Adobe Illustrator CC Level 1

Overview

This 1 day, beginner-friendly, hands-on course introduces participants to the core tools and workflows in Adobe Illustrator. Learners will create and edit vector artwork, understand paths and shapes, work with color and appearance, and prepare basic graphics for print or digital use.

This course uses the current version of Adobe Illustrator CC. Participants using versions beginning with 2013 should be able to follow, although some of the newest features may not be available in older versions.

Adobe Illustrator software allows you to create sophisticated artwork for virtually any medium. Industry-standard drawing tools, flexible color controls, and professional type controls help you capture your ideas and experiment freely, while timesaving features such as easier-to-access options let you work quickly and intuitively. Improved performance and tight integration with other Adobe applications also help you produce extraordinary graphics for print, web and interactive, and mobile and motion designs.

Prerequisites

• Solid familiarity with Windows or Mac computing is required.
• Familiarity with basic design terminology, such as palettes, color modes, shapes, text, and paths is highly recommended.

Learning Objectives

Through hands-on exercises participants will learn to:

• Navigate the Illustrator workspace and customize panels
• Understand vector graphics and how they differ from raster images
• Create and edit shapes, paths, and anchor points
• Transform, align, and organize artwork
• Work with fills, strokes, gradients, and color swatches
• Apply basic effects and use the Appearance panel
• Save files in proper formats for print and web

Course Outline

Module 1 - Introduction to Illustrator and the Workspace

What is vector vs raster graphics

Workspace layouts (Essentials/Essentials Classic)

Tools panel, Control panel, Properties panel

Navigating: zoom, pan, artboards

Setting preferences

Module 2 - Working with Documents and Artboards

Create a new document

Units, bleed, color modes

Add, delete, rearrange artboards

Artboard tool options

Module 3 - Creating and Editing Shapes

Rectangle, Ellipse, Polygon, Star tools

Drawing with precision using Shift/Alt

Live Shapes

Combining shapes with Shape Builder

Pathfinder fundamentals

Module 4 - Working with Color, Strokes and Gradients

Color panel vs Swatches

Global colors

Stroke weight, cap, corner, dashed lines

Linear and radial gradients

Using CC Libraries

Module 5 - Editing Paths and Anchor Points

Pen Tool basics

Add/delete points

Convert points (smooth/corner)

Curvature tool for easy path creation

Direct Selection for fine-tuning

Module 6 - Transformations and Organizing Artwork

Move, rotate, scale, reflect

Align and distribute

Grouping and isolation mode

Layers panel basics

Module 7: Saving, Exporting and Packaging

Save AI, PDF, SVG, PNG

Export for screens

Packaging files for print service providers

Understanding linked vs embedded images

ON-TRACK Corporate Training has a diverse and flexible schedule that can be customized to your needs. We offer group courses (both public and corporate), one-on-one training, virtual (on-line) classroom (Zoom etc.) and on-site training options. We also have easily accessible on-line training videos on OnTrackTV.