#1 How To Use the Selection Tools in Illustrator

1. Illustrator Selection Tools Promo Video: welcome to the every adobe illustrator Toe, explained Siri's. This series is throughout to be as a one stop shop for all you guys who really need to understand all the tools inside the software in order to understand how the software works . So if you're looking for a source off thorough knowledge on each and every adobe illustrator tool, and if you're familiar with my other courses, well, you might expect techniques that are straight to the point, easy to use and easy to follow. And I guarantee you that she will feel more comfortable than using each Adobe illustrator tool after watching the videos in this Siris. In this particular class, you will learn at the selection tools used in Adobe Illustrator. So if you want to know the best practices on how to use the selection tool, the direct selection tool, the group selection toe, the magic went and the last so tool well, you will find her answers inside this course, so I will see you inside 2. 1Selection Tool for Skillshare: In this video, we will talk about the first of the Illustrator tools, which is called the Selection Tool. And it is this guy right here, this black arrow tool, and it has a very handy short cut off the letter V. So whenever you have any other tool active, just press the letter view to initialize their selection toe, and the selection tool will says what its name suggests. It's select objects and it can. That's a select individual anchor points, nor path segments. It will select the whole objects older and whole groups. So, like in this case, if I just click, maybe on this son right here you can see that I'm selecting the whole the whole path and even let me just zoom in real close. And even if I tried to click on this anchor point and select Onley this anchor point, I am selecting the whole the whole path right here, but that their selection tool would be kind of a limited till, don't you think? If it was just for doing that, let me just maybe quickly group all these guys with them. With the selection tool, you can also transform objects and In order to do that, we need to have the bounding box will active and in order to Well, to be sure that we have the bounding box and active, we need to go to the view menu and find this hide or show bounding box option right here, which is a toggle if I just click on it and I'm going to hide the bounding box. And if I go to the view menu again and click show bounding box and I got the bounding box active right here So if I just were right now impress any of these control points right here you, by the way, you can see it too. When I hover over any of these points, well, my cursor changes. And if I know, just click on it and affect click and drag. I am going to be able to manipulate my object just like so. And if I want to resize it just like that, well, I can do it if I want to. If I want to distort it even like that, I could do that. But I don't want to do that. And so, in order to proportionately manipulate well to resize proportionately any object. I'm going to simply click on this control point on. I'm going to press and hold down the shift key just like so So you can see that I am proportionately resized in my resize in my well for a picture frame or a picture in this case. And if I want to transform my object proportionately and I want to do it starting from its centre point, I'm simply going to click. Well, click and drag by this by this control point I'm going to press and hold on the shift key and I'm going to press and hold on the old He's well, the all turkey just like so. And of course, if you're on a Mac, you press and hold down the option key. So impressing both the shift and the old is just like so, to transform to resize my my oh well picture frame and from its central point. And of course, if I want to rotate my my object, if I just hover near the any of these, well, these four, these corners right here. I'm simply going to click and drag right now, and I can rotated just like So, however, there's one little, uh, one little trick that you can that you can do when you are working with selection toe and you can. You can initialize the move till very quickly with this, with selection told and all we need to do is we simply need to double click on the selection told to invoke the move to right here. So I just double clicked and on this black arrow right here, and if I want to, I can move it both horizontally, just like so. And by the way, I am pressing and they on the up arrow key by holding down the shift key to change well to change him the distance by 10 pixels. Increments just like so. And of course, I could move it vertically as well. Just like that. And if I want to, I can change the angle value or the distance value if I want to. But what is great about this tool that is that if I want to move my object, let's say, by maybe 50 pixels vertically, just like so, I can also simply hit the copy right here instead of okay to simply create a copy of my my object and to move it by well, in this case, 50 pixels at the same time. So again, if you want to simply initialize the move told, just select your object and double click on the black arrow key to initialize the move toe . Just like so, where you can move your never object horizontally, vertically, and you can copied at the same time. So there you go. This is how you can use the their selection. That selection also remember that it has a very handy short cut off