Design Center Tutorial
Create a vector lens flare in Illustrator CS2
Create a lens flare
To apply a lens flare with the Flare tool, follow these instructions:
- Select the Flare tool, which you’ll find grouped with the closed path shape tools (don’t ask why it’s there, just accept it; Figure 1).
Figure 1: The Flare tool is grouped with the closed path shape tools.
- Click and drag from the point where you want the center of the highlight to be
(Figure 2). Do not release the mouse button yet.
Figure 2: Clicking and dragging with the Flare tool is the first step in creating a vector flare.
- Press the up and down arrows to add and remove the number of rays in the lens flare.
- Release the mouse.
- Click and drag to define the lighting direction release the mouse button yet (Figure 3).
Figure 3: The second click and drag with the Flare tool defines additional options.
- Press the up and down arrows to add and remove the number of rings in the lens flare.
- Release the mouse to complete the lens flare (Figure 4).
Figure 4: The Flare creates cool effects, although you should refer to Chapter 11 of Real World Illustrator CS2, Prepress and Printing, for important information on printing documents with transparency effects.
Even though it isn’t a Live Effect, once a flare has been applied, it can still be edited—although not via the Appearance palette. To edit a flare, select it with the Selection tool and double-click the Flare tool in the Toolbox. This opens the Flare Tool Options dialog, where you specify any changes to the appearance of the flare. When you check the Preview button you will be able to see the changes happening to the flare as you adjust the settings.
Note: Because of the transparency blend modes that are used by the objects created with the Flare tool, you’ll see the best results when you’re creating flares over colored backgrounds.
Where to go from here
For more information about Illustrator, check out the following resources:
- Achieve photorealism with Gradient Mesh, by Mordy Golding
- Put Illustrator CS2 to Work for you, by Total Training
- Change the shape of things with the closed and open path shape tools in Illustrator CS2, by Mordy Golding
