How to use the Pen tool to make precise selections. Working with a pen in Photoshop

I decided to write a detailed guide on using the Pen tool in Photoshop or Pen Tool, its English name. And the reasons that prompted me to do this are that the Pen is a very difficult instrument. Learning the Pen is also complicated by the fact that in Photoshop it comes with a lot of incomprehensible settings. Even a detailed analysis of all settings does not guarantee successful mastery of the tool. Pen Tool and that's why. Drawing outlines with a pen is a purely motor skill. That is, you need to understand at some subconscious level how and according to what laws the curve bends Pen Tool.

When I started mastering Pen in Photoshop, I was completely at a loss. I had a hard time understanding the principles by which Perot constructs vector curves. But I passed this path safely. I am convinced that mastering the instrument Pen Tool very simple if you take it from the right end. To fully master the Pen Tool, I recommend reading articles about vectors in Photoshop:

A little about the Pen Tool

Pen Tool is a standard and generic tool for creating vector curves anywhere. It is present in various variations in almost all graphic design programs. He is in Photoshop And Illustrator. To be honest, he moved to Photoshop just from Illustrator, along with other basic vector tools, about 15 years ago. He is in Corel Draw, there it is called Bezier Tool. Of course, the pen was in Macromedia Freehand while the program was alive. There is a pen in free vector programs like InkScape. There is a feather in InDesign V Flash and even in GIMP-e. In all of the programs listed, the pen works the same everywhere. That is, if you understand the pen in Photoshop, then you understand it in all the graphic platforms I listed.

In my opinion, learning to draw with a Pen is still more convenient in vector drawing programs like Illustrator. Simply because in the vector program the Pen is separated from all the tinsel, it looks like a feather, leaves a line behind it, as when drawing on paper. Nevertheless, I decided to write about Per in relation to Photoshop, simply because Photoshop is the most common graphics program, and it is through it that people begin to learn Pen Tool and only after that they begin to master Adobe Illustrator.

Well, in conclusion, a little history. Tool Pen Tool or Feather Bezier, as it is known throughout the world, is based on a mathematical formula by mathematician Pierre Bézier. In fact, Paul de Casteljau invented Bezier curves a little earlier than Bezier himself. But his works were not published, as they were a corporate secret of Citroen. However, you can read the historical excursion yourself on Wikipedia, including about the Bezier Curve itself. We are more interested not in graphs with formulas, but in the answer to a simple question: how can you draw at least something with this Pen?

How to set up a Pen in Photoshop

Before learning to draw curves, make sure that on the panel SettingsWindows > Options you have the correct values. Select Pen Tool and take a look at the panel above. In the vector modes area you should have Path. We will only draw in this mode. In complex shape modes you should have Add to path area (+). I'll talk about these settings very briefly, but if you're looking for detailed reviews, I've already written them:

Mode Path creates pure vector paths. These contours are not attached to anything. They exist regardless of layers. And, to put it mildly, a tool Pen Tool You can't draw much in Photoshop. It was not created for pure drawing. It has only an auxiliary function. Other two modes − Layer Shape creates a shape as a layer with an attached vector mask. And this is the only way to create vector shapes in Photoshop. A fill layer bounded by a vector mask. This mode is not suitable for us, since it will immediately create a mask and fill it with some color. Mode Fill Pixels creates raster shapes. Thank God when using Pera This mode is completely blocked.

Type modes Add to path area (+)— auxiliary modes. They are designed to draw complex shapes. For example mode Subtract from area (-)- cuts holes in the contours. Other modes are more specific and are rarely used. A mode Add to path area (+)- adds contours to each other.

Setting up the Path panel in Photoshop

I already said that Pen Tool in mode Path creates contours that exist in isolation from layers. But where are these circuits located and how can they be controlled? They are located in the panel Path and if you cannot find it in your panels, open Windows > Path.

