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In the old days when dinosaurs roamed the earth, we used to use what is now referred to as paper for composing design ideas and layouts. Adobe Illustrator has removed the need for such archaic methods by developing artboards. You may be wondering how to add an artboard in Illustrator so you too can maximize the creativity of your designs.
It is very simple to add an artboard in Illustrator, whether you are creating a new file or adding to an existing one. Artboards can be customized to be any height or width and changed in the settings menu if necessary.
To learn more about adding artboards in Illustrator and other helpful information, continue reading.
Adding An Artboard In Illustrator – What You Need To Know
Creating a new artboard in Adobe Illustrator is a cinch and only takes a few seconds.
- You must first begin by opening the Illustrator program and accessing the “File” menu.
- Once the menu has opened select “New”. Now a dialog box will pop up presenting you with options for sizing.
- Additionally, you have to option to create as many artboards upon start-up as you like. To the right side of the “New” dialog box is an option where you can choose how many artboards you want for the project you are working on.
Illustrator can hold up to 100 artboards in one file, so you should not have to worry about running out of room to put all of your ideas. Once you have selected your desired settings just hit the “Enter” key and get to work.
Adding Artboards To Existing Illustrator Files
You may be wondering what happens if you are already working on a file in Illustrator and you realize that you need more artboards.
Don’t worry, because it is just as easy to add artboards to an existing file as it is to create a new file. To add more artboards to the file you are currently working on follow these steps.
First, locate and click on the Artboard menu. Once the dialog box opens you can select the size and quantity of artboards you wish to add.
You can also create your artboard from that menu by clicking and dragging on the screen to create a custom-sized board.
Now you know how to create new artboards but you may still be wondering what they are used for and why they are so great.
Why Use Artboards In Illustrator?
Understanding how to create or add new artboards is just one step in the design process. The list below gives further reasons as to why artboards are so great and why you should use them when working with Adobe Illustrator.
Easy To Use And Customizable
Adobe Illustrator has made it super easy to create and add artboards. The menu is easily accessible and gives plenty of room for customization.
The fact that you can use as many artboards in any size as you like makes designing in Illustrator easy.
Being able to view multiple ideas at one time is very appealing to artists and designers who are unsure of which direction they want to go with a particular project.
Artboards Are Necessary For Saving Your Work
When it comes to saving your work in Illustrator it must be done a certain way in order for it to be correctly exported. Some illustrator projects cannot be saved without the use of an artboard.
Illustrator allows you to select which artboards you can save so for example, if you have fifty art boards open and you only wish to keep or save twenty you can do that by selecting the range option and inputting the number of boards you wish to save.
If you simply select the “save-as” option and hit enter it will compress and save all of the boards even the ones you didn’t want to save. This option for saving is also good because it allows you to select which type of file you want such as a .jpeg, .pdf, or.png format.
Keeping Your Thoughts And Ideas Organized Increases Productivity
If you are like most artists or designers there are a lot of creative thoughts bumping around in your head. It can be difficult to organize those thoughts and ideas sometimes but with the help of Illustrator’s artboards, the process becomes less daunting.
The fact that you can use up to 100 artboards per file gives you a lot of room to be creative as a designer. You can use one board for each idea or duplicate the boards you are working on to make changes and compare to see which design you like the best.
When your thoughts and ideas are organized in a way that you can visually see them it can make the design process go much faster and also help you to see things from a different perspective.
Viewing your ideas from different perspectives can open your mind to new design possibilities and really improve the look of your work.
Explore And Experiment With Illustrator And Artboards
The old saying that practice makes perfect has never been more true than when it comes to working with Adobe Illustrator.
Illustrator has a lot of really great tools and features to help designers produce the best work possible. This is why it is so important to keep experimenting and practicing with the tools and features they provide.
Taking the time to learn how all of the tools work and what they are capable of will help you to grow as a designer.
Additionally, the more you practice using Illustrator and artboards the faster you will become which means more time for designing or doing the fun things that you love.
Adding Artboards Is A Snap With Illustrator
Now you know how to easily create a new artboard or add to an existing file so you can realize as many ideas as your mind can come up with. The more you practice using artboards the more you will find that they are a great addition to your designer’s toolbox.
