ANM 324 Project 1

For most of you, this first project is an adventure and a significant challenge because you are using a totally new piece of software with drawing tools that don’t feel very natural.  I appreciate those challenges and try to push you a bit in how you look at these everyday objects.  You’ll be seeing your skill with Illustrator grow enormously over the course of the first two projects.  Keep up the good work!

Here’s my general grading criteria for this project:

Note: 5pts deducted for missing group critique 10pts for missing submission deadline. You can view your grade and additional comments regarding late submissions or missing comments in the gradebook.

95-100-drawing is accurate, demonstrates good control of tools and includes accurate lighting effects (your subject had a high level of difficulty) considered but not complete or accurate (subject not as challenging)

85-90-drawing is accurate, fills not complete, lighting not adequately considered

80-85-drawing and use of tools lacks control, lighting not adequately considered

70-80-drawing not controlled, lighting not considered

70-below very late work

First let me say that, as a group, you all did exceptionally well on this project. Your control of the drawing tools and consideration of lighting on the controllers was much better than I typically expect with the first project. You’ve now set an exceptionally high bar for the next project. Keep up the good work!

Anita Kunz Group

Renee-You’ve done a very nice job with your phone illustration. I especially like the attention to detail like the gradient on the chrome trim and the type styling, which looks very authentic. The shapes are basic, which I would expect at this point of learning. One thing to consider is the visible use of the strokes. For example, you might show the raised part of the phone in a slightly different tint of gray rather than use a visible stroke as an outline to define the shape. To be even more realistic try removing the stroke outline on the phone body. Lighting is very consistent and the cast shadow grounds the phone on the surface. The gradients also reinforce the light source. Keep up the good work!

Patricia-The see-thru controller is amazing! I think what really makes your illustration realistic looking is the highlights and shadows you’ve added. I really lie that cord with the irregular cast shadow…that’s exactly how those cords appear on a surface. The highlights you’ve added to the case give us the impression of transparent plastic. OK…they are a little rough but the brush is not the easiest to control. The thumb controller top shadows are also brushed in a painterly style. You’ll learn that drawing a shape with the pen and filling with a tint would have more control. Hey…you’ve done such a nice job on this….I don’t want to be too picky. You’re going to love the interior project! Excellent work.

Lauren-
Your Verizon phone is a great launch point for gaining experience with the drawing tools…you’ve demonstrated excellent skill with the shapes and good control of the color fills. I especially like the slight curve at the top of the phone’s face…that looks very realistic.
That cast shadow is interesting and effective. I see that it’s a Gaussian blur with some pixilation. Is that an effect? The shape has a moderate level of difficulty…not as challenging as some. All your strokes are quite heavy…consider how you would colorize if you did not use strokes to outline the shapes. This is a great launch pad for your next project.

Steven-The Dreamcast controller has a lot of complex shapes that have required modification of the original shape tool. The finished controller looks very realistic. I like the use of gradients on the buttons and cast shadows to reflect the light source from the left. The strokes you have used help define the shapes and have been colored to realistically to help us understand the form of the controller. I think it would be more effective to not have strokes around the colored buttons..those great shadows help define them. My only other suggestion would be to have a larger cast shadow off of the main body to the right…it should be at least as long and probably longer (it’s thicker) than the shadow being cast off of the thumb controls. I would even consider a Gaussian blur on that shadow around the base to differentiate it from the shadow of the controls on the smooth plastic top..just a thought. You’ve demonstrated good skill with the tools and a good eye for lighting effects. Excellent use of layers too!

Meghan
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The bird’s eye view of the camera is really fun! I’m immediately attracted to the lighting effects on the lens…although some strokes are visible, it very effectively gives us the illusion of chrome. I also like the texture you’ve illustrated on the lens barrel. I see a very thin cast shadow with blur around the lens and body. There’s no definitive light source..perhaps it’s from the top? I think the application of a gradient on the camera body top or added shadow off the frame wheel would give us a few more clues and make it a more realistic. The shapes involved are challenging and have required added skill with the drawing tools. Get ready for the next project!