By device panel Path similar to the panel, but works a little differently. It already contains a base layer Work path. This is not a regular layer, but rather a temporary area. All drawn curves in Photoshop appear on the layer Work Path. And while the curves remain selected, the layer Work Path saves them for us. But as soon as we lose the selected curve, Work Path will reset to zero and the outline will be deleted. Why does the selection disappear? For example, you may accidentally click on some vector mask. Or you can go to the panel Path and click on the empty area. Then layer Work Path will lose selection, and when you switch back to Pen Tool and start drawing, all the old contours on Work Path will be deleted.

In order not to lose the selected contours, I advise you to save them immediately. To save, double click on the layer Work Path. Then he will offer to save the outline in a separate “layer”. Or, another option, click on the small icon at the bottom of the outlines panel Create New Path. Then the panel will create a new non-erasable layer for the outlines. But I still recommend working like this. Draw a new outline, click on Work Path and saved to a new layer. This way your outlines will always be on different “layers”, which is very convenient.

Perhaps all the preparations are completed and you know enough not to get lost in the settings of the Pen Tool, it’s time to move on to practice.

How to make selections with the Pen in Photoshop

Most often the tool Pen Tool used for selecting objects or clipping. Of course, the vector path itself does not select anything, but you can easily make a vector mask from the vector path, or convert it into a selected area, from which you can get a raster mask. In addition, the vector can be conveniently bent, creating soft circles. You can start clipping the object Pen, then switch to another tool, and then return to clipping again. When working with type selection tools, you can’t stop working until you finish the shape. I've lost selection areas hundreds of times due to an accidental click or an ICQ window popping up. WITH Pen Tool such tricks are excluded. Therefore, many people prefer to highlight Pen, rather than Lasso.

Draw and use the tool Pen Tool I learned precisely through selection. I selected and selected various objects and gradually understood the principles of creating curves. I believe that highlighting objects is an ideal way to study Feather in Photoshop.

The easiest way to select with the Pen

The easiest way to start using the tool Pen Tool- forget about the guides. That is, just take a picture and start selecting objects without using guides. How to do it? Very simple. Make a click, then a second, then a third. Like that.

Work with Pen Tool as if it is. Select objects in small sections, like scissors. On the circles, make smaller segments so that the selected object is selected smoothly.

And like this, step by step, select the entire object and connect the point to the starting point to complete the vector shape.

Next step

The next step involves a more daring use of the Pen tool. Why make so many extra points? Start using the guides little by little. Don't just make a point. Do this only on smooth contours. Use guide points at bends. First, short, modest guides. Click with the Pen Tool and, without releasing the mouse button, drag the cursor a little. Guide lines will appear. Create short guides without any tricks. Give them directions towards the line.

Then the larger bold ones. The larger your guides, the fewer points you will need. At this step we really begin to use the tool Pen Tool. There are fewer points, the guides are longer. They no longer always go exactly along the contour line. I am convinced that learning how to correctly position guides for points can only be done in practice, by fully understanding the logic of constructing curves.

Pen points and guides

A vector curve consists of points and guides. Points and guides in various programs have dozens of names and definitions, from paths to anchors or simply points. Nevertheless, their essence is the same in all programs. The point fixes the coordinate through which the curve must pass. Guides adjust the direction of the curve based on coordinates and other guides.

Path guides direct a curve in a specific way. In either case, the path must pass through the vector point, but the guide determines exactly how the curve will pass through the point. The guide literally has a path “back” and a path “forward”.

The fewer points the better. A minimum number of points and skillful work with guides allow you to create the smoothest vector paths. On the other hand, the fewer points, the larger your guides, and the more difficult it is, sometimes, to correctly set up a vector curve.

Working with the Pen tool

When working with curves, you'll encounter different kinds of points and guides. In more advanced vector programs, these differences are controlled in the settings. But in Photoshop there are only the most basic tools for working with vectors. We can say that Photoshop gives us the opportunity to work with curves at the most basic elementary level. Here are some of the varieties of points and guides you may encounter.

