Illustrator Essential Training vs Logo Design with Draplin: Secrets of Shape, Type and Colour

Tony Harmer walks through Illustrator's core in a logical sequence — artboards, selection, shapes and line tools, path drawing and transformation, color models, gradients, strokes, brushes, layers and groups, patterns, appearances, transparency, type, image placement and export — and the 2024/2025 editions add a section on generative AI content. Across five released versions the official rating sits at 4.8/5 (2024: 1,148 ratings; 2021: 1,914; 2022: 1,676; 2023: 1,320), an unusually high and stable signal. Reviewers describe the material as dense and thorough; the main critique is that some assignment toolbars don't match the learner's default setup, and that experienced users hit familiar ground before the advanced sections.

Tony Harmer — a certified Adobe Creative Suite Master with 40+ years in the creative industry and close ties to the Illustrator product team — is the standout asset. Reviewers repeatedly single out his delivery as "detailed, easy to follow, and even entertaining," and even a 17-year Illustrator veteran reported learning new tricks. His voice, pacing and articulation draw consistent praise. The only recurring instructor complaint is occasional mismatch between his on-screen toolbars and a fresh install, which can briefly confuse beginners.

LinkedIn Learning is $39.99/month or roughly $19.99/month billed annually, and the course is also bundled with LinkedIn Premium Career and free through many public-library cards. For learners who already hold a LinkedIn subscription or library access, this 5–7 hour course is excellent value and the completion certificate posts straight to a LinkedIn profile. Paying the standalone monthly fee for this one course is less compelling — independent reviewers call the subscription "more on the expensive side" and "expensive if used infrequently," and the certificate is not accredited. The equation flips for prolific learners who tap the 20,000+ course catalogue.

Each lesson ships with downloadable exercise files and the course includes 22 quizzes for self-assessment, so learners practice alongside the instructor rather than just watching. The gap, flagged by multiple reviewers, is open-ended project work: the exercises are instructor-led replications rather than briefs that push learners to design their own piece, and one reviewer asked directly for "more practice sessions or more question examples." There is no portfolio-grade capstone and no instructor feedback on submitted work.

The skills taught — vector paths, transformations, color, type, brushes, patterns and export for print and web — are genuinely foundational and transfer directly to real Illustrator work. Reviewers describe the tool demonstrations as practical and immediately usable, and a decade-lapsed user called it a strong refresher on newer tools like the curvature tool. The certificate carries professional signalling value on LinkedIn but is not an accredited credential, so it complements rather than replaces demonstrated portfolio work.

Tight 70-minute walk-through of one logo (a family crest) from research to vector polish. Praised across the corpus for clarity and density of Illustrator tips. Capped because the syllabus is narrow — no full brand-system work, no presentation deck, no client process.

Draplin is the single most-cited reason to take the class. Reviewers converge on the same descriptors — funny, no-nonsense, generous, "honest and electrifying" in Skillshare's own framing. Nine years of consistently positive coverage from HN to Logo Design Love.

Included in the Skillshare subscription (~$14/month after trial). A single 70-minute class is hard to compare to multi-month bootcamps, but for the price the catalogue access alone — five Draplin classes plus thousands of others — makes the value case clear.

One end-to-end project — a family crest — produces a shareable portfolio artefact, and the Skillshare projects tab has hundreds of completed submissions to learn from. Capped because peer feedback is minimal and there is only one brief, not a series.

Illustrator shortcuts (Envelope Distort, Offset Path, "keep it live") and the simplification mindset transfer directly to client work. Limit is scope — the class does not cover briefs, presentations, revisions or brand systems, which a real logo job demands.