Ulead PhotoImpact - Importing .ai files

Importing .ai files

When I started to play with PI 4.2, I discovered an amazing program. I was enchanted by the graphics capabilities that were available for the price I paid (compared to PhotoShop - $999 CA - Ouf!). I also was a little disappointed by the Path Tool command. It worked alright, but let's be honest, just drawing a perfect 5 branches star or a simple bottle needed a lot of talent. PI 5.0 definitively improved the path drawing/editing features but there's a few things in my wish list.

I quickly discovered that all shapes were .ai (Adobe Illustrator) files. I have a friend who has this program, now the question was how to use them in PI. This tutorial will show you how to do just that (pretty tricky, if you ask me).

Adobe Illustrator is a very powerful vector based drawing program (it's one of PhotoShop's brother from Adobe). In this context, a vector is a line, circle, ellipse or a complex path that are considered a single object (unlike pixel based images).

Note: The following works in PI 4.2 and 5.0.

For the benefit of neophytes, let's see what and where are those shapes.

Click EasyPalette in the PI toolbar and in the small toolbar at the top click Object Libraries.

Click the Shape Library.

Click the + symbol to see the shapes by categories (if you don't see the tree view like the image to the right, click the fourth button (Show/hide tree view) in that toolbar.

Select the Pattern Shapes and scroll down to find the Paper Clip shape. Drag the paper clip in your workspace and use the handles to change the its size (hold Shift as you drag to retain the proportions). Now you have a shape in your image.

Before we go on with the tutorial, here an important thing to notice that certainly sounds insignificant at this point: All the shapes are green. I know, I know it's silly but it will be important later. Since this is supposed to be a tutorial, let's see a complete example from scratch. PI has a pentagon and an octagon shape, but no hexagon so download this zipped hexagon file in Adobe Illustrator format (the file name is hexagon.ai) and uncompress it in the folder of your choice.

Now what's all the fuss about the fact that the shapes are green. When you import a .ai file in PI, it becomes available in the EasyPalette in the color that was selected (in Path Drawing Tool) at the time you import it. What would happen if the color happened to be white? The shape would be there but you wouldn't see a thing (in the EasyPalette that is).

So to be coherent with the other shapes let's make the current Path Drawing Tool's color the same green as one in the EasyPalette (unless of course you don't mind having yellow, blue and red shapes to choose from. Me I do).

Do you still have the paper clip shape in your workspace? If not use anyone from the Shape Library.
Click Path Drawing Tool
Click the Color box in the toolbar and choose Eyedropper.
In the Eyedropper window, find the shape you inserted and click it then click OK.
Now the Color box is set to the exact same color as all the little green men in the EasyPalette.

In the list of libraries in the EasyPalette there is one named My Library. Clicking the + next to it will reveal the group My Shapes. This is where we're going to import the hexagon. BUT (because there's always a but) you cannot import a shape in an empty library. The library in which you want to import a shape must contain at least one object to become visible in the Input AI File, which we will see in two minutes. Let's fix this.


Make sure My Shapes group is visible in the EasyPalette as well as the shape you inserted earlier. Drag the shape we inserted in the image exactly over the words My Shapes as in the image to the right. The little + attached to the mouse pointer is a standard way that Windows signifies you that a new item will be created (added). When you release the mouse the Add To EasyPalette appears.
Here we would normally type an appropriate name for the shape in the Sample Name text box. Accept the default name and click OK. The shape appears in the group. Noticed the other groups below My Shapes called Collection 1,2 and 3 in the image above. If you intend to collect many shapes you should create you own groups so you can easily manage them. Again for the sake of beginners (I know they appreciate) let's do a little ... group therapy.

To create a new group, right-click the library name (in this case My Library) and choose New Group, come on I'll wait. Give it a name and press Enter.
To rename an existing group, right-click the group name and choose Rename. Type the new name and press Enter.
To delete a group with all its shapes, right-click the group name and choose Delete and confirm that that's what you want to do.

We're finally ready to import the hexagon in the My Shapes group under My Library.

Click Path Drawing Tool.
Click the Shape box up in the toolbar and choose Custom Shape...
Examine the bottom of the Custom Shape dialog box.

In the Gallery drop-down list choose My Library. Believe it or not, this gallery wouldn't be available if it was totally empty.
In the Tab group make sure My Shapes is selected.
Finally click Import. Here's the Input AI File. Find the folder in which you decompressed hexagon.ai and select it. A preview of the file will appear at the bottom of this dialog box.
Click Open then OK.

Now look in the EasyPalette in the My Shapes group, you'll find your hexagon. Right-click on the hexagon and choose Description, remove the .ai from the name. Drag the shape in your image and play at will. Want to practice? Download these marvelous shapes (in one zipped file called shapes.zip), hours of fun for the whole family.

Told you it wasn't evident. 8)