Adobe Illustrator Cheat Sheet

1. Workspace & Navigation

Action	Shortcut / Method
Open Layers panel	Window > Layers (F7 in most default layouts)
Open Properties panel	Window > Properties
Zoom in / out	Cmd+ + / Cmd+– [Ctrl+ + / Ctrl+–]
Zoom to fit artboard in window	Cmd+0 [Ctrl+0]
Zoom to 100%	Cmd+1 [Ctrl+1]
Temporary zoom (hold)	Z, then click-drag
Pan around canvas	Hold Spacebar + drag
Switch artboards	Artboard tool (Shift+O), or click artboard tabs at bottom of window
New artboard at exact size	Artboard tool (Shift+O) → set W/H in Properties panel (e.g., 2 in × 3 in for P1 tiles)
Show/hide rulers	Cmd+R [Ctrl+R]
Show/hide guides	Cmd+; [Ctrl+;]
Toggle Smart Guides	Cmd+U [Ctrl+U]
Undo / Redo	Cmd+Z / Cmd+Shift+Z [Ctrl+Z / Ctrl+Shift+Z]
Save	Cmd+S [Ctrl+S]
Save As (new version)	Cmd+Shift+S [Ctrl+Shift+S]

2. Selection Tools

Tool	Shortcut	Use
Selection tool (black arrow)	V	Selects whole objects/groups
Direct Selection tool (white arrow)	A	Selects individual anchor points or path segments
Lasso tool	Q	Freeform-select anchor points
Group selected objects	Cmd+G [Ctrl+G]
Ungroup	Cmd+Shift+G [Ctrl+Shift+G]
Select All	Cmd+A [Ctrl+A]
Deselect All	Cmd+Shift+A [Ctrl+Shift+A]
Add/remove from selection	Shift+click

3. Shape Tools

Tool	Shortcut
Rectangle	M
Ellipse	L
Polygon / Star	Click-hold on the Rectangle/Ellipse tool to reveal the flyout
Line Segment	\

While drawing a shape:

• Shift + drag — constrain to square/circle or 45° line
• Option/Alt + drag — draw from the center outward
• Spacebar (while still dragging) — reposition the shape before releasing
• Click once (instead of drag) — opens a dialog for exact width/height

4. Pen Tool & Paths

Action	Shortcut / Method
Pen tool	P
Add straight-line anchor point	Click
Add curved anchor point	Click and drag (pulls out bezier handles)
Constrain handle/line angle to 45° increments	Hold Shift while dragging
Close a path	Click back on the starting anchor point (cursor shows a small circle)
End an open path	Cmd+click away from the path, or press Esc
Add anchor point	Hover over a path with the Pen tool (cursor shows +) and click
Remove anchor point	Hover over an anchor with the Pen tool (cursor shows –) and click
Convert anchor type (corner ↔ smooth)	Anchor Point tool (Shift+C), click the anchor
Temporarily switch to Direct Selection while using Pen	Hold Cmd [Ctrl]
Adjust a curve after drawing	Direct Selection tool (A) → drag the anchor or its handle

Tip: A closed path has no visible endpoint; an open path has two loose ends — zoom in or check the Layers panel if you're not sure which you have.

5. Transform Tools

Tool	Shortcut
Scale	S
Rotate	R
Reflect	O
Shear	Click-hold on the Scale/Rotate tool to reveal the flyout
Free Transform	E
Precise numeric transform	Window > Transform, or Object > Transform > Move/Scale/Rotate

Modifier keys:

• Shift + drag — constrain proportions/angle
• Option/Alt + drag — duplicate the object while transforming
• Double-click a transform tool — opens a dialog for exact values (also sets the reference point)

6. Fill & Stroke

Action	Shortcut
Toggle between fill/stroke box (to edit)	X
Swap fill and stroke	Shift+X
Set active fill/stroke to none	Press /
Default fill/stroke (black fill, no stroke)	D
Open Color panel	Window > Color
Open Swatches panel	Window > Swatches
Open Stroke panel (weight, caps, joins, dashes)	Cmd+F10 [Ctrl+F10]

7. Pathfinder / Combining Shapes

Open Pathfinder: Shift+Cmd+F9 [Shift+Ctrl+F9]

Operation	What it does
Unite	Merges shapes into one
Minus Front	Subtracts the top shape from the one(s) below
Intersect	Keeps only the overlapping area
Exclude	Keeps only the non-overlapping area
Make Compound Path	Cmd+8 [Ctrl+8] — combines paths so overlaps become holes (e.g., letter counters)
Release Compound Path	Cmd+Option+8 [Ctrl+Alt+8]

8. Type Tool & Typography

Action	Shortcut / Method
Type tool	T
Point type	Click once with the Type tool — text flows on one line and grows as needed
Area type	Click-drag a box, or click on a closed path's edge
Open Character panel	Cmd+T [Ctrl+T]
Open Paragraph panel	Cmd+M [Ctrl+M]
Increase/decrease kerning or tracking	Option+Right/Left Arrow [Alt+Right/Left Arrow] (cursor between letters)
Increase/decrease leading	Option+Up/Down Arrow [Alt+Up/Down Arrow]
Increase/decrease type size	Cmd+Shift+> / < [Ctrl+Shift+> / <]
Align text left / center / right	Cmd+Shift+L / C / R [Ctrl+Shift+L / C / R]
Outline text (convert to paths)	Cmd+Shift+O [Ctrl+Shift+O] — required before EPS export/handoff

Key typography terms:

• Typeface vs. font — typeface is the design family (e.g., Space Grotesk); font is a specific weight/style within it (e.g., Space Grotesk Bold)
• Kerning — space adjustment between two specific letter pairs
• Tracking — uniform spacing applied across a range of selected text
• Leading — vertical space between lines of type
• Baseline / x-height / cap height — the line letters sit on; the height of lowercase letters; the height of capital letters

Adobe Fonts — activating Space Grotesk:

1. Open the Creative Cloud desktop app → Fonts tab (or visit fonts.adobe.com signed in)
2. Search "Space Grotesk" → activate Space Grotesk Variable
3. Restart Illustrator if it doesn't appear yet in the Character panel's font list
4. Backup option: download the free version from Google Fonts if Adobe Fonts is unavailable

9. Layers Panel Basics

Action	Method
New layer	Click the "New Layer" icon at the bottom of the Layers panel
Lock/unlock a layer	Click the empty box next to the layer (toggles a padlock icon)
Show/hide a layer	Click the eye icon
Reorder layers	Drag a layer up or down in the panel
Select all objects on a layer	Option/Alt+click the layer's target circle

10. Saving, Versioning & Export

Action	Method
Save an incremented version	File > Save As → increment the file name per the course naming convention (e.g., _v01, _v02)
Check for stray live (un-outlined) text before export	Select All (Cmd+A) — if the Character panel activates, that object is still editable type
Export the final tile as EPS	File > Save As → format: Illustrator EPS (or File > Export > Export As > EPS)
Before exporting EPS	1) Outline all text (Cmd+Shift+O) 2) Confirm the artboard is 2×3 in 3) Confirm the file is named per the course convention
Export only the current artboard	In the Save As / Export dialog, check "Use Artboards" and select the correct one

Reminder: Outline text before exporting to EPS — once exported, InDesign only sees paths, not live/editable type.

Reference: FD1022 Digital Tools, Project 1.