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Chapter 4: Shaping Up, Basically
Knowing which button to click isn’t always obvious, but don’t worry about
that. Simply keep in mind that when you want to combine or separate two or
more objects, you’re likely to find a button to help you in the Pathfinder panel.
Click a button; if it doesn’t give you what you want, choose Edit➪Undo and try
a different button. And if you take the time to read the following sections, you’ll
actually have a fairly good idea of what each of the buttons will do.
The results of the Pathfinder panel
depend heavily on which object is
in front and which object is behind.
To change the stacking order of
objects, select a single object with
the Selection tool and choose
Object➪Arrange. In the Arrange
submenu, you can send the object
to the back, bring it forward, or
move it backward and forward one
level at a time. To help you get a
better idea of how the Pathfinder
panel functions, follow along as I use it on two basic objects (in this case, the
circle and the star in Figure 4-12). The next few sections show the magic you
can do by putting a few simple shapes through the Pathfinder wringer.
Shape Modes
Not only does the Pathfinder panel enable you to create complex artwork
from basic shapes, but all the artwork you create can remain fully editable
if you press Option (Mac)/Alt (Windows) when you click the appropriate
Pathfinder button. Overlap two or more objects by selecting one with the
Selection tool and dragging it over another object, select them all, and click
the button of the effect you want. The Shape Modes buttons along the top
row of the Pathfinder panel consist of the following:
✓ Unite: Groups multiple objects so they’re selectable as a unit but can
also be selected individually with the Direct Selection or Group Selection
tools. The resulting objects use the fill and stroke of the object that
was on top before the objects were added together. By pressing Option
(Mac)/Alt (Windows) when clicking the button, the shapes are formed
into a compound shape — meaning they are treated as a single shape by
most operations in Illustrator, but still exist as two shapes that can be
separated in the future.
In all Shape Modes, the Expand Compound Shape command “flattens”
the compound shape into a single path which cannot then be separated
back into the original shapes.
Figure 4-12: Start with these two basic shapes.
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Part II: Drawing and Coloring Your Artwork
Use the Direct Selection tool to edit any path or anchor point on the
compound shape.
✓ Minus Front: Cuts away all selected
objects in front of the backmost object,
leaving a hole in the backmost object in
the shape of whatever was in front of it. In
Figure 4-13, Minus Front cuts away the star
in front of the circle, creating four separate
curved sections.
✓ Intersect: Cuts away all parts of the objects
that don’t overlap, as shown in Figure
4-14. The resulting object uses the fill and
stroke color of the object that was on top
before the objects were intersected. Here,
Intersect joins the circle and star, using the
fill and stroke color of the star (which
was on top before the objects were
intersected). Intersect also works on
more than two objects.
✓ Exclude: Removes all parts of the
objects that overlap and unites what’s
left into a single object (the opposite
of Intersect). The remaining object
uses the fill and stroke of the object
that was on top before the objects
were united. In Figure 4-15, the Exclude
command cuts away all parts of the
circle and star that overlap, uniting what
is left into a single object that uses the fill
and stroke color of the star (which
was on top before the objects were
united).
Compound Shapes
All the Pathfinder effects I discuss here
can be combined if applied as compound
shapes, so knock yourself (and other
paths) out. If you want to undo your
compound shapes, choose the Release
Compound Shape command from the
Pathfinder panel pop-up menu. By click-
ing the Expand button (refer to Figure 4-11) or
Figure 4-14: Using Intersect.
Figure 4-15: Using Exclude.
Figure 4-13: Using Minus Front.
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Chapter 4: Shaping Up, Basically
selecting the Expand command from the Pathfinder panel pop-up menu, you
can further clean up or simplify your paths by eliminating unnecessary anchor
points. The compound shapes are flattened and condensed into a new simpli-
fied shape. But be warned: After you use the Expand Compound Shape com-
mand, you can no longer release your compound shape by using the Release
Compound Shapes command. The Expand feature permanently fuses your
effect — just as if you had clicked without the Option (Mac)/Alt (Windows)
pressed — so there’s no going back.
Pathfinders
The commands under the Pathfinders por-
tion of the Pathfinder panel are a mixed bag
of effects. The Divide and Minus Back com-
mands achieve results by cutting away specific
parts of the image. Figure 4-16 demonstrates
the results of applying Minus Back, removing
everything but the tips of the stars. (Now that’s
what I call minus!) The Trim, Merge, Crop,
and Outline commands provide the means for
tidying up your artwork before sending your
creation out into the world. In Figure 4-17, this
cleanup crew takes a bow.
Figure 4-17: Cleaning up and checking the circle and star, using (left to right) Trim, Merge,
Crop, and Outline. In this case, Trim and Merge cause the same result.
