Creating digital illustrations is a fun way to test your creativity. It does not require much equipment, and you do not need any formal training to get started. In this article, we will be talking about some easy ways to start creating your own illustrative designs.
There are many types of design styles that can be adapted into an illustration. Some examples include: cartoon style drawings, realism (very natural looking scenes), conceptual art (the artist creates their image using ideas instead of pictures or models), and expressionistic (creating images that emphasize bold colors and shapes).
This article will talk about how to make simple digital illustrations. These illustrations are typically flat and color-focused. They are usually designed for use on websites or as graphics to be printed onto paper. Many people begin by drawing inspiration from nature before moving onto other styles.
Make a rough version in Illustrator
It is very common to find artists creating their own style through experimenting with different mediums and styles. Creating your own style comes more naturally if you experiment with things like textures, colors, and digital media such as photographs or illustrations.
One of my favorite ways to learn new techniques is by making a rough draft first. A rough draft does not have to be professional quality, but it should make you feel relaxed and able to add touches to them later.
I usually start off doing something simple then I slowly build up on layers and features until I achieve what I want. By starting with a simple image, I am able to work on it less seriously which helps me relax and focus more.
By having a goal that you know about already, this makes it much easier to create your own style. You will probably spend most of the time just trying to figure out how to use the software effectively so there is no need to stress about it.
Finish the illustration in Adobe Photoshop
In the second part of this tutorial, we will be exploring how to make an illustrative digital painting or graphic design project. We will be creating our own artwork by completing the process outlined here.
This is by no means a beginner way to start designing. If you have never designed anything before, then this may not be the best way to begin. However, once you get the hang of it, you can create some beautiful designs!
The main tools used to complete this project are photoshop and the graphics software called GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation Program). Both of these softwares are free to use.
When starting out as a designer, there is usually someone around who has trained in art that can help you put together what you want to design. By doing so, they could offer tips and tricks for other parts of the design process such as color theory, proportion theories, and more. This would all be done outside of paying for courses or training.
But if you feel like you are too advanced already, do not worry! There are many ways to learn new things about design even when you are very inexperienced. Technology is always moving forward, and most companies now hire people with no formal education but who have talent.
Practice making different textures in Photoshop
Creating textures is one of the most fundamental things you can do as an artist. A lot of artists make use of texture very heavily in their work.
Textures give your images some depth, they help tell a story, and they help emphasize certain parts of the image or article writer.
Texture is the surface quality of something. For example, if there are lots of cracks all over the wall, that would be a textured wall. Or if it’s wrinkled like skin, that would be a soft-textural wall. Or if it looks like wood, that would be a natural texture.
There are many ways to add textures to digital illustrations. You could take pictures with patterns or materials already on them and edit those into your artwork.
or
You could create textures by applying effects such as blur, vignette, or drop shadows to an existing photo.
Whatever method you choose, don’t worry about what effect the texture has on the picture! Artistic styles vary so much that even having a plain, solid background isn’t too important. What matters is how it fits with the rest of the art and the design concept.
Use the Brush tool to create textures
The next way to add texture to your illustrations is by using the brush tool. This tool allows you to pick either natural or manufactured materials such as wood, marble, glass, metal, and more!
By creating different textures with the brush tool, your illustration will go very well together. You can also use various settings for the brush including number of layers, amount of noise, size, shape, and style.
There are many ways to use this tool to achieve beautiful results.
Use the Eraser tool to destroy textures
The Eraser tool is one of your favorite drawing tools in Photoshop. It allows you to remove any texture, pattern or color from an object. This can be done quickly by selecting the area to erase and then using the Tool box to pick either the Erase Surface layer style or Replace Layer.
The Eraser also has some settings that determine how much control you have over what gets erased. You can choose between Fast, Normal, Slow, and Custom modes. In normal mode, the tool will slowly fade out the selected element, while custom gives you complete control with no limitations.
You can also use the brush option to create a new erasing brush. Settings such as number of layers, amount of feathering, and angle all affect the quality of the erasure.
Create a lighting setup
When creating an illustration, one of the first things you will need to do is create a light source. This can be done by using either natural sunlight or artificial lights!
Using natural daylight is usually your best bet as it does not require any additional equipment. However, when designing illustrations, we recommend investing in at least one lamp that emits strong white light. These lamps are very expensive so make sure you buy for use later!
Most people start with a background element such as plants or architecture before moving onto something more detailed. By doing this, you will have some kind of base to work from and then you can add onto it.
Render the image
Most digital illustrators start with an existing picture or element they want to add illustrations to. A very common way to do this is by creating a new, separate document in your drawing software that contains your illustration. You can then copy and paste your illustration into the other file, edit it as needed, and finalize it before importing into the original piece.
This article will talk about another way to create a digital illustration! If you are already familiar with Photoshop, then you are ready to make your first digital illustration.
If not, no worries! That is totally fine too! There are plenty of free resources available online for beginners to learn how to use photoshop effectively. Many of these teach beginner users at a advanced level so even if you have some experience, you can still pick up helpful tips.
Edit the image
The first step in making your own digital illustrations is editing an existing piece of material or creating something new from scratch. You can start by looking through our stock photo galleries or experimenting with design programs such as Photoshop, Indesign, or Sketch.
There are many ways to begin designing your own pictures. Begin simple and add features slowly! There’s no need to rush into complex designs. Take your time to perfect each element before moving onto the next.
Once you have designed all of the elements, it’s time to edit and blend them together. This process is called compositing and there are several softwares that make this easy to do. Programs like photoshop and indesgin both offer these feature-taking apps which take care of the rest.
