After you finish creating your document in Illustrator, you can save or export your artwork in another file format for use in other programs. There are five file formats to which you can save your artwork, which include AI (Adobe Illustrator), Adobe PDF (Portable Document Format), EPS (Encapsulated PostScript), FXG (Adobe Flex), and SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics). These file format are native to Illustrator, which means they preserve Illustrator content, including multiple artboards, when you re-open them.
If you want to save your artwork in another file format, you need to export it. Illustrator allows you to export your artwork in 13 different file formats, including Flash, Photoshop, Bitmap, JPEG, and PNG. When you export from Illustrator, your content is altered using the Options dialog box for the specific file format. If you want to use an Illustrator document in a Microsoft Office program, you need to save the document as a PNG (Portable Network Graphics) image with the Save for Microsoft Office command.
If you frequently create the same kind of document, then you should create a template. A template is a special document that makes it easier to reuse frequently used material in order to create a new document. An Illustrator Template file uses the (AIT) file format instead of the normal (AI) document file format.
After you finish creating your document in Illustrator, you can export it for use in other programs. If you have a document with text, you can export it to a text document, which you can open in a word processing program. If you have a document with artwork, you can export it as a PSD file (for use in Photoshop) or a JPEG file (for use on the web). See the list on the next page for more information about all the file formats. If you have multiple artboards in a document, many file formats preserve them or create multiple page documents during export (New!).
Click the File menu, and then click Export.
Enter a name for the file in the File Name (Win) or Save As (Mac) box.
Click the Format popup (Mac) or Save as Type list arrow (Win), and then select a file format.
See the list on the next page for more information about all the file formats.
Navigate to the drive or folder location where you want to save the document.
To preserve artboards, select the Use Artboards check box (if available), and then select the All or Range option. If you selected the Range option, enter a range.
Click Save.
For some formats, an Options dialog box appears, prompting you for additional settings.
If prompted, specify the options that you want, and then click OK.
For help, point to an option to display a description at the bottom of the Options dialog box.
A bitmap document (BMP) is a raster image, which means it’s made up of individual pixels. Since an Illustrator document is made up of vector data, the artwork in the document is converted from mathematical calculations to individual pixels. During the export process, you can specify a color mode for the pixels, resolution size (the number of pixels per inch), and whether you want to smooth out the edges with Anti-Alias.
Click the File menu, and then click Export.
Enter a name for the file in the File Name (Win) or Save As (Mac) box.
Click the Format popup (Mac) or Save as Type list arrow (Win), and then click BMP (*.BMP).
Navigate to the drive or folder location where you want to save the document.
Click Save.
Click the Color Mode list arrow, and then select a color mode: RGB, Grayscale, or Bitmap.
Select one of the resolution options.
Select the Anti-Alias check box to smooth out the edges of the image.
Click OK.
TIFF (Tagged-Image File Format) files can be opened by almost any image-editing or layout program. TIFF is a common format for printing and saving flattened images without losing quality. During the export process, you can specify a color mode for the pixels, resolution size (the number of pixels per inch), and whether you want to smooth out the edges with the Anti-Alias option, compress the image with the LZW compression method, and embed the color profile in the image. If you have multiple artboards in a document, these are preserved (New!).
Click the File menu, and then click Export.
Enter a name for the file in the File Name (Win) or Save As (Mac) box.
Click the Format popup (Mac) or Save as Type list arrow (Win), and then click TIFF (*.TIF).
Navigate to the drive or folder location where you want to save the document.
To preserve artboards, select the Use Artboards check box (if available), and then select the All or Range option. If you selected the Range option, enter a range.
Click Save.
Click the Color Mode list arrow, and then select a color mode: RGB, CMYK, or Grayscale..
Select one of the resolution options.
Specify the following options:
Anti-Alias. Select to smooth out the edges of the image.
LZW Compression. Select to compress the image.
Byte Order. Select a destination operating system for the image.
Embed ICC Profile. Select to attach the color profile of the document to the image.
Click OK.
Adobe Photoshop is a graphics and image editing program. When you export artwork to Photoshop, Illustrator converts objects into pixels and preserves layers and transparency. Other conversions include removing strokes and effects from text and changing opacity masks to layer masks. During the export process, you can specify a color mode for the pixels, resolution size (the number of pixels per inch), and whether you want to flatten or preserve layers, smooth out the edges with the Anti-Alias option, and embed the color profile in the image. In addition to exporting, you can also copy and paste objects into Photoshop, which automatically creates Smart Objects that you can re-edit in Illustrator.
Click the File menu, and then click Export.
Enter a name for the file in the File Name (Win) or Save As (Mac) box.
