Can't expand gradient fill w/ transparency? (cs4)

I'm very glad they added the ability to set the opacity of gradient markers in cs4. However, when I expand a fill with a partially transparent gradient, the opacity is lost (everything goes to 100%). Am I doing something wrong, or is this simply a known or expected limitation?
For now, I'll go back to using opacity masks if I need to expand.
Thanks.

Not sure if this is what you are after.
Create a gradient with a 100% fill of cyan to 100% fill of cyan. Change one gradient slider to have an opacity of 5%.
If you put a solid colored object below it you wil see that 95% of that object shows throught the 5% side of the gradient.
You now have two options under the Menu / Object / Flatten Transparency dialog box.
1- Select object / Object / Flatten Transparency. Choose "Preserve Overprints and Spot Colors" and you will loose the transparency effect (the colored object below will not show through) but the gradient go from 5% cyan to 100% cyan.
2- Select object / Object / Flatten Transparency. If you choose "Preserve Alpha Transparency" you wil retain the transparent properties of the gradient.
This does change the object to an image and is no longer editable as a vector object.
Is this what you are looking for?

Similar Messages

How can I get "distorted" gradient fills to copy & paste properly?

Here's the situation simplified: I create a document and draw a circle and fill it with a circular gradient fill. I then copy and paste that circle into a new document. It looks exactly the same, and importantly, the gradient fill is still editable, so I can change the colours making up the gradient, their positions on the gradient-slider, etc.
However, if I draw the circle in the first document, fill it with a circular gradient fill, and then I "distort" the gradient's shape to an oval shape, using the gradient tool — still keeping the circle itself as a circular shape (only the fill has changed shape) — and I then copy and paste this circle into a document, it does not get copied across properly as a "true" gradient fill.
At first glance, it looks the same. However, viewing the circle in Outline mode shows that the gradient fill has been expanded into 100s and 100s of flat solid coloured objects, each one laid on top of another, getting progressively smaller and smaller, and all masked in the original circle shape.
And of course, as the gradient fill has been expanded, it is no longer "live" and no longer editable, so I now can not edit its colours or positions on the gradient-slider, etc.
So, how can I make it so that Illustrator maintains and keeps the correct gradient fill when copying and pasting between documents? I've tried editing all the settings under Preferences > File Handling & Clipboard, but all without success.
At the moment, to overcome this "bug", I have to separate the two document windows by dragging its tab out of the main Illustrator window, so I now have two floating windows, rather than all windows tabbed in the one environment, and I then have to drag and drop the object from one window to the other. Slightly inconvenient, but it does get the job done.
Strangely enough, dragging and dropping DOES work, whereas copying and pasting does NOT. Weird.
However this slight inconvenience soon adds up when I have to do it many many many times over.
And it gets progressively worse, because dragging and dropping does not allow me to place the object in the position I want it, whereas with copying and pasting, I could ordinarily choose to "Paste In Front" to place my object exactly in the same position between the two documents.
In order to overcome this, I have to drag and drop to get the gradient fill across correctly, and then I have to copy and paste a non-filled duplicate version of the object to get it in precisely the same place, and then I have to use the alignment tools to get the two objects to line up. This = major inconvenience.
And all this becomes even worse when attempting to copy an Illustrator object into Photoshop as a Smart Object, because when I then double-click the Smart Object in Photoshop to edit it, the gradient fill has been expanded — because, obviously, the object had to have been copied and pasted to get it from Illustrator into Photoshop, and this is the problem that Illustrator seems to be having.

Thanks for the continuing answers guys, mucho appreciado.
However, to go through what's been said since my last post...
I tried launching Illustrator in another user account on this machine, but it wouldn't even launch! I got some error number (which I don't recall offhand, but I can re-check it later).
To clarify, this is an official install of CS4 (so no pirating here!), and Illustrator was not running in my other main user account.
And the InDesign thing wouldn't apply to me, as I don't use that app at all. I do invariably have a couple of other CS4 apps running though, usually always Photoshop and Bridge.
I CAN understand how copying and pasting from Illustrator to InDesign would cause this though, because InDesign doesn't support live editable gradients to the same advanced degree that Illustrator does, so it has to expand it when doing so, thereby losing its editability.
Copying and pasting whilst staying completely within Illustrator though is a different story.
You know what — I just had a thought... What if this is nothing to do with Illustrator, but is instead something to do with my Mac OS's system-level clipboard?
I actually had a 3rd-party multiple-item clipboard item installed some time ago, but then never used it. Maybe there's still remnants of that floating around and that's interfering with it somehow?
I'll see if I can clear out all traces of it and see if it makes a difference... Fingers crossed!

