selecting from an eps file

[SigsCreations]

When I buy vector clip art with a commercial license it usually comes in the form of an eps file. Usually all the designs are on one "page".

 

I am finding it very time consuming and hair pulling to isolate what I want from that. I can't "draw a box" around it because it selects everything (the whole "page"). Say I bought 20 cats. They are all on one main layer and I want only one cat. Sometimes I can click on something in the layers panel and when that itty bitty dot is selected I can then click on the cat I want and get one itty bitty little dot in the right cat to be highlighted. From there I can "show in layers". Then I have to hold down the shift key and randomly select a bunch of layers (we are talking so many I have to scroll a lot in the layers panel) and hope I got all the cat. Often I don't and then I have to go through the whole mess again. (Yes, I am smart enough to first group what I found that was correct and then label it so I can find that part again). And more maddenly, the entire cat may not be on sequential layers.

 

But my question is, why can't I surround that cat and have it be selected. Even at the highest magnification I can not directly select on the image - it will select the whole page. Why can't I zoom in until just that cat is showing and then click on it to select just a piece of it?  Like what someone here told me to do when I couldn't seem to select just one node to move (it was just moving the handles until I zoomed in a ridiculous amount so I could isolate the node itself) 

 

 

[dominik]

1 hour ago, SigsCreations said:

When I buy vector clip art with a commercial license it usually comes in the form of an eps file. Usually all the designs are on one "page".

 

I am finding it very time consuming and hair pulling to isolate what I want from that. I can't "draw a box" around it because it selects everything (the whole "page"). Say I bought 20 cats. They are all on one main layer and I want only one cat. Sometimes I can click on something in the layers panel and when that itty bitty dot is selected I can then click on the cat I want and get one itty bitty little dot in the right cat to be highlighted. From there I can "show in layers". Then I have to hold down the shift key and randomly select a bunch of layers (we are talking so many I have to scroll a lot in the layers panel) and hope I got all the cat. Often I don't and then I have to go through the whole mess again. (Yes, I am smart enough to first group what I found that was correct and then label it so I can find that part again). And more maddenly, the entire cat may not be on sequential layers.

 

But my question is, why can't I surround that cat and have it be selected. Even at the highest magnification I can not directly select on the image - it will select the whole page. Why can't I zoom in until just that cat is showing and then click on it to select just a piece of it?  Like what someone here told me to do when I couldn't seem to select just one node to move (it was just moving the handles until I zoomed in a ridiculous amount so I could isolate the node itself) 

 

 

 

Hi @SigsCreations,

 

I do not have only limited experience with commercial vector clipart that comes as an EPS. Even though I do use commercial clipart in other formats.

 

To me it sounds like the objects in the EPS file are grouped or even nested in groups.

 

Try the following:

• Click once on the imported design.
• Select menu 'Layer > Ungroup' or 'Layer > Ungroup All'
• Now try to 'rubber band' (= drag with the mouse button held down) around one of the designs. I assume you then can select this particular group of objects.

Perhaps I am completely wrong. Otherwise I hope this is of help for you.

 

Cheers,

d.

[SigsCreations]

I don't think they are grouped. It just says layer and then everything is listed under that as curve. Oh well.

 

[dominik]

1 hour ago, SigsCreations said:

I don't think they are grouped. It just says layer and then everything is listed under that as curve. Oh well.

 

 

A layer can be something like a group, too. A container.

 

Try to select every curve within the layer (SHIFT+click the top most and the lowest and all are selected in one go). Then move them above the layer called 'layer'. This makes all of them seperate elements and you can try the rubber band thing I described above.

 

Cheers,

d.

[SigsCreations]

that worked!

Thank you. That will save me hours.

[dominik]

8 hours ago, SigsCreations said:

that worked!

Thank you. That will save me hours.

 

Good to hear 

You are welcome.

d.