Level up your shape-building skills with Pathfinders

Have you ever tried to create - some kind of unique shapes freehand and found it challenging - or even tracing something?

That's where you could use Pathfinders - to take a simpler shapes and combine, cut out or divide the shapes - to get exactly what you need.

Up to this point, - you've probably used the Shape Builder Tool to combine shapes in a few ways.

We're going to review it - by combining these overlapping circles to create this part of the logo.

I'll zoom into them.

Go and select the circles and to combine them together, we're going to select the Shape Builder Tool - over there in the Toolbar.

We combine with the Shape Builder Tool - by dragging through shapes.

So like this, then you release.

If you want to keep combining, you can drag from the shape you just made - to the remaining shapes.

Now we want to get rid - of the shapes out here.

So what you can do is press Option or Alt, and when you see a - sign - next to the pointer, you can drag through all of those shapes.

You released a mouse button - and then the key.

And now you've got a single shape - to work with.

Using the Selection Tool, go ahead and drag that shape by its edge into the center of this yellow circle.

Now just start to explore the power - of what we call pathfinders.

Pathfinders are permanent.

With them, you have a lot more ways to combine shapes than you do - with the Shape Builder Tool.

Let's explore them first - by removing this shape from the yellow circle.

So drag across the shape and the circle.

If you look over the Properties panel, you're going to see - some of the pathfinders there.

If you want to see more, - you can click More Options here and there's a bunch more.

To subtract that shape from the circle click Minus Front here, and you do so permanently.

So it actually leaves a hole - in the yellow circle in the shape of that logo bit.

This is pretty much the same thing as Option or Alt clicking - with the Shape Builder Tool.

Now we've got some other shapes over here, - so I'll move over with the Hand Tool and then maybe zoom out a little bit.

All these shapes need to be combined - in different ways to make some headphones, - you see down here.

You'll explore some other pathfinders - to create these headphones from the shapes.

Here you'll see two circles - and a rectangle in front of them.

All of these shapes are going to become - the headband of the headphones.

Let's start with the circles.

Go and select them by dragging across.

To remove where they overlap each other, you'll use the Exclude option.

So click Exclude over here.

One step down.

Now you're going - to use the yellow rectangle to remove the bottom half of the circle, drag across both of the shapes - to select them.

Now, in this case, the rectangles - in front of the circular shape.

So just like the logo shape - you did previously to remove the rectangle - from the circle, click Minus Front.

Now, like I said before, - this is permanent, but let's try something different here.

Undo that by choosing Edit, Undo Subtract.

Now, if you want to use - any of these four pathfinders, not the rest of them just these four and make it - so the operation isn't permanent, you can apply them - as a shape mode instead.

You'll see what that gets us.

Now, this time, come back over here - and press Option or Alt and click Minus Front.

See how you can see the final shape, but you can also see - the original shape still?

Pressing that key makes it - so the original shapes are still editable.

For instance, if you come to that rectangle - and double click on it, you can select it and resize it.

When you're done, - you just press the Escape key and you've still got your shape.

That's the power of working - with what we call Shape modes.

Now, the three circles here are supposed to become the earpieces - for the headphones.

What you're going to do - is you're going to divide all these up, so you get the pieces you want.

To select these shapes, drag across them, and we can't see the pathfinder out here.

So in the Pathfinder section, - click More Options.

And to divide the shapes - where they intersect, click Divide.

Press the Escape key - so you can hide the Pathfinder options.

It doesn't actually look - like much happened, but it did.

So that we can select the individual objects, - you need to ungroup them.

So with the group selected, click on the Ungroup button - in the Properties panel.

You can then deselect the shapes - and see exactly how they were cut up.

Go ahead and delete these shapes.

Now, to finish the headband, - go ahead and drag the shape that's up here over this artwork.

You're going to drag across - all that artwork and to group it together, click the Group button - in the Properties panel.

Using the Shape Builder Tool, Pathfinder effects, and even those Shape modes I showed you, you can easily take simpler shapes - and create more complex artwork from it.

Try experimenting a little bit and create some other shapes - and combine them in different ways.

You may come up with something creative as an alternative - for the center of this logo. -