How to Blur in Illustrator
There are multiple types of blur in Adobe Illustrator and each one affects the blur differently, resulting in a distinct outcome. Contrary to Illustrator's vector-based graphics, blur effects are raster-based, meaning they use pixels to create the blur rather than vector data. Raster-based effects in Illustrator are governed by two settings -- a general raster document setting and the specific effect setting, adjusted in the effect window. Adjusting both the individual effect and the document's raster settings will help you create the exact look for your blur.
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Instructions
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Launch Adobe Illustrator and click "File" and "Open." Select a photo to work with and click "OK."
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Click on the Selection tool in the Tools palette. Click on the photo in the document window.
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Click "Effect," "Blur" and "Gaussian Blur" to apply a Gaussian blur to your photo. Move the Radius slider in the Gaussian blur window to about 18 pixels so you can see the haziness of the effect. Click "OK" to apply the blur.
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Click on the "Gaussian Blur" layer in the Appearance panel to the right of the document window. Drag and drop the layer into the Delete Selected Item icon, the trash can at the bottom of the Appearance panel, to remove the Gaussian Blur in order to apply the next blur.
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Click on the photo, and click "Effect," "Blur" and "Radial Blur." Adjust the settings in the Radial Blur window, noting the changes to the Blur Center which will affect the blur on your photo. Click "OK" to apply the blur.
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Click on the "Radial Blur" layer in the Appearance panel to the right of the document window. Drag and drop the layer into the Delete Selected Item icon at the bottom of the Appearance panel, to remove the blur in order to apply the next blur.
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Click on the photo, and click "Effect," "Blur" and "Smart Blur." Adjust the settings in the Smart Blur window, noting the preview in the window showing what the blur will look like.
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Click "Effect" and "Document Raster Effects Settings." Adjust the settings in the window, and see how the changes affect your photo and the blur that was already applied.
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