How to Repeat Lines

Question

Hi, I have looked at several posts in this forum and several youtube videos, and I am unable to find a way to make repeating lines (without creating a new pattern). None of the instructions I am trying are working.

I have drawn a green line with the pen tool (screenshot). I would like to repeat it over and over (vertically) with equal spacing (example screenshot 2). I am using Windows 11. Please advise, thank you.

rite_oak · Accepted Answer

Hi Trevor, if I interpreted the original post correctly I thought that the problem was not making the line wavy, it was creating a pattern out of a wavy line already drawn with the Pen tool. So in the demo I just posted, I drew my own wavy line from scratch with the Pen tool, not using any warp effects.

Hi Everyone, thank you for your responses. I may just have a very difficult time following directions, but I finally found a solution.

-Create an object (a circle, square, line, anything)

-Press CTRL + ALT + T (This command will create a new layer for you; you don't need to create a new layer)

-Move the object to where you want the second object to be (a new layer will be created for you)

-Press the Select Tool (don't skip this or it won't work!)

-Press CTRL + ALT + SHIFT + T

-Keep pressing this command over and over to create a new objects

Conrad_C · Answer

In theory, it should be possible to use the “Repeat Transformation with duplicate” keyboard shortcut to repeat copies of a layer. However…in practice, that technique seems to work only on the more traditional pixel layers. It doesn’t seem to work on vector/path layers such as a line you draw with the Pen tool.

Because of that difference, if you want to make that shortcut work with your line, in my tests you’d have to first use the command Layer > Rasterize > Layer, if you’re OK with it no longer being editable as a vector path. If the vertical spacing isn’t quite right, you can adjust the positions of the top and bottom line layers, then select all of the line layers and use the Align/Distribute commands on the Layer menu to evenly distribute them across the vertical space.

Ultimately, Photoshop doesn’t really have the features to do what you’re asking. But for over 30 years, Adobe Illustrator has had the Blend feature which can do this in a snap: Draw a path, offset a copy at the farthest distance you want, select both, choose Object > Blend > Make. Whenever that blend object is selected, you can customize the number of lines and spacing by using the Spacing options in the Object > Blend > Blend Options dialog box.

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