Drawing with the Pen tool
The Pen tool lets you create straight lines and smooth flowing curves with greater precision than is possible with the Freeform Pen tool. For most users, the Pen tool provides the best control and greatest accuracy for drawing.
To draw with the Pen tool:
- Select the Pen tool
. - Set the following tool-specific options:
- To add an anchor point when you click a line segment and delete an anchor point when you click it, select Auto Add/Delete in the options bar. (See Adding, deleting, and converting anchor points.)
- To preview path segments as you draw, click the inverted arrow
next to the shape buttons in the options bar, and select Rubber Band. - Position the pen pointer where you want to begin to draw, and click to define the first anchor point.
- Click or drag to set anchor points for additional segments.
- Complete the path:
- To end an open path, Ctrl-click (Windows) or Command-click (Mac OS) away from the path.
- To close a path, position the pen pointer over the first anchor point. A small loop appears next to the pen tip when it is positioned correctly. Click to close the path.
For more information on closed and open paths, see About anchor points, direction lines, direction points, and components.
