Vectips

iStock Promo – 50% Off Vectors Plus Exclusive Promo Code!

Sands — Wed, 22 May 2013 05:40:25 +0000

Today we have an iStock promo for you that is so big, I’m still shocked they’re doing this. iStockphoto is running a promo (today only) for you to save 50% OFF credit downloads for vector illustrations!

Let me repeat that… FIFTY PERCENT OFF VECTORS for 24 hours.

What makes this even better is that we found a coupon you can still use to save even more! Click on the image below to reveal a code to save another 10% in addition to your 50% off. (Yes I tested it and yes it works!)

Never before have I seen a promotion like this with a discount so large from iStockphoto. Now is the time to stock up for the rest of the year folks.

Based on our survey we ran a few weeks ago, we found that many of our readers still spend several hundred dollars on stock vectors each year. It’s always handy to have some credits in your account when your budget doesn’t permit custom illustration.

On top of that, our survey revealed to us that the majority of you still prefer to purchase your resources at iStockphoto over any other provider. For the majority of you, it’s your lucky day!

How To Use This iStock Promo Code

Click on the button above to unlock the 10% off iStock promo code.
Select your desired credit package (remember it’s 50% off today only. Now is your chance to stock up for the rest of the year)
Enter the promo code at the bottom of that page and click the “Next” button.
Review your order and check out.

If iStockphoto isn’t your marketplace of choice, we hope to have more exclusive discounts from other marketplaces in upcoming months so stay tuned.

If you decided to take advantage of this deal, please leave a comment below to let us know how much you saved! Also please let us know if you’d like to see more promotional offers from *relevant* companies like this in the future.

Enjoy!

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The Fundamentals of Shape Design in Adobe Illustrator (Lesson 1)

Jonathan Patterson — Wed, 15 May 2013 18:38:46 +0000

It goes without saying that Adobe Illustrator is all about using shapes to create artwork. In this tutorial I’ll cover how to use basic shapes, and tools to create a variety of logos. The more seasoned designer may pick up a fact or two, but this tutorial is perfect for the expert beginner who is working on reaching intermediate status. I’ve also included several animated gifs to help more clearly illustrate how certain steps are performed.

Tutorial Details

Program: Adobe Illustrator CS6
Difficulty: Beginner
Topics Covered: Shape Tools, 3D Tool, Eraser Tool, Pathfinder, Flip & Rotate Tools
Estimated Completion Time: 1-1.5 hours

Piece of Cake—Windows 8

Let’s start with the basics. We’ll use the following tools:

Rectangle Tool
Move Tool
3D Rotate Tool

Step 1

Start by selecting the color of the logo. I’m using 00abf0.

Step 2

Press M to get the Rectangle Tool. It’s commonplace to simply draw an arbitrary rectangle shape but since we’re making a more specific design, we’ll use Illustrator’s precision to our advantage. To make a shape that has specific dimensions, click once on the Artboard to bring up the dialog box. Enter 100 px X 75 px.

This is your resulting shape.

Step 3

Go to Object > Transform > Move. Since our rectangle is 100 px wide, we’ll move it 102 px to the right which will give us a 2 px gap. Click Copy.

Step 4

You’ll now have two rectangles. Select both of them and now move them vertically by 77 px. Click Copy.

This is your result. You’ll now have a perfect 2 pixel gap both vertically, and horizontally between your shapes.

Step 5

Select all four rectangles and go to Object > Group (Command + G.) If you don’t group your objects the next step will apply a transformation to each rectangle individually. So, make sure not to skip this step!

Step 6

Go to Effect > 3D > Rotate. Enter 30 for the Y Axis and, 0 for the others. Change the Perspective to 135. Click OK.

That’s it! Piece of cake, right? I’ll turn up the heat as we move on to the next section.

Let’s Rock—Android

Ok, you made easy work of creating the Windows logo. This Android logo will be a bit harder. This is what I’ll cover:

Rounded Rectangle Tool
Eraser Tool
Rotate Tool
Flip Tool
Pathfinder

Step 1

Start by selecting the color of the logo. I’m using a5c63b.

