How to Illustrate a Magazine Cover
This is the first cover I've illustrated. it was commissioned by California Real Estate Magazine for their October 2017 issue.
The Process
The process always begins with a sketch design phase. This is where you layout your ideas in a simple sketch format and send them to the client for approval. This project took 5 rounds of sketch design before I was approved to move on to the detailed design phase.
Detailed Design
The transition between sketch design and detailed design begins in Adobe Illustrator. This is where I use the pen toolto vectorise my illustration by tracing over the sketch refining the lines and shapes. The major benefit of creating a vector graphic means that you don't lose quality no mater what size the image is scaled to. It can be as large as a billboard or as small as a postage stamp. It really doesn't matter.
Colour Texture and Light
Once I have completed the trace I use the live paint tool to colour the image. I love experimenting with colour sets and this is the perfect place to do it. Once I have the colours filled in its Time for Photoshop, and this is where the magic happens! I add all my textures and lighting here. My favourite resource at the moment for adding beautiful speckled texture are the Kyle T Webster brushes. Try them out they are amazing
Lets work together
If you are interested in having editorial illustration commissioned please contact me at Gary@reddindesigns.com
If you are an Illustrator and interested in my process and want to learn more feel free to get in touch by clicking here
Thank you for taking the time to read about this project!
