ending or beginning a line.
Push Out First Moves characters down to the next line to prevent prohibited characters from ending or beginning a line.
Push Out Only Always moves characters down to the next line to prevent prohibited characters from ending or

beginning a line. A push-in is not attempted.
A check mark indicates which method is selected.

Set bunri-kinshi on and off
When Bunri-kinshi is selected, the characters specified in the Bunri-Kinshi section of the Kinsoku Shori Settings dialog
box will not be split.
❖ In the Paragraph panel, choose Bunri-kinshi from the panel menu.

Note: This option is only available when kinsoku shori is on.

Specify a burasagari option
Burasagari lets single-byte periods, double-byte periods, single-byte commas, and double-byte commas fall outside the
paragraph bounding box.
1 In the Paragraph panel, choose Burasagari from the panel menu.
2 Choose an option from the submenu:
None Turns off hanging punctuation.
Regular Turns on hanging punctuation without forcing ragged lines to the bounding box edge.

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Force Forces punctuation outside the bounding box by spreading lines that end within the bounding box and end with

one of the hanging characters.

Use kurikaeshi moji shori
You can control how repeated characters in Japanese text are handled using the Kurikaeshi Moji Shori option in the
Paragraph panel. By default, a repeat character mark is substituted for the second character when two identical
characters follow one after the other in a body of text. When this option is selected, both characters are displayed if
they are separated by a line break.

Text without Kurikaeshi Moji Shori option (left) compared to text with Kurikaeshi Moji Shori option (right)

1 Using any type tool, select a paragraph of text to which you want to apply repeated character processing. If no text

exists, the setting applies to new text typed.
2 In the Paragraph panel, select Kurikaeshi Moji Shori from the panel menu.

See also
“Display Asian type options” on page 336

Creating composite fonts
Create a composite font
You can mix characters from Japanese and roman fonts and use them as one composite font. Composite fonts are
displayed at the beginning of the font list.
Important: Composite fonts must be based on Japanese fonts. For example, you cannot create fonts that include Chinese
or Korean fonts, nor can you use Chinese or Korean-based composite fonts copied from another application.
1 Choose Type > Composite Fonts. If you don’t see this command, select Show Asian Options in the Type

preferences.
2 Click New, enter the name for the composite font, and click OK.
3 If you’ve previously saved composite fonts, you can also choose a composite font on which to base the new

composite font.
4 Select a category of characters.

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A
B
C
D
E
F

Categories of characters
A. Kanji B. Kana C. Punctuation D. Symbols E. Roman F. Numerals

5 Choose an option from the Units pop-up menu to specify the unit used for font attributes: % or Q.
6 Set font attributes for the selected category of characters. Some attributes are not available for certain categories.

Font attributes
A. Font Family B. Font Style C. Size D. Baseline E. Vertical Scale F. Horizontal Scale G. Scale at Center

7 To view a sample of the composite font, click Show Sample.

You can change the sample in the following ways:

• Click the buttons on the right side of the sample to show or hide lines indicating the ICF Box
Baseline

, Cap Height

, Max Ascent/Descent

, Max Ascender

• Choose a magnification level from the Zoom pop-up menu.
8 Click Save to save the settings for the composite font, and then click OK.

See also
“Display Asian type options” on page 336

, and x-height

, Embox
.

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Categories of characters in composite fonts
Kanji The base font of the composite font. The size and baseline for other characters are set according to the sizes and

baselines specified here.
Kana The font used for hiragana and katakana characters.
Punctuation The font used for punctuation.
Symbols The font used for symbols.
Roman The font used for half-width roman characters.
Numbers The font used for half-width numbers. This is usually a roman font.

Font attributes for composite fonts
Font Family And Style The font used for the characters.
Size The size of the characters in relation to the size of kanji characters. The size may differ for different fonts, even
when the same font size is used.
Baseline The position of the baseline in relation to the baseline for kanji characters.
Vertical And Horizontal Scale The degree to which characters are scaled. You can scale kana characters, half-width

katakana characters, gaiji characters, half-width roman characters, and numbers.
Scale At Center Scaling for kana characters. When this option is selected, characters are scaled from the center. When
this option is deselected, characters are scaled from the roman baseline.

To specify the same transformation scale for all characters, specify a value for Size and fix the value for scale at 100%.
To have a different character transformation scale for horizontal and vertical, fix Size at 100%, and set Scale.

Customize characters in a composite font
1 Choose Type > Composite Fonts. If you don’t see this command, select Show Asian Options in the Type

preferences.
2 Click Custom in the Composite Font dialog box.
3 Do one of the following:

• If you’ve previously saved custom character sets, select the set you want to edit.
• To create a custom set, click New, enter a name for the character set, and click OK. If there are existing custom sets,
you can also choose a set on which to base the new set.
4 Do any of the following:

• To add a character directly, choose Direct Entry from the Character pop-up menu, enter the characters in the box,
and click Add.

• To add a character using a code, choose an encoding type from the Character pop-up menu, enter the code, and
click Add.
Note: You cannot add 32-bit characters to a custom set.

• To delete a character, select it in the list box, and click Delete.
5 When you’ve finished customizing the character set, click Save, and then click OK.

Note: When there are several custom characters in one composite font, the bottom set takes precedence over all the above
sets.

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Type

Delete a composite font
1 Choose Type > Composite Fonts. If you don’t see this command, select Show Asian Options in the Type

preferences.
2 Select the composite font from the Composite Font dialog box.
3 Click Delete Font, and then click Yes.

Export a composite font
Composite fonts exported from Illustrator can be imported into the Japanese version of Adobe InDesign 2 or later.
1 Choose Type > Composite Fonts. If you don’t see this command, select Show Asian Options in the Type

preferences.
2 Click Export in the Composite Font dialog box.
3 Select a location for the file, enter a filename, and click Save.

Updating text from Illustrator 10
Updating type created in Illustrator 10
Type objects created in Illustrator 10 and earlier are uneditable until you update them for use in later versions. After
you update you have access to all the text features in Illustrator CS4, such as paragraph and character styles, optical
kerning, and full OpenType® font support.
You don’t have to update the text if you don’t need to edit it. Text that has not been updated is called legacy text. You
can view, move, and print legacy text, but you can’t edit it. Legacy text has an x through its bounding box when selected.
After updating legacy text, you may notice some minor reflow changes. You can easily readjust the text on your own,
or you can use a copy of the original text for reference. By default, Illustrator appends the word “[Converted]” to the
filename whether or not you update the text in a file, effectively making a copy of your document to preserve the
integrity of your original file. You can then choose to update the original later or, if you already updated it, go back to
the original version.
Note: If you don’t want Illustrator to append the filename, choose Edit > Preferences > General (Windows) or
Illustrator > Preferences > General (Mac OS), and deselect Append [Converted] Upon Opening Legacy Files.

Update all legacy text in a document
❖ Do one of the following:

• When opening the document, click Update when prompted by Illustrator.
• After opening the document, choose Type > Legacy Text > Update All Legacy Text.

Update selected legacy text
❖ Do one of the following:

• To update the text without creating a copy, select the type object and choose Type > Legacy Text > Update Selected
Legacy Text. Alternatively, select a type tool and click in the text that you want to update, or double-click the text
that you want to update using the Selection tool. Then click Update.

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• To preserve the legacy text on a layer below the updated text, select a type tool and click in the text that you want
to update. Alternatively, double-click the text that you want to update using the Selection tool. Then click Copy
Text Layer. This allows you to compare the layout of the legacy text to the updated text.
If you create a copy of legacy text when you update it, you can use the following commands:

• Type > Legacy Text > Show Copies or Hide Copies to show or hide the copied text objects.
• Type > Legacy Text > Select Copies to select copied text objects.
• Type > Legacy Text > Delete Copies to delete copied text objects.

349

Chapter 11: Creating special effects
You can change the appearance of any object, group, or layer in Adobe Illustrator by using effects and the Appearance
and Graphic Styles panels. In addition, you can divide an object into its essential parts to modify elements of the object
independently.

Appearance attributes
About appearance attributes
Appearance attributes are properties that affect the look of an object without altering its underlying structure.
Appearance attributes include fills, strokes, transparency, and effects. If you apply an appearance attribute to an object
and later edit or remove that attribute, it does not change the underlying object or any other attributes applied to the
object.
You can set appearance attributes at any level of the layer hierarchy. For example, if you apply a drop shadow effect to
a layer, all objects in the layer take on the drop shadow. However, if you move an object out of the layer, that object
will no longer have a drop-shadow because the effect belongs to the layer, not to each object within the layer.
The Appearance panel is the gateway to working with appearance attributes. Because you can apply appearance
attributes to layers, groups, and objects—and often to fills and strokes too—the hierarchy of attributes in your artwork
can become very complex. For example, if you apply one effect to an entire layer and another effect to an object in the
layer, it may be difficult to determine which effect is causing the artwork to change. The Appearance panel shows you
the fills, strokes, graphic styles, and effects that have been applied to an object, group, or layer.
For a video on using the Appearance panel and the Graphics Styles panel, see www.adobe.com/go/lrvid4022_ai .

Appearance panel overview
You use the Appearance panel (Window > Appearance) to view and adjust the appearance attributes for an object,
group, or layer. Fills and strokes are listed in stacking order; top to bottom in the panel correlates to front to back in
the artwork. Effects are listed from top to bottom in the order in which they are applied to the artwork.
For a video on using the Appearance panel and the Graphics Styles panel, see www.adobe.com/go/lrvid4022_ai .

B
A

Appearance panel listing attributes of a grouped object
A. Path with stroke, fill, and drop shadow effect B. Path with effect C. Add New Stroke button D. Add New Fill button E. Add Effect button
F. Clear Appearance button G. Duplicate Selected Item button

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Reveal additional items in the Appearance panel
When you select items that contain other items, such as a layer or group, the Appearance panel displays a Contents
item.
❖ Double-click the Contents item.

List character attributes for a text object in the Appearance panel
When you select a text object, the panel displays a Characters item.
1

Double-click the Characters item in the Appearance panel.
Note: To see individual character attributes for text with mixed appearance, select the individual character.

2 Click Type at the top of the panel to return to the main view.

Turn an attribute on or off for selected object
• To turn an individual attribute on or off, click the eyeball icon next to the attribute.
• To turn all hidden attributes on, choose Show All Hidden Attributes from the Appearance panel menu.

Edit an attribute
• Click in the attribute row to display and set values.
• Click the underlined text and specify new values in the dialog box that appears.

Show or hide thumbnails in the Appearance panel
❖ Choose Show Thumbnail or Hide Thumbnail from the Appearance panel menu.

Specify how appearance attributes are applied to new objects
You can specify whether you want new objects to inherit appearance attributes or have only basic attributes.

• To apply only a single fill and stroke to new objects, choose New Art Has Basic Appearance from the panel menu.
• To apply all of the current appearance attributes to new objects, deselect New Art Has Basic Appearance from the
panel menu.

Targeting items for appearance attributes
Before you can set an appearance attribute or apply a style or an effect to a layer, group, or object, you must target the
item in the Layers panel. Selecting an object or group using any selection method also targets the object or group in
the Layers panel, but layers can be targeted only by using the panel.

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A B

C
D

Shaded target icons in the Layers panel indicate which items contain appearance attributes.
A. Targeting and appearance column B. Selection column C. Group with appearance attributes D. Layer with appearance attributes E. Object
with appearance attributes

The target icon indicates whether an item in the layer hierarchy has any appearance attributes and whether it is
targeted:

•

Indicates the item is not targeted and has no appearance attributes beyond a single fill and a single stroke.

•

Indicates the item is not targeted but has appearance attributes.

•

Indicates the item is targeted but has no appearance attributes beyond a single fill and a single stroke.

•

Indicates the item is targeted and has appearance attributes.
To target an item in the Layers panel, click the item’s target icon. A double ring
targeted. Shift-click to target additional items.

indicates that the item is

Note: When an object or group is selected by any method, the item is also targeted in the Layers panel. In contrast, a
layer can be targeted only by clicking its target icon in the Layers panel.

Edit or add an appearance attribute
You can open an appearance attribute, such as an effect, and change the settings at any time.
❖ In the Appearance panel, do any of the following:

• To edit an attribute, click the blue underlined name of the attribute, and specify changes in the dialog box that
appears.

• To edit a fill color, click the fill row and choose a new color from the color box.
• To add a new effect, click Add New Effect

• To delete an attribute, click the attribute row, and then click Delete

Duplicate an appearance attribute
❖ Select an attribute in the Appearance panel, and do one of the following:

• Click the Duplicate Selected Item button

in the panel, or choose Duplicate Item from the panel menu.

• Drag the appearance attribute onto the Duplicate Selected Item button in the panel.

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Change the stacking order of appearance attributes
❖ Drag an appearance attribute up or down in the Appearance panel. (If necessary, click the toggle triangle next to an

item to display its contents.) When the outline of the appearance attribute you are dragging appears in the desired
position, release the mouse button.

Drop Shadow effect applied to stroke (top) compared to same effect moved to fill (bottom)

Remove or hide appearance attributes
1 Select the object or group (or target a layer in the Layers panel).
2 Do one of the following:

• To temporarily hide an attribute applied to your artwork, click the Visibility icon

in the Appearance panel.

Click it again to see the attribute applied again.

• To remove a specific attribute, select the attribute in the Appearance panel, and click the Delete icon

Alternatively, select Remove Item from the panel menu, or drag the attribute to the Delete icon.

• To remove all appearance attributes except a single fill and stroke, choose Reduce To Basic Appearance from the
panel menu. Alternatively, drag the target icon for an item in the Layers panel onto the Delete icon in the Layers
panel.

• To remove all appearance attributes, including any fill or stroke, click the Clear Appearance button
Appearance panel or choose Clear Appearance from the panel menu.

Copy appearance attributes between objects
You can copy or move appearance attributes by dragging or by using the Eyedropper tool.

in the

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See also
“Targeting items for appearance attributes” on page 350
“Layers panel overview” on page 215
“Appearance panel overview” on page 349

Copy appearance attributes by dragging
1 Select the object or group (or target the layer in the Layers panel) whose appearance you want to copy.
2 Do one of the following:

• Drag the thumbnail at the top of the Appearance panel onto an object in the document window. If a thumbnail
isn’t showing, choose Show Thumbnail from the panel menu.

• Alt-drag (Windows) or Option-drag (Mac OS) the target icon in the Layers panel onto the item to which you
want to copy appearance attributes.

• To move appearance attributes instead of copying them, drag the target icon in the Layers panel from any item
that has the desired attributes onto the item to which you want to apply it.

Copy appearance attributes using the Eyedropper tool
You can use the Eyedropper tool to copy appearance attributes from one object to another, including character,
paragraph, fill, and stroke attributes between type objects. By default, the Eyedropper tool affects all attributes of a
selection. To customize the attributes affected by this tool, use the Eyedropper dialog box.
1 Select the object, type object, or characters whose attributes you want to change.
2 Select the Eyedropper tool

3 Move the Eyedropper tool onto the object whose attributes you want to sample. (When you’re correctly positioned

over type, the pointer displays a small T.)
4 Do one of the following:

• Click the Eyedropper tool to sample all appearance attributes and apply them to the selected object.
• Shift-click to sample only the color from a portion of a gradient, pattern, mesh object, or placed image and apply
the color to the selected fill or stroke.

• Hold down the Shift key and then the Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac OS) key while clicking to add the
appearance attributes of an object to the selected object’s appearance attributes. Alternatively, click first, and
then hold down Shift and then Alt or Option.
Note: You can also click an unselected object to sample its attributes and Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click
(Mac OS) an unselected object to which you want to apply the attributes.

Copy attributes from the desktop using the Eyedropper tool
1 Select the object whose attributes you want to change.
2 Select the Eyedropper tool.
3 Click anywhere on the document and continue to hold down the mouse button.
4 Without releasing the mouse button, move the pointer over the object on your computer desktop whose attributes

you want to copy. When directly over the object, release the mouse button.
Important: The Eyedropper tool samples only the RGB color from the screen when sampling anywhere outside the
current document. The Eyedropper tool indicates it is sampling RGB color from the screen by displaying a blackcolored square to the right of the tool.

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Specify which attributes you can copy with the Eyedropper tool
1 Double-click the Eyedropper tool.
2 Select the attributes you want to copy with the Eyedropper tool. You can sample appearance attributes including

transparency, and various fill and stroke properties, as well as character and paragraph properties.
3 Choose the sample size area from the Raster Sample Size menu.
4 Click OK.

Working with effects
About effects
Illustrator includes a variety of effects, which you can apply to an object, group, or layer to change its characteristics.
Illustrator CS3 and earlier included effects and filters, but Illustrator CS4 includes only effects (with the exception of
SVG Filters). The primary difference between a filter and an effect is that a filter permanently modifies an object or
layer, but an effect and its properties can be changed or removed at any time.
Once you apply an effect to an object, the effect appears in the Appearance panel. From the Appearance panel, you can
edit the effect, move it, duplicate it, delete it, or save it as part of a graphic style. When you use an effect, you must
expand the object before you can access the new points.
Note: Previous version of Illustrator included filters and effects. All filters are now
The effects in the top half of the Effects menu are vector effects. You can apply these effects only to vector objects or to
the fill or stroke of a bitmap object in the Appearance panel. The following effects and effects categories from the top
section are exceptions to this rule and can be applied to both vector and bitmap objects: 3D effects, SVG Filters, Warp
effects, Transform effects, Drop Shadow, Feather, Inner Glow, and Outer Glow.
The effects in the bottom half of the Effects menu are raster effects. You can apply them to either vector or bitmap
objects.
For a video on using the Appearance panel and the Graphics Styles panel, see www.adobe.com/go/lrvid4022_ai .

See also
“Effects quick reference” on page 357
“Expand objects” on page 206

Apply an effect
1 Select the object or group (or target a layer in the Layers panel).

If you want to apply an effect to a specific attribute of an object, such as its fill or stroke, select the object and then
select the attribute in the Appearance panel.
2 Do one of the following:

• Choose a command from the Effect menu.
• Click Add New Effect

in the Appearance panel, and choose an effect.

3 If a dialog box appears, set options, and then click OK.

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To apply the effect and settings that were used last, choose Effect > Apply [Effect Name]. To apply the last used
effect and set its options, choose Effect > [Effect Name].

See also
“Targeting items for appearance attributes” on page 350

About raster effects
Raster effects are effects that generate pixels, rather than vector data. Raster effects include SVG Filters, all of the effects
in the bottom section of the Effect menu, and the Drop Shadow, Inner Glow, Outer Glow, and Feather commands in
the Effect > Stylize submenu.
Whenever you apply a raster effect, Illustrator uses the document’s raster effects settings to determine the resolution
of the resulting image. These settings have a large impact on the resulting artwork; therefore, it’s important to check
the document raster effects settings before you start working with effects.
You set rasterization options for a document by choosing Effect > Document Raster Effects Settings. (See
“Rasterization options” on page 355.)
If an effect looks good on-screen, but loses detail or appears jagged when printed, increase the document raster effects
resolution.

