Drawing with the freeform pen tool

The freeform pen tool lets you draw as if you were drawing with a pencil on paper. Anchor points are added automatically as you draw. You do not determine where the points are positioned, but you can adjust them once the path is complete.

The magnetic pen is an option of the freeform tool that lets you draw a path that snaps to the edges of defined areas in your image. You can define the range and sensitivity of the snapping behavior, as well as the complexity of the resulting path. The magnetic pen and magnetic lasso tools share many of the same options.

To draw with the freeform pen tool:

1. Select the freeform pen tool .
2. To control how sensitive the final path is to the movement of your mouse or stylus, click the inverted arrow next to the shape buttons in the options bar, and enter a value between 0.5 and 10.0 pixels for Curve Fit. A higher value creates a simpler path with fewer anchor points.
3. Drag the pointer in the image. As you drag, a path trails behind the pointer. When you release the mouse, a work path is created.
4. To continue the existing freehand path, position the freeform pen pointer on an endpoint of the path, and drag.
5. To complete the path, release the mouse. To create a closed path, click the initial point of the path (a circle appears next to the pointer when it is aligned). For more information on closed and open paths, see About anchor points, direction lines, direction points, and components.

To draw using the magnetic pen options:

1. To convert the freeform pen tool to the magnetic pen tool , select Magnetic in the options bar, or click the inverted arrow next to the shape buttons in the options bar, select Magnetic, and set the following:
• For Width, enter a pixel value between 1 and 256. The magnetic pen detects edges only within the specified distance from the pointer.
• For Contrast, enter a percentage value between 1 and 100 to specify the contrast between pixels required to be considered an edge. Use a higher value for low contrast images.
• For Frequency, enter a value between 5 and 40 to specify the rate at which the pen sets anchor points. A higher value anchors the path in place more quickly.
• If you are working with a stylus tablet, select or deselect Pen Pressure. When this option is selected, an increase in pen pressure causes the width to decrease.
2. Click in the image to set the first fastening point.
3. To draw a freehand segment, move the pointer or drag along the edge you want to trace.

The most recent segment of the border remains active. As you move the pointer, the active segment snaps to the strongest edge in the image, connecting the pointer to the last fastening point. Periodically, the magnetic pen adds fastening points to the border to anchor previous sections.

4. If the border doesn't snap to the desired edge, click once to add a fastening point manually and to keep the border from moving. Continue to trace the edge and add fastening points as needed. If needed, press Delete to remove the last fastening point.
5. To dynamically modify the properties of the magnetic pen, do one of the following:
• Alt-drag (Windows) or Option-drag (Mac OS) to draw a freehand path.
• Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Mac OS) to draw straight segments.
• Press the [ key to decrease the magnetic pen width by 1 pixel; press the ] key to increase the pen width by 1 pixel.
6. Complete the path:
• Press Enter or Return to end an open path.
• Double-click to close the path with a magnetic segment.
• Hold down Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac OS), and double-click to close the path with a straight segment.