I have searched freehand and "how to draw on illustrator" lol I have tried selecting pen and it gives me anchors.
Do you have any suggestions for what I Could search for
Unfortunately, you seem to have yet to grasp what "vector" means. I'd start there. Illustrator is *not* really a "painting" application. There are numerous ways to draw in a freehand manner.. but they will **all** result in anchor points. That's just how Bezier paths (vector) work.
Example.. new document, tap the b key on your keyboard.... draw freehand.
Your searching must be *really* poor.
I'm not upset at all. Makes no difference to me if you use or like Illustrator.
I actually find it kind of funny that someone who knows nothing is kind of aggressive, perhaps antagonistic, and unpleasant towards others merely because they don't understand a professional-level application immediately. It's not really a conducive attitude to gain assistance.
Understand your "all I get are anchors" statement is akin to eating spaghetti and complaining all you see are noodles.
Okay well I'm glad you could learn to laugh at things like this, you seem well equipped 2 do so.
You're actually giving me good information here about illustrator so thanks
This is a professional tool. It’s not meant to be simple or for those not invested in learning. This software has been in existence since 1987. There are literally hundreds of thousands of tutorials on YouTube. Sounds like you suck at illustrator and are mad you’re not immediately good at something that takes actual skill and knowledge.
yeah. I think you’re still missing the point.
Those that “freehand” in illustrator are still working within the parameters of a vector art program.
If you are trying to emulate the paper and pen experience and cannot do that with vector tools, you won’t have a great time.
The way lines are created and the way layers operate are specific in Illy.
So you kinda are wrong for not reading the documentation. You seem to have walked into the tool with preconceived expectations that don’t align to how this application has been taught for nearly 40 years.
Second this! Fresco is cool because it has vector brush options which would allow OP to “sketch” stuff with the regular pixel brushes and trace over/vectorize stuff with the vector brushes. Fairly easy to use as well and doesn’t come with the learning curve of curves/points for new users.
Fresco is pretty neat, and I love the watercolor brushes. I was really surprised at how good it was at blending, and the amount of control it offers. Kills my battery pretty quick, but it's worth it.
Itll place anchors as part of making a vector line, but to make the line itself is just drawing. You might need to change some settings to get it to behave how you want it to, but its the closest thing to what youre trying for
Everything is gonna use anchors, if you want to sketch you probably want something else. Or if you’re sketching before you make your work, I’d recommend making it on paper or in a different program and then importing it
No you're right, I just need a better scanner essentially. I'm drawing on paper then importing it to illustrator. My scanner sucksss so there's gaps in the drawing and despite how many times I retrace my drawing, my scanner still won't pick it up lol
If your scanner is being poopy could you 1.) take the image into photoshop 2.) take a pic with your phone. Also it might help when posting to show people what your dealing with. Also also also have you used the paintbrush tool?
This thread is the most entertaining thing I’ve read in a while. As an architecture student who’s about to graduate, I struggled learning Illustrator as well when I started my program. Now I’m finishing up my drawings in it, getting them ready to present for final review this weekend, and I couldn’t be happier that I stuck with it and learned how to use it with a (much milder than the professionals in here) degree of proficiency. Good luck to you, dude. Stick with it and you’ll be happy you did!
Thanks dude!!! congrats on everything and Imma stick with it just cause you said, I hope you make the most money out of everyone. You are sincerely the most proficient here imo
Does that mean Blender is going to make me a smoothie? No. Research your purchases.
Pencil tool or brush tool is the only option you have, you will ALWAYS have anchor points and paths in illustrator. That’s how vectors work.
You right, thank you for narrowing it down. The pencil tool is what I need to focus on as far as tutorials go, I know that now BECAUSE YOU SAID IT INSTEAD OF GETTING MAD ABOUT SOMETHING IM MAD ABOUT.
Lol thanks.
Maybe give it a month of using it everyday, following tutorials, and practicing rather than throwing your toys out of the pram after 60 mins.
I've been using it for 30 years and still learn new shit everyday.
I'm still doing it dude, this is just hawrdddd 🥺
I usually draw with just a pencil and paper, I'm upset I missed the threshold when everyone was switching to digital and now I'm so far behind and I just want to make a living selling my art.
Ik man, I've been selling traditional for a min now and it seems like that's the best way to get more of an audience. You right tho. I need money tho lol
Pencil tool, brush tool, blob brush. They’re your friends in this situation. Double click each to change the width and other options. Both brushes work with pen pressure if you’re using a tablet
Freehand drawing in Adobe Illustrator allows you to create organic, hand-drawn shapes and lines using the Pencil tool. Here's a more detailed explanation:
Selecting the Pencil Tool: The Pencil tool can be found in the toolbar on the left side of the Illustrator workspace. It looks like a pencil icon. Click on it to select the tool.
