Lecture One provided the opportunity to work with basic shapes, line shapes, and color in Illustrator. These shapes serve as the foundation for illustrations ranging from simple cartoon-like drawings to technically complex illustrations. They are the go-to shapes for almost any illustration I create rather than starting with freeform drawing tools which you'll learn about in the next lecture. Here are examples of illustrations that began as simple shapes.
Can you recognize some of the basic drawing shapes in these illustrations?
Unless you've been living under a rock for the past 100 years, you are most likely familiar with what a robot looks like. Some are blocky, some are curved, some are a hybrid of both. The basic shapes and line shapes in Illustrator are well suited for creating such mechanical beings. As you work, think of Illustrator as a construction tool that builds your design from squares, circles, lines, polygons and so on.
Need inspiration? Google's Image Search is a great resource to see what's out there as far as robots go.
Note
Exercises will be evaluated for understanding of course concepts.
Illustration by Sessions student Ashley Deer.
Want to save some time and frustration? I strongly encourage you to grab some paper and sketch out some ideas either from what you see on the web or what you conjure up on your own. This puts your creativity into immediate action without having to stare at an empty workspace in Illustrator.
As you sketch, think of the shapes you've learned about. How can they be used to represent the various parts of your robot? You can achieve a lot of detail by just using simple shapes.
By default, the basic shapes have a black stroke but you don't have to keep them. Try to avoid using strokes on most of your shapes for a cleaner, more professional look. If, however, you feel the strokes contribute to the style of your robot, then feel free to put them to use.
Illustration by Sessions student Rocio Rodriguez.
As for color, you are encouraged to make use of gradient fills along with the solid color fills. The gradients will bring more life and visual impact to your robot.
Here is a sampling of robots created by students previously in this course. Some are more complex than you might be ready for, while others were done by students with no previous exposure to Illustrator.
The video below shows the creation of a robot. The robot you create does not have to be as complex as this one but it should still be detailed enough to get you comfortable with the tools.
You can find another method of the robot process by clicking here.
Also, take a moment to recap the fundamental Illustrator tools you learned in the lecture with the following Review Kit:
If you have questions before uploading your work for grading, use the Inbox feature to get in touch with your instructor.
When you're ready to start working in Illustrator, create a new document (File > New) that uses pixel as the unit of measurement. Use the width and height dimensions shown. Be sure to name your file here or when you save it.
Important: In all Sessions courses, plagiarism is not tolerated. Plagiarism is the act of taking someone else's work and passing it off as your own even if it's only part of a larger design you are working on. Your ideas, inspiration, and creativity should be the primary focus of your work.
You are free to take inspiration from the work of others and create a design based off of that but copying directly from another source or designer is strictly prohibited. It should be understood that any plagiarized work will receive a grade of zero and you may be subject to disciplinary action as detailed in the Student Handbook.
Please consult with your advisor if you have any questions as to what constitutes plagiarism.
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What your instructor is looking for:
If you have a question before sending your completed exercise for grading, send a message through Canvas to contact your instructor.
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