Step 2

There are several ways to draw a rectangle with rounded corners. You can use the standard Rectangle Tool (M), and add rounded corners to it. Or, you can use the Rounded Corner Rectangle Tool, shown below.

All Illustrator shape tools have additional options that can be invoked by either double clicking on the tool itself or clicking once on the artboard with the tool selected. Even better, you can use modifier keys like spacebar, option key, and arrow keys to manipulate a shape or its position as you’re drawing it.

Notice below that when I first select the Rounded Corner Rectangle Tool the shape has square corners. I gradually round the corners by holding the up arrow before I release the mouse button.

Modifier keys let you manipulate a shape as you’re drawing it.

Step 3

The Eraser Tool can work wonders. Not only can it erase in arbitrary directions and sizes, it can erase entire sections of a shape. To erase a large section, grab the Eraser Tool (Shift + E), then hold down Option and click and drag over the area of a shape you want to erase. It’s that easy!

The Eraser Tool (Shift+E) helps you erase large sections of a shape.

Step 4

Using the Penn Tool (P) make a line and give it a 3 px Stroke.

Hold down Shift to make a perfectly straight line.

Step 5

Both the Selection Tool (V), and the Rotate Tool (R) can rotate shapes. Below, I’m using the Rotate Tool to change the angle of my shape.

The center cross hair determines the pivot of the shape.

Step 6

Using the Reflect Tool (O) duplicate the line so that you have a perfect copy and the opposite angle of the first shape.

Step 7

Align the antenna with the head then select the antenna and go to Object > Expand, then click OK. You can align objects to an anchor object by first selecting all the objects that need to be aligned and then clicking once more on the anchor object. As you’ll see below, the anchor object is the head. The two antenna (which have already been grouped together) are aligned to the head shape, then expanded.

Merge all of your shapes together using the Unite option in the Pathfinder Palette.

Step 9

Using the Ellipse Tool (L) draw two circles. Make them perfect circles by holding down the Shift key as you draw them. Group both of the circles then center align them to the head shape.

Step 10

We’ll again use the Rounded Rectangle Tool, and Eraser Tool to make easy work of creating the Android’s body.

Step 11

Use the trusty Rounded Corner Rectangle to make the legs, and arms. That’s it!

Come Get Some—CNN

As you advance your Illustrator skills it will be critical to have a command of the Pen Tool. This last logo shows you firsthand the power of the Pen Tool and how it can save you valuable time when creating shapes. I’ll use the following tools:

Ellipse Tool
Pen Tool
Direct Selection Tool

Step 1

Select your color. I’m using f21919.

Step 2

Using the Ellipse Tool (L) draw a perfect circle. Give the circle a substantial Stroke.

Step 3

Use the Direct Selection Tool (A) (the white arrow) and delete the right point of the ellipse. Using the Pen Tool (P), click once of the point you want to start drawing from, then click again to create where you want to finish the line. In order to start drawing from a new point you must first deselect the shape or change tools then switch back to the Pen Tool. In everyday work, this is accomplished with a couple quick keystrokes, (Escape, then P to reactivate the Pen Tool) but below I’m physically clicking on the different tools to better illustrate this step.

Deselect and reselect your shape (by switching tools) when starting from a new point or your shape will automatically close.

Step 4

Continue using the Pen Tool to lay down the overall shape of the logo. I’m holding down the Shift key when drawing each line so that the vertical lines are completely vertical, and both angled lines on the N’s are at identical 45 degree angles. Even though I may not need 45 degree angles, this way I at least know they’re identical and I can later move those points simultaneously to achieve any slant I need.

Step 5

Round the Joins and Caps of the shape and use the Direct Selection Tool (A) to select and adjust several points at once. Points can be aligned to one another using the Align Palette, and/or nudging them using arrow keys!

Step 6

Copy (Command +C), and Paste in Place (Command+F) your shape then change the stroke weight and color.