Here’s a quick rundown of the Pathfinder commands found under the
Pathfinder panel:
✓ Divide: Breaks two overlapping objects into separate objects. This oper-
ation might look as though it hasn’t done anything after you first apply
it. However, after you divide an object, you can move or color each
piece individually.
Figure 4-16: Using Minus Back.
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Part II: Drawing and Coloring Your Artwork
✓ Trim: Removes any parts of objects hidden by other objects and also
removes any strokes. Like with Divide, this command might not produce
visible results immediately: That is, you might not see anything until you
start changing the position of the pie slices of the circle, where you’ll
suddenly notice that they can move as separate objects. (Refer to the
first image in Figure 4-17.)
✓ Merge: Removes any parts of objects hidden by other objects, removes
strokes, and merges overlapping objects that have the same fill colors.
This command functions almost the same way as the Trim command
does, with the key difference being that this commands merges objects
of the same color into a single object, but Trim leaves them as sepa-
rate objects. In the second image in Figure 4-17, the Merge command
removes any parts of the circle hidden by the star, removes strokes, and
merges overlapping objects that have the same fill colors (which the
star and the circle do not).
✓ Crop: Divides two overlapping objects into separate objects where they
overlap and then deletes everything outside the boundaries of the front
most object. In the third image in Figure 4-17, the Crop command divides
the star and circle into separate objects where they overlap and then
deletes everything outside the boundaries of the star (the front most
object).
✓ Outline: Breaks objects into separate line segments with no fill
colors. The last image in Figure 4-17 shows the visible effects of the
command.
✓ Minus Back: Cuts away from the front most object all selected objects
that are behind the front most object. The remaining object uses the fill
and stroke color of the front most object. Here, Minus Back cuts away
the circle from the star and unites what’s left (those four forlorn-looking
points; refer to Figure 4-16) into a single object that uses the fill and
stroke color of the star (which is the front most object).
If you stumble upon the Pathfinder commands under the Effects menu, don’t
confuse them with those found under the Pathfinder panel. The commands
under the Effects menu change the appearance of an object without chang-
ing the underlying object itself. The Pathfinder commands found under the
Effects menu are designed to be applied to groups of objects, layers, and type
objects. They usually have no effect on a few overlapping shapes. For more
on appearances and effects, see Chapter 11.
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Chapter 4: Shaping Up, Basically
Creating Objects by Using
the Pathfinder Panel
By combining basic shapes, you can create just about anything you can imag-
ine. So, how do you actually use the Shape Modes and Pathfinders commands
to create such complex shapes? (Details, details.) Consider a couple of
examples — a crescent moon and a sunrise.
Crescent moon
A crescent moon seems fairly simple to draw, but trying to draw one accu-
rately by hand is frustrating. The Pathfinder panel, however, makes drawing
a crescent moon almost as easy as smiling and saying, “Green cheese.” Just
follow these steps:
1. Choose the Ellipse tool to draw a perfect circle (click and drag the
Ellipse tool while holding down the Shift key).
As I describe earlier in this chapter, let go of the mouse button before
you let go of the Shift key.
2. Repeat Step 1, creating a second circle that’s just slightly smaller than
the first one.
3. Using the Selection tool, click on the second circle and then drag it
over the first, as shown in Figure 4-18.
Figure 4-18: Creating a crescent moon.
4. Select both circles.
Hold down the Shift key and click each circle with the Selection tool to
select more than one object at a time.
5. Click the Minus Back button in the Shape Modes portion of the
Pathfinder panel. Presto! A crescent moon appears!
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Part II: Drawing and Coloring Your Artwork
Sunrise
What better way to follow a crescent moon than with a beautiful sunrise? Just
follow these steps:
1. Click and drag with the Rectangle tool to create a box.
2. Click and drag with the Star tool to create a star. As you drag with the
Star tool, repeatedly press the up-arrow (↑) key.
A many-pointed star appears.
3. Choose the Selection tool and use it to position the star over the rect-
angle so the two objects overlap, as shown in Figure 4-19.
Figure 4-19: Creating a sunrise.
4. Select both the star and the rectangle.
Hold down the Shift key and click each object with the Selection tool so
both objects are selected.
5. Click the Minus Back button in the Pathfinders portion of the
Pathfinder panel.
Voilà! A beautiful sunrise! (Well, almost. Still needs colors and a caffein-
ated beverage.)
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Chapter 4: Shaping Up, Basically
Legal Graffiti
The Symbol Sprayer
(which has the honor
of being the preeminent
tool in the Tool panel’s
Symbolism toolslot; see
Figure 4-20) is how Adobe
makes your job of produc-
ing repeating graphics
easier and quicker. Feel
like a kid (okay, a bad
kid) and spray onscreen
repeating graphics all over
the place to your heart’s
content. No clogged spray
nozzles, no paint drips, no
fumes. Who could possibly resist that intriguing spray can sitting there in the
Tools panel just begging to be picked up?