Rasterization options
You can set the following options for all raster effects in a document or when you rasterize a vector object.
Color Model Determines the color model that is used during rasterization. You can generate an RGB or CMYK color

image (depending on the color mode of your document), a grayscale image, or a 1-bit image (which may be black and
white or black and transparent, depending on the background option selected).
Resolution Determines the number of pixels per inch (ppi) in the rasterized image. When rasterizing a vector object,

select Use Document Raster Effects Resolution to use global resolution settings.
Background Determines how transparent areas of the vector graphic are converted to pixels. Select White to fill
transparent areas with white pixels, or select Transparent to make the background transparent. If you select
Transparent, you create an alpha channel (for all images except 1-bit images). The alpha channel is retained if the
artwork is exported into Photoshop. (This option anti-aliases better than the Create Clipping Mask option.)
Anti-alias Applies anti-aliasing to reduce the appearance of jagged edges in the rasterized image. When setting

rasterization options for a document, deselect this option to maintain the crispness of fine lines and small text.
When rasterizing a vector object, select None to apply no anti-aliasing and maintain the hard edges of line art when it
is rasterized. Select Art Optimized to apply anti-aliasing that is best suited to artwork without type. Select Type
Optimized to apply anti-aliasing that is best suited to type.
Create Clipping Mask Creates a mask that makes the background of the rasterized image appear transparent. You do
not need to create a clipping mask if you selected Transparent for Background.
Add Around Object Adds a padding or border around the rasterized image, using the specified number of pixels. The

resulting image’s dimensions appear as the original dimensions plus the Add Around Object setting’s value. You can
use this setting, for example, to create a snapshot effect: Specify a value for Add Around Object setting, choose White
Background, and do not select Create Clipping Mask. The white boundary added to the original object becomes a
visible border on the image. You can then apply a Drop Shadow or Outer Glow effect to make the original artwork
look like a photo.

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See also
“About raster effects” on page 355
“Rasterize a vector object” on page 273
“Image resolution guidelines for final output” on page 262

Applying effects to bitmap images
Effects let you apply a special look to bitmap images as well as vector objects. For example, you can apply an
impressionistic look, apply lighting changes, distort images, and produce many other interesting visual effects.
Consider the following information when applying effects specifically to bitmap objects:

• Effects don’t work on linked bitmap objects. If you apply an effect to a linked bitmap, it is applied to an embedded
copy of the bitmap instead of to the original. To apply the effect to the original, you can embed the bitmap in the
document.

• Adobe Illustrator supports plug-in effects from Adobe products such as Adobe Photoshop and from non-Adobe
software developers. Once installed, most plug-in effects appear in the Effect menu and work the same way as do
built-in effects.

• Some effects can be memory-intensive, especially when applied to a high-resolution bitmap image.

See also
“About linked and embedded artwork” on page 257
“About plug-in modules” on page 51

Improving performance for effects
Some effects are very memory-intensive. The following techniques can help improve performance when applying
these effects:

• Select the Preview option in effect dialog boxes to save time and prevent unintended results.
• Change the settings. Some commands, such as Glass, are extremely memory-intensive. Try different settings to
increase their speed.

• If you plan to print to a grayscale printer, convert a copy of the bitmap image to grayscale before applying effects.
Note, however, that in some cases, applying an effect to a color bitmap image and then converting it to grayscale
may not have the same result as applying the same effect directly to a grayscale version of the image.

Modify or delete an effect
You modify or delete an effect by using the Appearance panel.
1 Select the object or group (or target the layer in the Layers panel) that uses the effect.
2 Do one of the following:

• To modify the effect, click its blue underlined name in the Appearance panel. In the effect’s dialog box, make
the desired alterations, and then click OK.

• To delete the effect, select the effect listing in the Appearance panel, and click the Delete button.

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Summary of effects
Effects quick reference
Effect

Action

Effect > 3D

Convert open or closed paths, or bitmap objects, into three-dimensional (3D) objects, which you can
rotate, light, and shade.
See also: “Create 3D objects” on page 249

Effect > Artistic

Simulate a painterly appearance on traditional media.
See also: “Artistic effects” on page 358

Effect > Blur

Retouch images and smooth transitions by averaging the pixels next to the hard edges of defined lines
and shaded areas in an image.
See also: “Blur effects” on page 359

Effect > Brush Strokes

Create a painterly or fine-arts look using different brush- and ink- stroke effects.
See also: “Brush Strokes effects” on page 359

Effect > Convert To Shape

Reshape either a vector or a bitmap object.
See also: “Reshaping objects with effects” on page 248

Effect > Crop Marks

Applies crop marks to the selected object.
See also: “Specify crop marks for trimming or aligning” on page 49

Effect > Distort & Transform
(top section of menu)

Reshape vector objects, or apply the effects to a fill or stroke added to a bitmap object with the
Appearance panel.
See also: “Reshaping objects with effects” on page 248

Effect > Distort

Geometrically distort and reshape an image.

(bottom section of menu)

See also: “Distort effects (bottom of menu)” on page 360

Effect > Path

Offset an object’s path relative to its original location, turn type into a set of compound paths that you
can edit and manipulate as you would any other graphic object, and change the stroke of a selected
object to a filled object that’s the same width as the original stroke. You can also apply these commands
to a fill or stroke added to a bitmap object with the Appearance panel.
See also: “Offset duplicate objects” on page 223, “Convert type to outlines” on page 315, “Convert
strokes to compound paths” on page 159

Effect > Pathfinder

Combine groups, layers, or sublayers into single editable objects.
See also: “Apply Pathfinder effects” on page 234

Effect > Pixelate

Sharply define a selection by clumping pixels of similar color values.
See also: “Pixelate effects” on page 360

Effect > Rasterize

Convert a vector object to a bitmap object.
See also: “Rasterize a vector object” on page 273

Effect > Sharpen

Focus blurry images by increasing the contrast of adjacent pixels.
See also: “Sharpen effect” on page 361

Effect > Sketch

Add texture to images, often for a three-dimensional effect. The effects are also useful for creating a
fine-arts or hand-drawn look.
See also: “Sketch effects” on page 361

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Effect

Action

Effect > Stylize

Add arrowheads, drop shadows, round corners, feathered-edged, glowing, and scribble-styled
appearances to objects.

(top section of menu)

See also: “Create a drop shadow” on page 363, “Apply an inner or outer glow” on page 364, “Add
arrowheads to lines” on page 159, “Feather the edges of an object” on page 364, “Create a sketch using
the Scribble effect” on page 365, “Round the corners of objects” on page 248
Effect > Stylize
(bottom section of menu)

The Glowing Edges command produces a painted or impressionistic effect on a selection by displacing
pixels and by finding and heightening contrast in an image.
See also: “Stylize effect (bottom of menu)” on page 362

Effect > SVG Filters

Add XML-based graphic properties such as drop shadows to your artwork.
See also: “Apply SVG effects” on page 379

Effect > Texture

Give an image the appearance of depth or substance, or add an organic look.
See also: “Texture effects” on page 362

Effect > Video

Optimize images captured from video or artwork intended for television.
See also: “Video effects” on page 362

Effect > Warp

Distort or deform objects, including paths, text, meshes, blends, and raster images.
See also: “Reshaping objects with effects” on page 248

Artistic effects
Artistic effects are raster-based and use the document’s raster effects settings whenever you apply the effect to a vector
object.
Colored Pencil Draws an image using colored pencils on a solid background. Important edges are retained and given

a rough crosshatch appearance; the solid background color shows through the smoother areas.
Cutout Portrays an image as though it were made from roughly cut-out pieces of colored paper. High-contrast images
appear as if in silhouette; colored images are built up as if from several layers of colored paper.
Dry Brush Paints the edges of the image using a dry-brush technique (between oil and watercolor). The effect
simplifies an image by reducing its range of colors.
Film Grain Applies an even pattern to the shadow tones and midtones of an image. A smoother, more saturated
pattern is added to the image’s lighter areas. This effect is useful for eliminating banding in blends and visually unifying
elements from various sources.
Fresco Paints an image in a coarse manner using short, rounded strokes as if hastily applied.
Neon Glow Adds various types of glows to the objects in an image. This effect is useful for colorizing an image while

softening its look. To select a glow color, click the glow box and select a color from the color picker.
Paint Daubs Lets you choose from various brush sizes (from 1 to 50) and types for a painterly effect. Brush types
include simple, light rough, light dark, wide sharp, wide blurry, and sparkle.
Palette Knife Reduces detail in an image to give the effect of a thinly painted canvas that reveals the texture

underneath.
Plastic Wrap Coats the image as if in shiny plastic, accentuating the surface detail.
Poster Edges Reduces the number of colors in an image according to the Posterization value you set; then finds the

edges of the image and draws black lines on them. Broader areas of the image have simple shading, while fine, dark
detail is distributed throughout the image.

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Rough Pastels Makes an image appear as if stroked with colored pastel chalk on a textured background. In areas of

bright color, the chalk appears thick with little texture; in darker areas, the chalk appears scraped off to reveal the
texture.
Smudge Stick Softens an image using short diagonal strokes to smudge or smear the darker areas of the images.

Lighter areas become brighter and lose detail.
Sponge Creates images with highly textured areas of contrasting color as if painted with a sponge.
Underpainting Paints the image on a textured background, and then paints the final image over it.
Watercolor Paints the image in a watercolor style, simplifying details, and using a medium brush loaded with water
and color. Where significant tonal changes occur at edges, the effect saturates the color.

See also
“Effects quick reference” on page 357
“Use texture and glass surface controls” on page 363

Blur effects
The commands in the Blur submenu in the Effect menu are raster-based and use the document’s raster effects settings
whenever you apply the effect to a vector object.
Gaussian Blur Quickly blurs a selection by an adjustable amount. This effect removes high-frequency detail and can

produce a hazy effect.
Radial Blur Simulates the soft blur created by a zooming or rotating camera. Choose Spin to blur along concentric
circular lines, and then specify a degree of rotation. Choose Zoom to blur along radial lines, as if zooming in or out of
the image, and specify an amount from 1 to 100. Blur quality ranges from Draft for the fastest but grainy results to
Good and Best for smoother results, which are indistinguishable except on a large selection. Specify the origin of the
blur by dragging the pattern in the Blur Center box.
Smart Blur Blurs an image with precision. You can specify a radius, a threshold, and a blur quality. The Radius value
determines the size of the area searched for dissimilar pixels. The Threshold value determines how dissimilar the pixels
must be before they are affected. You also can set a mode for the entire selection (Normal) or for the edges of color
transitions (Edge Only and Overlay). Where significant contrast occurs, Edge Only applies black-and-white edges, and
Overlay Edge applies white.

See also
“Effects quick reference” on page 357

Brush Strokes effects
The Brush Strokes effects are raster-based and use the document’s raster effects settings whenever you apply the effect
to a vector object.
Accented Edges Accentuates the edges of an image. When the Edge Brightness control is set to a high value, the
accents resemble white chalk. When it is set to a low value, the accents resemble black ink.
Angled Strokes Repaints an image using diagonal strokes. The lighter areas of the image are painted in strokes going

in one direction, while the darker areas are painted in strokes going the opposite direction.

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Crosshatch Preserves the details and features of the original image while adding texture and roughening the edges of
the colored areas in the image with simulated pencil hatching. The Strength option controls the number of hatching
passes (from 1 to 3).
Dark Strokes Paints dark areas of an image closer to black with short strokes, and paints lighter areas of the image with
long, white strokes.
Ink Outlines Redraws an image with fine narrow lines over the original details, in pen-and-ink style.
Spatter Replicates the effect of a spatter airbrush. Increasing the values of the options simplifies the overall effect.
Sprayed Strokes Repaints an image using its dominant colors with angled, sprayed strokes of color.
Sumi-e Paints an image in Japanese style as if with a wet brush full of black ink on rice paper. The effect is soft, blurry
edges with rich blacks.

See also
“Effects quick reference” on page 357

Distort effects (bottom of menu)
The Distort commands can be very memory-intensive. They are raster-based and use the document’s raster effects
settings whenever you apply the effect to a vector object.
Diffuse Glow Renders an image as if it were being viewed through a soft diffusion filter. The effect adds see-through

white noise to an image, with the glow fading from the center of a selection.
Glass Makes an image appear as if it were being viewed through different types of glass. You can choose a preset glass

effect or create your own glass surface using a Photoshop file. You can adjust scaling, distortion, and smoothness
settings, as well as texturizing options.
Ocean Ripple Adds randomly spaced ripples to the artwork, making the artwork look as if it were under water.

See also
“Use texture and glass surface controls” on page 363
“Effects quick reference” on page 357

Pixelate effects
The Pixelate effects are raster-based and use the document’s raster effects settings whenever you apply the effect to a
vector object.
Color Halftone Simulates the effect of using an enlarged halftone screen on each channel of the image. For each

channel, the effect divides the image into rectangles and replaces each rectangle with a circle. The circle size is
proportional to the brightness of the rectangle.
To use the effect, enter a value in pixels for the maximum radius of a halftone dot (from 4 to 127), and enter a screenangle value (the angle of the dot relative to the true horizontal) for one or more channels. For Grayscale images, use
only channel 1. For RGB images, use channels 1, 2, and 3, which correspond to the red, green, and blue channels. For
CMYK images, use all four channels, which correspond to the cyan, magenta, yellow, and black channels.
Crystallize Clumps colors into polygon shapes.
Mezzotint Converts an image to a random pattern of black-and-white areas, or of fully saturated colors in a color
image. To use the effect, choose a dot pattern from the Type pop-up menu in the Mezzotint dialog box.

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Pointillize Breaks up the color in an image into randomly placed dots, as in a pointillist painting, and uses the

background color as a canvas area between the dots.

See also
“Effects quick reference” on page 357

Sharpen effect
The Unsharp Mask command in the Sharpen submenu in the Effect menu focuses blurry images by increasing the
contrast of adjacent pixels. This effect is raster-based and uses the document’s raster effects settings whenever you
apply the effect to a vector graphic.
Unsharp Mask Finds the areas in the image where significant color changes occur and sharpens them. Use the
Unsharp Mask effect to adjust the contrast of edge detail and produce a lighter and darker line on each side of the edge.
This effect emphasizes the edge and creates the illusion of a sharper image.

See also
“Effects quick reference” on page 357

Sketch effects
Many of the Sketch effects use black and white colors to redraw the image. The effects are raster-based and use the
document’s raster effects settings whenever you apply the effect to a vector graphic.
Bas Relief Transforms an image to appear carved in low relief and lit to accent the surface variations. Dark areas of the
image are colored black; light colors are colored white.
Chalk & Charcoal Redraws an image’s highlights and midtones with a solid midtone gray background drawn in coarse

chalk. Shadow areas are replaced with diagonal charcoal lines. The charcoal is drawn in black, the chalk in white.
Charcoal Redraws an image to create a posterized, smudged effect. Major edges are drawn boldly while midtones are

sketched using a diagonal stroke. Charcoal is colored black; the paper is colored white.
Chrome Treats the image as if it were a polished chrome surface. Highlights are high points and shadows are low

points in the reflecting surface.
Conté Crayon Replicates the texture of dense dark and pure white Conté crayons on an image. The Conté Crayon
effect uses black for dark areas and the white for light areas.
Graphic Pen Uses fine, linear ink strokes to capture the details in the original image. The effect replaces color in the
original image using black for ink and white for paper. This command is especially striking with scanned images.
Halftone Pattern Simulates the effect of a halftone screen while maintaining the continuous range of tones.
Note Paper Creates an image that appears to be constructed of handmade paper. The effect simplifies an image, and

combines the effect of the Grain command (Texture submenu) with an embossed appearance. Dark areas of the image
appear as holes in the top layer of paper surrounded by white.
Photocopy Simulates the effect of photocopying an image. Large areas of darkness tend to copy only around their

edges; midtones fall away to either solid black or white.
Plaster Molds an image as if from plaster, and then colorizes the result using black and white. Dark areas are raised;

light areas are sunken.
Reticulation Simulates the controlled shrinking and distorting of film emulsion to create an image that appears
clumped in the shadow areas and lightly grained in the highlights.

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Stamp Simplifies the image to appear stamped with a rubber or wood stamp. This command is best used with blackand-white images.
Torn Edges Reconstructs the image as ragged, torn pieces of paper, and then colorizes the image using black and white.

This command is useful for images consisting of text or high-contrast objects.
Water Paper Uses blotchy daubs that appear painted onto fibrous, damp paper, causing the colors to flow and blend.

See also
“Effects quick reference” on page 357

Stylize effect (bottom of menu)
The Glowing Edges effect is raster-based and uses the document’s raster effects settings whenever you apply the effect
to a vector graphic.
Glowing Edges Identifies the edges of color and adds a neon-like glow to them.

See also
“Effects quick reference” on page 357

Texture effects
The Texture effects are raster-based and use the document’s raster effects settings whenever you apply the effect to a
vector graphic.
Craquelure Paints an image onto a high-relief plaster surface, producing a fine network of cracks that follow the
contours of the image. Use this effect to create an embossing effect with images that contain a broad range of color or
grayscale values.
Grain Adds texture to an image by simulating different kinds of grain—regular, soft, sprinkles, clumped, contrasty,

enlarged, stippled, horizontal, vertical, or speckle. For more information on using these texturizing options, see “Use
texture and glass surface controls” on page 363.
Mosaic Tiles Draws the image as if it were made up of small chips or tiles and adds grout between the tiles. (In contrast,

the Pixelate > Mosaic command breaks up an image into blocks of different-colored pixels.)
Patchwork Breaks up an image into squares filled with the predominant color in that area of the image. The effect

randomly reduces or increases the tile depth to replicate highlights and shadows.
Stained Glass Repaints an image as single-colored adjacent cells outlined in the foreground color.
Texturizer Applies a texture you select or create to an image.

See also
“Effects quick reference” on page 357

Video effects
The Video effects are raster-based and use the document’s raster effects settings whenever you apply the effect to a
vector graphic.
De-Interlace Smooths moving images captured on video by removing either the odd or even interlaced lines in a video

image. You can choose to replace the discarded lines by duplication or interpolation.

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NTSC Colors Restricts the gamut of colors to those acceptable for television reproduction to prevent oversaturated

colors from bleeding across television scan lines.

See also
“Effects quick reference” on page 357

Use texture and glass surface controls
Some effects included in Illustrator have texturizing options, such as the Glass, Rough Pastels, Grain, and Fresco
effects. The texturizing options can make an object appear as though painted onto various textures, such as canvas or
brick, or viewed through glass blocks.
1 In the effect’s dialog box, choose a texture type from the Texture pop-up menu (if available), or choose Load

Texture (only available for Rough Pastels or Glass commands) to specify a file.
2 Set other options, if available:

• Drag the Scaling slider to enlarge or reduce the effect on the bitmap image’s surface.
• Drag the Relief slider to adjust the depth of the texture’s surface.
• From the Light Direction pop-up menu, choose the direction from which you want the light to appear.
• Select Invert to reverse the surface’s light and dark colors.

Drop shadows, glows, and feathering
Create a drop shadow
1 Select an object or group (or target a layer in the Layers panel).
2 Choose Effect > Stylize > Drop Shadow.
3 Set options for the drop shadow, and click OK:
Mode Specifies a blending mode for the drop shadow.
Opacity Specifies the percentage of opacity you want for the drop shadow.
X Offset and Y Offset Specifies the distance you want the drop shadow to be offset from the object.
Blur Specifies the distance from the edge of the shadow where you want any blurring to occur. Illustrator creates a
transparent raster object to simulate the blur.
Color Specifies a color for the shadow.
Darkness Specifies the percentage of black you want added for the drop shadow. In a CMYK document, a value of
100%, used with a selected object that contains a fill or stroke color other than black, creates a multicolored black
shadow. A value of 100% used with a selected object that contains only a black fill or stroke creates a 100% black
shadow. A value of 0% creates a drop shadow the color of the selected object.

