Adobe illustrator masking layer

I'm not talking about making a clipping mask. This is entirely different altogether. Tutorial below. Like I said before, this is a very under-used feature, so it's been around for a while. Workflow: refers to the steps and processes that take place from start to end of the project in Illustrator.

By creating a path on the very top-most sublayer of each Layer, you can use that path as a mask by toggling the Mask Button in the Layers Pallete. If you hit the masking button without having your desired path on the top, Illustrator will automatically use whatever path is in the top-most sub-layer or shape layer. So it's very important to make sure the shape you wish to use as a mask is on top of everything else in that layer.

Using Layer Masks will save you time by avoiding tedious un-grouping, grouping, releasing, and applying clipping masks with the ease of a simple toggle button. You can create a unique layer mask for each and every layer in your Illustrator document. You may practice applying layer masks to the different types of drawings so that you can understand the importance of this under-rated feature. Many people are unaware of this feature and it can ease work for the beginners who find difficulty in going through long steps.

Alternative tools are available for all the difficult and time-consuming process in Adobe Photoshop. Toggle: switch from one layer to another layer, switch from one feature to the other. First, open Illustrator, make a new file, then create a bunch of random shapes on the artboard.

It takes only three short and handy steps to apply a layer mask. You may fill the specified geometrical shape with some sort of texture to apply it to particular dimensions. There are also different principles to learn across Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign. Today we are going to focus on Illustrator but keep an eye out for posts on those two other applications, they are coming soon!

In the video above Martin shows you how to create and work with the three making techniques in Adobe Illustrator. If you prefer to read a little more before you watch this post explains a little more about each technique Martin uses.

Let's get started with Clipping Masks, take a closer look at what they are and how they work. Creating or using a Clipping Mask basically means you are using one object to mask or hide part of another object.

So the object used to create the mask is the rectangle. Once the mask is created the shape underneath literally gets clipped into the shape on top in this case the rectangle. For a detailed demonstration of how this works check out the video at the op of the page!

Like with most things in Illustrator there are a few different ways to get to the same result and you just need to find what works for you! First off you need to select both the shape you want to use as the mask and the shape you want to clip - ensuring that shape in on top of the two. Any of there will achieve the right result. To check you have made the mask correctly head to your layers panel and you should see a clipping group containing the objects you originally selected.

There's loads more to learn about Clipping Masks, why they are useful and how to work with them once you have made one. Martin goes into more depth in the video tutorial so you can learn even more about this useful feature.

This feature is almost the opposite of the way a clipping mask works. In this case you need to create the container or object you want to work in first and then use the Draw Inside feature. In the examples below you can see how I start with an object which has a pretty cool looking gradient. So Draw Inside looks pretty cool, let's look at how to use it! Because the clipping mask was assigned a fill and stroke value of None, it is now not visible unless you select it or assign it new paint attributes.

Legal Notices Online Privacy Policy. Adobe Illustrator Features What's New. Buy now. User Guide Cancel. About clipping masks. The following guidelines apply to creating clipping masks:. Only vector objects can be clipping masks; however, any artwork can be masked. Hide parts of objects with a clipping mask.

Create the object you want to use as the mask. This object is called the clipping path. Write to deals masterbundles. I embrace each of you. The lesson is very simple, but useful. I always wanted to quickly learn how to use a tool like masking in Adobe Illustrator. But no one could normally explain how to do it.

With you it became clearer. By: Jim Harding May 4, 6 minutes. Related Product Categories. Author: Jim Harding. Related Deals.