Thoughts and reflections on the competition

I have found this to be a very inspiring and enjoyable competition to enter. As a child I had a lot of the Brothers Grimm tales read to me, and it was interesting to actually do some background research on the Grimm Brothers and to shed some light on the background of the stores. I really enjoyed creating my final outcome; particularly because I created a style I had never really done before. I found the whole design process was successful and lead to a strong outcome.

I now also understand the importance of competitions and how they offer a great way to advertise you work. I think it’s definitely worth entering as many competitions as I can in the future. Even if you don’t win the competitions, it’s still good time management practice to complete the briefs on time.

Evaluation of my final piece

Overall I am happy with my final design. I am very happy with the composition of the image, and think that the front cover is strong enough to work well on its own. This will be ideal for if the design were to be sold on the internet, whereby you would probable only be able to see the front cover. I feel I have managed to stick to the simplicity style quite well and have created an attractive and appealing image. I’m also very happy with my choice of typeface, and think it completes my design nicely.

I think my only slight concern is perhaps with the character on the front page. If I had more time I think I would spend some time experimenting with a few different character designs, and experiment a bit more with the colours and tones of the character. I could even try to incorporate more than one character in the design. Although my design development ideas suggested that this didn’t work very well.

Sending off my design

With my design complete, I went onto the Penguin websites and created an account so that I could submit my image to Puffin. Before I sent my image I had to make sure that the image was a PDF file. Also the brief stated that I had to include the crop line for the 5mm bleed. So I added in these lines before I sent it.

Adding the Text

All that remained was to add in the text. I spent a long time on Photoshop searching for a typeface that suited my style. I finally came across a typeface called 'Matisse ITC' which I thought was perfect. To finish off I then added in the logos and the bar code box.

Final Design

After doing all my designs and tests, I felt ready to create my final piece. This image shows the final result. I am happy with the boldness of the style and the composition.

Woodland Design

By this point I was sure I wanted to produce a woodland image for my finial design. So I started from scratch and designed this another woodland image, very similar to the last, just with more detail to plant life.

Woodland Design

So I went back to the other design and I experimented with adding in these two characters. I don't think this worked very well in this design as they look a bit out of place. However I like the idea of adding in characters.

Woodland Design

I decided to create a blue version of the last image in an attempt to make it look like the woods were lit by moon light. I thought this design looked colder and more scary. However my feedback suggested that this blue image was not as good as the yellow design. I agree with them!

Woodland Design

This is my first woodland design. I am very happy with it and think it has a strong sense of depth. However this is only a start, its need a lot more development.

Tree Designs

I wanted to create some designs that were simple and effective. I really liked the design on the right (below), and started to imagine lots of those trees making a dark scary fairy tale woodland image. It was at this point I decided to make an image depicting fairy tale style woods.

Tree Designs

Design Development

I started to develop some of my initial sketches into more detailed drawings (as seen below). I spent some time experimenting with them, but didn't really feel like I was getting anywhere. It was then I had the idea to start sketching some trees and landscapes.

Design Development

Initial Designs

I started off by creating these very quick and basic designs. (as seen below) I created them on Photoshop using a graphics tablet. This is a quick fire process I often use to get the ball rolling. I try not to thinking too much about what I doing, and I try to let the hand do most of the drawing. I find this to be a speedy and effective process.

Initial Designs

Initial Designs

The Brothers Grimm Book Cover Examples

Book Research

I thought it would be beneficial for me to have a look at the existing/published Brothers Grimm book covers. To my surprise there were many many different style of art work, which tells me that fairy tale artwork styles must vary a lot. What with all these different styles its going to be very difficult to design a cover that stands out over the rest.

Research onto modern fairy tale illustrators

I decided to have a look at modern fairy tale illustrators to see just how much the styles have changed over the years. As you would imagine they have changed a lot. I think this is because of the vast increase in technology in this modern world. There is a much wider variety of media on offer these days.

