Operation Manual

238

USING ILLUSTRATOR

Reshaping objects

Last updated 11/8/2011

• To shear from a different reference point, select the Shear tool and Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Mac OS)

where you want the reference point to be in the document window.

3 In the Shear dialog box, enter a shear angle from -359 to 359. The shear angle is the amount of slant applied to the

object in a clockwise direction and is relative to a line that’s perpendicular to the shear axis.

4 Select the axis along which to shear the object.

If you chose an angled axis, enter a value between –359 and 359, relative to the horizontal axis.

5 If the objects contain a pattern fill, select Patterns to move the pattern. Deselect Objects if you want to move the

pattern but not the objects.

6 Click OK, or click Copy to shear a copy of the objects.

Shear objects with the Free Transform tool

1 Select one or more objects.

2 Select the Free Transform tool .

3 Do one of the following:

• To shear along the object’s vertical axis, start dragging the middle-left or middle-right bounding-box handle, and

then hold down Ctrl+Alt (Windows) or Option+Command (Mac

OS) as you drag up or down. You can also hold

down Shift to constrain the object to its original width.

• To shear along the object’s horizontal axis, start dragging the top-middle or bottom-middle bounding-box handle

and then hold down Ctrl+Alt (Windows) or Option+Command (Mac

OS) as you drag right or left. You can also

hold down Shift to constrain the object to its original height.

Shear objects with the Transform panel

1 Select one or more objects.

2 In the Transform panel, enter a value in the Shear text box.

To change the reference point, click a white square on the reference point locator before you enter the value.

You can also call up the Transform panel by clicking X, Y, W, or H in the Control panel.

Distort objects

You can distort objects by using the Free Transform tool or a liquify tool. Use the Free Transform tool when you want

to distort freely; use a liquify tool if you want to take advantage of specific preset distortions such as twirls, puckers, or

wrinkles.