A menu item/keystroke target to enter/exit an object's Opacity Mask.
I use a lot of opacity masks these days. It'd smooth out my workflow a lot if there was an entry in the Keyboard Shortcuts that did the same as opening up the Opacity palette far enough to see its thumbnails, and clicking on the opacity mask thumbnail.
Detailed implementation suggestions:
- a menu item in the Transparency palette that either reads "Enter Opacity Mask" or "Exit Opacity Mask" depending on whether or not we're currently editing an opacity mask
- a keyboard shortcuts entry for Other Panels/Toggle Opacity Mask
- NO DEFAULT SHORTCUT, new users would hit it by accident and then be very confused.

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Margaret Trauth commented
really just 'esc' to exit it would be great, as would a UI at the top similar to isolation/pattern edit/symbol edit/etc, consistency is nice
I'm back here because I still really want this, a lot of my opacity masks are done with Astute's Opacity Brush which makes smooth organic opacity masks *super* easy but when I want a non-bitmapped opacity mask, or to draw more precise shapes, I'm using the traditional way to make and edit the mask and it is such a HASSLE.
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Dakota commented
Yes yes, exactly what Oleg recommended. Something similar to how isolation mode works, where there's UI in the top left stating you're in the opacity layer and a way to click out of it.
"There needs to be a more explicit way of displaying the opacity mask editing mode and exiting it. As in isolation mode, for example."
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Also Disable / Make / Release, please.
Last two can be wrapped in an action, but one-command actions are just bandages. -
Oleg Krasnov commented
There needs to be a more explicit way of displaying the opacity mask editing mode and exiting it. As in isolation mode, for example.
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Margaret Trauth commented
Oh and also it would be nice if entering/exiting an Opacity Mask could be recorded in actions.