Illustrator CS2 Live Trace

[NewYawkSeahawk]

Just a quick screenshot of the live trace in Illustrator CS2.

Basically dropped the raster (JPG) image into Illustrator, chose what type of trace options I wanted, hit a button and the results you can see...

I didnt really get to in depth to it yet, as i am sure there are ways to get the curves more smooth... but will certainly help alot of the logo reproducers out there save alot of time...

Click Here for Illustrator File (saved as Version 8)

[scar988]

is CS2 worth getting in photoshop or illustrator or indesign?

[pcgd]

whatever you do, don't buy them a' la' carte. Get the whole package. Its a much better value.

[NewYawkSeahawk]

Yeah, I definitely agree with PCGD on this one... If you can, get them as the Suite.

If I had to choose between just one of the 3 you mentioned, I would have to say it depends on what you want the most.

If your big into doing sports logos or you really like the Auto Trace feature (which works really well with photographs or hand drawings) get Illustrator.

Photoshop has alot of good features as well...

It really depends what type of work you'll be doing.

[scar988]

Yeah, I definitely agree with PCGD on this one... If you can, get them as the Suite.

If I had to choose between just one of the 3 you mentioned, I would have to say it depends on what you want the most.

If your big into doing sports logos or you really like the Auto Trace feature (which works really well with photographs or hand drawings) get Illustrator.

Photoshop has alot of good features as well...

It really depends what type of work you'll be doing.

what I'm saying is how does CS2 compare to CS and is it worth the money to get CS2 if you alreayd have CS?

[NewYawkSeahawk]

what I'm saying is how does CS2 compare to CS and is it worth the money to get CS2 if you alreayd have CS?

How does it compare? It is better.

Is it worth the money? That's a decision you have to make for yourself. All depends on your financial status, whether or not you have legit versions to upgrade or do you have to buy it all new?

I think the Adobe Bridge that allows you better viewing of all of your files and versions as well as the ability to get Stock Photo Comps is great...

Here is an example of Auto Trace using a photo...

The top left one if the original photo, the rest are all vector...

[scar988]

new question. what are the exact differences in Photoshop?

[NewYawkSeahawk]

new question. what are the exact differences in Photoshop?

http://www.adobe.com/products/photoshop/newfeatures.html

[AAO]

wow this live trace thing is f'ing amazing. im def getting my hands on cs2, somehow.

[Pixelboy]

new question. what are the exact differences in Photoshop?

I realize that your question is about what the new feature improvements are in Photoshop CS2 compared to CS1, but I'll digress since I haven't explored those as yet. I've seen several requests for an explanation of the difference between Photoshop and Illustrator, so I'll do that -- mostly because I typed the following before noticing that that wasn't your original question .They're tools for basically different jobs.

Generally speaking, Illustrator is used for drawing "line art", logos and the like. It also is used extensively for typographically-heavy artwork. The underlying PostScript technology is mathematical descriptions of lines and shapes - you see a lot of people on this board refer to "vector". Its huge advantage is that artwork created in Illustrator is resolution-independent - you can scale your work up or down infinitely without any degradation of detail, since scaling vector artwork is basically just math. Pros (and talented amateurs like many on this site) do most of their original design in Illustrator, then convert it to bitmap images in Photoshop or another paint application as the final step only, for display purposes on the web or elsewhere. That way, the artwork only gets "locked" into a defined resolution at the final stage and everything stays looking smooth and crisp.

Photoshop on the other hand is used for bitmap images - photographs, JPEGs, TARGAs, etc. It has a robust toolset for image manipulation, filtering, colour correction etc. Bitmapped images are made up of pixels, tiny square dots of colour which each have a unique computer bit value of red/green/blue (and alpha if you're working with transparency) or CMYK values if you're working in the print realm. The disadvantage of bitmap images is that they lose resolution when you scale them since their image quality is defined by their dpi setting. Blowing up a bitmap is like blowing up a photograph - you increase the size of the pixels and the image suffers. Photoshop is beginning to borrow a lot of features from its Illustrator cousin though, adding vector features into its toolset with each new release. It is beginning to become a bit bloated as a result, but indespensable for image manipulation professionals.

The CS package of Illustrator CS, Photoshop CS and InDesign CS was a dastardly ploy by Adobe to ensure that users can't upgrade them a la carte, but only together if you bought the suite package. If you bought the modules separately, you can still upgrade them separately if you wish - but at a higher total upgrade cost.

[scar988]

new question. what are the exact differences in Photoshop?

