
Adobe Illustrator Tutorial using Pen Tool
ADOBE ILLUSTRATOR PEN TOOL TUTORIAL
In this Adobe Illustrator Tutorial for Beginners, we are going through some different options for the Pen Tool. The few things to remember is to focus on getting down the anchors first. We have a lot of our tutorials that focus just on straight lines and placing anchors. The easy parts of the line are the start and end points which means you just have to look for changes in direction in the middle. This tutorial will focus on Building Tools, Applying Brushes, Editing Options, and Basic Coloring Techniques.



Beginner Top Tips
Zoom In
All of our initial preferences are designed to gain more control over what you are clicking on. The more you can zoom in and see your anchors and handles the better.
Smart Guides
Under VIEW make sure you have your smart guides turned on. Under your PREFERENCES (smart guides) you should definitely have your anchor/ path labels selected.
Anchor and Handle Size
In your (general) PREFERENCES there is a setting which can enlarge your anchor points and handles to make them easier for you to see before clicking.
Direct Selection Tool
The white arrow can grab and adjust the anchors, handles, and paths. All of the other settings are designed to let you know what you are selecting before you click and drag.
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Editing using the Shape Builder Tool
Shape Builder is a tool that can be used to give an alternative to the Eraser Tool while Editing. In order to use Shape Builder, you will need to Expand the Brush Layer. Select All - Expand (or Expand Appearance + Expand). I do recommend duplicating a Brushes Layer to preserve a Live Brush Layer for future edits. Once the Brushes are Expanded, Select All + click on the Shape Builder Tool. The Alt/Option key will switch the Shape Builder Tool to delete mode. Simply Click or Drag through the stray or overlapped areas to delete. Remember to keep holding down the Alt/Option. You can also Turn On/Off the Highlighting by double-clicking on the Shape Builder Tool. The flashing gets irritating.
Expand Appearance: I do recommend Expanding your Brushes Layer before using Shape Builder. This will prevent bouncing of the Brushes and Line Variation. It will also move toward an efficiency model to save time so you are not stopping and editing while you are still building.
Select your All on Brushes Layer: In order to use the Shape Builder Tool, you will need to select an Object or All Objects so the Tool knows what it should interact with. You can modify what is selected by choosing smaller areas if selecting all becomes too overwhelming.
Hold Alt/Option: When you hold down your Alt/Option Key while using the Shape Builder Tool to Delete Mode. I do recommend turning off the Highlighting when in this mode. Drag or click on any of the overlapped or stray marks to delete using the Shape Builder Tool.