Clipping Mask not working, help

[Jbubbles]

Hi, so this is my first time posting here.

I have an illustration completed, with lots of over spilling objects (those tiny white dots that you can see) that are extending past my artboard.

Those white dots are not individually placed but are paths.

Im trying to make a clipping mask in order to clear off the extra bits to have a cleaner file to place into indesign.

I have made the rectangle to be the size of my art board. i then group everything that i want to be effected by the mask. I am then selecting both the rectangle and all grouped objects. the create clipping mask button is highlighted and im able to click on it but nothing happens. Im also trying the long way by going to object>clipping mask> create.

Im not sure why its not working? i have 4 other illustrations and i have gotten this same method to work for all of those.

Any help is appreciated! also i am a beginner 🙂

[Omar.Fathy]

be sure that your rectangle is above your dots. Make sure that your objects are not locked by clicking Ctrl+Alt+2
Select the white points that you grouped and your rectangle that above of it then press Ctrl+& (Clipping Mask).
and I'm here to help you.

[Jbubbles]

i did everything you mentioned and its still not working.

Should the rectangle be in its own layer above my dots?

[Omar.Fathy]

you should have all of them in the same layer to  just be easy.

[Jbubbles]

yeah everything is in the same layer, its very odd because every time im create the clipping mask nothing is happening

[Jbubbles]

ok i got it to do something?

When i select both the rectangle and my objects then press Ctrl+& it makes a clipping 'group' but removes all of my work. It seems to be still there but its only visible as paths

[Omar.Fathy]

Good you should select the both rectangle & artwork. don't worry your artwork is grouped in the clipping mask group.

[Omar.Fathy]

Can you take a print screen before making the clipping mask and how did you make the white points ?!

[innovative_adventurer5D56]

1. first make sure that the object you want to clip in is on the top.

2. make sure that you select the group and the rectangle above in selection tool.

3. last thing if you want to create the clipping mask at the same size of the artboard?

if you want to insert it on InDesign you don't need to create this clipping mask because when you place it on InDesign and show import options you can choose the crop to options.

[Jbubbles]

but what if im trying to clip multiple objects? im trying to delete everything outside the board

[innovative_adventurer5D56]

To delete everything out side the board

You can check by View>Outline, you'll see everything on the pasteboard.

delete un wanted objects. you can use Group selection tool to select and delete objects within group without ungroup.

[Monika Gause]

Jbubbles  schrieb

but what if im trying to clip multiple objects? im trying to delete everything outside the board

You just want to do this for placing the file into InDesign?

InDesign doesn't care for anything that's outside the artboard, so there's no need for a clipping mask.

[Jbubbles]

My professor wants our files to be ‘clean’ so thats why im doing this.

and i cant just select all the obects outside of it because they are all connected by paths, so if i delet one it will delete all the white dots that i want to stay visible

[Monika Gause]

Doesn't make a lot of sense, but OK ...

Draw a rectangle in the layer that has all the object. The rectangle needs to be the size of the artboard and at the top of everything.

Then click on the layer in the layers panel, so that it's highlighted.

Then click on the button "Make clipping mask" in the bottom of the layers panel.

This will generate a layer based clipping mask. Advantage: you can still work with objects as usual. You won't create a clipping group.

[Jbubbles]

did this and it did not work 😕

[Jbubbles]

So i expanded the paths and have my rectangle at the top above everything i want to be effected by the mask.

im clicking the create mask button at the bottom of the layers panel multiple times and nothing is happening im also trying the long way through the menu panels

[Jbubbles]

Ok so i solved it on my own i just played around with placing the layers in different orders and somehow got it to clip everything!

Thanks for all your help i will be back if i have more questions 🙂

[Monika Gause]

  schrieb

Ok so i solved it on my own i just played around with placing the layers in different orders and somehow got it to clip everything!

Thanks for all your help i will be back if i have more questions 🙂

Please mark this thread solved.

You need to select one of the answers as correct.

[Monika Gause]

Please show a screenshot of the layers panel.

Please describe exactly what did not work.

Step one (this is the layers panel):

Then highlight layer and click button (slightly highlighted in this image)

Result

[innovative_adventurer5D56]

Expand the path

Edite> expand or expand appearance.

[Monika Gause]

https://forums.adobe.com/people/manal+shanableh  schrieb

Expand the path

Edite> expand or expand appearance.

In order to deliver a "clean" file?

Then maybe "clean" should be redefined.

[innovative_adventurer5D56]

sorry I mean Object> expand

not edit

expand the path with dots. to delete unwanted dots.

[Monika Gause]

https://forums.adobe.com/people/manal+shanableh  schrieb

sorry I mean Object> expand

not edit

expand the path with dots. to delete unwanted dots.

Not a good idea, because you can't edit it afterwards.

What sense is there in a so-called "clean" file, if you're unable to do some last minute edits?

[innovative_adventurer5D56]

it is an optional choice dear.

but, every time i do expand for an object i do have a copy by hidden layer. the same as text outlined, always we have a copy not created outline!

[John Mensinger]

Jbubbles  wrote

My professor wants our files to be ‘clean’ so thats why im doing this.

Funny...some would consider a clipping mask to be "dirt" by nature.

A "cleaner" approach, by some ways of thinking, would be to Place in InDesign, then use its frame to crop out the unwanted stuff.