Research onto modern fairy tale illustrators

Research - The Brothers Grimm

I started off with some research on the Brothers Grimm. The image below on the left is a portrait of the Grimm Brothers. I also thought it would be a good idea to find out what the original art work looked like for there fairy tales. I found out that the two original illustrators were Philipp Grot Johann (example below middle) and Robert Leinweber (example below right).

Research - The Brothers Grimm

Entering A Competition

After researching into advertising myself as an illustrator , I decided that another great way to advertise myself would be to enter competitions. Many competition are free to enter, and some competitions offer some fantastic prizes.

I decided to enter the Puffin competition.

http://www.penguin.co.uk/static/cs/uk/0/minisites/penguindesignaward/puffin_brief.php

VAT

VAT is TAX on services, and the rate of VAT is currently 20%

The VAT you pay from expenses (input TAX) is deducted from the VAT you charge on your commissions (output TAX), and that is the figure you must pay to HMRC. You usually pay this every three months, but only if you are VAT registered. You only need to be VAT registered when you earn £73,000 or more in a tax year, (that's the gross figure not just your profit.)

National Insurance

What is national insurance?

You pay National Insurance contributions to build up your entitlement to certain state benefits, including the State Pension. The contributions you pay depend on how much you earn and whether you're employed or self-employed. You stop paying National Insurance contributions when you reach State Pension age.

There are two types of national insurance for self-employed people:

Class 2:

This is where you pay contributions at a flat rate of £2.50 a week. However, if your earnings are below £5,315 per year (2011-12) you might not need to pay.

Class 4:

The amount of Class 4 National Insurance contributions you have to pay for any tax year is based on your profits for that year. You pay 9 per cent on annual profits between £7,225 and £42,475 (2011-12) and 2 per cent on any profit over that amount. You pay this every 6 months if you qualify for it. If you earn under £7,225 then you do not qualify for class 4 national insurance, and you only pay class 2 national insurance.

Again this was a topic I had very little knowledge on so it was very useful to learn about it. I did not know that there were different types of national insurance. I originally thought there was only one type. I also didn’t really know what national insurance money went towards ether. So I have learnt a lot from this study. I did most of my research on the HMRC website, which I found very useful.

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/

TAX

It was very useful learning about TAX, and surprisingly quite interesting! It was a topic I had completely no knowledge on, and was too scared to research it. It is very important information that you need to know inside and out to avoid getting in trouble and having to pay fines. I found the HMRC website very helpful indeed and it explained everything very clearly and in great detail. I must keep reading over this information to ensure that I don’t forget it. I must bear in mind that these figures change each year and so I need to make sure I check there website for updates.

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/

Copy-Right

Copyright is a complicated law that has many in depth sub topics. I think copyright is a very important topic that must not be overlooked. There’s a lot of information to take in, but its well worth gaining the knowledge. The world of illustration is incredibly competitive, and in a vast environment like that it is important to make sure you are protect and that you do not infringe any copyright laws yourself.

I did not realise that accepting a commission and invoicing was quite this complicated. It was very beneficial for me to learn how to do this, and to learn about the importance of it. I now feel confident that I could formally accept and price up a commission.

Pricing up a Commission

Pippin Properties, INC.

http://www.pippinproperties.com/

This site appears to be heavily focused on authors and book illustrators. I would not feel comfortable to state my artwork as ‘book illustrations.’ I like to think that my work would appeal to a much wider audience.

The Association of Illustrators

http://www.theaoi.com/

AOI is basically a site where possible clients can search through the work of artists to find the style they are looking for, and possible commission an artist to produce some work for them. This seems like a very professional and well laid out site. If I sign up it would be a good opportunity for me to advertise myself. The only set backs are the cost, and the huge number of artists already on this site.

Portfolio Sites

The Association of Illustrators:

http://www.theaoi.com/

AOI is basically a site where possible clients can search through the work of artists to find the style they are looking for, and possible commission an artist to produce some work for them. This seems like a very professional and well laid out site. If I sign up it would be a good opportunity for me to advertise myself. The only set backs are the cost, and the huge number of artists already on this site.

Portfolios

Things to consider when making a portfolio:

· Have roughly 12 excellent pieces of work.

· Show variety in your work.

