Resizing an image can result in a loss of quality. Illustrator is a great tool for resizing images without compromising picture quality. It provides several methods for resizing images, including the Scale Tool, Transform Tool, and Bounding Box. The original file quality can be maintained while resizing the photographs without causing them to appear blurry or pixelated.

To resize an image without losing quality, choose the photographs you want to resize while holding down the Shift key after selecting the Selection Tool. It will create a bounding box around the image. Click one of the corners of the box and drag it in or out to enlarge or reduce the size of your image.

In Illustrator, you can adjust the image and graphic sizes interactively or numerically. This article will discover more about the function of resizing images in Illustrator.

Resizing Images In Illustrator Without Compromising On Quality

Illustrator is a vector graphics editing application created by Adobe. The software provides various tools to improve your graphics’ appearance. 

The original file quality can be maintained while resizing the photographs without causing them to appear blurry or pixelated. In Illustrator, you can adjust the image and graphic sizes interactively or numerically.

You may resize images in the software using several methods. These include the following:

1. Scale Tool
2. Transform Tool
3. Bounding Box

Each can be used depending on the image and your needs. Let’s dive deeper into each method to determine how professional designers resize their images without compromising picture quality.

Scale Tool

There is a Scale Tool in the toolbar. You can find it in the same sub-menu as the Rotate tool. Here’s how you can use this tool:

1. The first step is to select the photos using the Selection Tool (or use the keyboard shortcut “V”)
2. If you wish to resize all images, drag through to pick them all while holding down the “Shift” key.
3. The next step is to select the “Scale Tool” from the toolbar, or you can also use the keyboard shortcut ‘S.’
4. Now, the photos you chose will have anchor points.
5. Finally, drag an empty area near the images in either direction to change their size by clicking on the area and dragging.
6. The size of the image will increase if you drag it out, and it will decrease if you drag it in. 
7. To keep the photos proportionate while dragging, hold down the Shift key.

Transform Tool

This technique is most beneficial when you know the exact image size value you want because you can enter the width and height directly. For example, imagine that you want to resize the image to 300 pixels in width. 

Let’s assume that, currently, the size of that image is 400 W x 309 H. Follow these steps with these assumptions in mind:

1. Start by selecting Window > Transform from the main menu to launch the Transform panel. 
2. The “Transform Panel” will appear underneath the Properties panel when you choose an item or image.
3. Choose the image you wish to resize and click the “Transform” button.
4. You will then see the image’s dimensions, W (width) and H (height). You can see that the value of height immediately changes when you alter the value of width to 300
5. Similarly, if you adjust the height value, the width value will also be adjusted accordingly.

You may be curious as to why this occurs. It is because the “link” button is activated. When this button is selected, the image’s original proportions are maintained. 

If you enter a value for the width (W), the height (H) value will adjust proportionally. While you can choose to unlink the button, it is usually not necessary to do so.

Bounding Box

The easiest approach to resize art in Adobe Illustrator is with this method. To resize the images, just select them and drag the bounding box. View the instructions in detail below:

1. Firstly, select the Selection Tool from the toolbar. 
2. Then, choose the photographs you want to resize while holding down the Shift key. 
3. The choice will be visible within a bounding box. 
4. The final step is to resize by clicking on one of the bounding box’s corners and dragging in or out. 
5. Drag outward to enlarge and inward (towards the center) to shrink the size. 
6. Holding the Shift key while dragging will cause the size to be adjusted accordingly.

Watch this video for a visual learning experience about resizing images in Adobe Illustrator:

Reducing File Size

People usually confuse downsizing the file size with the artwork size. When you save the file, you can lower the file size of an image rather than the size of the image. You must first choose between exporting the image as a jpeg or a png.

The image resolution can then be altered. For instance, your file will be smaller if you select a lesser resolution (72 ppi) than a higher resolution, such as 300 ppi.

Conclusion

Adobe Illustrator provides an easy way to scale your artwork. While the scale tool is specifically designed for resizing, professionals mostly rely on the bounding box as it works effectively. 

However, when resizing photos to a precise size, it’s advisable to use the Transform panel rather than the bounding box or scale tools. Trying these techniques in Adobe Illustrator can help you understand how convenient it is to resize an image without compromising its quality.