problem in creating shape

[wr3yth]

hi
i want to fill to shapes with same color (because i want to add an animated gradient i can't fill them seperately)
but they defuse each other
how can i fix this??

[synthsin75]

Make them several shapes and just copy the gradient animation from one to the other.

[wr3yth]

thanks
i used another trick to do it
but... there should be a way to prevent them from defusing each other
i think it's even possible to choose another color for interfering parts
i saw it somewhere but i don't remember when

[synthsin75]

No way to keep the same shape from cutting into itself. Otherwise we couldn't make shapes with holes in them.

Could also weld crossings and delete the overlap.

[Greenlaw]

This happens when you create a single shape from multiple paths and it's very useful for boolean effects (like knocking out the center of the letter O.)

As mentioned by Wes, the trick to preventing the 'shape reversal' is to create multiple shapes from the paths (i.e., make each letter its own shape). Then each shape can have its own fill regardless of overlapping. Is there a reason the entire layer needs to be a single shape?

[wr3yth]

thanks
no they don't need to be in one layer

[Greenlaw]

I don't mean layers, I mean multiple shapes within the layer. A single shape can be made of multiple paths, and that's what causes the issue shown. If you make multiple shapes from the same paths, they won't reverse on each other...they can each have their own fill.

For example:



Note that all of the above shapes exist in a single layer. The difference is that we have three shapes on the left and only one shape on the right.

Hope this helps.

[Greenlaw]

Also, there's often more than one way to draw the same shapes in Moho. Take, for example, these 'donuts' below:



As in the earlier example, these shapes exist in a single layer.

The difference between the two donuts is that the one on the left is created as a single shape and uses the center path to reverse out the hole; on the right, the donut is constructed as two shapes, and each shape has its own fill so there is no overlap at all.

Each method has its own particular usefulness. In time, you'll figure out which method is more suitable for a given task.

[Greenlaw]

This is the same as the first illustration with one new example added:



All three examples use the same three paths in a single layer. The differences: on the left are three shapes created from the three paths, middle is two shapes created from the three paths, and right is one shape created from the three paths.

[Greenlaw]

Following up on my 'donut' example, here's an example of when it makes sense to use two shapes for the donut instead of one:



By splitting the donut into right and left halves (two shapes), instead of reversing the center with a single shape, I can have a third shape pass through the hole...like this arm through a hoop.

Notice again, that this is all happening in a single layer.

[wr3yth]

thank you!
it was very helpful