ADOBE ILLUSTRATOR

RESOURCE GUIDES

GETTING STARTED: Welcome to our website if you are a visitor or a new subscriber. My name is Jason and I am an Illustrator and Teacher (BFA). (Nerd Alert) My Master's Degree is in Education, specifically in Curriculum and Instruction. I have organized tutorials based on Workflow Units: Building, Editing, and Coloring. LEARNING TARGET (1): Understand the Building Tools and Options. LEARNING TARGET (2): Apply Line Variation along with Live and Expanded Editing Tools. LEARNING TARGET (3): Apply Color, Values, and Gradients using Advanced Coloring Techniques.

"BUILDING" ARTBOARD: I recommend establishing a "Standardized Approach" that you can use for your own artwork. The initial Artboard Size can be changed at any point without ruining your own artwork. LEARNING TARGET: Create a "Building Template" that includes Artboards, Resources, and Template Layers.

RESOURCE IMAGE: If you are a Beginner, I am going to recommend starting from a Resource Image. Give yourself a "Traceable Path" by using a Clean Line Drawing or Traced Photo. LEARNING TARGET: Start with the Resource you intend on using for your artwork (Sketch, Drawing, or Traced Stock Photo).

TEMPLATE LAYER: Have your Drawing, Sketch, or Traced Photo Selected. In your Layers Panel, select the Menu in the Upper-Right Hand Corner. Drop down to Template. This will create 50% Opacity and Lock the Layer. LEARNING TARGET: Create a Template Layer so you can see the Resource Image and new Paths.

RESOURCE IMAGES: If you are a Beginner, I am going to recommend starting from a Resource Image. Give yourself a "Traceable Path" by using a Clean Line Drawing or Traced Stock Photo. LEARNING TARGET: Download Resource Images to use for your artwork and designs.

COLOR SWATCHES: I highly recommend using Adobe Color for your Themes to add to your Library or download .ASE Files to Open. In most Tutorials, we will be applying Flat Colors using Live Paint. LEARNING TARGET: Download or Save Color Themes to use with your own artwork and designs.

BRUSH LIBRARIES: Many of our Tutorials will go through a process of applying and editing our Brush Libraries. Brush Libraries will come as Zipped Folders, Extract All before using in Adobe Illustrator. LEARNING TARGET: Download Brush Libraries to use with your own artwork or designs.

RESOURCE GUIDES: As I create my artwork, pay attention to the resources being used throughout the Workflows, Tutorials, and YouTube Playlists. LEARNING TARGET (1): Bookmark websites for Free Resources. LEARNING TARGET (2): Sign in to your Adobe Creative Cloud Account for Assets, Templates, Color Swatches, and Font Families.

BEGINNER: In our Beginner Guides and Tutorials, you will see me give Prompts and Learning Targets. These directions will simplify the process of learning Adobe Illustrator. LEARNING TARGET: Understand the Primary Building Tools and Options in Adobe Illustrator.

ADVANCED: As I am creating my artwork, pay attention to the Sequence of Events, Resources, and Tool Options as it relates to building a "Workflow." LEARNING TARGET: Apply Building, Variation, Editing, and Advanced Color Techniques to your own Artwork.

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ARTBOARDS + TEMPLATES: Download Templates or use Program Presets (Adobe Stock / Adobe Illustrator / Adobe Photoshop). For your own artwork and designs, I recommend creating Templates based on your frequently used sizes. (Size / Color Mode / Resolution)

FREE + ADOBE RESOURCES: Bookmark websites or Sign in to your Adobe Creative Account for Assets, Templates, Color Swatches, and Font Families. BEGINNER GUIDES / ILLUSTRATOR TUTORIALS

DRAWING TEMPLATE: File - New. Create a Adobe Photoshop Document 2160px by 1080px. You can adjust the size to match your Export Size (1080px by 1080px). Select the Frame Tool. Create a Frame half of the size of the Document. File - Place Embedded to insert Photo.

ADJUSTMENT LAYERS: Once you have placed in your Photo Reference, you can add Adjustment Layers. This will assist you in looking at the Photo Reference. This is not required. I recommend adding Brightness/Contrast, Levels, Curves, and Black & White.

EXPORTING FROM LAYERS: When you are all done with your Sketches, Drawings, or Traced Stock Photos, I recommend Exporting from the Layers Panel. Select All of your Drawing Layers. Click on Export As from the Layers Panel Menu. This will Export All of your Drawing Layers.

