Page 58 - CS6_AI_Look_Inside.pdf

work in isolation mode
Groups can be invaluable when you need to treat multiple items as a single object.
When items are grouped, it is easy to move and manipulate the entire group as a single
object. In many cases, however, you will need to make changes to only part of a group.
Depending on the complexity of the file, this can be very difficult without first breaking
apart the group (“ungrouping”). Illustrator’s Isolation mode offers a convenient work-
space, where you can work with grouped objects as if they were stand-alone objects.

1. With icons.ai open, use the Selection tool to double-click any of the shapes
in the radiation icon to enter Isolation mode.

When you use the Pathfinder panel, the resulting shapes are automatically grouped.
Because all of these shapes make up the icon artwork, it’s a good idea to leave them grouped.
Isolation mode allows you to work with the constituent objects without ungrouping.

2. Using the Selection tool, click the wedge shape in the top-left area of the
icon, and then press Delete.

Because you’re working in
Isolation mode, you can use
the Selection tool to select
one object, even though the
object is part of a group on
the main artboard.

3. Select and delete every other wedge in the outside area of the group.
4. Choose View>Outline.

Outline mode allows you to see and work with the basic shapes only. This way, object
fills don’t obscure the shapes that you need to see clearly.

5. Click in the center set of wedges and drag a marquee that encompasses the
center points of all six center wedges. Note:
If you tried to do this in Preview mode, clicking one of the filled shapes and dragging Don’t be confused by the
would actually move the shape you clicked. Because the fills are not technically present crossed diagonal lines
in Outline mode, you can use the click-drag method to select all six shapes instead of that identify the linked
Shift-clicking each one individually. template image.
Be sure you don’t click on any actual line when you begin to draw the selection marquee.
If necessary, zoom in so you can clearly see the empty spaces in the small wedge shapes.
In Outline mode, linked
images appear with
crossed diagonal lines.
In Outline mode, you
can’t see or interact with When you release the
the objects’ Fill attributes. mouse button, you
can see that all six
Because you can’t select objects are selected.
an object’s fill, you can
drag a selection marquee
to select only the six small
shapes in the icon center.

66 Project 1: International Symbols