I work both traditionally & digitally. When creating gallery work its 100% traditional. My paintings are normally acrylic although I’d like to get back to using oils & watercolor.

When doing editorial work the piece is roughly 50% traditional 50% digital. I’ll render the drawing with ink, graphite & markers…some paint might be applied in the mix. From there I take it it into photoshop and finalize it digitally. I show the step by step process in the ‘News’ section on my site.

© Chris B. Murray, 2012

We like the strong characterisation and gritty texture to the piece. We look forward to more from this talent.

© Sean Soong, 2012

Jeremy enjoyed it so much that he decided to expand it into a children’s story, teaming up with his sister, who is an already published fiction writer.

Not one to just sit on the idea, he was proactive with getting it off the ground, using the community fund-sourcing website, Pozible. Not only has he already exceeded his funding goal, but the project has been feature all over the place, including in Digital Arts and 3D Artist magazines. He tells us more about the actual creation of the characters and we get a sketchbook peek.

To create a character: I start with a lot of reference. I scour the web for different angles of the animal I’m creating. I collect photos, diagrams, skeletal images (where applicable) and study them. Then I take these and simply sketch over them to break out the main forms. Once this is done I take my sketches into Maya 2012 and build them in 3D.

One of the most challenging things about the paper animals is keeping them simple, it’s very easy to get carried away with details. The more detail, the less they look like paper. Simplicity is key.

Once the character is built, I apply some paper textures which convey extra detail and give those lovely paper crinkles and folds.

Finally, after I’ve tweaked the model and textures and I’m happy with the character, I go about manipulating the creature in an interesting pose and rendering it out!

© Jeremy Kool, 2012

Natsuki’s hope is that her illustrations can make people happy, even if for just a moment.

I have a style that is best described in colour and realised in detailed design. Bold vibrant colour forms the basis of a working practice that seeks to unite dreams and reality. I try to give the viewer a feast of colour and complexity, my surreal macabre touches are the counterpoint to my sweet and childlike innocent subjects.

My working process is simple, I do a lot of research then roughs, work on my original ink/pencil drawings as much as I need, sometime I digitally colour onto the original as well, then give it a clean finish!

© Natsuki Otani, 2012

Kali’s illustrations have a nice hand-drawn look to them, the kind where you can almost feel the ink moving against the paper in the edges of the shapes and the style of the brush marks. However, that, as we now know, is not the case, with her process predominantly taking place in Photoshop.

The way in which her illustrations are made aside, we like the use of and play with colour. As you’ll read below, she says that the experimentation with different palettes in her work in one of her favourite stages, which results in some fun combinations.

Where colour is absent is also worth taking a look, Kali is a pretty adept user of negative space. We particularly like the way in which the figure is created with white space in the image below, and how the background of the text bleeds into the illustrations and body of the characters in the following zodiac illustrations. We asked her to tell us more about how she works.

I’m a freelance illustrator based in Baltimore, where I also teach part time at the Maryland Institute College of Art. All my work is drawn exclusively in Photoshop with a Wacom tablet, from sketches to finals, though sometimes thumbnailing on paper is easier for me. 

I’ve also found that it’s easier for me to build up my images using shapes to define form, instead of linework. As a control freak, I take full advantage of Photoshop’s capabilities for endless tweaking.  It’s not uncommon for me to spend an hour dragging color sliders around and shifting hues until they’re just right, but working with color is my favorite part of the drawing process!

© Kali Ciesemier, 2012

Henry lives and works along the east coast of Kent, UK. It’s a place that may influence his work, we’ve never been there but his illustrations definitely remind us of the thick patchwork of other heather-lined areas of coastal Britain.

On his work, he says, “I think, for me, it’s all about drawing and I like work that looks like it’s been made with pens, ink, pencils, paint, paper— with no artificial additives! But, within that to make a believable world with its own set of internal rules to excite and intrigue”.

© Henry McCausland, 2012

Because her mark making is so tightly stitched together, the drawings take on a nice photographic quality from a distance but a more sketchy, free style when enlarged. The pretty, delicate nature of her illustrations works perfectly for fashion, as well as with the minimal palettes she uses. She tells us more.

