Understanding Illustrator's "Pen tool"
xGrape (88 pencils) | Sun, 2005-07-03 11:57I'm trying to make a "wave" (similar to the one in the Coca-Coloa logo http://cocacola.com/images/gate_bottom.gif), and I'm thinking Illustrator's "Pen tool" is the best for the job. But actually understanding how it works is proving difficult for me... any tips? Like all lines and curves just seem to get all over the place!
Also, anyone got an idea on how to make a "flare" or "burst" similar to the one on this cover (http://www.platekompaniet.no/cover/cover/Album3/ministryofsoundsummer05.jpg)? Not like a real-world lens flare or anything, just as simple as the one on the cover (Photoshop is fine for this job)... Thanks :)
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You can do it two ways. #1 is to use a spiked brush to apply white on top of your image. #2 is to buy a plugin set that does it.
The Illustrator pen tool issue is something you really have to figure out on your own. It's a tricky tool to get used to. Play around with it a bit. You might also want to try grabbing a copy of Adobe Illustrator CS2 For Dummies
. They're usually quite good when you don't know much about an app and need to learn the basics.
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Thanks for the tip, the brush is a good idea. You don't happen to have a brush that's good for this purpose? I've tried looking around, but can't really find one that overwhelmes me...
If you have Illustrator CS you can create a rectangle and then go to Effect/Warp/Wave (or try different ones till you get the effect you want).
Nathaniel
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Why didn't I ever think about that. Thanks a lot! Its weird, the simplest solution is often the least obvious :) Or vice verse, depending on how you see it.
When you first start using the pen tool, it's always pretty confusing. The best thing I can tell you regarding the pen tool is... to get the points where they should be... you can change the curve after you make the point if need be (by holding the option button and grabbing the handles of the point and moving them-- then continue drawing the shape by releasing the option key).
I love the pen tool in Illustrator... Photoshop's pen tool............ not so much. Hope this helps.
Maybe try using the Star shape tool. Click on the artboard and it will bring up a dialogue box. Change the amount of points to something high like 60 and change the radius points to have a large difference between the 2 values. I tried 1" and 10" and it seemed to give me something similar to the shape you wanted.
I would then take it into photoshop, select the shape(Apple+click layer), create a new layer, fill the shape using a white to transparent radial gradient, then delete the original shape.
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Hi all I posted a an explaination in the GraphicDesignForum.com a few weeks back about how to draw curves...You might be put off by the way I explain things but if you follow it you should get a better understanding about how the pen tool works.
http://www.graphicdesignforum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=8960