It's been a whole year since I started to learn illustration at this time last year. Like most people, when I first started to learn illustration, I also received many obstacles, such as: you started too late now ... making illustrations requires a lot of skills, but you didn't ... all these are true, but they still didn't stop me from starting.
The reason is love, of course. If you can do what you love, you are really lucky.
Especially now illustrations have been widely used in all walks of life, including startup pages, banners, special topics, refresh pages, details pages, icons, pop-up boxes, background pictures, holiday splash screens, expression packs, packaging, vi design, book illustrations, and many illustrations. Even now, illustrations in ui design have become a plus item. It is so important to know how to illustrate. Even if it's just a hobby, you will find the whole life better.
Two? Others say that you can't learn illustration well with zero foundation! ? I said, yes, it's very simple and not difficult. This year, many people asked me, can non-professional courses with zero foundation really learn illustration well? Are you really zero-based? My study experience tells me that it is possible! No one is born to be an illustrator. Excellent illustrators learn a little, so can we. And many illustrators are very good at sharing, and I have benefited a lot from it. Although there is still a big gap between my paintings and theirs, I am glad that I have made rapid progress in sorting out my works this year.
Third, there is no way to teach yourself illustrations. Actually, I just dug a hole for myself. When I first started to teach myself illustration, I knew that I was holding a book or pulling a bunch of video tutorials from the Internet, but I always felt that my study was stuck, and my study was always in a mess, and my mind was in a mess. On the road of self-study, the further you go, the harder you work, and the more impulse you have to give up. My heart really broke down.
Later, I consulted my college classmate Wang. After graduating from college, she made illustrations. She said you didn't even reach the level of half a bottle and less than one bottle. How dare you play self-study You're confused about the most basic concepts. You are not teaching yourself. You are deceiving yourself. Then Wang put me in a large learning resource (skirt) with original pictures and illustrations, in which all kinds of video tutorials are systematic, and teachers share relevant knowledge every day, so I listen to them every day, not to mention really studying illustrations, and my inner doubts are swept away.
Many friends have been asking me how to find a large-scale learning resource (skirt) for original painting illustrations. Let me share it with you. The first set of numbers is: 239, the second set is: 869, and the last set is: 377. Personally, I think I can have a good learning foundation to accompany me on the road of learning.
Fourthly, I learned the process of illustration. You can copy and believe in yourself. In the future (1), if you want to do a good job, you must first sharpen your knife-tools.
My usual tools include a computer, PS software and wacom hand-drawn board. My computer is a macbook pro 15 inch notebook. At present, all my illustrations are drawn by PS, which is the most comprehensive software compared with SAI, AI and SKETCH. Hand-drawn board needs some feel, many friends say it is not very good, just practice it a few times. Maybe it's because I just don't have a hand-drawn foundation. The first time I used the hand-drawn board, I felt very good. I thought a few strokes on the board could be presented by PS. It's so interesting. I fell in love with the hand-drawn board, so I didn't transition from paper to hand-drawn board when I came into contact with illustrations, but started to use hand-drawn board directly, and repeatedly checked the missing parts according to the problems I encountered.
(2) Copy-if you can't copy it, copy it first.
Because there is no art foundation, hand-drawing is the most difficult for me. At first, I really couldn't draw it I found some beautiful illustrations from the internet and picked some simple pictures, such as some plants, a small animal and a villain.
(3) semi-copying-imitation is boring, and imitation requires skill.
I copied about three or four. In fact, I have mastered several expressions of board drawing, and I will find that compared with the original, the copied ones are still good. Next, I found it useless to just plagiarize, because even the best plagiarism is the result of others. You are just imitating, and all you can learn is the expression of the original, that is, some software technologies. If you really want to draw by yourself, there is no idea in your mind and you don't know how to write in your hands.
At this time, I began to try semi-copying, that is, adding some of my own ideas on the basis of the original work, which is equivalent to adding some of my own hand-painted ideas to the mastered techniques. By collecting materials (first drawing a draft on paper, then taking photos with my mobile phone and sending it to PS for painting), or changing the composition of the original picture, I replaced or modified what I thought was useful into the original picture. In short, it is to modify the original works according to your own ideas. These are all works of that stage. It is difficult for me to do this step well without an art foundation. At that time, I thought it was difficult to draw anything, so I practiced in my notebook, but I still felt that the progress was too slow behind closed doors.
From the learning foundation mentioned by Wang, I found a set of sketch courses to make up for the artistic skills that everyone has always mentioned. At first, I couldn't draw straight lines, so I began to practice drawing straight lines, shaping geometric figures, tuning, shaping the relationship between light and shade, and so on. By learning sketch, I began to have a systematic understanding of the expression and modeling of light and shadow.
