How to Use Grids in Illustrator CS3
You have most likely used grids for drawing since elementary school, whether to help you position elements of the drawing in art or to get an accurately scaled graph in algebra. Dividing an artwork into a grid helps artists design balanced, proportional illustrations. Adobe has carried this useful drawing tool into its computer-drawing program, Adobe Illustrator, to assist artists in positioning, aligning and scaling their artwork. Illustrator includes a nonprinting, customizable grid that can sit behind your artwork as you design. It also includes a tool for creating a printable grid if you need to add a grid or a table to your illustration.
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Instructions
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Nonprinting Grids
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Click on "Edit" from the menu bar on Windows, or click on "Illustrator" from the menu bar on a Mac. Select "Guides & Grid" from the "Preferences" submenu.
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Select the desired color for the grid lines from the "Color" drop-down box in the "Grid" section.
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Select "Lines" from the "Style" menu if you want the grid to appear as solid lines, or select "Dots" if you want the grid to appear as dots.
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Enter the distance that you want between the main grid lines in the "Gridline every" box.
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Enter how many boxes you want between the main grid lines in the "Subdivisions" box.
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Click on the box next to "Grids in back" to force the gridlines behind the illustration. Uncheck this box to display the gridlines on top of the illustration.
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Click "View" from the menu bar and select "Show Grid." Alternatively, press the "Control" key and the apostrophe key in Windows or the "Command" key and the apostrophe key on a Mac. The grid will appear on the screen. From the "View" menu, select "Hide Grid" to remove the grid.
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Click "View" from the file menu and select "Snap to Grid." Every time you approach within two pixels of a gridline, the mouse will automatically snap to the line. Select "Snap to Grid" again to deactivate it.
Printable Grids
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Click on the "Rectangular Grid" tool, which is located under the "Line Segment" tool. If the rectangular grid tool is not visible, press on the "Line Segment" tool until the submenu appears. Then, select the "Rectangular Grid" tool.
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Draw a rectangle in the document the size that you want your grid.
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Adjust the amount of columns and rows while you draw the grid. Before releasing the mouse button, press the up-arrow key to add rows in the grid and press the down-arrow key to decrease rows. Press the right-arrow key to add columns in the grid and press left-arrow to decrease columns.
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Adjust the cell spacing while you draw the grid. Before releasing the mouse button, press the "C" key to add space between the left cells and decrease space between the right cells. Press "X" to add space between the right cells and decrease space between the left cells. Press "F" to add space between the top cells and press "V" to add space between the bottom cells.
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References
- Photo Credit Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images
