Photoshop Illustrations

I'm proud of you guys! Our critique yesterday was fun. I'm glad we had a chance to discuss the final project. Communication is essential! This was a great learning lesson for ALL of us. I hope we'll continue to have fun and create good. : ) This class is filled with talented designers and I want what's best for all of you.

–Brian

Here are some Photoshop illustrations from Project 2. I was only able to post what was handed in. If you want to have your work posted on the blog please submit your file.

Happy Thanksgiving

"We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of our treasures." ~Thornton Wilder

IMPORTANT!

It's been brought to my attention that the requirements online about Project #3 are not accurate to the project I've asked you to produce this quarter.

1. Please disregard the 4x4 minimum artwork requirement.
2. You do not need to present three versions of thumbnails tomorrow.
3. You will only need one set of thumbnails and one dummy.
4. Your book can be 8 or 12 pages– your choice.

I apologize for any inconvenience you've experienced. I'm looking forward to your presentations tomorrow.

Creative inspiration– Independent MOVIE posters...

Independent movies usually lend a designer more artistic freedom. Here are some of my favorite independent posters– originally posted on Smashing Magazines.

NEXT Thursday Night

Annual Alumni Panel
Just wanted to give you a heads up to announce we are having our annual alumni panel at 7pm Thursday Nov 20th. This is a great event for past students to share their “real world” experiences and to have you ask them questions.

We will be getting out of class early for this event. Don't miss out.

Veteran's Day and Homework

Some of you are expected to teach assigned sections of the book on Thursday. Please come prepared at the beginning of class. If you haven't been able to connect with your group yet, I strongly encouraged you to meet soon. I have asked Justin Rusk to watch over the class while I am gone. He will also be grading how well you communicate each section of the book that you have been assigned.

Here are some things to consider while you prepare for Thursday:

1) How well do you know the material?
2) Are you providing relevant examples?
3) Do you make sense?
4) Have you provided time for questions, student interaction?

And a quick reminder– there is no class tomorrow. Enjoy your day off!

The work of Arthur Mount

Arthur Mount, steadily holding a BFA in Drawing from the Caifornia Colege of the Arts (Oakland), is definitely a name to check. His works include lots of characters, among them known ones, in a style that makes them easy to recognize, while not being overtly ‘too’ realistic, ‘too’ detailed. They have also appeared in many publications around the world, including the USA, Canada, Japan and France.

Brilliant work from a brilliant man. Here's a great resource for you as we dive deeper into our class. Arthur Mount is a master in his field.

QUIZ on Thursday

Just a reminder– there will be an open book quiz on Thursday over Lessons 1-9. Please take some time to go over them. You will benefit from doing this on the quiz and in the weeks to come as we continue to work through Photoshop.

– Professor Glassco

Project #2 Summary

Assignment #2

Concepts involved:
Self-critique
Graphic resonance
Research
Design Process
Presentation
Conceptual problem solving

Step 1
In this assignment, you will be in groups of four. Your group will choose one of the following words.

Change, tension, RESoLVE, SERENITY, and ANXIOUS

Each individual is responsible to come up with 20 DIFFERENT ideas and sketch them out in 2 inch squares. The appointed group leader will make sure no two sketches in the group are alike.

DUE OCTOBER 28th

Sketches need to posted on white mat board as 2 inch squares. No two sketches can be alike. Please check with your group before Tuesday's class. I've provided a lot of room for creativity. I encourage you to use various media including India Ink, charcoal, water color, pastel, fabric, etc.


Step 2
In the final step, (based on your in-class critique and group critique) develop the best idea using Photoshop. You will present your ideas together on black mat board. As a group, you must research the essence of that idea and communicate it verbally, using no less than 120 words, and no more than 150 words. Your research should be submitted in addition to your illustrations.

For the final critique, each individual will present their final illustration on black mat board.


NOVEMBER 6th - Final Critique

Bleeds and Presenting your magazine cover...

To add bleeds you need to:
1) Set up 1/8" guides on your artboard


2) Your artwork should extend 1/8" past the final dimension of your magazine cover




3) When you're ready to print, click on 'Marks & Bleeds'
4) Check 'Trim Marks'
5) Change bleeds to '0.125 in'



When you're placing your final magazine cover on black mat board, you need to:
1) Measure the width of your cover.
2) Subtract that measurement from the width of your mat board (in this case it is 16")
3) Divide that number by 2 and you will have the distance you need between the edge of your cover to the edge of your mat board.





Hope this helps!

Art Supplies, SmArt Supplies...

I've been asked a few times where to get the necessary art supplies for my class. Here's the answer to all of your problems. There is a store in Capitol Hill called Utrecht. Check them out online at Utrechtart.com

Brian

MORE examples...

Here are a couple more magazine covers for you to get some ideas from.

Ok, so there are some obvious rules broken here, but she was able to pull it off because it fit the subject matter of the magazine and added to the authenticity of the piece.

Magazine Cover Samples

Here's the first example I received from a previous student of mine– Karin Bretz. If you know her and/or see her around you might try to get some advice on how she executed this particular assignment.

Upcoming Illustrator CS4 Features

IN CASE any of you are interested I found what will be featured in Illustrator CS4! Trust me, there will be a lot of new features that will enhance your experience in the program AND your design work. vectips.com

Illustrator Tutorials online

A great resource for you is vectips.com. It has Illustrator tips, tricks, and tutorials.

Please wait patiently while I'm waiting to hear back from the students I asked to have their magazine cover posted on the blog. I'm trying to get 4 magazine covers that show the unique personality of each individual and an effective use of the pen tool.

Exercise 1 Review

In no particular order, here are the top 3 South Park Portraits in the class. Every one did extremely well and I look forward to our magazine covers!

I love Jelly Beans...

Here are the images you need for tonight's homework assignment.

Assignment #1–South Park Portraits

There are three things I'm going to be looking for when I open up your file on Tuesday:

1. It must be a self-portrait.
2. Your portrait must be made in Adobe Illustrator.
3. Your file must have organized and labeled layers. This will help create a good habit for yourself in the future when you begin to work on more elaborate illustrations in Illustrator, Photoshop, and InDesign.

Here's a great place to start–
http://www.sp-studio.de/

YOU Tube, MY Tube...

As promised I would begin to look for YouTube videos to show during class. I'd love some help of course so if you find an interesting, inspiring, or funny video, post it on our class blog. I'll make sure we all get a chance to watch it at the beginning of class.

Here's a great place to start.

What time does class start?

Class starts at 5:30 PM. See you this evening!