Vectordiary

Learn Illustrator CS3 in 30 Days

By Tony Soh Posted on July 14th, 2008

This 30 days Illustrator crash course is created for beginners interested in learning Illustrator. Each lesson will take around 20 mins to complete and you will be able to learn the basic fundamental techniques before the 30 days trial ends.

In this crash course, I will not be drilling down in details how each feature works. However, I will be covering all the essential tools that are commonly used so that you can get started and have a feel of how illustrator works. At the 30 days you will be able to and draw your illustrations, design your own logos and create special effects!

Remember to subscribe to my RSS feeds for new upcoming tutorials and tips. For more illustrator training resources, read my list of recommended illustrator books & videos or join as a premium member to read exclusive tutorials and tips

1st Week
Day 1: What is Illustrator
Day 2: Getting Started in Illustrator
Day 3: Drawing Basic Shapes
Day 4: Drawing with Pencil Tool
Day 5: Drawing with Pen Tool
Day 6: Weekend Break
Day 7: Weekend Break

2nd Week
Day 8: Using Brushes
Day 9: Creating Compound Paths
Day 10: Working with Color and Strokes
Day 11: Editing Objects, Layers & Groups
Day 12: Transparency & Graphic Styles
Day 13: Weekend Break
Day 14: Weekend Break

3rd Week
Day 15: Transforming & Moving Objects
Day 16: Basic Text
Day 17: Blending Shapes & Colors
Day 18: Photorealism with Gradient Mesh
Day 19: Using the Symbol Tools
Day 20: Weekend Break
Day 21: Weekend Break

Last Week
Day 22: Creating Special Effects
Day 23: Applying 3D Extrude & Bevel
Day 24: Distort using Warp Effects
Day 25: Applying Live Paint
Day 26: Masking using Clipping Path/ Opacity Mask
Day 27: Weekend Break
Day 28: Weekend Break
Day 29: Saving & Printing
Day 30: Final Project – Designing a Logo

If you have enjoyed using Illustrator, you can purchase the latest Adobe Illustrator CS4 at great savings at ecost software.

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About The Author: admin

Hi. I'm the founder of Vector Diary. Illustrator is my passion and I have written numerous tutorials on illustrator helping people learn illustrator. My most popular tutorial on learning illustrator in 30 days has been a hit. It makes learning illustrator so easy and has benefited more than 20,000 people worldwide. Also, I've revealed some of my secret techniques in the premium tutorials. So don't forget to check it out!

Read all articles writen by this author

• Day 24: Distort using Warp Effects
• 30 Best Illustrator Tutorials & Articles of 2008
• Day 5: Drawing with Pen Tool
• Day 2: Getting Started in Illustrator
• 13 Amazing Gradient Mesh Tutorials

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+Add Comment80 Comments

1. 
   LadyAngora July 14th, 2008

   i think this is awesome that you are going to do this!!! (can i hope that you will do one for photoshop cs3 too??) can’t wait to learn along with these!

2. 
   Alex July 14th, 2008

   this is just what I need as i am just about to add illustrator to my adobe knowledge.
   will be checking back over the next 30 days looking forward to it.
   FYI – the link for day 1 is missing an h
   (ttp://)
   Cheers!
   Alex

3. 
   iStockdiary July 15th, 2008

   Hi Ladyangora, I will see the response for this tutorial is before I decide whether I will write one for photoshop CS3. Thanks for your suggestions.

   Hi Alex, Thanks for the link fix! =)

4. 
   Muurtegel July 15th, 2008

   Wow REALLY AWESOME! And what a coincidence that i stumbled upon this on the first day! I can’t wait to follow this whole project by every inch!

   Tnx!

5. 
   Michelle July 16th, 2008

   hey this is cool!
   i’ve just installed illustrator a few days ago and i was looking for something like this

   thanks!

6. 
   Eli July 16th, 2008

   Now, this sounds like a brilliant idea to me (especially since I want to learn Illustrator more), but you had better make sure you follow through with all of the tutorials

7. 
   Alex D July 18th, 2008

   Oho, great!

