Adobe Illustrator CS5 Intro

Class length: 2 days
Hours: 10:00 am - 5:30 pm
Cost: $900

Illustrator CS5 Intro

Course Description:

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Perspective drawing, variable-width strokes, a new brush that lets you control bristle characteristics, and innovative ways to quickly build shapes, are among the new features in the comprehensive vector environment of industry-leading Illustrator CS5.

New perspective tools add an exciting dimension to Illustrator, eliminating the need to create your own horizon lines and vanishing points when you wish to draw a scene or an object in perspective. With the Shape Builder tool, you no longer use the Pathfinder panel—you simply sweep your cursor across overlapping objects to merge and divide shapes. And you can even paint watercolor strokes that remain vectors, now with new edge softness and subtle control of transparency. These powerful new features make Illustrator CS5 a must-have, but along with the dramatic advances, you’ll find great improvement to familiar favorites. Strokes now have fully controllable width handles, and the Draw Inside mode creates masks automatically when you draw or when you place an image—no extra clicks.

With enhanced integration among Adobe products, you can move easily between Illustrator CS5 and products, such as Adobe Flash Catalyst CS5 software, where you can add interaction to your designs. And new CS Live online services provide effective collaboration, efficient reviews, and more.

Using Illustrator CS5, you can get the job done efficiently but beautifully, moving quickly from multiple
ideas to multiple outputs with complete control, and delivering exactly what you had in mind.

Our two day course will Introduce you to the creative world of Illustrator CS5.


Course Outline:


Lesson 1: General

  • The Illustrator Workspace
  • About Vector graphics
  • How to create documents for print or screen
  • Working with Artboards
  • Using Guides, Grids and other techniques to create accurate artwork

Lesson 2: Creating and editing artwork

  • Creating basic shapes - rectangles, ellipses, polygons etc.
  • Using the Pencil, Brush and Blob Brush
  • The Line Segment tool
  • Selection techniques
  • Duplicating elements
  • Grouping elements
  • Changing stacking order
  • Aligning elements
  • Working with layers
  • Using the Pen tool to create accurate paths

Lesson 3: Fills and strokes

  • Using Process, Spot and Global colors
  • Specifying Tints
  • Creating new colors
  • Working with color libraries
  • Sampling colors from existing artwork
  • Color schemes with the Color Guide
  • Modifying stroke attributes - creating dashes and dots, changing stroke width and other appearances
  • Defining gradients and pattern fills

Lesson 4: Working with type

  • Character and paragraph formatting
  • Text within shapes and on paths
  • Converting type to paths
  • Modifying letter shapes

Lesson 5: Transformations

  • Scaling, rotating, reflecting and other transformations
  • Free distortion
  • Envelope distortion
  • Step and repeat - tips and tricks

Lesson 6: Special features

  • Working with Symbols
  • Combining simple shapes to create more complex elements
  • Converting pixel based images into Vector artwork with Live Trace
  • Using Live Paint to colorize artwork
  • Using Effects and Appearances
  • Creating simple 3D elements.

Lesson 7: Production

  • Placing images and other artwork
  • File formats and integration with other software – Photoshop, Flash, etc.
  • Printing from Illustrator
  • Exporting web graphics