Adobe Illustrator: How the Pathfinder works

With Pathfinder in Adobe Illustrator you can create complex shapes and link basic elements. We'll explain how to use Adobe Illustrator Pathfinder correctly.

Pathfinder in Adobe Illustrator

The Pathfinder is an Adobe Illustrator tool that contains six basic functions. You can use these functions to convert existing shapes by changing the contours differently depending on the tool. The Pathfinder is particularly interesting if you want to make new figures out of several shapes. Below we show you how you can process two shapes with each other using each of the six basic functions.

• If you are not very familiar with Adobe Illustrator, we recommend our tutorial for a quick introduction to Adobe Illustrator.

Adobe Illustrator Pathfinder: Split area

With the "Split area" function, Pathfinder helps you to create individual paths from entire shapes. How to disassemble surfaces and create new shapes:

1. Select one or more figures and click on "Split area". The Pathfinder now divides these areas into individual paths. At the same time, he groups the paths to preserve the existing shapes.
2. Right-click on the grouped shapes and select "Ungroup".
3. Nothing changes optically, but you can now select the paths individually. To do this, switch to the direct selection tool and click on a single path - for example one side of a rectangle, triangle or square.
4. Now press the [DEL] key to delete the path. You can see what you can do with two squares in our example picture.

Adobe Illustrator Pathfinder: Remove overlap area

As the name suggests, the "Remove overlap area" function can be used to remove the parts of several shapes that overlap - that is, one on top of the other.

1. For example, place a circle over a square and select both shapes.
2. Now click on the "Remove overlap area" function to remove the areas of the shape lying in the background that are hidden by the shape above.
3. You will only see the effect when you switch to path view. In the case of the circle and the square, the sides of the square that were covered by the circle disappear. You can see the result in our example picture.

Adobe Illustrator Pathfinder: Remove hidden areas

The Pathfinder tool "Remove hidden areas" works similarly. With this you trim all overlapping contours - whether in the foreground or background.

1. Place the same figures on top of each other as in the previous example and use the "Remove hidden areas" tool.
2. The Pathfinder removes all contours that lie within your overlapping shapes and creates a new shape from the outer contours. You can see what the result looks like in the case of a circle and a square in our example picture.

Adobe Illustrator Pathfinder: intersection area

With the "Intersection area" tool you do the opposite of the "Remove hidden areas" tool. Here the Pathfinder cuts off all those parts of the contours that lie outside the two overlapping shapes.

1. Place the two figures on top of each other again - a circle and a square - and mark both areas.
2. Apply the Path Finder's Intersect Area effect to remove the areas of the outline that are outside of the intersections. You can see what the result looks like in our example picture.

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Adobe Illustrator Pathfinder: Split contour

With the "Split Contour" function, Pathfinder breaks down the contours of your shapes at all points where the contours intersect. If you lay two lines - one vertically and one horizontally - on top of each other, the function "Split contour" divides the lines into four smaller ones. Using the previous shapes as an example, "Split Contour" works like this:

1. Place a circle over a square again and mark both shapes.
2. Use the "Split contour" function in Pathfinder.
3. All contours that overlap are divided at the interfaces. To illustrate this, we have drawn the contours a little apart in our example picture.

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Adobe Illustrator Pathfinder: Pull back object

The "Drag Back Object" tool allows you to crop a figure around certain areas. This function of the Pathfinder removes all intersections of a shape lying in the foreground. As an illustration, this time we will show you how to create a semicircle using a circle and a rectangle:

1. Draw a circle again and lay a rectangle across the full width of the circle. The top edge of the rectangle must intersect the center of your circle. Make sure that the rectangle is in the background.
2. Select both objects and use the "Subtract rear object" function.
3. The circle is cut around the intersection of the rectangle and the circle. In addition, the entire shape in the background disappears. You can see what the result looks like in our example picture.

Shape modes in Adobe Illustrator

Designing shapes is even easier when you use Adobe Illustrator's shape modes. You can also find these in the Pathfinder menu.

• The most important form mode is "unite". Use this function if you want to combine shapes. You can see what the result looks like in the example picture next door.
• With the "Remove front object" function, you do the opposite of the Pathfinder function "Remove rear object". So put the rectangle over the circle and apply the function to it, you will get the same result.
• The "Create intersection" function corresponds to the "Intersection area" function. However, it differs in that it is not the intersection of the object lying in the background that is integrated into the new shape, but a new shape is created from the intersection of both shapes.
• With the "Remove intersection" function, the shape remains unchanged at first glance. The function removes overlapping areas and groups all affected shapes together. This is how you remove superimposed surfaces, which makes it easier to color shapes or change the contours, for example.

If you would like to work with pre-made shapes, we will help you to find free templates and templates for Adobe Illustrator.