How To Stroke Path Photoshop

How to utilise the Photoshop Pen tool

Pen tool: Quick links

Fill a path
Make a selection
Stroke a path

Photoshop CC is the creative weapon of choice for many designers. Its Pen and Brush tools are some of the virtually powerful, user-friendly aspects of the program. In this Photoshop tutorial (opens in new tab), we'll focus on the Pen tool (there'south a carve up article with tips on how to utilise Photoshop's Brush tool (opens in new tab)).

The Pen tool is a elementary selection characteristic that enables you to make full, stroke or make selections from whatsoever yous depict. Information technology's one of the core tools you demand to primary before you start exploring more avant-garde features or getting into Photoshop plugins (opens in new tab). In this commodity, we'll provide some pointers on how to use the Pen tool, and requite advice for getting the best from it.

Fill a path

Click the icon in the top right to enlarge the image — Click the icon in the top right to overstate the image

Select the Pen tool using the shortcut P. To make a selection, click two points to create a line betwixt them, and elevate a point to create a curved line. Use Alt/opt-drag your lines to change them. Ctrl/correct-click your path in the Paths tab on the correct, and then choose Make full Path to create a shape from information technology.

Alter the Contents to either Foreground or Background, depending on the color swatch you wish to employ. Employ Content Aware if you wish to fill up with pixels from the rest of the image.

The Alloy fashion and Opacity of the make full will determine how the pixels react with other pixels below. 50 per cent Opacity, Screen, for example, volition requite a subtle lightening to your shape.

Use Plumage Radius to soften the edges of the shape yous're filling. To create a completely hard shape, leave this at 0px.

Make a selection

Also as being a proficient drawing instrument, the Pen is a useful pick tool. You can select shapes to brush into. cmd/Ctrl+click a path to select it once you've fabricated a shape, or Ctrl/right-click a path and pick Make Selection.

Make a new selection (left in the image above), or add (cmd/Ctrl+Shift+click) or subtract (cmd/Ctrl+Alt/Opt+click) a option if pixels are selected on your layer.

Double-click a path and requite it a name to salvage it every bit a futurity choice (Paths palette shown on the right above). These paths will announced every bit a listing downwards the Paths tab. Click the dotted outline icon in the menu at the bottom of the palette to brand a selection. Alternately, apply the Delete, Mask and New icons as y'all would in the Layers palette.

Stroke a path

Ctrl/correct-click a path and choose Stroke to apply a line across the selection in whatever brush you have selected. For this particular line of the chandelier, we used a scatter brush to evenly infinite the dots.

Use the drib-downwards in pop-up shown to modify the tool yous're using to stroke the line with – for example, instead of whichever brush file you have selected, you may wish to switch to a pencil.

The Simulate Force per unit area checkbox applies the pressure yous'd normally utilize when creating a stroke with the Brush tool, meaning your line will taper off at the stop.

The toolbar at the top of the interface enables you lot to speedily decide on the Stroke and Make full colour of whatever y'all create with the Pen tool, instead of having to choose it manually.

This commodity was originally published in ImagineFX, the world's acknowledged mag for digital artists. Buy effect 159 (opens in new tab) or subscribe (opens in new tab) .

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