How to Remake a Sketch in Illustrator

Reproduce sketches in Illustrator by scanning and tracing the drawings.

Adobe Illustrator provides tools to make precise, colorful graphics, but it is not the best way to outline an idea or form quickly. Instead, traditional hand sketching is the best means to capture swiftly a view or schematic design. In contemporary design, the hand sketch is developed into a computer graphic or model. To make this transformation, the sketch must be scanned and traced in Illustrator or other graphic design software.

Things You'll Need

• Scanner

Instructions

1. Scan your sketch. Save the scan as a PNG, JPG, TIF or BMP.

2. Open Adobe Illustrator and select "New" under the "File" menu to create a new document.

3. Import your image by selecting "Place" under the "File" menu, navigating to and selecting your scanned sketch, and pressing the "Place" button. Adjust the location of the image on your document with the "Selection" tool on the toolbar.

4. Press the "Create New Layer" button on the "Layers" panel. Click the new layer to make it active.

5. Select the "Pen" tool from the toolbar and trace your sketch. Draw each line by clicking the mouse over the scanned sketch lines. Make curves with the "Pen" tool by clicking and dragging each point.

6. Adjust the Illustrator lines with the "Direct Selection" tool on the toolbar. Drag the line handles to move points and change the extent of the curves.

7. Change the line weight and type of the Illustrator lines by selecting the lines with the "Selection" tool and adjusting the values in the "Stroke" panel. Change the color and fill of lines and shapes by double-clicking the "Stroke" and "Fill" swatches at the bottom of the toolbar.

8. Turn off the scanned sketch layer by clicking the visibility toggle next to the sketch layer on the "Layers" panel. Or, delete the scanned sketch from the drawing by selecting it and pressing the "Delete" key on your keyboard.

References

• Adobe: Illustrator