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Two identical objects are blended with the Interactive
Blend tool for the same result as a fountain fill would provide.
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A blend is simply taking one object and blending it to another. In
it's simplest form, as shown at the left, it is exactly the same as
a fountain fill when complete. Here, we have a gold and brown rectangle
of the same dimension, exactly in line horizontally. The blend tool
is used to join the objects in a gradual color transition ... exactly
like a fountain fill.
This simple example is excellent for practice, even though it would
make more sense to use a fountain fill for this exact look. Draw two
rectangles and fill each with a different color. Remove any outline.
(Blends usually look best without outlines, though some dramatic effects
can be created – we are focusing here on using blends as an extra
option for a fountain fill look, so will stay away from outlines.)
 Choose
the Interactive Blend tool from the toolbox (you may have to expand
the flyout menu to reach the tool – see here for placement in toolbox).
Click and drag from one object to the other. The process that the screen
will go through is illustrated at the left. In the first sample, note
how the cursor carries a stop symbol. The Blend tool has found nothing
it can blend with yet. In the second sample, the stop symbol has disappeared
and a second square snaps to the center of the new object. This is telling
you that these objects can be blended. (We will learn a little later
how to map blend points.). Soon after the Blend tool finds an object
to blend with, the display changes to the look in the third sample.
This shows the blend steps.
Finally, the fourth sample is the completed blend. Again, this is not
a place I would use a blend, but it is the best introduction to the
way the tool works.
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Different sized objects, as well as any shapes, can
be blended for unlimited effects.
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The power of blends really shows when you blend objects of different
shapes or sizes, as in the orange and brown example at the left. Not
only do you achieve a fountain fill color blend effect, you can also
add perspective and true dimension with just a mouse click. To accomplish
this look, position objects as shown here and follow the instructions
from the previous sample
| . Another thing to note here is that the front object
can be selected and edited or moved after a blend. The graphic shown
here is the same as the one on the left, with the color changed
and the control graphic shifted to the right. The blend automatically
reflects the changes. To move the entire blended object, click in
the middle of the blend area and the entire blend group will be
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Try a few different shapes and edits to get used to how the blends
work. We are not going deeply into blends this time, since it would
take an entire tutorial to cover them properly. However, it is important
to understand the basic blends before we move even a little further.
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Same blend but with the number of steps changed from
5 in the left sample to 15 for the right.
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Edit the blend steps
Use the Property bar, which is just below the main menu, to control
the number of steps, or how smooth the transition is between objects.
Enter a value and hit RETURN to have the new value apply to a selected
blended object, or to change the default if no blended object is
selected. You can also use the up and down value selectors to change
the number of steps between blends. |
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Using the Map Nodes feature to specify which node from
each object will be blended.
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Custom Blends
Finally, we will peek at blending nodes. This is a very complicated
subject that we cannot investigate fully this time, but I wanted
to give you a slight introduction.
We can control which point on each object are blended with the
Map Nodes command. You will find this by clicking on the Miscellaneous
Blend Options icon in the Property bar, as shown highlighted by
yellow here. The menu you see below the Property bar is presented.
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Click on Map Nodes and your cursor will change to a curved arrow and
the first object in your blend will have small squares at every node.
Click on the node you wish to blend from this object. The second object
will be automatically selected as you can see in the second sample at
the left. Click on the node you wish to blend on this object, and the
blend is completed. For this sample, I have outlined the blend objects
so you can track the blend. Note how the top left corner of the front
rectangle is now blended to the top right corner of the second rectangle.
The final, largest sample here shows the blend without the outline.
And that's it for this time with blends. Play a little, try to incorporate
them into your next project to build your comfort level. Between fountain
fills and blends, your work will come to life.
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