How to add a gradient or 50% transparent fill to an .ai imported path?

Hello All;
I need some help. My task sounds simple enough but not sure how to accomplish it.
I created the following path in Illustrator (See attached illustration - the top one). This is actually for a lower-third graphic.
I have been successful at importating that into .ai. Though should I be using a solid or a shape layer or doesn't it matter ?
I can add a stroke which affects the color and thickness of the outlines OK.
However, I can't figure out how to add either a gradient fill or one that is 50% transparent ? Can anyone help ?
Oh ... I'll mention I'm using After Effects CS3.
Thanks.
Tim

Rick;
I've used Illustrator for quite a while both at home and at work but I really havn't had to do anything that complex yet. Same goes for Photoshop. I bought DVD tutorials for most of the productivity software I use and when you gave your first explanation, I watched the DVD tutorial on Importing into AE so I know what you're referring to when you say to import as composition. So far, I've only tried to import into AE by copying and pasting. I think that's why I just got the path and not the background. I'll try importing a composition shortly and see if I get the fill too. I actually found a tutorial on making the type of shape I need to in Photoshop so maybe I'll try that instead of Illustrator and then import that into AE.
Btw - It may not actually be a gradient fill I need to use but instead a solid fill with the top half lighter and buttom half darker.
In case you're interested, here's actually what I'm trying to create for a video project. I could actually buy the animation for $8 but I figured that this can't be that difficult and I need to learn this stuff anyway ... http://videohive.net/item/lower-third-15-different-colour-schemes/145337?WT.ac=category_th umb&WT.seg_1=category_thumb&WT.z_author=berol
Tim

I upgraded Firefox, and now there is a blue band on my screen above the window, and I'm not getting the full use of the screen in viewing web pages. How can I get the window to expand to fill the screen as it did before?

There is a horizontal band or gap above the Firefox window at the top of the screen, where you can see the Windows desktop behind the Firefox window. On the left side of this band are the window tabs, and the menu bar, and another bar with the names of the open windows. I would like to have the Firefox window expand to fill the entire screen, like it did before the upgrade. Thanks.

Do you mean running Firefox in full screen mode?
*https://support.mozilla.org/kb/how-to-use-full-screen
If you are in full screen mode then you can hover the mouse to the top to make the Navigation Toolbar and Tab bar appear.<br />
You can click the Maximize button at the top right to leave full screen mode or right click empty space on a toolbar and use "Exit Full Screen Mode" or press F11.
*https://support.mozilla.org/kb/how-to-use-full-screen
You can also run Firefox in a maximized window to have easier access to the Menu bar and Navigation Toolbar.

How can I make my windows screen expand to fill in my 15" macbook pro?"

I have a 2009 macbook pro, and for one reason or another, I cannot get the windows to expand to fill the screen completely. I have hit zoom on the windows tab, and also zoom in on the view tab. I'm still getting used to the macbook and wondering what simple mistake I'm making?

I feel dragging to the bottom right corner doesnt satisfy our need of adjusting the window perfectly fit the screen, you need to fist expand the window and later move it to fit the screen..! Rather, there is an app called jiTouch where you can control all actions using just the hand gestures on yur trackpad., Its really cool, i use it...!
Try it...!
Have a look at this video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ctDglghmYc

Grouping Adjustment layer with Gradient Fill layer

Page 151 of "The Missing Manual" suggests that one should be able to group a Levels Adjustment layer with a Gradient Fill layer so that the levels adjustment fades out to one side.
If I understand this correctly, the setup would be:
Levels Adjustment Layer (grouped with layer below)
Gradient Fill layer (with a gradient from Opaque to Transparent)
Photo in Background layer
but I cannot get the desired effect of original picture on one side blending through to adjusted levels on the other.
I can get the desired effect if I dispense with the Gradient Fill layer and simply manually create the gradient on the mask of the Levels Adjustment layer but this loses the advantage of easy adjustment of the gradient.
[Thanks to those who answered my question about linking a mask to a layer. As this is a separate query, I thought it best to start a new topic]

