Selecting Vectors

Click on the vector selection tool in the Tools Palette and then click on a vector shape to select it. The whole shape will become highlighted and it’s nodes and handles will be displayed.

To select a second vector object in addition to the first, hold down the shift key and click on another vector. Both objects will become highlighted.

To select a different vector object instead of any currently selected objects, simply click on the new vector without any keys held down and the new one will become highlighted instead of the others.

Deselecting Vectors

Any highlighted vectors will be affected by editing changes made. To ensure a vector is not changed accidentally, make sure it is not selected. To deselect any vectors, click on the background of the design, away from all vector objects. Alternatively you can select Edit > Select > None, or use the shortcut ⌘ D.

Duplicating Vectors

Activate the vector to be duplicated and select Edit > Duplicate, or use the shortcut ⌘ J.

Selecting Vector nodes

Individual nodes or groups of nodes can be selected, rather than a complete vector object, by drawing round them with the select vector tool (as you would with the Lasso tool).

Only the nodes included in the selected area will become highlighted. If your selected area goes over more than one vector object, any nodes within the area will become highlighted, even if they are on different vectors. 

To select a second group of nodes in a different part of the design, hold down the shift key and draw around the other area required and they will also become highlighted. 

Moving

Use the Select vector Tool to move whole vector shapes, or single nodes by clicking and dragging it to a new position. If you activate a group of vector shapes, or a group of vector nodes, they will all move together as you drag your cursor to a new position.

This method of editing vector shapes can be used as a design tool, and the idea can be taken further and combined with the Resize Vector Tool and Rotate Vector Tool to manipulate your active nodes in strange and interesting ways.

If you want to move a vector or node by a specific value, active the vector, or the relevant nodes, and go to Edit Menu > Select > Move, or use the keyboard shortcut ⌥ ⌘ comma.

In the snapshot below, only one node is selected, and I wish to move that node exactly 3cm to the left and 3 cm down:

The snapshot below shows the results of this move:

Copying

You can copy selected vectors by choosing Edit > Copy and Edit > Paste in the same way as you copy raster information. Alternatively, hold down the⌥ (option key) while dragging a vector object to a new position and a copy of the selected vector will be created.

Multiple layers

When creating intricate or complicated designs using vectors, it can often be useful to put particular vector objects on different layers.

This will make selecting and further editing quicker and simpler. Working with multiple vector layers is just the same as working with multiple raster layers – you just need to remember which layer and which vector objects are active when carrying out an editing function, such as resizing or rotating.

Node Handles

Node handles are attached to the nodes along smooth vectors to increase flexibility in modelling curved shapes.

Polygonal sections and shapes (straight lines and shapes) do not have handles and are altered by moving the nodes themselves. 

Node handles appear as two additional lines coming out of each node with small, empty boxes on each end.

Handles can be moved, elongated and rotated to change the shape of the original vector. The movement of the handle, which is connected to a node, changes the shape of the two neighbouring segments of the vector but the remaining parts of the object are not affected. This is known as local alteration and is a powerful tool when used in the hands of a designer. 

A few small changes to individual nodes can make a large difference to a shape, as in the example picture above.

Adding & Removing

Nodes appear as small black squares along the line of each vector shape. These nodes can be moved by clicking on them. Extra nodes can be added and existing ones can be removed.

1. Using the Select Vector Tool, position your cursor over a vector line where you want to add a new node (away from any existing nodes).
2. Hold down ⌘ (command key) and a small ‘+’ symbol will appear on the cursor.
3. Click on the vector line to create a new node.

To remove individual nodes, hover over the node you want to remove and press ⌘ (command key) on the keyboard. Click on the node and it will be removed.

Cutting

Vectors can be cut by holding down the ^ key and clicking on the selected line. The cursor changes to a scissor icon to indicate that it will cut the vector at the chosen point. Once the vector has been cut, click away from the vector to deselect it and then drag one of the parts away from the other. You will see that they are no longer connected at the cutting point.