Luke O'Neill demonstrates how to add an extra dimension to your vector work using the perspective tool.
The perspective tool, much like anything in Adobe Illustrator, can seem a little complicated and daunting at first. Fortunately though, once you understand the basics its pretty easy to get to grips with and you'll end up wondering why you've never used it before.
Through the next five steps I'll run through the basics of setting up a perspective grid and demonstrate how you can draw directly onto the grid or apply existing vectors to it. I'll also demonstrate a couple of basic applications for its use that can be applied to a variety of different projects.
01. Setting up the perspective grid
To bring up the perspective grid simply click on the perspective tool icon in the toolbar which will bring up the standard two point perspective grid. There are three grid presets, 1-point, 2-point and 3-point perspective. You can switch between these by navigating to View>Perspective grid and then simply choose the grid you wish to work on. You can only have one grid active per Ai document so bear this in mind before you begin applying anything to the grid.
02. Drawing objects directly onto the gird
You can adjust the grid easily by hovering over the widgets on the grid which will change to a move icon to indicate which direction you can adjust the grid. Drawing directly onto the grid in perspective is easy, simply select one of the shape tools, in this case the rectangle tool, and begin drawing directly onto the grid.
To switch the perspective plane that you wish to draw onto, just click the relevant plane on the cube icon in the top left. If you wish to adjust the shapes you've drawn on the grid whilst maintaining their correct perspective then always use the perspective selection tool and not the normal selection tools.
03. Applying existing vectors to the grid
Drawing directly onto the perspective grid can be a little clumsy if you're creating anything other than simple flat planes. For more detailed graphics/elements its best to draw them flat off grid and then apply them to the perspective grid later.
To do this simply select the plane you wish to apply the graphic to and then using the perspective selection tool, simply drag it onto your perspective grid. You can adjust the size and position in the same way that you would any other object whilst maintaing the correct perspective.
04. Creating a tunnel vision effect
You don't have to rely entirely on the perspective grid to achieve some quick perspective effects. To create a tunnel vision effect then simply drag the perspective graphic from the previous step using the direct selection tool, then hit R for rotate and select a central position.
Use the radial effect tool to create a tunnel vision effect by entering a fraction, in this case 360/6, copy the graphic and hitCmd+D to duplicate it.
05. Applying graphics to walls
The perspective tool is also good for mocking up what a sign or graphic might look like on a wall. Simply use the File>Place command to import a jpeg that you'd like to use as your base.
Then simply move it under the grid, adjust the grid to the same perspective as the wall and drag your graphics onto the grid to see how they'll look in the real world. You can of course then paste the graphic into photoshop to give it a more natural look whilst maintaining the same perspective.
Words: Luke O'Neill