• Points with symmetrical guides— the guides of such a point are symmetrical and connected. Changing the guide on one side changes the guide on the other side.
• Points with one guide— a point has only one guideline activated.
• Points with asymmetrical (angular)- the guides of such a point are not connected together, they are directed in different directions, they are of different lengths. Such points are used for corners.
• Points without guides.

Have I already said that Photoshop has very poor tools for working with points and guides? But by owning some secret shortcuts that moved to Photoshop from Illustrator, but are not advertised in any way, you will become a master at creating curves.

I will demonstrate working with Pen Tool creating a vector area for the letter "R". When making a clipping path, I will try to use all possible techniques when working with Pen.

Create a clipping path for the letter R

Start by simply clicking on the bottom of our letter. Since the line is absolutely straight, guides are not needed here. Even if you need them in the future (for example, you want to change the shape of a letter), this can be easily done with special tools, which will be discussed a little later. To make the line absolutely vertical, press SHIFT.

Now create two more points and drag out their guides so that the vector path runs exactly along the contour of the letter.

Now place a third curved guide that should lead straight into the letter. Don’t worry, we’ll fix it, the main thing is that its back part lies on the outline of the letter.

Click ALT and grab the guide slider that went inside the letter. Move it as shown in the picture. Now we have a corner point with asymmetrical guides. At the same time, you can immediately put the next point. Pressing ALT turns your pen into a Convert Point Tool, which is designed to correct guides.

It is clear that in the last step we acted by touch and placed the guides incorrectly. All this can be easily corrected. When on Pen Tool click CTRL reduce the guide slightly. By the way, the same thing can be done by clicking ALT, But CTRL calls the tool Direct Selection Tool. With this tool you can move vector points. You can also change the location of the vector guides. Moreover, if the guide points are already divided, you can edit them separately from each other. But if they are connected, then they are edited only symmetrically to each other. To break them you need to call Convert Point Tool or click ALT.

The next step was to complete the dots. And you probably noticed that I took advantage CTRL and changed the location of the previous point to minimize their number.

Now, I could press again ALT and change the location of the last guide to direct it to the right, but this makes no sense. It is not needed there at all, since the bottom of the letter is absolutely horizontal. So I'll do this. I'll press ALT, but instead of grabbing the guide, I’ll click on the point.

Now I'll press SHIFT to get a perfectly horizontal line and put a new point. It is clear that in this case the point also needs only one guide. Click ALT and pull it out.

Obviously, I slightly did not take into account the location of the points and guides, and before the penultimate point I need one more. Or perhaps the guides need to be reconfigured. I'll choose the first option and create an additional point to give me even more control over the curve. Point Pen Tool to an empty space in the curve, and when + appears on the tool icon, click. In the same way, you can delete unnecessary points by hovering over them Pen Tool.

When the point was set, I pressed CTRL and slightly adjusted the location of the points and the guides so that everything was as it should be. Don't forget to click on the last point with your Pen to continue drawing that particular curve rather than starting a new one. You need to do this if you lost the outline selection during your experiments.

Now press SHIFT and place the last points. During this part of the work, I would like to save my outline so as not to accidentally lose it. Go to the Path panel, double click on the outline, enter the name. The outline is saved.

Now I'll switch to the Subtract cutting mode in the Options panel so that Photoshop treats the new shape as if it were cutting a hole out of the first one. After that I will complete the letter.

Pen tool group

Speaking about the Pen Tool, one cannot fail to mention the tools that are in the same group with it. First of all it is itself:

Pen Tool — Bezier pen, the very tool I’m talking about throughout this article

Free Form Pen Tool - an analogue of a regular Pen, but differs in that it draws like a regular brush. That is, it does not provide any opportunity to adjust the guides, but creates a curve on the fly. Unfortunately, this tool does not have any ability to adjust the smoothing of the line, so it creates a curve exactly where you drag it with the mouse. Well, since almost everyone’s hand trembles, you can forget about smooth lines. The only interesting setting of the tool is the checkbox Magnetic. It's located in the settings panel above and turns the Pen into Magnetic Lasso Tool. Vector only.