See also
“Targeting items for appearance attributes” on page 350
“Selecting objects” on page 197

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“About effects” on page 354
“About blending modes” on page 182

Apply an inner or outer glow
1 Select an object or group (or target a layer in the Layers panel).
2 Choose Effect > Stylize > Inner Glow or Effect > Stylize > Outer Glow.
3 Click the color preview square next to the blending mode menu to specify a color for the glow.
4 Set additional options, and click OK:
Mode Specifies a blending mode for the glow.
Opacity Specifies the percentage of opacity you want for the glow.
Blur Specifies the distance from the center or edge of the selection where you want any blurring to occur.
Center (Inner Glow only) Applies a glow that emanates from the center of the selection.
Edge (Inner Glow only) Applies a glow that emanates from the inside edges of the selection.

When you expand an object that uses an inner-glow effect, the inner glow reveals itself as an opacity mask If you
expand an object that uses an outer glow, the outer glow becomes a transparent raster object.

See also
“Targeting items for appearance attributes” on page 350
“Selecting objects” on page 197
“About effects” on page 354
“About blending modes” on page 182

Feather the edges of an object
1 Select the object or group (or target a layer in the Layers panel).
2 Choose Effect > Stylize > Feather.
3 Set the distance over which the object fades from opaque to transparent, and click OK.

Original object selected (left) and using feather effect (right)

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See also
“About effects” on page 354
“Targeting items for appearance attributes” on page 350
“About raster effects” on page 355
“Selecting objects” on page 197

Creating sketches and mosaics
Create a sketch using the Scribble effect
1 Do one of the following:

• Select the object or group (or target a layer in the Layers panel).
• To apply the effect to a specific object attribute, such as a stroke or fill, select the object, and then select the
attribute in the Appearance panel.

• To apply the effect to a graphic style, select a graphic style in the Graphic Styles panel.
2 Choose Effect > Stylize > Scribble.
3 Do one of the following:

• To use a preset scribble effect, choose one from the Settings menu.
• To create a custom scribble effect, begin with any preset, and then adjust the Scribble options.
4 If creating a custom scribble, adjust any of the following Scribble options and click OK:
Angle Controls the direction of the scribble lines. You can click any point on the angle icon, drag the angle line

around the angle icon, or enter a value between –179 and 180 in the box. (If you enter a value that’s outside that
range, the value is translated to its equivalent in-range value.)
Path Overlap Controls the amount the scribble lines stay within or extend beyond the path boundaries. A negative

value constrains the scribble lines within the path boundary and a positive value extends the scribble lines beyond
the path boundary.
Variation (for Path Overlap) Controls the lengths of the difference in scribble line lengths relative to each other.
Stroke Width Controls the width of the scribble lines.
Curviness Controls the amount the scribble lines curve before they reverse direction.
Variation (for Curviness) Controls how different the scribble line curves are relative to each other.
Spacing Controls the amount of space between scribble line folds.
Variation (for Spacing) Controls how different the amount of space is between scribble line folds.

See also
“Targeting items for appearance attributes” on page 350
“About effects” on page 354
“Modify or delete an effect” on page 356
“Selecting objects” on page 197

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Create a mosaic
1 Import a bitmap image to use as the basis for the mosaic. The image must be embedded, not linked.

You can also rasterize a vector object to use it as the basis for the mosaic.
2 Select the image.
3 Choose Object > Create Object Mosaic.
4 If you want to change the dimensions of the mosaic, enter values for New Size.
5 Set options to control the spacing between tiles and the total number of tiles, along with any other additional

options, and click OK:
Constrain Ratio Locks the width or height dimensions to the dimensions of the original bitmap image. Width
calculates the appropriate number of tiles to use for the width of the mosaic, based on the original number of tiles
for the width. Height calculates the appropriate number of tiles to use for the height of the mosaic, based on the
original number of tiles for the height.
Result Specifies whether the mosaic tiles are color or grayscale.
Resize Using Percentages Changes the size of the image by percentages of width and height.
Delete Raster Deletes the original bitmap image.
Use Ratio Makes the tiles square, using the number of tiles specified in Number Of Tiles. This option is located
below the Cancel button.

See also
“Rasterize a vector object” on page 273
“About linked and embedded artwork” on page 257

Graphic styles
About graphic styles
A graphic style is a set of reusable appearance attributes. Graphic styles allow you to quickly change the look of an
object; for example, you can change its fill and stroke color, alter its transparency, and apply effects in one step. All the
changes you apply with graphic styles are completely reversible.
You can apply graphic styles to objects, groups, and layers. When you apply a graphic style to a group or layer, every
object in the group or layer takes on the attributes of the graphic style. For example, assume you have a graphic style
that consists of 50% opacity. If you apply the graphic style to a layer, all objects in or added to that layer will appear
50% opaque. However, if you move an object out of the layer, the object’s appearance reverts to its previous opacity.
For a video on using the Appearance panel and the Graphics Styles panel, see www.adobe.com/go/lrvid4022_ai .
If you apply a graphic style to a group or layer, but the style’s fill color doesn’t appear in the artwork, drag the Fill
attribute above the Contents entry in the Appearance panel.

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Graphic Styles panel overview
You use the Graphic Styles panel (Window > Graphic Styles) to create, name, and apply sets of appearance attributes.
The panel lists a default set of graphic styles when you create a document. Graphic styles that are saved with the active
document appear in the panel when that document is open and active.
If a style doesn’t have a fill and stroke (for example, an effect-only style) the thumbnail appears in the shape of the
object with a black outline and white fill. In addition, a little red slash appears, indicating the absence of a fill or stroke.
If you’ve created a style for type, choose Use Text For Preview from the Graphics Styles panel menu to see a thumbnail
of the style applied to a letter rather than a square.
To see any style more clearly, or to preview the style on a selected object, right-click (Windows) or Ctrl-click (Mac OS)
the style’s thumbnail in the Graphic Styles panel and view the large pop-up thumbnail that appears.
For a video on using the Appearance panel and the Graphics Styles panel, see www.adobe.com/go/lrvid4022_ai .

Right-click style thumbnail to view large pop-up thumbnail. Selected style is an effect-only style.

Change how graphic styles are listed in the panel
❖ Do any of the following:

• Select a view size option from the panel menu. Select Thumbnail View to display thumbnails. Select Small List
View to display a list of named styles with a small thumbnail. Select Large List View to display a list of named
styles along with a large thumbnail.

• Select Use Square For Preview from the panel menu to view the style on a square or the shape of the object on
which it was created.

•

Drag the graphic style to a different position. When a black line appears in the desired position, release the
mouse button.

• Select Sort By Name from the panel menu to list the graphic styles in alphabetic or numeric order (Unicode
order).

• Select Use Text For Preview from the panel menu to view the style on the letter T. This view provides a more
accurate visual description for styles applied to text.

Graphic style for type using text for the preview

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Create graphic styles
You can create a graphic from scratch by applying appearance attributes to an object, or you can base a graphic style
on other graphic styles. You can also duplicate existing graphic styles.

Create a graphic style
1 Select an object and apply any combination of appearance attributes, including fills and strokes, effects, and

transparency settings.
You can use the Appearance panel to adjust and order the appearance attributes and create multiple fills and
strokes. For example, you can have three fills in a graphic style, each with a different opacity and blending mode
that defines how the various colors interact.
2 Do any of the following:

• Click the New Graphic Style button

in the Graphic Styles panel.

• Select New Graphic Style from the panel menu, type a name in the Style Name box, and click OK.
• Drag the thumbnail from the Appearance panel (or the object from the illustration window) into the Graphic
Styles panel.

• Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Mac OS) the New Graphic Style button, enter the name of the graphic
style, and click OK.

Drag the thumbnail from the Appearance panel to the Graphic Styles panel to save the attributes.

Create a graphic style based on two or more existing graphic styles
❖ Ctrl-click (Windows) or Command-click (Mac OS) to select all the graphic styles you want to merge, and then

choose Merge Graphic Styles from the panel menu.
The new graphic style contains all the attributes of the selected graphic styles and is added to the end of the list of
graphic styles in the panel.

Duplicate a graphic style
❖ Choose Duplicate Graphic Style from the panel menu, or drag the graphic style onto the New Graphic Style button.

The new graphic style appears at the bottom of the list in the Graphic Styles panel.

Apply a graphic style
1 Select an object or group (or target a layer in the Layers panel).
2 To apply a single style to an object, do either of the following:

• Select a style from the Styles menu in the Control panel, the Graphic Styles panel, or a graphic style library.
• Drag the graphic style onto an object in the document window. (The object does not have to be selected first.)

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3 To merge a style with an object’s existing style attributes, or apply multiple styles to an object, do either of the

following:

• Alt-drag (Windows) or Option-drag (Mac OS) the style from the Graphic Styles panel to the object.
• Select the object, and then Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Mac OS) the style in the Graphic Styles panel.
Note: To preserve the color of type when applying a graphic style, deselect Override Character Color in the Graphic
Styles panel menu.

Use graphic style libraries
Graphic style libraries are collections of preset graphic styles. When you open a graphic style library, it appears in a new
panel (not the Graphic Styles panel). You select, sort, and view items in a graphic style library the same as you do in
the Graphic Styles panel. However, you can’t add items to, delete items from, or edit the items in graphic style libraries.

Open a graphic style library
❖ Select a library from the Window > Graphic Style Libraries submenu or the Open Graphic Style Library submenu

in the Graphic Styles panel menu.
To automatically open a library when you start Illustrator, choose Persistent from the library’s panel menu.

Create a graphic style library
1 Add the graphic styles you want to the Graphic Styles panel, and delete any graphic styles you don’t want.

To select all graphic styles that aren’t used in a document, choose Select All Unused from the Graphic Styles panel
menu.
2 Choose Save Graphic Style Library from the Graphic Styles panel menu.

You can save the library anywhere. However, if you save the library file in the default location, the library name will
appear in the User Defined submenu of teh Graphic Style Libraries and Open Graphic Style Library menu.

Move graphic styles from a library to the Graphic Styles panel
• Drag one or more graphic styles from the graphic styles library to the Graphic Styles panel.
• Select the graphic styles you want to add, and select Add To Graphic Styles from the library’s panel menu.
• Apply a graphic style to an object in the document. The graphic style is automatically added to the Graphic Styles
panel.

Work with graphic styles
In the Graphic Styles panel, you can rename or delete graphic styles, break the link to a graphic style, and replace
graphic style attributes.

Rename a graphic style
❖ Choose Graphic Style Options from the panel menu, rename the file, and then click OK.

Delete a graphic style
❖ Choose Delete Graphic Style from the panel menu and click Yes, or drag the style onto the Delete icon.

Any objects, groups, or layers that used the graphic style retain the same appearance attributes; however, these
attributes are no longer associated with a graphic style.

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Break the link to a graphic style
1 Select the object, group, or layer that has the graphic style applied to it.
2 Do one of the following:

• Choose Break Link To Graphic Style from the Graphic Styles panel menu, or click the Break Link To Graphic
Style button

in the panel.

• Change any appearance attribute of the selection (such as a fill, stroke, transparency, or effect).
The object, group, or layer retains the same appearance attributes and is now independently editable. However,
these attributes are no longer associated with a graphic style.

Replace graphic style attributes
• Alt-drag (Windows) or Option-drag (Mac OS) the graphic style you want to use onto the graphic style you want to
replace.

• Select an object or group (or target a layer in the Layers panel) that has the attributes you want to use. Then Alt-drag
(Windows) or Option-drag (Mac OS) the thumbnail at the top of the Appearance panel onto the graphic style you
want to replace in the Graphic Styles panel.

• Select the graphic style you want to replace. Then select artwork (or target an item in the Layers panel) that has the
attributes you want to use, and choose Redefine Graphic Style “Style name” from the Appearance panel menu.
The replaced graphic style keeps its name but takes on new appearance attributes. All occurrences of the graphic
style in the Illustrator document are updated to use the new attributes.

Import all graphic styles from another document
1 Choose Window > Graphic Style Libraries > Other Library or select Open Graphic Style Library > Other Library

from the Graphic Styles panel menu.
2 Select the file from which you want to import graphic styles, and click Open.

The graphic styles appear in a graphic style library panel (not the Graphic Styles panel).

371

Chapter 12: Web graphics
Adobe Illustrator provides a variety of tools for laying out a web page, and for creating and optimizing web graphics.

Best practices for creating web graphics
About web graphics
When designing graphics for the web, you must consider different issues than when designing graphics for print. For
a video on saving graphics for the web, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0063. For a video on importing, and copying and
pasting between web applications, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0193.
To help you make informed decisions about web graphics, keep in mind the following three guidelines:
1. Use web-safe colors.

Color is often a key aspect of artwork. However, the colors you see on your artboard aren’t necessarily the colors that
will appear in a web browser on someone else’s system. You can prevent dithering (the method of simulating
unavailable colors) and other color problems by taking two precautionary steps when creating web graphics. First,
always work in RGB color mode. Second, use a web-safe color.
2. Balance image quality with file size.

Creating small graphics file sizes is essential to distributing images on the web. With smaller file sizes, web servers can
store and transmit images more efficiently, and viewers can download images more quickly. You can view the size and
the estimated download time for a web graphic in the Save For Web & Devices dialog box.
3. Choose the best file format for your graphic.

Different types of graphics need to be saved in different file formats to display their best and create a file size suitable
for the web. For more information on specific formats, see “Web graphics optimization options” on page 389.
There are many Illustrator templates made specifically for the web, including web pages and banners. Choose File >
New From Template to choose a template.

See also
“Save For Web & Devices overview” on page 384
“Optimize an image for the web” on page 386
“Shift a color to a web-safe color” on page 126

About pixel preview mode
When you save artwork in a bitmap format—such as JPEG, GIF, or PNG—Illustrator rasterizes the artwork at 72 pixels
per inch. You can preview how objects will appear when rasterized by choosing View > Pixel Preview. This is especially
helpful when you want to control the precise placement, size, and anti-aliasing of objects in a rasterized graphic.

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To understand how Illustrator divides objects into pixels, open a file that contains vector objects, choose View > Pixel
Preview, and magnify the artwork so that you can see its individual pixels. The placement of pixels is determined by
an invisible grid that divides the artboard into 1-point (1/72 inch) increments. If you move, add, or transform an
object, you’ll notice that the object snaps to the pixel grid. As a result, any anti-aliasing along the “snapped” edges of
the object (usually the left and top edges) disappears. Now deselect the View > Snap To Pixel command, and move the
object. This time, you’ll be able to position the object between the grid lines. Notice how this affects the anti-aliasing
of the object. As you can see, making very minor adjustments can affect how the object is rasterized.

Pixel Preview off (top) compared to on (bottom)

Important: The pixel grid is sensitive to the ruler origin (0,0). Moving the origin of the ruler will change how Illustrator
rasterizes artwork.

See also
“About bitmap images” on page 261

Using Adobe Device Central with Illustrator
Device Central enables Illustrator users to preview how Illustrator files will look on a variety of mobile devices.
For example, a graphic artist may use Illustrator to design a wallpaper for mobile phones. After creating the file, the
artist can easily test the file on a wide variety of phones. The artist can then make adjustments, such as altering the file
so that it looks good on a number of phones, or creating two separate files that cover a range of popular phone screen
sizes.

See also
Creating mobile content in Illustrator

Access Illustrator from Adobe Device Central
1 Start Device Central.
2 Select File > New Document In > Illustrator.

In Device Central, the New Document panel appears with the correct options to create a new mobile document in the
selected application.
3 Make any necessary changes, such a selecting a new Player Version, ActionScript® Version, or Content type.
4 Do one of the following:

• Select the Custom Size for All Selected Devices option and add a width and height (in pixels).
• Select a device or multiple devices from the Device Sets list or Available Devices list.
5 If you selected multiple devices, Device Central selects a size for you. If you want to select a different size, click on

a different device or set of devices.

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6 Click Create.

The selected application opens with a new mobile document ready to edit.

Create mobile content with Adobe Device Central and Illustrator
1 In Illustrator, select File > New.
2 In New Document Profile, select Mobile and Devices.
3 Click Device Central to close the dialog box in Illustrator and open Device Central.
4 Select a content type.

The available Devices list on the left is updated and shows the devices that support the content type selected.
5 In Device Central, select a device, several devices, or a device set.

Based on the device(s) selected and content type, Device Central suggests one or multiple artboard sizes to be created.
To create one document at a time, select a suggested document size (or select the Custom Size for all selected Devices
option and enter custom values for Width and Height).
6 Click Create.

A blank AI file of the specified size opens in Illustrator. The new file has the following parameters set by default:

• Color Mode: RGB
• Raster Resolution: 72 ppi
7 Fill the blank AI file with content in Illustrator.
8 When you finish, select File > Save For Web & Devices.
9 In the Save for Web & Devices dialog box, select the desired format and change other export settings as desired.
10 Click Device Central.

A temporary file with the export settings specified is displayed in the Device Central Emulator tab. To continue testing,
double-click the name of a different device in the Device Sets or Available Devices lists.
11 If, after previewing the file in Device Central, you need to make changes to the file, go back to Illustrator.
12 In the Illustrator Save for Web & Devices dialog box, make adjustments such as selecting a different format or

quality for export.
13 To test the file again with the new export settings, click Device Central.
14 When you are satisfied with the results, click Save in the Illustrator Save for Web & Devices dialog box.

Note: To simply open Device Central from Illustrator (instead of creating and testing a file), select File > Device Central.
For a tutorial about creating content with Illustrator and Device Central, see http://www.adobe.com/go/vid0207.

Tips for creating Illustrator images for mobile devices
To optimize graphical content for mobile devices, save artwork created in Illustrator in any SVG format, including
SVG-t, which is especially designed for mobile devices.
Use the following tips to ensure that images created in Illustrator display well on mobile devices:

• Use the SVG standard to create content. Using SVG to publish vector graphics on mobile devices results in a small
file size, display independence, superior color control, zooming ability, and editable text (within the source code).
Also, because SVG is XML-based, you can incorporate interactivity into images, such as highlighting, tool tips,
special effects, audio, and animation.

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• Work within the final dimensions of your target mobile device(s) from the beginning. Although SVG is scalable,
working within the correct size will ensure that final graphics are optimized in quality and size for the target
device(s).

• Set Illustrator color mode to RGB. SVG is viewed on RGB raster display devices, such as a monitors.
• To reduce file size, try reducing the number of objects (including groups) or making it less complex (fewer points).
Using fewer points significantly reduces the amount of textual information needed to describe the artwork in the
SVG file. To reduce points, select Object > Path > Simplify and try different combinations to find a balance between
quality and number of points.

• Use symbols when possible. Symbols define the vectors that describe an object once, instead of multiple times. This
is useful if artwork contains objects like button backgrounds that are reused.

• When animating graphics, limit the number of objects used and try to reuse objects whenever possible to reduce
file size. Apply animations to groups of objects instead of to individual objects to avoid code repetition.

• Consider using SVGZ, the compressed gzipped version of SVG. Compression can reduce file size dramatically,
depending on the content. Text can usually be heavily compressed, but binary-encoded content, such as embedded
rasters (JPEG, PNG, or GIF files), cannot be compressed significantly. SVGZ files can be uncompressed by any
application that expands files compressed with gzip. To use SGVZ successfully, check that your target mobile device
can decompress gzip files.
For more tips and techniques for creating content for mobile phones and devices, see
www.adobe.com/go/learn_cs_mobilewiki_en.

Slices and image maps
About slices
Web pages can contain many elements—HTML text, bitmap images, and vector graphics, to name a few. In Illustrator,
you can use slices to define the boundaries of different web elements in your artwork. For example, if your artwork
contains a bitmap image that needs to be optimized in JPEG format, while the rest of the image is better optimized as
a GIF file, you can isolate the bitmap image using a slice. When you save the artwork as a web page using the Save For
Web & Devices command, you can choose to save each slice as an independent file with its own format, settings,
and color panel.
Slices in an Illustrator document correspond to table cells in the resulting web page. By default, the slice area is
exported as a image file that is enclosed in a table cell. If you want the table cell to contain HTML text and a background
color instead of an image file, you can change the slice type to No Image. If you want to convert Illustrator text to
HTML text, you can change the slice type to HTML Text.

