Section 61. Bringing Illustrator Artwork into Photoshop

#61. Bringing Illustrator Artwork into Photoshop

The tight integration that exists between Illustrator and Photoshop makes it possible to bring your Illustrator artwork over to Photoshop and continue to work with it. You have a few different options available to you with each offering and varying degrees of continued edibility of your artwork. Although some of these options have been mentioned in earlier techniques, it makes sense to cover all the bases in one place.

Placing Illustrator Files

With the advent of Smart Objects in Photoshop CS2, Illustrator files placed into Photoshop (File > Place) are automatically converted into a Smart Object layer (see #25). This is smart (sorry) since you can then freely resize the placed file without having to worry about the rasterized image degrading. Placing your Illustrator file makes sense when you have an elaborate piece of artwork you'd like to continue to edit as a standalone file in Illustrator. Double-click the Smart Object layer thumbnail of the placed file to edit it in Illustrator. Once you save your edits, the Photoshop file automatically updates.

Pasting artwork

Pasting Illustrator artwork into Photoshop is best suited for times when you want to transport bits of simple artwork and continue to edit them. When you paste artwork into Photoshop, the Paste dialog asks you which format you'd like the artwork to be pasted as: Smart Object, Pixels, Path, or Shape Layer (Figure 61a).

Figure 61a. The Paste dialog in Photoshop CS2 presents you with four options to choose from for how your artwork comes in.

Here's a brief explanation of the results of each option:

• Smart Object: Selecting Smart Object embeds the artwork within the Photoshop file as a Smart Object layer. You can continue to edit the embedded artwork in Illustrator by double-clicking the Smart Object layer thumbnail. When you save and close the artwork, the Smart Object is updated in Photoshop. Note that pasting artwork as a Smart Object breaks its association to the original Illustrator file you created it in. Consider placing the file instead of pasting it if you'd like to maintain this link.

• Pixels: Pasting as pixels is the most clear-cut and probably the most limiting of the set of options. Your vector artwork is rasterized and inserted as a normal layer into Photoshop. If you resize the artwork afterwards, the rasterized image starts to degrade.

• Path: Selecting Path pastes your artwork as a path that can then be selected via the Paths palette and edited with the Pen and Direct Selection tools.

• Shape Layer: Pasting as a Shape Layer results in your artwork coming over as a single shape layer (see #24). Photoshop will even leave your compound shapes intact (see #34). Pasting as a shape layer is ideal when you want to continue to edit your artwork as vector artwork in Photoshop using its tools.

Exporting as a Photoshop file

If you'd like to bring your entire Illustrator file into Photoshop while keeping elements such as layers, transparency settings, and editable text intact, consider exporting it as a Photoshop file. With your Illustrator file open, choose File > Export in Illustrator and then select Photoshop (.psd) from the Format menu. Decide on a name and location for the exported file and then click the Export button. You will be prompted with the Photoshop Export Options dialog (Figure 61b). In this dialog, determine the color mode and resolution you want to save the Photoshop file as and keep the Write Layers option selected along with its editability suboptions. Click OK to export your Illustrator file. Open the exported file and notice that all your layers and blending modes are just as they were in Illustrator. You can even edit text since it comes over as type layers. How's that for integration?

Figure 61b. The Photoshop Export Options dialog in Illustrator CS2 is your one-stop shop to get your artwork into Photoshop with layers, text, and other attributes intact.