Working with Color > Working with solid colors and gradient fills in the Color Mixer |  |

Working with solid colors and gradient fills in the Color Mixer

To create and edit solid colors and gradient fills, you can use the Color Mixer. If an object is selected on the Stage, the color modifications you make in the Color Mixer are applied to the selection.

You can create any color using the Color Mixer. You can choose colors in RGB, HSB, or expand the panel to use hexadecimal mode. You can also specify an alpha value to define the degree of transparency for a color. In addition, you can select a color from the existing color palette.

You can expand the Color Mixer to display a larger color space in place of the color bar, a split color swatch showing the current and previous colors, and a Brightness control to modify color brightness in all color modes.

To create or edit a solid color with the Color Mixer:

1 | To apply the color to existing artwork, select an object or objects on the Stage.
2 | Choose Window > Color Mixer.
3 | To select a color mode display, choose RGB (the default setting) or HSB from the pop-up menu in the upper right corner of the Color Mixer.
4 | Click the Stroke or Fill icon to specify which attribute is to be modified.
| Note: Be sure to click the icon, not the color box, or the color pop-up window will open.
5 | If you selected the Fill icon in step 4, verify that Solid is selected in the Fill Style pop-up menu in the center of the Color Mixer.
6 | Click the arrow in the lower right corner to expand the Color Mixer.
7 | Do one of the following:
| Click in the color space in the Color Mixer to select a color. Drag the Brightness control to adjust the brightness of the color.
| Note: To create colors other than black or white, make sure the Brightness control is not set to either extreme.
| Enter values in the color value boxes: Red, Green, and Blue values for RGB display; Hue, Saturation, and Brightness values for HSB display; or hexadecimal values for hexadecimal display. Enter an Alpha value to specify the degree of transparency, from 0 for complete transparency to 100 for complete opacity.
| Click the Default Stroke and Fill button to return to the default color settings, black and white (white fill and black stroke).
| Click the Swap Stroke and Fill button to swap colors between the fill and the stroke.
| Click the No Color button to apply no color to the fill or stroke.
| Note: You cannot apply a stroke or fill of No Color to an existing object. Instead, select the existing stroke or fill and delete it.
| Click the Stroke or Fill color box and choose a color from the pop-up window.
8 | To add the color defined in step 5 to the color swatch list for the current document, choose Add Swatch from the pop-up menu in the upper right corner of the Color Mixer.

To create or edit a gradient fill with the Color Mixer:

1 | To apply a gradient fill to existing artwork, select an object or objects on the Stage.
2 | If the Color Mixer is not visible, choose Window > Color Mixer.
3 | To select a color mode display, choose RGB (the default setting) or HSB.
4 | Select a gradient type from the Fill Style pop-up menu in the center of the Color Mixer:
| Linear Gradient creates a gradient that shades from the starting point to the end point in a straight line.
| Radial Gradient creates a gradient that shades from the starting point to the end point in a circular pattern.
| The gradient definition bar appears in place of the color bar in the Color Mixer, with pointers below the bar indicating each color in the gradient.
5 | Click the arrow in the lower right corner to expand the Color Mixer.
6 | To change a color in the gradient, click one of the pointers below the gradient definition bar and click in the color space that appears directly below the gradient bar in the expanded Color Mixer. Drag the Brightness control to adjust the lightness of the color.
7 | To add a pointer to the gradient, click on or below the gradient definition bar. Select a color for the new pointer as described in step 6.
8 | To reposition a pointer on the gradient, drag the pointer along the gradient definition bar. Drag a pointer down and off of the gradient definition bar to remove it.
9 | To save the gradient, click the triangle in the upper right corner of the Color Mixer and choose Add Swatch from the pop-up menu. The gradient is added to the Color Swatches panel for the current document.