Contour Plugin 18

Contour Plugin

file:///C|/...7G141P17T23027951D7ADC88/Andrew.Plugins.Volume.18.v18.1.for.Adobe.Illustrator/Documentation/GX18 Documentation.htm[6/5/2011 5:30:02 PM]

Contour Plugin (Andrew's Vector Plugins Vol 18)

The plugin creates inset / contours from a path / paths (or placed images and converted text and symbols and other items inIllustrator ®)

Installation of Plugin

Please place the GX18_Contour.aip file in the c:\program files\adobe\illustrator CS\plug-ins folder [pc Illustrator ® CS] orc:\program files\adobe\illustrator 10\plug-ins [pc illustrator 10] or CS2

For the mac, please place the GX18_Contour file in HD:Applications:Adobe Illustrator CS:plug-ins [mac Illustrator ®CS] orHD:Applications:Adobe Illustrator 10:plug-ins [mac Illustrator 10] or CS2

Initial Use of plugin

Please access via the filters menu of Illustrator ® via the <AVP Paths> menu. The plugin is split into multiple screens such ascontour dialog, rotate, shift, points, style, settings.

I would suggest as a basic start point, simply select or create a square and then apply the plugin to that, changing therotation, contour settings, etc. The points settings is basically independent of the contour part (other than for one settingwhere you can combine the contour scaling to the points contour). The contour settings work on the path, the points settings,work on the points and segments of the path. The contour scaling offers a more basic scaling functionality, similar to thatachievable with a mix of transforms, but the points contour settings modifies the path structure to create hi-impact andunusual inset effects.

The plugin was originally in volume 1 set as part of the mixed plugins. The plugin has been greatly extended.

Shuffle button only works where there is an element of randomization such as jitter. The presets dropdown is available on allscreens. Select the first preset to reset the plugin.

The plugin can be applied to normal paths, multiple paths, images, multiple images, text converted (in CS but text and textconverted in 10), to paths with patterns and gradients, paths with styles, symbols and many more types of path. A vastrange of different illustration effects can be applied to each type. Some types such as the placed image are not modified bystyle settings or points settings (likewise the symbols). Gradients and patterns also are not modified by fill and stroke.Symbols are the best approach for animation and SWF export (use the layer palette to spread across layers followed by theexport command)

Applications support

macOSX .2 .3 98 ME NT XP Ilustrator ®10 CS CS2

Questions

Please contact me on [email protected]

Other plugins are available on the site http://www.graphicxtras.com Upgrades are generally available, either as free updatesor inexpensive updates/upgrades. Please store the reference serial number or details of order

Copyright

The plugins are copyright of 2005, Abneil Software Ltd (Andrew Buckle). This product was released by Abneil Software ltd (UKbased company)

Trademarks

Illustrator and Adobe and Photoshop are registered trademarks of Adobe. We have no connection whatsoever with Adobe.Adobe product screen shot(s) reprinted with permission from Adobe Systems Incorporated.

Plugin Use - 'Contour' Screen

The basic plugin screen to manipulate the scaling of the basic path

'Contours': Number of contours to generate, though this doesn't take into account the random create options and othersettings.

http://www.graphicxtras.com/

Contour Plugin


'Contour scaling options': The plugin scales the paths by default proportionally but the contour scaling options give a littlemore flexibility, scaling accumulated, scaling using the shift settings and more.

'Contour scale(%)': The scaling percentage to apply to the newly created path, depends on the contour scaling options. Thecheckbox beside the scaling locks the horizontal and vertical. If set to OFF, the vertical can be manipulated independently tothat of the horizontal (creating thinner contour effects)

Contour Plugin


'Skip/Create': Instead of creating all the paths, the plugin skips a path, creates a path and so on (depending on the patternset). If the skip is set to 2 and create is set to 2, then the plugin will create two paths, internally apply scaling etc for two'non created paths', and then create two more paths, and so on. Different skip/create settings can create unusual patterncontour effects (plateaus etc)

Contour Plugin


'Place Above': By default, paths are created on top of the original path and previous paths. This is useful if the contourgenerates paths that are smaller than the original but if the paths are bigger than the original or previous paths, the top pathis all you will see (unless some shift of paths or rotation is applied), the place below (or OFF) state then is more preferable.Visually, you might like to have the paths beneath the original paths anyway.

Contour Plugin


'Rotate' Screen

Path rotation dialog

'Rotation (/10)': Rotates the path (accumulative) about the current rotation option center. By default, the center is the pathcenter.

