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Illustration

I have just started learning cartooning from a book. Also trying my hands in sketching realistic object drawing. Sharing here is a line drawing of my office phone coloured in phothoshop. Though it is not a serious effort and just a scribble but let me know your views on it.

Here are some interesting quotes related to telephone followed by my drawing:

If the Phone Doesn't Ring, It's Me

A girl phoned me the other day and said "Come on over, there's nobody home." I went over. Nobody was home.

The telephone is a good way to talk to people without having to offer them a drink.

Choose the Perfect Wine

Whether you want to stock your own personal wine cellar or know how to select the perfect wine for social situations, this book teaches you everything you need to know.

Displaying here the original cover printed by Adams Media and one I changed for Indian Market. Though the original cover is good but I find it very dark so I designed a cover with more colours and more elements. Hope you like it.

Original

Changed

MICKEY MOUSE

When people laugh at Mickey Mouse, it's because he's so human; and that is the secret of his popularity

Vector Tips

Some readers asked me about procedure of making realistic vector images. How I made it? Which software I’ve used? Which tool I used most? etc. It is difficult to describe the procedure in tutorial way as I made them for developing my skill and not for tutorial purpose. But here I am trying to describe them with some tips.

Many visitors asked about the software I use. I think that you can use any software as creativity is not there in software but in your mind. If you think that you can do it then you can do it in any software. I prefer using CorelDRAW, Photoshop and Illustrator.

For mixing colors properly and in natural way I use INTERACTIVE MESH FILL tool. You can add as many nodes you want for mixing different color shades effectively. Eg.


Your tracing skills should be good if you are tracing an object image. Trace each and every part separately with close path. So that you can fill them with different shades to make your vector more realistic. Eg.


For showing depth and highlight use drop shadow with different color shades and transparency. Break drop shadow from object and place it separately for indicating depth or highlights. Eg.

Have patience – sometime realistic vector art take long time to complete.

Whatever software you use for your vector, tools must be clear to you so that you can use them effectively. Any tool can be used in many ways.

Also decorate the surrounding of your vector to make it more attractive. For decorating surrounding you can place your vector on colorful background or you can draw some curved line drawings around it. Eg.

Most powerful tools you can use in CorelDraw are: Bezier Tool, Freehand Tool, Shape Tool, Interactive Transparency Tool, Interactive Drop Shadow Tool, Interactive Mesh Fill Tool, Fountain Fill Dialog Tool.

In menus most useful options are:
Effects > Powerclip option
Arrange > Shaping Option

You can use above mentioned tools and menus in different ways to make any vector look realistic. Hope this post will be helpful for you in developing your skills. Your comments are most invited.