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STOCK PHOTOS: I recommend using (Unsplash / Pixabay / Pexels) for your Sketch, Drawing, and Color References. Bookmark websites for Photo References to use with your artwork and designs. ACCOUNT LOGIN

RESOURCE GUIDES: As I create my artwork, pay attention to the resources being used throughout the Workflows, Tutorials, and YouTube Playlists. RESOURCE GUIDE / RESOURCE GUIDE / RESOURCE GUIDE

ARTBOARDS: File-New. Use a size or ratio that you can use for all of your own artwork. I recommend a 1080px by 1080px artboard for websites and social postings. Many of you will be looking to export your own artwork to Instagram. You can modify the size of the artwork or artboard with the Artboard Tool or Properties Panel.

SKETCH OR TRACED PHOTO: I recommend starting from a Clean Line Drawing or a simple Traced Stock Photo for your artwork and designs. Create a "Traceable Path" to align with the Building Tools in Adobe Illustrator. You can speed up your workflow by using a Quick Sketch when you become more advanced.

TEMPLATES: File -Place in your own Drawing, Sketch, or Traced Stock Photo. Select your Resource Layer. (It will usually be your only layer) In your Layers Panel, select the Menu in the Upper-Right Hand Corner. Drop down to Template. This will create a 50% Opacity and Lockout the Layer. Create a New Layer above to start "Building".

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BRUSH LIBRARIES: Download Brush Libraries (Teachable) to use with your own artwork and designs. Brush Libraries will come to you as Zipped Folders. (Remember to save all Digital Downloads to an external Hard Drive or Cloud-Based Storage Service.)

RESOURCE FOLDERS: As I create my artwork, pay attention to the resources being used throughout the Workflows, Tutorials, and YouTube Playlists. DOWNLOAD BRUSHES / DIGITAL DOWNLOADS

PRIMARY BUILDING: Many of you will use Shape, Pencil, and Pen Tools as your Primary Building Tools. Understand the Building Tools and Options in Adobe Illustrator. Align the Building Tools (Ellipse, Pen, and Curvature Tools) to the Design Elements (Shapes, Lines, and Curves) in your own drawing or sketch.

APPLYING BRUSHES: Match the Brushes to the Line Variation. Select the Brushes and Line Weight. The easiest method is to find the ends and visually find the other end to see if it will be floating or hitting another line. If it hits another line that signals a darker value to the end should reflect the change in value. (Thicker End).

EXPANDED EDITING: To use Shape Builder, you must Duplicate and Expand the Brush Layer. Select All - Expand (Expand Appearance). I recommend duplicating the Brushes Layer to preserve a Live Brush Layer for future edits. Go long with your initial paths to create a larger target for editing with Shape Builder.

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COLOR SWATCHES: I recommend using (Adobe Color / Canva Colors) for your Color Themes. Bookmark websites for Color Themes to use with your own artwork and designs. ACCOUNT LOGIN

SAVING SWATCHES: For those of you using Adobe Color, I recommend starting from the Explore Tab. If you have CC, you can Add to your Library. If you have an older version, download as an ASE File.

OPENING LIBRARIES: Open your Library Panel. Select the Color Theme you would like to use. Right Click on the Color Theme to Add Theme to your Swatches Panel.

OPENING SWATCHES: Open your Swatches Panel. In the Swatches Menu, drop down to Open Swatch Library. Select "Other Library" to open an ASE File saved on your computer.

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FONT FAMILIES: I recommend using (Adobe Fonts / Google Fonts / Font Squirrel / Dafont) for Fonts. Bookmark websites for Fonts to use with your own artwork and designs. ACCOUNT LOGIN

FINDING FONTS: For those of you using Adobe Fonts, I recommend starting from the Browse All, Trending, and Recommendations. I do recommend testing out the new Variable Fonts.

SORTING FONTS: Have an idea of what you are looking for before looking for Fonts. Use the Categories and Tabs to sort through the Font Families.

SAVING FONTS: When you find a Font or Family you like, you can simply click the Add Family to your Account. The Fonts will be available across your Adobe Programs.

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COMIC HALFTONES: Download Comic Halftones (Teachable) to use with your own artwork and designs. Halftones will come to you as a Zipped Folder. (Remember to save all Digital Downloads to an external Hard Drive or Cloud-Based Storage Service.)

RESOURCE FOLDERS: As I create my artwork, pay attention to the resources being used throughout the Workflows, Tutorials, and YouTube Playlists. DOWNLOAD BRUSHES / DIGITAL DOWNLOADS

OPENING HALFTONES: Opening Halftones in Adobe Illustrator is as easy as Copying + Pasting them into your Working Artboard. Halftones will automatically populate into the Swatches Panel.

RESIZING PATTERNS: Depending on your artboard size, you might need to Resize Pattern Fills the Halftones in Adobe Illustrator. Simply use the Scale Tool to "Transform Patterns."

