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I have just started to learn the Illustrator program and have only just touched into the surface of its capabilities with may 30 hours of total use. I find that it takes me hours to do trace simple designs and separate layers of colours, guides, images. The way it sounds to me from reading other posts is that it shouldn't take me much more than one hour since the designs contain simple graphics and text and nothing complex.
Are there simple shortcuts? Is repetition the key to proficiency? I'd like to cut my illustrator times in half.
everybody learns at a different pace. what may be easy for some may not be easy for others.
illustrator is a big program and there's a lot to learn. i've been using it now for 7-8 years and i still learn things. don't expect to master it in 30 hours :-)
you will find that practice will help with your proficiency. the key to illustrator is the pen tool. once you've got a good grasp on how to use it, the rest all falls into place. there are tons of great tutorials on line. search for pen tool specifically.
also, it might be a good idea to look into classes. see if there's something at a community college or perhaps advertise for a tutor. watching someone else use the program was key for me in learning.
practice. ask questions. practice some more. :-)
good luck.
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The pen tool......I haven't really tried using it seriously yet but it seems like an alien entity to me. I have a tutorial video which has been helping immensely but haven't made it to the pen tool on it yet. Taking a course has been on my mind and I may just do that. I'll certainly look for some online tutorials as well.
Thanks for the advice.
Yes, pen tool for sure. I'd also add the pathfinder functions, divide, merge, minus back, etc. etc.... andthe align tools as well. Very powerful stuff. And don't underestimate the power of simple shapes, circle, square, triangle, star. Basic building blocks of many drawings.
I'd say the tools I use most are the pen and pencil, depending on the precision needed, basic shapes such as squares, circles, elipses rectangles, etc., pathfinder pallette, align pallette, rotate tool and blends.
Illustrator really is a great tool. I've been using it myself for about 6 years now, but only in the last year or so do I feel that I've become pretty proficient with it - not an expert by any means because there is still plenty to learn, but I'm at the point where I am pretty comfortable with the application. The key is to just keep using it.
Kenn has been doing it for 7-8 years, and hasn't mastered it yet, but then again, he hasn't really mastered shoelace tying.
Seriously, it takes a while to master it. If after a few hours you have created somethig you like, I don't think that is bad. Depending on the work, it can take me a while. As time goes on, you'll learn tricks to make it easier.
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I was trying out the pen tool with a tutorial today and it's not as hard as it seemed (with video tutorial help). It definately takes getting used too but once you get the hang of controling the anchor points and levers it's amazing how quickly you can create something with it. I am liking it actually I'm liking the entire program in general.
I was trying out the pen tool with a tutorial today and it's not as hard as it seemed (with video tutorial help). It definately takes getting used too but once you get the hang of controling the anchor points and levers it's amazing how quickly you can create something with it. I am liking it actually I'm liking the entire program in general.
I remember the Pen Tool being the scariest thing I had run across in Photoshop, and when I migrated to Illustrator I assumed it was the same, but it has subtle differences, which is odd at first.
I hated the Pen Tool at first, especially when I was asked to do 'stuff' (at work) that I had not done before, and about 5 of us that were new at 'stuff' were scrambling around trying to figure it all out.
It turned out, NONE of us knew the ALT key thing, so trying to actually produce work with the Pen Tool was a nightmare, but someone clued us in finally.
(I was a Photoshop retoucher in those days, but we used Illustrator too, hence the 'not knowing')
I grew up a lot that day, heh, and since finding out that one little thing, I actually love the Pen Tool now, and use it even without being told to. heheh
Now that you have conquered your fear, it makes for less confusion, which equals to a lot.
I still have a little trouble deciding where to put the points and the direction to pull the levers out but the whole thing is adjustable which is very good. I also like that you can alt on the fly or after you stop (well especially after you stop because I often forget to alt or accidentally press ctrl intead). Well off to practice some more.
I too am just learning Illustrator. I purchased it about 2 weeks ago. I have a training video and I just bought CS3 Classroom in a book. However, the Pen Tool still terrifies me. I can't fathom how I can draw something with that tool trying to maunever it with the mouse. Am I missing something? I saw mention of the "Alt" thing.
Help!!!
I know it's going to take time, but I don't want to scare myself off right from the start
i can see how the pen tool would be difficult to learn from a book. it was a great help for me to be able to watch someone use it so i could see it in action and watch how they were controlling the pen with the anchors.
if you don't know an illy user, see if you can find a tutor or maybe a class at a community college.
it's not a scary tool. it's actually a really great tool, but it takes a lot of practice to get good at it.
hang in there. i didn't know how to tie my shoes a little while ago, but i watched prometheus a few times and now i'm a pro!
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