Illustrate with photoshop genius guide vol 1 - 2013

Huge collection of Photoshop tutorials, tips and tricks to make you a better digital artist

Illustrate with

Now part of the Creative Cloud family, Adobe Photoshop is undoubtedly the most

popular image-editing software around The appeal of Photoshop lies in the fact that it is

simple enough for a beginner to use to re-touch images as well as for a professional who

wants to manipulate and add advanced f nishing touches to their work With its plethora

of tools and capabilities, it’s a software that gives the user an inf nite level of control

Illustrate with Photoshop Genius Guide is written for advanced users who are looking to

take their Photoshop skills to the next level The illustration section will show you how to

use assets to create artwork Infographics are the new fad and we have an entire feature on

it from the best artists in the industry Photoshop also lets you experiment with typefaces

and we’ll show you how to create some wonderful types of your own Mixed media is a

fun section that will show you how to ef ortlessly blend graphics and images to create

professional f nished products If you want to re-create the tutorials exactly as they are,

don’t worry, we’ve got all the assets used in the book on the free disc, along with premium

typefaces, 53 brushes, a texture pack and stock images for you to use in your projects

®

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be reproduced in whole or part without the written permission of the publisher All copyrights are recognised and used specifically for the purpose of criticism and review Although the bookazine has endeavoured to ensure all information is correct at time of print, prices and availability may change This bookazine is fully independent and not affiliated in any way with the companies mentioned herein Photoshop is either a registered trademark or trademark of Adobe Systems Incorporated

in the United States and/or other countries and is used with express permission.

Illustrate with Photoshop Genius Guide Volume 1 Revised Edition © 2013 Imagine Publishing Ltd

ISBN 978-1908222886

tips & tricks

Artists in the industry share

their secrets to using

Adobe Photoshop

204 86

120

FEATURE

156 Applying Mixed Media

166 Blending Mixed Media

172 Paint Textures

176 Master Polygons

182 Graphics and Photos

188 Type and Photos

192 The Pen Tool

198 Advanced Selections

204 Zero-Gravity Effects

ARTISTS IN THE INDUSTRY SHARE THEIR SECRETS TO USING PHOTOSHOP IN ORDER TO ENHANCE THEIR ILLUSTRATIONS, WHICH RANGE FROM EDITORIAL WORK TO PACKAGING AND HIGH PROFILE ADVERTISING

©

cent

e Gar M

15 illustration tips & tricks

VINCENTE GARCIA

MORILLO

www.vicentegarciamorillo.com

To promote DJ sessions by electronic music

label Black Book Sessions, Vicente Garcia

Morillo created the Alive Objects series,

which encapsulates the artists and presents them as

just one entity: “In this case, I was playing with the

combination of elements that represent two of the

most popular musicians in Chicago and the L.A

scene, respectively.”

“The first step is always to conceptualise the piece

I consider this one of the most important phases of

the development process as this is the base of the

piece I like to invest all the time that’s necessary to

come up with a good idea Once I have the concept, I

start doing sketches of the composition and also the

analogue elements, such as drawing and painting, in

case I want them later I create the vector elements

in Illustrator then import and edit them in Photoshop,

fitting them together like a jigsaw, then apply effects

like gradients, layer styles, shadows and noise I like

to experiment, mixing methods and software in my

projects, adding elements like pencil drawings to my

artworks when I get the opportunity I usually play

with Photoshop to edit the compositional elements

and finish my pieces, but I avoid photographic

finishes as I like to preserve an illustrated element.”

1 INVEST IN

A CONCEPT

DIEGO L RODRIGUEZ

www.paranoidme.com

Diego L Rodriguez set about creating options for HBO’s How To Make It In America and

drew on inspiration from the Big Apple: “Once I presented this idea, the agency loved it and they gave me the green light to create the poster The brief came with some promotional images for the second season of the show They were good, but not exactly what I had in mind

However, having the figure of Kid Cudi as a graphic inspired me to gather extra material I had the structure clear: start with the character’s portrait, then the body had to be connected to the buildings in some way, and New York’s iconic symbols, and finally the slogan below the illustration For the New York buildings, I had a ton of pictures that I took back in 2009 I use a specific technique to manage shadows and highlights – I began using it years ago for high-end retouching in skin or objects, then applied it to manipulations and illustration work Create a new layer above your illustration Go to Edit>Fill>50% Grey and click OK Put this grey layer in Soft Light mode and reduce the Opacity to 30-50% Take a soft brush, with Opacity 30-70%, and paint in those zones where you would like to increase the shadows or highlights using only grayscale tones This technique

is similar to Dodge and Burn, but allows more control over certain zones without affecting the main layer.”

2 MANAGE SHADOWS AND HIGHLIGHTS

ANDREA FEMERSTRAND

www.noukah.blogspot.co.ukConcept artist and illustrator Andrea Femerstrand regularly contributes illustrations to short stories aimed at younger readers This piece was created for a short story in Swedish kids and teen magazine KP (KamratPosten):

“There’s always a section where young readers’ stories are published

Usually, they’re around 10 to 14 years old I use Photoshop for drawing

and painting and do all my work from scratch, the old fashioned way

Layers, custom brushes and adjustment layers make my work much

faster and more efficient I don’t have many secrets; mostly, I just paint.”

3 PAINT YOUR ILLUSTRATION MARK VERHAAGEN

www.markverhaagen.com

Tasked with creating 36 robot playing cards for kids magazine

Bonbeck, Mark Verhaagen, the brain behind the Zoobles toy

line, had to build in originality and then deliver uniformity “The challenge here,” says Mark, “was to create 36 different robots, each of them looking interesting I started sketching a lot of robots, focusing on shape and character, bold versus fragile, round versus square shapes, etc I had to think about how the robots would move and do things, which also helped determine their looks I tried to keep things simple, as the final illustrations wouldn’t be that big All the robots and card designs were made in Illustrator using fairly basic shapes and shading.”

Mark then turned to Photoshop for the final touches To save time and to make sure each card looked the same, he recorded Actions to use as part of his workflow

“I primarily used Photoshop for adding texture and a glow effect around the robots,”

he explains “As I was working with 36 different files, I saved a lot of time by using Actions for these things I also used an automate batch Action to save all the files into formats.” The cards were featured in Bonbek magazine, where kids could cut

out the different cards to play with Later, an actual card game was produced too.”

4 MAKE USE OF ACTIONS

■ Line drawing

I always start out with a rough sketch or line drawing After that, I paint a rough colour scheme to decide upon colours and overall lighting This illustration had to cover a whole spread, with a lot of empty space so that the text could

be added on top of it

■ Block colours

When I’m satisfied, I move back to

the line drawing, lower the opacity

and create new layers underneath

it, and then start blocking

everything in with clean, solid

colours I lock the transparency

for each layer and when I’m done

with that, it’s time to paint

■ Add form and shading

I start fleshing out the painting, working a lot with form and shading I create a separate layer

on top of everything to serve as

my ‘light’ in the piece Separating the regular layers from the light is extremely helpful, since you can work on one thing at a time

BRIAN MILLER

www.orlincultureshop.com

Artist, illustrator and

owner of The Orlin

Culture Shop Brian Miller created Totes

Adorbots, a two-hour style exploration in

response to a call for ‘cute vintage robots’, for

a potential picture book “I worked from start

to finish in Photoshop CS6 using my Wacom

Cintiq,” he tells us “I use the Lasso tool to

quickly create sharp edges where I need

them However, it’s the years of study,

practice and exploration that

are most vital, no matter

what tool or medium

■ Mixed-media Though I often sketch with traditional materials, I love the challenge of trying to create pieces in Photoshop that blur the lines between traditional and digital mediums.

■ Keep it simple

I use a limited number of brushes in

Photoshop to keep my approach as simple as

possible This allows me to focus on the strength

of the drawing and design, not the tools.

MARK VERHAAGEN

www.markverhaagen.com

When faced with a brief to create an image out

of a sound, Mark Verhaagen used his imagination to turn the project into a vintage science illustration Audio designer David Kamp (davidkamp.de) came up with the Sound Creatures project in which he first created imaginary creature sounds He then sent these audio files to selected illustrators, including Mark, who used them as inspiration to create images of fictional animals The illustrations and corresponding sounds can be seen on www.sound-creatures.com “The audio file that I got featured some sort of sad trumpet sound, so a trumpet-like nose was my starting point for the look of the animal”, he says Once he’d created the main shapes of the animals and plants in Illustrator, Mark exported his various objects to Photoshop “I added shading using the Airbrush tool and then locked transparent pixels in the Layers palette so I could easily paint within the shape of an object Drawing the birds’ feathers was a bit more tricky, but as soon as you have one feather in a particular shape, you can re-use it Use the Free Transform, Skew and Warp tools to make each feather look different to the last, and draw some extra detail here and there to diversify them further When the illustration was ready I added some textures so it would have a nice, old look.”