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Gear

Clothing

Camping Gear
Backpacks

Lighting Tents Slee

Sliced artwork using different slice types
A. No Image slice B. Image slice C. HTML Text slice

You can view slices on the artboard and in the Save For Web & Devices dialog box. Illustrator numbers slices from left
to right and top to bottom, beginning in the upper left corner of the artwork. If you change the arrangement or total
number of slices, slice numbers are updated to reflect the new order.
When you create a slice, Illustrator slices the surrounding artwork into automatic slices to maintain the layout using
a web-based table. There are two types of automatic slices: auto slices and subslices. Auto slices account for the areas
of your artwork that you did not define as a slice. Illustrator regenerates auto slices every time you add or edit slices.
Subslices indicate how overlapping user-defined slices will be divided. Although subslices are numbered and display a
slice symbol, you cannot select them separately from the underlying slice. Illustrator regenerates subslices and auto
slices as needed while you work.

See also
“Save For Web & Devices overview” on page 384
“Slice output options” on page 402

Create slices
❖ Do one of the following:

• Select one or more objects on the artboard, and choose Object > Slice > Make.
• Select the Slice tool

and drag over the area where you want to create a slice. Shift-drag to constrain the slice to
a square. Alt-drag (Windows) or Option-drag (Mac OS) to draw from the center.

• Select one or more objects on the artboard, and choose Object > Slice > Create From Selection.
• Place guides where you want to slice the artwork, and choose Object > Slice > Create From Guides.
• Select an existing slice, and choose Object > Slice > Duplicate Slice.
Use the Object > Slice > Make command when you want the slice dimensions to match the boundary of an element
in your artwork. If you move or modify the element, the slice area automatically adjusts to encompass the new
artwork. Also use this command to create a slice that captures text and basic formatting characteristics from a text object.
Use the Slice tool, the Create From Selection command, or the Create From Guides command when you want the slice
dimensions to be independent of the underlying artwork. Slices that you create in one of these ways appear as items
in the Layers panel, and you can move, resize, and delete them in the same way as other vector objects.

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Select slices
Use the Slice Select tool

to select a slice in the illustration window or the Save For Web & Devices dialog box.

• To select a slice, click it.
• To select multiple slices, Shift-click. (In the Save For Web & Devices dialog box, you can also Shift-drag.)
• To select an underlying slice when working with overlapping slices, click the visible section of it.
In addition, you can select slices in the illustration window by doing one of the following:

• To select a slice that was created using the Object > Slice > Make command, select the corresponding artwork on
the artboard. If the slice is tied to a group or layer, select the target icon adjacent to the group or layer in the Layers
panel.

• To select a slice that was created using the Slice tool, the Create From Selection command, or the Create From
Guides command, target the slice in the Layers panel.

• Click on the slice path with the Selection tool

• To select a slice path segment or slice anchor point, click on either item with the Direct Selection tool.
Note: You cannot select auto slices. These slices are dimmed.

Set slice options
A slice’s options determine how the content of the slice will look and function in the resulting web page.
1 Do one of the following with the Slice Select tool:

• Select a slice in the illustration window, and choose Object > Slice > Slice Options.
• Double-click a slice in the Save For Web & Devices dialog box with the Slice Select tool.
2 Select a slice type and set the corresponding options:
Image Select this type if you want the slice area to be an image file in the resulting web page. If you want the image to

be an HTML link, enter a URL and target frameset. You can also specify a message that will appear in the browser’s
status area when the mouse is positioned over the image, alternative text that will appear when the image is not visible,
and a background color for the table cell.
No Image Select this type if you want the slice area to contain HTML text and a background color in the resulting web

page. Enter the text you want in the Text Displayed In Cell text box and format the text using standard HTML tags. Be
careful not to enter more text than can be displayed in the slice area. (If you enter too much text, it will extend into
neighboring slices and affect the layout of your web page. However, because you cannot see the text on the artboard,
this will not be apparent until you view the web page in a web browser.) Set the Horiz and Vert options to change the
alignment of text in the table cell.
HTML Text This type is available only when you created the slice by selecting a text object and choosing Object >
Slice > Make. The Illustrator text is converted to HTML text with basic formatting attributes in the resulting web page.
To edit the text, update the text in your artwork. Set the Horiz and Vert options to change the alignment of text in the
table cell. You can also select a background color for the table cell.

To edit the text for HTML Text slices in the Slice Options dialog box, change the slice type to No Image. This breaks
the link with the text object on the artboard. To ignore text formatting, enter as the first word in the
text object.

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Lock slices
Locking slices prevents you from making changes accidentally, such as resizing or moving.

• To lock all slices, choose View > Lock Slices.
• To lock individual slices, click the slices’ edit column in the Layers panel.

See also
“Layers panel overview” on page 215

Adjust slice boundaries
If you created a slice using the Object > Slice > Make command, the position and size of the slice is tied to the artwork
it contains. Therefore, if you move or resize the artwork, the slice boundaries adjust automatically.
If you created a slice using the Slice tool, the Create From Selection command, or the Create From Guides command,
you can manually adjust slices in the following ways:

• To move a slice, drag the slice to a new position with the Slice Selection tool

. Press Shift to restrict movement

to a vertical, horizontal, or 45° diagonal line.

• To resize a slice, select the slice with Slice Selection tool, and drag any corner or side of the slice. You can also use
the Selection tool and Transform panel to resize slices.

• To align or distribute slices, use the Align panel. Aligning slices can eliminate unneeded auto slices to generate a
smaller, more efficient HTML file.

• To change the stacking order of slices, drag the slice to a new position in the Layers panel or select an Object >
Arrange command.

• To divide a slice, select the slice and choose Object > Slice > Divide Slices.
You can combine slices that were created by any method. Select the slices and choose Object > Slice > Combine Slices.
The resulting slice takes its dimensions and position from the rectangle created by joining the outer edges of the
combined slices. If the combined slices are not adjacent or are of different proportions or alignments, the new slice
may overlap other slices.
To resize all slices to the artboard boundaries, choose Object > Slice > Clip To Artboard. Slices that extend beyond the
artboard are truncated to fit the artboard and autoslices that lie within the artboard are extended to the artboard
boundaries; all artwork remains the same.

Remove slices
You can remove slices by deleting them or by releasing them from the corresponding artwork.

• To delete a slice, select the slice, and press Delete. If the slice was created using the Object > Slice > Make command,
the corresponding artwork is deleted at the same time. If you want to keep the corresponding artwork, release the
slice instead of deleting it.

• To delete all slices, choose Object > Slice > Delete All. Slices created with the Object > Slice > Make command are
released, not deleted.

• To release a slice, select the slice and choose Object > Slice > Release.

Show or hide slices
• To hide slices in the illustration window, choose View > Hide Slices.

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• To hide slices in the Save For Web & Devices dialog box, click the Toggle Slices Visibility button

• To hide slice numbers and change the color of slice lines, choose Edit > Preferences > Smart Guides & Slices
(Windows) or Illustrator > Preferences > Smart Guides & Slices (Mac OS).

Create image maps
Image maps enable you to link one or more areas of an image—called hotspots—to a URL. When a user clicks on the
hotspot, the web browser loads the linked file.
The main difference between using image maps and using slices to create links is in how the artwork is exported as a
web page. Using image maps keeps the artwork intact as a single image file, while using slices causes the artwork to be
divided into separate files. Another difference between image maps and slices is that image maps enable you to link
polygonal or rectangular areas in your artwork, while slices enable you to link only rectangular areas. If you need to
link only rectangular areas, using slices may be preferable to using an image map.
Note: To avoid unexpected results, don’t create image-map hotspots in slices that contain URL links—either the image
map links or the slice links may be ignored in some browsers.
1 Select the object that you want to link to a URL.
2 In the Attributes panel, select a shape for the image map from the Image Map menu.
3 Enter a relative or full URL in the URL text box, or select from the list of available URLs. You can verify the URL

location by clicking the Browser button.
To increase the number of visible entries in the URL menu, select panel Options from the Attributes panel menu. Enter
a value from 1 to 30 to define how many URL entries you want to be displayed in the URL list.

SVG
About SVG
Bitmap image formats for the web—GIF, JPEG, WBMP, and PNG—describe images using a grid of pixels. The
resulting files tend to be bulky, limited to a single (often low) resolution, and consume large amounts of bandwidth on
the web. SVG, on the other hand, is a vector format that describes images as shapes, paths, text, and filter effects.
The resulting files are compact and provide high-quality graphics on the web, in print, and even on resourceconstrained, handheld devices. Users can magnify their view of an SVG image on-screen without sacrificing sharpness,
detail, or clarity. In addition, SVG provides superior support for text and colors, which ensures that users will see
images as they appear on your Illustrator artboard.
The SVG format is entirely XML-based and offers many advantages to developers and users alike. With SVG, you can
use XML and JavaScript to create web graphics that respond to user actions with sophisticated effects such as
highlighting, tool tips, audio, and animation.
You can save artwork in SVG format using the Save, Save As, Save A Copy, or Save For Web & Devices command. To
access the complete set of SVG export options, use the Save, Save As, or Save A Copy command. The Save For Web &
Devices command provides a subset of SVG export options which are applicable to web-oriented work.
For a video on creating mobile content in Illustrator, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0207.

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How you set up your artwork in Illustrator will affect the resulting SVG file. Keep in mind the following guidelines:

• Use layers to add structure to an SVG file. When you save artwork in SVG format, each layer is converted to a group
() element. (For example, a layer named Button1 becomes in the SVG file.) Nested
layers become SVG nested groups, and hidden layers are preserved with the SVG styling property “display:none”.

• If you want objects on different layers to appear transparent, adjust the opacity of each object instead of each layer.
If you alter opacity at the layer level, the resulting SVG file will not display transparency as it appears in Illustrator.

• Raster data is not scalable in the SVG Viewer and cannot be edited like other SVG elements. If possible, avoid
creating artwork that will be rasterized in the SVG file. Gradient meshes and objects that use the Rasterize, Artistic,
Blur, Brush Strokes, Distort, Pixelate, Sharpen, Sketch, Stylize, Texture, and Video effects are rasterized when saved
in SVG format. Similarly, graphic styles that include these effects also produce rasterization. Use SVG effects to add
graphic effects without causing rasterization.

• Use symbols and simplify the paths in your artwork to improve SVG performance. Also avoid using brushes that
produce a lot of path data, such as the Charcoal, Fire Ash, and Scroll Pen, if performance is a high priority.

• Use slices, image maps, and scripts to add web links to an SVG file.
• A scripting language, such as JavaScript, opens unlimited functionality to an SVG file. Pointer and keyboard
movements can invoke scripting functions such as rollover effects. Scripts can also use the document object model
(DOM) to access and modify the SVG file—inserting or deleting SVG elements, for example.

See also
“Optimize an image for the web” on page 386
“Save in SVG format” on page 270

Apply SVG effects
You can use SVG effects to add graphic properties such as drop shadows to your artwork. SVG effects differ from their
bitmap counterparts in that they are XML-based and resolution-independent. In fact, an SVG effect is nothing more
than a series of XML properties that describe various mathematical operations. The resulting effect is rendered to the
target object instead of the source graphic.
Illustrator provides a default set of SVG effects. You can use the effects with their default properties, edit the XML code
to produce custom effects, or write new SVG effects.
To modify Illustrator’s default SVG filters, use a text editor to edit the Adobe SVG Filters.svg file in the Documents
and Settings//Application Data/Adobe/Adobe Illustrator CS4 Settings/ folder. You can modify
existing filter definitions, delete filter definitions, and add new filter definitions.
1 Select an object or group (or target a layer in the Layers panel).
2 Do one of the following:

• To apply an effect with its default settings, select the effect from the bottom section of the Effect > SVG Filters
submenu.

• To apply an effect with custom settings, choose Effect > SVG Filters > Apply SVG Filter. In the dialog box, select
the effect, and click the Edit SVG Filter button

. Edit the default code and click OK.

• To create and apply a new effect, choose Effect > SVG Filters > Apply SVG Filter. In the dialog box, click the
New SVG Filter button

, enter the new code, and click OK.

When you apply an SVG filter effect, Illustrator displays a rasterized version of the effect on the artboard. You can
control the resolution of this preview image by modifying the document’s rasterization resolution setting.

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Important: An SVG effect must be the last effect when an object uses multiple effects; in other words, it must appear at
the bottom of the Appearance panel (just above the Transparency entry). If other effects follow an SVG effect, the SVG
output will consist of a raster object.

See also
“About raster effects” on page 355
“Modify or delete an effect” on page 356

Import effects from an SVG file
1 Choose Effect > SVG Filter > Import SVG Filter.
2 Select the SVG file you want to import effects from, and click Open.

SVG Interactivity panel overview
You use the SVG Interactivity panel (Window > SVG Interactivity) to add interactivity to your artwork when it is
exported for viewing in a web browser. For example, by creating an event that triggers a JavaScript command, you can
quickly create movement on a web page when the user performs an action such as moving a mouse cursor over an
object. The SVG Interactivity panel also lets you see all the events and JavaScript files associated with the current file.

See also
“Optimize an image for the web” on page 386
“Save in SVG format” on page 270

Delete an event from the SVG Interactivity panel
• To delete one event, select it and click the Delete button or choose Delete Event from the panel menu.
• To delete all events, choose Clear Events from the panel menu.

List, add, or remove events linked to a file
1 Click the Link JavaScript Files button

2 In the JavaScript Files dialog box, select a JavaScript entry and do one of the following:

• Click Add to browse for additional JavaScript files.
• Click Remove to remove the selected JavaScript entry.

Add SVG interactivity to artwork
1 In the SVG Interactivity panel, select an event. (See “SVG events” on page 380.)
2 Enter the corresponding JavaScript, and press Enter.

SVG events
onfocusin Triggers the action when the element receives focus, such as selection by the pointer.
onfocusout Triggers the action when the element loses focus (often when another element receives focus).
onactivate Triggers the action with a mouse click or keypress, depending upon the SVG element.

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onmousedown Triggers the action when the mouse button is pressed down over an element.
onmouseup Triggers the action when the mouse button is released over an element.
onclick Triggers the action when the mouse is clicked over an element.
onmouseover Triggers the action when the pointer is moved onto an element.
onmousemove Triggers the action while the pointer is over an element.
onmouseout Triggers the action when the pointer is moved away from an element.
onkeydown Triggers the action when a key is pressed down.
onkeypress Triggers the action while a key is pressed down.
onkeyup Triggers the action when a key is released.
onload Triggers the action after the SVG document has been completely parsed by the browser. Use this event to call
one-time-only initialization functions.
onerror Triggers the action when an element does not load properly or another error occurs.
onabort Triggers the action when the page loading is stopped before the element is completely loaded.
onunload Triggers the action when the SVG document is removed from a window or frame.
onzoom Triggers the action when the zoom level is changed for the document.
onresize Triggers the action when the document view is resized.
onscroll Triggers the action when the document view is scrolled or panned.

Creating animations
About Flash graphics
The Flash (SWF) file format is a vector-based graphics file format for scalable, compact graphics for the web.
Because the file format is vector-based, the artwork maintains its image quality at any resolution and is ideal for the
creation of animation frames. In Illustrator, you can create individual animation frames on layers and then export the
image layers into individual frames for use on a website. You can also define symbols in an Illustrator file to reduce the
size of an animation. When exported, each symbol is defined only once in the SWF file.
You can save artwork as a SWF file by using the Export command or the Save For Web & Devices command. Benefits
of each include:
Export (SWF) command Provides the most control over animation and bitmap compression.
Save For Web & Devices command Provides more control over the mix of SWF and bitmap formats in a sliced layout.

This command offers fewer Image options than the Export (SWF) command, but uses the Export command’s last-used
settings. (See “SWF optimization options (Illustrator)” on page 398.)
Keep the following information in mind when preparing artwork to save as SWF:

• To keep the file size as small as possible when using symbols, apply effects to the symbol in the Symbols panel rather
than to symbol instances in the artwork.

• Using the Symbol Stainer and Symbol Styler tools results in larger SWF files because Illustrator must create a copy
of each symbol instance to maintain their appearances.

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• Mesh objects and gradients with more than eight stops are rasterized and will appear as bitmap-filled shapes.
Gradients with fewer than eight stops are exported as gradients.

• Patterns are rasterized into small images the size of the pattern art and tiled to fill the art.
• If a bitmap object extends beyond the boundaries of a slice, the entire object is included in the exported file.
• SWF supports rounded caps and joins only. Beveled or square caps and joins become rounded when exported to SWF.
• Pattern-filled text and pattern-filled strokes convert to paths and are filled with the pattern.
• Although text retains many of its features when exported to SWF, some information is lost. When importing a SWF
file into Flash, leading, kerning, and tracking aren’t maintained. Instead, text is broken into separate records to
simulate the look of leading. When the SWF file is subsequently played in Flash Player, the appearance of the
leading, kerning, and tracking in the file is maintained. If you wish to export text as paths, select Export Text As
Outlines in the SWF Options dialog box, or convert the text to outlines before exporting to SWF by choosing the
Create Outlines command.
For a video on using Illustrator and Flash together, see www.adobe.com/go/lrvid4099_xp . For a video on using
symbols effectively between Illustrator and Flash, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0198. For a video on using text effectively
between Illustrator and Flash, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0199.

See also
“Optimize an image for the web” on page 386
“Flash export options” on page 276
“About symbols” on page 81

Create Flash animations
There are many ways to create Flash animations in Illustrator. One of the easiest is to place each animation frame on
a separate Illustrator layer, and select the AI Layers To SWF Frames option when you export the artwork.
For a video on exporting SWF files from Illustrator, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0214. For a video on creating mobile
content in Illustrator, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0207. You can also go to Adobe Studio (http://studio.adobe.com) for
tips and tutorials on creating Flash animations.
1 Create the artwork you want to animate. Use symbols to reduce the file size of the animation and simplify your

work.
2 Create a separate layer for each frame in the animation.

You can do this by pasting the base artwork into a new layer and then editing the artwork. Or, you can use the Release
To Layers command to automatically generate layers consisting of objects that build up cumulatively.
3 Make sure the layers are in the order in which you want to display them as animation frames.
4 Do one of the following:

• Choose File > Export, choose Flash (SWF) for the format, and click Export. In the SWF Options dialog box, select
AI Layers To SWF Frames for Export As. Set additional animation options, and click OK.

• Choose File > Save For Web & Devices. Choose SWF from the Optimized File Format menu. From the Type Of
Export menu, choose AI Layers To SWF Frames. Set additional options, and click Save.

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See also
“About symbols” on page 81
“Release items to separate layers” on page 218
“Flash export options” on page 276
“SWF optimization options (Illustrator)” on page 398

Working with Illustrator and Flash
You can move Illustrator artwork into the Flash editing environment or directly into Flash Player. You can copy and
paste artwork, save files in SWF format, or export artwork directly to Flash. In addition, Illustrator provides support
for Flash dynamic text and movie clip symbols. For a video on using Flash and Illustrator together, see
www.adobe.com/go/lrvid4099_xp.
You can also use Device Central to see how Illustrator artwork will appear in Flash Player on different handheld
devices.
Pasting Illustrator artwork
You can create graphically rich artwork in Illustrator and copy and paste it into Flash simply, quickly, and seamlessly.
When you paste Illustrator artwork into Flash, the following attributes are preserved:

• Paths and shapes
• Scalability
• Stroke weights
• Gradient definitions
• Text (including OpenType fonts)
• Linked images
• Symbols
• Blending modes
In addition, Illustrator and Flash support pasted artwork in the following ways:

• When you select entire top-level layers in Illustrator artwork and paste them into Flash, the layers are preserved
along with their properties (visibility and locking).

