Welcome to the Isometric Grid

A few weeks ago, like Sam Flynn, I decided to venture into the Grid — The isometric Grid. It’s much easier than it looks, and there’s so much you can do with it. In a few minutes of exploration, I understood the construction of basic 3d shapes — the building blocks of any isometric construction (pun intended).

That being said, this (hopefully) short write-up aims to introduce you to the isometric grid. When you’re done reading and following the steps laid out, you should be able to

1. Create an isometric grid
2. Create simple 3D shapes — cubes, cuboids, pyramids, and spheres (which are really just circles)
3. Combine these shapes to make simple illustrations.

I created this cool illustration to give you a peek at what you could create by the time you’re done with this article.

Illustration by iOtukoya

Assumptions

1. You are working with Adobe Illustrator.
2. You have basic knowledge of the software and can find your way around the interface.
3. You have (at least) amateur knowledge of design and are familiar with the basic terms of the craft.

Creating your grid

Like in every other construction, the first step is to allocate a piece of land — in this case, your virtual area of land is the isometric grid. Follow these steps to create an isometric grid.

Step 1 — Create a line

Create a line

Step 2 — Rotate by 30 degrees

Rotated line

You can do this manually, or by opening the transform panel and putting “30” in the rotate input box.

Transform Panel in Adobe Illustrator CC 2019

Step 3 — Duplicate line and make equally distant

Equidistant lines

Duplicate the line as many times as you’re comfortable with and make the spacing between each line equal. You can do this by

1. Selecting all the lines
2. Opening the alignment panel
3. Vertically distributing centers and then horizontally aligning centers

Alignment panel in Adobe Illustrator CC 2019

Step 4 — Group the lines, duplicate the group then vertically reflect the duplicate

Step 4 — Group the lines, duplicate the group then vertically reflect the duplicate

“Reflect” pop-up — Select “vertical” to reflect on the vertical axis. Ticking the “Preview” option should show you what the reflected elements look like on their new axis.

That’s it, your grid is set. If you did it correctly, you should have something like this.

Your isometric grid

Be sure to make it alone in its layer so you can lock it when it’s necessary.

Building Blocks

Now that your grid is set, you would see how easy it is to create those basic shapes we spoke of. Create a new layer that would host these shapes.

Cubes and Cuboids

By using the pen tool to create a shape that fills a unit on your grid, you have an isometric square. With a combination of these isometric squares or rectangles, you are able to create a cube.

By using the pen tool to create a shape that fills a unit on your grid, you have an isometric square. With a combination of these isometric squares or rectangles, you are able to create a cube.

GIF of the isometric cube process

Well, there we have it — an iso-cube (patent pending, hehe). Now let’s make an isometric circle

Isometric Circle

Creating an isometric circle takes a little more work, but you should know that it involves manipulating an isometric square. No, you can’t just apply rounded corners directly to an isometric square, that would just give you what looks like a normal circle.

You can make an isometric circle from an isometric square by following these steps.

1. Select the isometric square and click “Effect” in the topmost menu bar
2. Click “Stylize” from the drop-down menu and select “Round Corners from the sub-menu
3. In the modal that pops up, increase the radius of your corners till it’s fully rounded. Make sure the “Preview” box is ticked so you can see the changes in real-time.

Effect drop-down menu in Adobe Illustrator CC 2019

Round corners modal in Adobe Illustrator CC 2019

This process can be repeated for an isometric square on any axis.

Isometric circles on all axes.

At this point, I’m sure you’re already having some ideas on stuff you can create with these basic shapes. Well, go ahead and experiment, and don’t forget to have fun while at it.

When working on the isometric grid, remember that whatever movements you’re making, should be in alignment with the grid. Moving an element with the left/right key doesn’t equate to the same unit of movement on the isometric grid — it has to be moved manually, in alignment with the grid.

Now, let’s create a cylinder and a pyramid.

Pyramid

How to make an isometric pyramid

This GIF pretty much explains the process of making an isometric pyramid, but here is the step-by-step explanation.

Step 1 — Create your base square

Base of Pyramid.

Step 2 — Duplicate the base square.

The outlined square serves as a guide for where the apex should be — the (isometric) center.

Step 3 — Create the first face of the pyramid

Creating the first face of the Pyramid

Step 4 — Create the second face of the pyramid

Your pyramid is set.

Cylinder

As you know, the base of a cylinder is a circle. So that’s typically the place to start from.

Base circle

Step 2 — Duplicate the circle to create the top

P.S — The smaller circle is only to create a hollow effect, you can choose not to put it.

The rectangle serves as the curved face. Using the shape builder tool, you can create a hollow or filled cylinder.

If you’ve come this far, thank you, and well done. I can’t wait to see the amazing explorations you make with the isometric grid. Check out these 60+ isometric illustrations to get you inspired

In another article, I’d be detailing how to create this awesome sword on the grid. Stay tuned.

Isometric Sword

Ciao.