6 LOCK TRANSPARENT PIXELS

TOMSKI AND POLANSKI

www.tomskipolanski.com

In order to create eye-catching packaging for a new vegan brand started by a friend of theirs, Ila and Luke of Tomski & Polanski envisioned a vintage feel: “We

started with classic floral patterns and then changed the

flowers for cupcakes and cocoa, before adding quality

typography We used Photoshop to draw in the details of

patterns, to complete the composition and for the final

colouring and post-production, and used a lot of custom

brushes and a variety of preset Actions and filters Since

we use a lot of textures we often add Smart Object layers,

which saves us a lot of work.”

7 USE SMART OBJECTS

15 illustration tips & tricks

A trumpet-like nose was

my starting point for the animal’s look

STEVE SIMPSON

www.stevesimpson.com

Steve Simpson was given a brief

to create packaging for a frozen

yoghurt start-up that required a loud message to

kids declaring its contents yummy while also telling

parents it was healthy: “To do this, I decided to create

kid-friendly, energetic, cartoon-ish characters but

make the fruit more realistic

“I was brought into the project by Dublin design

agency IDEA,” Steve tells us “I was trusted to create

the look and feel for the project while the agency

looked after the client liaison and production After

scanning my pencil sketch and setting up the size,

colour mode and resolution of the artwork – usually

at least twice the size that’s needed – I copied the

sketch to a new layer, reduced the Opacity and

Multiply’d the layer This allowed me to trace the

artwork onto multiple layers beneath it Once I had

the eyes, eyebrows, mouth, head, jumper, etc on

separate layers I looked at tweaking and balancing

the colours.” Steve also has some advice on colour:

“Try to pick a limited palette of colours before you

start I put mine in a small swatch somewhere in the

image as a reminder while I’m working on it I then

swap the colours around between elements until I’m

happy with the balance Don’t be afraid to experiment

– grass isn’t always green and cows can be blue.”

■ Final product The three flavours of Chilly Moo yoghurt – Strawberry, Banana Strawberry and Mixed Berry – are easily identifiable

by their completely distinct but also complementary colour palettes.

■ Label Top Each of the Chilly Moo characters was adapted so that it would fit the different areas of the packaging, such

as the lid label.

pencil sketches – lots and lots of them Over a couple

of days my extremely rough ideas are moulded into something more solid and presentable Usually, I’ll present my rough sketches, but with this project I wanted to take them a little further.

■ Defined colour palette

I coloured the sketches to show how the characters could represent different flavours through the use

of colour, and how that colour would come together as a palette.

MAX GREGOR

www.maxgregor.comMax Gregor’s fashion illustrations are a harmonious mix of traditional sketches and digital finishes: “Here,

I started with drawings of the different elements of

the model’s outfit: her body drawn in pencil, an ink

drawing of her shawl and a few brush patterns

drawn in blue gauche I then scanned all the images

and cleaned them with Levels, then used the Eraser

to remove messy lines and dust left from the scan A

Color Overlay was key to this image as it allowed me

to add a flat graphic feel and still maintain the loose

organic detail of the brush stroke.”

9 UTILISE COLOR OVERLAY

SYD BRAK

www.sydbrak.co.uk

For this delicious array of fruit, Syd Brak reached for the Filter menu: “The idea was to illustrate a product’s ingredients in a clean, healthy and appetising way

I created rough images then enriched the colours

to an attractive and appetising level while retaining

a believable realism It was important to ensure the light source was constant on every object, with an enhanced gloss to emphasise the liquidity and create a sunny feel I rely fairly heavily on the subtleties of the Filter dialog to achieve a realistic but painter-like quality, and avoid a plastic feel.”

11 DELVE INTO FILTERS

WANCHANA INTRASOMBAT

www.kun-victorior.comWanchana Intrasombat, aka Vic, created a series of character designs for a project entitled Life One is a mischievous boy scout on a trip with his classmates: “My paintings and illustrations are all done with Photoshop and a Wacom Intuos It’s the main tool I use and I just used the normal Brush here I also use the standard brush to sketch, and sometimes create my own brushes for projects For

me, the Brush is Photoshop’s most important tool; I use it for all my work as though it was a traditional tool It’s similar to using real pencils and brushes.”

10 SKETCH WITH WACOM

SASHA VINOGRADOVA

www.behance.net/MelaMelWorking to create four characters in a detailed environment under the heading of Mercenaries, Sasha Vinogradova choose a funny and quirky style: “The first step was character design and deciding how they would look Next I made a rough sketch of compositions, colours and lights and then created my scene and 3D models in 3DS Max and ZBrush I set up lights and materials in a 3D scene then rendered my image After that I added details like eyes, grass and hair, and also some postproduction edits like air perspective and colour/contrast correction I created all the sketches and textures for elements such as the scarf in Photoshop I also added some details in postproduction When you create an image, try to keep the final result as clear as you can in your mind and never ignore composition I love to add details, but if you start adding them too soon without keeping the entire image in mind then you risk losing the integrity of your image Finding your favourite artists and researching their work is

a great way to improve your own.”

13 ILLUSTRATE

IN 3D

15 illustration tips & tricks

VINCENTE GARCIA MORILLO

www.vicentegarciamorillo.com

Vicente Garcia Morillo worked on Converse’s Pro Leather campaign: “I had to present a graphic interpretation of the Converse logo based on concepts relating to urban street culture Here, I represented basketball

Once I got the concept, I did sketches of the composition on paper for the client After the concept was approved I started to develop the digital phase I created all the vector elements in Adobe Illustrator and then imported these into Photoshop Here I applied the Noise filter, which helps to provide a uniform aspect and give the artwork some vibration.”

YANA BEYLINSON

www.liquidpixelstudio.netYana Beylinson, principal of Liquid Pixel Studios, took the vision of a family-owned business and turned it into packaging for their range: “Casacao is a family-owned producer of organic cocoa beans, nibs and powder The farm is located

in the Dominican Republic, with its headquarters in New York The initial brief had multiple references to the organic nature of the business and admiration of the beauty and health benefits of cacao plants Photoshop was a cornerstone of the process, as it is for all my illustration and pattern work After the drawing is scanned in, the entire process of rendering, separating the elements and colouring is done in Photoshop

The pattern is also created in Photoshop, with careful attention paid to detail and the placement of elements Each element, such as the outline

or silhouette of a bean, is cleaned and placed in a separate layer One simple plant illustration can use up to 10 layers I use the Color Overlay (in the Layer Style menu) technique to colour each layer; it’s the most time-effective and easy-to-change method For patterns, I duplicate each plant, create a layer group for each, then try different positions The resulting files are very large so I make flattened TIFFs for production.”

COLOR OVERLAY

■ Logo applicationThe next step was the typography and logo design Several versions were suggested and a seal option was selected Several variations and colourings were then presented

■ Pencil drawingThe lovely shapes of cocoa branches and beans was a starting point It was suggested to create a line drawing that depicts a branch

A series of pencil drafts was created before a perfect depiction was selected and rendered in pen and ink

■ Package label

An intricate pattern based on the cacao branch illustration was decided upon Again, several versions and colour options were shown in order to select the strongest version

© Yana Beylinson

■ Work in lead

I create the base of my illustrations

using 5H to 8B pencils This helped

me achieve a fantastic tonal range,

adding the depth and textures that

clients request.

■ Clean up For the retouching stage I use tools such

as the Clone Stamp and Healing Brush to remove unwanted imperfections caused

by the traditional stage.

■ Add colour

I add base colours using a Selective Color adjustment, altering the White, Neutral and Black channels I create these colour layers until I achieve the desired look.

■ Pen Pressure

I tend to use a hard

round brush with Pen

Pressure set to Add

Details and like to add

softened tonal areas, as

seen in the waves.

Mitchell Nelson was asked by

California-based publisher

Devious Publications to create a

quirky and unique logo, which had to tell a story

reflecting classical and vintage qualities: “I drew the

illustration with pencils and then scanned this into

Photoshop for postproduction and retouching

Subtlety is the key; I try to remember why I start with

pencil in the first place and enhance its qualities

rather than destroy them However, if you are after a

highly digital piece but still mix with traditional

media, strong contrasts of the two can give

contemporary looks.”

