Create a Polaroid effect using the tools in Adobe Illustrator.
Polaroid cameras and photos are an iconic piece of photographic history, bringing back nostalgic memories in anyone over 20 years old. While Polaroid cameras are largely gone, creating a snapshot in the style of a vintage Polaroid photo is simple with a little graphics work in Adobe Illustrator. It's a fun project that even novices can master with a little instruction, and the results make for an interesting and distinctive digital photo.
Instructions
1. Start Illustrator from your desktop or Start menu. Click "File," followed by "Open." Navigate to the photo you want to modify and click "Open."
2. Click the Rectangular tool in the toolbar. Hold down the "Shift" button and draw a square over the area of the photo you want to display.
3. Click the Selection tool. Click and drag to select both the photo and the square. Right-click inside the square and click "Make clipping mask."
4. Click the Fill box and select white as your color. Click the Stroke box and assign white as your color. Click the Rectangular tool and draw a rectangle over the clipped photo, taller than it is wide. Click "Ctrl" plus "[" until the rectangle appears behind the photo. Hold down the "Ctrl" button and adjust the size of the rectangle to match a Polaroid, with a large gap on the bottom. Keep the large rectangle selected.
5. Click the FX tool in the bottom right panel. Click "Stylize" and then "Drop Shadow." Click "OK." Deselect the box. Click the Fill box and select black. Click the Text tool. Click "Font" to select an appropriate font and select a size. Click inside the bottom gap and enter the text of your choosing. This step is optional.
6. Click "File" and then "Export." Enter the name of your photo and click "Save."
Tags: Adobe Illustrator, Click File, Click Fill, Click Fill select, Click Rectangular, Click Rectangular tool, color Click
