The mask is now selected, and you can transform it in different ways separate from the image.

Click the Edit clipping path button at the top of the Properties panel.The image is now selected, and you can scale, rotate, move, and replace the image. With the Selection tool selected, and the masked image selected, click the Edit contents button at the top of the Properties panel to edit the image within the mask.With a mask applied to an image using the Mask command, you can then edit both the mask and the image, the image alone, or just the masking shape. With the Selection tool selected, click away from the image and then click back on it to see Clip group at the top of the Properties panel.The image and that shape are grouped together as a special kind of group called a ”clip group.” It doesn’t look like anything happened, but you will see a change when you edit the mask or image next. A shape is created that is the size and shape of the image. Click Mask in the Quick actions section of the Properties panel.

Select the image you want to apply the mask to.Masking can be useful because it lets you edit the hidden parts of the image later.

Masking an image involves hiding parts of an image with a shape, also called a mask. Click Apply and the image is permanently cropped.

In the Properties panel, while cropping, you can decrease the resolution if you like using the PPI setting.

A cropping box appears on the image, and you can drag crop handles on the image to remove the parts you don’t want.

Illustrator identifies the visually significant portions of the selected image.

Click OK to embed the image and continue or Cancel to leave the image linked and stop the cropping process. If it’s linked, a dialog box with a warning appears. An image must be embedded to crop it using this method. Click Crop image in the Quick actions section of the Properties panel. This is useful for cutting off parts of an image for fitting or to improve composition. With an image either placed ( File > Place) or pasted into Illustrator, you can crop it using the Crop image feature. Let’s explore both to see how they are different. There are two main methods for cropping or hiding parts of an image in Illustrator: Crop image, which permanently deletes parts of an image, and masking, which lets you edit what is cropped later.

How to crop adobe illustrator