I am a freelance illustrator. I use a combination of traditional and digital methods to create my images. I create collages on the computer using Photoshop then use these as a basis for a drawing. Then I scan the pencil drawing into the computer and add colours, again using Photoshop.

Sometimes, I use coloured inks or pencils to add colour but I have recently been tending to use Photoshop more for colours, with maybe just a splash or two of ink in the image, for example red lips…

© Anna Higgie, 2012

The result has been a historically accurate project that he has dedicated a lot of time into researching. It’s worth noting that the small details in the illustrations that describe the events of that period have been meticulously considered so that they are true to the facts and will please even the keenest enthusiast of the story of the ill-fated Titanic.

Aside from obviously having the most care and attention in even the tiniest areas of each illustration, the drawings themselves are pencilled in with the easy fluidity of a 2B. Watercolour and other textures are layered in, along with handwritten type to fill every inch with masses to look at and absorb. When we asked Alan to tell us more about his process, he was kind enough to give us a detailed breakdown of every step with examples to top it off— enjoy!

I first heard about Fr Frank Browne’s Titanic photographs in 2005 from a radio interview with Eddie O’Donnell, the authority on the life of Fr Browne. Since then, I have always been interested in his amazing adventure on Titanic. I always thought his story would translate very well to a graphic novel or animation.

The Script & Storyboard:

Over the years, I wrote a script based on his own recorded accounts and collected much research material in order to construct a narrative to be as historically accurate as possible. It turned out to be six chapters long with a prologue and epilogue, so a hefty tome that required a lot of planning and editing. As I work as a motion graphics designer for TV, there has often been projects that needed storyboarding, so it’s something I felt quite comfortable with.

Visual research:

Titanic enthusiasts are known to be the first to spot any mistakes Titanic-related in cinema. So, I was very careful to maintain visual accuracy and I have many folders of visuals for each location and scene. 

Layout:

As ‘Get Off That Ship’ is my first graphic novel, it was sort of idiosyncratic how I came up with my work process of creating a graphic novel. When I work on a page, I would generally start by referencing the page’s thumbnail drawing from my storyboard, which is like my bible.

From this, I would plan the layout of the full-sized page on gridded paper, that way, I can accurately size up the panels with a panel gutters etc. For the next step, I draw from my roughs, sometimes using the lightbox as a guide. I would also paint the panel using acrylic using the light box. 

Illustration Technique:

One of my favourite drawing tools is mechanical pencil with 2B leads. I use laser printer heavy stock paper— it’s smoother than Bristol board, and takes so well to the pencil, it glides very easily and you can achieve great effects particularly when shading. I would then scan this artwork and colour it on the computer. In order to give the imagery a more traditional style, I would scan in watercolour textures that I apply to the illustration. 

Typography:

I absolutely love the aesthetic of hand rendered type. Often with graphic novels and picture books, the artist resorts to a typeface that is faux-hand written or a generic comic font. I have always been thrown by that and have considered it a process that needed to be really considered.

I therefore inked all of the type with a pin pen, never duplicating any of the letters to save time. And, though I have opted for a slower even painstaking process, I believe that it adds much character to the type, and people do notice those subtleties.

© Alan Dunne, 2012

His own style of character illustration is just and fun and bubbly as anything you’d find in a Disney/Pixar movie, making him perfect for clients like The Pixar Times. Have a look at his illustration in which he decided to take on the task of including as many Pixar characters as possible.

When you feel you’ve named enough, have a read of our interview with Andrew, where he tells us more about his cultural references while also giving us a diagrammatic breakdown of his process.

 As the name of your website, ‘Kolb is Neat’, suggests, precision is important in your work. What do you think influenced you to develop this style?

Ha. I suppose I’ve never thought of my work as “precise” per se. Now that you’ve got me thinking existentially, I suppose my approach comes from my background in graphic design.

The program I went through was (and still is) ALL about precision. We hand rendered fonts and were allowed measurements to be off by 1/64 of an inch. While all this measuring and such may have made us nearly go blind, it was a sort of Karate Kid approach to visual discipline.

Sorry, I’m rambling already! OK, what I’m trying to say is that my years of a graphic designer sort of shaped my mind to ensure there’s lots of structure and clear communication in my work. I suppose I hadn’t thought about the impact before. Man we’re off to an awesome start!

