At the end of this tutorial you will have learned the basics of how to draw with the pen tool in Adobe Illustrator in 6 easy steps. The secret is to learn how to use the Shift key,  ALT/OPTION  key and Space Bar  along with the mouse to manipulate the path. This tutorial can also apply to the pen tool in other Adobe applications such as Flash, and InDesign.

For this tutorial we shall just be using the standard Pen Tool.

1. Clicking between two points will produce a straight line between two anchor points.

2. Pressing the Shift key constrains the angle to 45 degrees. Pressing the Enter/Return key deselects the line so that you can start drawing a new separate path.

3. Pressing the Space Bar without releasing the mouse will move the anchor point to the desired location, releasing the space bar releases the anchor point.

4. To close a shape just click onto the initial point.

5. Clicking and dragging will create smooth anchor points.

6. Pressing the ALT/OTPION key without releasing the mouse will create sharp anchor points.

Using the above techniques you will be now able to draw all sorts of doodles and shapes.

Click here to see Illustrator Pen Tool Tutorial Part 2