Illustrator: How to make torn paper look?

**Eclipse2003** · 03-06-2007, 04:35 PM

My cousin is working on redesigning a business card for a company. The business card they have now has a picture on the left side and then the right edge of the picture looks as if the picture was torn and then to the right of that is just plain white with their logo, name, contact info. Can anyone point me in the right direction to get this torn look? I'll attach a proof here for you to see. Not only do I need the shadow and jagged look, I'd like to have the little tear marks that make it really look like a tear. Thanks guys.

Inactive · 03-07-2007, 02:05 AM

tutorial on page tear

**Eclipse2003** · 03-07-2007, 05:41 AM

Will that work for Adobe Illustrator as well?

ebackhus · 03-07-2007, 10:08 AM

The tutorial was designed around tools available in PhotoShop. I've used Illustrator a bit, but I can't say with certianty that it can be applied in there as well.

v-six · 03-07-2007, 11:25 PM

what you're asking for is image editing, not necessarily vector art. Is there a reason that you'd prefer to do this in illustrator?

**Eclipse2003** · 03-08-2007, 06:26 AM

Only reason being these business cards are going to print and we've heard that text in Photoshop doesn't turn out as well as text in Illustrator. What do you think? Or is there a way that we can do the image editing in Photoshop and the text in Illustrator?

ebackhus · 03-08-2007, 08:19 AM

At high DPI (150+) you can create great images directly from PhotoShop that do well when printed. For better quality you want at least 300dpi.

**Eclipse2003** · 03-08-2007, 08:24 AM

What about text? I heard text is sort of pixelated if done in Photoshop. If that is the case, can we create the image in Photoshop and the text in Illustrator?

**koala** · 03-08-2007, 09:46 AM

Photoshop is used for all sorts of things, from business cards to magazines and billboard advertisements, and can handle text at any size without pixellation. Use a good quality font designed to be used for printing rather than a Windows font designed for the monitor and you'll have no problems.

For business cards, do some test prints at 100, 200 and 300dpi and see if you can tell the difference, and try a few different serif and sans-serif fonts to see which are more legible printed at a small size.

**Eclipse2003** · 03-08-2007, 11:09 AM

How do you know if its a Windows font or not? Just see if the font is listed in Word and such?

v-six · 03-08-2007, 11:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Eclipse2003

What about text? I heard text is sort of pixelated if done in Photoshop. If that is the case, can we create the image in Photoshop and the text in Illustrator?

yes.

Create the image in photoshop, bring it into illustrator, and typeset it there. If this is for print, be sure you're editing the image in photoshop at 300 pdi, not the default screen dpi (72). You may not be able to tell the difference, but some grumpy old soul with good eyes will.

Basically, what Koala was saying about the font is not to use a font made for use on the internet or in a word processor. Open up word, type something in Times. Then go into illustrator and choose something designer for opentype (it will have a 'pro' extension). Note the difference, and put Times in the closet with the other skeletons.

**Eclipse2003** · 03-08-2007, 12:47 PM

Ok so basically only used fonts that have a Pro Extension like Trajan Pro or something. Don't use anything without a Pro extension? Correct?

**koala** · 03-08-2007, 12:50 PM

You can experiment with printouts using different fonts and dpi, but generally the pro fonts look better in print and can be resized without pixellation.

**Eclipse2003** · 03-08-2007, 12:52 PM

Ok great. Thanks for the help.

v-six · 03-08-2007, 11:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Eclipse2003

Ok so basically only used fonts that have a Pro Extension like Trajan Pro or something. Don't use anything without a Pro extension? Correct?

You aren't limited to fonts with a 'Pro' extension. I just recommeneded that you compare one of them to what you see in the typical windows font. Pro fonts simply imply that the font has opentype features, and in your case would only be fonts from Adobe, which are fine for print.

If you have any questions/concerns about whether a font is a good choice for print, ask away.

Inactive · 03-09-2007, 04:45 AM

forgive my blind ignorance, but i have mainly TTF fonts installed, some are listed as open type and some true type. whats the difference? there are also some .FON extensions, but they look like sprites. remember the olden days with the 8-bit computers.

