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The Pen Tool is worthless...

Microsoft Paint is better at making curves than this tool... Why did they make this tool like this??? I made a curve, there wasn't any pixels to select... So I tried to delete the curve because Photoshop kept pursuing the figment curve as being an illusion (couldn't select pixels),
but it wouldn't delete... SO, I tried to erase; couldn't erase. Tried making a new layer then deleted the layer that the curve was on, but with no avail because the stupid curve leeched onto the new layer! ARGGGGGGG!!! I HATE THE PEN TOOL!

Any help please before I throw my laptop out a 100 story floor...?

the pen tool doesnt actually draw on the canvas, its in its own layer stack, and it is not treated as pixels but vectors. its designed to continually add on to shapes and curves, and then later be created to pixels when you are ready to commit.

go to the paths stack, there you can delete or add new paths, and from there you can choose to stroke or fill the path, giving you the abilitly to select, erase, or whatever to the pixels.

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http://www.anatonic.com/

Last edited by spike, August 8th, 2005 06:56 PM (Edited 1 times)

Hi Wolf, It will be worth the effort of learning how and what the pen tool is all about. Ultimately it will become one your most powerful tools, along with opening the door of vector graphics to you.

Here's one of the better tutorials on the topic, that I've run into. Take your time, run through it, then read it again, and practice, practice, practice.
http://www.gurusnetwork.com/tutorial/pen/

The pen tool is my best friend, I do everything with my pen tool. If you wanna make a curve with the pen tool and then maybe use it as pixels then go to Layer> Resterize layer in order for the curve to become as a layer made with pixels. it works the same for shapes and text...

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I'm still learning how to use this tool. I understand it can be very frustrating at first, but after you keep experimenting with it, and read tutorials on it, then you'll pick it up quickly.

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It's probably one of the best tools, seriously.

Don't be so quick to anger - just because you don't understand it. :p

Read the guides and stuff, you'll learn to love it.

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The pen tool, as said, draws vectors. This means that anything you draw with the pen tool is infinitely scalable; a HUGE advantage in flexibility over any other tool in photoshop.

When you're ready to commit a path from vector to pixels, just select the pen tool and right-click - make selection.

The actual drawing of the pen tool may be strange at first. Something that I'm not too keen on is that the pen tool in photoshop and the pen tool in illustrator have different keyboard commands. But anyhow, once you get used to it it'll be your best friend :)

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Well, just so long as this thing's loaded.

I love the pen tool. But yea its a pain in the neck when your new to it

Just, a question about the pentool.... Why does it start to create really steep curves sometimes? Like, I'll be *trying* to trace the outside of a shape and it'll go allright for a while then, instead of making the smooth curves which I can control it makes these really steep ones that I cant do anything with, after a while they even start to go in the opposite direction. Am I doing something wrong?

you probably are using the handles wrong.. the lines that come out the anchor points. the things that define the entire aspect of the curve

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scudworkz.com.