© Mitche

ll Nelson

Discover expressive design

44

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EDITORIAL

ILLUSTRATION WE EXPLORE THE BEST INDUSTRY ROUTES AND WORKING

PRACTICES WITH OUR GROUP OF PROFESSIONAL EDITORIAL ARTISTS,

AS THEY REVEAL THEIR COMMERCIAL STYLES AND TOP TIPS

You might think editorial illustration is

constrained by certain rules and

conventions, predetermined by clients and

established templates However, the boom of

various digital formats is redefining the terms

Common sketch-based art is matched with richer

visual devices and a multitude of illustrative styles

are employed – cartoon, mixed media, graphic

design and super-digital methods are all acceptable

There’s still a great respect, though, for the original

art forms, with digital styles often replicating

traditional application

One tradition that certainly hasn’t changed is the

impact such imagery serves Cover art still needs to

entice readers to pick up a book or magazine, with

artists needing to present a product or brand’s

attitude and persona in one compact visual – no

easy feat All editorial artwork is used to capture the

personality and character of the publication, piquing

consumers’ interest and proving it’s worthy enough

for them to pick up and, ultimately, buy In this

feature, we delve into what defines current

commercial standards, delivering you in-depth

industry advice to give you a head-start in your own

editorial design career

When it comes to making it as a commercially

viable editorial illustrator, it seems you can do it the

easy way, or the hard way Never to deter

self-initiated careers – which can be fruitful when

coupling robust aesthetics with an enthusiastic

work ethic – following these blindly can result in

misunderstanding a variety of practices

and conventions Many of our professional

artists present a strong case for education,

in order to really appreciate applied

techniques and working standards

Renowned illustrator Andy Potts (www

andy-potts.com) is one such artist

Graduating from Portsmouth University,

UK, with a BA in Illustration, he explains:

“This Illustration course was ideal as it

was tailored to answering editorial briefs

and working to commercial demands, while

encouraging you to develop a visual language and

style That course has changed [since I attended], but I’m sure there are similar illustration or arts-based courses that would fit the bill.”

Caricaturist and member of the Society of Illustrators NY, Jason Seiler (www.jasonseiler.com) did the same in a roundabout way He self-studied and copied drawings produced by published artists, such as Roberto Parada and C F Payne, which extensively improved his appreciation of industry styles This was enough for him to get exposure and paid work via smaller publications such as

Cracked magazine While he openly admits to not

having a definitive plan of action when starting out,

he knew education was vital “At the age of 26, I decided to attend the American Academy of Art in Chicago,” Seiler says “I got a lot out of my life-drawing classes there; it was just the thing that I needed The classes taught me a lot about values, colour and light.”

PROFITABLE AGENTS

So is education the only means to this end?

Perhaps, as Seiler goes on to reveal: “During my third year of school, I went to New York City to attend the annual show of The Society of Illustrators When I was there I met many big artists and art directors – all of them asking why I was going to school They all thought I should be working full time The ironic thing was that I was turning down jobs so that I could do schoolwork, in order to get a degree in illustration, so that one day I

could get work It didn’t make any sense!”

Realistically, for most artists seeking a career,

graduation is just the beginning of the road, as Andrew Archer (www.andrewarcher.com), freelance illustrator from New Zealand, puts into perspective: “I think it’s always been an entry point into illustration, as it’s one of the more common and fast-moving mediums within the industry With that

in mind I also think editorial illustration is one of the most difficult and challenging areas; it proves a great test to see if you have what it takes out of [the] school [environment].”

So how do you close this gap and reach out to clients? Our artists were again all in agreement that exposure is the key, even if they go about this in individual ways; for instance, design blogs and societies, personal websites and quarterly newsletters with working updates are all endorsed

as good promotional devices However, one thing they all have in common is agent representation, which can be a massive advantage in the commercial arena The Association of Illustrators (AOI), début art, the Central Illustration Agency and Anna Goodson Management are just a few examples of who is out there However, be as careful in choosing your agent as they are when choosing you

Our artists err on the side of caution as far as agent fees are concerned These can have a significant impact on your yearly income Taking upwards of 25 per cent of the commission, this can

be considerably detrimental when applied to all projects, especially those with smaller editorial fees But Archer explains: “The main downside, obviously, is that they take a commission of the entire fee which, depending on people’s opinion, can outweigh its worth I personally think if you use your agent’s skillset and experience well, they definitely pay off in the long run.”

A good agent should know what you’re capable of – what your strengths are, as well as your weaknesses A good agent works for and with you, to which Potts agrees: “I have two: Good Illustration Agency in the

UK and Anna Goodson Management in Canada

All editorial artwork is used to capture the personality and character of the publication, piquing consumers’

interest and proving it’s worthy enough for them to pick up and, ultimately, buy

covering North America Having an agent brings

great benefits in terms of increased visibility and

workload, particularly abroad where it would be

difficult to establish yourself without tapping into an

agency’s client network.”

An agent’s workload often goes unnoticed, but

this can determine how much time you have for

creative pursuits; negotiating contracts, image

usage and chasing invoices, etc, can all take up a

sizable portion of your day Professional

mixed-media illustrator Darren Hopes (www.darrenhopes

com) says: “Editorial is fast turnaround work That’s

one of the reasons I like it so much,

along with the varied subject matter

– so with any luck you spend most of

your time working This means less

time for advertising yourself so it’s

great to have that in the hands of a

dynamic group like the Central

Illustration Agency; the team there is

fantastic at coming up with ideas to

promote artists’ work in very

imaginative ways, which as an individual I would be

hard pushed to afford or have time to execute.”

STYLE CYCLES

Establishing that an affiliation with an agent can

open you and your work up to global markets, this

also means that your portfolio needs to be diverse

and comprehensive But must this confine you to

solely contemporary styles? Some of our artists are

very particular about using a combination of the latest trends, but most are dedicated to an entirely individualistic approach We asked if one of these approaches is more productive than another

“I’m not really sure,” says expert Seiler “Fads in illustration come and go; I think the artists who stay for the long-haul are the ones who have strong drawing, painting and compositional skills, as well

as humility and honesty about their own work – a willingness to grow and improve.” Potts agrees:

“There are always particular stylistic fads and trends that capture the imagination only to be imitated into

a swift and unfashionable grave I try to avoid stylistic pitfalls by stubbornly ignoring the zeitgeist and concentrating on my own visual approach

Possibly this is to my detriment, but at the moment it’s a case of ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’ In a bid to avoid any stylistic overlaps, I tend to look for inspiration outside the confines of the illustration world generally; films, art, photography and music, and so on.”

Interestingly, Darren Hopes opens a whole new avenue of discussion Believing the industry to also

be in a state of flux, he infers: “There are specific and noticeable trends – perhaps they create each other through counteraction? In the Nineties there was a surge of digital-looking illustration, due to the rise

of the technology and perhaps also reflected politics, looking ahead to the Millennium Slick and visually complex, this seemed to be then counteracted by a return to very basic mediums, at least in appearance and skills; pencils and drawing were back [if still through digital means].”

Archer’s thoughts on this are less abstract: “Styles and trends are forever changing – as are people’s perceptions

as to what is good or relevant to the time I’m not sure why, but I think it’s just the natural evolution of anything visual The most noticeable style loop that rotates frequently is the whole computer versus hand situation It seems that just when computer-generated images are cool, the whole thing flips vice versa and hand-drawn images come back in.” Many styles emerge

in tandem with software innovations, but more recently there does seem to be a technophobia backlash against digital design and a growing fascination with handcrafted, more low-fidelity or retro-themed approaches That’s not to say that artists aren’t amalgamating the two to get the best

of both worlds

An agent’s workload often goes unnoticed, but this can determine how much time you have for creative pursuits

Negotiating contracts, image usage and chasing invoices, etc, can take

up a sizable portion of your day

002

2008 Hair review Illustration for a review of the cool men’s cuts and trends of 2008, featuring three of the top haircut trends in one

© Andrew Archer/Art director Jill Thompson, Style Clip magazine

Dra ing Illustration about dra ing and slipstreaming techniques used within triathlons

© Andrew Archer/Art director Marco Crisari, Triathlete’s World

Lemonade is a multidisciplinary illustration

agency, serving clients in all sectors and in all

media, working in over 17 countries out of two

offices Studio manager Vicky Hobbs explains:

“Lemonade gives its artists access to a worldwide

client database and the client often will take a risk

on a new talent because they’re with the agency.”

