Text can be added directly to vector layers. Practically any font type or size supported by the Mac®OS can be used. The advantage of creating text in a vector layer is that the text can be manipulated in the same way as any other vector shape and the text will not shatter or become pixelated.
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Instructions
- Activate a vector layer in the Layers Palette.
- Go to Edit Menu > Vectors From Text. The Text Window will open.
- Click on the ‘A’ button in the top left hand corner of the window to open the Fonts Window.
- Highlight the text and choose a font, size and attributes, enter some text.
- Click OK. The text will be applied to your active vector layer and will appear in the top left of your document.
- If you need to, move the text to a different position using the Select Vector Tool. The initial position of the text can be specified by selecting an area on the document, or setting the origin of the rulers and then adding the text. To help you, you may wish to group the vectors, as this makes moving multiple vector shapes much easier.
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Note: Individual letters can be edited to create new designs or achieve special effects with your text.
Apply text along a defined path
Applying text along a path can be a nice, creative way of placing text within a design, and it is easy to do:
- Add a vector layer and draw a line or shape to be used as the path.
- Go to Edit Menu > Vectors From Text and enter the text, style and size you require, and tick Follow Selected Path.
- Click OK. The text will be added to the path on the active vector layer.
- If your text does not fit on the path as required, undo the action using the keyboard shortcut ⌘Z. Then go to Edit Menu > Vectors From Text again and try adjusting the size of the font.
- Remove the path layer if it is no longer needed once you are happy with the text application. You can also change how the vector is viewed by going to Vector Menu > View as Outline, or Vector Menu > View as Filled.