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Adobe Illustrator CS 2 WOW! Book Review |
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Written by Don Lee
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Monday, 22 January 2007 |
 Every time a new version of a program is released, I have a feeling of
dread because I know I will have to learn some of the new techniques
being offered in the program. Some of the items will help me create
better work at a more efficient pace. The real problem is teaching
myself these new techniques before the next new version is released. Thankfully, I turned my attention to The Adobe Illustrator CS 2 WOW!
Book by Peachpit Press. Now I was hoping that this book could help me
not only improve my skills but to also get me up to speed on the new
features of this popular design application. Here’s what I discovered.
Putting the WOW in WOW!
The 14-chapter, 418-page book covers a lot of ground. Even if Illustrator CS2 is your first attempt at using this powerful program, don’t fret because chapter one will cover the most basic elements. Here’s a breakdown of the fourteen chapters:
Chapter one covers the absolute basics of Adobe Illustrator. Everything from setting up your first page, selecting objects to sending your work out as an Adobe PDF file and understanding PostScript printing and exporting. The experienced Illustrator folks can bypass this chapter but this information is pretty important.
Chapter two through four covers the uses of Illustrator, drawing, coloring and the use of brushes and symbols. Here you will also learn how to use some of the program’s tools and to utilize the keyboard commands for quick access. Drawing and coloring are important facets of Illustrator so learning how to draw paths, various angles, curves and lines are vital towards creating quality artwork. Brushes and symbols make up a big part of the Illustrator design process and here’s where you will learn how to use them and even make your own.
Chapter five through eight covers layers, appearances, use of type, more advanced features of drawing and coloring and the use of blends, gradients and mesh. Working with layers is important in that it separates each portion of your artwork so you can easily modify each segment easily. Chapter five demonstrates the use of layers, nested layers, and appearances. Chapter six covers the use of type. Techniques such as wrapping text around objects, working with threaded text, converting type to outlines and using the Glyphs palette are just a few of the topics covered here. Chapter seven will teach you more advanced drawing and coloring techniques. Topics covered include compound paths and shapes, using Live Trace, divide and color and pathfinders.
Chapter nine through twelve covers transparency issues, live effects and graphic styles, live 3D effects (yes, in Illustrator!) and some advanced general techniques. Learn about opacity masks, making highlights with transparency blends, adding color to grayscale images, raster effects, warping, scribble effects, revolving an object, 3D techniques, clipping masks and more. Check out the gallery examples for a better idea on how these techniques are utilized.
Chapters thirteen and fourteen will teach you how Illustrator fits into your web and animation design process and how Illustrator works with other programs. This is very interesting because you will be surprised how you can translate your Illustrator artwork into web-compatible graphics. Being that this is an Adobe product, it only makes sense that it works with other Adobe design products such as Photoshop, InDesign and more. The last chapter demonstrates the power of combining the entire Adobe product line into your projects.
The Final Word
I found The Adobe Illustrator CS2 WOW! Book to be an excellent resource for quick tips and techniques in getting that most out of the program. The 100 techniques offered in the book covers a lot of issues that most Illustrator users have encountered. The book’s tips are also compatible with both Windows and Macintosh versions.
The book even comes with a CD that contains a cool feature called “The Zen of the Pen” which covers the use of the Bezier Pen tool for programs such as Illustrator, Photoshop and InDesign. Mastering the Pen tool is probably one of the trickiest things to accomplish using these programs but this tutorial will help you better understand the tool’s basic functionality.
There’s even more artwork available on the CD that you can open in Illustrator and deconstruct to see how the work was made. There’s even a quick start guide available at the back of the book that you remove and utilize at your side. .
Regardless of your experience with Adobe Illustrator CS2, this book will not only bring you up to speed with the new features of the program but you will also learn some really cool tricks that you can utilize in your projects. I would highly recommend The Adobe Illustrator CS2 WOW! Book for beginners as well as seasoned professionals. Put a little WOW in your next project.
You can click HERE to purchase The Adobe Illustrator CS 2 WOW! Book.
About the Author
Award-winning artist, author, teacher and digital art guru, Sharon Steuer has been a major force in the digital art world for more than two decades. Her traditional and digital artwork has been exhibited widely, with awards for painting including the national Faber Birren Color Award and Windsor Newton Painting Award. Sharon is a regular columnist for creativepro.com, and is author of Creative Thinking in Photoshop: A New Approach to Digital Art as well as all editions of the best-selling Illustrator WOW! Book, which has twice received the Ben Franklin Award for best computer book.
About Peachpit Press
The Peachpit family has grown over the years to encompass an elite collection of the world's top computer book imprints specializing in graphics and design, including our flagship, Peachpit Press, as well as New Riders, Adobe Press, and Macromedia Press, among others. Peachpit is a part of Pearson Education, the world's largest integrated educational publisher. You can learn more about this book or others by visiting them online at http://www.peachpit.com.
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