The project was initially to do a vector illustration for a website banner. The client wanted a toppless woman in a bikini bottom with a hand on her hip revealing a deep tan line on her hip. Everything seemed simple but the it did end up jumping the rails.

Initial sketch for tanned woman illustration

The response to the initial illustration went well and I created a vector file.

Vector version of illustration

At this point the project got ground to a halt. The customer decided that they would rather have a raster painting similar to ’40s pinup art. Using the initial sketch I did a Photoshop digital painting of the image in a more realistic style.

The first digital painting version

I was thinking that they wanted an absolutely crazy tan, but in the end they decided on a more subdued coloration. The final image below is, I think pretty successful. In fact having the job run the gamut from stylized vector to complex digital painting helped me visualize and get a better handle on the form. Both versions were essentially the same image, just different levels of detail and realism.

Final accepted version

3 designers recreate the Omaha Beach landing. Amazing stuff. This sort of ties in to the idea from my previous post where there is credibility given to photos and video even in an age where we know that computer trickery is very subtle and powerful.

Check out their demo reel at: compostcreative.com

a soviet era photo editing removing a figure

I came across this posting and found it interesting. It’s about Soviet-era manual photomanipulation using negatives, scissors, brushes and sweat to perform what can be done now with relative ease. People give a lot of credence to photographs, they assume what they see is what they get. But even since the days of manually cutting negatives photos can be manipulated to show what we want them to.

Something as simple as creative cropping we can alter the message of a photo dramatically. This blog posting has some strong examples.

Mostly I find it interesting to note the kind of power we have because of the credibility of images.

I was cruising my favorite online freelance marketplace looking for clients. With the cruddy economy I’m going the extra mile for leads. One of the dangers of using said online marketplaces is that you’ll meet up with this guy:

I am currently shopping for a freelance professional to create the greatest looking logo ever invented. I will need a logo for [SNIP].
Budget $50 I need Logo asap.
Please only searious professionals apply.

The greatest looking logo ever. For $50. Right now. Aarrgh!

I recently got a project to do a promotional flyer for a short film. After viewing it to get a feel for the mood I got to work on a pencil illustration. It took going over the film several times to get details of both the room and costuming correct, particularly the blouse.

Babysitter Flyer Initial Sketch

The mood for the piece was cold and tense, with the pic ambivalent as to whether she was predatory or afraid.

After getting the approval on the initial sketch I incorporated the copy and sent the first round proof. The angle of placement was used to create tension and motion and it was balanced out by the blots of red for the tagline and title logo.

Babysitter First Proof

The client looked it over and was mostly happy with the general feel. She did want a change to the illustration where the girl’s right hand would be holding a pair of shears. I modified the sketch and changed the rotation because of the way the scissors would interact with the logo. This orientation still kept the motion and the moving of the tagline maintained the visual balance.

Babysitter Proof 2

The client was pleased with this one and I proceeded to the actual illustration. For this project I dropped the sketch into Adobe Illustrator and vector traced the important elements, added color, gradients and hard lines (including the white stroke around the figure).

After the Illustrator phase of the project was completed it was dropped into Adobe Photoshop for final processing. The file had to be of sufficent resolution for the client to use the image for small posters so it was created so an 11 x 17 print size would be at 300 DPI. Once in Photoshop a black overlay was dropped in with a mask that radiated out revealing the middle and causing the image to descend into darkness at the edges. Then it was simply a matter of adding black shading to the blouse and arms and cleaning up the white stroke around the girl.

Babysitter Final Illustration

Raster images refer to the way computerized photographic images are saved and displayed. On the web the most common are JPGs, GIFs and PNGs. In the print world raster data is generally saved as EPS or TIFF files.

Image Attributes
Aside from the color mode, there are three attributes that define a digital image. Print Size, Pixel Dimensions and Resolution. They are interdependent and with any two you can define the third.

Print Resolution
Resolution refers to the number of pixels in each inch when printed. The higher the resolution the sharper the image will resolve to be. Generally DPI for printing is 300 for photographic images and 600 for lineart.

