The Inspector

The Inspector Bar

The Inspector Bar is located in the upper-right corner of your iPad screen. It can be expanded or collapsed by tapping on each of the three icons, which are, from left to right: Style Tab ~ic-style-tab~~ic-style-tab~ (A), Layers Tab ~ic-layers-tab~~ic-layers-tab~(B), and Library Tab ~ic-library-tab~~ic-library-tab~(C). The icon will be highlighted when selected.

The Style Tab

The Style Tab ~ic-style-tab~~ic-style-tab~ is the tab in Vectornator where you can find styling functions for your selected element.

At the top of the Style Tab is the Location Menu placed. Here, you can adjust your selected shape's x and y coordinates on the canvas.

Directly below, you’ll find the content-aware options within the Location Menu. You can - depending on what tool or object you have selected - access the following functions:

• Adjust or lock the width and height of your selected object
• Move your selected object
• Rotate your selected object
• Flip selected objects horizontally or vertically
• Switch the Node Type or close a path. (These controls will be only displayed when the Node Tool or the Pen Tool is activated.)

Below the aforementioned menu, you can find the following collapsible sections that will be displayed depending on the tool or object you have selected:

The Arrange Section

In the Arrange Section ~ic-arrange-tab~~ic-arrange-tab~, you can set the Alignment ~ic-alignment~~ic-alignment~ of multiple selected shapes, reorganize layers or elements within the layer hierarchy, Group ~ic-group~~ic-group~, and Mask ~ic-mask~~ic-mask~ objects.

By tapping one of the Distribute buttons, you can set three or more selected elements to be distributed at an equal distance from each other horizontally or vertically. The Repeat Action ~ic-repeat-action~~ic-repeat-action~ will repeat the last action you took, i.e., if you rotate a shape 45° clockwise and click Repeat, the shape will be rotated 45° clockwise again. The button Duplicate and Repeat ~ic-duplicate-repeat~~ic-duplicate-repeat~ duplicates your shape and repeats the operation previously performed on the original shape on the duplicated shape.

The Appearance Section

In the Appearance Section ~ic-style-tab~~ic-style-tab~, you can set the Blend Mode. Tap the Blend Mode button to expand the drop-down menu and change the Blend Mode.

Use the Opacity ~ic-opacity~~ic-opacity~ and Blur ~ic-blur~~ic-blur~ sliders by sliding along with your finger / Pencil or tap to enter a value numerically using the keypad.

The Fill Section

In the Fill Section ~ic-fill~~ic-fill~, you can toggle the fill of your selected object on or off. If toggled on ~ic-toggle-on~~ic-toggle-on~, you can set the fill color to Solid or Gradient and insert its Hex Code and Alpha value.When you choose a gradient, the hex field will be substituted by a menu button that allows you to select between Linear or Radial Gradient Style.

The Stroke Section

In the Stroke Section ~ic-stroke-width~~ic-stroke-width~, you can switch between Regular Mode and Brush Mode.

Additionally, you can toggle the stroke of your selected object on or off. If toggled on ~ic-toggle-on~~ic-toggle-on~, you can set here Stroke Color, Stroke Width, the Alpha value, Change the Arrows at the end segments of your selected path, set the Stroke Alignment to Center ~ic-center-stroke~~ic-center-stroke~, Inside ~ic-inner-stroke~~ic-inner-stroke~, and Outside ~ic-outer-stroke~~ic-outer-stroke~, and edit the Caps and Joins of your path, and create a dashed line along your path. You can specify the length of the dashes and the number of gaps between dashes.  

The Shadow Section

In the Shadow Section ~ic-shadow~~ic-shadow~, you can toggle the cast shadow of your selected object on or off. If toggled on ~ic-toggle-on~~ic-toggle-on~, the Color, Angle, Blur, Alpha value, and Offset value of the shadow can be set.

Learn more about how to color vector paths in the Color section of our Learning Hub →

The Path Section

The Path Section ~ic-path-tab~~ic-path-tab~ is the go-to solution for editing and modifying paths. It contains options like Boolean Operations ~ic-boolean~~ic-boolean~, Join Paths , Combine ~ic-combine-path~~ic-combine-path~, and Separate paths ~ic-separate-path~~ic-separate-path~ and more complex functions like outlining a path or defining Bézier Nodes ~ic-disconnected~~ic-disconnected~, Offset Path ~ic-offset-path~~ic-offset-path~, and Text on Path ~ic-text-on-path~~ic-text-on-path~.

