Operation Manual

Lines, Curves, and Shapes 71
For clarity, control handles that do not influence the shape of
the line are not displayed. However, each selected node reveals
both control handles for manipulation.
4. Drag any selected node to reshape adjacent segment(s). All selected
nodes move in the same direction, so you can reshape the curve in
complex ways by selecting specific nodes. Shift-drag to constrain the
movement to horizontal or vertical.
5. Drag one or more control handles to produce very precise changes in
the curvature of the line on either side of a node. You can shorten or
lengthen the handles, which changes the depth of the curve (that is,
how far out the curve extends), or alter the handle angle, which
changes the curve’s slope.
When using the Pen Tool, pressing the Ctrl key while clicking a node
lets you edit the curve directly. This saves having to jump back to
the Node Tool. You can't edit multiple nodes simultaneously.
By changing the type of node you can change how the adjacent
segments behave.
As a shortcut when selecting nodes, you can press Tab or Shift-Tab
to select the next or previous node along the line (following the
order in which nodes were created).
Simplifying or enhancing a line
The more nodes there are on a line or shape, the more control over its shape you
have. The fewer nodes there are, the simpler (smoother) the line or shape. You
can adjust the Smoothness to refine the curve most recently drawn (as long as
the line is still selected). It is also possible to add or delete nodes to simplify or
enhance curves, and even clean curves (removing unnecessary nodes
automatically).
To adjust the smoothness of the most recent pencil line:
1. Choose the Pencil Tool and draw a freeform line.