Join Deke McClelland for an in-depth discussion in this video The legend that is the Layers panel, part of Illustrator CC 2015 One-on-One: Advanced.
- Hello, and welcome to the Layers panel.…Now, some of you might figure this conversation is…coming a little late in the game.…After all, the Layers panel seems pretty straightforward.…It's been around forever,…and we've seen it,…I believe, in approximately every movie so far.…Okay, granted, at first glance the Layers panel might…seem I guess, like a very small dresser,…filled with an infinite number of impossibly deep drawers…that can hold literally anything and everything you like,…which if Ikea sold it,…you'd eat the meatballs,…build it yourself,…and tweet about how great it was,…but the Layers panel is more than just a magical cabinet…of Scandinavian curiosities,…it is in fact,…a completely different way of looking at your document.…
Think of it this way,…the Document window displays your artwork in two dimensions,…horizontal and vertical.…The Layers panel shows you a third dimension,…not depth exactly,…but rather how the document is built,…starting at the bottom,…and working its way, eventually,…to the top.…This bottom to top thing,…
Author
Deke McClelland
Updated
9/13/2016Released
5/27/2016The techniques are grounded in hands-on projects that give you experience with real-world uses for Illustrator, from converting hand-drawn artwork to vector graphics with tracing and creating logos with the Transform tools, to creating compelling artwork with nothing but the Appearance panel. Along the way, Deke touches on layers and stacking order interactions, patterns and gradients, scaling, dynamic effects, Live Paint, and Recolor Artwork. Plus, learn how to place photos in your design and edit images without leaving Illustrator, and set your documents up for effective printing.
As Creative Cloud evolves, so will we. Check back every time Illustrator updates for new videos, new feature reviews, and new ways to work.
- Tracing pixel-based images with Image Trace
- Auto-tracing and resolution
- Building dynamic compound shapes with Pathfinder operations
- Using advanced layer techniques
- Adjusting stacking order
- Transforming fills and strokes via the Appearance panel
- Assigning patterns to fills and strokes
- Applying Drop Shadow and Gaussian Blur
- Scaling and rotating objects
- Aligning and distributing artwork
- Creating custom gradients
- Building a dynamic object blend
- Coloring and shading with Live Paint
- Placing and editing images in Illustrator CC
- Generating color palettes and swatches with the Color Guide panel
- Recoloring artwork
- Adding dynamic effects
- Printing Illustrator projects
Skill Level Advanced
Duration
Views
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Introduction
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16. Tracing a Pixel-Based Image
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Auto-tracing in Illustrator1m 26s
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Opening an image to embed it4m 43s
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The advanced tracing options5m 22s
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17. Pathfinder Operations
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18. Layers and Stacking Order
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Adjusting the stacking order7m 40s
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Naming and arranging objects2m 44s
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19. The Appearance Panel
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20. Scaling and Rotating
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Introducing the Scale tool5m 20s
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Introducing the Rotate tool6m 38s
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Using the Reflect tool3m 44s
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Using the Reshape tool8m 36s
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The Transform Each command6m 19s
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21. Align and Distribute
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Snapping and smart guides3m 32s
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22. Gradients and the Gradient Tool
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The joy of custom gradients1m 41s
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Adjusting color stops5m 50s
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Creating a custom emoji6m 46s
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23. Object Blends and Clipping Masks
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Creating a clipping mask4m 10s
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Blending between groups9m 4s
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24. Live Paint and Interwoven Objects
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Coloring overlapping areas1m 35s
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Introducing Live Paint7m 13s
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Modifying Live Paint strokes3m 53s
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Automatic gap detection7m 52s
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Merging Live Paint objects5m 39s
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Sneak peek: Recolor Artwork5m 15s
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25. Placing Photographs
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Working with linked images5m 21s
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26. The Color Guide Panel
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27. Recoloring Your Artwork
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28. Dynamic Effects
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Drawing an orthogonal cube4m 25s
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29. Saving Effects as Graphic Styles
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Updating graphic styles4m 5s
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Combining multiple styles6m 50s
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30. Printing Your Document
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Exporting color separations6m 16s
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Conclusion
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Until next we meet1m 29s
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Video: The legend that is the Layers panel