Rosenwald Group

Robert-This version of your controller is vastly improved. You’ve done an excellent job of styling the irregular shape of the body which is the most challenging aspect of the illustration. The detail really brings the controller to life with all the buttons and type. While you’ve done a good job including all the buttons the alignment, especially down the middle row is not precise. There are some great alignment tools (see Window>Align) that allow you to select a set of elements and align precisely..this works for type and shapes. Your cast shadow implies a strong light source from the left and very effectively grounds the controller on a flat surface. I think it would add to the realism is you included some visible shadows off the buttons. The best way to do this would be to fill the controller body with a slightly lighter shade (grey) then use black for the cast shadows. You’ll be able to put all these skills to work on the next project.

Terell-Your phone is quite basic but you’ve included lots of great detail and lighting effects. I especially lie the highlights around the bezel which imply a shiny metallic rim…that’s very nicely done. The detail in the thumb pad is also very precise and adds realism. The added images of the ATT logo are a nice touch too…I guess you could have drawn but that would be asking a lot at this level of experience. Your lighting effects illustrate a source from top left with a very strong cast shadow and blur that is excellent. The bands of lighting highlights across the face are a nice touch…I would suggest putting a gradient on the screen itself. If you layer the screen just below the two grayscale overlays you could take advantage of both lighting techniques. Nice work …keep it up!

Daphine-Looks like you had some fun adding the daisy cover or screen image to your phone. The irregular shape of the inner plate is quite challenging due to our limited exposure to the more refined drawing tools at the point of this project. You have done a good job of making it reasonably symmetrical. One trick to keep in mind is try drawing just one half of an object and then select, copy, paste and flip to add it to the original half…it will be perfectly symmetrical. The details are limited to the on/off button. I guess that’s all we have on most smart-phones. I can really tell if the dark shape is the shadow of side of the phone..I will assume it’s a shadow. To make it more defined as a shadow you can add a blur (Effect>Blur) this will distinguish it from the body. To be consistent, any buttons or recesses, such as the on off should also have a hint of a shadow. Daisy looks great!

Cassandra-Wow..Wii! Your controller is an excellent exercise in precision drawing and lighting. I really like the detail you’ve incorporated in the controller front panel. That strap is perhaps the most successful with its curved form and multiple fills and gradients. It looks like you had fun with your illustration! You definitely paid a lot of attention to lighting effects. To some degree they are a bit confusing because there appears to be both a drop shadow (just below and attached to the controller and strap) as well as a cast shadow that implies that the controller is raised to an angle above
the surface. I would suggest sticking to one or the other. I like the cast shadow…to make it more realistic, I would give it a slight blur with the effects>blur>Gaussian blur. It also looks like the main lighting is coming from both right and left…this could be if it had two directional lights from opposite sides, but there would also need to be cast shadows in both directions off the body and strap..does this make sense? I think simplifying the shadows..keeping them either cast or drop and from only one direction would be most successful. I like your attention to detail. You’re going to have fun with the interior and all the lighting effects!

Larysa-What an interesting device. I was trying to find an ASUS controller monitor so I could learn more but didn’t have any luck. The detail on your controller is amazing. You’ve done an especially good job of adding perspective with your drawing as well as the lighting effects. I especially like the highlights you’ve added with gradients along the edges and the inner bezel of the screen. It looks very realistic. The lighting effects clearly imply a strong source from the right with the cast shadow and the consistent gradients on the surfaces….Wow! Very well done!

Jessica-You’ve done a great job on your Ninteno NES controller! What strikes me first is the sense of realism that the lighting effects have given the device. I especially appreciate the highlights on the buttons which give them form and with the red ones we can imagine the depression in the surface…that’s is really well done. With that level of detail on the buttons you might also consider some highlights on the top face bezel surrounding the black face. OK..I know I’m being picky..just suggesting the next level of “perfection”, which you clearly have the skill to achieve. Not much else to say…you’ve really done a nice job on the project.

Kroencke Group

Megan-I can almost reach out and touch your X box controller! What strikes me most is the soft cast shadows off all the buttons…that’s really well done. The touch of color also adds realism. I’m a bit surprised that you didn’t apply a more effective cast shadow off the left of the controller to be consistent with that lighting on the buttons. This would help finish the controller and give it form. My favorite part of your illustration is the fact that you used layers to differentiate the various parts. We hadn’t actually worked with these prior to this project. Perhaps you had some prior experience or done some extra reading…whatever the reason, I like it!! This aspect of organizing your drawings is key to making successful complex illustrations. You’ll really be able to use this skill on the next project!

