Evolution of an Illustration

Center for Public Integrity

Did some adjusting to the illustration for the new client yesterday, and since I was playing around with so many variations, I thought I’d share the slight adjustments that this illustration went through on its journey. Above is the finished version, below is the initial sketch.

On my initial pass (above), the illustration seemed a little flat, so I tried taking the solid blacks in the image in the silo and the background to a dark blue (which was one of the colors I was provided which was part of the web site’s color scheme – see below). I provided both versions to the client, who suggested trying to emulate the more mottled accidental splotchy black that I had in the initial sketch. I also felt that the missile popped a little better in the sketch, being a bit brighter than the background, and I also tweaked the color in the money to get a little closer to the green end of the spectrum (but not quite as blatantly green as the original sketch). The final result is the illustration at the top, combining the two background techniques, and touching up the colors here and there.