illustrator pen tool

[Kristalghost]

i used to work with the pen tool in photoshop on my pc.
now i want to try it out in illustrator on my mac.
after allot searching i still have a problem.
in photoshop on a pc when you want to move a point of the pen tool you use control +click and drag.
of course this doesn't work on a mac (its right click) so I searched for a solution in illustrator.
after allot of testing and mucking about I found out that in photoshop I can use command +click and drag to move the dots.
my problem now is that in illustrator command just selects my whole line im working on.
It gets a square around it and i move the whole line when i click and drag.
what key do I need to use in Illustrator?

its for vectoring/outlining some anime/pictures.

any further advice (tutorials etc...) on outlining are also welcome since I've only tried it in photoshop and the pixelation is awful allot of the time.


thanks in advance,
Kristalghost

 

[heehee]

If I get what you are saying, you have to switch it to the "Direct Select" tool, white arrow.

 

[mojopixel]

illustrator pen tool

try this: http://graphicdesign.about.com/od/illustratortutorials/ss/ai_pen.htm

 

[Kristalghost]

its the "anchor points" that i want to move.
basically what I used to do was draw a line with 2 points and add a "anchor point" where i want the bend move it and then use the "direction lines" to make it the right kind of bend.
I want to be able to move the new "anchor point" in illustrator, in photoshop it is done with command.
if I'm not mistaken the white cursor is to change the "direction lines".
I can't find the solution in the tutorial but thanks anyway!


Kristalghost

 

[heehee]

It's under the pen tool, press and hold to get to it. Or shift C.

 

[panoz7]

Shift click with the white arrow on the curve before you try moving points. After that you'll be able to move any point by just clicking on it.

 

[Kristalghost]

Shift click with the white arrow on the curve before you try moving points. After that you'll be able to move any point by just clicking on it.

it works! if I use the white arrow and shift I can move the anchor points!
but it seams allot trouble to move a point first shift+c then shift drag while photoshop just uses command or is it just me?

 

[usclaneyj]

it works! if I use the white arrow and shift I can move the anchor points!
but it seams allot trouble to move a point first shift+c then shift drag while photoshop just uses command or is it just me?

In Photoshop you can toggle between Direct Selection (anchor point) and Object Selection (entire path) within the same tool, but in Illustrator, the white arrow (A) allows direct selection of points and the black arrow (V) allows selection of objects.

If you already have the Direct Selection tool selected, I don't think you need to hold down Shift in order to move a point. Maybe I'm misunderstanding what you are trying to do though.

 

[Kristalghost]

In Photoshop you can toggle between Direct Selection (anchor point) and Object Selection (entire path) within the same tool, but in Illustrator, the white arrow (A) allows direct selection of points and the black arrow (V) allows selection of objects.

If you already have the Direct Selection tool selected, I don't think you need to hold down Shift in order to move a point. Maybe I'm misunderstanding what you are trying to do though.

if you use the white arrow without shift drag the direction lines with you instead of the anchor point

 

[Bunsen]

I think I know what you are trying to do. When using any tool, the command key in illustrator temporarily activates the last used selection tool either the Direct select or Object select arrow.
So if you want to quickly move around anchor points while drawing a path, select the Direct Select arrow (white) first, then select the pen tool and start drawing. When you want to adjust an anchor point, just hold down the command key and it will give you the white arrow.
In this way, it works exactly like in PhotoShop.