• Non-RGB Illustrator colors (CMYK, grayscale, and custom) convert to RGB in Flash. RGB colors paste as expected.
• When you import or paste Illustrator artwork, you can use various options to preserve effects (such as drop shadow
on text) as Flash filters.

• Flash preserves Illustrator masks.
Exporting SWF files from Illustrator
From Illustrator, you can export SWF files that match the quality and compression of SWF files exported from Flash.
When you export, you can choose from a variety of presets to ensure optimal output, and you can specify how to
handle multiple artboards, symbols, layers, text, and masks. For example, you can specify whether Illustrator symbols
are exported as movie clips or graphics, or you can choose to create SWF symbols from Illustrator layers.

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Importing Illustrator files into Flash
When you want to create complete layouts in Illustrator and then import them into Flash in one step, you can save
your artwork in the native Illustrator format (AI) and import it, with high fidelity, into Flash using the File > Import
To Stage or File > Import To Library commands in Flash.
If your Illustrator file contains multiple artboards, you select the artboard you want to import from the Import dialog
box in Flash, and specify settings for each layer in that artboard. All objects on the selected artboard import as a single
layer in Flash. If you import another artboard from that same AI file, the objects from that artboard import as a new
layer in Flash.
When you import Illustrator artwork as an AI, EPS, or PDF file, Flash preserves the same attributes as for pasted
Illustrator artwork. In addition, when an imported Illustrator file contains layers, you can import them in any of the
following ways:

• Convert Illustrator layers to Flash layers
• Convert Illustrator layers to Flash frames
• Convert all Illustrator layers to a single Flash layer
Symbol workflow
Symbol workflow in Illustrator is similar to symbol workflow in Flash.
Symbol creation When you create a symbol in Illustrator, the Symbol Options dialog box lets you name the symbol

and set options specific to Flash: movie clip symbol type (which is the default for Flash symbols), Flash registration
grid location, and 9-slice scaling guides. In addition, you can use many of the same symbol keyboard shortcuts in
Illustrator and Flash (such as F8 to create a symbol).
Isolation mode for symbol editing In Illustrator, double-click a symbol to open it in isolation mode for easier editing.

In isolation mode, only the symbol instance is editable—all other objects on the artboard are dimmed and unavailable.
After you exit isolation mode, the symbol in the Symbols panel, and all instances of that symbol are updated
accordingly. In Flash, symbol-editing mode and the Library panel work in a similar fashion.
Symbol properties and links Using the Symbols panel or the Control panel, you can easily assign names to symbol

instances, break links between instances and symbols, swap a symbol instance with another symbol, or create a copy
of the symbol. In Flash, the editing features in the Library panel work in a similar way.
Static, dynamic, and input text objects
When you bring static text from Illustrator into Flash, Flash converts the text to outlines. In addition, you can set up
your text in Illustrator as dynamic text. Dynamic text enables you to edit text content programmatically in Flash, and
easily manage projects that require localization in multiple languages.
In Illustrator, you can specify individual text objects as static, dynamic, or input text. Dynamic text objects in
Illustrator and Flash have similar properties. For example, both use kerning that affects all characters in a text block
rather than individual characters, both anti-alias text the same way, and both can be linked to an external XML file
containing text.

Optimizing images
Save For Web & Devices overview
You use the Save For Web & Devices dialog box (File > Save For Web & Devices) to select optimization options and
preview optimized artwork.

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Save For Web & Devices dialog box
A. Display options B. Toolbox C. Optimize pop-up menu D. Color Table pop-up menu E. Animation controls (Photoshop only) F. Zoom text
box G. Preview In Browser menu H. Original image I. Optimized image

Preview images in the dialog box
❖ Click a tab at the top of the image area to select a display option:
Original Displays the image with no optimization.
Optimized Displays image with the current optimization settings applied.
2-Up Displays two versions of the image side by side.
4-Up Displays four versions of the image side by side.

Navigate in the dialog box
If the entire artwork is not visible in the Save For Web & Devices dialog box, you can use the Hand tool to bring another
area into view. Use the Zoom tool to magnify or reduce the view.

• Select the Hand tool (or hold down the spacebar), and drag in the view area to pan over the image.
• Select the Zoom tool

, and click in a view to zoom in; hold down Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac OS), and click

in a view to zoom out.
You can also type a magnification percentage or choose one at the bottom of the dialog box.

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View optimized image information and download time
The annotation area below each image in the Save For Web & Devices dialog box provides optimization information.
The annotation for the original image shows the file name and file size. The annotation for the optimized image shows
the current optimization options, the size of the optimized file, and the estimated download time using the selected
modem speed. You can choose a modem speed in the Preview pop-up menu.

Optimize an image for the web
1 Choose File > Save For Web & Devices.
2 Click a tab at the top of the dialog box to select a display option: Optimized, 2-Up, or 4-Up. If you select 4-Up, click

the preview you want to optimize.
3 (Optional) If your image contains multiple slices, select one or more slices you want to optimize.
4 Select a preset optimization setting from the Preset menu, or set individual optimization options. The available

options change depending on the file format you select.
If you’re working in 4-Up mode, choose Repopulate Views from the Optimize menu to automatically generate lowerquality versions of the image after you change the optimization settings.
5 Fine-tune the optimization settings until you are satisfied with the balance of image quality and file size. If your

image contains multiple slices, be sure to optimize all the slices.
To restore an optimized preview to the original version, select it and then choose Original from the Preset menu.
6 If optimizing an image with an embedded color profile other than sRGB, you should convert the image’s colors to

sRGB before you save the image for use on the web. This insures that the colors you see in the optimized image will
look the same in different web browsers. The Convert to sRGB option is selected by default.
7 (Photoshop only) From the Metadata menu, choose what XMP metadata to save with the optimized file. Metadata

is fully supported by JPEG file format, and partially supported by GIF and PNG file formats. It can include any
metadata file information that was added to the document (choose File > File Info to view or enter document
metadata).
None No metadata saved. Produces the smallest file size.
Copyright Saves copyright notice, rights usage terms, copyright status, and copyright info URL.
Copyright and Contact Info Saves all copyright information, plus the following information: creator, creator job title,

e-mail(s), address, city, state/province, postal code, country, telephone(s), and website(s).
All Except Camera Info Saves all XMP metadata, except EXIF data. EXIF data includes camera settings and scene

information such as shutter speed, date and time, focal length, exposure compensation, metering pattern, and whether
a flash was used.
All Saves all XMP metadata in the file.

8 Click Save.
9 In the Save Optimized As dialog box, do the following, and then click Save:

• Enter a file name, and select a location for the resulting file or files.
• Select a Format option to specify what kind of files you want to save: an HTML file and image files, only image files,
or only an HTML file.

• (Optional) Set output settings for HTML and image files.

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• If your image contains multiple slices, select an option for saving slices from the Slices menu: All Slices or Selected
Slices.
To reset optimization settings to the last saved version, press Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac OS), and click Reset. To
keep the same settings the next time you open the Save For Web & Devices dialog box, press Alt/Option and click
Remember.
For a video on saving files for the web in Illustrator, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0063.

See also
Save for web in Illustrator video
“Preview optimized images in a web browser” on page 389
“Set output options” on page 401

Save or delete optimization presets
You can save optimization settings as a named set and apply the settings to other images. Settings that you save appear
in the Preset pop-up menu, together with the predefined named settings. If you edit a named set or a predefined set,
the Preset menu displays the term “Unnamed.”
1 Set optimization options as desired, and choose Save Settings from the Optimize palette menu.
2 Name the settings, and save them in the appropriate folder:
Photoshop (Windows XP) Document and Settings\[Username]\Application Data\Adobe\Adobe Photoshop
CS4\Optimized Settings

(Windows Vista) Users\[Username]\AppData\Roaming\Adobe\Adobe Photoshop CS4\Optimized Settings
(Mac OS) User/[Username]/Library/Preferences/Adobe Photoshop CS4 Settings/Optimized Settings
Illustrator (Windows XP) Document and Settings\[Username]\Application Data\Adobe\Adobe Illustrator CS4
Settings\[Language]\Save for Web Settings\Optimize

(Windows Vista) Users\[Username]\AppData\Roaming\Adobe\Adobe Illustrator CS4 Settings\[Language]\Save for
Web Settings\Optimize
(Mac OS) User/[Username]/Library/ApplicationSupport/Adobe/Adobe Illustrator CS4/[Language]/Save for Web
Settings/Optimize
Note: If you save the settings in a another location, they will not be available from the Preset pop-up menu.
3 To delete a preset, select the preset from Preset menu, and select Delete Settings from the Optimize menu.

Work with slices in the Save For Web & Devices dialog box
If your image contains multiple slices, you must specify the slices to be optimized. You can apply optimization settings
to additional slices by linking the slices. Linked slices in GIF and PNG-8 format share a color palette and dither pattern
to prevent the appearance of seams between the slices.

• To show or hide all slices, click the Toggle Slices Visibility button

• To select slices in the Save For Web & Devices dialog box, choose the Slice Select tool

, and then click a slice to

select it. Shift-click or Shift-drag to select multiple slices.
Note: In the Save For Web & Devices dialog box, unselected slices are dimmed. This does not affect the color of the final
image.

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• To view slice options in the Save For Web & Devices dialog box, select the Slice Select tool, and double-click a slice.
• To link slices, select two or more slices and choose Link Slices from the Optimize pop-up menu
of the Preset menu). The link icon

(to the right

appears on the linked slices.

• To unlink a slice, select the slice, and then choose Unlink Slice from the Optimize pop-up menu.
• To unlink all slices in an image, choose Unlink All Slices from the Optimize pop-up menu.

Compress a web graphic to a specific file size
1 Choose File > Save For Web & Devices.
2 Click a tab at the top of the Save For Web & Devices dialog box to select a display option: Optimized, 2-Up, or 4-Up.

If you select 4-Up, select the preview you want to optimize.
3 (Optional) Select the slices you want to optimize and the file format you want to use.
4 Select Optimize To File Size from the Optimize menu (to the right of the Settings menu).
5 Enter the desired file size.
6 Select a Start With option:
Current Settings Uses the current file format.
Auto Select GIF/JPEG Automatically selects the optimal format depending on image content.

7 Select a Use option to specify whether you want to apply the specified file size to current slice only, to each slice in

the image, or to all slices. Click OK.

Resize artwork while optimizing
In the Save For Web & Devices dialog box, you can resize an image to specified pixel dimensions or to a percentage of
the original size.
1 Click the Image Size tab in the Save For Web & Devices dialog box.
2 Set any of the additional options:
Constrain Proportions Maintains the current proportions of pixel width to pixel height.
Quality (Photoshop only) Specifies the interpolation method. Bicubic Sharper generally produces better results when

you are reducing image size.
Anti-Alias (Illustrator only) Removes jagged edges in the artwork by applying anti-aliasing.
Clip To Artboard (Illustrator only) Clips the artwork size to match the document’s Artboard boundary. Any artwork
outside the Artboard boundary will be deleted.

Note: None of the features in the Image Size palette are available for the SWF and SVG file formats except Clip To
Artboard.
3 Enter new pixel dimensions or specify a percentage by which to resize the image, and click Apply.

Generate CSS layers for web graphics
You can use layers in your Illustrator artwork to generate CSS layers in the resulting HTML file. A CSS layer is an
element that has an absolute position and can overlap with other elements in a web page. Exporting CSS layers is useful
when you plan to create dynamic effects in your web page.

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The Layers palette in the Save For Web & Devices dialog box gives you control over which top-level layers in your
artwork are exported as CSS layers, and whether exported layers are visible or hidden.
1 Click the Layers tab in the Save For Web & Devices dialog box.
2 Select Export As CSS Layers.
3 Select a layer from the Layer pop-up menu, and set the following options as desired:
Visible Creates a visible CSS layer in the resulting HTML file.
Hidden Creates a hidden CSS layer in the resulting HTML file.

CSS layers are the same as GoLive layers. Using Adobe GoLive, you can animate a CSS layer and use built-in
JavaScript actions to create interactive effects.

See also
“Save For Web & Devices overview” on page 384
“Optimize an image for the web” on page 386

Preview optimized images in a web browser
You can preview an optimized image in any web browser installed on your system from the Save For Web & Devices
dialog box (File > Save For Web & Devices). The browser preview displays the image with a caption listing the image’s
file type, pixel dimensions, file size, compression specifications, and other HTML information.

• To preview an image in your default web browser, click the browser icon at the bottom of the Save For Web &
Devices dialog box.

• To select a different browser, select Other from the browser pop-up menu (next to the browser icon).
• To add, edit, or remove a browser in the browser pop-up menu, select Edit List from the browser pop-up menu. In
the Browsers dialog box, you can find all browsers on your computer and set the default browser to preview your
image.

Web graphics optimization options
Web graphic formats
Web graphics formats can be either bitmap (raster) or vector. The bitmap formats—GIF, JPEG, PNG, and WBMP—
are resolution-dependent, meaning that a bitmap image’s dimensions, and possibly image quality, will change at
different monitor resolutions. The vector formats—SVG and SWF—are resolution-independent and can be scaled up
or down without losing any image quality. The vector formats can also include raster data. You can export from Save
For Web & Devices to SVG and SWF in Adobe Illustrator only.

JPEG optimization options
JPEG is the standard format for compressing continuous-tone images such as photographs. Optimizing an image as a
JPEG format relies on lossy compression, which selectively discards data.
Note: Since image data is lost when saving a file in JPEG format, it’s a good idea to save the source file in its original
format (for example, Photoshop .PSD) if you plan to edit the file further or create additional JPEG versions.

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C
A
B

Optimization settings for JPEG
A. File Format menu B. Compression Quality menu C. Optimize menu

Quality Determines the level of compression. The higher the Quality setting, the more detail the compression

algorithm preserves. However, using a high Quality setting results in a larger file size than using a low Quality setting.
View the optimized image at several quality settings to determine the best balance of quality and file size.
Optimized Creates an enhanced JPEG with a slightly smaller file size. The Optimized JPEG format is recommended

for maximum file compression; however, some older browsers do not support this feature.
Progressive Displays the image progressively in a web browser. The image appears as a series of overlays, enabling
viewers to see a low-resolution version of the image before it downloads completely. The Progressive option requires
use of the Optimized JPEG format.

Note: Progressive JPEGs require more RAM for viewing and are not supported by some browsers.
Blur Specifies the amount of blur to apply to the image. This option applies an effect identical to that of the Gaussian
Blur filter and allows the file to be compressed more, resulting in a smaller file size. A setting of 0.1 to 0.5 is
recommended.
Embed Color Profile (Photoshop) or ICC Profile (Illustrator) Preserves color profiles in the optimized file. Some

browsers use color profiles for color correction.
Matte Specifies a fill color for pixels that were transparent in the original image. Click the Matte color swatch to select

a color in the color picker, or select an option from the Matte menu: Eyedropper Color (to use the color in the
eyedropper sample box), Foreground Color, Background Color, White, Black, or Other (to use the color picker).
Note: The Foreground Color and Background Color options are only available in Photoshop.
Pixels that were fully transparent in the original image are filled with the selected color; pixels that were partially
transparent in the original image are blended with the selected color.

See also
“Optimize an image for the web” on page 386

GIF and PNG-8 optimization options
GIF is the standard format for compressing images with flat color and crisp detail, such as line art, logos, or
illustrations with type. Like the GIF format, the PNG-8 format efficiently compresses solid areas of color while
preserving sharp detail.
PNG-8 and GIF files support 8-bit color, so they can display up to 256 colors. The process of determining which colors
to use is called indexing, so images in GIF and PNG-8 formats are sometimes called indexed color images. To convert
an image to indexed color, a color lookup table is built to store and index the colors in the image. If a color in the
original image does not appear in the color lookup table, the application either chooses the closest color in the table or
simulates the color using a combination of available colors.

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In addition to the following options, you can also adjust the number of colors in the image’s color table. See
“Customize the color table for GIF and PNG-8 images” on page 394.
D
A
B
C

Optimization settings for GIF
A. File Format menu B. Color Reduction Algorithm menu C. Dithering Algorithm menu D. Optimize menu

Lossy (GIF only) Reduces file size by selectively discarding data. A higher Lossy setting results in more data being

discarded. You can often apply a Lossy value of 5–10, and sometimes up to 50, without degrading the image. The Lossy
option can reduce file size by 5% to 40%.
Note: You cannot use the Lossy option with the Interlaced option or with Noise or Pattern Dither algorithms.
Color Reduction Method and Colors Specifies a method for generating the color lookup table and the number of colors
you want in the color lookup table. You can select one of the following color reduction methods:

• Perceptual Creates a custom color table by giving priority to colors for which the human eye has greater sensitivity.
• Selective Creates a color table similar to the Perceptual color table, but favoring broad areas of color and the
preservation of web colors. This color table usually produces images with the greatest color integrity. Selective is the
default option.
• Adaptive Creates a custom color table by sampling colors from the predominant spectrum in the image. For
example, an image with only the colors green and blue produces a color table made primarily of greens and blues. Most
images concentrate colors in particular areas of the spectrum.
• Restrictive (Web) Uses the standard 216-color color table common to the Windows and Mac OS 8-bit (256-color)
palettes. This option ensures that no browser dither is applied to colors when the image is displayed using 8-bit color.
(This palette is also called the web-safe palette.) Using the web palette can create larger files, and is recommended only
when avoiding browser dither is a high priority.
• Custom Uses a color palette that is created or modified by the user. If you open an existing GIF or PNG-8 file, it
will have a custom color palette.
Use the Color Table palette in the Save For Web & Devices dialog box to customize the color lookup table.

• Black and White, Grayscale, Mac OS, Windows Use a set palette of colors.
Dithering Method and Dither Determines the method and amount of application dithering. Dithering refers to the

method of simulating colors not available in the color display system of your computer. A higher dithering percentage
creates the appearance of more colors and more detail in an image, but can also increase the file size. For optimal
compression, use the lowest percentage of dither that provides the color detail you require. Images with primarily solid
colors may work well with no dither. Images with continuous-tone color (especially color gradients) may require
dithering to prevent color banding.

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GIF image with 0% dither (left), and with 100% dither (right)

You can select one of the following dithering methods:

• Diffusion Applies a random pattern that is usually less noticeable than Pattern dither. The dither effects are
diffused across adjacent pixels.
• Pattern Applies a halftone-like square pattern to simulate any colors not in the color table.
• Noise Applies a random pattern similar to the Diffusion dither method, but without diffusing the pattern across
adjacent pixels. No seams appear with the Noise dither method.
Transparency and Matte Determines how transparent pixels in the image are optimized.

• To make fully transparent pixels transparent and blend partially transparent pixels with a color, select
Transparency and select a matte color.

• To fill fully transparent pixels with a color and blend partially transparent pixels with the same color, select a matte
color and deselect Transparency.

• To select a matte color, click the Matte color swatch and select a color in the color picker. Alternatively, select an
option from the Matte menu: Eyedropper Color (to use the color in the eyedropper sample box), Foreground Color,
Background Color, White, Black, or Other (to use the color picker).
Note: The Foreground Color and Background Color options are only available in Photoshop.

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Examples of transparency and matting
A. Original image B. Transparency selected with a matte color C. Transparency selected with no matting D. Transparency deselected with a
matte color

Transparency Dithering When the Transparency option is selected, you can choose a method for dithering partially

transparent pixels:

• No Transparency Dither applies no dither to partially transparent pixels in the image.
• Diffusion Transparency Dither applies a random pattern that is usually less noticeable than Pattern dither. The
dither effects are diffused across adjacent pixels. If you select this algorithm, specify a Dither percentage to control
the amount of dithering that is applied to the image.

