Apply an existing gradient to an object – Adobe Illustrator CS3 User Manual
Page 189
ILLUSTRATOR CS3
User Guide
183
For a video on using gradients to enhance your drawings, see
. For a tutorial on creating
gradients, see the Unleash the power of gradients tutorial at
1
Do one of the following:
•
To create a new gradient, deselect all objects and click the gradient box at the bottom of the Tools panel.
•
To modify an object’s gradient, select the object.
•
To modify a preset gradient, click a gradient swatch in the Swatches panel.
To display only gradients in the Swatches panel, click the Show Swatch Kinds button
and choose Show Gradient
Swatches.
2
In the Gradient panel, select a gradient type (Linear or Radial).
3
If you select Linear, enter an angle of direction for the gradient in the Angle text box. Or, drag the Gradient
tool
in the document window to set the angle.
4
Select colors for the gradient:
•
To define the starting and ending colors of a gradient, click the leftmost or rightmost gradient stop. Specify a color
in the Color panel, or Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Mac OS) a color swatch in the Swatches panel. Or,
drag a color from the Color panel or the Swatches panel onto the gradient stop.
Note: If you create a gradient between spot colors, you must deselect Convert To Process in the Separation Setup dialog
box to print the gradient in individual spot color separations.
•
To add intermediate colors to a gradient, drag a color from the Swatches panel or the Color panel onto the gradient
slider. Or, click anywhere below the gradient slider, and then select a color as you would for the starting or ending
color. To delete an intermediate color, drag the square off the gradient slider.
•
To adjust the midpoints of the gradient’s color stops (the point at which two color stops are 50%), drag a diamond
icon located above the slider or select the icon and enter a value between 0 and 100 in the Location text box.
•
To adjust the endpoints of the gradient’s color stops, drag the leftmost or rightmost gradient stop below the
gradient slider.
5
Click the New Swatch button in the Swatches panel to save the new or modified gradient as a swatch. Or, drag the
gradient from the Gradient panel or Tools panel to the Swatches panel.
Note: To modify the direction of the gradient, see “Change gradient direction or apply across multiple objects” on
page 184.
See also
“Printing gradients, meshes, and color blends” on page 414
Apply an existing gradient to an object
❖
Select an object and do one of the following:
•
To apply the last used gradient, click the Gradient box
in the Tools panel or the Gradient Fill box in the
Gradient panel.
•
To apply a preset or previously saved gradient, click a gradient swatch in the Swatches panel.
To display only gradients in the Swatches panel, click the Show Swatch Kinds button
and choose Show Gradient
Swatches.