Bringing Vector Art Down To Earth
When heading into a quite complex illustration project, there are a lot of things to consider ahead of time.
Mainly, there is the issue of vector technology and how perfect it is.
That inherent perfection can often contribute to an impersonal or inhuman feeling in your artwork.
However, creating tactile or traditional components for inclusion ahead of time is an excellent way to remedy this unwanted feeling.
Hence the reason for the hand-drawn skeleton, which is a recreation of an illustration in an ancient anatomical text.
This handdrawn skeleton is the primary visual component, and although eventually converted to vectors, it retains its tactile essence.
In addition, using a watercolor background really emphasizes imperfection and tactile qualities.
If you allow it, watercolor paint tends to move and bleed in random ways, in stark contrast to the clear intent required to produce vector graphics.
The result of all this is a strange and compelling juxtaposition between perfection and imperfection.
Color strategies Color is one of the most important factors involved in image creation.
Strategic use of color is essential when you are creating an illustration like this one.
With so much detail and so many image components, a well formulated, yet restrained use of color helps reign in the chaos and allows the viewer to focus on the primary visual components.
Furthermore, when we're working with two applications, preserving the color theme between them becomes very important.
This is where effective use of Kuler and Adobe Swatch Exchange technology comes into play.
Tools, Features, and Functions: Live trace This Illustrator feature is an excellent way to convert pixel-based imagery into vector art.
The tracing options are flexible and powerful.
And when the artwork is created with Live Trace operations in mind, precise results will always ensue.
Pathfinder The operations contained in Illustrator's Pathfinder palette allow you to generate unique shapes from existing ones.
Here these operations were used for the abstract shapes in the background; however, once you explore the possibilities it is likely you'll find use for them in a variety of vector-related tasks.
Transform Again Illustrator's Transform Again command is a nifty feature that comes in handy in creating a number of instances of things that show progression or digression, or simply things that look cool when instances start to pile up.
You can repeat the last operation you performed on your selected shape.
When preparing black and white for a detailed Live Trace operation, the most important thing is clarity of detail.
Like most people, I use a standard-sized desktop scanner to scan drawings and other bits of tactile art as I require.
However, in this instance I needed to draw the skeleton much larger, to express the detail clearly.
So, in cases like this, the best thing to do is create the artwork at a large size, simply spaced over a few pages that will fit onto your scanner.
Mainly, there is the issue of vector technology and how perfect it is.
That inherent perfection can often contribute to an impersonal or inhuman feeling in your artwork.
However, creating tactile or traditional components for inclusion ahead of time is an excellent way to remedy this unwanted feeling.
Hence the reason for the hand-drawn skeleton, which is a recreation of an illustration in an ancient anatomical text.
This handdrawn skeleton is the primary visual component, and although eventually converted to vectors, it retains its tactile essence.
In addition, using a watercolor background really emphasizes imperfection and tactile qualities.
If you allow it, watercolor paint tends to move and bleed in random ways, in stark contrast to the clear intent required to produce vector graphics.
The result of all this is a strange and compelling juxtaposition between perfection and imperfection.
Color strategies Color is one of the most important factors involved in image creation.
Strategic use of color is essential when you are creating an illustration like this one.
With so much detail and so many image components, a well formulated, yet restrained use of color helps reign in the chaos and allows the viewer to focus on the primary visual components.
Furthermore, when we're working with two applications, preserving the color theme between them becomes very important.
This is where effective use of Kuler and Adobe Swatch Exchange technology comes into play.
Tools, Features, and Functions: Live trace This Illustrator feature is an excellent way to convert pixel-based imagery into vector art.
The tracing options are flexible and powerful.
And when the artwork is created with Live Trace operations in mind, precise results will always ensue.
Pathfinder The operations contained in Illustrator's Pathfinder palette allow you to generate unique shapes from existing ones.
Here these operations were used for the abstract shapes in the background; however, once you explore the possibilities it is likely you'll find use for them in a variety of vector-related tasks.
Transform Again Illustrator's Transform Again command is a nifty feature that comes in handy in creating a number of instances of things that show progression or digression, or simply things that look cool when instances start to pile up.
You can repeat the last operation you performed on your selected shape.
When preparing black and white for a detailed Live Trace operation, the most important thing is clarity of detail.
Like most people, I use a standard-sized desktop scanner to scan drawings and other bits of tactile art as I require.
However, in this instance I needed to draw the skeleton much larger, to express the detail clearly.
So, in cases like this, the best thing to do is create the artwork at a large size, simply spaced over a few pages that will fit onto your scanner.