**Eclipse2003** · 03-09-2007, 06:45 AM

Ok another question. We decided to go the route of editing the image in Photoshop and then using Illustrator to put the text in. Problem we are having is when we save as .pdf in Illustrator and then open that file in Photoshop to check the resolution, it saves it as 72 dpi. Any clue why its doing this or how to fix that? How do you save as a .jpg in Illustrator?

Inactive · 03-09-2007, 07:02 AM

what is more important is the size the image is in pixels. lets say you create an image 1500X1200 pixels. that is it's size and then it comes down to the printers resolution. so if the printer prints at 300 dpi, then the image size will be 5"x4". if the printer prints at 150dpi then the image will be 10"x8".

you can get photoshop to work this out for you when you are creating a new image by using this dialogue

you can specify the size it needs to be printed at and the resolution and it will create the number of pixels you need.

**Eclipse2003** · 03-09-2007, 07:21 AM

See thats the thing. In Photoshop we created it at 300 dpi at 2.25 x 3.75 (business card with 1/8" bleed on each side). But when we placed the .psd file in Illustrator and then added text and saved as a pdf. It becomes 72 dpi. If we go back to Photoshop and force it to 300 dpi it won't change it right? Also, how would you save these as .jpgs?

Inactive · 03-09-2007, 07:32 AM

click on image>image size...
on the top of that dialogue it should be 675x1125 pixels. (2.25x3.75 @300dpi) if it is not then something has altered it.

to save a file as a jpg in photoshop is just file>save as>. in illustrator i'd imagine you'd need to export it some way.

but are you working in photoshop or illustrator?, because i don't use illustrator so i cannot advice you on that.

03-07-2007, 02:05 AM	#2 (permalink)
Inactive Registered User Join Date: Apr 2005 Posts: 1,704 OS: ~	tutorial on page tear __________________ "it takes two to lie, one to lie and one to listen" Homer

03-07-2007, 10:08 AM	#4 (permalink)
ebackhus Manager, Design Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: SATX Posts: 14,303 OS: WinXP Pro SP3/Windows 7 RTM My System Blog Entries: 28	The tutorial was designed around tools available in PhotoShop. I've used Illustrator a bit, but I can't say with certianty that it can be applied in there as well. __________________ ----------------------------- There are no dumb questions, unless a customer is asking them. Help in the fight against cancer and other serious illnesses.

03-07-2007, 11:25 PM	#5 (permalink)
v-six Manager Emeritus Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Gardiner, NY Posts: 2,076 OS: OS X for mac, XP Pro for PC	what you're asking for is image editing, not necessarily vector art. Is there a reason that you'd prefer to do this in illustrator? __________________ mysql> --i-am-a-dummy

03-08-2007, 08:19 AM	#7 (permalink)
ebackhus Manager, Design Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: SATX Posts: 14,303 OS: WinXP Pro SP3/Windows 7 RTM My System Blog Entries: 28	At high DPI (150+) you can create great images directly from PhotoShop that do well when printed. For better quality you want at least 300dpi. __________________ ----------------------------- There are no dumb questions, unless a customer is asking them. Help in the fight against cancer and other serious illnesses.

03-08-2007, 09:46 AM	#9 (permalink)
koala Moderator Hardware Team Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: UK Posts: 12,394 OS: XP/7/Ubuntu My System	Photoshop is used for all sorts of things, from business cards to magazines and billboard advertisements, and can handle text at any size without pixellation. Use a good quality font designed to be used for printing rather than a Windows font designed for the monitor and you'll have no problems. For business cards, do some test prints at 100, 200 and 300dpi and see if you can tell the difference, and try a few different serif and sans-serif fonts to see which are more legible printed at a small size. __________________ New members: Subscribe to your thread (Thread Tools) to receive an instant email notification when you get a reply. TSF Folding@Home Team 85015 - details here

03-07-2007, 05:41 AM	#3 (permalink)
Eclipse2003 TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Ohio Posts: 1,156 OS: XP	Will that work for Adobe Illustrator as well?