Sanders1,
I thought I'd try it, myself, and got results that I did not expect...
http://www.pixentral.com/show.php?picture=1OVdT0C7oX46DsPm6TrfT5xxrm3h
1 - The background image.
2 - I created a Gradient Fill layer using color (red) to transparent.
3 - I created a Levels Adjustment layer, set to reduce red and green,
leaving a blue image.
4 - I grouped the Levels Adjustment layer with the Gradient Fill layer.
Is this the type of result you are seeing? I wonder what is the logic.
Byron

How can i use gradient tool in Illustrator

Hello,
I am trying to use gradient tool in illustrator.
My image is active but how can i start using gradient tool.
I clicked the tool and tried to drag with my mouse but, i can not activate the tool itself.
Can any one help me, I am using CS4 extended with Mac.
Thank you very much.
Steve

First in order to use the gradient tool you must have a gradient fill applied to an object not an raster image it can be a vector illustration..
Select the object or objects or groups of objects
Now click on the gradient bar in the Gradient Panel while the object(s) are still selected that will fill the object with the default gradient.
You can also use a gradient swatch in the Swatches panel, you can make a gradient swatch as well.
Now your object(s) is filled with the default gradient fill.
Now in the tool panel select the gradient tool this will allow you to control the way the gradient is oriented and applied to the object.
Now you can change the colors and add colors to you gradient by clicking on the color markers below the gradient bar which will bring up the color or swatches panels.
Now finally and this is the most important factor to consider you have to purchase a book and or tutorials and the book that will probably do you the most good at this stage is Mordy Golding's Real World Illustrator CS 4 this you shoud do before you go any further. Honest.

Re: Exporting Gradient Overlays w/ Transparency

I am currently using photoshop CS5,
I have a layer that is a vector mask over a solid color. The fill of the layer is black, so when i set it to screen it's transparent. I then have a gradient overlay effect applied to the layer that fades from a solid color to a transparency. There is no blending mode applied to the gradient overlay, so it shows up as normal. It looks exactly how i want it to look!
The problem is when i try to flatten this layer, or export this layer as a PNG. The black from the fill shows up where it's supposed to be transparent, even though it's not otherwise visible. If i try to delete the fill all together, and use use a transparent block to overlay my gradient, it won't work, as there is nothing for the gradient to overlay on. If i try to make the gradient using the gradient tool and then using the vector shape layer, it is imprecise, and i know of no way to control how the gradient is applied, other than guessing with the mouse. I have a bunch of these shapes that need to stack and use the exact same gradient alignment, and i need to be able to export them as png's. If i make them in illustrator and port them over to photoshop, there is still an issue with pixels smearing along the edges of my shapes.
Here's an example, the appropriate fading is on the top, but when i flatten or export i get the bottom:
I am using many more shapes some of which are more complicated, and i really want precise control over the gradients.
Thanks!

Jayohgal wrote:
Is there a way for me to put gradients into photoshop as precisely as i can with gradient overlay?
Try a Gradient Fill Layer.

Warning - gradient fill bug found

I have reported this bug to Adobe. Watch out so it won't bite you.
Short version: gradients can disappear completely when exporting to pdf
Long version:
A. Gradient fill with default settings. First color starts at 0% and second color ends at 100%.
Copy an object with this color to Illustrator or export it as a pdf file. This works fine.
B. Change the start color to 5% and the end color to 90% (anything other than 0/100 will trigger the bug)
Copy and paste an object with this gradient fill to Illustrator. Result: no fill color
Export object to PDF. Result: no fill color
C. Default gradient fill (0% to 100%) + add a third color = works fine
D. Same as C. but change the start and end colors as in B. Triggers the bug again
Bug verified in InDesign CS6 and CC on OS X 10.8.4
Bug verified by Adobe Support.

