In this industry, there are countless ways to spend your hard-earned cash, from software updates through to objects of desire like Apple's new Cinema Display. But what do you do if you need to create a particular style of illustration, and your budget won't extend to the app you need?
Let's say, for example, that you've spent your last penny upgrading Photoshop to v7. The problem is, you need to create vector images, and your budget won't stretch to Illustrator or even Streamline. Will you forget smooth curves and sharp transitions, or design all your images at 1200dpi?
Choose the right tool and apply the right technique, and the solution is there waiting for you within your copy of Photoshop. The Pen tool and its Path palette have found two new creative companions: vector masks and custom shapes. This tutorial will show you exactly how to use Photoshop as a vector tracer: turn an object into a vector image using the Pen tool and custom shapes, generating vector effects in no time.
We've supplied custom shapes and actions within this pdf, plus our source image. To load custom shapes, select the Custom Shape tool, go to the Shape dropdown in the Tool Options bar, click on the arrow to the right of the dialog and click Load Shapes, then navigate to the appropriate file. To load actions, head to the Actions palette and simply select Load Actions from the dropdown.
Click here to download the tutorial for free