'Rotation options': Rotate the path about the current center or about a path center or user defined center or the current shiftposition. Depending on the setting, some of the fields below will be enabled or not

Contour Plugin


'Use path': Rotates the path around the selected path's defined first, second etc path. Depends on the order of creation of thepaths. Setting a path number from 1 to 2 can radically change the displayed rotation of paths.

Contour Plugin


'User defined center (p)': Define your own rotation center for the paths (depends on the dropdown being set to user definedrotation).

'Shift' Screen

Path shift dialog. This screen works on the whole path, not points.

'Shift (p)': Shifts the path (using the current shift option) horizontal and / or vertical

Contour Plugin


'Shift options': Shifts the path adding to each path, accumulating the shift, applying jitter, applying the shift as a frame andmore.

Contour Plugin


'Points' Screen

Manipulate the individual points of the path for additional inset effects

'Points contour (p)': Instead of scaling based on paths, the points are moved towards the center of the path, this distorts theshape (especially as it gets closer to the center and further from the original path). The points scaling is separate from thegeneral contour scaling (unless the add scale setting is ON). The initial state will have the paths and points (if set to 0)overlapping the original. To see the points scaling, set the points contour to something other than 0. If the value is set to 0,the contour options field is not enabled.

'Points contour options':

Contour Plugin


Contour Plugin


'Variance (p)':

Contour Plugin


'Points variance options':

'Interpolate(%)':

Contour Plugin


'Style' Screen

Contour Plugin


Manipulate the fill and stroke and weight of the path across generated paths

'Fill options':

'Fill':

Contour Plugin


'Stroke options':

Contour Plugin


'Stroke':

'Weight options':

Contour Plugin


'Weight':

Contour Plugin


'Interpolate style(%)': This interpolates the style between the original art and the current contoured art. Can be very slow(especially if the style features a blur or Photoshop live effect) but it can create some very unusual style changes. Useful alsofor tweaking a set of styled contours, to reduce or increasing the brightness or the width of line without modifying the weightoptions or weight settings. Be careful. I suggest you modify it via the text entry and do not use the arrow entry sliders. Not allstyles are interpolated (at least visible modifications) and not all patterns will be modified (visibly). Use the interpolate as ablurring of values, so if you set the color to randomized and then set 100% interpolate value the colors will be randomizedbut setting the value closer to 0 will randomize the colors but they will all be slight variants of the original color.

'Settings' Screen

Additional settings check boxes

'Path - alternate flip': Each alternate path in the contour is flipped by 90 degrees

Contour Plugin


'Path - opacity (R)': The contour created paths are varied in opacity / transparency.

Contour Plugin


'Path - delete (visible in preview)': The initial path is deleted. You will see it in the preview, but after clicking OK, it will bedeleted. Sorry about the preview visibility, just the way the plugin works in combo with the application.

'Path - create(R)': By default, the contour is made up the number of contours requested. If ON, the path will be created ornot, randomly, leaving gaps in the contour.

'Points - ignore direction': The direction points manipulate the curve of the path. The direction points are left in place as if thepoints contour is not applied. If both are set to ON, nothing will change. All the points settings are not enabled until you set apoints value in the points dialog (they have no meaning otherwise)

Contour Plugin


'Points - ignore anchor': Paths are made up of points, anchor points being one part of the path formation (please check outthe Illustrator manual for more details about beziers, anchor, direction points, and others, and also each application calls theterm slightly different) If you set this to ON, the path's anchor points are not moved during a points contour inset (thedirection points / curves are). If both anchor and direction are set, there will be no change.

Contour Plugin


'Points - rotate center': Instead of applying the contour to the points using the path center, the current rotate options centeris used. If this is set to the path center, then no change, but the rotation center can also be the shift position or user definedcenter. Useful for creating unusual shape formations.

'Points - add scale': The plugin by default doesn't join the contour and the points scaling together. If ON, the contour scalingis applied to the points scaling (vica versa.. as well).

Contour Plugin


'Points - apply (R)': Instead of applying the points contour to all the points, the plugin randomly modifies or applies thecontour to the points. This can create some really unusual contour point inset effects, especially if there are a lot of points.Even a simple square with a number of points can be inset and create jarred hi-impact tattered ragged path effects.

Contour Plugin


Additional Examples

Here are a set of additional examples of the contour plugin in use

Contour Plugin


Contour Plugin 18

Documents

Transcript of Contour Plugin 18