the letter V on your keyboard. So if if you have any other too active and you want to quickly move to the selection told, just press the V key on your keyboard. And if you have the bounding box visible, you can transform your image. You can resize it or rotate it just like so, and if you double click and if you double click on this black arrow icon right here, you were invoked. The move to and you can move your move your and copy or object just like that. So in the next few, we will talk about the other off the second selection tool inside our tool set right here, which is called that direct selection tool. Before you move onto the next video, be sure to get your copy of the free E book on Android at Aiken Design that is waiting for you on my website david Tyminski dot com, and you'll find the link in the description off this video. So, as always, have a nice design. 3. 2Direct Selection Tool for Skillshare: that direct selection tool sits right here in the tools panel, and it has a very handy short cut off the letter. A. So if you, if you simply want to move to the direct selection till just press a on the keyboard and what this tool does is well, it's elects well. It construct whole objects and can select individual path segments and anchor points. So if I just click and drank over over a group, who we'll? We'll a set of elements like In this case, I'm going to select the whole group and if it even if it's not a group, even if it's just some mixed objects or like so I can simply hover over them. And I'm going to select all these objects like that. And if they are a group actually, with the direct selection tool, I can select individual elements within a group, some simply going to press this son right here and you can see that I'm selecting Onley. This only this path, just like so, and with the direct selection tool, I can also, and individual elements that are within a group to my selection. So in this case, I'm going to oppress will hold down the shift key and click on this world this rectangle that I guess it z the If the sky representation sounds simply going to click on it. And as you can see off selected both the sun and the sky And I'm gonna Maybe this time we'll holding down the shift key press on this mountain right here to select to select well , to add the mountain to my selection at As I said before, we can select individual pass segments or anchor points off our objects even though they are within within a group. So if I just press on this anchor point right here, I can either just use my will up arrow key to move this guy up just like so. Or I can simply click on it and move this guy around if I want to make my mountain look kind of kind of funky, just like so why not? Let's say that this mountain is really well, it's like a world world known landmarks, so it looks something like this. So with the direct selection tool, you can see that you can select Dinsmore. Will you get more flexibility when selecting one selecting objects. You won't get this bounding box around your objects so you can't. You can't transform them just like you. You could with this with the selection tool, however, you can involve the move toe with the well by double clicking on direct selection toe. And as you can see, since we had this thing this anchor point selected, we can move it using this move told if I want to, I can move it. Ah, just like so why not? I'm going to move it maybe. Like so. I mean, of course, in in a normal, normal design scenario, I wouldn't go. I wouldn't do anything like so. But I just want to show that you can You can move individual ankle points and with the move tool and that you could invoke by double clicking on the direct selection tool right here. With the direct selection tool, you can select individual objects you can select like group of objects by clicking and dragon just like so, Or you can select individual objects even though they are within a group. So if I just turn all these guys to into a group back again, I can now, even though this is a group, as we can see in the control panel, we can we can select like the sun individually or in the mountain, or by pressing the shift in holding down the shift key. If I click on these individual elements, I am, I am adding in all these elements to my selection. And if I want to, I can create a group within a group just like so. And also remember that you can involve the move told by double clicking on the direct selection tool. Of course, we need to have something selected. So if I just double click right now and direct selection till I am going to invoke the move toe just like we did with that with the selection tool in the In the world Previews video. So there you go. This is how you can use that the direct selection tool. And in the next video, we will talk about that group selection tool 4. 