8. 
   Candy July 18th, 2008

   You are so awesome for doing that. Thanks loads. I’ve been using illustrator for like a month now, but I still feel lost. I can make stuff, but I’m not sure if this is enough to get me a job, you know. I apologize for rambling. But yeah, thanks a lot. I’ll be visiting your blog religiously.

9. 
   Julia July 19th, 2008

   That ideia is great, very usefull, but I will be thankful if you can write one about Photoshop CS3 too. I know how to do somethings, but a really good tutorial would be great. Thanks a lot ^^

10. 
    iStockdiary July 19th, 2008

    Hi Julia, thanks for your feedback. What do you like to accomplish with Photoshop? Photo montages, designing web interface, designing ads or posters?

11. 
    iStockdiary July 19th, 2008

    Hi Candy, I’m not too sure what job you would like. If you want to land a job as an illustrator, then you really need to have good foundation in drawing. However, if you are working as a graphic designer, illustrator can help you create character drawings and logos.

12. 
    Candy July 19th, 2008

    Yeah, I’m actually currently looking for graphic designer jobs, since I’m only proficient in photoshop, illustrator, and indesign. I can draw, yeah, but not very good. Anyways, I have another question, but not sure if this is the right place to ask it. It’s concerning portfolios (PDF ones mostly) – I’m not sure what to include in it. Thanks again for replying. Greatly appreciated.

13. 
    iStockdiary July 19th, 2008

    Since that’s the case, I think illustrator can help you create icons, maps, line drawings, charts and diagrams easily. This are some ways illustrator would be useful for your job. For portfolio, it will depend on your strength and what job you are looking for. If you are good at brochure design and looking for a job in that area, then focus on it and put your few best pieces in. Then you can leave out your web projects and illustration drawings. If you have anymore questions in making your portfolio, you can email me. I will be happy to help.

14. 
    Candy July 20th, 2008

    Oh now I understand! I emailed you. Thank you very much.

15. 
    Akiva Feinstein July 24th, 2008

    I think this is great. May I suggest that for next time instead of just having a weekend break that an optional “homework” assignment be given, some sort of project that would allow us to put together that week’s skills. For example, have us a make something and then after the weekend publish your own work flow and how you would get it done. I want to use this to make a web site for my site: tefilla.org

16. 
    amit July 24th, 2008

    i wan to join

17. 
    Jeff July 25th, 2008

    This is a great idea! I just purchased Illustrator because I got a webmaster job for school, and I though it would be helpful know a little Illustrator here and there, and so far I like it, but I have no clue what true power the application holds. I will definitely follow along starting tomorrow! I can’t wait to see what this experience has to offer! Thanks!

18. 
    Iacopo Bernardini July 26th, 2008

    you have had a very nice idea
    ThX

19. 
    Kerrie July 26th, 2008

    This is fabulous, thank you so much I have tried to learn it on my own but not doing very well LOL

20. 
    joyoge July 26th, 2008

    30 günde h?zl? kursla illustrator ö?renin
    http://www.joyoge.com/oku/562/30-gunde-hizli-kursla-illustrator-ogrenin.html
    thanks a lot…

21. 
    Tom July 26th, 2008

    This is totally amazing ! Two days ago, I just thought I really wanted to know how to use Illustrator, because there are more and more tutorials for Illustrator, and I didn’t know anything about Illustrator. This sounds like a miracle.
    Thank you so much

22. 
    Mostaque Ahammed July 27th, 2008

    WOW! Fantastic!!

    Thanks lot for bringing it…

23. 
    Y July 27th, 2008

    You have no idea how useful this is! Thanks so much!

24. 
    Sean O July 28th, 2008

    I love this! Thank you!

25. 
    cizgicizmeli July 31st, 2008

    thanks for everything,will be good for my job!