03-08-2007, 06:26 AM	#6 (permalink)
Eclipse2003 TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Ohio Posts: 1,156 OS: XP	Only reason being these business cards are going to print and we've heard that text in Photoshop doesn't turn out as well as text in Illustrator. What do you think? Or is there a way that we can do the image editing in Photoshop and the text in Illustrator?

03-08-2007, 08:24 AM	#8 (permalink)
Eclipse2003 TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Ohio Posts: 1,156 OS: XP	What about text? I heard text is sort of pixelated if done in Photoshop. If that is the case, can we create the image in Photoshop and the text in Illustrator?

03-08-2007, 11:09 AM	#10 (permalink)
Eclipse2003 TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Ohio Posts: 1,156 OS: XP	How do you know if its a Windows font or not? Just see if the font is listed in Word and such?

03-08-2007, 12:47 PM	#12 (permalink)
Eclipse2003 TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Ohio Posts: 1,156 OS: XP	Ok so basically only used fonts that have a Pro Extension like Trajan Pro or something. Don't use anything without a Pro extension? Correct?

03-08-2007, 12:50 PM	#13 (permalink)
koala Moderator Hardware Team Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: UK Posts: 12,394 OS: XP/7/Ubuntu My System	You can experiment with printouts using different fonts and dpi, but generally the pro fonts look better in print and can be resized without pixellation. __________________ New members: Subscribe to your thread (Thread Tools) to receive an instant email notification when you get a reply. TSF Folding@Home Team 85015 - details here

03-08-2007, 12:52 PM	#14 (permalink)
Eclipse2003 TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Ohio Posts: 1,156 OS: XP	Ok great. Thanks for the help.

03-09-2007, 04:45 AM	#16 (permalink)
Inactive Registered User Join Date: Apr 2005 Posts: 1,704 OS: ~	forgive my blind ignorance, but i have mainly TTF fonts installed, some are listed as open type and some true type. whats the difference? there are also some .FON extensions, but they look like sprites. remember the olden days with the 8-bit computers. __________________ "it takes two to lie, one to lie and one to listen" Homer

03-09-2007, 06:45 AM	#17 (permalink)
Eclipse2003 TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Ohio Posts: 1,156 OS: XP	Ok another question. We decided to go the route of editing the image in Photoshop and then using Illustrator to put the text in. Problem we are having is when we save as .pdf in Illustrator and then open that file in Photoshop to check the resolution, it saves it as 72 dpi. Any clue why its doing this or how to fix that? How do you save as a .jpg in Illustrator?

03-09-2007, 07:02 AM	#18 (permalink)
Inactive Registered User Join Date: Apr 2005 Posts: 1,704 OS: ~	what is more important is the size the image is in pixels. lets say you create an image 1500X1200 pixels. that is it's size and then it comes down to the printers resolution. so if the printer prints at 300 dpi, then the image size will be 5"x4". if the printer prints at 150dpi then the image will be 10"x8". you can get photoshop to work this out for you when you are creating a new image by using this dialogue you can specify the size it needs to be printed at and the resolution and it will create the number of pixels you need. __________________ "it takes two to lie, one to lie and one to listen" Homer

03-09-2007, 07:21 AM	#19 (permalink)
Eclipse2003 TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Ohio Posts: 1,156 OS: XP	See thats the thing. In Photoshop we created it at 300 dpi at 2.25 x 3.75 (business card with 1/8" bleed on each side). But when we placed the .psd file in Illustrator and then added text and saved as a pdf. It becomes 72 dpi. If we go back to Photoshop and force it to 300 dpi it won't change it right? Also, how would you save these as .jpgs?

03-09-2007, 07:32 AM	#20 (permalink)
Inactive Registered User Join Date: Apr 2005 Posts: 1,704 OS: ~	click on image>image size... on the top of that dialogue it should be 675x1125 pixels. (2.25x3.75 @300dpi) if it is not then something has altered it. to save a file as a jpg in photoshop is just file>save as>. in illustrator i'd imagine you'd need to export it some way. but are you working in photoshop or illustrator?, because i don't use illustrator so i cannot advice you on that. __________________ "it takes two to lie, one to lie and one to listen" Homer Last edited by Inactive; 03-09-2007 at 07:33 AM. Reason: additional