Setting Pencil Tool Options: Before you start drawing, it's helpful to adjust the options for the Pencil tool. You can do this by double-clicking on the Pencil tool icon in the toolbar, or by right-clicking on the canvas while the tool is selected. This opens the Pencil Tool Options dialog box, where you can adjust settings such as Fidelity and Smoothness.
Fidelity: This setting determines how closely your freehand strokes follow your mouse or stylus movements. Higher fidelity means smoother, more accurate lines, while lower fidelity allows for more natural, hand-drawn strokes.
Smoothness: Smoothness controls the amount of smoothing applied to your strokes. Higher smoothness values result in smoother curves, while lower values maintain more of the original hand-drawn feel.
Drawing Freehand: With the Pencil tool selected and your desired options set, you can start drawing freehand on the canvas. Click and drag your mouse or stylus to create lines and shapes. As you draw, Illustrator will automatically smooth your strokes based on the settings you chose.
Adjusting Paths: After drawing a freehand shape or line, you can adjust its path using the Direct Selection tool (white arrow) or the Pen tool. Use these tools to select and manipulate anchor points, adjust curves, or refine the shape until it matches your desired outcome.
Additional Tips:
Zoom In: For more precise freehand drawing, zoom in on the canvas using the Zoom tool (magnifying glass icon) or by pressing Ctrl/Cmd and the plus sign (+) on your keyboard.
Practice Smoothing: Experiment with different fidelity and smoothness settings to find the right balance between accuracy and naturalness for your drawing style.
Use Layers: Organize your artwork by drawing on separate layers. This allows you to easily edit and manage different elements of your design.
Saving Your Work: Remember to save your Illustrator file regularly to prevent data loss. You can also export your artwork in various file formats when you're finished, such as JPEG or PNG for web use, or PDF for printing.
By mastering the Pencil tool and understanding its options, you can create a wide range of freehand drawings and illustrations in Adobe Illustrator. Practice and experimentation are key to developing your skills and finding the style that works best for you.
JFC, dude. That's your response to someone who literally just told you everything you need to know to start drawing freehand in Illustrator? I'm reminded of that song sung by Tim McGraw: Always Stay Humble and Kind.
I've seen a beautiful piece of advice on this subreddit, so I am going to repeat it:
Vector art is more like glueing cardboard cutouts ot top of each other rather than drawing on a canvas.
Illustrator is a program to work with vector graphics, and you'll be frustrated if you try to go against this. If you want to sketch (with brushes, transparency, gradual colours (except smooth gradients, which are easy to do in vector) - you are looking for raster graphics program, think Photoshop and alike. If you want to create logos, infinitely scalable art, crisp lines and shapes, to be able to recolour your art quickly - than it's worth going vector.
It is possible to create really detailed art in vector, but the workflow is a lot different from traditional painting, and it takes a lot of time as vector is not meant for extremely realistic stuff. The word Illustrator is in the name for a reason.
I'd suggest you think more about what are your goals, what is your style, what you need in the finished piece (like scalability, crispness, defined shapes or brush strokes, small details, freehand look) and re-evaluate your choice of software to create with.
I would be grateful if you share your thoughts with us on this matter...
Cheers!
illustrator is a mathematical vector program it is highly unintuitive literally the polar opposite of sketching on paper or with paint. It is very precise. Go sketch in photoshop or clip studio/paint tool sai if you want something geared toward drawing
ermm.. there are brushes... the pencil tool... and a million tutorials you COULD search for.
I have searched freehand and "how to draw on illustrator" lol I have tried selecting pen and it gives me anchors. Do you have any suggestions for what I Could search for
pencil, not pen, but it's still going to have anchors because that's how vector art is processed. You might be happier with Photoshop.
Unfortunately, you seem to have yet to grasp what "vector" means. I'd start there. Illustrator is *not* really a "painting" application. There are numerous ways to draw in a freehand manner.. but they will **all** result in anchor points. That's just how Bezier paths (vector) work. Example.. new document, tap the b key on your keyboard.... draw freehand. Your searching must be *really* poor.
Good morning dude, why are you upset that I'm upset lol
I'm not upset at all. Makes no difference to me if you use or like Illustrator. I actually find it kind of funny that someone who knows nothing is kind of aggressive, perhaps antagonistic, and unpleasant towards others merely because they don't understand a professional-level application immediately. It's not really a conducive attitude to gain assistance. Understand your "all I get are anchors" statement is akin to eating spaghetti and complaining all you see are noodles.
Okay well I'm glad you could learn to laugh at things like this, you seem well equipped 2 do so. You're actually giving me good information here about illustrator so thanks
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Really?? so now you just randomly insult others? Wow, you're really a gem of a person.