26. 
    Aliasart August 2nd, 2008

    This is so great! I’ve been seraching for moth for a good tutorial on Illustrator. Thanks so much! Great work and my respect.

27. 
    Brian August 5th, 2008

    Hell yes! This is awesome! I really like this tutorial, I’m learning a lot.

    Thanks and keep up the good work!

28. 
    Peter Breis August 5th, 2008

    I have been an Illustrator user since v1.0 but I still learnt something new and it helped me look afresh at how I go about using it.

    Thank you for a model of how to do a Tutorial.

    Excellent job, well done.

29. 
    Mark August 6th, 2008

    Thanks for these lessons, really looking forward to going thru them. FYI, if you join anytime after week 3 starts, the feed readers arent shown more than 10 posts. Folks new to the site will want to get them all:) You can change this in the WP settings from 10 to whatever.

30. 
    Raj August 9th, 2008

    I really like this Thanx a lot m8!

31. 
    ingenuity August 12th, 2008

    I’m delighted to have been told about this site. It’s just what I needed. Thank you!

32. 
    srinu August 12th, 2008

    Thanks for these lessons, really looking forward to going thru them. FYI, if you join anytime after week 3 starts, the feed readers arent shown more than 10 posts. Folks new to the site will want to get them all:) You can change this in the WP settings from 10 to whatever.Thanks for these lessons, really looking forward to going thru them. FYI, if you join anytime after week 3 starts, the feed readers arent shown more than 10 posts. Folks new to the site will want to get them all:) You can change this in the WP settings from 10 to whatever.

33. 
    Irfan August 15th, 2008

    Thank you – these lessons are much appreciated…

34. 
    Sally September 1st, 2008

    this is absolutely great!! i bought a whole set of adobe programs, about a year ago and but i only use photoshop, after effects and premiere. i was wondering if you could make an adobe flash one.

    much love,

    sally

35. 
    Kat September 2nd, 2008

    This is great! I’ve been playing around with Illustrator for a while but I get frustrated with many of the tutorials I’ve read. It’s great that you’ve cut it down to a daily lesson that enables us to do it on our own pace. Thank you!

36. 
    Rachel September 2nd, 2008

    Great idea to put it in a daily training format!!!

37. 
    Kasy September 5th, 2008

    You are so awesome and is so sweet from you making this! Thank you in advance C:

38. 
    Manuel Minino September 7th, 2008

    Time to learn Ai !!!

39. 
    Alfonso Castrillo September 7th, 2008

    I think it’s a very remarkable thing, thank you very much
    Mérida, Venezuela, located in South América

40. 
    Jaikumar September 9th, 2008

    This is great! another request can you do the same for Adobe Indesign CS3 please.

41. 
    Sarah September 16th, 2008

    This is a brilliant idea. I wish this was available sooner. However it is still helpful to me. Great job. I hope to see something like this course for Photoshop and Flash cs3.

42. 
    Murat Göktuna September 17th, 2008

    Thanks!
    This is great! another request can you do the same for Adobe Indesign CS3 please.

43. 
    ceyhun September 21st, 2008

    can I help me??

44. 
    Michael September 26th, 2008

    Wow!, this is great. Thank you.
    Do you think you can do the same for InDesign?

45. 
    Gd Ney Brasil September 27th, 2008

    Quero deixar aqui o meu agradecimento a todos vcs que elaboraram essas lições sobre Ilustrator, me ajudou muito na minha caminha de aprediz.

    Obrigado!! Thanks!!

    Abração!! Gd.

46. 
    Muurtegel October 1st, 2008

    I also recommended this to some friends ^_^

47. 
    ismailkara October 1st, 2008

    Thank you! This is really great.

    I want to translate in Turkish, can you let me to do this

    Of course i will give your donation link and blog link.

48. 
    Cathy October 5th, 2008

    Hello.

    Thanks for you tutorials. I was going to make a donation but it was there was an error. If you can email me your paypal account, would be more than happy to send the donation.

