Introduction

1. Key Concepts

• Illustrator - What are vector graphics?
• Illustrator - Path and appearance
• Illustrator - Stacking

2. Creating New Documents

• Illustrator - The Welcome screen
• Illustrator - Creating files for print
• Illustrator - Creating files for the screen
• Illustrator - Using prebuilt templates
• Illustrator - Adding XMP metadata
• Illustrator - Exploring the panels
• Illustrator - Using the Control panel
• Illustrator - Using workspaces

3. Working with Documents

• Illustrator - Navigating within a document
• Illustrator - Using rulers and guides
• Illustrator - Using grids
• Illustrator - Using the bounding box
• Illustrator - Using Smart Guides
• Illustrator - The Hide Edges command
• Illustrator - Various preview modes
• Illustrator - Creating custom views
• Illustrator - Locking and hiding artwork

4. Making Selections

• Illustrator - Using the basic selection tools
• Illustrator - Using the Magic Wand tool
• Illustrator - Using the Lasso tool
• Illustrator - Selecting objects by attribute or type
• Illustrator - Saving and reusing selections
• Illustrator - Selecting artwork beneath other objects
• Illustrator - Exploring selection preferences

5. Drawing and Editing Paths

• The importance of modifier keys
• Illustrator - Drawing closed path primitives
• Illustrator - Drawing open path primitives
• Illustrator - Understanding anchor points
• Illustrator - Drawing straight paths with the Pen tool
• Illustrator - Drawing curved paths with the Pen tool
• Illustrator - Drawing freeform paths with the Pencil tool
• Illustrator - Smoothing and erasing paths
• Illustrator - Editing anchor points
• Illustrator - Joining and averaging paths
• Illustrator - Simplifying paths
• Illustrator - Using Offset Path
• Illustrator - Cleaning up errant paths

6. Building Shapes

• Illustrator - The Draw Inside and Draw Behind modes
• Illustrator - Creating compound paths
• Illustrator - Creating compound shapes
• Illustrator - Using the Shape Builder tool
• Illustrator - Using Pathfinder functions
• Illustrator - Splitting an object into a grid
• Illustrator - Using the Blob Brush and Eraser tools

7. Working with Text

• Illustrator - Creating point text
• Illustrator - Creating area text
• Illustrator - Applying basic character settings
• Illustrator - Applying basic paragraph settings
• Illustrator - Creating text threads
• Illustrator - Setting text along an open path
• Illustrator - Setting text along a closed path
• Illustrator - Converting text into paths

8. Quick Project: Building a Logo

• Illustrator - Create a logo mark
• Illustrator - Add type to your logo

9. Applying Appearances and Effects

• Illustrator - Using the Appearance panel
• Illustrator - Targeting object attributes
• Illustrator - Adding multiple attributes
• Illustrator - Applying Live Effects
• Illustrator - Expanding appearances
• Illustrator - Appearance panel settings
• Illustrator - Copying appearances
• Illustrator - Saving appearances as graphic styles

10. Using Color in Illustrator

• Illustrator - Applying color to artwork
• Illustrator - Creating process and global process swatches
• Illustrator - Creating spot color swatches
• Illustrator - Loading PANTONE and other custom color libraries
• Illustrator - Organizing colors with Swatch Groups
• Illustrator - Finding color suggestions with the Color Guide panel
• Illustrator - Loading the Color Guide with user-defined colors

11. Applying Fills and Strokes

• Illustrator - Creating gradients with the Gradient panel
• Illustrator - Modifying gradients with the Gradient Annotator
• Illustrator - Applying and manipulating pattern fills
• Illustrator - Defining your own custom pattern fills
• Illustrator - Applying basic stroke settings
• Illustrator - Creating strokes with dashed lines
• Illustrator - Adding arrowheads to strokes
• Illustrator - Creating variable-width strokes
• Illustrator - Working with width profiles
• Illustrator - Turning strokes into filled paths

12. Using Groups and Layers

• Illustrator - Creating and editing groups
• Illustrator - Adding attributes to groups
• Illustrator - The importance of using layers
• Illustrator - Using and "reading" the Layers panel

13. Managing Multiple Artboards

• Illustrator - Creating and using multiple artboards
• Illustrator - Modifying artboards with the Artboards panel
• Illustrator - Copy and paste options with Artboards

14. Transforming and Positioning Art

• Illustrator - Moving and copying artwork
• Illustrator - Scaling or resizing artwork
• Illustrator - Rotating artwork
• Illustrator - Reflecting and skewing artwork
• Illustrator - Using the Free Transform tool
• Illustrator - Repeating transformations
• Illustrator - Performing individual transforms across multiple objects
• Illustrator - Aligning objects and groups precisely
• Illustrator - Distributing objects and spaces between objects

15. Working with Images

• Illustrator - Placing pixel-based content into Illustrator
• Illustrator - Managing images with the Links panel
• Illustrator - Converting pixels to paths with Live Trace
• Illustrator - Making Live Trace adjustments
• Illustrator - Controlling colors in Live Trace
• Illustrator - Using Photoshop and Live Trace together

16. Working Efficiently with Symbols

• Illustrator - Managing repeating artwork with symbols
• Illustrator - Modifying and replacing symbol instances
• Illustrator - Using the Symbol Sprayer tool

17. Working with Masks

• Illustrator - Cropping photographs
• Illustrator - Clipping artwork with masks
• Illustrator - Clipping the contents of a layer
• Illustrator - Defining masks with soft edges

18. Drawing in Perspective

• Illustrator - Defining a perspective grid
• Illustrator - Drawing artwork in perspective
• Illustrator - Moving flat art onto the perspective grid

19. Printing, Saving, and Exporting

• Illustrator - Printing your Illustrator document
• Illustrator - Saving your Illustrator document
• Illustrator - Creating PDF files for clients and printers
• Illustrator - Exporting Illustrator files for use in Microsoft Office
• Illustrator - Exporting Illustrator files for use in Photoshop
• Illustrator - Exporting artwork for use on the web
• Illustrator - Exporting high-resolution raster files