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Adobe Illustrator Tutorials
February 3rd, 2007 in Tutorials, Graphics | 98 Comments
As a vector-based drawing program Adobe Illustrator has nowadays become the standard for illustration design. This tendency can be noticed in the Web as well as in Print Design. Few weeks ago we’ve selected some of the best Adobe Photoshop tutorials we’ve found on the Web so far; now it’s time for Adobe Illustrator. Below you’ll find a list of hand-picked Illustrator tutorials you can use to achieve some special visual effects in your designs.
Adobe Illustrator Tutorials
- Various Adobe Illustrator Tutorials
Computer Display Windows Vista Icon, Web 2.0 Badge, iPod Earbuds, Help Icon, Folder Icon, Shiny Text, Credit Card

- The Gradient Mesh
A Tutorial on using the Gradient Mesh tool in Adobe Illustrator 10 - Adobe Illustrator Tutorials
An Introduction to Illustrator, Gradient Meshes Introduction, 3D Pill, Abstract Shapes, Illustrator Brush Basics, Glassy Orbs … - Adobe Illustrator Gradient Mesh Portrait Tutorial
Below is a mini tutorial on how I did my gradient mesh based “Vector Portrait” in Adobe Illustrator. The thumbnails are screen shots of my workstation. - How-Tos
How-To Articles - Illustration, from sketch to finish - Part One
Tutorial by Veerle Pieters - Illustration, from sketch to finish Part Two
Tutorial by Veerle Pieters - Illustration, from sketch to finish Part Three
Tutorial by Veerle Pieters

- Swirly curls in Adobe Illustrator
Tutorial by Veerle Pieters - Some Illustrator tips
by Veerle Pieters - Creating a ribbon in Adobe Illustrator
Tutorial by Veerle Pieters

- Creative Text Masking - Illustrator CS2 Tutorial
This tutorial is meant to help you create a creative mask with text, something that you can use in a variety of mediums, both print and web based.

- Illustrator Tutorial
Amazing Hidden Tricks in Illustrator! (and other cool tricks) - Design Spice Illustrator Tutorial
Mocaic image effect in Illustrator

- Creating a Logo in Illustrator
Tutorial by Jessie Schueler - Bitmap into Vector
In just a few minutes you can create a vector file from a bitmap image in Illustrator. - ErgoDraw
Novice Tutorials, Intermediate Tutorials, Advanced Tutorials - Creating organic desktops
The following tutorial shows how to create organic desktops using Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop.

- Adobe Illustrator Tutorials from Fay Studios
These step-by-step illustrated instructions were made to help beginners on the road to Illustrator creativity. More advanced uses may find tips and tricks with some not so well known features. - Adobe Illustrator Scan / Trace / Vector
This week’s tutorials look at Adobe Illustrator 10 working with the pen tool drawing and tracing Scans… maps, mapmaking, Logo Design, Drawing Curves, Pencil Tool Basics, Text Warping Tools, Vector Graphics, Turn Bitmap Images into Vector Art, and importing illustrator files, and desktop publishing. - Adobe Illustrator Tutorials for Basics and Tools
Learn the basics and tools of Adobe Illustrator with these free online tutorials. - Drawing in Illustrator
Learn how to use the full power of Illustrator’s tools to draw vector artwork - 19 Tutorials

- Design Business Cards in Adobe Illustrator
This tutorial will guide you through the process of designing business cards and postcards in Illustrator as well as providing press-ready templates to get you started quickly. - Free Tutorials - Illustrator Techniques
Imitating A Scanner Darkly, Making Distressed Type with Live Trace, 3D Text Effect, Creating a Quick and Easy Glass Bowl

- Illustrator tutorials
Type on a path, Making of a Logo, The mesh tool, Creating a cd-rom - Adobe Illustrator & Photoshop Tutorials & Lessons - Kevin Hulsey
Computer Graphics Illustration Tutorials, Tips, & Tricks for Students. This page is designed to provide helpful information related to computer graphics. Listed below are numerous illustration tutorials and drawing lessons for all skill levels. Additionally, there many pages of Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop tutorials, tips & tricks for technical illustration students, professional technical illustrators and digital artists…

- Layers Magazine: Illustrator Tutorials
17 Illustrator Tutorials - Layers Magazine - Reconfiguring brushes in Adobe Illustrator
Changing a brush’s scale, dynamics and other characteristics - Adobe Illustrator tips & tricks
Here are a collection of tips and tricks for Adobe Illustrator - Illustrator Tutorials
Step-by-step Adobe Illustrator tutorials with original source file download.

