More specifically: If you can imagine it . . . you can create it with the powerful controls offered through the fine folks over at Adobe Systems Inc.! Whether your program of choice is Photoshop, Illustrator or InDesign there inevitably is a way to use these programs to create that which resides in your creativity. This was certainly the case with the latest PDF tutorial project produced by Pixel.

Here was the initial dilemma: It has been my experience that ‘most’ of the ‘create vectors from scratch’ tutorials floating around the web all follow primarily the same method. Though they may differ slightly in the end result or style, most tutorials rely almost exclusively on the use of the pen tool to “click, drag . . .click, drag . . .” your way around a rough sketch to create your main vector shapes. While this method may be the most ‘precise’ way to create vectors it certainly is NOT the fastest way. Depending on the detail of the art it could take hours if not DAYS to complete. So thus began the quest to find a quicker method . . .

That method started with the acquiring of a graphics tablet. The Adobe Illustrator software quickly became a powerhouse of solutions with the addition of a graphics tablet. Illustrator functions beautifully with a tablet by offering pressure sensitive controls for it’s paintbrush tool that can mimic a variable width pen and ink technique. If you play with the ‘fidelity’ and ‘smoothness’ controls in the paintbrush tool attributes you can achieve a line that “heals itself” as you draw! From correcting angles and soft curves to producing an end result that is flawless, the purchase of a graphics tablet is well worth it. To check out the leaders in the industry of graphics tablets, take a stroll over to www.wacom.com.

Once I purchased a graphics tablet (mine is an Intuos3 by Wacom), it was just a matter of time before I found the right combination of controls within Adobe Illustrator to create vectors at a fraction of the time that it takes to use the pen tool method. This is covered in much detail in our recent PDF “The Art of Making Super-Fast Vector Illustrations” (What? You didn’t think I would give away any of the secrets did you?!)

All in all I learned greatly through the process. The least of the lessons was this: With the Adobe family of programs, you are only limited by your imagination! Illustrator in this case was a tool - knowing how the tool works was part of the solution; applying that knowledge into my current workflow was the other part. The process that I uncovered through this exercise, was so much quicker than the way I had done things before, that I started to rethink my workflow with Illustrator and to look for ways to tap into the depths of the program.

Each day with each new discovery I am encouraged with how much I have already learned, and excited with all that there still is to explore!