Web Resolution
Monitors are a lot more forgiving than the printed page. A monitor only needs 72 dpi to show an image flawlessly. One thing to note is that if an image is over 72 dpi it will still display at 72 dpi, it will just be bigger on the screen. For example, an image that is 360 dpi will display five times larger than its Print Size on screen. It has to show each of those pixels, and since only 72 will fit in each inch, it adds more inches.

Print Size
This is how large the image would be if it were printed directly on paper. The Print Size is the Pixel Size divided by the DPI resolution with the result being in inches. On the first sample pic below the Pixel Size is 400 across. Divide that by 72 and you get 5.556 inches, the Print Size. It’s important to remember the Print Size of a document, because if the client needs something at 300 DPI, but the Print Size is half what it needs to be, the file is only 150 DPI when enlarged to the correct Print Size.

Pixel Dimensions
This refers to how many pixels across and down make up the image. For instance the sample pic below is 400 pixels wide by 300 pixels tall. On the web the Pixel Dimensions are of primary importance since the browser will show all the pixels.

The first of the images below is 400 pixels by 300 pixels at 72 dpi. The image below that is also 400 x 300 pixels, but only 40 dpi. The only real difference between the two files is the Print Size and Resolution. Since the Pixel Size is the same both display at the same size on a monitor.

Second Image Size Sample

I was neck deep in a illustration project today and it set me to thinking about all the stuff that goes into design. It made me think about this video:

Although at this point I have to say that my mental soundtrack isn’t upbeat fiddle music.

In my meanderings I came across an interesting spec work panel at the South by Southwest Conference.

I see both sides of the issue here. For those not in the know, spec (for speculative) work is giving ideas up front before any contract is signed. Typically this is done on the internet and spec designing has become proforma at some online freelance design sites. The idea is that you invest time, effort and inspiration on the off chance that someone will decide to choose your idea and pay you.

I have had clients approach me with sketches in hand that were done on spec by some other designer. It’s pretty shady getting a sketch for free and using that person’s idea and inspiration to try and get a discount by having someone else do the actual illustration. When I come across this I bow out from the job.

High end designers eschew designing on spec because it devalues their work. Design is a highly skilled field and the amount of fiddly crud you have to know is staggering. Easily comparable to any four year degree. We’re professionals and we deserve to be able to earn a comfortable living at this. It’s not reasonable to ask a skilled professional to put in 8 hours of work for $25.

Go to Craigslist for your town and check out the Creative Gigs section. I’m sure you’ll come across someone offering $25 for a logo, or maybe even offering the chance to create their logo for free.

Having photoshop on your computer doesn’t mean you’re a designer. Just like having MS Word doesn’t make you a writer. (In fact, most low-end designers don’t know that Adobe Photoshop isn’t a tool for creating logos. Really, it’s not.)

People working on spec or for next to nothing reinforce the notion that design isn’t worth much. That it’s unskilled labor that goes to the lowest bidder. For a small mom & pop coffee shop having a $25 dollar logo isn’t going to destroy them. But it isn’t going to make people take them seriously either.

On the other hand, designing on spec will likely be around for good. There is a market for it and some people will surge to fill that niche.

What I see happening is a stratification with high-end designers floating like a pudding skin on a vast sea teeming with low-end, paid next-to-nothing amateurs and semi-professionals.

The important thing is to make it obvious which side of the surface you’re floating on.

The Design Sea

The project is to make a vector illustration that resembles a Victorian wrought iron sun with a smiley face. A simple enough job, but it had a few hiccups in the process so it took longer than I wanted to.

Vector Sun Etching

My Process:
The details of the project were simple as can be. One color, lineart, vector. Initially I did a sketch of what I was thinking of.

Sun Sketch

In my original sketch I intended to have the outside edge be pitted and weathered, but in the piece it ended up looking cheap. I went back and simplified. I also didn’t like the look of the squiggly kris-knife looking rays / tines. There were eyebrows on the sketch, but they detracted from the look when I actually illustrated them, so it turns out that he’s smooth browed. Which only makes sense, since the sun is far too hot for hair to exist.

Hrm. He’s right about rule number 1 though.