Ilumax

Ilumax Vector guide

Draw vector artwork with shapes, curves, colour and type. Ilumax Vector runs entirely on your computer, with no account or internet needed.

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What Ilumax Vector is for

Ilumax Vector is for illustrations, logos, icons and other artwork made from shapes and paths. You can move a shape, reshape a curve or change a colour without starting again. Artboards hold different sizes or versions in one document.

Use fills, strokes, gradients, brushes, layers and type to build your artwork. Save an editable .ilxvector document, then make SVG, PDF or image copies for sharing.

Install and first launch

Get Vector from My downloads. Follow Installing Ilumax apps for the one-time steps on your Mac or Windows PC.

To start, choose File ▸ New…. To work on an existing file, choose File ▸ Open…. You can return to recent files through File ▸ Open Recent Files.

Draw your first illustration

  1. Choose File ▸ New… (CommandN on a Mac, ControlN on Windows). Set Width and Height, keep one artboard, and click Create.
  2. Choose the Rectangle Tool (M) and drag on the artboard. Hold Shift while dragging to make a square.
  3. In Properties, click the Fill colour chip and choose a swatch. Stroke controls the outline; change its colour and width if you want an outline.
  4. Choose the Ellipse Tool (L) and drag a second shape. Hold Shift to make a circle.
  5. Choose the Selection Tool (V). Drag a shape to move it. Hold Shift and click the other shape to select both, then choose Object ▸ Group.
  6. Choose File ▸ Save As…. Save as Ilumax Vector with a name such as First illustration.ilxvector.
  7. For a picture to share, choose File ▸ Export ▸ Export As PNG…. Choose where to save, then confirm the PNG options. Keep the .ilxvector file for later edits.

Find your way around

  • Menus: File handles documents and exports; Edit has undo and preferences; Object, Type, Select, Effect and View hold artwork commands. Window opens panels.
  • Tools on the left: select and draw artwork, add type, and move around the view. Point at a tool to see its name. Some tools share a group in the toolbar.
  • Control bar: settings for the current selection or tool. Window ▸ Control shows or hides it.
  • Artboards in the centre: the areas you design and export. Document tabs let you switch between open files.
  • Properties: settings for the selection, including its position, size, fill and stroke. With nothing selected, it shows document settings.
  • Layers: the objects and groups in your document, with visibility and locking controls. Color, Swatches, Stroke, Gradient, Align and Pathfinder are available from Window.
  • Status bar: zoom and artboard navigation. Changing the zoom changes your view, not the size of the artwork.

Everyday tasks

Draw and resize shapes

  1. Choose the Rectangle Tool or Ellipse Tool and drag. Hold Shift for a square or circle, or Option (Mac) or Alt (Windows) to draw from the centre.
  2. Switch to the Selection Tool and click the shape. Drag it to move it, or use its bounding-box handles to resize it.
  3. For precise dimensions, edit its position and size in Properties. Click an empty area to deselect it.

Draw and edit a curve

  1. Choose the Pen Tool (P). Click to place the first anchor point.
  2. Click another position for a straight segment, or drag as you place a point to give it curve handles.
  3. Continue placing points. Click the first point to close the shape, or press Return (Mac) or Enter (Windows) to finish an open path.
  4. Choose the Direct Selection Tool (A). Select a point and drag it or its handles to change the curve.

Use a few well-placed points first. You can refine the curve with Direct Selection after drawing it.

Change fills, strokes and gradients

  1. Select the artwork. Use Fill in Properties for the inside colour and Stroke for the outline.
  2. Choose Window ▸ Color to mix a colour, or Window ▸ Swatches to reuse one. Check whether fill or stroke is active before applying it.
  3. For a gradient, open Window ▸ Gradient. Use the gradient slider to edit its stops. Click below the ramp to add a stop; drag a stop off the ramp to remove it.
  4. With the Gradient Tool (G), adjust the gradient on the artwork.

Add text

  1. Choose the Type Tool (T), click on the artboard and type.
  2. Use Window ▸ Type ▸ Character for the font and character settings, and Paragraph for paragraph settings.
  3. Press Esc to finish typing. Use the Selection Tool to move the text object.

For text in a shape or along a curve, the type-tool group also has Area Type Tool and Type on a Path Tool.

Arrange and group artwork

  1. With the Selection Tool, hold Shift and click each object you want to work with.
  2. Open Window ▸ Align to line them up or distribute them. Check Align To so you align to the selection or the artboard you intend.
  3. Choose Object ▸ Group to keep them together. Object ▸ Ungroup separates them again.
  4. Use Object ▸ Arrange ▸ Bring to Front or Send to Back to change which object covers another.