Editorial commissions generally come from a

variety of clients with very tight deadlines to meet

the next issue “We have supplied clients as

diverse as The Wall Street Journal, Vanity Fair, The

Guardian and more,” explains Hobbs.

Being part of Lemonade is a sign of excellence

in itself, as the studio requires a certain quality and attitude from represented artists Hobbs tells us: “Reliability goes without saying Illustrators seldom understand that professionalism is just as important as talent All our illustrators are extremely talented, but what makes a successful editorial illustrator is their ability to have ideas and

a conceptual imagination; style is not as important as the content of the images The type

of illustration required varies from publication to publication and our large variety of illustrators are

more than equipped to cover this – but we always look for the right attitude to the job as well as the quality of the illustrator’s work.”

MANAGING YOUR STYLE

Be aware of your limitations and use these

to your advantage – simplifying workfl ows when completing deadlines

FAMILIARISATION

When working with new clients, provide them with an example of your process so they understand how your roughs relate to the fi nal image

BE PUNCTUAL

Handing in your work early can be benefi cial It calms your nerves and you have time if the editor suggests changes

QUICK TIPS

WE DISCUSS WAYS TO DRAW REPRESENTATION WITH VICKY

HOBBS, STUDIO MANAGER AT LEMONADE ILLUSTRATION AGENCY

”KING magazine asked me to come up

with the idea and so I did I wasn’t very familiar with T-Pain, so I listened to some of his music and felt that painting him in space would be sort of cool”

© Jason Seiler/KING magazine

A large amount of editorial illustration is now

made up of hand-rendered elements, pencil lines or

paint textures, adding life and spontaneity to

imagery Many believe that there is no real

computer-generated substitute for such, yet digital

media is essential in controlling and manipulating

different media upon scanning Hopes puts it into

perspective: “I use Photoshop extensively, relying

on custom brushes I have created from real media

to apply a more natural, painterly feel I can work

very quickly and almost entirely in Photoshop if the

deadline is very tight The beauty is the layer-based

nature of Photoshop makes tweaks and colour

alterations quick and simple.”

CREATIVE

INTERVENTION

So our artists aren’t only using digital media to

replicate traditional types, but also for cutting

production times extensively – keeping on top of

the demands of the commercial client Seiler reinforces this point: “Painting digitally saves a lot of stress and frustration when working on an editorial illustration To work traditionally means that you have to paint fast enough and finish with enough time for your painting to dry so that you can scan it

If there are changes that need to be made, forget about it; too much to deal with and, in my personal opinion, magazines and books don’t pay enough for traditional painting This is why I prefer painting digitally for my editorial work If changes are needed, it’s never the end of the world It may take a little while to get it right, but no where near the time

if painted traditionally.”

New artists should prepare for amendments and intervention, yet the complexity of an editorial brief lies with the art directors themselves A standard brief consists of the image dimensions and the article that needs illustrating, with a date for the initial rough and the final deadline Some art directors have a specific idea that they want to

explore and others like to see what you can come

up with “A good art director will give you guidance and then trust you to deliver your interpretation of the brief,” explains Potts “Once you have built up a body of work, clients can use your previous illustrations to establish what they’re aiming for, which is useful, as long as they aren’t looking for a carbon copy.”

With more blasé directors, you have to learn to

be flexible, punctual and able to work with them in a polite and patient manner “This can be difficult sometimes, especially when it’s about a topic that I have no real interest in,” admits Seiler “Sometimes the ideas that I come up with are way off what the art director and editor might have in mind for the article, but it will spark ideas and a dialogue.”

OCD – Stairs

”Work for The Sunday Telegraph on Obsessive

Compulsive Disorder I was struck by the story

of a girl who was unable to go up stairs”

© Darren Hopes/The Sunday Telegraph

Design Week

supplement

”Cover illustration for

Design Week’s Interaction supplement,

part of a series of fi ve illustrations

Commissioned by Sam Freeman”

© Andy Potts/Design Week

Futurism

“Illustration for an article on the futurist Ray Kurzweil”

© Andy Potts/

Independent On Sunday Magazine; artistic

direction by Ben Brannan

Bad Bets Obama

”The concept for this one was basic The art director for The Weekly Standard will

sometimes do a rough sketch

to show what he’d like to see and then it’s up to me to bring his idea to life”

© Jason Seiler/The Weekly Standard

WE TALK TO SAM FREEMAN, ART DIRECTOR AT DESIGN WEEK

Design Week magazine, providing information

on graphics, digital media, commercial interiors,

product and exhibition design, regularly

commissions editorial illustration for its articles

Art director Sam Freeman sources designers

both from agencies and extensive web searches

“Illustrators are generally very good at self

promotion, so I’m constantly getting samples in

the form of printed cards, emailed PDFs and

links to websites,” he explains A usual brief from Freeman will feature basic concepts, a full brief and samples of the artist’s work he particularly likes “Being a weekly, the turnaround time is often tight At best, it’s a week and at worst, it’s two days,” he reveals “If it’s a longer lead time, I’ll request a rough after a couple of days to ensure things are developing the way I envisaged If there are any changes, I’ll request them at this stage From that point on, it’s in the hands of the illustrator.”

Asked which styles are currently emerging in the industry, he says: “A move away from vector

to more of a hand-rendered feel is evident

Collage illustration is something I’m seeing more and more of – artists like Ciara Phelan, Chrissie Abbott and James Dawe are all great examples of this.”

INTERVIEW

Many styles emerge in tandem with software innovations, but more recently there does seem to be a technophobia backlash against digital design and a growing fascination with handcrafted, more low-fidelity approaches

Such skills let you ride the changes between style

and formats that editorial clients demand

Traditionally, editorial illustrators tend to be

employed by the newspaper and magazine

industries; but these fields are adapting to the digital

age, and many publications are now developing an

online or app-based presence “I’ve found that my

commissions are increasingly for print and digital

use,” explains Potts “Editorial illustration is a large

chunk of what I do, but the same skills and visual

style are now transferable to other creative markets

such as advertising, design and packaging.” This is all great news for the next generation of editorial illustrators Art directors will always be attracted to a new aesthetic because it stands out on the shelf

“Diverse in terms of style as well as subject matter, and because of the fast turnaround and sheer amount of commissioned imagery, I think editorial art directors will take a chance,” suggests Hopes

“Many students get their first commissions from the editorial industry as directors know that students are

a great [source] for fresh ideas.”

PROJECT RUNDOWN

WE RUN THROUGH A REAL-WORLD EDITORIAL COMMISSION

Most issues of Advanced Photoshop use editorial illustrators to

bring the features in the magazine to life At the planning stage of

each issue, editor Julie Bassett and senior designer Sarah Bellman

sit down to plan a rough concept

For one issue, they had the task of illustrating a feature on the

Adobe Photoshop Exchange After deciding the editorial would run

as a series of mini reviews of the best resources, rather than

running text, they went to work laying out the basic structure to

see what space would be available for the illustration They picked

Radim Malinic (aka Brand Nu, www.brandnu.co.uk) to illustrate

the feature shown here to the right, as his online portfolio showed

many examples of high-quality work on similar projects Malinic

was sent a full commission, detailing the concept of the illustration,

the editorial layout and the type of resources being featured

After a few days’ hard work, they received the first draft of the

artwork, which had a fantastic style but required tweaks for it to

work effectively with the editorial More progress shots were sent

in, until both Advanced Photoshop and Malinic were happy with the

final artwork

A standard brief consists

of the image dimensions and the article that needs illustrating, with a date for the initial rough and the final deadline Some art directors have a specific idea that they want to explore and others like to see what you can come up with

Ricky On Subway for MLB

“This painting is one of the smaller spot illustrations that I did for Major League Baseball

For this piece I wanted to show how this player enjoys riding the New York subways”

© Jason Seiler/MLB

010 |

Opener for MLB

“I was commissioned by Major League Baseball

to paint three illustrations for the 2010 World Series Program, so I illustrated a player strolling around in Chicago looking like a tourist”

© Jason Seiler/MLB

009 |

Witness

“This illustration is a piece that was

commissioned by Fortean Times magazine for

an article on witness statements of

supernatural phenomena”

© Darren Hopes/Fortean Times

008|

Zombies are still big business at the moment There

are horde upon horde of them in contemporary

literature, cinema and videogames – including

comic phenomena such as Marvel Zombies, DC’s Blackest

Night and TV series The Walking Dead Coinciding with these

were the launches of the Red Dead Redemption, Dead Rising

2 and Left 4 Dead 2 videogames, all out in 2010 So, what

better subject to focus on for grasping editorial styles?

