Xtream Path 2: Live Blurred Path

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Live Blurred Path blurs the edge of the selected object (path or text or its group) to blend into the background. The position and direction of the blurred area can be controlled from the filled area.
The width and color of the blurred area will be from the stroke setting of the object (if not specified, the default setting will be used.)
You can re-edit the original object, and the effect will be updated automatically.

NOTE: Depending on your PC, when selecting “Illustrator > View > GPU Preview” it may take a long time for drawing. In that case, change to “Illustrator > View > Preview on CPU.” You can turn on/off GPU Performance from Illustrator’s Preferences.

Example:

From the sample file live_blurredpath_01.ai
  1. Create a new document (set Units as Points) from “Illustrator > File > New…” menu.
  2. Select “Illustrator > Window > XtreamPath2 > Live Blurred Path” menu. “XtreamPath2: Live Blurred Path” panel will open.
  3. Type “XtreamPath2” and create the text object on the document’s artboard. Set the font style to bold, the font size as 72pt, the Fill Color as Black, the Stroke Color as Red, and set the Stroke Weight as 8pt. The width and color of the blurred area is specified by the Stroke setting of the object.
  4. Select the text object.
  5. From the panel menu (located on the upper right corner), select “Default Settings.”
  6. Click “Apply” button on the panel.
  7. Make sure that Alignment setting on the panel is set to “Outside.” The Blur will be created on the outside of the text outline.
  8. Make sure that “Remove Interference” on the panel is checked. Then from “Character” panel of Illustrator, set the tracking to the value between -100 to -200 and make the characters to overlap.
  9. Create path behind the text object and set its color differently.
  10. Set Alignment setting on the panel to “Inside.”
  11. Check the option “Unify overlaps in text or group.”
  12. Change the text object on the document.
  13. Change the settings on the panel by referring to the following paragraph.

Setting items:

Alignment (Group Box)
“Remove Interference [Recommended]” option is active if Alignment is set to “Outside.” The option is valid when the character is close to each other, and the blurred area is entering the inside of the character.

NOTE: The width of the blurred area is specified by 'Stroke: Weight' of the object, and the base color of the blurred area is specified by 'Color: Stroke' of the object (if not specified the default setting will be used). If you want to make the blurred area widen or tighten, change 'Weight' value on Illustrator’s Stroke panel. To change the color, use Illustrator’s Color panel or Swatches panel.

Unify overlaps in text or group
The overlaps of the characters within the text object or the overlaps of grouped paths and compound paths will be unified. If 'Alignment' is set to 'Outside' and 'Remove Interference' option is selected, this option will not affect the result whether it is selected or not.

Auto Stroke Styling [Recommended]
Use 'Cap: Round' 'Corner: Round Joint' as the style of the Stroke. Due to the nature of this effect, selecting this checkbox is recommended.

Gradient Arc
Specify the curve for the blurred area’s gradation change. Set the gradual mixture ratio between the base color (the line color) and the transparency. There are 3 icons for the set of curves : -100% (reversed arc), 0% (straight line), 100% (arc). Otherwise, it will be proportionally distributed the gradation curve.

TIP: If you set Gradient Arc to -100% (reversed arc), the gradation of the blurred area will be steep around the outline, but the gradation toward the tip will be gentle. The area around the outline will be stand out while blending to the background and the fill. Especially recommended to use on text objects.

Contrast
Control the color strength for the gradation of the blurred area.

Auto Gradation / Manual Steps
Specify the density for the gradation of the blurred area. Select from one of Auto Gradation (High, Mid, Low) or select Manual Steps and manually assign. If you select Manual Steps, please enter the number of Steps.

Fill Opacity
Specify the opacity for the fill of the selected object.
If this option is not selected, the fill color will be completely transparent.

Live Update
Updating the Artboard while you work can result in slow screen redraw times, especially when Live Blurred Path is creating a high number of steps. Unchecking this option leaves the selected object unchanged until you click the Apply button. When checked, Live Update will automatically apply the Live Blurred Path settings as you make changes.

Expand/Release/Apply
The Expand button creates individual objects from each of the copies created by Live Blurred Path. The objects will be grouped. The Release button removes the Blurred Path effect. The Apply button applies the current settings to selected objects.

Panel Menu
The Panel menu is accessed by clicking the icon in the upper right corner of the panel.
You can reset the panel settings to 'Default Settings' or name the current settings and save as the preset menu.
For how to use the preset menu, please refer to 'Preset Menu.’