APPLYING HALFTONES: Halftones will behave just like any Color Swatch in Adobe Illustrator. If you are new to Adobe Illustrator, use the Blob Brush to paint in Comic Halftone Patterns.

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T-SHIRT TEXTURES: Download BMP Textures (Teachable) to use with your own artwork and designs. Textures will come to you as Zipped Folders. (Remember to save all Digital Downloads to an external Hard Drive or Cloud-Based Storage Service.

RESOURCE FOLDERS: As I create my artwork, pay attention to the resources being used throughout the Workflows, Tutorials, and YouTube Playlists. DOWNLOAD BRUSHES / DIGITAL DOWNLOADS

PLACING TEXTURES: To use BMP in Adobe Illustrator, go to File- Place. Select any of the BMP Textures to bring in to your working artboard. Most adjustments will be in the Transparency Panel.

OPACITY MASKS: Using Opacity Masks in Adobe Illustrator is extremely fun. Click on "Make Mask" in the Transparency Panel. This will be for your own original artwork for T-shirt Distressing.

CLIPPING MASKS: Using the "Draw Inside" feature is an easy way to use Clipping Masks in Adobe Illustrator. Simply File - Place in the BMP Texture into the selected "Draw Inside" Shape.

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I appreciate your videos. I have been an illustrator user for years and have my own ways of doing things. It's great to see other ways of using tools and learning tricks I didn't know were available! It's also good to see you doing the same thing as me in other instances, confirming I'm on the right track!Andy Zenz

Awesome tutorial! I don't think I've picked up something so easily from someone who knows what they are doing. I managed to draw my first vector art and it was a joy! Great work keep it up!blitz145

Thank you loads! Compared to other tutorials, yours are just really well-explained and easy-to-follow. Can totally see that you've got a passion for what you're doing and that's just wonderful! 🙂 Keep it up, you're doing an amazing job. Yulia Kachurova

Love your video thanks so much. you blow Lynda.com out of the water!!!!Steve Yensel

Brilliant video. So much great info packed in here. I'm just getting started drawing cartoons with my Wacom tablet, and this was a huge help. Thumbs up and thanks!Dorian Staten

Wow Thanks Jason...was really struggling with making images with basic shapes. Your tutorial is helping me out!!Kishor Rajani

thanks a lot you are really one of my favorites, I like the steps you give us, and I'm so thankful for that effort you do for helping us :)Wessam Lotfi

Keep up the good work Jason. I’ve been doing Lynda.com tutorials for a few months now and I got more out of your videos than what I’ve received at Lynda. Keep it up and Thank You!!bobby jacobs • 1 year ago

These tutorials are amazing. Just started using illustrator and really glad I found your channel. The only videos that explain everything step by stepAida Stan

You are definitely one of the best teachers I've found dealing with start to finish creative process. Great work!!!Jasen Fisher

Thank you so much man, I loved the way you explain this, I spent days looking for a good tutorial vid, thanks a lot, gonna keep watching your videos!!!Karel Marccenaro

Awesome tutorial! I don't think I've picked up something so easily from someone who knows what they are doing. I managed to draw my first vector art and it was a joy! Great work keep it up!blitz145

Thank you loads! Compared to other tutorials, yours are just really well-explained and easy-to-follow. Can totally see that you've got a passion for what you're doing and that's just wonderful! 🙂 Keep it up, you're doing an amazing job. Yulia Kachurova

Love your video thanks so much. you blow Lynda.com out of the water!!!!Steve Yensel

Brilliant video. So much great info packed in here. I'm just getting started drawing cartoons with my Wacom tablet, and this was a huge help. Thumbs up and thanks!Dorian Staten

Keep up the good work Jason. I’ve been doing Lynda.com tutorials for a few months now and I got more out of your videos than what I’ve received at Lynda. Keep it up and Thank You!!bobby jacobs • 1 year ago

These tutorials are amazing. Just started using illustrator and really glad I found your channel. The only videos that explain everything step by stepAida Stan

You are definitely one of the best teachers I've found dealing with start to finish creative process. Great work!!!Jasen Fisher

JASON SECREST

RESOURCE GUIDES

RESOURCE GUIDE

RESOURCE GUIDE

RESOURCE GUIDE

RESOURCE GUIDE

RESOURCE GUIDE

RESOURCE GUIDE

RESOURCE GUIDE

RESOURCE GUIDE

RESOURCE GUIDE

RESOURCE GUIDE

RESOURCE GUIDE

RESOURCE GUIDE

RESOURCE GUIDE

RESOURCE GUIDE

GETTING STARTED

GETTING STARTED

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