HOW TO: NODES + PERFECT CURVES Made EASY......by accident​😂​

[Father ODD Creations]

So I was searching around for any and every video on YouTube to give me a better understanding of how to use the pen/node tool. I stumbled across a video on YT: "AFFINITY DESIGNER CURVES FROM SINGLE STROKE. This tutorial helped me solve one issue (finding the easiest way to trace an image with a lot of curvy lines BUT with each curve flowing smoothly together from one to the next). I had created a logo (i can't show the whole logo) but as you can see some of the curves i created originally APPEARED smooth when i zoomed in close  but some noticeable errors when i zoomed out/away from it. Once I zoomed out the logo had these subtle curves that made the logo look like it was starting to form corners. 

 

As I followed the tutorial, I got to where I was only using the SMART MODE tool, with these options selected:

- ALIGN TO NODES OF SELECTED CURVES

- SNAP TO GEOMETRY OF SELECTED CURVES

- ALIGN HANDLE POSITIONS USING SNAPPING OPTIONS

- MOVE BY WHOLE PIXELS

- SNAPPING

while I was working through, I was going by what I would always hear from the pros and amateurs "move the node handles around until you get as close as you can to the images/shapes. so that's what I did! Still wasn't perfect though.

 

A-HA!!! THERES A PATTERN ("not sure if I'm just late to the party lol")

 

Once you put your first node, you get the CURVE option after putting the second node which is your first line. You then go and make that line fit as perfect to the curve as you can which is the easy part. Then comes the hard part as soon as you add a 3rd node and however many more you want, trying to make that second curve fit PERFECTLY with the first curve usually doesn't match the way you want it to because at the same time you're also trying to make it fit with the 4th node. It then becomes this tug of war between the nodes LOL.

 

node A. node B. = line/curve a-b

node B. node C. = line/curve b-c

node C. node D. = line/curve c-d

node D. node E. = line/curve d-e

 

**USING THE SHIFT KEY EVERYTIME (USUALLY)**

**USING THE SHIFT KEY EVERYTIME (USUALLY)**

**USING THE SHIFT KEY EVERYTIME (USUALLY)**

 

Once you have the first curve (line/curve a-b) set to your liking , before adjusting the second curve (line/curve b-c) YOU WANT TO SELECT THE NODE (node C.)  AND USE THE HANDLES ON IT TO START BUILDING THE END OF THE SECOND CURVE (line/curve b-c)...…..THENNNNNNN...…GO BACK TO THE PREVIOUS NODE (node B.) AND ADJUST THAT ONE TO MAKE THE SECOND CURVE (line/curve b-c) FIT and FLOW SMOOTHLY WITH THE FIRST CURVE (line/curve a-b).  so therefore once you move onto the third curve (line/curve c-d) start by adjusting the handles of node D. FIRST  then jump back to 

ex. node A. node B. node C. node D. node E. etc.

line/curve a-b, line/curve b-c, line/curve c-d, line/curve d-e

after the curve between node A. & node B. has been made (line/curve a-b), jump to node C. and using the handles to adjust the curve (line/curve b-c) to your liking THEN start adjusting the handles on node B. creating line/curve b-c which flows perfectly with the previous curve line/curve a-b

HOPEFULLY I HELPED SOMEONE!