For this tutorial, we set up a mock brief for international

illustrator Simeon Elson, who shows you how to re-create

an iconic and cinematic illustrative style which engages

viewers – one which is as gruesome as it is cool We’ll

reveal how to use Adobe Illustrator to create realistic graphical characters and, subsequently, Photoshop to add texture and work up the final composition

During this workshop you will learn how to master Illustrator’s Pen tool in a simple but highly effective way, as well as how to create dynamic visuals with powerful and intuitive Photoshop colour and layer effects We have used a wide variety of stock images from two texture sites, Fotolia and iStockphoto, so you will need to download these beforehand if you want to follow the tutorial exactly;

however, we recommend gathering your own zombie stock

as originality is imperative to editorial design

WE EXPLORE THE ART OF DESIGNING FOR EDITORIAL COMMISSIONS,

WITH THE CONCEPT OF A FEATURE ON ZOMBIE MOVIES

01 FILE PREPARATION

Open up Fotolia’s ‘serious man rifle’ in Illustrator, then change the mode to CMYK via File>Document Color Mode Double-click on the photo in the Layers palette and call it ‘Reference’

Click the Lock tab, to prevent the image moving

Create a new layer and call it ‘Black Lines

02 OUTLINES

Next select the Pen tool to draw the character’s deepest shadows Before drawing each shape, set the Pen tool Opacity to 0% – this way you can see the shape you’re drawing and the photo below simultaneously Try to create interesting abstract shapes

03 SKIN TONE

Select a flesh colour with the

Eyedropper tool – if the colour is too dull

then tweak its values to brighten it

Create a new layer and call it ‘Skin

Base’, position it above the Reference

layer and then draw out the flesh areas

You will fi nd links to all of the stock images that we have used on the disc, but we encourage you to try this tutorial out with your own resources.

SOURCE FILES

Simeon is a freelance illustrator and graphic artist He creates his work by fusing vectors with pixels, working mainly in Photoshop and Illustrator

He has worked on fl yers, posters, logos, websites and more.

OUR EXPERT

SIMEON ELSON

www.simeonelson.co.uk

USING ILLUSTRATOR

To create this particular style of editorial

design, we must make use of both

Photoshop and Illustrator If you don’t

currently have the latter app, then you can

download a free 30-day trial directly from

the Adobe website (www.adobe.com) so

that you can follow along with all of this

workshop’s steps.

In particular, Illustrator’s Pen tool is an

essential part of this tutorial, so take time to

familiarise yourself with it Draw some

random abstract shapes to get used to the

click-and-drag motion needed to create

accurate curves, and also make some

shapes with sharp edges and corners, as

this will help you learn how to produce

more rigid elements.

Take time to learn the diff erent elements

of Illustrator’s Pen tool too: the Add Anchor

Point tool, the Delete Anchor Point tool and

the Convert Anchor Point tool, etc The most

important thing is to express yourself from

the get-go by creating interesting shapes

that are quite edgy and abstract to give you

a striking and graphical end product.

PEN A ZOMBIE POSTER

MASTER THE PEN TOOL AND CREATE DYNAMIC VISUALS

EDITORIAL

ARTWORK

08 EXTEND THE RIFLE

Continue to add detail to the portrait, applying highlights, facial features and mixed

skin tones – but be sure to keep each colour on a separate layer The gun has been

cropped, so we need to top off the rifle Use the barrel as your reference guide to draw a

small slanted rectangle

09 EXTEND THE RIFLE 2

Choose the Direct Selection tool, pulling the top-right corner anchor point up slightly to create a diagonal angle Finally, with the Ellipse tool, draw a thin oval shape, then angle it and position it at the top of the rifle Then add any final detail to make the join seamless

05 BLENDING COLOURS

Still with the Darker Contours layer active, open the Gradient palette, setting Type to Radial Place the Darker Contours swatch at 0% and the Medium Contours swatch at 100% Add another gradient slider at around 65% Remove the Medium Contours swatch from the gradient and drag the swatch located at 65% to 100%

06 BLENDING CONTINUED

Keep making the 100% location colour darker until you get an effective blend

Apply this technique to any other shape that you feel requires a more realistic contrast You

may find in some cases the darker 0% location colour needs to be made lighter

07 ACCURATE COLOUR SELECTION

Next, let’s draw his eyes Use the Eyedropper tool to pick the lightest part of the iris, then place it right next to the pupil Adjust the colour until your selection matches your character’s natural eye colour The iris consists of four or five different shades so use this colour selection process to re-create them all

Experiment when using textures Use diff erent colours, Opacity settings and blending modes and

go for it! Also, try mixing various blending modes together, for example Screen with Hard Light can give a great contrast in colours, although you will need to fi ddle about with the values to get the best results.

04 ADD DETAIL

Open a new layer and name it

‘Medium Contours’ for the midtone

shadows of the character’s skin Repeat

this process to create the ‘Darker

Contours’ layer You should now start to

see your character emerging For a more

realistic look we are now going to blend

some areas of the face using gradients

QUICK TIP

Drawing stubble can

be very tricky Pick a tone or gradient similar to the gunman’s eyebrows Use this colour to draw around the beard area, set Opacity to 70%, then add one or two hairs with a small brush in order to boost their realism.

QUICK TIP

10 CREATE THE MAIN ZOMBIE

When illustrating the main zombie in the background (our reference is the ‘Zombie’ image from Fotolia), features such as the eyes (enlarge the pupils) and

teeth need to be changed As seen in this reference photo, features are more vampiric For this illustration we’re going to use a more simplistic style with only a few

colours, leaving the rest transparent Repeat these Illustrator steps with as many characters as you want to include (see the links on the disc for the ones we used)

11 SWITCH TO

PHOTOSHOP

Now all of our characters

have been created, it’s

time to jump over to

Photoshop Create a new

CMYK file and set your

workspace to a multiple

palette layout – meaning

you can see your Color

palette as well Open a

new layer and then use

the Paint Bucket tool to fill

it with a deep orange tone

12 TEXTURE THE

CANVAS

We add in ‘old paper texture’

from iStockphoto (link on the disc) Stretch the texture so that it fills the page, then Edit>Transform>Rotate by 90 degrees clockwise Set the blending mode to Linear Burn and Opacity to 67% Open the main zombie image and the gunman Create a new group and call it ‘Gunman Files’, placing the man inside it

13 WOOD TEXTURE

Now we source a wood texture from CGTextures

(‘WoodFine001’), rotate the image so it’s at a similar angle as the gun,

then set the blending mode to Lighten and the Opacity to 48% Select

the gunman by pressing Cmd/Ctrl and clicking the layer’s thumbnail,

then invert the selection (Cmd/Ctrl+Shift+I)

14 MORE TEXTURE

Hit Delete to clear the selected area Select the Eraser tool set to a 27px Brush (at 90% Opacity) Erase remaining texture around the wood Select the man and wood texture layers, then click the Link Layers icon so they move as one We are now going to use splatters to add a bit more edge to the gunman

17 TEXTURE CONTINUED

Duplicate this layer and then flip it vertically (Edit>Transform> Flip Vertical) Drag the duplicated layer to the bottom half of the page so that it fits seamlessly with no visible joining point Follow the same process with another texture (we used Urban Dirty’s ‘glass frosted crack’ image), setting the blending mode to Soft Light at 51% Opacity and place this just below the main zombie

18 JEEPERS CREEPERS

Create a new layer placed below the main zombie layer Select a light green colour and, with the

Brush tool set to 34px, Hardness at 53%, 100% Opacity, colour in the zombie’s eyes Add the ‘Urban

Highway’ image (from iStockphoto), duplicate twice, setting the bottom duplicate to 100% Opacity and

applying a Overlay blending mode

19 ENERGY THROUGH COLOUR

Add another zombie and use an Eraser at 35% Opacity to fade out the bottom of the zombie Duplicate your ‘glass frosted crack’ texture again, placing it above the second zombie and changing the blending mode to Multiply Place in a position where you get an interesting contrast, then clear the area around the second zombie Set the Opacity of the texture to 74%

in a new texture (we

use the ‘stone pebble’

texture from Urban

Dirty) Place it just

above the main zombie

layer and stretch it so it

fits across the top half

of the page, setting

Opacity to 40% and an

Overlay blending

mode Add a layer

mask and select the

Gradient tool set to

black-white, and draw

a small gradient

starting just before the

halfway vertical mark

15 ADD SPLATTERS

Position the splatter so that it looks like zombie blood has splashed onto him Then set the colour to red by double-clicking the layer and applying a Color Overlay Use an inverted selection

on the gunman to clear the excess splatter, then erase any unwanted areas

Repeat this process on other areas of the gunman Use the Eraser set to 400px, 0%

Hardness and 18% Opacity to reduce the prominence of the splatters

Position the splatter so

it looks like zombie blood has splashed onto him Then set the colour to red

by double-clicking the layer

and applying a Color Overlay

20 THE END IS NIGH

Apply the same technique using the ‘zombie girl’ image from Fotolia to add a little more variation

