You can get the image here if you want to follow along.
How to trace an image in illustrator how to#
Here’s how to do it.įor this example, I’ll use an image with something in the background instead of plain white. So what is to be done? We can use the “select” feature of Illustrator to let the program do most of the work. But this can be tedious and time-wasting. This is done by selecting the different shades of the background and deleting them. Using the select feature in Illustratorįor images that have more colors in the background other than solid black or white, we’ll have to get rid of the background manually. But what if the background is a mix of different colors and you don’t want to use the clipping mask method? Then here is the easy way of removing the background using the image trace feature. This will get rid of the background and you’ll have a well-defined image with the background gone. If you do, it will repeat the tracing process. Remember not to resize the image before you expand it. Step 4– Click on the expand button to convert it into a vector. If it has white, it will turn transparent. Note: Only use the ignore white option when there is no white color in the foreground or the part of the image you want to keep. Ignore white and set the preview to checked If the background of the image is white, select the “ignore white” box and then trace the image. Click on the drop-down arrow to access advanced options. I’ll make an image trace tutorial later and link it here. It can be a bit overwhelming to see all those options but don’t worry, it’s not that difficult. Step 2– Go to Window>Trace and you’ll see the image trace window popping out. If the image is very large, Illustrator will ask you to rasterize the image or it will rasterize itself. Step 1– Select the image you want to trace and then place it on the artboard. This is preferable when the background is uniform in color and composition. Image tracing converts a pixel-based image into a vector-based object with multiple colors/black and white/greyscale parts. Yellow added to show the removal of white background Using image trace to remove the background When the background is a simple solid color such as white or black or is not complex, the image trace method is preferable. This method is preferable when the background of the image is very complex. This was a quick and easy way of getting rid of the background. Select the clipping mask from the menu and right in front of your eyes, you’ll see the background image disappear and only the selected part remains. Step 4– With the outline placed on top of the image, select both and then right-click to access the menu. This will allow us to create a clipping mask. Step 3– Make sure that you connect the outline created and no open end remains. Once you become fluent with the pen tool, it won’t be much of an issue. It does not have to be a perfect trace, but try to stick to the outline as much as possible. This can take a lot of time and patience if the image you are tracing is complex. Step 2– With the pen tool, start creating an outline of the object you want to trace.
How to trace an image in illustrator pro#
Pro tip: Lock the image you are working with for the next step for accidental clicks on the image. The image’s transparency has been reduced to show the pen outline Step 1– Place the image on the artboard and then choose the pen tool by pressing P on the keyboard or choosing it from the toolbox. This to keep the example easy to see and follow. I’ll choose something very simple and easy to work with because I don’t want to unnecessarily spend more time tracing the edges and I want to give an easy explanation that is clear to see and follow. The image I am choosing is of an apple in white background. The pen tool can be intimidating for some new users of Illustrator, but trust me, the learning curve is very shallow and once you learn it, it’s going to be a piece of cake.įirst, let’s choose an image.
![how to trace an image in illustrator how to trace an image in illustrator](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/d6/fe/7e/d6fe7e8dec1f9621e1aecf0f1c758daa.jpg)
![how to trace an image in illustrator how to trace an image in illustrator](https://ceridwenhiggs.files.wordpress.com/2016/11/screen-shot-2011-05-11-at-2-25-13-pm.png)
Not just that, but you can remove the background of any image or vector in any shape you want. This is one of the quickest methods of getting rid of the background. Using clipping mask to remove background in Ai I’ll show you how to quickly remove the background that you’ll never find anywhere else.
![how to trace an image in illustrator how to trace an image in illustrator](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/2lUbLPNKUyA/maxresdefault.jpg)
Here at Techcity Times, we always give a much easier way of doing things and this is not an exception.