Working with color groups and color harmonies

Use Edit Color and Recolor Artwork panels, with the Kuler panel and website to create, edit, or share harmonious color groups.

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Requirements

To complete the tasks demonstrated in this tutorial, you need the following software and files:

Adobe Illustrator CS4

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Sample files

lrvid4019_ai.zip (ZIP, 1.4MB)

Prerequisite knowledge

Intermediate knowledge of live color enhancements

Working with color groups and color harmonies

Adobe® Illustrator® CS4 expands the usability of live color enhancements. In this tutorial, you will learn how to use the Kuler panel, arrange color harmonies, and use the Recolor Artwork function.

Using the Kuler panel

1. Choose Window > Extensions > Kuler. A panel that refers to the Kuler website opens. From the Kuler panel, you can access a range of color themes based on various criteria such as Highest Rated, Most Popular, and Newest.

   

   Figure 1: Opening the Kuler panel
2. To add a color theme to the Swatches panel or view the theme online at the Kuler website, click the desired color theme.
3. Click the arrow to the right of the selected theme. Two options appear: Add To Swatches Panel and View Online In Kuler.
4. To view the color theme online, choose View Online In Kuler. The Kuler website opens, giving you options to inspect this and other color palettes or to create a theme of your own.

   

   Figure 2: Viewing a Kuler color theme online
5. To add a color theme to the Swatches panel, choose Add To Swatches Panel. The color theme appears in the Swatches panel, which is docked on the right side of the default Illustrator workspace.

Working with color harmonies

A color harmony is a collection of complementary colors. You collect and establish color harmonies through the Color Guide panel.

Figure 3: The Color Guide panel

To access the Color Guide panel:

1. Click the fan-shaped Color Guide icon above the Swatches panel icon on the right side of the Illustrator workspace.
2. To access the color harmony for a particular fill color on your artboard, choose the Selection tool and click the shape containing that fill color. In the Color Guide panel, the selected color is indicated by the Base Color square. The default color harmony for that fill color appears in the Harmony Rules menu next to the square.

   

   Figure 4: The Color Guide panel
3. To select a different color harmony, click the Harmony Rules menu.
4. To apply a complementary color from the harmony to another shape, first select the shape and then click the desired color from the Harmony Rules menu. The shape is filled with the chosen color.
5. To add a color harmony to the Swatches panel, click the Save Color Group To Swatches Panel icon in the lower-right corner of the Color Guide panel. A new group containing the color harmony appears in the Swatches panel.

   

   Figure 5: Adding a color harmony to the Swatches panel

   Note: A color harmony is predefined in Illustrator; a color group is a group of colors that you choose. A color group can contain a color harmony.

6. To find new harmonies for an existing color in a color group from the Swatches panel, click on that color group. Then go to the Color Guide panel and choose the correct swatch from the Harmony Rules menu. That color becomes the base color and a new color scheme appears in the Harmony Rules menu.

   Note: In Illustrator CS4, you can select and apply complementary colors more quickly than in previous versions, where you had to manually enter tints and shades.

7. To view Warm/Cool and Vivid/Muted tints in the Color Guide, click the panel menu and select the tints you want to display.

   

   Figure 6: Viewing different tints

The Recolor Artwork feature

Perhaps the most exciting new feature in Illustrator CS4 is the Recolor Artwork feature. To hide the Color Guide panel and use this feature:

1. Click the double arrow icon in the top-right corner of the Color Guide panel.
2. Center your illustration and select all the artwork inside your document.
3. Click the Recolor Artwork button in the Control panel (it looks like a miniature color wheel). You can also choose Edit Colors > Recolor Artwork. The Recolor Artwork dialog box opens. Notice that all of the colors of the selected artwork appear in the Current Colors menu.
4. To save current colors as their own color group, click the New Color Group icon. Performing this action will allow you to revert to this color scheme as needed.

   

   Figure 7: Saving a new color group
5. To change the order of colors in the current color scheme, drag a mini-swatch to a different position in Harmony Rules menu at the top of the Recolor Artwork dialog box.
6. To randomly change the color order and remap colors in the artwork, click the Randomly Change Color Order icon.

   

   Figure 8: Randomly changing the color order
7. You can also switch out colors for one of your preselected color groups by clicking that item grouped under Color Groups.
8. Another method for changing colors in a group is to click Edit in the Recolor Artwork dialog box. The default smooth color wheel appears in the dialog box.

   

   Figure 9: The Recolor Artwork dialog box
9. Drag individual color markers on the color wheel to change the hues. Notice that the other markers move in relationship to your change. You can also lock the colors by clicking the Link Harmony Colors icon. This action allows you to changing individual colors while maintaining other colors in the scheme.
10. Click the New Color Group icon to save the color adjustments as a new color scheme.
11. Click OK to close the Recolor Artwork dialog box.

Adding to color groups

You can also add colors to a preset color group. To add colors:

1. Click the Recolor Artwork icon.
2. Select Bordeaux to assign this color group to your illustration. Notice how you can edit the order of colors by dragging the swatches in the New column to different rows.

   

   Figure 10: Changing the color order
3. To add a new color to the group, right-click Edit and choose Add New Color from the pop-up menu. Illustrator automatically adds a new color marker at the selected point in the color wheel.

   

   Figure 11: Adding a new color
4. To save the new colors, click OK. A dialog box opens prompting you to save your color changes. Click OK to save these changes.

Where to go from here

• Illustrator CS4 Help and Support
• Learn Illustrator CS4
• Introducing Illustrator CS4, by Deke McClelland
• Working with gradients, by Deke McClelland
• Working with multiple artboards, by Deke McClelland
• Lynda.com

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License

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