Pen Tool vs Shape Editor

[440bx]

Hi Gary,

I spent some time re-reading chapter 3 and practicing with both the shape editor (which the more I use it, the more I believe it is an important tool to master) and the pen tool.

At this point, I am under the impression that once a person has mastered the shape editor that there is little, if any, use for the pen tool. Am I missing something important about the pen tool or is this conclusion correct ?

All opinions welcome and appreciated,

Thank you,

John.

P.S I attached the result of tracing the "shapes to trace.xar" using the shape editor in case someone might find it useful.

[steve.ledger]

I consider both tools important, they both have their uses.

Everyone develops their own techniques

Here's Egg's method using the shape editor:




Also here's a chap using the freehand tool to do the same thing.

[440bx]

Hi Sledger,

Thanks for the video links. After watching them, it looks like I've been doing the tracing the hard way. The videos really show how simple it can be.

Thank you, that was very helpful.

John.

[Gare]

Egg's video is the quintessential guide to leveraging the power of Xara Xtreme's drawing tools. Steve put it best: it's up to you, how you develop a technique for drawing.

But the way Egg shows tracing follows a classical art technique: working from the general to the specific. If you were doing a traditional painting, you'd rough the shapes out with chalk on the canvas, and then work the details in as you progress with oils or whatever.

Similarly, you begin a Xara Xtreme composition by creating generalized paths that coarsely describe the shape you envision. Then with the Shape Editor, you refine the paths. Your coarse curves can be drawn with either the Shape Editor or the Pen Tool, but if you use the Shape Editor, you can edit while you draw. Also, the Shape Editor can provide you with perfectly smooth curve segments, while the Pen Tool does not.

But the Pen Tool is useful too, particularly for folks who have come from Illustrator or CorelDRAW and seek a familiar tool. It's quite good for schematics and Cubist work. If these two drawing tools had math names, me, I'd call the Pen Tool the Bezier tool and the Shape Editor the B-spline Tool.

My Best,

Gary

[440bx]

Thanks Gary.

I'm starting to develop personal preferences in this case, towards the shape editor.

John.

[Gare]

In case one French curve wasn't enough of an exercise, the attached contains several variations for tracing.

-g-

[440bx]

yikes!

That's more than I bargained for

That will give me something to do next winter

Thanks,

John.