Click the Format popup (Mac) or Save as Type list arrow (Win), and then click Photoshop (*.PSD).
Navigate to the drive or folder location where you want to save the document.
Click Save.
Click the Color Mode list arrow, and then select a color mode: RGB, CMYK or Grayscale.
Select one of the resolution options.
Specify the following options:
Flat Image. Select to flatten image as one layer.
Write Layers. Select to preserve layers and maximum editability for objects and text.
Anti-Alias. Select to smooth out the edges of the image.
Embed ICC Profile. Select to attach the color profile of the document to the image.
Click OK.
If you frequently use custom settings to export an Illustrator document to an Adobe PDF or Flash SWF file, you can save time by creating a preset. Adobe Creative Suite programs, including Illustrator, InDesign, Photoshop, and Acrobat, provide built-in presets that you can use in any of the programs. When you create your own preset, you can also use it in other CS programs. The process for creating a preset for an Adobe PDF or Flash SWF is similar; just the settings are different.
Click the Edit menu, and then click Adobe PDF Presets or SWF Presets.
Perform any of the following:
New. Click New, specify the options that you want, and then click OK.
Edit. Select a custom preset (not a predefined one), click Edit, change the options, and then click OK.
Delete. Select a custom preset (not a predefined one), and then click Delete.
Import. Click Import, navigate to the preset file, select it, and then click Open.
Export. Select a preset, click Export, specify a location and name, and then click Save.
For PDF files, the preset is saved with the .joboptions extension.
Click OK.
IL 8.3
Adobe Flash is a vector-based animation and interactivity program. If you want to use individual Illustrator objects in Flash, you can simply copy and paste them directly into a Flash movie document (FLA). However, if you want to create a Flash movie (SWF) that you can use on a web page and display using Flash Player, you should use the Export command. The Export command gives you options to specify how you want to create a SWF movie. If you have multiple artboards in a document, these are preserved in the SWF file format (New!).
Click the File menu, and then click Export.
Enter a name for the file in the File Name (Win) or Save As (Mac) box.
Click the Format popup (Mac) or Save as Type list arrow (Win), and then click Flash (*.SWF).
Navigate to the drive or folder location where you want to save the document.
To preserve artboards, select the Use Artboards check box, and then select the All or Range option. If you selected the Range option, enter a range.
Click Save.
Click the Preset list arrow, and then select a preset option, or specify your own options to create a custom preset.
To create a preset that you can use later, set your options, click Save Preset, enter a name, and then click OK.
Click the Export As list arrow, and then select an export method.
Click the Version list arrow, and then select a target Flash Player version.
Specify the following options:
Clip to Artboard Size. Select to export only objects within an artboard.
Preserve Appearance. Select to flatten artwork to a single layer.
Compress File. Select to compress the SWF file.
Include Unused Symbols. Select to export all defined symbols.
Export Text as Outlines. Select to convert type to vector paths.
Ignore Kerning Information for Text. Select to export text without kerning.
Include Metadata. Select to export metadata with the file.
Protect from Import. Select to prevent changes to the SWF.
Password. Select to protect the file with a password.
Curve Quality. Select a number for Bezier curve accuracy. The higher the number, the more accurate.
Background. Specify a background color for the file.
Local Playback Security. Specify whether you want to access only local file or network files.
To set image compression and quality or animation frame rates and layer order options, click Advanced.
Click OK.
IL 9.6
If a co-worker or client doesn’t have Illustrator, you can create an Adobe PDF of a document for them to review your work. Adobe PDF (Portable Document Format) is a useful file format for document sharing, viewing, and proofing with Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is free for download on the web at www.adobe.com. If recipients of the file have Adobe Acrobat, they can add comments to an Adobe PDF. If you have multiple artboards in a document, these are preserved in the Adobe PDF file format (New !).
Click the File menu, and then click Save As.
Enter a name for the file in the File Name (Win) or Save As (Mac) box.
Click the Format popup (Mac) or Save as Type list arrow (Win), and then click Adobe PDF (*.PDF).
Navigate to the drive or folder location where you want to save the document.
Select the All or Range option to create individual pages for each artboard. If you selected the Range option, enter a range.
Click Save.
Click the Adobe PDF Preset list arrow, and then select a preset option, or specify your own options to create a custom preset.
To create a preset that you can use later, set your options, click Save Preset, enter a name, and then click OK.
Select a category (General, Compression, etc.) from the list to display options.
Specify the options for the category that you want.
To reset options to defaults, hold down Alt (Win) or Option (Mac), and then click Reset.
Click Save PDF.
Follow steps 1 through 6 on the previous page.
Click the Adobe PDF Preset list arrow, and then select one of the following presets:
Illustrator Default. Creates PDFs that preserve all Illustrator content, which can be reopened in Illustrator, InDesign, or QuarkXPress.