- Oman3D Illustrator Tutorials
Learn New Skills and Techniques at Oman3D
- Adobe Illustrator Tutorial
In this tutorial we will introduce you to Illustrator by explaining the tools you need to create basic artwork and page design. - Adobe Illustrator Tutorials
96 Illustrator Tutorials - Illustrator Drawing Basics Tutorials
Illustrator tutorials and free Adobe Illustrator tips and techniques. Learn how to use Illustrator and other drawing basics. - Illustrator Tutorials
Illustrator Tutorials at Tutorial Outpost

- Adobe Illustrator Tutorials
Online directory of the best free Adobe Illustrator Tutorials from around the web. Hundreds of great techniques and tips listed. - Illustrator Tutorials
Illustrator and other vector and raster graphic designing tutorials - Illustrator Tutorials
Realistic Digital Watch, Image Inlay Text, Professional Text, Drawing a Fish, Doll, Flower, Air Balloon, Water Melon, Vase, Swan Logo, Cartoon Birds, Fun Cow.

- Basang Panaginip: The World’s Most Photorealistic Vector Art
They are NOT photographs. Vector drawings using gradient mesh to be specific. Except for Bert Monroy, all of the vector art displayed here are 100% made from Adobe Illustrator. - Free Illustrator video tutorials
Learn Illustrator CS 2 for free. Follow along as we take you through the Illustrator learning curve with our custom designed free video tutorials.
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Rob Hawkes (February 3rd, 2007, 6:20 am)
Great list, will keep me busy for the weekend!
Uzbek (February 3rd, 2007, 12:40 pm)
Great collection,
I was thinking/planning to learn Adobe Illustrator for several months, just had no time and enough motivation to actually start it.
This is one of the last triggers.
Thanks for the great stuff.
Uzbek
Shareware Software (February 3rd, 2007, 1:39 pm)
very interesting …
sken (February 3rd, 2007, 4:37 pm)
nice list here .. thanks a lot ..
David G. Paul (February 3rd, 2007, 9:32 pm)
Cool, I’ve been planning on trying out Illustrator, and seeing those tutorials makes me think it’s worth trying sooner rather than later!
Jens (February 4th, 2007, 12:39 am)
This awesome Gradient Mesh Bell Pepper tutorial should be on the list as well…
Link [www.lifeinvector.com]
Agito (February 5th, 2007, 10:04 am)
This list will come in really handy. ^^
Illustrator is a program I’ve always tried to create things with, but failed.
Even with my knowledge of Photoshop, I still manage to struggle sometimes with Illustrator.
Thank you very much SM! ^^
ituloy angsulong (February 5th, 2007, 10:18 pm)
Another stuff that makes this site rocks..
Keep up the good work smashingmagzzz….
Rafael (February 6th, 2007, 4:16 am)
awesome collection of links!!!
didit (February 8th, 2007, 11:35 pm)
thank you…
mark (March 23rd, 2007, 12:32 am)
hey great site was waiting for this a long time thanxx
Wiked (March 31st, 2007, 12:31 am)
Did anybody get the Part 1 & 2 movie zips from Verlee’s Sketch To Finish Series? I’ve been trying for weeks and the bandwidth is always used up by the time I try to download them. Anyone care to share them? Could pay a little via paypal to anyone who takes the time to up them and hit me with a link to grab the two zips..
ziad (April 5th, 2007, 10:00 am)
A few illustrator video tutorials:
Link [www.vtutorial.com]
Link [www.vtutorial.com]
modifiyeli arabalar (June 26th, 2007, 8:40 pm)
Excelent articles…. thanks.
rzrsej (July 22nd, 2007, 8:53 pm)
