All postcards printed
In the postcard assignment students had the freedom to decide what their subject would be and how to illustrate each postcard. The only requirements were the postcards had to fit together in a series and most of the design had to match the examples of the chosen illustration style. The goal for this assignment was to showcase our technical proficiencies and convey the concepts and emotions throughout each illustration. The outcome of the postcards should be able to show improvement and look professional so they can be used later in our college years.
Postcards in order: printed form
Postcards in order: computer illustrations
My theme for the postcards is illustrating the steps to skydiving in a fun, colorful, cartoon-style way. The reason I chose this style is because most of the population thinks skydiving is terrifying and I wanted to prove to them it can be enjoyable. A major part of my postcards I wanted to succeed in was showcasing how small the earth looks while in the plane because it shows the viewers how small we are and not to stress over the little things during their days. What makes my postcards unique is there not a location they are just a series that ends with people jumping out of a plane with smiles on their faces. I chose not to include locations because I wanted the viewers feel they were invited to join in the fun of skydiving instead of being invited to a big city or any other location.
Examples of illustration style
The programs I used to create this work were Adobe Illustrator on the computer and Adobe Illustrator on the tablet. Most of the postcards were created on a tablet because I had more control over the tiny details, and it was easier to create each piece to its maximum potential of realism with cartoon color. On the computer, I worked on the background of each postcard because I wanted them to look small and not as detailed. After all, when you are up in a plane the earth loses a lot of detail and only becomes squares of land.
Ideas sketched on paper
The first step I took in creating my postcards was sketching out ideas on paper. I thought of many ideas but only sketched out the idea of postcards for skydiving because it was more interesting and unique. After having my sketches complete, I pasted the image into adobe illustrator and started outlining my composition. When I had a good direction for the composition, I started creating my people.
Outlines/guides on how to position my people
Outlines, planning the composition for each postcard
To create my people, I started with squares and a circle for the head. I learned to create people in drawing class and had to google how many heads tall a person is. Once I relearned a person is roughly seven heads tall, I created an outline person and then positioned the squares into the positions I wanted the people to be in. After positioning, I had to use the expand tool to have freedom of the size of my person without losing detail. Having the proper size of my people I used the pen tool to go over the squares to create the “skin” of the people or create a new square filled with a color over the outline person.
People during work in progress critique
Having the basis of my people done I created the clothes following the same steps with the pen tool but instead over the “skin” of the people for this step. Once I had created one set of my people I copied and pasted the outline person to move around to form another position and then repeated the steps for the rest of the postcards. For the first work in progress, I had created all four of the front of the postcards but had not worked on the design for the back of the postcards.
Adding color and more details
During work in progress
After the first work in progress, I was advised to add outlines to the illustrations, fix the proportions of the people, and add expressions as well. I immediately got to work adding outlines by selecting my illustrations and adding different-sized strokes to different parts of the illustration.
Added expression and fixed feet/ankles
Fixed arms and hands, added more motion in hair as well
For my people, I defined the shape of their bodies, arms, and legs better by focusing more on the muscles and not making them look like they were made of noodles. I also added outlines for the people to give more definitions and match the example of my chosen illustration to a greater extent. Once I defined and added outlines, I focused on scaling the proportions of the people and plane for a greater realistic style. To accomplish the proper proportions, I completed the people then grouped them and increased or decreased their size once they were placed on the already-made background. If I needed to move an arm or certain body part of the people, I would directly select the part and then turn or move it until it fits naturally with the background. Having the feedback from the work in progress made my work pop off the page more and look professional while accomplishing the cartoon aspect too.
Minor retouching and final people illustrations
Back of postcards first designs
The back of my postcards are the same and they include a silhouette of a person skydiving into clouds with the title “Take the Dive” instead of the normal postcard title. I chose to keep the back simple but still include skydiving because I want the focus on the front and if there is a lot of illustrations on the back they would be covered up with writing when someone sends to somebody else.
Final designs of the postcards illustrated
Completing this assignment, I learned more shortcuts for how to work efficiently and smoothly in Adobe Illustrator on a tablet. I also learned the feedback I receive is to help me not and it's not calling my work horrible it's only trying to make it the best it can be. The final and most important part I learned by completing this assignment is designs or skills formed on paper can be translated into computer design. I am excited for all my skills learned from different classes to help fulfill my desire for great work in graphic design.
