Thursday, February 26, 2009

We Start INKING in Adobe Illustrator Process Video #4

Video #4 - Let's Start INKING!
SpongeBob inking Adobe Illustrator tutorial video by Sherm Cohen
Click on image - video will open in new window
(There's also a smaller version at the bottom of the post in case you have trouble watching the large video)

Okay, this is what we've been building up to!

In today's video, you can watch as I start inking the SpongeBob illustration in real time. All of these videos were recorded while I was working on the new cover illustration for Nickelodeon magazine -- so you're seeing all of the actual work that went in to creating that image.

There's no retakes here -- everything is live -- just as it happened. The only thing I trimmed out were the pauses.

SpongeBob inking tutorial Adobe Illustrator corners

Using Adobe Illustrator for inking and clean-up has allowed me to take on jobs that I would have had to turn down in the past. Getting a piece of art to look this cleaned up would cause permanent injury to my hands and my wrists if I had to do it with regular pen and ink and brush. It also would have taken forever and a day if I were using traditional materials.

SpongeBob inking tutorial Adobe Illustrator cleaning mistakes

One of the unexpected benefits of inking in Adobe Illustrator is that my line has become a lot more spontaneous -- I can be a lot more fast and spontaneous with the brush since I know that I can press "undo" if I make a bad line.

SpongeBob inking tutorial Adobe Illustrator outline

I'm hoping that once you see this in action, you'll be inspired to give it a try yourself. If you already own Adobe Illustrator as part of one of the Adobe suites, you really owe it to yourself to make the most out of your investment. If you don't own Adobe Illustrator, but you'd like to learn... you can download a free 30 day trial from the Adobe website.

Here's a smaller version of the video if you're having trouble loading the big video:


The next video might be a little bit boring, but it covers some very vital topics. Even though it appears to be focusing on Adobe Illustrator's ellipse tool, it will also show how to copy, paste and reuse drawing elements to save you time and effort. I will also be demonstrating how to use the Illustrator pencil tool to reshape a technically perfect shape into something more appropriate for a hand drawn image. See you then!

If you want to keep up with all the videos,
here's where to find the first three lessons:
here is an updated list of the
Adobe Illustrator
Cartoon Inking tutorial videos:
...and of course the completed Nick Mag cover art is at:
SpongeBob and Patrick Blowing Bubble Gum Nick Magazine Cover art by Sherm Cohen