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K
kgbf
Known Participant
October 20, 2019
Question

Easiest way to clean up image?

  • October 20, 2019
  • 3 replies
  • 7706 views

Hi all! I'm updating a very old (and unattractive) cartoon vector. It's an animal with a TON of crosshatching, and I'm thinking one way to modernize it would be to remove all of those lines. What's the easiest way to do so? Do I go to the layers panel and delete all those individual crosshatching paths (there are a LOT, and unfortunately they all reside within one layer)? Or do I simply zoom in and use the eraser tool? Is one method better, or less destructive, than the other? Thank you!

 

 

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    3 replies

    K
    kgbfAuthor
    Known Participant
    October 22, 2019

    Here is a screenshot of the original illustration. It's a doozy! As you can see, I have been able to select and delete a few individual paths, like on the right side of the face, but many of them are connected. I tried the first tip of using "select same", but no matter what option I choose (stroke weight, appearance, etc.), it unfortunately just selects every single path in the image. I'm not the original artist; I've been tasked to modernize this as a project at my day job and I'm not sure it will look good even if I do manage to reduce it to an outline. Any tips on the easiest way to do this, though? I guess option b would just be to scrap the whole thing, draw my own replacement, and scan/convert it to a vector image?

    K
    kgbfAuthor
    Known Participant
    October 22, 2019

    Also, I did ungroup the paths as a first step. I still have the option to "release" when selecting the entire image, but then I get the below result, which I'm not sure really helps...

     

    S
    S Hopkins
    Inspiring
    October 22, 2019

    Hi,

    Well, it was worth a try. At this point you might consider selecting the paths you do want and move them into another layer. That way you can hide/lock until all that is left is what you don't want on one layer and delete that layer.

    rcraighead
    rcraighead
    Brainiac
    October 20, 2019

    A screen capture would help. It may be easier to simply use your image as a template and redraw a simplified version.

      K
      kgbfAuthor
      Known Participant
      October 21, 2019

      Thanks! Would you mind detailing how to do so? Does that start with image trace?

      rcraighead
      rcraighead
      Brainiac
      October 21, 2019

      Again, it depends on the image. I don't know how detailed your artwork is so I can't give you specific advice.

       

      "Image Trace" should be reserved for very complicated artwork. Usually a simple piece of art can be re-drawn more efficiently than using Image Trace. If you aren't familiar with the drawing tools in AI start with the pen tool and view some tutorials. 

      A layer can quickly be converted to a "Template Layer" by double-clicking right of the layer name and checking "Template". This is just a quick way to set the layer preferences to "Show, Lock, Dim and Preview" the layer. Place a screen image of your art on this layer and create a second layer to "trace" the image using the appropriate tools.

      S
      S Hopkins
      Inspiring
      October 20, 2019

      Hi,

      You could try selecting one line and then see what happens when you try "select same" (Choose Same from Select menu). You have options such as appearance, fill and stroke, opacity, stroke color, stroke weight, and shape. Maybe you can find a property that is shared by all (or most).  You can then cut or erase selection. Of course, always save before experimenting.

      Hope this helps. 

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