Make a Radial Bar Graph in Adobe Illustrator keeping data live

[@philrawlings8885]

This was the BEST guide to doing anything Adobe I've ever seen. Perfectly described, no messing, no fuss, just getting on with exactly what I needed to know. Thank you!

[@TheDesignNinja]

Thank you-really appreciate your comment and glad this has helped you!

[@ericpbjz]

You just saved my life and sanity, thank you!

[@bwolson]

Just came across this and I have to say once explained it’s obvious and perfect. Thanks for sharing your time and this technique!

[@slmontano7782]

You've really opened my eyes to the flexibility of chart making in Illustrator. Thanks.

[@TheDesignNinja]

Hey SL-that's really lovely of you to say-thank you! If you're a Lynda.com subscriber you could check out my Infographics with Illustrator course (bit.ly/2mboozC) for more charting goodness! Keep watching and spread the word! :)

[@michaelhortens3989]

Very helpful. You explain things very well. You're instructions are very thorough.

[@TheDesignNinja]

Thank you very much-it's always nice to know when your work is appreciated! Keep watching! :)

[@markstroud2489]

Makes total sense. Simple and flexible!! Thanks

[@MrYuan321]

I will buy your book if you write one! these tutorials are so helpful!!!

[@Consciousnessbin]

Dude, you're amazing. I really like the way you describe every detail with patience. Good job and thanks.

[@TheDesignNinja]

Thank you so much-it's always great to receive feedback like this that validates my efforts. Much appreciated!

[@astridmonge2047]

Thank you for this! You made it so easy to digest, right down to the bit where you said, "bear with me a little longer as I'm going to show you so important info".

[@TheDesignNinja]

Glad you liked it-and thanks for taking the time to let me know, it's appreciated!

[@sikwescarter905]

Thank you very much. I was working on an annual report. And this made things look nicer and easier. Bless!

[@TheDesignNinja]

Glad it helped! :)

[@jollygyeonv_]

thankyou! it is super helpful!!

[@saeeda.2652]

Very useful, Thanks mate

[@nicolasbailleul1]

Thanks very nice tips !

[@sharonmc5192]

THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! This has been a godsend. I could not for the life of me figure out how to do these type of graphs, let alone did I know they were called Radial graphs. Really informative and well explained. Nice one! 'Subscribed' :)

[@TheDesignNinja]

Hey! You're very welcome and thank you very much for your kind words-much appreciated! Did you check out the recent video showing how to make these manually, but easily using the Dynamic Shapes plugin from Astute Graphics? It may be worth taking a look. :)

[@silviacazacu8903]

This is pure gold. Thank you so much!

[@TheDesignNinja]

You're most welcome and really happy that you found it useful. :)

[@MrYuan321]

brilliant tech!!! thank you !!!

[@Guuskerduu]

Tx for this this insight!

[@lacey490]

I love how you say, before you dive off and do the other two... haha already did it, you predicted it and it just made me laugh

[@TheDesignNinja]

Ah, as you can probably tell, it's not my first rodeo, and it's just a people thing. If it made you laugh, then you've made my day and thanks for letting me know. :)

[@Nabhishek]

Awesome Tutorial really helpful Thank you so much. the idea to keep changing the data was what i was looking for Cool !!!

[@whitedove288]

This was really good, thank you!!!!

[@fernandoborge5376]

Really useful congratulations!!

[@lauraslater779]

Hi thank you for such a great video, after I have made the radial bar graph and then edit the data in the graph through opening the library tab, it makes the others parts of the graph grey, that before i had as not fill. how do i prevent this from happening as it wont let me then edit that colour ???

[@TheDesignNinja]

Hi Laura! That's just a quirk of Illustrator, and it does that sometimes. You should always be able to edit the colour, though! Use the layers panel to get to the graph you want to change. Sometimes also applying a graphic style prevents the colour changing if the data is modified, so try that also.

[@lauraslater779]

@@TheDesignNinja Thank you so much for your reply, that is great to hear, I think I was having one of those why isn't it working moments lol. After looking at it with fresh eyes I realised all I needed to do was click no fill on that section again. Thank you again for creating such an easy to follow tutorial !!!

[@TheDesignNinja]

You're welcome and glad you're up-and-running again!

[@PhilTravisano]

Awesome.