Symbols are reusable and repeatable elements that are used in animation.
Although they can be graphics, buttons, movie clips, sound files, and even
fonts, in Illustrator, they can be composed of any Illustrator object — vector-
or pixel-based images or text. Each individual symbol is an instance. The
beauty of symbols is that although you might have multiple instances of a
symbol in your file, each instance references a single symbol in the Symbols
panel, thereby keeping the file size extremely small.
Symbols provide a quick and easy way to create a large group of similar
objects and an easy means to collectively edit these objects. Symbols can
be used for most anything, but are especially handy in creating navigation
buttons; borders; map icons; and masses of graphics, such as foliage, snow-
flakes, and stars.
Using the Symbol Sprayer
I like it when tools, such as the Symbol Sprayer, work the way I think they
should (unlike the tedious Pen tool). Follow these steps to become the
master of your personal digital spray can:
1. Select the Symbol Sprayer.
Note that the sprayer icon is surrounded by a circle, which represents
the diameter of your sprayer. (Read the upcoming section, “Setting the
Symbolism options,” to discover how to change that size.)
2. Choose Window➪Symbols.
Symbol
Sprayer
Symbol
Scrucher
Symbol
Shifter
Symbol
Sizer
Symbol
Spinner
Symbol
Screener
Symbol
Stainer
Symbol
Styler
Figure 4-20: He who has the best toys wins: The
Symbolism tools.
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Part II: Drawing and Coloring Your Artwork
The Symbols panel, shown
in Figure 4-21, appears with a
default library of symbols to
choose from.
3. Select a symbol from the
Symbols panel, click the
Symbolism tool on the Artboard,
and drag it around the page.
A trail of symbols (of the one
you chose) appears, mirroring
the movement of your cursor
while you drag it across your
Artboard. (Check it out in Figure
4-22.) Unless you feel the need to edit your symbols or create your own
custom symbol, you’re done!
Figure 4-22: Pssst: Graffiti never had it so good (or legal).
Figure 4-21: The Symbols panel.
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Chapter 4: Shaping Up, Basically
Creating a custom symbol
If you’re the creative type, create your own symbol. First create the artwork,
which can include any Illustrator object — vector- or pixel-based images or
text. You can even use a combination of objects, as shown in Figure 4-23.
Next, select your artwork and do one of these three things:
✓ Click the New Symbol button (the little piece of paper at the bottom of
the Symbols panel).
✓ Choose the New Symbol option from the Symbols panel pop-up menu
(accessed from the little triangle at the upper right of the Symbols
panel).
✓ Drag and drop the art onto the Symbols panel.
Voilà! A symbol is born.
Figure 4-23: Combine object types to create custom symbols.
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Part II: Drawing and Coloring Your Artwork
Editing your symbols
The other Symbolism tools hiding behind the Symbol Sprayer enable you to
tweak your symbols to graphic perfection. To edit your symbols, first select
the symbols with the Selection tool. Note how you select the bounding box
(a temporary border surrounding objects) of the symbols and not the individual
instances. That’s because symbols are a unique breed of graphic that require a
unique kind of editing.
Symbols used in a document are tied to the original symbol chosen in
the Symbols panel. If that original symbol changes, all the associated sym-
bols in your document change. This ability can allow you to quickly make
dozens or hundreds of changes to a document. For instance, if you were using
little stop signs based on a symbol throughout a map you’ve drawn, you
could change all the stop signs to traffic lights simply by replacing the original
symbol in the Symbols panel.
After you select the symbols, click and drag with the Symbolism tool of your
choice. Depending on where you click and how you drag, you will get differ-
ent results. Each of the tools is described in more detail below:
✓ Symbol Shifter: Click and drag your mouse to shift the position of the
symbols in relation to each other. The symbols move around the cursor
while you drag, creating a sort of ripple effect.
✓ Symbol Scruncher: Click and hold down your mouse to move the sym-
bols closer. Hold down the Option (Mac)/Alt (Windows) key while click-
ing and holding down your mouse to move the symbols apart.
✓ Symbol Sizer: Hold your mouse button down to size the symbols larger.
Hold down the Option (Mac)/Alt (Windows) key while manipulating your
mouse to reduce the size of the symbols.
You can also use the regular Rotate and Scale tools to rotate and size
symbols.
✓ Symbol Spinner: Click and drag your mouse in the desired direction to
rotate the symbols.
✓ Symbol Stainer: Hold your mouse down to tint the symbols by using the
current Fill color.
✓ Symbol Screener: Hold your mouse down to increase the transparency
of the symbols.
✓ Symbol Styler: Applies a style from the Graphic Styles panel (found
by choosing View➪Graphic Styles) onto the symbol. With the Symbol
Styler, select and drag a style from the Styles panel onto a symbol
instance.
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