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I'm very new to using Illustrator and have been trying to make some scientific graphs. I have a scatter graph here that looks alright, but the markers on the graph are just too small! To get the different markers, I made the shapes and then converted them into a design, then changed the bland square markers into that design. But they're frankly too tiny, and I need them bigger. Is there any way to increase the marker size? My first idea was to just scale the markers, but when you scale an object, it doesn't stay centered where it was before. This is unacceptable for a chart that is supposed to accurate represent my data. Now I could manually copy all the markers, scale them up, then TRY to overlay them on top of the old markers perfectly, but that sounds really tedious and will result in a lot of small errors in marker placement. But is there any better alternative?

Any help would be much appreciated!

Test Scatter Graph

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    Why are you not using symbols?
    – joojaa
    Commented Jul 24, 2021 at 9:29
  • @joojaa I could not find suitable symbols in the default available libraries, and it's simple enough to make triangles and x's. All that aside, it seems that the markers in a graph cannot be edited using the Transform Each feature, so I think I have no choice other than to manually put some kind of symbol, shape, etc. on top of each marker myself so that they can be manipulated. :(
    – KumaAra
    Commented Aug 4, 2021 at 15:34
  • you do know that once youve drawn a triangle you can designate it as a symbol. Ive never used the default livrary items for anything.
    – joojaa
    Commented Aug 4, 2021 at 15:48
  • @joojaa Like I said, the whole issue became irrelevant once I realized that markers in graphs cannot be resized as a group. So whether it's a symbol or not doesn't really matter in this case. Thankfully, someone explained to me how to create larger customer markers, so my problem was solved eventually! :)
    – KumaAra
    Commented Aug 5, 2021 at 19:44
  • Yeah its a bit interesting design to not let user place pivot on things and force them to use dummy objects to force bb centre. Anyway, do yourself a favor dont use the graph functions of illustrator. Roll your own.
    – joojaa
    Commented Aug 5, 2021 at 20:07

2 Answers 2

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  1. Select all the objects you want to enlarge, then do Object > Transform > Transform each

  2. Type in a percentage for the enlargement in both the horizontal and vertical

  3. Make sure the centre reference point is checked to ensure the scaled objects will remain centred

  4. Enable the preview to check it, then hit OK

Note: if some of your markers consist of strokes, make sure you also check the Scale Strokes and Effects option.

enter image description here

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  • Triangles will not scale correctly as the center of a triangle and the center of its boundingbox dont coencide. See graphicdesign.stackexchange.com/questions/91467/… and graphicdesign.stackexchange.com/questions/1668/…
    – joojaa
    Commented Jul 24, 2021 at 9:46
  • @joojaa - yeah I know, but as long as the scaling is not massive, it will only be small difference. The positions of triangles might need to be adjusted afterwards manually if absolute accuracy is required.
    – Billy Kerr
    Commented Jul 24, 2021 at 9:52
  • @joojaa - that script you reference certainly looks like a good solution for triangles
    – Billy Kerr
    Commented Jul 24, 2021 at 9:55
  • Yeah but they are most likely fonts of somekind. We jyst dont know.
    – joojaa
    Commented Jul 24, 2021 at 9:58
  • @joojaa - yup, possibly. Using symbols as you suggested in your comment is probably the best approach, but too late if the artwork is already made.
    – Billy Kerr
    Commented Jul 24, 2021 at 10:00
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I posted this question on the Adobe help forums, and someone gave me an answer that actually worked! Here's what you have to do:

When you create custom markers, they are scaled in reference to the original marker size that Illustrator creates when you make a graph.

So what you have to do is draw a square, make it invisible (no stroke, no fill) and draw your custom design as large as you want it to be compared to it. When defining your custom marker, the invisible square has to be the bottommost object and you have to select it along with the elements that make your custom design.

It's straightforward when you draw the square in the exact same size as Illustrator's default marker, but you don't have to.

Here's the response on the forum for reference: https://community.adobe.com/t5/illustrator/how-to-increase-marker-size-in-illustrator-scatter-graph/m-p/12196114#M284815

I just tested it out, and it really works! My new marker designs came out much larger than the default marker size!

P.S. I'm also confirming here that Transform Each does not work on graph markers, unfortunately.

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