3Group Selection Tool for Skillshare: in this video, we will talk about the group selection tool, and it sits right here beneath the our direct selection tool. And if you want to, you can will turn it on Well, right here in our tools panel or when you have the direct selection still active, simply press the old or option. If you're on a Mac to temporarily switch to the group selection to and you can see that we are actually right now have this tool active bite. This will plus symbol next to next to our white arrow cursor. So what? What does this told to let me just tell you that I created groups out of these objects. So the mountains are a group, the sky and the sun. There also a group, and this picture frame is also a group. What I'm gonna do right now is I'm going to select all these guys and I'm going to group them and you can see in my well layers panel that I got a group and it contains one group, which is our our mountains. I got a group of that this our sky and the sun, and I got a group that is our picture frame. So with the grew with the group selects until I'm simply going toe press on. This mountain will path right here and you can see that I am actually selecting just this path. Even though this is a business, a group and it's nothing. Well, nothing different from, well, using the regular direct selection tool, right? However, if I just press on it again, you can see that I am actually selecting the whole group. You can see that both these elements we quickly consider in the layers panel that these both elements are are being selected. And if I just press, we'll click on this group again with the Drexel with a group selection toe. I'm selecting the whole groups of selecting all the elements on that are within this group . So it's it's some kind of like going one level one level up. So just as a repetition, if I simply press the son, I come will the sun path right here? Well, im just selecting this path you can see in this, um well, inside our layers pound that I'm just selecting this path. This guy right here And if I just click on it again. I am selecting the whole group. So on the sun and the sky. And if I click on it once more, I am selecting the whole the whole group, which which contains all my own, my image or picture elements. So the thing to remember here, if you got the direct selection till active, you can initialize or temporarily switch the group selection tool by president holding them the old or an option key if you're on a Mac and if you have a group off objects, if you click on well on an object within that group, we're going to select only that one particular object. However, if you click on it again, you will select the whole group, and if you click on it once more, you will select the whole group that contains all your group to all your group elements. So before we move on, let me just quickly give you one more one more hint. Whenever you have any will any other any other lenders than any of the selection tools active. For instance, if you have the rectangle too active, if you present, hold on the control or the command key if you're on a Mac, if you present and hold it out, you can see that you're temporarily in switching to the last used selection toe, and you can use it just like you would, if you will have that particular particular tool active. So if I let's say that I had my selection tool in the active previously and now I'm going to go to them, maybe to the rotate toe. And if I present hold down the control key or commanding Farrah Mac, you're going to do well. I'm going to temporarily be switched to them to the selection tool, which was the last used selection tool. So now I can simply click on. And, of course, I'm still holding down the control key. I can click, move this guy around, rotated, transform it just like just like I can when I normally just suppressed. This will make this election toe active, so I'm simply pressing down at the control key or command if you're on a Mac. So in the next video, we'll talk about the next of the selection tools, which is called The Magic Wants to and all you guys who are familiar with poor OSHA. You will be familiar with this toe as well 5. 4Magic Wand Tool: in this video, we will talk about the magic land till that sits beneath the selection tool inside our tools panel. And it has a handy short cut off the letter y. So let me just initialize it and notice that as soon as I click, let's say on this son I can right here. I'm selecting both this. Will this son right here on the left and this son in the middle? And that's because if I just double click on the Magic Landstuhl, you can see that by default the magic land select objects that have the same fill color and that fuller within this tolerance value. And of course, since that these guys have the same the same, Phil, well, they are within the 32.2 tolerance. So again, if I just click on any item that has a a certain attributes set within the magic rental options, I'm going to select all these elements. So just as an example, let me just maybe turn will make this guy just a bit more yellow if I can say like that. But I don't want to be exactly as our son right here. So I'm gonna make it something like so. And now if I just click on this son right here, you can see that I am actually selecting all these all these sons, because they have the fill that false within this third to tolerance. However, if I just go with zero like so And now if I just press on this son right here, you can see that I'm selecting Onley these two guys because they have the same Phil attributes. And, well, this is son has a slightly different, slightly different fill color. And if I want to, I can select elements based on the other stroke color. So if I just click on it and again, let me just maybe make the tolerance. Actually, let's make it zero just like so. And if I now click on this mountain right here, you can see that I am selecting all these guys because they have the same stroke color. And if I change this option to stroke weight and I'm gonna go with tolerance, maybe two and I'm going to deliberately changed the stroke to something crazy, like maybe 10 points and these guys have