    Again, thanks for sharing your ideas. It’s really helpful for newbies like me.

    Take care.

49. 
    Nick Nogueira October 23rd, 2008

    What an awesome initiative! This blog has been one of my favorites so far. Thank you for the great posts. This one specially will help a lot of newcomers.

50. 
    samuel k sarfo October 28th, 2008

    ok its really a nice tutorial and very effective too thank god we have people like you to teach the willing but needed. may god bless you all thanks again.

51. 
    sahra November 11th, 2008

    Thank you

52. 
    philip November 24th, 2008

    good one!

53. 
    Naresh November 27th, 2008

    thanks really a nice tutorial your doing great job

54. 
    arunkirubhakar November 29th, 2008

    please give me the websites which gives a correct idea about how to work in photoshop,illustrator & flash with works done so that i can have a clear idea of how to work in these softwares
    thanking u
    c.arun kirubhakar
    +91-9486036185

55. 
    lumbreras December 3rd, 2008

    Hi Brandi, I love this tutorial illustrator, May I publish it in Spanish in my blog?, Because many people do not understand English, I appreciate if I may, always mention this source.

56. 
    Dan December 16th, 2008

    Thank god! Finally a CS3 tutorial that doesn’t assume you’re a fashion obsessed sandal-wearer with too much money (a mac user).

57. 
    Bruce Winwood December 30th, 2008

    Great job! I finally learned to do the artwork I always wanted to do. Since I am not a designer I really could use the tips you gave.
    Brilliant work!

58. 
    Jaha Knight February 2nd, 2009

    I wish I’d seen this article earlier. I could have used it with my students.

59. 
    Daniel Williams February 8th, 2009

    Great tutorial, thanks.

60. 
    Daniel February 19th, 2009

    I would like to say to you that you are helping me a lot with this tutorial. THANK YOU VERY MUCH

61. 
    zaib khan March 2nd, 2009

    superb way of teaching us thanks a lot

62. 
    egle rudzionyte March 11th, 2009

    thank you!helped heaps.

63. 
    tariq jehangiri March 14th, 2009

    Hi..its all the gr8 stuff!!!!!!!! Thanx

64. 
    sivas March 21st, 2009

    great, thank you

65. 
    shahid April 8th, 2009

    very goog

66. 
    Ashish Kamdar May 3rd, 2009

    Fantastic Stuff.. thanks very much for sharing it!

67. 
    butt May 19th, 2009

    TURDY POOP POOP

68. 
    jothi bassu June 8th, 2009

    Really terrific tutorial. This is useful for all designers & artist.
    Very simple & …..

69. 
    AssozySox July 7th, 2009

    Music of Michael Jackson is going to live for ever no matter what, I think It’s became a classic of ‘pop’, He was so depressed last time and has lots of problems, poor guy – that was probably end for him – so sad all we can do is keep memory of him in our hearts.

70. 
    Marcos Nobre July 19th, 2009

    Thnks man, i learned with this tuto =D.

71. 
    Meladori November 3rd, 2009

    Ohh can’t wait to try this, thanks!

72. 
    Workshops November 12th, 2009

    Great stuff. Im going to give it a go.

73. 
    Azim November 15th, 2009

    Cool…
    Thank you for taking the time to post this tutorial

74. 
    nadia December 28th, 2009

    awesome and easy to learn..thanx for sharing!

75. 
    Ronald Ssematimba December 30th, 2009

    Hi, this is my first time and i want to use it because i got a job of my life time, so i think it will be helpful for me that i succeed in life to be the best graphic design

76. 
    Davetiye January 16th, 2010

    thank you wery much

77. 
    dottony January 19th, 2010

    Thank you so much for this excellent tutorial. If another course dedicated for Photoshop will be just fantastic.

78. 
    onur February 2nd, 2010

    thank you for great post

79. 
    isuriv isuriv February 24th, 2010

    asdasd

80. 
    isuriv isuriv February 24th, 2010

    Sorry,I escaped, great post