155
- COMBINE REAL MEDIA
AND DIGITAL DRAWING
Illustrator and graphic designer Giulio Rossi (www.
behance.net/giuliorossi) came from a traditional
painting background and shares how he made the
change to digital: “Since I bought my first graphics
tablet, I [have] discovered a whole new way to express
my creativity! I always thought that traditional and
digital methods were so different from each other, so
when I started creating things with my computer I
didn’t try to replicate what I used to do before. I
preferred to test my ability to draw, working with the
great potential that a digital environment could offer. Of
course, all the practice I’ve had with traditional art
techniques was pretty valuable, and even if I draw with
my computer most of the time, I [have] never quit
doing it the old-fashioned way. Digital painting has a
different approach to drawing and it’s all about the fact
that you can work with several layers for just one
illustration, which is an advantage over traditional art.”
Conceptual planning: “The prequel to the
sketch, conceptual planning is a definite must for creating better illustrations no
matter what skill level you are at. This means figuring out what you want your
piece to say. Combining a concept or message with your art will not only
improve the outcome, but in general allow your audience to connect to it.”Composition:sketching. During the composition- “You are ready to begin
sketching phase, keep your sketching loose and try to create as many
different variations as possible of your concept. Allowing yourself many
options will increase your chances of creating something better than if you
were to fixate on one single idea”Flip your view: “When sketching your
compositions, always flip your canvas (Image>Mode>Image Rotation>Flip
Canvas Horizontally) to see proportional errors, and other things you might have
missed by viewing the piece in only one direction. If you are sketching
non-digitally, the same technique can be applied by simply turning the paper upside
down and viewing it from that angle”Creating inking brush settings:lot about the Photoshop brush settings I use. “I get asked a
In truth, the settings I use are very basic in comparison to what Photoshop can really do.
My brush settings mimic that of an ink and brush technique, or a pen drawing style. I use
the Default Circle brush with 1px Spacing and100% Hardness along with only the Shape
Dynamics checked and set to Pen Pressure.”Explore different colour palettes:art is complete, you should always explore other “After your final
colour options. One easy way to do this is to Image>Duplicate>Merge, then Cmd/Ctrl+U to
bring up the Hue/Saturation menu. Sliding the Hue slider will allow you to see almost every other
colour set within the same Hue family. Sliding the Saturation slider will also allow for more colour
variation, along with the Brightness slider.”Colour is everything: “Along with conceptual
planning, colour is key in what you want your
piece to say. Every colour has its own meaning and can change the mood of the illustration
instantly. Limiting your colour palette creates dramatic emphasis and will allow the
illustration to become more sophisticated. A good formula to use is a neutral colour and two
complementary colours within the same hue.”Create colour sets: “Create a Photoshop document
with vast colour sets ranging from two to eight or more colours. Creating premade, limited-palette
colour sets on a separate PSD will give you the ability to drag full colour sets into your current
work seamlessly, saving you time. Always update your colour palettes PSD and mix and match your
previous colour sets to create new ones to allow colour diversity in your art.”Set up for screenprinting: “90 per cent of my work is set
up for screenprinting. The best and most effective way to set a design up is to prepare before you start. Every colour
must be on a separate layer and stacked accordingly. The linework is always my first layer, but in the end this layer
will end up being the T-shirt colour so it must be at the top to Select>Load Selection>Example Layer, then Edit>Clear
from each colour layer that is underneath the linework layer. The last layer in your layer menu is a fill of what
colour you will be using for your shirt. You must also do the same thing for each colour layer that is over the top of
another colour layer to ensure zero overlap when printing.”TIM HASTINGS WALKS US THROUGH THE
PROCESS OF DESIGNING AN AMAZING
ILLUSTRATION IN PHOTOSHOP- 8 STEPS TO
AMAZING ILLUSTRATIONS
© Giulio Rossi
© Tim Hastings