Add splatters to increase contrast in the image Colour the main zombie’s teeth and add a Stroke to the

gunman to help him stand out Colour the Stroke light yellow, set its blending mode to Screen, then choose

an opacity that suits

21 ENHANCE THE COLOURS

Add a Radial gradient to the orange base layer and set the outer colour to a deep red and the inner colour to transparent Change the blending mode to Linear Burn at 20% Opacity Next, we add more two-tone zombies, and apply the ‘glass frosted crack’ texture for more grunge

22 MORE ELEMENTS

Continue to build up more detail by duplicating the silhouettes and overlapping them Use blending modes like Screen and Lighten, and reduce the opacity if needed

Also tweaking the positions

of the characters can make all the difference to the final composition Create another splatter layer with a yellow Color Overlay set to Screen

23 FINISHING TOUCHES

Lastly, we need a bit more dynamism Use your splatter texture to add lighter areas around the zombies Reduce opacity in places; also use a large, low-opacity Eraser to fade edges After any final compositional tweaks, we’re done

ADD EMOTION

Our gunman has a mean look as he’s on a mission to blast every zombie in his hometown to pieces We can enhance this emotion by adding textures and blood splatters Use the ‘glass frosted crack’ texture, duplicating and placing it above the gunman’s face and shirt Experiment with blending modes such as Multiply, Linear Burn and Darken for a grubby look.

Use the Eraser tool set to Brush mode, 30% Opacity, with a so edge and sized between 300-500px to carefully remove unwanted areas Try not to overdo it to the point where the gunman is lost, but at the same time

we want to inject a sense of chaos and commotion.

Also the gunman’s shirt starts as a blue/green colour, but this is too bright We could simply edit it in Photoshop using Hue/Saturation or a Color Balance adjustment, but with a vector illustration like this you would be hard pressed to do so without losing detail and sharpness We can amend this in Illustrator by simply reducing every shape of the gunman’s shirt’s Cyan value by 5% and then saving it as a new fi le Then position it in place of our previous gunman in our fi nal PSD fi le.

TECHNICAL

ILLUSTRATION

REV YOUR CREATIVE ENGINES AND CREATE THIS GHOSTED

TECHNICAL ILLUSTRATION USING LAYER MASKS You can recreate this image by using

the layered ‘linka_progress_shot1 (LAYERED).psd’ line art fi le provided

on the CD or you can work from your own sketch

SOURCE FILES

Tony Linka is a freelance technical and scientifi c illustrator, based out of Toronto, Canada He also works as a 3D Lighter for March Entertainment ( www.marchentertainment.com).

OUR EXPERT

TONY LINKA

www.tonylinka.com

LINE DRAWING

This technical illustration starts out as

line art created from a basic sketch

Illustration

01 IT STARTS IN THE SHOP

As with any technical illustration,

you should research before you

begin Gather as much reference as

you can If you can’t see the vehicle

in person, you can always look for

photos online Next, come up with a

plan Decide which internal

components you want to show, and

sketch them on paper This way,

you can break down the illustration

into separate sections for ghosting

02 STARTING LINEOnce you’ve broken down the initial sketch, create separate line drawings for each section of the illustration This can be done in Photoshop, or by hand Next, place the layers in order – put the objects closer to the viewer

on top, with their blending modes changed to Multiply You should be able to see all of the line drawings on your canvas overlapping each other

03 PIT STOPCreate a base colour layer in the folders behind each internal component’s line drawing, and an exterior base colour layer as the bottom layer This way, the exterior of the car will be revealed when you ghost the internal components

Before you move on to the next step, stop and double-check to make sure everything is overlapping properly The layer order is essential to getting this technique to work, and it’s much easier

to fix any problems now rather than later

If you’ve ever looked at a ghosted technical

illustration and been amazed by the

technique and how much information has

been revealed in one image, then this tutorial

is for you What was once done traditionally

using an airbrush, armed with an x-acto knife and

frisket film, can now be completed digitally, with

the help of Photoshop In this tutorial, you will

learn how to use Photoshop’s layer mask options,

along with the Magic Wand and Brush tools, to

recreate this ghosted muscle-car illustration The

main advantage of this technique is that layer

mask settings give you full control over the visibility

of every aspect of your illustration, while simultaneously keeping your original artwork intact This means that if you decide that you aren’t happy with your ghosting on a specific layer, then you can simply delete the layer mask, and revert back to your original artwork, and start all over again

This technique requires a little time and patience,

so work slowly and build it up layer by layer You want the ghosting to be subtle and smooth so that

it feels like you can actually look through the car’s exterior and at its internal components That’s the key to the illusion’s success

LAYING THE GROUNDWORK

GHOST YOUR MUSCLE CAR USING LAYER MASKS, THE MAGIC WAND AND BRUSHES

WORK IN PROGRESS

FROM LINE-ART TO FINISHED DESIGN

Step 2: Create the layered line art

Step 5: Paint the internal parts

Step 10: Start the ghosting effect

You will learn how to use Photoshop’s layer mask options,

along with the Magic Wand and Brush tools, to recreate this

ghosted muscle-car illustration If you aren’t happy with

your ghosting on a specific layer, then you can delete

the layer mask, and revert back to your original artwork

06 START YOUR ENGINES

Now, we’re ready to begin ghosting our

internal components The primary advantage of the

layer folder setup is that you can apply layer masks

to the folders for ghosting, which will be applied to

both line and colour layers, as well as any other

layers that you may have in the folder This will also

leave the option available to edit your line or colour

layers if you need to make any future changes, and

still have the ghosting applied Add a layer mask to

each layer folder

07 BACK SEAT DRIVER

Start with the back seats, and hide all the

component folders You want the seats to show

through the windows, so initialise the Exterior Line

layer, and use the Magic Wand to select the

window openings Initialise the layer mask for the

back seats by clicking the mask icon, then

Select>Inverse Paint the mask around the window

openings using a 100% Opacity black brush so you

only see the seats through the window

08 PASSENGER SEAT

Follow the same steps as the back seat – except you’re only going to mask out the window trim and roof, leaving the passenger seat visible in the window opening and on top of the car Use the Magic Wand tool again, and select the parts of the body of the car that the passenger overlaps Use a large, soft brush with Opacity no greater than 20%, and slowly paint the layer mask to reveal the exterior of the car

09 UNDER THE HOOD

It’s time for the exciting part – ghosting the drive train This may look daunting, but if you break

it down into smaller steps it becomes manageable The first step is to approach it like the back seats, and remove all areas outside the body area You can use details like the hood scoop intake and front grill as ghosted-out objects to bring more of the exterior forward They also act as points of reference for the internal components

04 BODY WORK

Since we’ll be painting all the layers separately, it’s important to decide where your key light will be

coming from Stick with that direction for all the layers – this will hold the drawing together A tip for painting

a car with no background environment is to add a ‘horizon line’ highlight along the body of the car This,

along with a cast shadow, will act as visual cues to the viewer that the car is sitting on a ground plane

QUICK TIP

A graphics tablet is highly recommended for this type of technical illustration

Whether you’re painting the exterior

of your car or ghosting its parts, the tablet’s pressure sensitivity can’t be beaten Hit F5 to go into your Brush menu and then turn on Pen Pressure for the Size and Opacity controls.