Step 7

Go to Effect > Stylize > Round Corners to add the proper roundness to the inside white shape. Sidenote, at times, you may be applying a radius to a shape that has multiple radii. When this happens, simply divide the line into several sections and apply the appropriate radius to each section.

Use the up or down arrow key to quickly cycle through radii.

Step 8

Make absolutely sure that your overall shape is looking how you want it to before you expand your lines. Below, I’ve expanded both the red and white stroke so that I can do more refined edits.

Use the Eraser Tool (Shift+E) to erase the rounded edges. Notice that the edge of the C has a small amount of space that’s not curved. I’ve specifically deleted just enough of the edge of the shape so that when I use the Direct Selection Tool to extend that edge, I won’t be altering the curve.

That’s a wrap! You should now be well on your way to creating fundamental shapes in Adobe Illustrator. Stay tuned for Lesson 2 which will highlight a different set of tools, shapes, and increase in difficulty.

Jonathan Patterson’s Social Profiles

Follow him on Twitter: @Jon_Patterson

Follow him on Dribbble: dribbble.com/jon_patterson

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Adobe Ditches the Box for Subscriptions: Say Hello to Adobe Illustrator CC

Sands — Tue, 07 May 2013 03:54:25 +0000

Prepare to get billed monthly.

Today at their Max conference in LA, Adobe announced that they will be ditching all their boxed software and moving to the Creative Cloud starting June 17. Oh, and they killed Fireworks too!

While many attendees were expecting a release of CS7, instead Adobe announced they decided to ditch the “Creative Suite” name in favor of “Creative Cloud” which won’t have the traditional release numbers anymore.

Adobe says they will allow everyone who owns a license to CS3 and up to subscribe to Creative Cloud for $29.95 per month for a limited time. But prepare to start dishing out at least $19.99 per month to use the newest version of Adobe Illustrator CC if you’re looking to upgrade.

This is big news for Adobe. While it seems to me like somewhat of a risky business move, they now claim to have over half a million paying subscribers since the creative cloud was introduced last year. However, that is still a drop in the bucket considering their market share, but obviously enough to make the switch.

I personally don’t care to subscribe to any software at a monthly subscription. And judging by the amount of negative comments on all the tech blogs making this same announcement, it seems like other creative folks don’t either.

This seems like a very risky business move for Adobe. What do you think? Will you upgrade to Illustrator CC?

You can view the new features in Adobe Illustrator CC here.

Further Reading:

http://mashable.com/2013/05/06/adobe-ceo-interview-creative-cloud/

http://thenextweb.com/insider/2013/05/06/after-nearly-10-years-adobe-abandons-its-creative-suite-entirely-to-focus-on-creative-cloud/

http://www.digitalartsonline.co.uk/news/graphic-design/illustrator-cc-indesign-cc-preview/

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Hiatus Over. We Need Your Help!

Sands — Fri, 03 May 2013 16:59:27 +0000

Hi Everyone! My name is Kevin Sanderson (Sands) and I’m going to be taking over Vectips for Ryan (Rype) while he continues to focus on Rype Arts. I’m an Illustrator by day and a lover of vector art. I’m honored to be working on Vectips! I have a great team of writers assembled so we are looking forward to bringing you more great vector content.

It has been exactly 10 months since a post was published here. Since things change so quickly, we somewhat feel like we are starting over from scratch. While we don’t have any big plans to change much of what Ryan has started, we would like to reevaluate the type of content that Ryan has been posting in the past. Do do this, we need your help!

Please do us a favor and take our survey. It should take you less than 1 minute and it will give us some insight into what types of readers we still have with us what types of content you would like to see published.

Take the Vectips Reader Survey

Also, please take a moment to introduce yourself in the comments below. If you are interested in writing for us, please get in touch. I look forward to getting to know more of you!