Add Anchor Point Tool — adds a point to the curve. There is no reason to choose it separately. The regular Pen Tool turns into Add Anchor when you simply hover over a curve.

Delete Anchor Point Tool — deletes unnecessary curve points. Again, there is no need to select it separately. A regular pen perfectly deletes points on its own, turning into a Delete Anchor when hovering over a point.

Convert Point Tool — allows you to reconfigure guide points from scratch. Ready-made guides can be pulled in different directions. An indispensable tool, but you will waste twice as much time if you constantly choose it. Much easier to use ALT when Trans is selected.

Drawing with a Pen in Photoshop

When drawing contour lines, it is very important for you to create not closed figures, but separate vector curves that are not connected to each other. It’s as if an artist is applying strokes with his brush.

Here are some ways to do this. Draw a curve and deselect it. Then click on the empty field on the panel Path. And select the layer again Work Path . The curve will be highlighted but not highlighted.

You can also click on any of the vector control tools, for example, Path Selection Tool, and then click on the work area. After this, you can continue creating a curve on the same field.

Another way is to simply save all the curves in separate layers in the panel. Path.

After clipping, you will of course want to do something with the vector paths. But they were created for this purpose, in order to do something with them in the future. To turn them into a selection area, to fill them with paint, to create a vector mask, or shape, based on them. Or, in our case, fill the outline.

If you're using vector paths for vexel drawing in Photoshop, you'll likely want to turn them into something like lines. Here's how to do it in Photoshop:

• Select one of the lines with the tool Direct Selection Tool or Path Selection Tool.
• , onto which paint will be poured.
• Right-click on the outline and select from the drop-down menu Stroke Subpath

In the dialog box that appears, you need to select, of course, a brush and a check mark Simulate Pressure - which simulates real pen pressure. But before that, of course you need to configure the Brush tool Brush Tool, since the filling will occur in accordance with its settings. I set the size to 7px, chose a brush with hard edges, and of course don't forget about the check mark Tablet Pressure Control. Without it, simulating pen pressure doesn’t work very well.

You can safely click OK.

A few seconds of repeated operations and the photograph of the cup turns into a rough sketch.

Filling vector shapes drawn with the Pen Tool

Let's return to the letter R, which we drew a couple of steps ago. Instead of filling the outlines, you can fill the contents of the shape. To do this, instead of Fill Stroke, select Fill Path from the drop-down menu.

But instead, you can do something better. Select your figure and go to Layer > New Fill Layer > Solid Color. We have a layer with a fill and a vector mask. This layer can be reduced or enlarged without loss of quality. I’ll probably finish here, since the possibilities of vector contours in Photoshop are approaching infinity.

I hope you learned something new and happy experimenting!

Many people are concerned about which side to approach the Pen tool from?

This Photoshop article will finally answer this burning question and tell you about the basic basics of working with the Pen tool group. The possibilities you get by mastering this tool are simply endless.

This material will provide you with invaluable assistance in performing various Photoshop lessons.

Pen and path tools: and

The Pen tool allows you to draw vector objects. The most important principle in vector art is the ability to change the shape of an object after it has been created without changing quality.

So it all starts with Pera.

Let's look at the tools of the "Feather" group using an egg as an example! And not simple, but golden! Now run to the refrigerator, because we will draw from life :)

As you know, the egg has an unusual shape; it is very difficult to draw such smooth edges by hand.
Take and draw this figure:

This is, of course, not an egg, but some kind of rough stone.

Before we start smoothing, let's get acquainted with two tools:

Editing a path

Outline selection

If you click the black arrow () on the path, black dots will appear on the corners of the object, and you can easily move the path.

In fact, the fill also moves along with the outline, but lags behind a little.

If you click on an empty path with this tool, white dots will appear.

If you click on the white point or select it as shown in the picture, it will turn black and can be transformed. At the same time, all other points do not move.

This way you can edit the outline.

Now let's get to the fun part, let's learn how to bend straight lines.

