A decade spent in art education, followed by another 10 years immersed in digital painting techniques have enabled me to identify the different ways of approaching commercial work, and helped me to uncover new ways of expressing my ideas in my personal art.
I usually work in Procreate on an iPad, and Photoshop on an iMac Pro, switching between both applications. For this workshop I created the sketches on an iPad and finished the piece in Photoshop, taking advantage of the bigger screen size and the program’s larger range of tools. You’ll see how even basic effects such as Lighten, Darken and Color Burn layer blend modes, Gaussian Blur and Liquify can help you to create those pro-level finishing touches.
Digital art tools either attempt to imitate the effects of traditional media, or take a painting approach that, for the most part, is far removed from real-world processes. My work doesn’t resemble a ‘real’ painting at all, apart from during the early sketch and line-art stages, and when developing shadows and background. Instead, I rely on Photoshop to enhance parts of the image as I go: first by developing the mood of the artwork, and then adding details throughout the scene. It’s a totally different approach to working in traditional media. Here, I’ve used vivid colours, light blooms and gentle rendering to express my love for the films of Studio Ghibli.
1 Generate rough sketches
The ImagineFX team’s idea for the cover is “a girl hugging a plush toy, maybe a Totoro one”, so I start by creating four sketches in Procreate: three with Totoro and one with a shark plush toy. I’m mindful of the cover layout, so the face of the girl and her soft toy should roughly be in the middle of the composition.
Bu hikaye ImagineFX dergisinin April 2020 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye ImagineFX dergisinin April 2020 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
A Tribute To Akira Toriyama
Remembering a legend Artists from across the world pay homage to the influential manga artist and genius creator of Dragon Ball
First Impressions
The illustrator reveals his journey through the world of art
DEVELOP 3D SKILLS FOR CONCEPT ART
Gaëlle Seguillon creates a breathtaking fantasy environment by combining a selection of techniques within her workflow
DRAW FUTURISTIC VEHICLE DESIGNS
John A. Frye uses just a single brush to transform his messy thumbnail into a bold and colourful hard-surface creation
PART 5: SIMPLIFY THE VALUE SCALE
Charlie Pickard introduces his top advice for achieving strong values in your artwork to create clear and powerful imagery
Charles Ratteray
Page-turner Library meets laboratory in the artist's studio, packed with inspiration and a mix of media
How to tell a story in an image
Narrative masters Tanya Combrinck talks to four artists about using visual elements to imbue their work with personal and universal human stories
ILLUSTRATE A MAGICAL CHARACTER
For this illustration, I was asked to create a fun, bright image with the theme of making artwork magical by the developers behind the digital drawing app Clip Studio Paint.
First Impressions - Glenn Arthur
Influences from Disneyland shape the artist’s work
THE ART OF BRIAN SUM
Dominic Carter talks to the mech master about honing his cyberpunk visions, character designs, and his new artbook