Hi everyone. I work for a large format printing company. We receive thousands of files every year from many different designers. We started to notice that gradients would drop out of some PDFs when opening them in Illustrator but they would preview fine when opened in Acrobat. I searched high and low for an explanation for this glitch. The only response I received is "Stop opening exported PDFs in Illustrator." This is an unsatisfactory answer for someone that needs to preflight directly in the Illustrator program. I've done a ton of research and have been racking my brain for the last 2 years and have finally found sufficient workarounds for this issue. The downfall with these workarounds: all spot colors located in the gradients will convert to CMYK mixes. I'm still researching to see if there is a way to keep spot colors intact in these areas.
A little back story: InDesign is converting the gradients into something called NChannel. It enables more accurate handling of color blending by including additional dot gain and color mixing info. Both InDesign and Acrobat have the ability to display these elements whereas Illustrator, from what I’m finding, does not. Which is why we’re seeing gradient elements drop out when opened in Illustrator.
Workaround for CMYK Gradients
Open PDF exported from INDD in Acrobat
Go to Tools > Print Production > Convert Colors
Object Type: Smooth Shade (this tells Acrobat to hone in on Gradients only)
Color Type: DeviceCMYK
Check Embed next to Conversion Profile (should be SWOP)
Expand Document Colors on the right and Select DeviceCMYK in Color Spaces then click ok
Save the PDF
Workaround for 1 Spot Color in Gradients (Converts Spot Color located in Gradient to CMYK – all other Spots stay intact)
Open PDF exported from INDD in Acrobat
Go to Tools > Print Production > Convert Colors
Object Type: Smooth Shade (this tells Acrobat to hone in on Gradients only)
Color Type: Spot Color
Check Embed next to Conversion Profile (should be SWOP)
Expand Document Colors on the right and Select the Spot that is located in the Gradient in Color Spaces then click ok
Save the PDF
Workaround for 2 Spot Colors in Gradients (Converts Spot Colors located in Gradient toCMYK – all other Spots stay intact)
Open PDF exported from INDD in Acrobat
Go to Tools > Print Production > Convert Colors
Object Type: Smooth Shade (this tells Acrobat to hone in on Gradients only)
Color Type: Spot Color
Check Embed next to Conversion Profile (should be SWOP)
Expand Document Colors on the right and Select the DeviceN spot color that is located in the Gradient in Color Spaces then click ok
Save the PDF
Please test it and let me know if you run into any issues with these workarounds. I'm always looking for new problems to solve!
- Jenny

Trying to make sense of AS2 gradient fill matrices

This one will likely interest kglad, but I'm all ears for
insight from
anyone who digs math.
I've been working with gradient fills lately in AS2, which
means I've
been reading through related entries in the ActionScript 2.0
Language
Reference. Here's a quick example right out of the docs
(slightly revised
to boil it down to the essentials). The Drawing API draws a
square and
fills it with a linear gradient that goes from red (upper
left) to blue
(lower right).
this.createEmptyMovieClip("gradient_mc",this.getNextHighestDepth());
with (gradient_mc) {
colors = [0xFF0000, 0x0000FF];
fillType = "linear";
alphas = [100, 100];
ratios = [0, 0xFF];
matrix = {matrixType:"box", x:100, y:100, w:200, h:200,
r:(45/180)*Math.PI};
beginGradientFill(fillType,colors,alphas,ratios,matrix);
moveTo(100,100);
lineTo(100,300);
lineTo(300,300);
lineTo(300,100);
lineTo(100,100);
endFill();
The point of interest, to me, is that generic Object
instance, matrix,
with properies x, y, w, h, r, and matrixType. The x and y are
for position
and correspond to the moveTo(100,100) call. The w and h
represent width and
height. The r is rotation in radians. The matrixType is
arbitrary (I
guess), because the same matrix can be used for a radial
gradient -- never
mind that for now.
The properties shown, arbitrary or not, are the ones
demonstrated in the
docs. That snippet does draw a 45deg red to blue gradient.
The docs recommend a slightly different approach for Flash
Payer 8 and
higher; namely, the native Matrix class. Everything in the
above sample
remains except that the existing matrix line changes to these
two lines:
matrix = new Matrix();
matrix.createGradientBox(200, 200, (45/180)*Math.PI, 100,
100);
Pretty obvious to see where they overlap. The matrixType
property is
gone, but hey ... everything works, so I'm not going to go
looking for
trouble.
Here's the punch line. The docs *also* show an alternative
Object
approach, one in which the properties describe a 3x3 matrix
whose properties
are a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, and i. After toying with this
a-through-i
example, I noticed a pattern in the values: c, f, and i are
0, 0, and 1
respectively. That seems to correspond to the conventional
graphics matrix
a b u
c d v
tx ty w
... where u, v, and x are 0, 0, and 1. Seems fairly clear
that tx and ty
would correspond to x and y. After tracing the properties of
the matrix
variable (after the createGradientBox() call) it seemed
reasonable to me to
make the following mapping:
a:a b:b c:0
d:c e:d f:0
g:tx g:ty i:1
... which led me to replace the original matrix declaration
with this (back
to a single line):
matrix = {
a:0.086316745750311,
b:0.086316745750311,
c:0,
d:-0.086316745750311,
e:0.086316745750311,
f:0,
g:200,
h:200,
i:1
Those values, by the way, come from my tracing the
properties of this
matrix.createGradientBox(200, 200, (45/180)*Math.PI, 100,
100);
The weird part is, that still gives a 45deg angled gradient,
but it's
super-heavily banded. Not really a gradient at all, but more
like four
colored stripes -- red, blue, red, blue -- from upper left to
lower right.
Can anyone explain to me why?
David Stiller
Adobe Community Expert
Dev blog,
http://www.quip.net/blog/
"Luck is the residue of good design."