Look again at our crude egg. Even a chicken will say that it doesn’t look like an egg. I just want to level the corners and make everything even.

Then take the tool and place additional points in the middle of each straight segment.

Now, in order for the straight line to bend, you need to pull the middle, that is, the additional point that we set.

You will notice that two antennae extend from the black dot - these are guides. If we grab the tip of the antennae and pull it down, for example, we will change the outline like this:

In addition, points can be deleted using the tool

We lost half an egg.

With this tool you can smooth corners. Click on the corner point and pull out guides from it, then give it the desired shape.

If you want to try drawing an egg by hand, then grab a Freeform Pen

Draw the desired shape:

I hope you are doing better!

Then take the edit arrow and you get something like this:

If you master this material well and practice a lot in drawing not only eggs, but something more complex, you will soon achieve incredible results in drawing.

The pen will become your favorite Photoshop tool.

Look what happens to fragile products like eggs when shameless mice run past.

A group of these tools are used to create and edit complex paths, and are also often used for precise selection of objects.

So, select the Pen tool from the toolbar.

The options panel for this tool is the same as for the "Shape" type tools:

• Feather- allows you to create contours. The essence of his work: drawing a straight or arcuate line from one reference point to another.


• Free pen- very similar to the Lasso tool, only it creates a selection, and the Free Pen tool creates an outline. It is good to use for those who can draw accurately with the mouse cursor.


• Magnetic pen- “Free pen” will become “Magnetic pen” if you check the “Magnetic” box. This tool is used for precise selection of objects (just like the Pen tool).

The Freestyle Pen tool lets you draw just like you would with a pencil on paper, so we won't cover it here. The following lesson is devoted to the Magnetic Pen tool. And today we will get acquainted with the Pen tool.

The simplest thing you can draw is a contour made of straight segments. For this:

1. Select the Pen tool.


2. Place the mouse cursor where you want the straight line to start, and click to create the first anchor point (do not drag the pointer).


3. Now click where you want the end of the line to be. The first segment is now displayed.


4. So, by clicking on the canvas, you will create anchor points and segments between them.


5. To complete the outline, click on the first anchor point.

Now we will draw arc-shaped segments. For this:

Now let's look at additional tools to help edit contours. Left-click on the Pen tool in the toolbar to open a tool selection list:

• Feather+- adds anchor points.


• Feather-- deletes anchor points.


• Corner- changes the properties of anchor points. There are three types of nodal points in contours:
  • Smooth knot- provides a smooth transition from one segment to another in the form of a single arc.
  
  
  • Corner knot- represents an angle between two straight lines and does not have adjustable balancing points.
  
  
  • Sharp knot- used in places where you need to make a sharp change in the direction of a curve or connect a segment and a curve with a sharp transition.
  
  
  So, when you click with the “Knot” tool on a smooth node, a corner node is formed, and when you drag a corner node, a smooth node is formed.

Let's try it in practice:

Now select "Path Selection" from the toolbar:

• Outline selection- used to move the entire contour. To do this: take this tool, click on the outline (cursor in the form of a black arrow) and drag it to the desired location.


• Arrow- used to move part of a contour. To do this: take this tool, click on the desired contour node (the cursor in the form of a white arrow) and drag it to the desired location.

  If you need to simultaneously move some part of the contour, then first use this white arrow to stretch the frame around the desired contour nodes, the nodes will become gray (highlighted), now grab any of the selected nodes with the mouse and drag.

To reinforce this material, let’s practice drawing numbers:

1. Click at point 3 and, without releasing, draw an arc of the desired shape.

In the Paths panel, save the path named "Number 1" and create a new path called "Number 2". Let's draw the number 2.

1. Take the Pen tool and click at point 1, release.


2. Click at point 2 and release. A straight line appeared.


3. Click at point 3 and, without releasing, drag down and to the left until an arc of the desired shape is formed.


4. Click at point 4 and, without releasing, drag it upward until an arc of the desired shape is formed.


5. Click at point 5 and, without releasing, drag it down and to the right until an arc of the desired shape is formed.

In the Paths panel, create a new path named "Number 3". Let's draw the number 3.

