Q: So Why Adobe Illustrator as the software for the Digital Illustration Course?
A: Firstly, Adobe Illustrator is a Vector Drawing Software, made by the same people who created photoshop. The programme has become the industry standard for vector work, and if you get a job using or requesting any sort of eps, ai, or pdf file chances are it is Adobe Illustrator that you will have available to work with.
Q: Are there there alternatives?
A: Yes, Freehand MX, CorelDraw Graphic Suite X5, and a free alternative - Inkscape. Adobe Illustrator however will be the tool we will use to cover the principles of Digital Illustration.
Q: What does "Vector work" mean?
A: There are two basic classes types of digital image structures raster and vector. Raster images are made up of Blocks of colour called pixels and resolution (how many pixels) and bit depth (how many variations of colour available in each pixel) determine how detailed or crisp a picture looks as we take a closer look at the image. A vector image on the other hand is represented in line direction and magnitude and colour. Whereas raster images can represent far more detail, vectors will not pixelate or look jagged as you move in closer to the image.
Q: Why are vector images important?
A: Vector images allow us to create versatile print-ready and web-ready artwork. We can output them very small and very large without compromising image quality.
Colour Models
For information on colour models and a more detailed overview of vector and raster, please read http://www.sketchpad.net/basics1.htm and onwards to http://www.sketchpad.net/basics10.htm for discussion the next class.
Next Class...
The following topics will be covered in the next class.
Menu Ribbon: File
• New
• Save
• Close
• Open
Menu Ribbon: View - Page Setup
• Rulers
• Guides
• Smart Guides
• Show Grid
• Snap to Grid
• Snap to Point
Illustrator Tools:
• Fill, Colour, None
• Pen Tool
• Line Tool
• Rectangle Tool
• Paintbrush Tool
• Pencil Tool
• Selection Tool
• Direct Selection Tool
• Group Selection Tool
• Lasso Tool
An assessment and overview of hand drawing should have been covered, but the assumption is that you have already covered that in your drawing course. You were to be assessed for figure drawing, sketching, perspective drawing and research for composition. Please advise if there are areas with which you find difficulty because they will need to be addressed if you are to be effective in Digital Illustration.