to point stroke, So if I know just go ahead and click the magic wand still. And now select. Maybe this This guy right here, You can see that I'm selecting Onley This left part of the mountain and only this middle part of the mountain because they have the stroke weight that falls within this two point to point tolerance. However, if I make it something like 25 let's see. And now if I just click on this guy, you can see that I'm selecting all these stroke guys because they're stroke Quite false. The within this tolerance value right here and is far for far as the opacity goes, Well, it works pretty much the same. These two backgrounds have different a different opacity. I mean, they're opacity is decreased. So if you just click on this guy, I am selecting both these Both these will backgrounds, both the skies because they have that well, the capacity that is there is a well turned down to 50%. And because because I selected on first s first this this middle in the background right here it tells illustrator to select all the elements that have the same capacity attributes as this element, and it and that false would then this tolerance and value off 5%. If, however, I changed this opacity value to something like maybe 75. And now if I told illustrate, to select all the elements that have that the opacity like this guy in the middle, you can see that I'm selecting Onley this game because Onley this guy has the capacity that has 50% or well plus minus five person because this guy has the opacity set to 75%. Of course, if you want, you can makes thes thes options together so you can select elements that have well at the same time if certain filled color and maybe a certain stroke. Wait if you want, and then simply select a certain element and and it will select him all the options that have the same filled color and the same stroke. Wait, So this is how you can use the magic wand toe inside. Illustrator, remember that it sits right here beneath the selection talk and that has a handy short of a letter. Why and that in order to make it work, as you expected to simply double click on it to get all these, all these options And remember that illustrator will select and any objects that have similar attributes to the objects that to the object or objects that you that you clicked clicked first. So in the next video, we will talk about to the last tool and inside them the tools will inside the selection tools in Illustrator, which is called Kovell Lasso tool. 6. 5Lasso Tool: in this video, we will talk about the last of the selection tools, which is called the last so, too. And it has a handy short cut off the letter Q on our keyboard, and I guess it's because it kind of looks like a last. So don't you think so? I'm just simply going to press this last so I can right here and what this still does. Well, it selects objects, but it's kind of like a free hand selection tool. I mean, I got this group right here, so if I want to, I can simply click and drag around an object just like so in order to select it. But what's great about it is that I can select a dim will, an object that is what lettuce within a certain group. So like in this case, this son is within this group. So if I just click and a Hoyle clicking, hover over or create kind of a kind of a marquee around this right here, you can see there and select and Onley this son and not selecting the whole group and with the last, so to what we can do, we can also repress what we can actually add or remove as certain things from our selection , and we can end to our selection. So if I just press and hold down the shift key, you can see this little plus symbol appear next to my next to my last so last. So I can. And if I simply drag around part of my object, I'm going toe and that part only these anchor points to my to my selection. And if I just press and hold down the bulky or option if you're on a Mac, I'm simply going to click and drag like so that I'm going to remove that previously made selection and I'm going and I'm left only with this with this son with some and well selected And of course I can. I can also select only parts of my object. I don't have to select only the whole object, so I can simply select, like maybe this anchor point, or maybe to anchor points if I want to. And, of course, if I just select 111 anchor point, you can see that I can move it freely, just like so. So I'm hope by impressing them the arrows right now so you can see that we just selected one ankle point, and now we can win. Now we can manipulate it just like so. So a thing to remember about the lasso tool, if you want to use it, is that you can simply click and drag around an object to select it. You can add the objects or parts of objects, your selection by pressing and holding down the shift key to get this plus symbol next to your next year. Last, so iconic. Or you can press and hold on the older option if you're on a Mac. Two. Subtract well. Whole elements, whole objects. Whole groups are only individual parts of those groups now. Well, you can remove that. Remove it from your selection. So the last, so, too, is the last tool from their selection tools. So next up, what we will do is we will talk about the panto and all on all its siblings before you move onto the next video. Be sure to get your copy of the free E book on Android at Aiken Design that is waiting for you on my website david Tyminski dot com, and you'll find the link in the description off this video. So, as always, have a nice design