Drawing Tools
By the Syncfusion DevTutorials team · Last updated
Draw on PDF pages with freehand ink, rectangles, circles, arrows, and lines, then review a whole newsletter in the Chapter 4 project.
PDF drawing tools let you point out parts of a page without changing its text. For example, circle a number that needs checking, draw a box around a space for a photo, or use an arrow to point to something. In this lesson, you'll practise drawing shapes, lines, and freehand marks with a mouse or stylus. You'll also learn how to change their color and thickness, move or resize them, and delete them. In the Chapter 4 project, you'll use these tools to review a newsletter.
Drawings are annotations, like the comments and markup from the last two lessons: they sit on top of the page, appear in the Comments panel, and can carry comments of their own.
Where the drawing tools are
Both drawing tools live on one toolbar. Click Edit Annotation in the main toolbar. On the second toolbar:
| Button | What it draws |
|---|---|
| Add Shapes (the shapes icon, with an arrow) | Opens a list: Line, Arrow, Rectangle, Circle, and Polygon (a closed shape with several straight sides) |
| Draw Ink (the pen) | Freehand lines, like a pen on paper |
You can use the drawing tools on any page, including scanned pages, where text markup doesn't work.
Start with the two shapes you'll use most: the rectangle and the circle.
Rectangle
A rectangle frames an area: a space for a photo, a table to check, a paragraph to move.
- Click Add Shapes and choose Add Rectangle.
- Press the mouse where one corner should be, drag to the opposite corner, and let go.
The rectangle is drawn as an outline, so the content inside stays visible.
Circle
Use Circle to draw a round or oval outline around one small item, such as a date, a price, or a typo.
- Click Add Shapes and choose Add Circle.
- Drag a box around the thing; the circle fits inside it.
You can also draw arrows and lines to point out, connect, or emphasize parts of a document.
Arrow and line
- An arrow points from one place to another: "this goes here", "look at this".
- A line separates or underlines, or links two things.
Click Add Shapes, choose Add Arrow or Add Line, then drag from the start to the end. Hold Shift while dragging to keep a line perfectly straight across or down (in most apps).
One more drawing tool works in a different way: instead of choosing a shape, you draw with the mouse as if it were a pen.
Freehand drawing
Draw Ink works like a pen: anything you drag is drawn exactly as you move.
- Click Draw Ink (the pen).
- Drag to draw: a tick, a cross, a quick sketch, or your initials.
- Click Draw Ink again when you've finished. Everything you drew becomes one ink drawing.
Freehand is perfect on a tablet with a stylus. With a mouse, keep it simple: ticks, crosses, and short marks.
For neat feedback, prefer shapes over freehand: a rectangle or circle looks tidy at any zoom, while mouse handwriting is hard to read.
Once a drawing is on the page, you can restyle it.
Change color, thickness, and opacity
Click a drawing to select it (small handles appear around it). The Edit Annotation toolbar then shows:
| Button | Changes |
|---|---|
| Change Stroke Color | The color of the outline or line |
| Change Border Thickness | How thick the line is, in points |
| Change Opacity | How see-through it is |
| Change Color (shapes) | The fill: the color inside a rectangle or circle |
Agree colors with your team if you can, for example red for problems and green for "approved".
After creating a drawing, you can adjust it further by moving, resizing, or deleting it.
Move, resize, and delete drawings
With a drawing selected:
- Move it: drag it from the middle.
- Resize it: drag one of its square handles.
- Delete it: press the Delete key, or click Delete annotation (the bin).
Ctrl + Z undoes the last change if a drag goes wrong.
A drawing on its own can be unclear. Add a comment to it in the Comments panel ("Put the team photo here, 10 × 6 cm"), so the meaning doesn't depend on guessing.
The sandbox's Edit Annotation toolbar also has Free Text (a text box on the page), Add Stamp (ready-made stamps such as Approved and Draft), and Add Links. They work the same way as shapes: choose the tool, then click or drag on the page.
Common mistakes
| Mistake | What happens | How to fix it |
|---|---|---|
| Ink tool still on | Every drag draws another line | Click Draw Ink again to finish |
| Dragging a shape to move it, but a handle is grabbed | The shape changes size | Undo, then drag from the middle |
| Filling a shape with a solid color | The text under it disappears | Set Change Color to no fill, or lower the opacity |
| Thin, pale lines | Nobody notices the mark | Choose a stronger color or a thicker line |
| Drawings without comments | The writer has to guess what you meant | Add a comment in the Comments panel |
Exercise
Here is your chance to add drawings to a document yourself.
Click Open the practice PDF below to open the newsletter draft, and go to page 4, Volunteers Wanted. Then do each task and press Check.
Chapter project
Put Chapter 4 together. Priya, the editor, has asked you to review the whole newsletter draft before it goes to print. Answer her comments, mark up the problems you find, and send the reviewed file back.
Review a Newsletter Draft
What to remember
- Edit Annotation > Add Shapes draws lines, arrows, rectangles, circles, and polygons.
- Draw Ink draws freehand; click it again to finish.
- Select a drawing to change its color, thickness, and opacity, to move or resize it, or to delete it.
- Drawings work on any page, even scans.
- Add a comment to a drawing so its meaning is clear.
That's the end of Chapter 4. In Chapter 5, you'll fill in PDF forms and sign documents.