· Make sure my portfolio ‘flows’ and is easy to understand.

· You must have a neat and clean, high quality portfolio folder.

· The size of your portfolio should be A3 maybe A4.

· It is good to have some published work in there to show your achievements.

What not to have in your portfolio:

· Do not put work in that does not display your best capabilities.

· Do not put in work that you would fine hard or impossible to complete for a client. For example if the media needed is hard to get hold of, or too expensive.

· Do not put in drawings of your family or any other ‘boring’ drawings.

· Do not put half finished work in. (unless your Mark Desteader)

· Do not put in life drawings.

AdAs of yet I have not been successful in creating a portfolio. Many times I have tried but got nowhere. I think this is because I don't really have a 'style' yet. I am still learning about myself as an illustrator, and I am still discovering my interests. A portfolio will come when its ready. However I must not over look the importance of a portfolio.

As

advocate-art

http://www.advocate-art.com/artistfolio/

Advocate is the market leader in kids, seasonal, photo-real and decorative illustration. They showcase 200 artists serving book publishing, greetings cards and many related art buying markets, from the smallest gift tag to the biggest advertising campaign.

I think it’s defiantly worth sending some work to these people. I can see some of my work fitting in nicely with some of their categories. They sound like a very professional company that would try to find work for me. It would be a fantastic opportunity to be a part of advocate-art.

The Central Illustration Agency

http://www.centralillustration.com/

As I was looking through the artwork produced by some of the artist that the CIA support, I noticed that some of the clients were big names such as Sony, McDonalds, Vodafone and Starbucks. It would be hugely beneficial to be a part of this agency, but the chances of them accepting me are very remote. It’s worth a try though!

Agents

What are agents and do I need one?

Agents will represent you as an illustrator. You don’t need one. There are many successful illustrators that do not have an agent. But it is a good idea to have one. You’ve got nothing to lose.

Advantages of having an agent:

· They case payments

· Discus contracts

· They sort out copy right issues

· They have loads of contacts

· They give you advice on your work

· Some agents are free!

· It can be a time consuming process to try and market yourself.

Disadvantages of having an agent:

· They take a percentage of your earnings. Rage between 25% and 35%

· Having an agent doesn’t guaranty you will get a commission.

· You may have to pay a promotional fee.

This was very interesting to learn about agents. It was a topic I had very little knowledge on, and so I had never really considered getting myself one. However I now understand all the pros and cons, and it’s clear that the positives outweigh the negatives, and it is in fact a very good idea to get an agent.

Researching Illustrators

Tom Lewis

Tom’s style is very appealing to a wide audience. His work is colourful, aesthetic and eye-catching. There’s never really a distinct theme tying his work down to any specific genre of art. His work seems to stand alone and has the ability to allow the viewer to add an element of their own meaning to the work. This is partly why I think his work is so successful and popular.

I think it would be very beneficial if I could learn to apply elements of this technique to my own artwork. To have such a broad style is very important and means that your work could be applied to almost limitless types of products, thus appealing to a wide variety of clients.

Researching Illustrators

Ryan Church

I decided to start with Ryan Church as I am very fond of his work. He is a digital science fiction illustrator who produced a lot of artwork for the new Star Wars films. I am very keen to learn more about his work and life style.

My research indicated that he is a very committed and hard working person. He was lucky to have such a talented father to introduce him to the world of art so early on in his life. His hard work and dedication throughout his time at college paid off as he was lucky enough to receive a job at Walt Disney Imagineering straight out of education. This just goes to show what you can achieve if you put your mind to it. He then progressed into ILM where he was then later promoted up to Skywalker Ranch, a very high position indeed. He is now so successful that he freelances, with commissions from his every growing, and impressive client list.

I emailed these five questions to my favourite illustrator in the off chance that he may respond with some information. But unfortunately he didn't.

Five questions that I would ask a freelance illustrator/creative practitioner.

1. What is the longest and the least time you been given to complete a commission?

2. How many commissions do you get a month, roughly?

3. How do you calculate how much a commission is worth?

4. How do you manage your time?

5. How much free time to you have?

Places where you may see illustration