GWD,
> I couldn't leave it alone. I came back to it.
Ha! I know that feeling. :)
> matrix = { a:200, b:-100, c:0, d:-100, e:200, f:0,
g:200, h:200, i:1 };
>
> gets close, but its still not quite right. I think the
difference here is
> that skew is expressed differently.
That makes sense. And yes, that comes pretty close.
> I found a better explanation here:
>
http://www.flashdevils.com/tutorials.php?id=142
Thanks, GWD! That helps a lot.
> [I would be inclined to use the other approaches if I
could get
> away with it.]
Yeah, I definitely agree. I find it odd that the docs even
mention it,
but since they do, I found myself elbow deep in wondering
why. Thanks for
input!
David Stiller
Adobe Community Expert
Dev blog,
http://www.quip.net/blog/
"Luck is the residue of good design."

Gradient filled background is not showing up in Internet Explorer on a PC.

My gradient filled background is not showing up in Internet Explorer on a PC.
I'm working on a MAC, so I don't know of anyway to preview a new MUSE Site in I.E. since it's no longer supported on a Mac.
When the Home Page is viewed, my blue sky gradient background shows up as a white box?? I need a fix for this please.
Here is my url: www.ThanksSanta.org

Hello,
We might have to look into your .muse file to have a better look into the issue.
I tried it on a sample file but it worked fine for me.
Could you please e-mail your .muse file on [email protected] You can use Adobe SendNow service (https://sendnow.acrobat.com/) to send your file in case it is larger than 20MB.
Please do not forget to mention the link to this forum in your e-mail.
Regards,
Sachin

Bubble chart gradient fill in obiee 11g

when see the bubble chart in obiee 11g
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how i can apply gradient style to bubble chart.
bethamsetty

If you mean a colour gradient in the background try:
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This makes the graph look 3D but also adds a colour gradient to the background.
If this is not what you are after please supply more details of your requirement.
Please mark as helpful/answered

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I have button drawing for web in Adobe Illustrator format. I'm trying to get fill settings to create the same look with CSS. I can't find what color to use and gradient settings.

Eugene,
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Why can't I see the layers of cs4 .psd files passed to me in photoshop elements 11?

why can't I see the layers from cs4 .psd files passed to me in photoshop elements 11?

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Firefox is expanding to fill entire screen, no access to controls

There is something wonky going on. After I launch firefox which I have done for years, today its started automatically expanding to fill whole screen, no access to any controls, etc.
I did try to install software no such luck.
See attached screenshot -hmm how do I attach a screenshot.... well if I did you would JUST see the browser filling entire area of my screen (and no making it larger or smaller with mac controls does nothings)
you see the top bar for a SPLIT second then it moves up and all you get is this big screen.
Thanks - mac here 10. 6.08

Make sure that you do not run Firefox in full screen mode (press F11 or Fn + F11 to toggle; Mac: Command+Shift+F).
*https://support.mozilla.org/kb/how-to-use-full-screen
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Go to "~/Library/Preferences" and remove the plist file for Firefox (org.mozilla.firefox.plist)
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Can't expand gradient fill w/ transparency? (cs4)

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