Create an awesome vector character illustration!

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Building the Concept through Thumbnails

Students should be prepared to show a vast array of conceptual thinking when it comes to posing and
Students should be prepared to show a vast array of conceptual thinking when it comes to posing and the layout of their composition. This is the time to go wild and pump some of your best ideas out in a quick fashion without worry of quality.
Thumbnail Sketches
Share your thumbnails for feedback along with which you think should be your choice for tightened sketch and reasoning for said choice.

Refining an Idea

Students should be prepared to finesse the look of their character with pencil and paper. Considerin
Students should be prepared to finesse the look of their character with pencil and paper. Considering pose, scale, environment, and the flow and weight of line, the final sketch should be as close to a grayscale version of their final anticipated color illustration as possible.
Tightening Sketches
Share your tightened sketch for critique and what potential parts should be further refined and possible changes to enhance your piece prior to moving forward to inking.

Inking in Illustrator

At this point the student must rely 100% on the ability of their inking tools, ie. the brush or pen
At this point the student must rely 100% on the ability of their inking tools, ie. the brush or pen tools in Illustrator. These tools will allow the student the flexibility to work in the various weight changes in lines in order to further enhance the underlying ink foundation of their work.
Inking
Share your inked illustration and ways you feel you may need to improve it if any.

Coloring in Illustrator

Students should be prepared to implement color using their familiarity with either the fill and stro
Students should be prepared to implement color using their familiarity with either the fill and stroke tools available in the tools panel, or using swatches and the live fill/color ability of Illustrator. This will be the most expedited portion of the curriculum, which will also allow students to tweak previous ink work, or step forward into the next unit to be a step ahead in the course.
Coloring
Share your coloring options and what your thoughts are on potential improvement.

The Dark Side: Shading in Illustrator

At this point the student must be comfortable working with a heavy set of layers and blending modes
At this point the student must be comfortable working with a heavy set of layers and blending modes in order to properly depict shading using vectors.
Shading
Share the choices you have made for shading to gain further feedback regarding what type of options may suit you best in development

The Light Side: Highlights in Illustrator

Students should be familiar with light sourcing and how these lights may affect the surfaces which t
Students should be familiar with light sourcing and how these lights may affect the surfaces which they interact with, ie. clothing, metal, skin, etc.
Lighting
Share your lighting discoveries and how you have implemented them in your piece.

Drawing to a Close: Final Submissions

Students will have familiarized themselves with all parts of the curriculum and stages to develop th
Students will have familiarized themselves with all parts of the curriculum and stages to develop their work. Combined with links provided and suggestions, the students will be able to refine their work and should now be familiarized with methods of exporting their work for print and web.
Finalizing
Share your final piece for feedback and information on exporting.

Additional Resources

Overview
Students will learn how to sketch thumbnails, further hashing out their ideas and potential concepts for taking to completion. Students will brainstorm various concepts in the form of thumbnails in order to convey best options for character placement and motion as well as additional illustrative elements.

Tools and Resources
Inspirational sources for thumbnailing and sketching should come from dynamic works and illustrations; check out works by Burne Hogarth and Art Germ as various inspirations on posing.

http://burnehogarth.com/
http://artgerm.deviantart.com/
Tools and Resources
Inspirational sources for Inking should come from taking a look at various vector illustration sources and reviewing the quality of line weight and various stroke options that are used when developing.

http://thefinishedbox.com/inspiration/illustration/amazing-vector-art-edition-1/
Overview
Students will learn how to color their work in Illustrator.

Students will hash out concepts for color and implement them in their pieces. Colors should be best suited for your character and his/her environment to further enhance the mood.

Tools and Resources
Similar to the previous unit, color inspiration can be found from the link below. Also take into consideration the correlation between color and line work. Be sure to be able to visually separate the elements in order to analyze them properly.

http://thefinishedbox.com/inspiration/illustration/amazing-vector-art-edition-1/
Tools and Resources
Pay close attention to the shading styles that are used in the various links. Some styles rely on solid shapes, others on blends/meshes, while some rely on various filters provided in illustrator ie. feather filter (or photoshop for those exporting artwork *photoshop techniques will not be covered*)

http://thefinishedbox.com/inspiration/illustration/amazing-vector-art-edition-1/
http://www.gomediazine.com/tutorials/from-sketch-to-vector-illustration/#.UP88baETJqc
http://vector.tutsplus.com/articles/techniques/the-art-of-skin-shading/
Tools and Resources
Again, similar to our last unit, take a look at each piece in the links below in order to gain an understanding of the means by which the artist sets lighting against the undertone and shadows their piece contains.

http://thefinishedbox.com/inspiration/illustration/amazing-vector-art-edition-1/
http://www.gomediazine.com/tutorials/from-sketch-to-vector-illustration/#.UP88baETJqc
http://vector.tutsplus.com/articles/techniques/the-art-of-skin-shading/
Tools and Resources
The following link is a brief look into how you can define an artboard area for export in adobe illustrator.

http://www.adobe.com/designcenter-archive/video_workshop/html/vid0213.html

Will Focus

Creative Director

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