Jeremy-It looks like you had fun with your illustration of the iPhone…while it’s a pretty straightforward form, the addition of perspective adds considerably to the level of difficulty. You’ve been very successful at modifying the basic shapes into a very consistent point of view. Lighting effects imply a light source from the top right and I see the effects consistently displayed on the surface of the screen and along the edges where it’s darker. You might add a cast shadow in the inside corner of the on/off button.
The cast shadow is consistent but the level of blur tends to “float” the phone off the surface. There is a technique that allows us to apply a gradient blur so the shadow would be sharp at the edge of the device but soften as it moves away…watch for that when we work more with lighting effects. Last point…consider turning off some of the strokes…try using color or tint contrast.

Katrina-I had to go look-up a ROKU controller to see how that clever little tab was attached. It looks like it’s just part of their logo style and is also on the main box...I learned something!

Your illustration is very precise and detailed. I especially like the icons you’ve crated…they are very realistic. I think the coloring of the basic shape would more effectively show those icons and buttons if it were either lighter or perhaps filled with a gradient. This would give some contrast. As is, the overall tone is a bit too dark. I can see that you have given the controller some depth by adding a side view that’s colorized in a slightly lighter tint of black, I think you are trying to show a curved surface…this would be more effective if it were filled with a gradient. Overall drawing skills are very good…coloration is the only weak spot..you’ll have an opportunity to refine all these skills in the variations project.

Robert –Looks like you had fun with your illustration by adding the color background and LG GT text. The drawing has very good detail, especially in the icons at the bottom. The overall phone shape is pretty basic with the modification at the top to add a depression…I suspect this may be for the earphone jack. The overall tone (color) is very dark. I think it would be more effective if the primary surface were a touch lighter so we could see the button shapes. One technique that would work is adding a very soft gradient (much darker than the one you have on the screen). This would add contrast to the buttons. Your lighting effect off the body looks very good…seems like the gradient on the screen should be applied in the same diagonal direction for consistency.

Greg-You got off to a good start with your outline of the Sony controller. This is a very challenging shape that requires combining and modifying shape tool elements or drawing with the pen. I like the detail and clearly see that you are somewhat of a perfectionist…this likely drove you crazy. You also indicated that you had trouble with the color fills…this would certainly be more effective if you had been able to fill the shapes. It looks like most of the shapes aren’t closed..this is not uncommon if you draw with the tools as if they are traditional drawing tools. We have lots of techniques for joining segments and shapes to make them closed and easier to fill.
I suspect that by the time you start work on the variations project you will have a much better feel for the tools and have an “ah-ha moment” regarding colorizing your vector art.

Frazier Group

Valoria-There’s lots of detail in your phone. It looks like you have very good control of the basic drawing tools. The alignment of numbers and lettering could be more precise. We have some very powerful alignment tools at Window>Align. You can select a row of elements and precisely align vertically or horizontally…be sure to give it a try. It would be particularly good for adding perfect rows of dots in the speaker area…which now looks very random. I appreciate your attention to the lighting effects. The cast shadow is excellent and your gradient on the screen is consistent with the light source. It would be a plus to also show a shadow off any buttons that would be above the surface of the phone.

Armin-You’ve added incredible detail and precision to your phone illustration. Those thumb controls look like we could reach-out and touch them…very nice. With that radial gradient on the thumb showing its curved surface, I would also expect to see other highlights and shadows. In particular, I’d like to see a cast shadow to ground the controller. I think it would also more effective if you added a gradient to that big beautiful screen. You have excellent skill with the tools…just need to refine the form with the addition of lighting effects. Nice work!

Brianna-You went a little “old-school” the ipod. The problem I have with your illustration is that the face of the iPod is an image that you surrounded with a shadow in the background and placed a button in the center. Perhaps you were using the image as your template, which is fine. But I do expect the entire final drawing to be your original work so you can show me that you understand the tools and techniques. The cast shadow that you did draw is good but it’s not consistent with the lighting on the surface of the ipod, which is going in the opposite direction. If I’m missing something I should understand about your drawing, please let me know.

Justin-Wow…your illustration of the SONY controller is one of the most successful in class. You clearly have a feel for the vector drawing tools and a good sense of form and lighting effects. The detail is spectacular and your lighting effects are very consistent both with the cast shadow and the highlights on the buttons. I don’t have much more praise to heap on you! I’ll look forward to the next project..you’ve set a high bar for yourself and your classmates! Keep up the exceptional work!