[@dracoustics]

Just subscribed on this one video alone. So helpful - thank you! Is there a way to make the spacing between the each of the radial graphs a little larger? They are right on top of one another and, therefore, a little hard to differentiate.

[@marcuslai669]

my god. I've been living in cave... thank you so much

[@94Endgameboy]

Hi super cool tutorial thank you so much but I have a question, how do I change the size without ruining everything?

[@TheDesignNinja]

Hey, Zed-thank you! This is actually a commonly asked question, so no worries-you have to use the Scale tool. Select the items and tap "S" on tyour keyboard, followed by RETURN/ENTER; the Scale dialog will appear-change the uniform values to scale up or down from there. Hope that helps, and thanks for watching and commenting! :)

[@94Endgameboy]

Wow thx you're awesome !

[@lightbridge1672]

Really helpful...thanks bro

[@TheDesignNinja]

Thank you!

[@saltyannie]

Sooo so good, thank you!! Question- why use the group select tool instead of just the direct select tool?

[@TheDesignNinja]

Glad you liked it, and thanks for commenting. In answer to your question, in some cases you could use the Direct Selection Tool when working with Graphs/Charts, but it is best practise to use the Group Selection Tool, as it can do quite a few things with groups (like charts/graphs/grids) that the other cannot. My recommendation is that you develop a mindset/routine that says to you "when I'm working with graphs or charts, use the Group selection Tool"; trust me-it'll pay off-but of course it is entirely up to you. :)

[@olimueller]

good one, thanks for sharing!

[@TheDesignNinja]

You're welcome, Oli! :)

[@haneenmarghalani5075]

Thank you so much , its exactly what I need

[@TheDesignNinja]

Hey Haneen-you're welcome! Glad it helped. Please be sure to subscribe, and spread the word!

[@clockworkpink]

Great tutorial, exactly what I was after. Thank you so much for sharing! I'm subscribing :)

[@TheDesignNinja]

Hey-you're welcome-glad it helped.

[@lj1128]

hey! Great tutorial. Is there a way to change the colour of a single graph after typing in the data? Thanks.

[@TheDesignNinja]

Yep-use the group selection tool or the Layers Panel to target the graph you're after. :)

[@jordynalexxx]

@@TheDesignNinja Are you able to do this once the graph is 100% complete? I have a very complex radial bar graph so I have decided to alternate colours for ease of viewing. Trying to change the colours of a single bar/graph however it is changing the colour of the whole ring/circle and not just what is remaining after using the clipping mask. I am using the layers panel to target just the graph but I am having no luck.

[@sheskuni]

Hey there, I really appreciated your tutorial - I'm quite new at graphic design! There is just one thing I wanted to ask you: when ungrouping the polar grid tool, the best possibility I reach is "compound group" and it won't divide in any other section. If I try to go inside the inner level to select the circles one by one, they are still connected. Do you think you can suggest me another solution? Thank you so much!

[@TheDesignNinja]

Hey Eleonora. Thank you! In regards to your question, the grid tools usually create multi-level groups-use the ungroup command twice and you should be fine-let me know if that doesn't solve your problem.

[@badogblue]

Must say this was a fantastic video! Very clear and perfect pace. I'm just wondering if there is a way to alter the colour of individual charts once they are contained within the clipping mask? You see I have about 40 graphs in a spiral using your method, and anytime I edit the colour the whole circle changes as opposed to the individual graph segment (even if I select the edit contents as shown) Would very much appreciate your help :)

[@anggiehardien3064]

thanks mate.. very appreciate!!

[@TheDesignNinja]

You're welcome-glad you appreciated and keep watching :)

[@TheJelena719]

God bless you

[@TheDesignNinja]

Thank you! And also you.

[@arseify]

Super helpful!!

[@arseify]

Thanks

[@TheDesignNinja]

Hey-thank you! Happy that it helped. :)

[@nasreenshaikhattarriyah7079]

superb

[@TheDesignNinja]

Thank you! Much appreciated.

[@la.ana.logica]

you save my day, thanks¡

[@TheDesignNinja]

You're most welcome!