• Pattern Transparency Dither applies a halftone-like square pattern to partially transparent pixels.
• Noise Transparency Dither applies a random pattern similar to the Diffusion algorithm, but without diffusing the
pattern across adjacent pixels. No seams appear with the Noise algorithm.

Example of Pattern Transparency dithering (left) and applied to a web page background (right)

Interlace Displays a low-resolution version of the image in a browser while the full image file is downloading.
Interlacing can make downloading time seem shorter and can assure viewers that downloading is in progress.
However, interlacing also increases file size.

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Web Snap Specifies a tolerance level for shifting colors to the closest web palette equivalents (and prevent the colors

from dithering in a browser). A higher value shifts more colors.

See also
“Optimize an image for the web” on page 386

Optimize transparency in GIF and PNG images
Transparency makes it possible to create nonrectangular images for the web. Background transparency preserves
transparent pixels in the image. This allows the background of the web page to show through the transparent areas of
your image. Background matting simulates transparency by filling or blending transparent pixels with a matte color
that can match the web page background. Background matting works best if the web page background is a solid color
and if you know what that color is.
Use the Transparency and Matte options in the Save For Web & Devices dialog box to specify how transparent pixels
in GIF and PNG images are optimized.

• (GIF and PNG-8) To make fully transparent pixels transparent and blend partially transparent pixels with a color,
select Transparency and select a matte color.

• To fill fully transparent pixels with a color and blend partially transparent pixels with the same color, select a matte
color and deselect Transparency.

• (GIF and PNG-8) To make all pixels with greater than 50% transparency fully transparent and all pixels with 50%
or less transparency fully opaque, select Transparency and select None from the Matte menu.

• (PNG-24) To save an image with multilevel transparency (up to 256 levels), select Transparency. The Matte option
is disabled since multilevel transparency allows an image to blend with any background color.
Note: In browsers that do not support PNG-24 transparency, transparent pixels may be displayed against a default
background color, such as gray.
To select a matte color, click the Matte color swatch and select a color in the color picker. Alternatively, select an option
from the Matte menu: Eyedropper Color (to use the color in the eyedropper sample box), Foreground Color,
Background Color, White, Black, or Other (to use the color picker).
Note: The Foreground Color and Background Color options are only available in Photoshop.

View the color table for an optimized slice
The color table for a slice appears in the Color Table panel in the Save For Web & Devices dialog box.
❖ Select a slice that is optimized in GIF or PNG-8 format. The color table for the selected slice appears in the Save For

Web & Devices color table.
If an image has multiple slices, the colors in the color table may vary between slices (you can link the slices first to
prevent this from happening). If you select multiple slices that use different color tables, the color table is empty and
its status bar displays the message “Mixed.”

Customize the color table for GIF and PNG-8 images
You use the color table in the Save For Web & Devices dialog box to customize the colors in optimized GIF and PNG-8
images. Reducing the number of colors often preserves image quality while reducing the file size of the image.
You can add and delete colors in the color table, shift selected colors to web-safe colors, and lock selected colors to
prevent them from being dropped from the palette.

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Sort a color table
Choose a sorting order from the Color Table palette menu:

• Unsorted restores the original sorting order.
• Sort By Hue sorts by the location of the color on the standard color wheel (expressed as a degree from 0 to 360).
Neutral colors are assigned a hue of 0 and located with the reds.

• Sort By Luminance sorts by the lightness or brightness of a color.
• Sort By Popularity sorts by the colors’ frequency of occurrence in the image.

Add a new color to the color table
You can add colors that were left out in building the color table. Adding a color to a dynamic table shifts the color in
the palette closest to the new color. Adding a color to a fixed or Custom table adds an additional color to the palette.
1 If any colors are currently selected in the color table, choose Deselect All Colors from the Color Table palette menu

to deselect them.
2 Choose a color by doing one of the following:

• Click the Eyedropper Color box in the Save For Web & Devices dialog box and choose a color from the color picker.
• Select the Eyedropper tool in the Save For Web & Devices dialog box and click in the image.
3 Do one of the following:

• Click the New Color button

in the color table.

• Select New Color from the Color Table palette menu.
To switch the color table to a Custom palette, hold down Ctrl (Windows) or Command (Mac OS) when you add the
new color.
The new color appears in the color table with a small white square in the lower right corner, indicating that the color
is locked. If the color table is dynamic, the original color is displayed in the upper left and the new color is displayed
in the lower right.

Select colors in the color table
A white border appears around selected colors in the Color Table.

• To select a color, click the color in the Color Table.
• To select multiple colors in the color table, press Shift and click another color. All colors in the rows between the
first and second selected colors are selected. To select a nonadjacent group of colors, press Ctrl (Windows) or
Command (Mac OS) and click each color that you want to select. The Color Table palette menu also provides
commands for selecting colors.

• To select a color in the preview image, click in the preview with the Save For Web & Devices Eyedropper tool.
Shift-click to select additional colors.

• To deselect all colors, choose Deselect All Colors from the Color Table palette menu.

Shift a color
You can change a selected color in the color table to any other RGB color value. When you regenerate the optimized
image, the selected color changes to the new color wherever it appears in the image.
1 Double-click the color in the color table to display the default color picker.
2 Select a color.

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The original color appears at the upper left of the color swatch and the new color at the lower right. The small square
at the lower right of the color swatch indicates that the color is locked. If you shift to a web-safe color, a small white
diamond appears at the center of the swatch.
3 To revert a shifted color to its original color, do one of the following:

• Double-click the swatch for the shifted color. The original color is selected in the color picker. Click OK to restore
the color.

• To revert all shifted colors in a color table (including web-shifted colors), choose Unshift All Colors from the Color
Table palette menu.

Shift colors to the closest web palette equivalent
To protect colors from dithering in a browser, you can shift the colors to their closest equivalents in the web palette.
This ensures that the colors won’t dither when displayed in browsers on either Windows or Macintosh operating
systems capable of displaying only 256 colors.
1 Select one or more colors in the optimized image or color table.
2 Do one of the following:

• Click the Web Shift button

in the Color Table palette.

• Choose Shift/Unshift Selected Colors To/From Web Palette from the Color Table palette menu.The original color
in
appears at the upper left of the color swatch and the new color at the lower right. The small white diamond
the center of the color swatch indicates that the color is web-safe; the small square at the lower right of the color
swatch indicates that the color is locked.
3 To set a tolerance for shifting, enter a value for Web Snap. A higher value shifts more colors.
4 To revert web-shifted colors, do one of the following:

• Select a web-shifted color in the color table and click the Web Shift button

in the Color Table palette.

• To revert all web-shifted colors in the color table, choose Unshift All Colors from the Color Table palette menu.

Map colors to transparency
You can add transparency to an optimized image by mapping existing colors to transparency.
1 Select one or more colors in the optimized image or color table.
2 Do one of the following:

• Click the Map Transparency button

in the Color Table palette.

• Choose Map/Unmap Selected Colors To/From Transparent from the Color Table palette menu.
The transparency grid
appears in half of each mapped color. The small square at the lower right of the color swatch
indicates that the color is locked.
3 To revert transparency to original color, do one of the following:

• Select the colors you want to revert and click the Map Transparency button

or choose Map/Unmap Selected

Colors To/From Transparent from the Color Table palette menu.

• To revert all transparency-mapped colors, choose Unmap All Transparent Colors.

Lock or unlock a color
You can lock selected colors in the color table to prevent them from being dropped when the number of colors is
reduced and to prevent them from dithering in the application.

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Note: Locking colors does not prevent them from dithering in a browser.
1 Select one or more colors in the color table.
2 Lock the color by doing one of the following:

• Click the Lock button

• Choose Lock/Unlock Selected Colors from the Color Table palette menu.
A white square

appears in the lower right corner of each locked color.

3 Unlock the color by doing one of the following:

• Click the Lock button

• Choose Lock/Unlock Selected Colors from the Color Table palette menu.
The white square disappears from the color swatch.

Delete selected colors
You can delete selected colors from the color table to decrease the image file size. When you delete a color, areas of the
optimized image that previously included that color are rerendered using the closest color remaining in the palette.
When you delete a color, the color table automatically changes to a Custom palette. This is because the Adaptive,
Perceptual, and Selective palettes automatically add the deleted color back into the palette when you reoptimize the
image—the Custom palette does not change when you reoptimize the image.
1 Select one or more colors in the color table.
2 Delete the color by doing one of the following:

• Click the Delete icon

• Choose Delete Color from the Color Table palette menu.

Save a color table
You can save color tables from optimized images to use with other images and to load color tables created in other
applications. Once you load a new color table into an image, the colors in the optimized image are changed to reflect
the colors in the new color table.
1 Select Save Color Table from the Color Table palette menu.
2 Name the color table and choose a location where it will be saved. By default, the color table file is given the

extension .act (for Adobe Color Table).
If you want to access the color table when selecting Optimization options for a GIF or PNG image, save the color table
in the Optimized Colors folder inside the Photoshop application folder.
3 Click Save.

Important: When you reload the table, all shifted colors will appear as full swatches and will be unlocked.

Load a color table
1 Select Load Color Table from the Color Table palette menu.
2 Navigate to a file containing the color table you want to load—either an Adobe Color Table (.act) file, an Adobe

Color Swatch (.aco) file, or a GIF file (to load the file’s embedded color table).
3 Click Open.

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PNG-24 optimization options
PNG-24 is suitable for compressing continuous-tone images; however, it produces much larger files than JPEG format.
The advantage of using PNG-24 is that it can preserve up to 256 levels of transparency in an image.
Transparency and Matte Determine how transparent pixels in the image are optimized. See “Optimize transparency

in GIF and PNG images” on page 394.
Interlace Displays a low-resolution version of the image in a browser while the full image file is downloading.
Interlacing can make downloading time seem shorter and can assure viewers that downloading is in progress.
However, interlacing also increases file size.

See also
“Optimize an image for the web” on page 386

WBMP optimization options
WBMP format is the standard format for optimizing images for mobile devices, such as cell phones. WBMP supports
1-bit color, which means that WBMP images contain only black and white pixels.
The Dithering algorithm and percentage determine the method and amount of application dithering. For optimal
appearance, use the lowest percentage of dither that provides the detail you require.
You can select one of the following dithering methods:
No Dither Applies no dithering at all, rendering the image in purely black and purely white pixels.
Diffusion Applies a random pattern that is usually less noticeable than Pattern dither. The dither effects are diffused
across adjacent pixels. If you select this algorithm, specify a Dither percentage to control the amount of dithering
applied to the image.

Note: Diffusion dither may cause detectable seams to appear across slice boundaries. Linking slices diffuses the dither
pattern across all linked slices, and eliminates the seams.
Pattern Applies a halftone-like square pattern to determine the value of pixels.
Noise Applies a random pattern similar to the Diffusion dithering, but without diffusing the pattern across adjacent
pixels. No seams appear with the Noise algorithm.

See also
“Optimize an image for the web” on page 386

SWF optimization options (Illustrator)
The Adobe Flash (SWF) file format is a vector-based graphics file format for the creation of scalable, compact graphics
for the web. Because the file format is vector-based, the artwork maintains its image quality at any resolution. The SWF
format is ideal for the creation of animation frames, but you can also save raster images in SWF format or mix raster
and vector graphics.

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A
B
C

Optimization settings for SWF
A. File format menu B. Flash Player menu C. Export menu

Preset Specifies the preconfigured set of options you want to use for export. You can create new presets by setting

options as desired, and then choosing Save Settings from the panel menu. (To open the panel menu, click the triangle
to the right of the Preset menu.)
Flash Player Version Specifies the earliest version of Flash Player that will support the exported file.
Type Of Export Determines how layers are exported. Select AI File To SWF File to export the artwork to a single frame.
Select Layers To SWF Frames to export the artwork on each layer to a separate SWF frame, creating an animated SWF.

Note: Select AI File To SWF File to preserve layer clipping masks.
Curve Quality Specifies the accuracy of the bezier curves. A low number decreases the exported file size with a slight
loss of curve quality. A higher number increases the accuracy of the bezier curve reproduction, but results in a larger
file size.
Frame Rate Specifies the rate at which the animation will play in a Flash viewer. This option is available only for Layers

To SWF Frames.
Loop Causes the animation to loop continuously, rather than play once and then stop, when played in a Flash viewer.

This option is available only for Layers To SWF Frames.
Preserve Appearance Expands strokes into stroke-shaped fills and flattens any blending modes and transparency that

SWF doesn’t support.
Preserve Editability Converts strokes to SWF strokes, and approximates or ignores transparency that SWF doesn’t

support.
Note: SWF supports object-level opacity only.
Use the Export command instead of the Save For Web & Devices command to maintain artwork’s stacking order by
exporting each layer to a separate SWF file. You can then import the exported SWF files into Adobe Flash
simultaneously.
Compressed Compresses the exported file.
Protect File Protects the file so that it cannot be imported by applications other than Flash.
Text As Outlines Converts all text to outlines to maintain appearance. If you plan to edit the text in Flash, don’t select

this option.

SVG optimization options (Illustrator)
SVG is a vector format that describes images as shapes, paths, text, and filter effects. The resulting files are compact
and provide high-quality graphics on the web, in print, and even on resource-constrained handheld devices.

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A
B
C

Optimization settings for SVG
A. File format menu B. SVG Profiles menu C. Font Subsetting menu D. Image Location menu E. CSS Properties menu F. Font Type menu
G. Encoding menu

Compressed Creates a Compressed SVG (SVGZ) file.
SVG Profiles Specifies the SVG XML Document Type Definition for the exported file.

• SVG 1.0 and SVG 1.1 Suitable for SVG files to be viewed on a desktop computer. SVG 1.1 is the full version of the
SVG specification, of which SVG Tiny 1.1, SVG Tiny 1.1 Plus, SVG Tiny 1.2, and SVG Basic 1.1 are subsets.
• SVG Basic 1.1 Suitable for SVG files to be viewed on medium powered devices, such as handhelds. Keep in mind
that not all handhelds support the SVG Basic profile. As a result, selecting this option doesn’t guarantee that the SVG
file will be viewable on all handhelds. SVG Basic doesn’t support nonrectangular clipping and some SVG filter effects.
• SVG Tiny 1.1 and SVG Tiny 1.1+ Suitable for SVG files to be viewed on small devices, such as mobile phones. Keep
in mind that not all mobile phones support the SVG Tiny and SVG Tiny Plus profiles. As a result, selecting either of
these options doesn’t guarantee that the SVG file will be viewable on all small devices.
• SVG Tiny 1.2 Suitable for SVG files to be viewed on a variety of devices ranging from PDAs and cellphones to
laptops and desktop computers.
SVG Tiny doesn’t support gradients, transparency, clipping, masks, symbols, or SVG filter effects. SVG Tiny Plus
includes the ability to display gradients and transparency, but it doesn’t support clipping, masks, symbols, or SVG filter
effects.
For additional information on SVG profiles, see the SVG specification on the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)
website (www.w3.org).
Decimals Determines the precision of vector data in the SVG file. You can set a value of 1 to 7 decimal places. A high
value results in a larger file size and increased image quality.
Font Subsetting Controls which glyphs are embedded from the SVG file. Select None from the Subsetting menu if you
can rely on the necessary fonts being installed on end-user systems. Select Only Glyphs Used to only include glyphs
for text that exists in the current artwork. The other values (Common English, Common English + Glyphs Used,
Common Roman, Common Roman + Glyphs Used, All Glyphs) are useful when the textual content of the SVG file is
dynamic (such as server-generated text or user-interactive text).
Font Type Specifies how fonts are exported.

• Adobe CEF Uses font hinting for better rendering of small fonts. This font type is supported by the Adobe SVG
Viewer but may not be supported by other SVG viewers.
• SVG Doesn’t use font hinting. This font type is supported by all SVG viewers.
• Convert To Outlines Converts type to vector paths. Use this option to preserve the visual appearance of type in all
SVG Viewers.
Image Location Specifies whether to embed or link to images. Embedding images increases file size but ensures that

rasterized images are always available.

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CSS Properties Determines how CSS style attributes are saved in the SVG code. The default method, Presentation
Attributes, applies properties at the highest point in the hierarchy, allowing the most flexibility for specific edits and
transformations. The Style Attributes method creates the most readable files but may increase file size. Choose this
method if the SVG code will be used in transformations—for example, transformations using XSLT (Extensible
Stylesheet Language Transformation). The Entity References method results in faster rendering times and reduced
SVG file size. The Style Element method is used when sharing files with HTML documents. By selecting Style Element,
you can then modify the SVG file to move a style element into an external stylesheet file that is also referenced by the
HTML file—however, the Style Element option also results in slower rendering speeds.
Encoding Determines how characters are encoded in the SVG file. UTF (Unicode Transformation Format) encoding

is supported by all XML processors. (UTF-8 is an 8-bit format; UTF-16 is a 16-bit format.) ISO 8859-1 and UTF-16
encoding don’t preserve file metadata.
Optimize For Adobe SVG Viewer Optimizes images for Adobe SVG Viewer.

Output settings for web graphics
Set output options
Output settings control how HTML files are formatted, how files and slices are named, and how background images
are handled when you save an optimized image. You set these options in the Output Settings dialog box.
You can save your output settings and apply them to other files.
1 To display the Output Settings dialog box, do one of the following:

• When you save an optimized image, choose Other from the Settings pop-up menu in the Save Optimized or Save
Optimized As dialog box.

• Choose Edit Output Settings from the Optimize pop-up menu in the Save For Web & Devices dialog box.
2 (Optional) To display predefined output options, choose an option from the Settings pop-up menu.
3 Edit each set of options as needed. To switch to a different set of options, choose an options set from the pop-up

menu below the Settings menu. Alternatively, click Next to display the next set in the menu list; click Prev to display
the previous set.
4 (Optional) To save output settings, set the options as desired, and click Save. Type a file name, choose a location for

the saved file, and click Save.
You can save the output settings anywhere. However, if you place the file in the Optimized Output Settings folder
inside the Photoshop folder or in the Save For Web Settings/Output Settings folder inside the Illustrator folder, the file
will appear in the Settings pop-up menu.
5 (Optional) To load output settings, click Load, select a file, and click Open.

HTML output options
You can set the following options in the HTML set:
Output XHTML Creates web pages meeting the XHTML standard on export. Choosing Output XHTML disables other
output options that might conflict with this standard. Selecting this option automatically sets the Tags Case and
Attribute Case options.
Tags Case Specifies the capitalization for tags.

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Attribute Case Specifies the capitalization for attributes.
Indent Specifies a method for indenting lines of code: using the authoring application’s tab settings, using a specified
number of spaces, or using no indention.
Line Endings Specifies a platform for line ending compatibility.
Encoding Specifies a default character encoding for the web page.
Include Comments Adds explanatory comments to the HTML code.
Always Add Alt Attribute Adds the ALT attribute to IMG elements to comply with government web accessibility

standards.
Always Quote Attributes Places quotation marks around all tag attributes. Placing quotation marks around attributes
is required for compatibility with certain early browsers and for strict HTML compliance. However, always quoting
attributes is not recommended. Quotation marks are used when necessary to comply with most browsers if this option
is deselected.
Close All Tags Adds close tags for all HTML elements in the file for XHTML compliance.
Include Zero Margins On Body Tag Removes default internal margins in a browser window. Adds marginwidth,

marginheight, leftmargin, and topmargin tags with values of zero to the body tag.

