: Best Practice : Adobe Illustrator Layer Setup I've worked in Illustrator for years... not professionally. I'm starting to charge for my services, and started wondering. I've taken an Illustrator

@Caterina889

I don't think there's any specific guidelines for layer construction. It really does merely come down to common sense. Some artists don't use layers at all. Layer utilization isn't really mandatory in Illustrator due to how there's a default object stack because of the nature of vector objects.

My general practice with layers is to use a new layer if a section of a piece needs to be locked, hidden, or have a common appearance setting easily adjusted. I will also use a layer for any overly complex areas in order to allow me to hide that section and increase the speed at which the screen redraw will happen.

Realize if you adjust the Layer Panel Options from the Layer Panel menu in Illustrator to show groups and objects (uncheck Show Layers Only):



You will get essentially a stack of objects for each layer, even if there is only one layer:



This basically gives you layer-like access to anything you create. You can double-click to rename any of those <Path> or <Group> items. This is why the use of layers isn't really mandatory, at least not within Illustrator. Layers in Illustrator really amount to a higher level of grouping with a custom highlight color and that's all.

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@Rivera951

If you are talking about illustration specifically, I would look into sketching programs. Artists often use many layers (there are even mouse-gestures for creating new layes) and blend them onto one another. There is obviously no "best" way but going by visibility is a good start. Black always being the top for example. Keep in mind that many elements will start to clutter your layer, so you can also group by content. Shadows on the bottom layer just before the background, highlights near the top. You get the idea.

But I don't think there is a book for that.

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