I realize that your question is about what the new feature improvements are in Photoshop CS2 compared to CS1, but I'll digress since I haven't explored those as yet. I've seen several requests for an explanation of the difference between Photoshop and Illustrator, so I'll do that -- mostly because I typed the following before noticing that that wasn't your original question .They're tools for basically different jobs.

Generally speaking, Illustrator is used for drawing "line art", logos and the like. It also is used extensively for typographically-heavy artwork. The underlying PostScript technology is mathematical descriptions of lines and shapes - you see a lot of people on this board refer to "vector". Its huge advantage is that artwork created in Illustrator is resolution-independent - you can scale your work up or down infinitely without any degradation of detail, since scaling vector artwork is basically just math. Pros (and talented amateurs like many on this site) do most of their original design in Illustrator, then convert it to bitmap images in Photoshop or another paint application as the final step only, for display purposes on the web or elsewhere. That way, the artwork only gets "locked" into a defined resolution at the final stage and everything stays looking smooth and crisp.

Photoshop on the other hand is used for bitmap images - photographs, JPEGs, TARGAs, etc. It has a robust toolset for image manipulation, filtering, colour correction etc. Bitmapped images are made up of pixels, tiny square dots of colour which each have a unique computer bit value of red/green/blue (and alpha if you're working with transparency) or CMYK values if you're working in the print realm. The disadvantage of bitmap images is that they lose resolution when you scale them since their image quality is defined by their dpi setting. Blowing up a bitmap is like blowing up a photograph - you increase the size of the pixels and the image suffers. Photoshop is beginning to borrow a lot of features from its Illustrator cousin though, adding vector features into its toolset with each new release. It is beginning to become a bit bloated as a result, but indespensable for image manipulation professionals.

The CS package of Illustrator CS, Photoshop CS and InDesign CS was a dastardly ploy by Adobe to ensure that users can't upgrade them a la carte, but only together if you bought the suite package. If you bought the modules separately, you can still upgrade them separately if you wish - but at a higher total upgrade cost.

I know the differences of Photoshop and illustrator. my question was the differences in the upgrad.e also I didn't exactly pay for any of it. I got the discs from school for the entire CS package but only installed the InDesign, Phtoshop/Imagready and Illustrator packages since those are the only ones I know how to use.

[Cuss16]

CS2 is out already!?

[Kit]

Cuss16 - yes.

LiveTrace does the job that Adobe Streamline did. I'm glad it's finally been introduced into an updated software package, since Streamline doesn't like Classic mode (on OS X) and there's no OS X-native version.

Was contemplating picking up CS2 but won't bother until CS3 (which should contain the first blended Adobe/Macromedia products).

[rtrich11]

NYSeahawk, do you use InDesign, too? At work we've been using it for almost 2 years and have ditched Quark Xpress. The CS2 functions are pretty neat. You can turn PSD layers on and off IN InDesign, without touching your Photoshop files. There are a ton of other style sheet improvements, but if that's not your bag, then you may not care much. In any case, thanks for sharing some tips and tricks for Photoshop and Illustrator.

[MonkeyWrench32]

Wow, Live Trace is amazing! I need to get Illustrator CS2 from JourneyEd real soon.

It's going to suck when I graduate. No more discount software.

[NewYawkSeahawk]

NYSeahawk, do you use InDesign, too? At work we've been using it for almost 2 years and have ditched Quark Xpress. The CS2 functions are pretty neat. You can turn PSD layers on and off IN InDesign, without touching your Photoshop files. There are a ton of other style sheet improvements, but if that's not your bag, then you may not care much. In any case, thanks for sharing some tips and tricks for Photoshop and Illustrator.

I do use InDesign at work but not that much. I am predominantly a web design / web application designer.

When we have trade shows or have a need for printed collateral than I will use InDesign... it is a great program especially when used with Photoshop, Illustrator and even the Export to PDF is awesome.

[Steve-O]

Is there an upgrade for CS1 to make it like CS2, or am I takin this one in the poop shoot? Damn you Adobe...

[Mings]

Is there an upgrade for CS1 to make it like CS2, or am I takin this one in the poop shoot? Damn you Adobe...

you are takin it in the poop shoot. even the educational version is ridiculously priced. damn iupui can get photoshop for free but nothin else.

[robbman21]

I'm getting CS2 over the weekend.Is there any kind of tutorial you can give on how you di the Hasselbeck picture or does it simply do it that good on it's own?

[NewYawkSeahawk]

I'm getting CS2 over the weekend.Is there any kind of tutorial you can give on how you di the Hasselbeck picture or does it simply do it that good on it's own?

Pretty much does it on it's own.

From the Illustrator welcome screen there is an option to "Show Me What's New" which is a step by step in application presentation.

Very easy!