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Vectips Hiatus

Rype — Tue, 03 Jul 2012 15:53:09 +0000

After four years of creating tutorials, tips, and hunting for vector art inspiration for Vectips, I’m taking a break and putting Vectips on a hiatus. I didn’t come to this decision easily and below I outline some of the reasons that I made this decision. I also talk about the future of Vectips and other possibilities. I really have enjoyed creating and maintaining Vectips. My career path is changing but I hope Vectips will still have a bright future!

Why The Hiatus?

Let me start out by saying Vectips has been a really wonderful experience. Without Vectips, I would have never been introduced to so many awesome people and amazing career building opportunities. When I first started Vectips, I wanted to give back to the community that has helped me so much. I really hope that I have helped people and have been an inspiration for some.

Maintaining Vectips is a big job. It takes a lot of time each day to create tutorials, write tips and tricks, find vector art inspiration, chat with vector artist, moderate comments, respond to email, and in general maintain the brand.

In addition to Vectips, I am the owner, designer and illustrator of my own design studio Rype Arts. I also run the online Illustrator resource shop Vector Mill. As these properties grow, so does the time it takes to maintain them. The work I am creating for Rype Arts and Vector Mill is very fulfilling creatively and financially. I now want to focus my time on this more creative work. It’s not that I don’t love you guys, my career path had just changed and evolved.

Future of Vectips

So with the hiatus there will be no more updating the site with content. However, I really want the content to still be accessible. So at the very least, Vectips will still stay online. I will probably be throwing more ads on the site to pay for the hosting required to keep it online.

I’m also keeping the option open of selling the site and brand to an interested person or company. It’s my hope to pass on the brand to someone or a group of people with the same passion for Vectips that I have. If you or someone you know is interested, shoot me an email.

The one aspect of Vectips that is really incorporated into my everyday tasks is finding awesome vector art. I am playing around with the idea of creating a way more stripped back blog strictly for the all the awesome vector art I encounter. Just a little something that I would be doing anyway. Let me know what you guys think about this idea.

I’d really like to stay involved in the community moving forward. I’m not sure what that will look like, be it writing guest posts for other Vector blogs or books or, who knows? But I look forward to figuring that out.

Where To Now?

I’m sure Vectips isn’t the only Illustrator blog you read but if it is, there are some killer blogs and tutorial writers out there right now. Here is a quick list of resources that are continuously cranking out great content.

There is so much more and I know I’m missing a bunch so comment with your favs.

Thanks!

Again, I really appreciate all the support from everyone! I hope Vectips can live on in some form or another and I hope to stay very connected to the community. Below is an quick list of places to keep in touch.

Dribbble: Check out Dribbble to see what I’m currently working on.
Rype Arts: My Design studio. I’m in the process of a redesign.
Vector Mill: Shop full of Illustrator resources.
Amperbranch: Another little side project for nature and ampersand lovers!
Twitter
Instagram: User name Rypearts

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Weekly Vector Inspiration #174

Rype — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 12:05:29 +0000

This post is part of a weekly series showcasing inspirational vector art. Although the series showcases vector art, some work might just be vector inspired, not created completely with vector art. If you have any art suggestions, feel free to comment! For more vector art inspiration, check out the Vectips Flickr Group.

TASTEE TREATS by Little Friends of Printmaking

Print for WBR 50th anniversary. DEEEEVOOO! by Little Friends of Printmaking

Gerhard Human

KFD Skate Deck by Greg Darroll

Lola Malone by Greg Darroll

City Slickers Exhibition – Cape Town by Greg Darroll

Attack Tattoo by Greg Darroll

Señora Lavery by Steve Simpson

Journey for a Better World by VanilaBCN

100 Years of Paramount Pictures by DKNGstudios

Robocycle Playing Cards by Theory 11

SELFPORTRAIT / TONE OLVERA by Tone Olvera

Ballistic Brewing by Stranger and Stranger

Make Stuff, Do Thingsby David Creighton-Pester

A LOT CAN HAPPEN INSIDE THE BEARD by Brosmind

chobopop

How to become a Jedi by Franck Graetz

Monsters on Wheelzzz by Bert van wijk

The post Weekly Vector Inspiration #174 appeared first on Vectips.