Draw all the numbers like this, this is a very good workout. That's all. Next time we'll take a look at the Magnetic Pen tool.

99% of work in Adobe Illustrator is used Pen tool. That's why it's so important to be good at it. After all, this not only gives a better result, but also speeds up the work.

The article I am publishing today is not new, but it is important and will be useful to many to improve their technique.

Functions

Cursors

The Pen tool can take different forms depending on what action it is currently configured to perform (automatic or manual). To change the view between pen and cross, press Caps Lock.

	Ready to start
	Intermediate state while creating or editing a curve
	When the mouse is pressed
	With a curve segment selected - adding an anchor point
	The same, but deleting
	Illuminates only at the starting point of the curve and means “close the curve”
	Highlighted at the end point of an unselected curve. Means continue
	At the active anchor point means adjusting the sliders

Mouse control (curve selected)

• Pointing the Pen tool at an anchor point: Delete a point
• Pointing the Pen tool at a segment: Add a point
• Pointing the Pen tool to the final anchor point: adjust sliders

Keyboard control

• If hold down Shift, then movements during creation or editing of points will be made at angles of 45°, 90°, 135° or 180°
• Select the anchor point with the Direct selection tool and click Delete. The point itself and the segments adjacent to it will be deleted.
• Pen tool + Option (Alt): Change the mode to Convert anchor point tool.
• If you point Pen tool on the curve and press Cmd (Ctrl)- the curve will be highlighted and become available for editing.
• Pen tool + Option (Alt) while creating a curve- it becomes possible to change the state of the sliders (independently of each other).
• Point the Pen tool over the slider and Option (Alt): same as in step 5
• Scissors tool + Option (Alt)
• Add anchor point tool + Option (Alt): Delete anchor point tool mode.
• Delete anchor point tool + Option (Alt): Add anchor point tool mode.

Other useful tricks

Improving technology

Exercises

There are several lessons to reinforce the material. Just download the files and complete the exercises

Exercise from Vectortuts

Exercises from Veerle Pieters

For Illustrator CS5
For Illustrator CS3 and CS4

Video

And finally, a few video tutorials on how to use it Pen tool in Illustrator

All these techniques will help improve the quality and speed of working with the Pen tool. Be professional!

Many people have seen the “Pen” tool on the toolbar, but not everyone uses this function and is unfamiliar with its capabilities. Meanwhile, it is very useful for those who are involved in drawing and editing images. In our article, let's look at the Pen tool in Photoshop, how to use it, and in what cases it can be used. When using vector graphics, it is convenient to use this tool to draw clear lines, select objects, and make vector blanks.

We invite you to study the basic principles

Click on “Pen” in the panel on the left, its parameters panel will open at the top, allowing you to configure it for work. Here's what you can do:

Modes

At first you will see two modes:

1. Shape layer - layered vector images are built here;
2. Contours.

In the first of these modes, you select a color and can immediately draw shapes filled with the selected color. The drawn element appears on a separate layer. The result is a vector layer, it can be changed and edited according to the principles of vector graphics. On the layer you will see an icon, hovering over it, you will see the inscription “Vector mask thumbnail” - this means you can work with a vector object.

A new layer is automatically created when building

When working in the second mode, we put a point on the sheet, without releasing the left mouse button, move the pen to the side, a guide line is formed, with the help of which you can then modify the object. We place the next point, it is connected by a line to the first point, and again we draw a guide line. Pull the guides in the directions where you need to bend the line. The longer the guide segment, the stronger the bend will be. Click on the first anchor point with the pen to close the path. Various operations can then be carried out to form the image.

If we activate the “View” function, the program helps us track where our curve will go when we select the next point.

The mode is suitable for drawing curves

Selecting an area

The pen is used to create a selection area in Photoshop.

