Complete Guide to Adobe Illustrator 2020 for Mac

Source: Love Mac  |  Software download link: Adobe Illustrator 2020 for Mac

Adobe Illustrator 2020 is a professional vector graphics design software, widely used in logo design, icon creation, illustration drawing, layout and printing, and other fields. Its core advantage lies in vector-based graphic creation, ensuring that images can be enlarged infinitely without losing quality. This guide will provide a detailed introduction to its interface, complete workflow, and efficient operation tips.

I. Detailed Explanation of the Core Interface and Workspace

After launching Illustrator 2020, you will see a standard workspace composed of multiple panels and areas.

1. Menu Bar: Located at the top of the screen, it contains categorized menus for all commands such as “File,” “Edit,” “Object,” and “Type.”
2. Control Panel: Located below the menu bar, its content changes dynamically based on the currently selected tool or object, providing the most relevant parameter options.
3. Tools Panel: Docked on the left side by default, it contains all tools for selection, drawing, text, coloring, modification, and more. The small triangle in the lower-right corner of a tool icon indicates a hidden tool group.
4. Artboard: The white rectangular area in the center, representing the work area that can be printed or exported. A single document can contain multiple artboards.
5. Panels: By default, they are docked on the right side, such as the “Properties” panel, “Layers” panel, “Color” panel, “Swatches” panel, etc., used to control and modify document and object properties. They can be opened or closed via the “Window” menu.
6. Status Bar: Located at the bottom of the window, it displays information such as the zoom level and current tool hints.

II. Complete Workflow from Creation to Export

1. Create or Open a Project

Create a New Document:

1. After launching the software, click “File” > “New” (shortcut Cmd + N).
2. In the dialog box that appears, set the document parameters: enter the document name, select the number of artboards, dimensions (or presets such as A4, Web), units, orientation, etc.
3. In “Advanced Options”, you can set the color mode (choose CMYK for print, RGB for screen display), raster effects resolution, etc.
4. Click the “Create” button.

Open an Existing Document: Click “File” > “Open” (shortcut Cmd + O), and in Finder select the AI, EPS, PDF, or other format file you want to open.

2. Basic Drawing and Editing

Drawing Basic Shapes:

• Select the “Rectangle Tool” (M), “Ellipse Tool” (L), etc. from the toolbar.
• Click and drag on the canvas to draw. Hold the Shift key to draw proportional shapes (such as perfect circles and squares).

Drawing Paths with the Pen Tool:

• Select the “Pen Tool” (P).
• Click to create corner points; click and drag to create smooth curve points.
• Hold the Cmd key to temporarily switch to the “Direct Selection Tool” (A) for adjusting anchor points; hold the Option key to adjust direction lines.

Selecting and Moving Objects:

• Use the “Selection Tool” (V) to click and select and move entire objects or groups.
• Use the “Direct Selection Tool” (A) to click and select individual anchor points or segments on a path for editing.

3. Coloring and Stroking

Filling with Color:

1. Select the object.
2. At the bottom of the toolbar or in the “Color” panel, double-click the “Fill” box.
3. Use the eyedropper to pick a color, or click a swatch directly from the “Swatches” panel to apply it.

Setting the Stroke:

1. Select the object.
2. At the bottom of the toolbar or in the “Color” panel, click the “Stroke” box (located below the Fill box) to bring it to the front.
3. Set the stroke color in the “Color” panel, and set the stroke weight, dashes, and other attributes in the “Properties” or “Stroke” panel.

4. Using the Layers Panel to Manage Objects

• Open the “Layers” panel (“Window” > “Layers”, shortcut F7).
• Each newly created object is placed in “Layer 1” by default. Click the “Create New Layer” button at the bottom of the panel to add a layer.
• Drag layers or sublayers in the panel to adjust their stacking order (which determines the front-to-back relationship of objects).
• Click the eye icon to hide/show a layer, and click the lock icon to lock/unlock a layer to prevent accidental edits.

5. Adding and Editing Text

• Select the “Type Tool” (T) or the “Area Type Tool”.
• Click on the canvas to create point text, or drag to draw a text frame to create area text.
• After selecting text, you can set the font, size, leading, alignment, and more in the Control panel or the “Character”/”Paragraph” panels.

6. Saving and Exporting Your Work

Save the source file: Click “File” > “Save” (shortcut Cmd + S), choose a save location, and select “Adobe Illustrator (*.AI)” as the format to preserve all editable properties.

Export to other formats:

1. Click “File” > “Export” > “Export As”.
2. In the dialog box, select a format (such as PNG, JPG, PDF, or SVG).
3. For PNG/JPG, an options dialog will appear. You can set the resolution (72 ppi for screen, 300 ppi for print), background (transparent or white), and more.
4. Click “OK” to complete the export.

III. Advanced Tips for Common Features

1. Live Paint Tool: Used to quickly color areas enclosed by complex paths. First use the “Selection Tool” (V) to select all intersecting paths, then choose the “Live Paint Tool” (K) and click to fill enclosed areas; hold the Shift key and click to change the stroke color.
2. Shape Builder Tool: Quickly merge, delete, or divide shapes. Select multiple overlapping shapes, choose the “Shape Builder Tool” (Shift+M), drag across the area you want to merge, and hold the Option key and drag across the area you want to delete.
3. Precise Alignment: Select multiple objects, and in the “Align” panel, click the “Align to Artboard” button, then use alignment commands (such as Horizontal Align Center) to align objects relative to the artboard rather than to each other.
4. Global Editing: When editing symbols instances or artwork that uses the “Recolor Artwork” feature, modifying the color or shape of one instance will synchronously update all related instances.
5. Clipping Masks: Create a clipping mask to hide parts of your artwork. Place the shape you want to use as the mask on top of the target object, select both, right-click, and choose “Make Clipping Mask” (shortcut Cmd+7).

IV. Common Issues and Solutions

• Issue 1: Toolbar or panels are missing?
  Solution: Go to the “Window” menu and make sure “Tools” and the required panel names are checked. Alternatively, choose “Window” > “Workspace” > “Reset Essentials”.
• Issue 2: Text won’t display or appears as boxes?
  Solution: This is caused by missing fonts. Select the text and change it to an installed font in the Control panel. Or use “Type” > “Find Font” to locate and replace missing fonts.
• Issue 3: Operations (such as moving or scaling) become laggy?
  Solution: The document may contain too many complex effects or high-resolution embedded images. Try turning off “View” > “Rulers” (shortcut Cmd+Y) to see if performance improves. Or use “Object” > “Rasterize” to temporarily rasterize complex vector effects.
• Issue 4: Saved or exported files are too large?
  Solution: Check whether too many high-resolution images are embedded. Use the “Links” panel to change images to links rather than embedding them. When saving, uncheck “Create PDF Compatible File” to reduce the .ai file size (though this may affect compatibility with some software).
• Issue 5: Can’t select an object underneath?
  Solution: An object on a higher layer may be blocking it. You can lock the upper object (select it and press Cmd+2), or enter “Outline” view (Cmd+Y) to select a path, or use the “Layers” panel to directly click the selection indicator (the small dot on the right) of the target object.

V. Adobe Illustrator 2020 for Mac Shortcuts Summary Table