Graphics Programs Reference
In-Depth Information
need. You'll start by applying an existing color to a shape and then work your way through
the most widely used ways to create and apply color.
Note
Throughout this lesson, you'll be working on a document with a color mode
that was set to CMYK when the document was created, which means that the
majority of colors you create will, by default, be composed of cyan,
magenta, yellow, and black.
Applying an existing color
As was mentioned previously, every new document in Illustrator has a series of default
colors available for you to use in your artwork in the form of swatches in the Swatches
panel. The first method of working with color you will explore is to paint a shape with an
existing color.
1.
Click the parksign.ai document tab at the top of the Document window, if you did not
close the L6end.ai document.
2.
Choose 1 from the Artboard Navigation menu in the lower-left corner of the Document
window (if it's not chosen already), and then choose View > Fit Artboard In Window.
3.
With the Selection tool ( ), click to select the large, red shape.
4.
Click the Fill color in the Control panel, and the Swatches panel appears. Click to
apply the swatch named sign bg. Positioning the pointer over a swatch in the list to
show a tool tip with the swatch name. Press the Escape key to hide the Swatches panel.
The Control panel has both Fill color and Stroke color options. By selecting artwork
and clicking one or the other, you indicate which part of the object you want to paint
(the stroke or the fill).
5.
Choose Select > Deselect to ensure that nothing is selected.
Creating and saving a custom color as a swatch
At times, you may also need to create a specific color. Next, you'll create a color using the