Slice output options
You can set the following options in the Slices set:
Generate Table Aligns slices using an HTML table rather than a cascading stylesheet.
Empty Cells Specifies how empty slices are converted to table cells. Select GIF, IMG W&H to use a 1-pixel GIF with
width and height values specified on the IMG tag. Select GIF, TD W&H to use a 1-pixel GIF with width and height
values specified on the TD tag. Select NoWrap, TD W&H to place a nonstandard NoWrap attribute on the table data
and also place width and height values specified on the TD tags.
TD W&H Specifies when to include width and height attributes for table data: Always, Never, or Auto (the

recommended setting).
Spacer Cells Specifies when to add one row and one column of empty spacer cells around the generated table: Auto

(the recommended setting), Auto (Bottom), Always, Always (Bottom), or Never. For table layouts in which slice
boundaries do not align, adding spacer cells can prevent the table from breaking apart in some browsers.
Generate CSS Generates a cascading stylesheet rather than an HTML table.
Referenced Specifies how slice positions are referenced in the HTML file when using CSS:

• By ID Positions each slice using styles that are referenced by a unique ID.
• Inline Includes style elements in the declaration of the block element tag.
• By Class Positions each slice using classes that are referenced by a unique ID.
Default Slice Naming Choose elements from the pop-up menus or enter text into the fields to create default names for

slices. Elements include the document name, the word slice, numbers or letters designating slices or rollover states, the
slice creation date, punctuation, or none.

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Background output settings
You can set the following options in the Background set of the Output Settings dialog box:
View Document As Select Image if you want the web page to display an image or a solid color as a background behind

the current image. Select Background if you want the web page to display the optimized image as a tiled background.
Background Image Enter the location of an image file, or click Choose and select an image. The file you specify will be
tiled behind the optimized image on the web page.
Color Click the Color box, and select a background color using the color picker, or select an option from the pop-up menu.

Saving Files output settings
You set the following options in the Saving Files set of the Output Settings dialog box:
File Naming Choose elements from the pop-up menus or enter text into the boxes to be combined into the default

names for all files. Elements include document name, slice name, rollover state, trigger slice, file creation date, slice
number, punctuation, and file extension. Some options are relevant only if the file contains slices or rollover states.
The text boxes let you change the order and formatting of the filename parts (for example, letting you indicate rollover
state by an abbreviation instead of the full word).
Filename Compatibility Select one or multiple options to make the filename compatible with Windows (permits

longer filenames), Mac OS, and UNIX.
Put Images In Folder Specifies a folder name where optimized images are saved (available only with documents

containing multiple slices).
Copy Background Image When Saving Preserves a background image that has been specified in the Background

preferences set.

404

Chapter 13: Printing
To make optimum decisions about printing, you should understand basic printing principles, including how the
resolution of your printer or the calibration and resolution of you monitor can affect the way your artwork appears
when printed. Illustrator’s Print dialog box is designed to help you through the printing workflow. Each set of options
in the dialog box is organized to guide you through the printing process.

Setting up documents for printing
Print a composite of artwork
A composite is a single-page version of artwork that corresponds to what you see in the illustration window—in other
words, a straightforward print job. Composites are also useful for proofing the overall page design, verifying image
resolution, and identifying problems that may occur on an imagesetter (such as PostScript errors).
1 Choose File > Print.
2 Select a printer from the Printer menu. To print to a file instead of a printer, select Adobe PostScript® File or Adobe PDF.
3 Choose one of the following artboard options:

• To print everything on one page, select Ignore Artboards.
• To print each artboard separately, deselect Ignore Artboards and specify if you want to print all artboards (All), or
a specific range, such as 1-3.
4 Select Output on the left side of the Print dialog box, and make sure that Mode is set to Composite.
5 Set additional printing options.
6 Click Print.

If your document uses layers, you can specify which ones to print. Choose File > Print, and select an option from the
Print Layers menu: Visible And Printable Layers, Visible Layers, or All Layers. For a video on creating crop areas for
print, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0213.

See also
“Print dialog box options” on page 405
“Using multiple artboards” on page 37
“Printing gradients, meshes, and color blends” on page 418
“Printing long, complex paths” on page 415
“Printing and saving transparent artwork” on page 421

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Make artwork nonprintable
The Layers panel makes it easy to print different versions of your artwork. For example, you can choose to print only
the type objects in a document in order to proof your text. You can also add nonprinting elements to artwork to record
important information.

• To prevent artwork from displaying in the document window, printing, and exporting, hide the corresponding
items in the Layers panel.

• To prevent artwork from printing, but not from showing on the artboard or exporting, double-click a layer name
in the Layers panel. In the Layer Options dialog box, deselect the Print option, and click OK. The layer name
changes to italics in the Layers panel.

• To create artwork that does not print or export, even when visible on the artboard, select Template in the Layer
Options dialog box.
Note: You can also specify multiple artboards in your document and then choose one artboard at a time for printing in
the Print dialog box. Only artwork within the artboard prints. For a video on defining crop artboards, see
www.adobe.com/go/lrvid4016_ai.

See also
“Layers panel overview” on page 215
“Using multiple artboards” on page 37

Print dialog box options
Each category of options in the Print dialog box—from General options to Summary options—is organized to guide
you through the process of printing your document. To display a set of options, select the set name on the left side of
the dialog box. Many of these options are preset by the startup profile you chose when you started your document.
General Set the page size and orientation, specify how many pages to print, scale the artwork, specify tiling options
and choose which layers to print.
Marks & Bleed Select printer’s marks and create a bleed.
Output Create color separations.
Graphics Set printing options for paths, fonts, PostScript files, gradients, meshes, and blends.
Color Management Select a color profile and rendering intent for printing.
Advanced Control the flattening (or possible rasterization) of vector artwork during printing.
Summary View and save a summary of print settings.

See also
“Create new documents” on page 31

Reposition artwork on the page
The preview image in the Print dialog box shows you where artwork will be printed on the page.
1 Choose File > Print.
2 Do one of the following:

• Drag the artwork in the preview image at the lower left corner of the dialog box.

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• Click a square or arrow on the Placement icon to specify the origin point for aligning the artwork in relation to the
page. Enter values for Origin X and Origin Y to fine-tune the position of the artwork.
To move the printable area directly on the artboard, drag in the illustration window with the Print Tiling tool. As you
drag, the Print Tiling tool responds as if you were moving the printable area from its lower left corner. You can move
the printable area anywhere on the artboard; however, any part of a page that extends past the printable area boundary
is not printed.

See also
“Layers panel overview” on page 215
“Using multiple artboards” on page 37

Print multiple artboards
When you create a document with multiple artboards, you can print the document in a variety of ways. You can ignore
the artboards and print everything on one page (tiling may be required if your artboards expand the page boundaries).
Or you can print each artboard as an individual page. When you print artboards as individual pages, you can choose
to print all artboards, or a range of artboards.
1 Choose File > Print.
2 Do one of the following:

• To print all artboards as separate pages, select All. You can see all the pages listed in the preview area in the lower
left corner of the Print dialog box.

• To print a subset of artboards as separate pages, select Range, and specify the artboards to print.
• To print the artwork on all the artboards together on a single page, select Ignore Artboards. If the artwork
extends past the boundaries of the page, you can scale or tile it.
3 Specify other print options as desired, and click Print.

Tile artwork on multiple pages
If you are printing artwork from a single artboard (or ignored artboards) that cannot fit on a single page, you can tile
the artwork onto multiple pages. If your document has multiple art
1 Choose File > Print.
2 Select Tile option:

Note: If your document has multiple artboards, first select Ignore Artboards, or specify 1 page in the Range option and
select Fit To Page.
Full Pages Divides the artboard into full media-sized pages for output.
Imageable Areas Divides the artboard into pages based on what the selected device can image. This option is useful

for outputting artwork that is larger than your device can handle, because it allows you to reassemble tiled pieces into
the original larger artwork.
3 (Optional) If you selected Full Pages, set the Overlap option to specify the amount of overlap between pages.

See also
“About print tiling” on page 42

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Change the page size and orientation
Adobe Illustrator normally uses the default page size defined by the PPD file for the selected printer. However, you can
change the media size to any of the sizes listed in the PPD file as well as specify portrait (vertical) or landscape
(horizontal) orientation. The largest page size you can specify depends on the maximum imageable area of your
imagesetter.
Important: Changing page size and orientation in the Print dialog box is for printing purposes only. To change the page
size or orientation of your artboard, use the Artboard Options dialog box or the Artboard options in the Control panel.
(See “Edit artboards” on page 40.)
Note the following when specifying the page size and orientation:

• If you select a different media size (for example, if you change from US Letter to US Legal), the artwork is
repositioned in the preview window. This is because the preview window displays the entire imageable area of the
selected media; when the media size is changed, the preview window automatically rescales to include the
imageable area.
Note: The imageable area may vary by PPD file, even for the same media size (for example, US Letter), because
different printers and imagesetters define the sizes of their imageable areas differently.

• The default placement of the page on the film or paper depends on the imagesetter used to print the page.
• Make sure that your media size is large enough to contain your artwork as well as trim marks, registration marks,
and other necessary printing information. To conserve imagesetter film or paper, however, select the smallest page
size that accommodates your artwork and necessary printing information.

• If your imagesetter can accommodate the longest side of your imageable area, you can conserve a considerable
amount of film or paper by using Transverse or changing the orientation of the printed artwork. Consult the
documentation on your specific printer for more information.
1 Choose File > Print.
2 Select a page size from the Size menu. The available sizes are determined by the current printer and PPD file. If the

PPD file for the printer allows it, you can select Custom to specify a custom page size in the Width and Height text
boxes.
3 Click an Orientation button to set the page direction:
Portrait Up

Prints in portrait orientation, right side up.

Landscape Left
Portrait Down
Landscape Right

Prints in landscape orientation, rotated to the left.
Prints in portrait orientation, upside down.
Prints in landscape orientation, rotated to the right.

4 (Optional) Select Transverse to rotate the printed artwork 90°. To use this option, you must use a PPD that supports

transverse printing and custom page sizes.

See also
“About PPD files” on page 414
“Edit artboards” on page 40

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Scale a document for printing
To fit an oversized document on a piece of paper smaller than the artwork’s actual dimensions, you can use the Print
dialog box to scale the document’s width and height, either symmetrically or asymmetrically. Asymmetric scaling is
useful when, for example, you’re printing film for use on a flexographic press: if you know in which direction the plate
will be mounted on the press drum, scaling can compensate for the 2% to 3% stretching of the plate that usually occurs.
Scaling does not affect the size of the pages in the document, it just changes the scale at which the document prints.
1 Choose File > Print.
2 Do one of the following:

• To prevent scaling, select Do Not Scale.
• To scale the document automatically to fit to the page, select Fit To Page. The scaling percentage is determined by
the imageable area defined by the selected PPD.

• To activate the Width and Height text boxes, select Custom. Enter percentages from 1 to 1000 for the width or
height. Deselect the Constrain Proportions button

to change the document width-to-height ratio.

Change the printer resolution and screen frequency
Adobe Illustrator prints fastest and best by using the default printer resolution and screen frequency. However, in
some cases, you might want to change the printer resolution and screen frequency—for example, if you draw a very
long curved path that won’t print due to a limit-check error, if printing is slow, or if gradients and meshes show
banding when printed.
1 Choose File > Print.
2 For Printer, select a PostScript printer, Adobe PostScript® File, or Adobe PDF.
3 Select Output on the left side of the Print dialog box.
4 For Printer Resolution, select a screen frequency (lpi) and printer resolution (dpi) combination.

Printer resolution is measured in the number of ink dots produced per inch (dpi). Most desktop laser printers have a
resolution of 600 dpi, and imagesetters have a resolution of 1200 dpi or higher. Inkjet printers produce a microscopic
spray of ink, not actual dots; however, most inkjet printers have an approximate resolution of 300 to 720 dpi.
When printing to a desktop laser printer, but especially to imagesetters, you must also consider screen frequency.
Screen frequency is the number of halftone cells per inch used to print grayscale images or color separations. Also
known as screen ruling or line screen, screen frequency is measured in lines per inch (lpi)—or lines of cells per inch in
a halftone screen.
A high line-screen ruling (for example, 150 lpi) spaces the dots used to create an image close together to create a finely
rendered image on the press; a low screen ruling (60 lpi to 85 lpi) spaces the dots farther apart to create a coarser image.
The size of the dots is also determined by the line screen. A high line-screen ruling uses small dots; a low screen ruling
uses large dots. The most important factor in choosing a line-screen ruling is the type of printing press your job uses.
Ask your print shop how fine a line screen its press can hold, and make your choices accordingly.
The PPD files for high-resolution imagesetters offer a wide range of possible line-screen rulings paired with various
imagesetter resolutions. The PPD files for lower-resolution printers typically have only a few choices for line screens,
and they are coarser screens of between 53 lpi and 85 lpi. The coarser screens, however, give optimum results on lowerresolution printers. Using a finer screen of 100 lpi, for example, actually decreases the quality of your image when a
low-resolution printer is used for final output. That’s because increasing the lpi for a given resolution decreases the
number of colors that can be reproduced.

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Note: Some imagesetters and desktop laser printers use screening technologies other than halftoning. If you are printing
an image on a nonhalftone printer, consult your service provider or your printer documentation for the recommended
resolutions.

Printing color separations
About color separations
To reproduce color and continuous-tone images, printers usually separate artwork into four plates (called process
colors)—one plate for each of the cyan, magenta, yellow, and black portions of the image. You can also include custom
inks (called spot colors). In this case, a separate plate is created for each spot color. When inked with the appropriate
color and printed in register with one another, these colors combine to reproduce the original artwork.
The process of dividing the image into two or more colors is called color separating, and the film from which the plates
are created are called the separations.

Composite image printed on a color laser printer compared to four-color separations printed on an imagesetter.

To produce high-quality separations, you should work closely with the print shop that will produce your separations,
consulting its experts before beginning each job and during the process. To see a video on using the Separations
Preview panel, see www.adobe.com/go/lrvid4021_ai.

See also
“About process colors” on page 98
“About spot colors” on page 98

Preparing artwork for color separating
Before you print color separations from Illustrator, it’s a good idea to perform the following prepress tasks:

• Set up color management, including calibrating your monitor and selecting an Illustrator Color Setting.
• Soft-proof how color will appear on the intended output device. Choose Window > Separations Preview to preview
how the color separations will look.

• If the document is in RGB mode, choose File > Document Color Mode > CMYK Color to convert it to CMYK Mode.
• If your artwork contains color blends, optimize them so that they print smoothly (without discrete bands of color).
• If your artwork requires trapping, set up appropriate overprinting and trapping.
• If your artwork contains areas of transparent, overlapping colors, preview which areas will be affected by flattening
and note which flattening options you want to use.

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Use the Live Color dialog box to globally convert and reduce colors. For example, if you want to convert a process color
document to a 2-color spot document use the Assign portion of Live Color, and specify which colors you want and how
they are assigned to existing colors.

See also
“Printing and saving transparent artwork” on page 421
“Reduce colors in your artwork” on page 123
“Create a trap” on page 430
“Set up overprinting” on page 428
“About color management in Adobe applications” on page 132

Preview color separations
You can preview color separations and overprinting using the Separations Preview panel. To see a video on using the
Separations Preview panel, see www.adobe.com/go/lrvid4021_ai.
Previewing separations on your monitor lets you preview spot color objects in your document, and check the
following:
Rich black Previewing separations lets you identify areas that will print as rich black, or process black (K) ink mixed
with color inks for increased opacity and richer color.
Overprinting You can preview how blending, transparency, and overprinting will appear in color-separated output.
You can also see overprinting effects when you output to a composite printing device.

Note: The Separation Preview panel in Illustrator is slightly different from the Separation Preview panels in InDesign and
Acrobat, for instance, the Preview panel in Illustrator is for CMYK document mode only.
1 Choose Window > Separations Preview.
2 Select Overprint Preview.
3 Do any of the following:

• To hide a separation ink on screen, click the eye icon

to the left of the separation name. Click again to view the

separation.

• To hide all separation inks on screen except one, Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Mac OS) the eye icon for
that separation. Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Mac OS) the eye icon again to view all separations again.

• To view all process plates at once, click the CMYK icon

4 To return to normal view, deselect Overprint Preview.

While previewing separations on your monitor can help you detect problems without the expense of printing
separations, it does not let you preview trapping, emulsion options, printer’s marks, and halftone screens and
resolution. Work with your commercial printer to verify these settings using integral or overlay proofs. Setting inks to
be visible or hidden on screen in the Separations Preview panel does not affect the actual separations process—it only
affects how they appear on your screen during the preview.
Note: Objects on hidden layers are not included in an on-screen preview.

Print color separations
1 Choose File > Print.

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2 Select a printer and PPD file. To print to a file instead of a printer, select Adobe PostScript® File or Adobe PDF.
3 Select Output on the left side of the Print dialog box.
4 For Mode, select either Separations (Host-Based) or In-RIP Separations.
5 Specify an emulsion, image exposure, and printer resolution for the separations.
6 Set options for the color plates you want to separate:

• To disable printing of a color plate, click the printer icon

next to the color in the Document Ink Options list.

Click again to restore printing for the color.

• To convert all spot colors to process colors, so that they are printed as part of the process-color plates rather than
on a separate plate, select Convert All Spot Colors To Process.

• To convert an individual spot color to process colors, click the spot color icon
Ink Options list. A four-color process icon

next to the color in the Document
appears. Click again to revert the color back to a spot color.

• To overprint all black ink, select Overprint Black.
• To change the screen frequency, screen angle, and shape of halftone dots for a plate, double-click the ink name.
Alternatively, click the existing setting in the Document Ink Options list, and make the desired changes. Note
however, that the default angles and frequencies are determined by the selected PPD file. Check with your print
shop for the preferred frequency and angle before creating your own halftone screens.
If your art contains more than one spot color, particularly interactions between two or more spot colors, assign
different screen angles to each spot color.
7 Set additional options in the Print dialog box.

In particular, you can specify how to position, scale, and crop the artwork; set up printer’s marks and a bleed; and
choose flattening settings for transparent artwork.
8 Click Print.

Note: To see a video on using the Separations Preview panel, see www.adobe.com/go/lrvid4021_ai.

See also
“Change the printer resolution and screen frequency” on page 408
“Print an object on all plates” on page 412
“Print dialog box options” on page 405

Color separation modes
Illustrator supports two common PostScript workflows, or modes, for creating color separations. The main difference
between the two is where separations are created—at the host computer (the system using Illustrator and the printer
driver), or at the output device’s RIP (raster image processor).
In the traditional host-based, preseparated workflow, Illustrator creates PostScript data for each of the separations
required for the document, and sends that information to the output device.
In the newer RIP-based workflow, a new generation of PostScript RIPs perform color separations, trapping, and even
color management at the RIP, leaving the host computer free to perform other tasks. This approach takes less time for
Illustrator to generate the file, and minimizes the amount of data transmitted for any given print job. For example,
instead of sending PostScript information for four or more pages to print host-based color separations, Illustrator
sends the PostScript information for a single composite PostScript file for processing in the RIP.

USING ADOBE ILLUSTRATOR CS4 412
Printing

Emulsion and image exposure
Emulsion refers to the photosensitive layer on a piece of film or paper. Up (Right Reading) means that type in the image
is readable (that is, “right reading”) when the photosensitive layer is facing you. Down (Right Reading) means that type
is readable when the photosensitive layer is facing away from you. Normally, images printed on paper are printed Up
(Right Reading), whereas images printed on film are usually printed Down (Right Reading). Check with your print
shop to determine which emulsion direction it prefers.
To tell whether you are looking at the emulsion side or the nonemulsion side (also referred to as the base), examine
the final film under bright light. One side appears shinier than the other. The dull side is the emulsion side; the shiny
side is the base.
Image exposure refers to whether artwork prints as a positive or negative image. Typically, print shops require negative
film in the United States and positive film in Europe and Japan. If you are unsure about which image type to use,
consult your print shop.

