One of the great things about Deke’s Techniques (for me anyway) is that it gives me the chance to explore, not just how vast and powerful programs like Photoshop and Illustrator work, but how they work together, and in real-world scenarios. For example, this week, I show you how to take a couple of cloud photographs (Photoshop) and cram them into some vector-based text objects (Illustrator), replete with strokes and drop shadows.

Here’s the official description from lynda.com:

This week’s Deke’s Techniques demonstrates the relatively simple but oh-so-useful method for filling your Illustrator type with a photographic image. The steps are straightforward: You’ll need Illustrator CS5 or better in order to use the handy Draw Inside mode. Then it’s just a matter of selecting the text and placing it inside the type.

Of course, if you want to add strokes or drop shadows, you’ll need to deftly navigate both the Layers and Appearance panels in order to add those respective effects to the appropriate objects inside Illustrator. The result is this formerly boring text (left) turned into an editable, tweakable, barn-stormin’ effect.

For members of lynda.com, Deke’s got another video this week that shows you how to create a double stroke around this effect. Sounds simple, no? But it’s Illustrator, so good thing Deke has figured out the oddly complicated nuances for you.

And Deke will be back next week with another quick-and-useful technique.

Seriously, that second technique is worth the price of admission. As those of you who know Illustrator well know well, adding a double-stroke effect behind a photograph inside a clipping path is of those things that simply can’t be done in Illustrator. And yet, in my Deke’s Techniques course, I tell you how.