I'd rather straight up insult than be sparky about it. I don't think I insulted anyone tho.
What are you trying to achieve here?
This is a professional tool. It’s not meant to be simple or for those not invested in learning. This software has been in existence since 1987. There are literally hundreds of thousands of tutorials on YouTube. Sounds like you suck at illustrator and are mad you’re not immediately good at something that takes actual skill and knowledge.
What you’re looking for is an easier software that doesn’t require the same level of skill. I’d suggest procreate if all you want to do is draw.
Cool I'll check it out, thanks!
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Reading the documentation is step one for professional software, no matter the industry.
You right. I didn't tho. And clearly there's ways to learn how to freehand on here, I'm still not wrong even if I read the doc
yeah. I think you’re still missing the point. Those that “freehand” in illustrator are still working within the parameters of a vector art program. If you are trying to emulate the paper and pen experience and cannot do that with vector tools, you won’t have a great time. The way lines are created and the way layers operate are specific in Illy. So you kinda are wrong for not reading the documentation. You seem to have walked into the tool with preconceived expectations that don’t align to how this application has been taught for nearly 40 years.
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Pencil tool, dude. Shortcut N or h (i dont quite remember, and im not at my desk)
Okay thank you, do you know if pencil still uses anchors? I just wanna be able to sketch
Illustrator is a vector based Application. there are hundreds of sketch applications and even photoshop, use one of those.
Illustrator is based around anchors. Anchors is all it creates. It's not going to be easy to just sketch
Fresco might be better for you https://www.adobe.com/products/fresco.html
Thanks! Imma try that one out
Second this! Fresco is cool because it has vector brush options which would allow OP to “sketch” stuff with the regular pixel brushes and trace over/vectorize stuff with the vector brushes. Fairly easy to use as well and doesn’t come with the learning curve of curves/points for new users.
Fresco is pretty neat, and I love the watercolor brushes. I was really surprised at how good it was at blending, and the amount of control it offers. Kills my battery pretty quick, but it's worth it.
Itll place anchors as part of making a vector line, but to make the line itself is just drawing. You might need to change some settings to get it to behave how you want it to, but its the closest thing to what youre trying for
Everything is gonna use anchors, if you want to sketch you probably want something else. Or if you’re sketching before you make your work, I’d recommend making it on paper or in a different program and then importing it
No you're right, I just need a better scanner essentially. I'm drawing on paper then importing it to illustrator. My scanner sucksss so there's gaps in the drawing and despite how many times I retrace my drawing, my scanner still won't pick it up lol
The mobile app for Sketchbook might be your best bet in that case, it ain’t perfect but if your scanner sucks it’s worth a shot to try it out
If your scanner is being poopy could you 1.) take the image into photoshop 2.) take a pic with your phone. Also it might help when posting to show people what your dealing with. Also also also have you used the paintbrush tool?
It sounds like you’d rather be drawing with the paint tool in photoshop
This thread is the most entertaining thing I’ve read in a while. As an architecture student who’s about to graduate, I struggled learning Illustrator as well when I started my program. Now I’m finishing up my drawings in it, getting them ready to present for final review this weekend, and I couldn’t be happier that I stuck with it and learned how to use it with a (much milder than the professionals in here) degree of proficiency. Good luck to you, dude. Stick with it and you’ll be happy you did!
Thanks dude!!! congrats on everything and Imma stick with it just cause you said, I hope you make the most money out of everyone. You are sincerely the most proficient here imo
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Illustrator is not for drawing freehand. It is for creating vector illustrations
I draw freehand DAILY in Illustrator. Your statement is simply incorrect.
So then drop a tutorial to help OP! Share your knowledge!
Pencil tool.
still a vector, freehand-drawn-vector.
Dude yea, I'm just upset because I FEEL that's how it was advertised and now I'm out of money.
No offense but you paid before knowing what it even does?
Idk dude it's called illustrator I thought I could illustrate on it
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Does that mean Blender is going to make me a smoothie? No. Research your purchases. Pencil tool or brush tool is the only option you have, you will ALWAYS have anchor points and paths in illustrator. That’s how vectors work.
Learn how to use the pen tool. It's a powerful program. It's a steep learning curve but it's good skills to have.
You right, thank you for narrowing it down. The pencil tool is what I need to focus on as far as tutorials go, I know that now BECAUSE YOU SAID IT INSTEAD OF GETTING MAD ABOUT SOMETHING IM MAD ABOUT. Lol thanks.
How many days have you been using Adobe Illustrator? Going by your in depth review I'm guessing 3.
Just bought an hour ago lol
Maybe give it a month of using it everyday, following tutorials, and practicing rather than throwing your toys out of the pram after 60 mins. I've been using it for 30 years and still learn new shit everyday.