Print an object on all plates
If you want to print an object on all plates in the printing process, including spot-color plates, you can convert it to a
registration color. Registration marks, trim marks, and page information are automatically assigned registration colors.
1 Select the object.
2 In the Swatches panel, click the Registration color swatch

, located in the first row of swatches, by default.

To change the on-screen appearance of the registration color from the default black, use the Color panel. The color
you specify will be used for representing registration-colored objects on the screen. These objects will always print as
gray on composites and as an equal tint of all inks in separations.

Printer’s marks and bleed
About printer’s marks
When you prepare artwork for printing, a number of marks are needed for the printer device to register the artwork
elements precisely and verify correct color. You can add the following kinds of printer’s marks to your artwork:
Trim Marks Fine (hairline) horizontal and vertical rules that define where the page should be trimmed. Trim marks

can also help register (align) one color separation to another.
Registration Marks Small targets outside the page area for aligning the different separations in a color document.
Color Bars Small squares of color representing the CMYK inks and tints of gray (in 10% increments). Your service

provider uses these marks to adjust ink density on the printing press.
Page Information Labels the film with the name of the artboard number, the time and date of printout, the line screen

used, the screen angle for the separation, and the color of each particular plate. These labels appear at the tops of the
images.

USING ADOBE ILLUSTRATOR CS4 413
Printing

Printer’s marks
A. Star target (not optional) B. Registration mark C. Page information D. Trim marks E. Color bar F. Tint bar

Add printer’s marks
1 Choose File > Print.
2 Select Marks & Bleed on the left side of the Print dialog box.
3 Select the kinds of printer’s marks you want to add. You can also choose between Roman and Japanese-style marks.
4 (Optional) If you select Trim Marks, specify the width of trim-mark lines and the offset distance between the trim

marks and the artwork.
To avoid drawing printer’s marks on a bleed, be sure to enter an Offset value greater than the Bleed value.

See also
“Specify crop marks for trimming or aligning” on page 49

About bleed
Bleed is the amount of artwork that falls outside of the printing bounding box, or outside the crop area and trim marks.
You can include bleed in your artwork as a margin of error—to ensure that the ink is still printed to the edge of the
page after the page is trimmed or that an image can be stripped into a keyline in a document. Once you create the
artwork that extends into the bleed, you can use Illustrator to specify the extent of the bleed. Increasing the bleed
makes Illustrator print more of the artwork that is located beyond the trim marks. The trim marks still define the same
size printing bounding box, however.
The size of the bleed you use depends on its purpose. A press bleed (that is, an image that bleeds off the edge of the
printed sheet) should be at least 18 points. If the bleed is to ensure that an image fits a keyline, it needs to be no more
than 2 or 3 points. Your print shop can advise you on the size of the bleed necessary for your particular job.

Add a bleed
1 Choose File > Print.
2 Select Marks & Bleed on the left side of the Print dialog box.

USING ADOBE ILLUSTRATOR CS4 414
Printing

3 Do one of the following:

• Enter values for Top, Left, Bottom, and Right to specify the placement of the bleed marks. Click the link icon

make all the values the same.

• Select Use Document Bleed to use the bleed settings defined in the New Document dialog box.
The maximum bleed you can set is 72 points; the minimum bleed is 0 points.

PostScript printing
About PPD files
A PPD file (PostScript Printer Description file) customizes the behavior of the driver for your specific PostScript
printer. It contains information about the output device, including printer-resident fonts, available media sizes and
orientation, optimized screen frequencies, screen angles, resolution, and color output capabilities. It’s important to set
up the correct PPD before you print. Selecting the PPD that corresponds to your PostScript printer or imagesetter
populates the Print dialog box with the available settings for the output device. You can switch to a different one to suit
your needs. Applications use the information in the PPD file to determine which PostScript information to send to the
printer when printing a document.
For best printing results, Adobe recommends that you obtain the latest version of the PPD file for your output device
from the manufacturer. Many print service providers and commercial printers have PPDs for the imagesetters they
use. Be sure to store PPDs in the location specified by the operating system. For details, consult the documentation for
your operating system.

Change the PPD file
When you print to a PostScript printer, PostScript file, or PDF, Illustrator automatically uses the default PPD
(PostScript Printer Description) for that device. You can switch to a different one to suit your needs.
1 Choose File > Print.
2 From the PPD menu, select one of the following:

• A PPD that corresponds to the current output device.
• Other. Lets you select a custom PPD, such as one provided by your service bureau for use with the specified printer.
The PPD’s filename corresponds to the printer’s or imagesetter’s name and model, and may display a .ppd file
extension (depending on how your system is set up.) Navigate to the PPD you want, select it, and click Open.
Note: Certain PPD features commonly found in imagesetter PPDs aren’t accessible from the Illustrator Print dialog box.
To set those printer-specific features, click Setup (Windows) or Printer (Mac OS) in the Print dialog box.

Add a PPD file
For best printing results, Adobe recommends that you obtain the latest version of the PPD file for your output device
from the manufacturer. Many print service providers and commercial printers have PPDs for the imagesetters they
use. Be sure to store PPDs in the location specified by the operating system. For details, consult the documentation for
your operating system.
❖ In Windows and in Mac OS, you select a PPD file in the same way you add a printer. The steps for selecting a PPD

file are different for each platform. See your operating system documentation for details.

USING ADOBE ILLUSTRATOR CS4 415
Printing

Printing long, complex paths
If you are printing Adobe Illustrator files containing overly long or complicated paths, the file may not print and you
may receive limit-check error messages from your printer. To simplify long, complex paths, you can split them into
two or more separate paths. You can also change the number of line segments used to approximate curves and adjust
the printer resolution.

See also graph designs, graphs

about 28

Bloat tool 26

entering data for 452

Blob Brush tool 25, 157

entering data for 452
area type

reversing 247

Bas Relief command 361

Blur effects 359

creating 294

base (nonemulsion side) 412

BMP file format 274

first baseline offset 297

base color, setting for color group 113

inset spacing 296

baseline offset 297

Bottom-to-bottom leading 337

resizing 296

baseline shift 318

bounding boxes

rows and columns 298

Basic CMYK new document profile 30

in patterns 191

Area Type tool 25

Basic RGB new document profile 30

about 225

Arrange (Object) commands 221

batch processing 442

arrowheads, adding to lines 159

bevel joins, for strokes 157

Bridge. See Adobe Bridge

art brushes 169, 175

bevels, for 3D objects 254

brightness

artboards

bitmap images

See also exporting artwork

rotating objects with 211

adjusting in Illustrator 12

about 37

about 261

brightness, in HSB color model 96

adding gridlines to 47

applying effects to 356

Bring Forward command 221

adding guides to 47

colorizing 128

Bring To Front command 221

creating 39

copying from Photoshop 267

brochure templates 33

exporting 274

created by effects 355

browser dithering 391

multiple page PDF 282

created from vector 273

browser-safe colors. See web-safe colors

options 39

dimming 216

brush strokes

printing multiple 406

publishing online 262

applying 171

scrolling 43

texturizing 363

converting to outlines 172

tracing 77

effects 359

tiling 42
zooming 43
Artistic effects 358

black point compensation 151
black-and-white artwork 97

removing 172
brushes
applying brush strokes 171
Blob Brush tool 157

USING ADOBE ILLUSTRATOR CS4 478
Index

Brushes panel 170

Clip To Artboard command 377

color settings reference 148

colorization options 174

considerations for importing images 136

creating 172

clipboard, importing and exporting artwork
with 222

expanding 172

clipping masks

libraries of 170

about 241

modifying 173

creating 242, 243

considerations for process and spot
colors 135

options for 76, 159, 173, 174, 175

modifying 243, 244

creating a viewing environment 132

types of 169
bunri-kinshi 343

considerations for printing
documents 141

Close Path command in InDesign 63, 65

for online graphics 137, 138

closed paths

for PDFs 138, 142

burasagari 327, 343

about 53

setting up 133

business card templates 33

creating with Pen tool 65

soft-proofing colors 138, 139, 141

Button Mode command 436

creating, with Pencil tool 61

synchronizing color settings 134

CMS. See color matching systems

color model working space 146

CMYK

color models

calligraphic brushes 76, 159, 169, 173

about 95

about 94, 97

canvas

changing to RGB 127

changing 127

about 37

process colors 103

CMYK 95

expanding 31

spot colors 103, 127

grayscale 97

tints 103, 126

HSB 96

capitalization, changing 313
caps, for strokes 157

CMYK spot colors 98

for images generated by effects 355

Cascade command 45

color bars 412

Lab 96

Cascading Style Sheets (CSS)

Color blending mode 183

RGB 94

color blends, printing 418

Color panel

Generate CSS slice output option 402
category axis, for graphs 454
center point 54

Color blindess
soft proofing colors for 139

about 102
selecting colors 100, 102
Color Picker 101

certificate templates 33

Color Burn blending mode 183

Chalk & Charcoal command 361

Color Dodge blending mode 183

about 100

Change Case commands 313

color gamuts 130

editing color group 119

character styles

color groups

selecting colors 100, 101
color profiles

about 332

about 109

deleting 333

adding or removing colors 119

about 143

removing 333

creating 110, 113

assigning and removing 146

creating in the Edit Colors or Recolor
Artwork dialog box 114

assigning and removing from
documents 146

deleting 120

converting 147

Edit Colors dialog box 111

for desktop printers 142

editing colors and color groups 115

for imported images 136, 137

limiting to swatch library 114

for monitors 144, 145

presets 123

installing 145

characters
See also type, formatting
Character panel 312
scaling 305
selecting 310
space between 318
special 320
styles for 332, 333
Unicode 307
Charcoal command 361
Check Spelling command 305
choke trap 429
chroma 96
Chrome command 361
circular grids 60
Clean Up (Path) command 301
Clear command 220
Clear Guides command 48

Recolor Artwork dialog box 111

warning messages for 150

reducing colors 123

color reduction options 123

setting base color 113

color separations

Swatches panel 103, 104
Color Guide panel

about 409
creating 410

about 110

host-based vs. in-RIP 411

selecting colors 100

preparing artwork for 409

Color Halftone command 360

previewing 410

color management

previewing separation plates 410

See also color profiles, color settings
about 130, 131, 132

problems with spot colors and
transparent artwork 98

USING ADOBE ILLUSTRATOR CS4 479
Index

color settings

selecting 99, 100, 101, 102

content, protecting 291

See also graph designs, graphs

Convert To Grayscale command 128

about 28

converting smooth points to corner
points 66

entering data for 452

copying objects

columns of text, creating 298

about the clipboard 222

Combine Slices command 377

commands for 207

combining objects

by dragging 221

in Color Guide panel 110

about 233

options 111

with clipping masks 241

into layers 209
pasting in front or in back 209

Colored Pencil command 358

with compound paths 238

corner radius, changing 57

colorizing

with compound shapes 236

corners, rounding 248

with Pathfinder effects 234

correcting mistakes 52

grayscale images 128
symbols 89

Community help 2

Craquelure command 362

Community search engine 2

Create (Threaded Text) command 299

See also graph designs, graphs

Live Paint Selection tool 23, 25, 197, 204

See also exporting artwork

and page size 407

limit-check error 415

about 274

versions 414

making artwork nonprintable 405

flattening 421

preferences

multiple artboards 406

picture clippings, dragging to desktop 222

See also specific preferences categories

multiple pages 42

pie graphs

about 51

objects on all plates 412

See also graph designs, graphs

anchor point 56

on multiple pages 406

about 28

direction points and lines 56

oversized documents 408

entering data for 452

restoring 51

PostScript level 416

formatting 456

selection 198, 202

Pixel Preview mode 45, 371

presets

transparent artwork 421
process colors

Pixelate effects 360

See also graph designs, graphs

as a unit of measurement 47

printing

about 28

Polar Grid tool 23, 60

See also exporting artwork

recording, inserting stops in 438

right reading. See emulsion

about 267

rectangles, drawing 57

RIP (raster image processor) 411

EPS format 269

rectangular grids 60

roman hanging punctuation 327

Illustrator (AI) format 268

reducing colors in artwork 123

rotating

SVG and SVGZ format 270

reference point, for rotating 211

patterns 208, 212

reflecting

symbols 89

documents when printing 408

type 304, 305

objects 26, 226

objects 26, 213
type 304
registration

rotating objects
3D 251

scaling

symbols 89
type 305

color 103, 412

about 211

Scallop tool 26

marks 412

with bounding box 211

scanners, color gamut of 97

registration of software 1

Free Transform tool 211

scatter brushes 169, 174

Release (Blend) command 247

Rotate command 212

scatter graphs 451

Release (Clipping Mask) command 244

Rotate tool 26, 212

Scissors tool 29, 76

Release (Compound Path) command 239

by specific angle 212

scratch area. See canvas

Release (Envelope) command 232

three-dimensional 254

screen blending mode 183

Release (Slice) command 377

Transform Each command 212

screen frequency

Release Compound Shape command 238

Transform panel 212

about 408

Release Guides command 48

rotating x and y axes of documents 213

changing 408

Release Selection (Threaded Text)
command 299

Rough Pastels command 359, 363

for gradients, meshes, and blends 419

Roughen effect 248

screen modes 13

Release Text Wrap command 301

Round Corners effect 248

Scribble effect 365

Release To Layers command 218

round joins 157

scripts

relinking files 260

Rounded Rectangle tool 23, 57

about 52, 443

Remove Threading (Threaded Text)
command 299

rows of text, creating 298

in SVG files 380

rendering intents 152

rulers 46, 47

RTF file format 293

Replace Actions command 441
Replace Spine command 246
Reselect command 160, 205

using 443
security, PDF files 290
segments, path 53

S
saturation

Reset Actions command 441

about 96

Reset Bounding Box command 225

blending mode 183

Reshape tool 26, 70

Saturate command 128

Select Again command 160
Select All command 205
Select Same command 205

USING ADOBE ILLUSTRATOR CS4 489
Index

selecting

layers 219

software

anchor points 67

objects 219, 444, 446

activation 1

colors 100

objects, using variables 445

downloads 4

paths 68

rulers 46

PPD files 414

slices 378

Sort By Hue command 395

selecting objects

registration 1

Smart Guides 49

Sort By Luminance command 395

about 197

tool tips 22

Sort By Popularity command 395

by characteristic 205

unselected artwork 465

spacer cells 402

by face or edge 204

sidecar files 291

by fill or path 202

Simplify command 72, 73

between objects 223, 357

in groups 202, 203, 204

Simulate Ink Black option 141

between words and letters 324

Lasso tool 201

Simulate Paper White option 141

Layers panel 200

simulating colored paper 42

Spatter command 360

Magic Wand tool 201

Single-line Composer 329

special characters

next in stacking order 205

Sketch effects 357, 361

about 320

by opacity 178

skewing. See shearing objects

Asian 336

preferences 198

slanting. See shearing objects

highlighting 322

Selection tool 23, 197, 200, 203

slices

in OpenType fonts 307

by tint 160

spacing

type around curves 304

about 374

inserting using Glyphs panel 321

selections, saving 205

compared to image maps 378

ligatures and contextual alternates 322

Send Backward command 221

deleting and releasing 377

numbers 316, 317

Send To Back command 221

options for 376

OpenType panel 321

Send To Current Layer command 217

saving in SVG format 272

separations. See color separations

showing and hiding 377

spell-checking 305

shading 3D objects 250, 251, 255

Slice Selection tool 29

spine, in blended objects 246

shapes

Slice tool 29, 375

spinning. See Twist effect

arcs 58

viewing 375

spirals, drawing 59

blending 184

working with in Save For Web 387

Split Into Grid command 240, 241

swashes 323

compound 233, 236

small caps 313

splitting paths

drawing, with Pen tool 63

Smallest File Size PDF setting 284

drawing, with Pencil tool 61

Smart Blur effect 359

ellipses 57

Smart Guides 48, 49

Sponge command 359

polygons 58

Smart Guides & Slices preferences 49

spot colors

rectangles 57

Smart Punctuation command 317

about 98, 409

spirals 59

Smooth tool 23, 72

in blended objects 245

stars 58

Smudge Stick command 359

color management considerations 135

Sharpen effects 357, 361

Snap To Pixel command 372

creating swatches for 108

shearing objects

to print complex shapes 415
with the Scissors tool 76

Snap To Point command 208

displaying Lab values 127

methods for 228

snapping 47, 48, 49

in gradients 187

repeating 224

Soft Light blending mode 183

problems exporting 98

Shear tool 26, 228

Soft Mix effect 129, 236

in Swatches panel 103

Transform panel 229

soft return 470

tints 126

shearing type 304

soft-proofing 45

using with process colors 99

Show All command 220

about 138

Sprayed Strokes command 360

showing and hiding

in Acrobat 141

spread trap 429

in Photoshop, Illustrator and
InDesign 139

sRGB color space 137, 149

artboard 37
artwork 219

stacking order

bounding box 225

adding objects to 220

gridlines 47

changing 221

hidden characters 323

layers and 215

USING ADOBE ILLUSTRATOR CS4 490
Index

Stained Glass command 362

deleting 109

Stamp command 362

display and output of spot colors 127

T
tabs

Standard Screen mode 13

duplicating 108

adding leaders 332

Star tool 23, 58

gradient 108

decimal 331

static text 334

importing 106, 107

moving tab stops 331

status bar 13

libraries 105, 113

setting tab stops 330

stops, inserting in recordings 438

merging 109

showing and hiding 323

straight quotes 314, 317

options for 109

Tabs panel 329

Stray Points command 71

process 107

strokes

replacing 109

using tab stops 330, 331
Targa file format 275
See also exporting artwork

about 153, 154

saving from Color Guide panel 113

applying 157, 161

spot 108

targeting, items in Layers panel 351

as appearance attributes 349

Swatches panel 100, 103

tate-chu-yoko 338

color, selecting objects by 201, 205

SWF files

template layers 78
templates

controls for 154

about 398

converting to objects 206

exporting from Illustrator 383

about 33

converting to outlines 159

See also exporting artwork

about 378

placing 83, 88

tiling 42, 45, 406

compared to other formats 267

sets 87, 88

Tint Reduction value 431

effects 379, 380

sets of 88

tints 103, 126

events 380

SVG file format and 379

titling characters, in type 323

Save As command 270

symbolism tools 90

tools

Save For Web command 400

Symbols panel 82, 86

changing pointers 22

scripting 380

using with Flash 81

selecting 22

variables in 447, 448

working with symbol instances 84, 85

tool tips 22

swashes, in type 323
swatches

Tools panel 20
Tools panel, configuring 12

about 103

Top-to-top leading 337

color groups 103, 105, 109

Torn Edges command 362

USING ADOBE ILLUSTRATOR CS4 491
Index

TOYO color system 105

tritones, imported from PDF files 264

OpenType fonts 336

tracing artwork

TrueType fonts 308

rotating half-width characters 337

adjusting tracing results 79

Trumatch color system 105

showing options for 336

converting tracing objects 81

tryouts 4

tate-chu-yoko 338

displaying tracing objects 79

tutorials 4

Unicode support 307

methods 77

Tweak effect 248

options 78, 79

Twirl tool 26

type, creating 294

presets 80

Twist effect 248

type, editing

releasing tracing objects 81

text

specifying colors 80
tracing object, about 79

Adobe Using Adobe® Illustrator® CS4 Illustrator Instruction Manual En

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