Combine shapes

  1. Draw overlapping shapes and select them with the Selection Tool.
  2. Open Window ▸ Pathfinder.
  3. Click Unite to combine them, Minus Front to cut the front shape out of the one behind, Intersect to keep their overlap, or Exclude to remove the overlap.
  4. If the result is not what you wanted, press CommandZ (Mac) or ControlZ (Windows) to undo and adjust the shapes.

Place a picture

  1. Choose File ▸ Place… and choose your picture.
  2. In the Place dialog, choose whether to Link the file. A linked picture uses a separate file; keep that file with your artwork.
  3. Place it on the artboard, then use the Selection Tool to move or resize it. Window ▸ Links shows linked files and their status.

Work with artboards

  1. Choose the Artboard Tool (ShiftO). Drag to create an artboard, or select an existing one to adjust it.
  2. Open Window ▸ Artboards to see the document’s artboards.
  3. Choose File ▸ Export ▸ Export for Screens… to export artboards in several formats or sizes. Choose the artboards, output formats and destination before exporting.

Zoom and inspect artwork

Choose View ▸ Fit Artboard in Window (Command0 on a Mac, Control0 on Windows) to see the active artboard. Zoom In and Zoom Out change the magnification. Use the Hand Tool (H) to drag the view.

View ▸ Outline (CommandY on a Mac, ControlY on Windows) shows the paths without their painted appearance. Choose it again to return to the preview.

Files

  • Native documents: .ilxvector keeps your editable artwork. Files from earlier versions still open. Use Save As… to give one a new name and the current extension.
  • Opens: SVG and SVGZ, PDF, PDF-compatible .ai and .ait, EPS, DXF, EMF and WMF; PNG, JPEG, WebP, GIF, TIFF, BMP and PSD images; and .afdesign, .afphoto and .afpub files.
  • Save As…: Ilumax Vector, SVG, SVGZ, PDF or PDF-compatible .ai. Save as Template… writes .ilxvectortemplate for a reusable starting document.
  • Export makes a copy without changing the document’s own file. Options include SVG, PNG and other image formats, PDF, EPS, DXF, EMF, WMF and PSD. Use Export for Screens… for artboards and multiple sizes.

Imported files may not keep every effect, font or object editable in the same way. Read any import warnings and check the artwork. Keep the original file and save your working version as .ilxvector.

Save updates the current file. Save As… changes the working file’s name and format. Save a Copy… writes another file while you keep working in the original.

Keyboard shortcuts

On a Mac, ⌘ is Command, ⇧ Shift, ⌥ Option and ⌃ Control.

ToMacWindows
New documentCommandNControlN
OpenCommandOControlO
SaveCommandSControlS
Save AsCommandShiftSControlShiftS
PlaceCommandShiftPControlShiftP
Undo / redoCommandZ or CommandShiftZControlZ or ControlShiftZ
Group / ungroupCommandG or CommandShiftGControlG or ControlShiftG
DeselectCommandShiftAControlShiftA
Zoom in / outCommandEquals or CommandMinusControlEquals or ControlMinus
Fit artboard in windowCommand0Control0
Outline / previewCommandYControlY
Selection / Direct SelectionV or AV or A
Rectangle / EllipseM or LM or L
Pen / TypeP or TP or T
GradientGG
ArtboardShiftOShiftO
Hand / ZoomH or ZH or Z

These are the default shortcuts. Single-letter tool keys work when you are not typing in text or a field. Edit ▸ Keyboard Shortcuts… lets you inspect and change them.

Tips

  • Save a native master before making files to share. A PNG is a picture of the artwork, so its shapes cannot be edited separately.
  • Use Layers to hide or lock artwork you are not changing. This makes it easier to select the right object.
  • If you cannot see a panel, find it in Window. Window ▸ Workspace changes the panel arrangement for different kinds of work.
  • Use Direct Selection for individual points and Selection for whole objects. Switching between them is often quicker than redrawing.

Get help

Help ▸ User Guide opens this guide. For help with a file or a tool, visit Support or email [email protected]. Include your app version, your Mac or Windows version, and the steps that led to the problem.

Email [email protected]. Say which app and version you use, whether you are on a Mac or Windows, and what you did just before the problem.

Or go to Support: what to put in your email, and quick answers on installing, licence keys, renewals and refunds.

Lost your licence key? Email from the address you paid with, and it will be sent back to you. To download an app again, paste your key on My downloads.

Other companies’ product names mentioned in this guide are trademarks of their owners. Ilumax is not affiliated with them.