Illustration

11 BEHIND THE WHEEL

Now, ghost the driver seat over top of the drive train and back tire Use the chrome window trim as a divider between what’s visible and what’s ghosted Using your soft-edged low-opacity brush, slowly ghost in the back tire and drive train, so they’re visible, but you don’t lose too much detail in the seat Next, instead of adding

an Outer Glow layer style, paint one around the base area of the seat This will suggest that it’s sitting on the floor of the car

12 POWER STEERING

Before ghosting your steering column, add your

dash and trim layers, since they’ll be overlapping

objects Next, follow the same steps as with the front

seat (Step 11) Once you have it looking the way you

want, add an Outer Glow layer style by Ctrl/

right-clicking on the Steering Column Colour layer, and

going to Blending Options You’ll want to keep it subtle,

so lower the Opacity to around 24%, and increase the

Size to around 60px This will help separate the

steering column from the background Take your time

and experiment with how much you want to show

13 SHIFTING GEARS

Add highlights to the windows Use the

Magic Wand to select the window areas in the

Exterior Line layer Create and rename a new layer

below this layer, and paint in the highlight for the

windows You’ll want to find a happy medium that

shows off a strong highlight, but also allows the

viewer to see the interior, so use a soft, round

brush with Opacity set at around 20-35% Change

your palette colour to near-white blue

14 FINISHING TOUCHES

To add finesse to your illustration, paint some edge highlights for your car’s exterior in front of your ghosted layers This will help to bring your car’s exterior in front of the internal components so they look like they are inside the car Add panel edges and corners where the hood and side body meet Use the Magic Wand to select areas on your exterior line layer, and paint the highlights on a new layer below this

15 FINISH LINE

Press Cmd/Ctrl+0 so your canvas is resized

to fit the screen Scan the entire illustration to get

an overall impression of how your ghosting has come out If you feel that one layer is dominating the others, lower its Opacity in the Layers palette

Try playing around with Outer Glows, whether black or white, to add more depth You’ll want to create the illusion that viewers can actually see the car’s internal components

10 BREAK IT DOWN

The next step is to reveal the exterior body Keep a close eye on how the exterior and the internal

components relate to one another You should let the exterior guide your ghosting, so break it down into

sections – fender, door, hood, etc – and work on one sat a time using the Magic Wand To reveal the exterior

more along plane changes and panel seems, let the drive train show more clearly in areas of the car’s body

SLOW AND SUBTLE

To successfully achieve an airbrushed look takes time

When painting your layer mask, use a large, so , round brush, and keep your opacity low – no greater than 20%

Use long brush strokes working slowly from the outside

on your ghosted layers so there is a slow, gradual reveal

of the car’s exterior You don’t want the ghosting to be too abrupt or it will have

a ‘cut-and-paste’ look

Then, use a smaller brush with a higher opacity to reveal details like the exterior car’s signal lights.

Stylised illustration is, in essence, an

illustrator’s own depiction of reality Many well

known illustrators have an identifiable style

which sets their work apart It may not be instantly

obvious why some work looks or feels familiar, but on

closer inspection you will find similarities in technique,

from use of colour, line and scale to character,

perspective and even subject matter Much of the

illustration we see today is stylised, particularly in a

digital age where countless techniques can be achieved

with 2D and 3D software packages Whatever the

method, a careful and appropriately stylised illustration

will have a balanced feel that enhances the process of

informing, telling a story or conveying a message

Illustrators such as Charley Harper offer a great

example of how to produce effective stylised work His

approach to nature illustration shows how simple

shapes and ‘minimal realist’ detail can achieve

beautifully balanced results Rather than mimic nature

too closely, he captured shapes, pattern, texture and

colour combinations in his graphic illustrations

I also find nature an inspirational theme for my own

work, and in this tutorial I look at the process of

creating a harmonious and balanced illustration using a

combination of several stylisation techniques, most

notably those of colour, continuous line, shape,

simplified detail and texture

To start with I always sketch out my ideas, exploring

rough compositions, characters and ideas, until I have

something that I feel will work It doesn’t have to be set

in stone and your idea will likely develop throughout the

process, but it helps to have a rough plan of what you

are aiming for to keep you focused My illustrations

always start off with a physical drawing I use a Wacom

tablet for colouring and adding detail digitally, but still

like the control of a traditional pen to create the initial

main elements So, my next step is to create clear line

drawings in real pen to use as a guide once scanned in

FEATHER FEATURES

Start to create shapes for the feathers Build up overlapping lines using your scanned in artwork as well as adding some freehand details using the graphics tablet

Bex Glover is an illustrator and graphic designer from the UK Featuring in magazines, books and animation, her stylised and vibrant urban-meets-ornate illustrations are generated using hand- rendered and digital techniques, and are infl uenced by nature, fashion and street art.

GO DIGITAL

Scan in and tidy up your drawing so you have solid, clean lines to work with, making it easier to select areas for adding colour and texture.

I often use photographs for reference in my drawings, and while I want to capture an element of reality, I focus on these more for the purpose of outlining simple shapes and forms When drawing, I like to use continuous lines without lifting the pen (something I remember having to do in life drawing classes at college), and this is one feature that is integral to the aesthetic of my work This technique gives me the freedom to explore the shape of the subject matter and I like the way intersections between lines create new shapes and patterns

Once you’ve scanned your drawings into Photoshop, you need to tidy them up a bit For a sharper, more digital look, you may want to redraw the outlines in a package like Illustrator I like to keep a more hand-drawn feel to my line work however, so I use Image>Adjustment>Levels to create more contrast between black and white in the image Select all the white areas and then choose Select>Inverse Create a new layer and fill it entirely with black and you should now have a good outline to work with Check carefully

to see if there are any further areas that you need to tidy up, using the Eraser or Brush tools to add or remove details

To help create some harmony and build up a style, I have repeatedly used a series of shapes and elements throughout the illustration to emphasise the motif

Using the Polygonal Lasso tool, create a rough outline around each bird and then Edit>Cut and Edit>Paste each

In this tutorial I look at the process of creating a stylised illustration with a harmonious and balanced feel

one onto its own layer This allows more flexibility to move the various elements around I have also broken each bird down into a number of elements, including wings and bodies, using Layer>Duplicate Layer and then rubbing out the lines that I don’t need The end result is a library of bodies and wings, which can then

be coloured and transformed in a variety of ways to create new birds in different positions but each with a similar aesthetic

I wanted to focus on capturing the movement of the birds and their feathers in this illustration To begin layering up lines, I first duplicated the wings and scaled and rotated them slightly using Edit>Transform>Scale, and Edit>Transform>Rotate The next step was to add some freehand lines Create a new layer and then, using the Brush tool, select a reasonably fine brush and start creating the detail It really helps to have a graphics tablet at this stage as it allows you to draw more quickly and naturally I have tried to capture the essence of feather shapes with a range of continual,

01 GRADIENT TONES

Gradients can help to add an extra

dimension to an illustration Choose a background

and foreground colour and Edit>Fill the selected

area using the Gradient tool

03 REMOVE LINES

Create a simplified style by removing detail such as line work, leaving areas of colour and texture mixed with negative space

02 TEXTURE THE DETAILS

Using the Magic Wand tool, select feather shapes and fill with texture and colour Stick to a rough colour palette to help ensure a balanced look

to the style

04 SET THE SCENE

Adding a background will help to tie all the elements of a composition together 05 ADD ATMOSPHERE

Custom brush effects and the subtle use of blending modes will help to add those atmospheric finishing touches

COLOUR THE BIRDS

FILL WITH GRADIENTS AND TEXTURES

organic lines here, but you may want to concentrate on

a specific pattern for your own stylised approach Think about the shapes you create between the lines, as these areas will be built up using texture and colour.Now for the colouring and filling I have a selection

of textures that I use frequently in my work saved on

my computer so I can call upon them whenever I need

to These range from scanned material to watercolour and paint effects I find that using these textures in digital work really helps to add more depth and give a hand-rendered feel I’ve added a watercolour texture to the main body of the bird here, for example Next, create a flattened copy of all the line elements of your bird drawing using Layer>Duplicate Group, then Layer>Merge Group

You can now select areas of the wings using the Magic Wand tool and fill with textures and colours to build up the feathers Keep the various colour fills and textures on separate layers to allow for easy editing Try experimenting with the blending modes found on

Shape, pattern, line and colour all help to

achieve a stylised look in an illustration Using

these elements consistently throughout will

add an overall harmonious feel

In the fi rst image I started to incorporate small

birds from my library of elements While the

birds all look similar in style, I felt like the

colours didn’t really work with the larger bird.