You mentioned that the Disney artist, Mary Blair is an inspiration to you. What is it about her work that resonates with you?

Yes sir! Mary Blair is the coolest. I’m an unabashed fan of everything she accomplished. I only hope that someday I can create imagery that is at the same time aggressively communicative and delicately beautiful as her work was. I think it’s that dichotomy that sticks with you.  

How important is keeping a sketch book to you for  developing ideas?

Well, I’ll admit that half of my concept work rarely starts in the sketchbook. I wouldn’t so much say that keeping a sketchbook is important as I would swear by not going straight to the computer.

My desk is often covered in sticky notes or bits of paper with all means of doodles on them because when an idea comes, I’ll simply grab whatever is available and draw/write/scribble. Much of my work eventually gets into a sketchbook, so they are important, but I’d be as happy with using the backside of junk mail if need be (and admit I’ve made makeshift sketchbooks by stapling office memos/print outs together). 

During the course of one project, how much time do you spend working on the computer versus putting pen to paper?

Hmmmm. Of course it’s different for each project, but I can answer this way: the more time I spend on paper at the start, the less I will later at the computer. I would even be as bold to say that the ratio is somewhere in the range of 1:3. If I spend an hour with pencil and paper, I’ll accomplish the same amount regarding layout and concept as I would in 3 hours if I went straight to the computer.

I think as creatives we spend so much of our formative years drawing traditionally that we inherently accomplish more in less time because we have experience on our side.

So, I’ll bring this all back. I think that no matter the scale of the project, I usually spend about a third of the time away from the computer. Yeah that sounds about right. If I have an hour to do something I’ll still take 15 to 20 minutes to do a quick linear. On the other end of the spectrum I may spend 2 to 3 hours working through a sketch if the digital work will last me a ‘normal’ work day. Alright cool we kinda figured it out!  

What do you try and achieve in your personal projects, which might differ from commissioned work?

Well I think the fact that it’s ‘personal’ work says a lot to what I try to do. Most of the work that’s my own IS very personal. Not that each piece is a diary spilling my soul’s deepest emotions, but I do take the chance to do exactly what I want and perhaps try something new. It’s very indulgent. Perhaps I’ll take the chance to work on a new brush or push something that I wasn’t as happy with in a previous piece.

At the same time I also look at personal work as a chance to start a new path. If there’s something I’d like to do more of in client work, I try to put that into personal work first. I’ve found it’s a lot easier (for both the client and myself) to point to existing work as a starting point for a commission.

Explaining an abstract concept like visual aesthetics goes a lot smoother when you have that base to build off of. So, I also approach much of my personal projects as “hey, I can also do THIS”. Once you’ve shown the world you can do something once, there’s no reason for them not to be confident you can do it again.  

What advice would you give to someone trying to start a career in illustration?

Well, let’s see. I find most advice given is the sort that the speaker wished they had been told earlier in their career, so what do I wish I was told? I’ve always known that you get out what you put in, but my advice would be to recognise that this often functions differently than you might expect. I work better with visuals (what a surprise) so here’s a basic set of graphs illustrating what I’m trying to explain:

On the left is how I thought work, exposure, and the like (what I’ve labelled as ‘results’) functioned like this: consistently put in effort (draw everyday, keep up with social media, etc.) and the response will be relative to that (a slow but steady incline).

Instead I’ve found that it’s more like the graph on the right: you continue to put in effort but the results don’t seem to be going anywhere (particularly at the start) THEN all of a sudden it jumps. Something has caught (someone saw your work online, you got featured somewhere, who knows) and you’ve broken through to a new level. The work’s not done though because you’re seeing results but not that much. Keep putting in effort and eventually that jump will happen again.

With this all in mind (the idea that you’ll put in a lot of effort and not see results immediately), my advice is to not give up. The hardest challenge of this industry happens right before that next magical jump. You’ve spent so much time and invested a lot but you might feel stuck where you’re at. If you keep going you will eventually break through. When or how that happens is unsure, but frig it WILL happen if you keep going.

Oh yeah motivational speaking is the best! But seriously keep on trying (and trying hard, very little comes of half attempts and cutting corners). If it helps I recommend making this your desktop wallpaper, as I do when I need to accomplish a lot:

© Andrew Kolb, 2012