Basic use of the Deco tool and Spray Brush

The Deco tool and Spray Brush can be accessed from the standard Tools panel in Flash. The basic workflow for any of these new tools is to select the tool from the toolbar, and then click the Stage to start drawing the pattern. Additionally, with a few changes to the options, you can create custom patterns very quickly.

The Deco tool contains three effects: Vine Fill, Grid Fill, and Symmetry Brush. Together with the Spray Brush, they make up the four new tools that were created to use the procedural engine for CS4. Since they all use the same engine, they have similar capabilities and UI, which appears in the vertical Property inspector when each tool is selected.

As the tool and effect are changed, the Property inspector changes to reflect the available options for that effect. They each share some similar UI: the Edit symbol button for replacing the default symbol with a library symbol, a color picker for changing the color of the default shape(s), and a check box for resetting the default shape. Below these common options are the advanced options, which I will discuss in detail in the next section.

Basic Spray Brush

To use the Spray Brush, select it from the toolbar: click and hold the regular Brush tool until the brush selection menu pops up, and then click the Spray Brush. Draw on the Stage as you would with the regular Brush, and a spray of small circular particles appears as a Group. Next, try changing the color of the brush by clicking the color picker on the Property inspector and selecting a new color, and then drawing some more on the Stage (see Figure 1).

Figure 1. Using the Spray Brush

Switching between the drawings effects in the Deco tool

When the Deco tool is selected, the Effects drop down allows you to select between the three effects: Vine Fill, Grid Fill, and Symmetry Brush (see Figure 2).

Figure 2. Selecting your drawing effect from the pop-up menu

Basic Grid Fill

To use the Grid Fill, select the Deco tool and then select the Grid Fill effect in the Property inspector. Click the color picker to select a color for the grid, and then click anywhere on the Stage. A grid is drawn with the default settings (see Figure 3).

Figure 3. Generating the default grid

Basic Symmetry Brush

The use the Symmetry Brush, select the Deco tool, and then select the Symmetry Brush effect from the pop-up in the Property inspector. A set of handles will appear on the Stage at an angle. These handles let you add more shapes to the symmetry or rotate the entire group.

With the Symmetry Brush effect selected, click the color picker and select a color for the symmetry. Next, click anywhere on the Stage (not on the symmetry handles) and a default shape will be added to the symmetry. Next, drag the shorter of the two handles by clicking and dragging the small circle at the end of the handle. Dragging the handles back and forth will add and subtract the shapes from the symmetry. Next, drag the longer handle in the same way to see the entire symmetry rotate (see Figure 4). You can continue adding new shapes into the symmetry by clicking the Stage.

Once you select another tool, the symmetry will be converted to a Group of shapes, and it can not be edited again using the symmetry handles.

Figure 4. Working with the Symmetry Brush

Basic Vine Fill

To use the Vine Fill, select the Deco tool and then select the Vine Fill effect from the pop-up menu in the Property inspector. Click the color pickers to select a color for the Leaf and Flower, and then click anywhere on the Stage. A vine pattern fills the area you click until it reaches the boundary (see Figure 5). Clicking a shape on Stage will fill just that shape with a vine pattern.

Figure 5. A vine pattern filling the Stage

Page 2 of 5

Previous Page

Next Page