• By placing points, create an outline of an image, right-click inside the shape.
• In the menu that appears, click on “Create selected area”.
• A new window appears where you can immediately set the feathering radius for the selected image and activate the function of smoothing jagged edges.
• By clicking OK or Yes, we create a selection area outlined with a pen.

This function will be useful when working with photos in the future.

Stroke with a brush

Any constructed object can be outlined with a brush. Create an outline with a pen, right-click inside, and select the “Stroke” function in the menu that appears.

In the new menu that appears, you can choose what exactly to make the stroke with: a pencil, a brush, an eraser, a brightener, or another method. If, for example, you select a brush, then the stroke will be made according to the parameters set for the brush (color, thickness). If you need to perform any stroke, click the desired tool in advance and set its parameters. Then you take the Pen, trace the image with it, select the function for creating an outline named above, and your selected figure will receive an outline with the specified parameters.

Photoshop, as always, pleases with its variability

Fill

After you outline the image, you can select the “Fill” function. The object will be filled with the color set for the foreground if you select “Basic color” in the window that appears. You can select a specific fill pattern, set the blending mode, transparency level, feather radius, and anti-aliasing.

Transformation

The Free Transform function creates a square to work with the shape. By changing its position, you can expand the figure as you require.

By right-clicking inside the frame, you will open a window with various transformation methods: rotating the figure, tilting, distorting, scaling (increasing or decreasing), changing the perspective, or performing free deformation using the additional grid that appears.

Free pen

This tool allows you to create various curves for a vector drawing in Photoshop. Unlike the previous mode, the free pen allows you to move it across the sheet and create a variety of images without using anchor points. You can also fill a drawn figure in Photoshop with color, create a stroke, select it, or use the “Free Transform” function.

In Free Pen mode, you can also customize some settings. The “Error” parameter, when set to 2-3 pixels, creates an unsmoothed, unsmooth outline, but at 10 pixels it becomes smooth.

By selecting the Magnetic option, you create a path using the same principle as the Magnetic Lasso tool. For the “Magnetic” parameter, you can specify the width in pixels, contrast with the background, and frequency of anchor points. By selecting this option, we drag the pen and anchor points are automatically created.

Enable additional options

Editing a path

To work with a contour in Photoshop there is a tool “Add a new point”. When you point at a point, the “Arrow” mode will turn on, allowing you to change the position of the point and change the curvature of the arc in individual segments of the image.

You can remove an unnecessary anchor point that interferes with the creation of a correct path using a special tool in the Pen window.

Corner

There is also the “Angle” tool in Photoshop in a variation of the Pen mode. By clicking on the anchor point, we delete the guide segment. By clicking a second time, we again form guide segments, but now its halves can be rotated at any angle, which gives more options for changing the curvature of our arc.

Creating Specific Shapes

At the top of the options bar for the Pen tool there is a set of shapes that you can quickly draw with it or create outlines of these shapes for the selection area. In this way, you can build a regular rectangle, a rectangle with smooth corners, a circle, a polygon with any number of sides, a straight line of a certain thickness.

There is also a “Custom Shape” function. You will find many different images in the drop down list.

Image Styles

For objects built in the “Shape Layer” mode, you can set a style from several standard ones offered by the program. The figure is immediately formed in the selected style, for which effects are automatically added. This image can be easily converted from vector to raster by right-clicking on the icon and selecting “Rasterize Layer”.

You can add effects

Vector mask

The vector mask function allows you to limit work with an image to a selected outline. For example, when you use a brush to paint a shape, the color will not go beyond the outline, even if you drag the brush outside its boundaries.

As you can see, Pen gives you a lot of possibilities for vector graphics. It is especially often used to highlight complex shapes by creating an outline and forming a selection area. But it is also useful when drawing, thanks to various options that allow you to create and edit images. If you didn't know how to use the pen in Photoshop before, get acquainted with its parameters and test them in practice. We are sure that soon this tool will become your constant assistant in working with Photoshop, and you will often use it when creating collages, vector drawings, and transferring figures to another background.