It’s always important to keep in mind that an eye-popping website can’t accomplish much if its content is shabby. That said, those eye-popping graphics sure are attractive. This is a fantastic collection of tutorials. I’ve been playing with them all afternoon. I think learning the mesh gradient is perhaps the most important element here, since it’s such an important aspect of other innovative graphics. And nothing really sets the average amateur site apart from the professional-looking sites like the mesh gradient. However, the ones that got me most excited were the illustrator techniques – who doesn’t want to be able to imitate the iconic look of A Scanner Darkly (or its predecessor A Waking Life) – and the one on layers. I can’t wait to find some excuses to actually add these to some of my pages. I mean, I want to be judicious and not overdo it, but the temptations are very strong.
Truck Wallpaper (August 12th, 2007, 6:23 pm)
Link [truckswalpapers.wordpress.com]
Fred Campbell (August 28th, 2007, 6:22 pm)
Just got illustrator as part of CS3 - was completely lost, but these tutorials have really helped. Clean, simple and easy to follow. Thanks a lot.
Jals (August 30th, 2007, 5:47 pm)
good collections for illustrator tutorial….. now i can be more professional designer… thanks!
guillermo (September 5th, 2007, 1:50 am)
buenos tutos Muy interesantes estos articulos visiten mis blogs soy ecuatoriano freelance….
Link [javieworks1386.blogspot.com]
Steve (September 11th, 2007, 12:17 am)
yeah a good collections for illustrator tutorial… :-)
juragan (September 24th, 2007, 10:38 am)
Nice tutorial collection
Abdul Nazer (September 29th, 2007, 11:59 pm)
really Interesting Software like some others.
Himalaka (November 1st, 2007, 9:28 pm)
An excellent list,among what I found from the search. Thanks…..
Dejan Mincic (November 18th, 2007, 8:28 pm)
Great Tutorials. Very nice. Thanks! :)
Designer (November 26th, 2007, 5:00 am)
Nice Templates for Designer.
James (January 8th, 2008, 8:46 am)
i like it,thanks
salavadhi pradeepkumar (January 20th, 2008, 8:21 am)
very good
shital jethva (February 18th, 2008, 2:20 am)
superb…..
mind blowing
thankssss
Andy Fitzsimon (February 20th, 2008, 10:39 pm)
Referring to the first paragraph:
I Think you’ll notice there is a shift happening from Adobe software to the free open source program Inkscape.
All of the above illustrations are possible and often easier to produce with Inkscape.
Ambrosiality (February 26th, 2008, 5:08 pm)
I’m excited to use this!!
Mosh (March 25th, 2008, 5:44 am)
“As a vector-based drawing program Adobe Illustrator has nowadays become the standard for illustration design. This tendency can be noticed in the Web as well as in Print Design”.
I wonder how can anyone look at a web or printed image and detect that it was done with Illustrator and not with CorelDraw or Freehand.
Soumyajit pal (March 26th, 2008, 12:55 am)
It’s always important to keep in mind that an eye-popping website can’t accomplish much if its content is shabby. That said, those eye-popping graphics sure are attractive. This is a fantastic collection of tutorials. I’ve been playing with them all afternoon. I think learning the mesh gradient is perhaps the most important element here, since it’s such an important aspect of other innovative graphics. And nothing really sets the average amateur site apart from the professional-looking sites like the mesh gradient. However, the ones that got me most excited were the illustrator techniques – who doesn’t want to be able to imitate the iconic look of A Scanner Darkly (or its predecessor A Waking Life) – and the one on layers. I can’t wait to find some excuses to actually add these to some of my pages. I mean, I want to be judicious and not overdo it, but the temptations are very strong.
Cesar Gomez (April 29th, 2008, 1:38 pm)
Wow!! what a great tutorials!!!
the Kevin Hulsey illustrator tutorial is amazing, that guy is great!
Illustrator is a powerful tool to learn.
Thanks for this info.
Ian Marsden (May 8th, 2008, 4:19 am)
Help,
I am trying to get hold of a legitimate copy of Illustrator 12 or older.
Any suggestions?
Regards
Ian Marsden