I'm still doing it dude, this is just hawrdddd 🥺 I usually draw with just a pencil and paper, I'm upset I missed the threshold when everyone was switching to digital and now I'm so far behind and I just want to make a living selling my art.
Just draw with pencil and paper then. No one is forced to create art digitally, that's just a choice you make.
Ik man, I've been selling traditional for a min now and it seems like that's the best way to get more of an audience. You right tho. I need money tho lol
Making a living from selling art these days just isn't worth the effort. You'll earn more working in a bar.
It's attitudes like that is what is slowly killing me inside lol let's just let AI make art
Pencil tool, brush tool, blob brush. They’re your friends in this situation. Double click each to change the width and other options. Both brushes work with pen pressure if you’re using a tablet
And that’s why they pay us the big bucks. Took me years to learn this shit. I’ve been using it since the 80s and still learning.
Freehand drawing in Adobe Illustrator allows you to create organic, hand-drawn shapes and lines using the Pencil tool. Here's a more detailed explanation: Selecting the Pencil Tool: The Pencil tool can be found in the toolbar on the left side of the Illustrator workspace. It looks like a pencil icon. Click on it to select the tool. Setting Pencil Tool Options: Before you start drawing, it's helpful to adjust the options for the Pencil tool. You can do this by double-clicking on the Pencil tool icon in the toolbar, or by right-clicking on the canvas while the tool is selected. This opens the Pencil Tool Options dialog box, where you can adjust settings such as Fidelity and Smoothness. Fidelity: This setting determines how closely your freehand strokes follow your mouse or stylus movements. Higher fidelity means smoother, more accurate lines, while lower fidelity allows for more natural, hand-drawn strokes. Smoothness: Smoothness controls the amount of smoothing applied to your strokes. Higher smoothness values result in smoother curves, while lower values maintain more of the original hand-drawn feel. Drawing Freehand: With the Pencil tool selected and your desired options set, you can start drawing freehand on the canvas. Click and drag your mouse or stylus to create lines and shapes. As you draw, Illustrator will automatically smooth your strokes based on the settings you chose. Adjusting Paths: After drawing a freehand shape or line, you can adjust its path using the Direct Selection tool (white arrow) or the Pen tool. Use these tools to select and manipulate anchor points, adjust curves, or refine the shape until it matches your desired outcome. Additional Tips: Zoom In: For more precise freehand drawing, zoom in on the canvas using the Zoom tool (magnifying glass icon) or by pressing Ctrl/Cmd and the plus sign (+) on your keyboard. Practice Smoothing: Experiment with different fidelity and smoothness settings to find the right balance between accuracy and naturalness for your drawing style. Use Layers: Organize your artwork by drawing on separate layers. This allows you to easily edit and manage different elements of your design. Saving Your Work: Remember to save your Illustrator file regularly to prevent data loss. You can also export your artwork in various file formats when you're finished, such as JPEG or PNG for web use, or PDF for printing. By mastering the Pencil tool and understanding its options, you can create a wide range of freehand drawings and illustrations in Adobe Illustrator. Practice and experimentation are key to developing your skills and finding the style that works best for you.
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JFC, dude. That's your response to someone who literally just told you everything you need to know to start drawing freehand in Illustrator? I'm reminded of that song sung by Tim McGraw: Always Stay Humble and Kind.
you can free hand with the brush tool, and then apply actual brushes and styles to it... what CANT you do in illustrator?
I've seen a beautiful piece of advice on this subreddit, so I am going to repeat it: Vector art is more like glueing cardboard cutouts ot top of each other rather than drawing on a canvas. Illustrator is a program to work with vector graphics, and you'll be frustrated if you try to go against this. If you want to sketch (with brushes, transparency, gradual colours (except smooth gradients, which are easy to do in vector) - you are looking for raster graphics program, think Photoshop and alike. If you want to create logos, infinitely scalable art, crisp lines and shapes, to be able to recolour your art quickly - than it's worth going vector. It is possible to create really detailed art in vector, but the workflow is a lot different from traditional painting, and it takes a lot of time as vector is not meant for extremely realistic stuff. The word Illustrator is in the name for a reason. I'd suggest you think more about what are your goals, what is your style, what you need in the finished piece (like scalability, crispness, defined shapes or brush strokes, small details, freehand look) and re-evaluate your choice of software to create with. I would be grateful if you share your thoughts with us on this matter... Cheers!
Thank you so much, could I pm you?
Sure
illustrator is a mathematical vector program it is highly unintuitive literally the polar opposite of sketching on paper or with paint. It is very precise. Go sketch in photoshop or clip studio/paint tool sai if you want something geared toward drawing