High Quality Print. Creates PDFs for quality printing on desktop printers and proofing devices.
PDF/X-1a: 2001/2003. Creates PDFs that meet printing standards for Acrobat Reader 4.0 or later. Useful for a CMYK workflow.
PDF/X-3: 2002/2003. Creates PDFs that meet printing standards for Acrobat Reader 7.0 or later. Useful for a color-managed workflow.
PDF/X-4. Creates PDFs that meet printing standards for Acrobat Reader 7.0 or later. Useful for a color-managed workflow with added support for preserving transparency.
Press Quality. Creates PDFs for high quality print production (digital printing or separations).
Smallest File Size. Creates compressed PDFs for use on the Web or e-mail distribution.
Click OK.
EPS (Encapsulated PostScript) is a commonly used file format that you can import into graphics, word processing, and page layout programs. An EPS file can contain vector and bitmap graphics, so it makes the format more versatile for use in other programs. EPS does a good job of preserving graphic objects in an Illustrator document. If you have multiple artboards in a document, these are preserved in the EPS file format (New!).
Click the File menu, and then click Save As.
Enter a name for the file in the File Name (Win) or Save As (Mac) box.
Click the Format popup (Mac) or Save as Type list arrow (Win), and then click Illustrator EPS (*.EPS).
Navigate to the drive or folder location where you want to save the document.
To preserve artboards, select the Use Artboards check box, and then select the All or Range option. If you selected the Range option, enter a range.
Click Save.
Click the Version list arrow, and then select an Illustrator EPS version.
To create an image preview for Open dialog boxes, click the Format list arrow, select a format, and then select the Transparent or Opaque option.
If the artwork contains transparent objects and overprints, specify the options you want.
Select the Embed Fonts (for other applications) check box to attach fonts used in the document to the image file, so they will be available in other programs.
Specify the following options:
Include Linked Files. Select to embed linked files in artwork.
Include Document Thumbnails. Select to create a thumbnail image of the artwork.
Include CMYK PostScript in RGB Files. Select to allow the use of RGB output when it’s not supported in a program.
Compatible Gradient and Gradient Mesh Printing. Select to allow older printers and PostScript devices to print gradients and gradient meshes by converting them to JPEG.
Use Printer’s Default Screen. Select to use a printer’s default settings.
Adobe PostScript. Select a PostScript level to save with the image. PostScript Language Level 2 is widely used. If you want to work with mesh objects, use Level 3.
Click OK.
FXG (Flash XML Graphics) is a file format based on a subset of MXML, the XML-based programming language used by Adobe Flex, which you can use to build rich Internet applications. Illustrator allows you to save your artwork in the FXG file format (New!). When you save a document for use in Adobe Flex, the FXG Options dialog box appears, where you can specify the save options you want. If you have multiple artboards in a document, these are preserved in the FXG file format (New!).
Click the File menu, and then click Save As.
Enter a name for the file in the File Name (Win) or Save As (Mac) box.
Click the Format popup (Mac) or Save as Type list arrow (Win), and then click FXG (*.FXG).
Navigate to the drive or folder location where you want to save the document.
To preserve artboards, select the Use Artboards check box, and then select the All or Range option. If you selected the Range option, enter a range.
Click Save.
Specify the options that you want.
For help, point to an option to display a description at the bottom of the Options dialog box.
Click Show Preview to see a preview of your artwork in FXG.
Click Show Code to see the resulting code for your artwork in your browser.
Click OK.
The Illustrator format (AI) is not compatible with Microsoft Office programs. If you want to use an Illustrator document in a Microsoft Office program, you need to save the document as a PNG (Portable Network Graphics) image. This format makes transparent areas opaque. In a Microsoft Office program, you can insert the PNG image file by using the Insert Picture command. To save a document as a PNG image, you use the Save for Microsoft Office command on the File menu.
IL 1.2
If you find yourself frequently creating the same kind of document, then you should create a template. A template is a special document that makes it easier to reuse frequently used material in order. An Illustrator Template file uses the (AIT) file format instead of the normal (AI) document file format. When you create a new document from a template, a new document appears with the filename “Untitled”, so you don’t mistakenly make and save changes over the template file.
Open a new or existing document.
Create a custom document.
Click the File menu, and then click Save As Template.
The Templates folder appears, displaying different types of templates available for Illustrator.
Type a name for the new template.
Click the Files of Type (Win) or Enable (Mac) list arrow, and then click Illustrator Template (*.AIT), if necessary.
Navigate to a different location if you want to save your custom templates in a folder other than the Illustrator Templates folder.
Click Save.
