Adobe Illustrator CS6: Advanced

Course Name

Adobe Illustrator CS6: Advanced

Contact Hours: 24 (an estimated time frame devoted to a course of study from start to finish that can vary from student to student)

Course Description

Presenter Bob Flisser takes you beyond creating simple shapes and into masking, tracing, 3D art and seamless patterns, as well as, managing color and using Illustrator with Photoshop. Illustrator has a lot of powerful features, and we explain them to you in plain English.

This series covers the different types of masks, the new Image Trace feature, the new pattern creation panel, how to draw in perspective using the Perspective Grid, selecting color with the Color Guide panel, creating bristle brushes and calligraphic brushes, multiple methods of using Illustrator with Photoshop, synchronizing color management with other Creative Suite applications, and proofing and pre-press functions for color separations.

After completing this course, you will know how to create artwork in perspective and 3D, as well as masking, recoloring, layer blending, creating pictographs and more. In addition, you will learn professional techniques, workflow, color management and time-saving shortcuts.

This course can be completed as quickly as you care to progress through it. As a benefit, the e-learner is provided 1 year post course completion access to this course including any updates that are made to the curriculum from the time of official enrollment.

Outcome

You will learn:

  • How to create masks and apply effects to them
  • How to paint with vector tools as though they are natural media
  • How to composite drawings using transparency and layer modes
  • How to turn a full-color photo into a scalable drawing
  • How to draw 3D objects

Assessment

This course allows for self-directed work and does not require that you take a test. Apply what you have learned to your own projects.

Outline

Each of the following groups of lessons can be taken in or out of sequence.

Clipping & Opacity Masks


  • Quick Image Cropping
  • More Complex Clipping Path
  • Clipping an Image to Text
  • Creating an Opacity Mask
  • Editing an Opacity Mask
  • Creating Opacity Masks from Text

Advanced Drawing Tools

  • Drawing with the Blob Brush Tool
  • Using the Variable Width Tool
  • Using Built-in Stroke Profiles & Creating Your Own
  • Drawing & Pasting Inside

Controlling Transparency & Layer Modes

  • Using a Gradient to Control Opacity
  • Using a Gradient inside the Transparency Panel
  • Using Blend Modes to Create Transparency & Darker Colors
  • Using Blend Modes to Create Lighter Colors

Using the Mesh Tool

  • Creating Real-World Shading Effects
  • Gradient Mesh Editing Techniques
  • Applying a Gradient Mesh to Existing Artwork

Using Image Trace

  • Tracing a Drawing Automatically
  • Tracing Photos Automatically
  • Tracing a Drawing Manually

Painting & Recoloring

  • Using Live Paint to Color a Drawing
  • Working in the Recolor Artwork Dialog Box
  • Recoloring a Traced Image
  • Recoloring Using Global Colors
  • Using the Color Guide Panel
  • Choosing Colors with Kuler

Drawing with Perspective

  • Understanding the Perspective Grid
  • Adjusting the Perspective Grid
  • Using the Perspective Selection Tool

Advanced Type Effects

  • Glyphs, Fractions & Ligatures
  • Applying Styles to Text
  • Warping Text Using Envelopes

Presenting Data with the Graph Tool

  • Inserting a Graph & Displaying Data
  • Modifying a Graph
  • Creating a Pictograph
  • Creating a Pictograph as a Bar Graph

Drawing in 3D

  • Extruding a Stick Figure into a 3D Object
  • Mapping a Pattern onto a 3D Object
  • Revolving Objects in 3D
  • Rotating Objects in 3D

Creating Patterns

  • Creating Square Patterns with the Pattern Editor
  • Creating Non-Square Patterns with the Pattern Editor
  • Creating Patterns Manually
  • Using Your Patterns in Other Documents
  • Deconstructing a Shape that has a Pattern

Creating a Pattern Brush

  • Creating a Brush Pattern
  • Colorizing Strokes of the Pattern Brush
  • Creating a Bristle Brush
  • Creating an Art Brush
  • Creating a Scatter Brush
  • Using a Calligraphic Brush

Distorting Your Illustrations

  • Distorting with the Warp & Twirl Tools
  • Distorting with Pucker, Bloat & Scallop
  • Distorting with Crystallize & Wrinkle

Creating, Using & Editing Symbols

  • Creating Your Own Symbols
  • Using the Symbol Sprayer Tool
  • Editing Symbols
  • Applying 9-Slice Scaling to Symbols

Understanding Color Management

  • Color Models & Color Settings Profiles
  • Black Isn't Always Black
  • Assigning a Color Profile to a Document

Using Illustrator with Photoshop®

  • Synchronizing Settings
  • Bringing Images in from Photoshop
  • Re-Linking a Missing File
  • Embedding a PSD in Illustrator
  • Sending Illustrator Artwork out to Photoshop

Exporting, Proofing & Pre-Press

  • Creating a Composite Proof
  • Using the Flattener Preview
  • Using the Separations Preview & Overprint Fill
  • Trapping Colors
  • Creating a Proof within Illustrator
  • Printing Color Separations
  • Credits