20 TIPS FOR BETTER GRAPHICS & ILLUSTRATIONS
- FOLLOW A LAYERBASED WORKFLOW
19. WORK WITH THE
EYEDROPPER TOOL
Graphic designer and illustrator Tim Hastings (www.
mindkillerink.com) explains how he builds up his
designs: “My typical workflow process begins with at
least a day’s worth of working on another project
that is already in progress, while having the next
project in the back of my mind, conceptually planning
it out in my head and visualising what direction to go
with. After sufficient mental planning, I will begin
digital composition sketches, usually around three
for client-commissioned work. After composition
sketches are complete, I generally let the client view
them, then we review and see which has the best
direction. When a final sketch is decided upon, the
process is always the same. I begin the linework
phase; this generally is 60 per cent of the finalAnna Lisa Wardle (www.annaillustrations.
wordpress.com) is a UK-based freelance illustrator
who creates work focused on pattern, design and
colour, with a distinct style and a portfolio stacked
with engaging portraits. Her key Photoshop trick lies
in a less-used tool: the Eyedropper. “Having a
favourite tool is relative to your style. For me, it
would be the Eyedropper tool. It is perfect for
blending. I use Eyedropper tool constantly, literally
every second when painting. It is amazing for picking
colour samples from any image you find and
applying it to your work. This really broadens your
mind when thinking about colour. Blending becomes
easier when you use the shortcut (Opt/Alt) to access
it rather than pressing it separately on the toolbar. If
you have a graphics tablet you can hotkey it, which
saves time enormously.”illustration, combining the darkest shadows and
linework into a single layer, while the sketch is on
another layer at low opacity and locked to ensure I
stay on the correct layer at all times. Upon the
completion of the linework, I again get feedback
from the client, and once all is approved I move to
colour. Colour is generally predetermined by the
composition sketch phase and then it’s a process of
stepping each colour layer by layer until the final
illustration is complete. Finally, I explore other colour
options, see what set works the best and send it off
to the client, and then usually set it up for printing.
This whole process can take anywhere from eight to
20 [plus] hours, depending on the complexity of the
concept being illustrated.”© Tim Hastings
© Anna WardleEMI HAZE EXPLAINS HOW HIS ILLUSTRATIONS START FROM A PHOTO
AND ARE BUILT UP WITH TEXTURES AND HANDMADE ELEMENTS- USE PHOTOS AS A BASE
01
PHOTO RETOUCHING
“The artwork starts from a photo and the
first step is its retouching. I cut out the subject
from the background with a selection usually
using Pen and Lasso tools, working with a tablet,
and create a bitmap mask. Then I remove part of
the image to prepare it for the next step.”02
HANDMADE ELEMENTS
“I do various handmade elements, such
as scratches, ink marks, acrylic or watercolour
stains, which I digitally import in the work. I merge
all these elements with the subject, using blending
modes, adjustment layers, various bitmap/vector
masks and selection tools.”03
IMAGE PROCESSING AND
COLOUR CORRECTION
“I select from other photos different natural elements
and I import them on separate layers, trying to melt
them to the subject with the double exposure
technique. In the end, after numerous retouchings to
finish the work, I proceed with the final colour
correction of the image using adjustments layers.” © Emi Haze