Illustration Workshop - The Cover
28 Oct 2022 02:25 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
wayfaringwordhackWith our trip to France and the subsequent fatigue and need to get back into a rhythm, I did not finish the cover for my illustration workshop in a timely manner;. However, I have been slowly working on it over the past month and today reached "Done." The instructor has given me the same verdict. Hooray. I did not like the feeling of having something undone hanging over me. :P
I put together a little timelapse of the project, from thumbnail conception to final piece. Sorry for the quality. I did not have a good set-up for taking photos, and the different times of day I worked on it show in the variable lighting that plagues the images. :P
So this is a "wrap-around" image, being the front and back cover of a book. The castle wall is the front; the dawn sky with goose is the back where the text would be.
Here is a view of the final in a higher resolution.
Some things I learned, as a continuation to a previous post on the same topic:
1) Actually, I didn't "learn" this now, but I need to remember to leave ample room for the book spine and to center/place objects accordingly. I thought I had left enough room for the spine and title, but when I fold the paper, the break isn't where I wanted it and the door is overall too far to the left. In one of my original thumbnails, I had left a space at the bottom (on a vine) to write in the author/illustrator credits, but I did not leave that space in the final. Maya rightly assured me that info can be placed in a box or frame afterwards on top of the other elements. I would, however, have liked to be more in control of that. To this end, I think I needed to stay in the concept stage a little longer, really feeling out placement, balance, harmony...
2) Don't be afraid to go after your first idea. In this case, I wanted Jack to have more character and show more awe/surprise, but when it came time to add him, I chickened out and drew him simply walking. In the end, just like with my cardigan, I had to make the decision to redo. He might not be the best figure ever, but the final posture has a lot more emotion than the first version.
3) Don't be lazy. Of course this particular project didn't teach me this, but when I was getting a bit fed up with it, I showed it to Maya. She pointed out some things I could fix that I already *knew* needing doing but didn't feel like taking care of. :P This is a "for me" project, but I can't have that laissez-faire, "this is good enough" attitude if ever I get paid work. I wouldn't accept that from myself then; why should I now? (I am not talking about engaging in endless fiddling and perfectionism but in knowing when I have put in an honest effort. Knowing when something is done is a whole other bag.)
4) Even if parts are scary (painting clouds, anyone?) and you are sure you are headed for disaster, just keep working on it. It will come together. And if it doesn't, at least you learned something! Get back in there and try again. Don't let fear have the last word.
5) It is great having another set of eyes, particularly a pair that belongs to an artist who a) knows her business and b) who shares it in a respectful way. If one can be humble enough to accept such advice and really try to appropriate it, progress can be marked and super rewarding.
To profit even more from Maya's experience, if all goes to plan, I am going to take a character design workshop in December and hope to round out my skills even more. This one will be at a time that is better for me, and I have lots of advance notice to plan for it.
I put together a little timelapse of the project, from thumbnail conception to final piece. Sorry for the quality. I did not have a good set-up for taking photos, and the different times of day I worked on it show in the variable lighting that plagues the images. :P
So this is a "wrap-around" image, being the front and back cover of a book. The castle wall is the front; the dawn sky with goose is the back where the text would be.
Here is a view of the final in a higher resolution.
Some things I learned, as a continuation to a previous post on the same topic:
1) Actually, I didn't "learn" this now, but I need to remember to leave ample room for the book spine and to center/place objects accordingly. I thought I had left enough room for the spine and title, but when I fold the paper, the break isn't where I wanted it and the door is overall too far to the left. In one of my original thumbnails, I had left a space at the bottom (on a vine) to write in the author/illustrator credits, but I did not leave that space in the final. Maya rightly assured me that info can be placed in a box or frame afterwards on top of the other elements. I would, however, have liked to be more in control of that. To this end, I think I needed to stay in the concept stage a little longer, really feeling out placement, balance, harmony...
2) Don't be afraid to go after your first idea. In this case, I wanted Jack to have more character and show more awe/surprise, but when it came time to add him, I chickened out and drew him simply walking. In the end, just like with my cardigan, I had to make the decision to redo. He might not be the best figure ever, but the final posture has a lot more emotion than the first version.
3) Don't be lazy. Of course this particular project didn't teach me this, but when I was getting a bit fed up with it, I showed it to Maya. She pointed out some things I could fix that I already *knew* needing doing but didn't feel like taking care of. :P This is a "for me" project, but I can't have that laissez-faire, "this is good enough" attitude if ever I get paid work. I wouldn't accept that from myself then; why should I now? (I am not talking about engaging in endless fiddling and perfectionism but in knowing when I have put in an honest effort. Knowing when something is done is a whole other bag.)
4) Even if parts are scary (painting clouds, anyone?) and you are sure you are headed for disaster, just keep working on it. It will come together. And if it doesn't, at least you learned something! Get back in there and try again. Don't let fear have the last word.
5) It is great having another set of eyes, particularly a pair that belongs to an artist who a) knows her business and b) who shares it in a respectful way. If one can be humble enough to accept such advice and really try to appropriate it, progress can be marked and super rewarding.
To profit even more from Maya's experience, if all goes to plan, I am going to take a character design workshop in December and hope to round out my skills even more. This one will be at a time that is better for me, and I have lots of advance notice to plan for it.