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default8wcd4dpnqeru
Participating Frequently
April 6, 2022
Question

Constrain angles of path handles? [2022]

  • April 6, 2022
  • 4 replies
  • 2590 views

Once I have used the Convert Point Tool on a point, and have some nice bezier handles sticking out at the desired angle, am I able to elongate an individual handle along the exact same angle that it currently lies on? As it stands, when I grab the individual handle with the Convert Point Tool I can freely move it anywhere, so as I try to elongate it along it's current angle / trajectory I always get some unwanted movement, which changes it's angle. Is it possible to constrain that movement purely along it's length? At present I can hold down Shift, but this only constrains the movement vertically or horizontally, not along it's current angle. 

Hope that makes some sense. If not I will make a diagram / video. 

Feel like this is something that others must have come across before? 

    4 replies

    E
    elliottl67577396
    Participant
    January 15, 2025

    This is very easy to do with Astute Graphics' Inkscribe plugin. Hold down alt while dragging the bezier handle. 

      A
      AARON38893188ne8n
      Participating Frequently
      March 27, 2025

      Found it.  Seems really cool.  Unfortunately $149 a year sub is a bit steep.  That's more than half the cost of Illustrator itself. If I used it all the time as a self employed designer, I might consider it.  But I'm just a guy working for a car company ocassionally designing graphics for things.

      jane-e
      Community Expert
      jane-eCommunity Expert
      Community Expert
      April 6, 2022
      @default8wcd4dpnqeru wrote:

      Hope that makes some sense. If not I will make a diagram / video. 


      Yes, it makes sense, as Adobe Illustrator has had this (seemingly) forever. Smart Guides display a screen tip "ON" so if you go astray a little, you just move your mouse until "ON" reappears. It works exactly as you describe. In addition, you can set up Custom Construction Guides and specify an angle even before you start to draw. 

       

      Paths can be copied from Illustrator to Photoshop. 

       

      I just did this earlier this week when I drew lines across all the straight edges in a building and then extended them (in Illustrator!) out to the vanishing point. To make sure I lined things up when I got back to Photoshop, I also drew a small square in the upper left of the image. 

       

      Illustrator would let me convert those paths to guides, but Photoshop does not support angled guides either, so I pasted them as Paths in PS and stroked them on a new layer. 

       

      Unfortunately, Photoshop does not have the ability to maintain the angle of an existing path. 

       

      ~ Jane 

       

        D
        default8wcd4dpnqeruAuthor
        Participating Frequently
        April 7, 2022

        Thanks everyone for the replies, they are much appreciated.

        I'm not sure I knew Illustrator had this feature, but it appears to be the easiest answer. Draw in Illustrator and then move the paths over to Photoshop. 

        I do wish the Illustrator and Photoshop teams would share more. One day Photoshop might get more than seven colours for it's layers too!

        Thanks again all! 

        jane-e
        Community Expert
        jane-eCommunity Expert
        Community Expert
        April 7, 2022

        You're welcome, @default8wcd4dpnqeru , and I'm glad the Illustrator solution will work for you. If you run into snags, ask again, because I do this a lot.

         

        Photoshop has adapted quite a few features that started in Illustrator, but not all. The code in the applications is different since when they were first developed they had no connection to each other. We don't know what is easy to implement and what is not. Feature requests can be made by starting a new post in this forum and tagging it as "Ideas" instead of "Discussions". 

         

        Jane

         

          Earth Oliver
          Earth Oliver
          Legend
          April 6, 2022

          Yes, this is a feature i've been requesting for decades. Unfortunately, i imagine very few people working at Adobe ever use paths for hours a day, so the needed improvements are non-existent. 

            c.pfaffenbichler
            Community Expert
            c.pfaffenbichlerCommunity Expert
            Community Expert
            April 6, 2022

            I see no option to achieve maintaining the angle while dragging bezier handles.

            Using a Script would most likely need numerical input (or an UI element like a slider) in a dialog and not allow on-canvas-dragging. 

             

            It’s one of the reasons why it is so useful to set curve points on the horizontal and vertical extremes, that way one can use the shift-key … 

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