Weekly Vector Inspiration #173

Rype — Fri, 01 Jun 2012 14:25:19 +0000

Ben Mounsey

Tawkon by Loulou and Tummie

Character City print by Loulou and Tummie

GreenSource Magazine by Loulou and Tummie

Podium Magazine by Loulou and Tummie

Retail Magazine by Loulou and Tummie

Wired – Zen Garden by Marco Goran Romano

Wired.it | One Year of Gadgets by Marco Goran Romano

Chicco di Senape Cover by Marco Goran Romano

Nandos by Radio

Boston Magazine by Radio

Petros Afshar

Eirian Chapman

22 Seven by Radio

Folksaga by Caleb Heisey

Momo & Sprits

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Vectorian Pack Giveaway Winners

Rype — Wed, 30 May 2012 21:22:47 +0000

A week ago I posted the Vectorian Vintage Vector Giveaway and today I’m happy to announce the winners! Check below to see if you won. I tried to included twitter names so there is no confusion. If you won, email me your contact info so I can pass it on to Vectorian and you can get your pack! If you didn’t win, you should at least download some of the Vectorian freebies.

Winners

Johnny Cruz @croozayy
Anne Hale @SocialiteDesign
Sergio Chiavassa @schiavassa
Laurie @ArtsyLaurie
Lizzie Jacoby

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Weekly Vector Inspiration #172

Rype — Fri, 25 May 2012 14:59:38 +0000

Admissions Poster RCAD by Lab Partners

The Winter Issue 7×7 by Lab Partners

D.I.Y. Universe by Lab Partners

I Percussionisti della Scala by Seb NIARK1 FERAUT

Afternoon Snack by Invisible Creature

The Visitor by Invisible Creature

Neighborhood Cookout by Invisible Creature

High and Dry by Invisible Creature

H.P. Lovecraft and Nikola Tesla: Paranormal Investigators by Travis Pitts

Bassnectar by stubbornsideburn

METATRON by Héctor Hernández and Roberto Andreu

Luis Miguel Torres

A B See Them Go by Avnish Panesar

Movie Patterns by Avnish Panesar

Rise And Amplify by Derin Ciler

Pixel Dreams by Derin Ciler

Desktop Background by cronobreaker

beatles: yellow submarine: meanie by strongstuff

Kawaii Avengers by Jerrod Maruyama

The post Weekly Vector Inspiration #172 appeared first on Vectips.

Vintage Vector Vectorian Pack Giveaway

Rype — Wed, 23 May 2012 17:32:44 +0000

The Vectorian Vintage Vector Pack is a mammoth pack including 930 vector ornaments, 465 vintage frame borders, and 92 antique illustrations. Vectorian is giving away 5 packs to 5 lucky Vectips readers! You really need to check out the site to see all the elements.

About the Vectorian Pack

With the Vectorian Pack, you can save time and create distinctive wrappings, refined wedding invitations and elegant stationary designs. The possibilities are endless with this oversized library of 930 vector ornaments, 465 vintage frame borders, and 92 antique illustrations all hand-picked from nineteenth century type foundry catalogs.
[youtube width="600" height="335"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mi8LbAe6Vvs&feature=plcp[/youtube]

How to Enter

There are a couple of ways to enter the giveaway. Enter both to increase your odds! See below for details.

Facebook

To enter the giveaway with Facebook, go to the Vectorian.net site and press the Facebook Like button. Then update your status with:
“Hey Vectorian and Vectips, count me in for the giveaway! http://vecti.ps/LgdA85″

Twitter

To enter the giveaway from Twitter, tweet the message
“Hey @webalys @Vectips count me in for the Vectorian giveaway! http://vecti.ps/LgdA85″

Selecting the Winner

The giveaway will end on Wednesday, May 30 at 1pm MST. We will randomly select 5 winners from all the entries. The winner will be announced later that same day.

Samples

Below are some sample images of the elements included in the pack, but there is a lot more!

Ornaments

Frames Borders

Antique Illustrations

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