Note: Most of the aforementioned path controls within the Path Section will be displayed when two or more objects are selected.

Learn more about paths in the Paths Section of our Learning Hub →

The Content-Aware Sections

As mentioned above, The Style Tab is content-aware; some sections will appear when specific elements or tools are activated. These sections usually appear below the Location menu. e.g., when you select a shape, the Shape Section will appear, allowing you to change its corner radius or the number of sides. Let's see the most critical content-aware sections:

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The Auto Trace Section

The Auto Trace Section ~ic-auto-trace~~ic-auto-trace~ will be displayed when selecting a raster image. Here you can trace your imported raster image and adjust the corresponding settings of the selected Auto Trace Mode. You can choose between Sketch Mode, Illustration Mode, and Photography Mode.

Read more about the Auto Trace feature in the Auto Trace section of our LH. →

The Text Section

The Text Section ~ic-auto-trace~~ic-auto-trace~ will be activated when a text element is selected or the Text Tool is activated. You can set the Font Family, the Basic Styling (bold, italic, underline), the Font Size, the Kerning, Tracking, and Line Height. The button Fit Bounds to Text Size ~ic-fit-text-to-bounds~~ic-fit-text-to-bounds~resizes the bounding box around the selected text. The button Create Outlines from Text ~ic-outline-text~~ic-outline-text~ converts text into editable vector shapes.

Learn more about the Text Tool in our Learning Hub →

The Shape Section

The Shape Section is displayed when the Shape Tool is activated or a geometric vector shape is selected. Depending on the selected shape, the corresponding buttons will appear in this section. For example, when you select a polygon, the "Number of Sides” slider will appear.

In this section, you can set the Corner Radius ~ic-corner-radius~~ic-corner-radius~ for the Rectangle Shape ~ic-rectangle~~ic-rectangle~, the Star Shape ~ic-star~~ic-star~, and the Polygon Shape ~ic-polygon~~ic-polygon~. Additionally, you can set the Number of Points for the Star Shape, the Number of Sides of the Polygon Shape icon, and the Decay for the Spiral Shape ~ic-spiral~~ic-spiral~.

Learn more about the Shape Tool in our Learning Hub →

The Node Types Section

The Node Types Section will display when you activate the Node Tool ~ic-node~~ic-node~ or the Pen Tool ~ic-pen~~ic-pen~.
The Node Types Section is located at the top of the Style Tab icon within the Location Menu.
Here, you can change the Node Types, close ~in-close-path~~in-close-path~ and open ~ic-open-path~~ic-open-path~a Path, and finish ~ic-finish-path~~ic-finish-path~ a Path (only possible when using the Pen Tool).

Learn more about Nodes and the Node Tool in our Learning Hub →

The Layers Tab

The Layers Tab ~ic-layers-tab~~ic-layers-tab~ is the place for managing layers and objects contained in your document. Here, you can create a new layer ~ic-add-layer~~ic-add-layer~ (A), multi-select layers, show/hide specific layers, lock/unlock layers, duplicate a layer, and delete or rename your Layers icon, objects, and Artboards icon. Additionally, you can create and manage Artboards ~ic-add-artboard~~ic-add-artboard~(B) in the Layers Tab.

Learn more about Layers and Artboards in our Learning Hub →

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The Library Tab

The Library Tab icon is divided into five panels, accessible via the icons at the bottom. They are organized in the following order, from left to right:

1) Templates ~ic-templates-tab~~ic-templates-tab~, where you can create and store your library of vector elements.

2) Photos ~ic-photos-app-tab~~ic-photos-app-tab~,  where you can import images from your camera roll.

3) SF Symbols ~ic-sf-symbols-tab~~ic-sf-symbols-tab~ contains a library of over 2,400 free configurable symbols integrated with San Francisco Font, the system font used on Apple platforms.

4) Iconator ~ic-iconator-tab~~ic-iconator-tab~ is a library offering more than 80k free icons that you can incorporate into your designs.

5) Unsplash ~ic-unsplash-tab~~ic-unsplash-tab~, a library with millions of free images provided by Unsplash.com.

The SF Symbols, Iconator, and Unsplash Tabs have a Search Bar (A) placed at the top to search for a specific icon or image.

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