In the second image, I pulled out colour ranges

from the large bird and applied them to the

smaller ones, creating a much more cohesive

feel Using a colour palette can be one really

useful technique in eff ective stylisation

DEVELOPING STYLE

01 USE A LIBRARY

Keep a file that contains a range of

elements that you can reuse This way you

can modify to create more variety, within a

consistent style 02 HIGHLIGHT KEY SHAPES

Select spaces with the Magic Wand tool and Edit>Fill with colour The more contrast between textures and colour the better

03 MIX AND MATCH

Combine wings and bodies to create a range

of different positions Change the dynamic by putting

the wings in front or behind the bodies

04 COLOUR CONTROL

In a new file (always keep an original), flatten each bird onto its own layer and adjust the Hue and Saturation to achieve different results

TREEHOUSE CAFÉ MURALS

2010, Real media, Photoshop Illustrated murals for the walls of The Treehouse Café in a London-based department store, depicting a range of

fl ora and fauna together in an enchanting woodland scene.

SELF PORTRAIT IN MARCHESA

2010, Real media, Photoshop Stylised self-portrait in a Marchesa frock This piece was created for a collective fashion book called Amelia’s Anthology of Fashion Illustration

THE MAGIC WATERING HOLE

2010, Real media, Photoshop Print design for collective Ink-dot’s Tonic exhibition in Bristol A zebra quietly sips the magic water amid colourful, dancing fi sh.

CREATE SOME VARIETY

ADD INTEREST AND FLAIR WITH DIVERSE ILLUSTRATIVE ELEMENTS ARTIST SHOWCASE STUNNING STYLISED ART

FROM BEX’S PORTFOLIO

the Layers palette to create effects that allow the

textures to show through the colours Have a go at

adjusting the opacity levels as well (also on the Layers

palette) for some subtle results

I like to start simplifying the composition by

stripping areas to leave simple shapes, minimal details

and negative spaces One good way to do this is to

remove part or all of the initial line drawing Before

turning off the layer with your outline, hold down Ctrl/

Cmd and click on that layer to select the whole line

drawing Select the layer where you created the main

background of the bird and Edit>Cut the outline shape

from that layer I have also added a simple red to white

gradient to the wing and body shapes, with a Multiply

blend mode to give a cohesive tone as well as a sense

of shadow and a feeling of spatial depth

Build up the scene with small birds from your

library Aim to create a similar style in colour and

texture for all the elements you add to ensure there is

a harmonious look to the composition Think about

how the various elements interact and aim for a feeling of movement and energy It’s also a good idea

to play around with scale to help create a sense of perspective I have made some of the birds smaller and lighter so that they appear further away

I wanted this illustration to look as though the birds had taken off from the treetops and were soaring into the sky, and adding in a background helped to tie everything together I used a watercolour effect and applied 30% Opacity with the blending mode set to Overlay Sitting just beneath, I added a layer with a blue

to white gradient fill I created some flowers, leaves and blossoms with the same colour, textural and stylistic elements Finally, take a large feathered brush

in white and add some flowing swooshes across the page on a new layer By putting this above the others and adding a Soft Light blending mode, you can achieve some lovely, subtle cloud effects

Reflect on your final composition and adjust elements to get the balance and style just right

In the following tutorial we will take a traditional

cityscape and transform it into a futuristic battle

scene using Photoshop The goal of this

walkthrough is to learn how to make stock images

conform to your imagination rather than the other way

around Some basic understanding of anatomy and a

graphics tablet are recommended

Another important thing to bear in mind is functionality

When designing your machinery you should not only think

about how it will look, but also how it will work; for

example, if your robot has arms and legs, it needs elbow

and knee joints, or if you are building a flying machine it needs to have elements that suggest thrust and lift This doesn’t mean your machine must abide by the laws of physics, but it should at least resemble an object that does

It’s also paramount not to go overboard Having an endless supply of imagery makes it tempting to try and find an image for every nut and bolt However, this will lead

to a chaotic design that ultimately doesn’t work Note, when real machines are built, a designer often re-uses elements It’s smarter, more efficient and, aesthetically, leads to a more cohesive object

BUILD A STRIKING FUTURISTIC BATTLE SCENE USING STOCK

PHOTOS, TEXTURES AND YOUR DIGITAL PAINTING SKILLS

02 INITIAL SKETCHES

Our first sketches are going to

be very basic and made using a hard round brush The plane will consist of wings, tail fins and an area for a pilot To sketch the robot, begin with the shape of the head and add the spinal column to suggest the direction of the body

01 CREATE THE CITY

Take the backdrop provided

(iStockphoto’s ‘Hong Kong’) and rotate it

to the left by about 15 degrees Extend

the image by duplicating the foreground

building on the left and painting in

additional sky on the right Afterwards,

darken the image using Levels and add a

dark purple-to-white gradient map with

blending set to Linear Burn (65%) and a

layer of black around the edges set to

Overlay (50%)

SCI FI SCENES

We have provided a small version of the background image from iStockphoto, a set of textures for the robot and the aeroplane, a cloud brush and a link to one additional stock image that we are unable to include on the disc.

SOURCE FILES

Based in Philadelphia, self-taught digital artist Rob explores a wide variety of commercial and self-initiated projects To see his latest work, you can visit his online portfolio.

OUR EXPERT

ROB SHIELDS

www.robshields.net

PIECE TOGETHER THE FUTURE

MAKE STOCK IMAGES WORK FOR YOU

UNDERSTANDING YOUR SPACE

Before beginning, it’s useful to decide upon the type of characters and setting that you want to create Do you want your machine to look human or do you want it

to have animal anatomy? Will it be sleek and fast or large and powerful? Where will the ‘camera’ be located?

It’s important to answer these questions because of the nature of sci-fi illustration The genre itself is particularly interesting because it is so focussed on storytelling, and well known for extrapolating emergent aspects of contemporary culture in order to investigate them As such, sci-fi artwork relies heavily on narrative to add impact.

In the following image we knew we wanted the scene to take place over a city

We wanted to have a large building in the foreground and smaller buildings behind

it This helped us to defi ne our open canvas space It also helped us to decide

on a sleeker, faster robot, which was capable of fl ight You will notice when looking at the composition that there are

a number of complementary lines; the wings of the planes and the robot’s weapon, for example, each follow similar trajectories in this scene.

Having an endless supply of imagery makes it tempting to try and find an image for every nut and bolt However, this

will lead to a chaotic design

that ultimately doesn’t work

Illustration

03 DEFINE THE PLANE

To create all the planes

we only need to define one and then duplicate it In this update of the aircraft we have defined the basic aspects by adding slightly more detailed shadows and highlights, as well as adding gun mounts on the bottom and small engines to the wings

05 START THE EXPLOSION

Open a fire image (we used iStockphoto’s

‘Flame at an offshore oil rig’) and change the blending

to Lighter Color Next add an orange Outer Glow and

set the blend mode to Hard Light (75% Opacity) In the

colour palette select black and blue, then use the ‘Cloud

Brush.abr’ included on the CD to create the smoke

09 WARP AND BLEND

Using the stock provided, begin to place texture on the largest plane Use the Warp tool (via Cmd/Ctrl+T) to make the stock conform to the shape of your painting Next blending options such as Soft Light, Vivid Light and Linear Light are used to make a cohesive scene There are no strict rules here – it’s just a case of what blends best

07 BACK TO THE ROBOT

Now we basically fill in the lines that were created in our previous sketch with a

darker blue tone Add more detail to the arms, thickening them and adding a more

defined pivot point on the most visible arm The face and side of the head are also

worked up and the eyes are given a new shape and an Outer Glow style

08 GET HANDS ON

When painting hands – even at this basic level – it helps to look at your own for reference In order to paint the right hand of the robot (which is holding the weapon) look at your own hand holding a similar-shaped object This will help you to decide exactly how much of the fingers will be visible and where the thumb should be positioned

06 MORE ON THE PLANE

Here we update the aircraft again, adding black to create an interior control centre Notice that interior lights have a slight Outer Glow The engines are also more clearly defined and use

a Color Dodge glow The guns are now given explosions of yellow and orange and the outlines of the entire aeroplane are darkened

04 DEFINE THE ROBOT

The robot is roughly based on human anatomy, so we want to represent the major muscle groups Starting at the spinal column, add the pectoral and abdominal muscles Add quadriceps to the legs and then add bicep/tricep areas to the arms Remember to leave space for joints in the arms and legs Finally, place the eyes to give a better sense of the robot’s face

When painting hands – even

at a basic level – it helps to look at your own hands for reference To paint the right hand of the robot (which holds the weapon) look at your own holding a similar-shaped object

Painting the white

exhaust fumes

coming from the

robot’s feet is easy

Use the same cloud

brush from Step 5

Make the clouds more

concentrated around

the feet, widening

and fading them out

at the bottom A very

light Drop Shadow

layer style gives a bit

more defi nition.

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