[@PhotoshopTrainingChannel]

Nice, brother! You have a new subscriber! :)

[@TheDesignNinja]

Thank you my brother! And such good company I keep! :)

[@MSaTTarKhan]

You also got a new sub :D

[@kobe736]

Hi ! i love your instructions and it is really clear but for some reason when I do the clipping mask step, the outer line disappears leaving me with only the pie chart. What have a done wrong? Thank you

[@TheDesignNinja]

Hey Kobe-thanks for the kind words and sorry that you're having problems with this. One of the most common errors with this is that you haven't completely ungrouped the polar grid successfully-check the video again at around 7:27-as I think that may be where the problem lays for you. Other than that, check that you have one of the rings and the chart you want to mask are bothe selected. If you're still struggling after checking those things, come on back. :)

[@LivingInMoscowID]

When I adjust the outside bar through your layer method the outside stroke comes back. Any ideas on how to fix this?

[@TheDesignNinja]

Hey. Sorry, just to clarify, do you mean when you modify the data associated with the largest masked pie? :)

[@amanazar2597]

thanks

[@TheDesignNinja]

Welcome

[@adityams1659]

I am actually surprised u have less number of subs

[@TheDesignNinja]

Aw, thank you-yes, me too! Oh well…

[@EmanDeMoan]

THANK YOU

[@boonz6116]

Thank you for your help. Uhmm can i ask for the A.I file on this please?

[@TheDesignNinja]

Hey-you're welcome and happy that I was able to help. Regrettably, this file isn't available for distribution, sorry!

[@andybrookins185]

Is it possible to specify Graph by degrees as opposed to percent ?

[@TheDesignNinja]

With the native tools it isn't, but you can check this video for alternative methods that show alternative methods and how to do your own calculations for percentages: kzbin.info/www/bejne/j2OueoBpg5yJhZI

[@thalitavale1917]

How do I find the percentage?

[@TheDesignNinja]

Well, that's more of a math question than an Illustrator question, but simply put if you want to find the percent of 86 out of 200, you'd first divide 86 by 200 [result: 0.43] then move the decimal point two places to the right [result: 43] and that's your percentage. Hope that helps. :)

[@arunkumarmaurya3755]

how can I scale the graph? shift and drag doesn't work

[@TheDesignNinja]

Firstly, sorry it's taken me a few days to reply, for some reason I wasn't notified of your comment! You need to use the Scale Tool. Select the Graph, then tap S on your keyboard-that enables the Scale Tool. You then have two choices, hold down the SHIFT key and click/drag to change the scale, or hit RETURN to use the dialog. :)

[@WalkingTheNarrow]

illustrator has a tool to do this

[@TheDesignNinja]

Trust me, this is the only way to do this in Illustrator connected to live data!

[@charles2790]

Oh.... Ctrl 7 didn't work 😢 and I don't know why

[@TheDesignNinja]

Hey Charles-try again and make sure that the items you need are selected. :)

[@hyphendash5815]

its not smart its really hard work.:(

[@TheDesignNinja]

I think you may be confusing smart with easy. While the first couple of times you do this it will seem fiddly, the benefits of keeping that data connection can far outweigh the setup time. But, you can't please all the people all the time so if it isn't for you, then that's fine.

[@Zzzannie]

nice tutorials but u tell some much stuff around it u could have easily done it under 5 mins

[@TheDesignNinja]

Hey, thanks. It's tricky, as some people want an explanation around the techniques, and others just want the details. All I can say is that I meet and hear from far more who want the whole explanation, so I write the content to go along with that. I'll work on getting the time down, though-five minutes is a good target to aim at.

[@GeminiAngel619]

I disagree - I enjoy the explanations. Please continue to do exactly what you're doing. The worst videos on KZbin are those that play music, or have no sound at all, don't explain anything, and leave people guessing. Thank you for being thorough. I create content for a nonprofit and your videos have been very helpful to me as I prepare an infographic for an incredibly important presentation. If we get this grant, it will be because you've helped me to present the information in such a way as to be easily (graphically) understood -- I couldn't have done it without you! :)

[@TheDesignNinja]

Thank you so much! I'm really glad that I've been able to help and I do hope that your project is a success. It is tricky to get the balance right and I do examine where I could improve to get a better middle-ground that suits everyone, but the explanations are an important aspect if you want to go beyond making just the thing in the tutorial. I'm very appreciative that you have just validated that for me and again, thank you! Keep watching! :)