Learn sketch-geometry, still life, landscape, human structure and sketch. I will apply what I have learned to my board painting as much as possible, and gradually feel less laborious and hand-drawn will be better.
(4) originality-learn from others and form your own.
The next step is originality. In fact, originality is not completely conceived out of thin air and then drawn, but based on many materials. My method is to collect pictures and photos of what I want to draw online, find out what I like, and then collect the elements involved in the picture in my mind from different fields and combine them into a picture according to my own ideas. This confirms a sentence: innovation is a new combination of old elements.
In addition, at this stage, I also began to learn more board painting techniques. I often ask teachers in the learning base for many video tutorials, and then draw with them, because illustrations have many styles, such as realism, plane, texture and so on. For me, I like the plain and fresh style, so I will analyze how these illustrations are represented, what brushes are used, how the graininess is made, what materials are superimposed, and why the colors are beautiful. Then I began to summarize these techniques and become my own things, but I can't copy them, but use them invisibly to form my own style.
Five? Don't always want to take shortcuts in learning, but there can be down-to-earth methods. Learning needs a process and hardship. Don't always think about getting there in one step. This is unrealistic. You should be down-to-earth, pay attention to ways and means, show wisdom in your efforts, and make efforts in wisdom.
(1) About software
There was an episode in the study of PS software, because before I studied illustration, of course, I didn't know what a hand-drawn board was. At that time, I studied photography. Because I like photography better, photography will inevitably be done later, so I began to learn PS retouching or making posters. Well, the episode is over and the real dry goods are here.
I learned PS by reading a book called PS Non-trace. This book is very thick. I just resigned in June last year,165438+1October. I watched it for almost a month, but I really studied very carefully at that time. After graduation, I seldom read reference books so hard, and I also made various marks. I admire myself now. After reading this book, I really felt that I was proficient in PS, haha. In fact, if you just paint, you don't need to master it. What you use is nothing more than those tools.
(2) About the website
The websites I use the most every day are Station Cool and Petals, which have many excellent works that can be used to copy and practice. There are also some design competitions on the China of Station Cool and UI. Interested parties can take part in it. I have participated in poster design competitions and some pattern design competitions, which are all good experiences, mainly because I can learn what ideas and expressions other excellent designers will use under the same topic.
It is also helpful to make good use of petal net. Usually, you can collect all your favorite illustrations or materials into the petal net, and you can go directly to see them when you use them, like a fortune of your own. I also have a special collection of my inspiration library, which is full of some creative materials I have browsed, and basically there will be a point that I can hardly think of. Then, when I am not inspired, I will go through it and often get something.
(3) About books
I used to work in a state-owned enterprise. State-owned enterprises really feel like frogs boiled in warm water. Now think about that time, either going to work or doing nothing after work. On weekends, I think about how to relax, where to go shopping, Taobao and buy all kinds of clothes. The wardrobe is full, but I still have no clothes to wear when the season changes. ......
I have changed a lot since I resigned last year. What buy buy bought was not clothes, but various books, such as design, illustration, photography, learning methods, copywriting, operation, quality of life and so on. Personally, I think it's very helpful to learn some books that the teacher showed me in the resource library.
Principles of color matching design
Practical sketch course
Elaboration of illustration design skills in illustration classroom.
How to be an illustrator
84 creative skills of illustrators.
(4) About creation
Creation is actually an effective presentation after a lot of accumulation. I think the accumulation here is to watch more, practice more and record more.
Look at more optimistic works that stimulate the desire to create.
To practice more is to practice more hand-drawing skills and improve the creative speed.
Remember more is to remember more instant inspiration and increase creativity.
I summarized all the above by myself, I don't know if it's right, but I suddenly found that my summary is quite good, at least very neat, like serious nonsense, haha.
If you watch too much, don't say it. It has written in detail where to go. If you practice more, you won't say it. Just practicing. I am not afraid of too much. I'm also practicing.
Remember I have to be verbose, because I find that many inspirations are instantaneous. I don't know if you feel this way. For example, when I was cooking, it suddenly occurred to me that I must draw a picture, and then I thought, I must write this idea down when I was cooking, but when I was cooking, I suddenly asked myself what I said just now, so no matter what I was doing or going out, I usually put it in my bag. Of course, if you have a special function that you can't forget, you can ignore this.
These are some of my main learning methods, I hope I can help you. Remember, watch more, practice more and record more!