Using Help | Contents | Index Back 130
Adobe Illustrator Help Transforming and Distorting Shapes
Using Help | Contents | Index Back 130
Adding drop shadows
The Drop Shadow command creates a three-dimensional shadow on any selected object.
You can offset the drop shadow any distance from the object along the x or y axis, as well
as vary the opacity, blending mode, blur, color, and darkness of the drop shadow.
You can apply the Drop Shadow command as a filter or as an effect (see “
Using effects” on
page 235.)
To create a drop shadow:
1 Do one of the following:
• To apply the command as a filter, use a selection tool and select the object. Then choose
Filter > Stylize > Drop Shadow.
• To apply the command as an effect, select an object or group in the artwork, or target
an item in the Layers palette. (For more information on targeting, see “
Changing the
appearance of artwork using the Layers palette” on page 223.) Then choose Effect >
Stylize > Drop Shadow.
2 Choose a blending mode from the Mode menu. For more information, see “
About
blending modes” on page 196.
3 Enter the amount of opacity you want for the shadow.
4 Enter the distance you want the drop shadow to be offset from the object on the x axis
or the y axis (in the unit of measure set in the General Preferences dialog box).
5 Enter the distance from the edge of the shadow where you want any blurring to occur.
To blur the shadow, a transparent raster object is created.
6 Do one of the following:
• Select Color, and click the color preview to specify a color for the shadow. For more
information, see “
Using the Color Picker” on page 169.
• Select Darkness, and enter the percentage darkness (percentage of black added) you
want for the drop shadow. In a CMYK document, a value of 100% used with a selected
object that contains a fill or stroke color other than black creates a multicolored black
shadow. A value of 100% used with a selected object that contains only a black fill or
stroke creates a 100% black shadow. A value of 0% creates a drop shadow the color of
the selected object.
7 To place each shadow directly behind the object to which the shadow is applied, select
Create Separate Shadows (this option is only available when you choose Drop Shadow
from the Filter menu). Leaving this option unselected places all of the shadows together
behind the bottom-most selected object.
8 Click OK.
Adding inner and outer glows
The Inner Glow and Outer Glow commands let you add glows that emanate from the
inside or outside edges of the selection. When you add an inner glow, a raster object is
created inside an opacity mask; when you add an outer glow, a transparent raster object is
created.
These commands are only available as effects (see “
Using effects” on page 235.)
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