3rd Thursday: Flying Ostrich

Naters.Art

i like it. if you don't put the text in the top right, it would be nice to see more of the plane and it's pilot. right now it pulls your eye off the page. also think about putting something more on the front of the ostrich plane to make it slightly more dynamic. but otherwise, well done.

kevinpaul

super nice

Lynn Larson

Great image!! I have to agree with the rest, great spot for text or bring the plane lower and finish it more

shinjifujioka

Thanks for the suggestions It's a tough call. Part of me feels that the image is more readable without the plane. But the other part of me feels like the added interest might be worth it to steer the viewers eye around the image and then the plane's wing directing the viewer back at the ostrich. I will work on it more today.

@Naters-Calderone the front of the ostrich's plane is going to be the final touch

@Jiří-Kůs I guess it is a tiger! Haha, I didn't know what kind of animal it was as I was drawing it.

Thrace

@shinjifujioka If you want to the leave the plane, I would change it to a lighter color because it is too dominate and the same color as the plane below it.

shinjifujioka

@Thrace-Shirley-Mears

Like maybe similar to the color of the plane on the bottom left?

Thrace

@shinjifujioka yes but not same color as the sky.

Naroth Kean

I love this image! the characters are so adorable. I like the second image better. I know it's not totally done but some reflection on the doors and sky trails would add a lot of movement and actions also. Great work!

mattramsey

I really like that plane (top right) but it is a stronger image, compositionally, without it.

Ace Connell

I'm agreeing with the majority that the image reads better without it. It's sometimes hard to cut the cod when you're married to an image, but I do feel it's far stronger without it. Just my opinion though.

Ace

tallison7

I like it either way! I do have one question... is it always necessary to leave room for text ON the illustration? Is there anything wrong with leaving the image as a stand alone, and just assume the text will be on the opposite page? I don't know about these things... When building an illustration portfolio, do you always leave space for text on finished pieces that are of an environmental nature?

Thrace

@tallison7 I think this will answer your questions. Its from Lee White: "I'd say this is a good breakdown for a portfolio:

Show three images from the same story. Try to highlight character interaction and get a sense of emotion and story.

Show 2 images that highlight environment. You can have some characters in there, but make sure the environment is the main thing. Will does this extremely well so poke around his website for inspiration.

For the remaining 5, try to vary the stories and how you show the story. Be specific to the type of work you want to get.

Leave room for text in at least 75% of the work. I typically put the text in there. It shows art directors that you understand the business that we are in.

Have fun! Don't put too much pressure to get 10 perfect images right away. Shoot for painting 20 or 30 and then picking the best 10 out of that.

When I was leaving school, I did two things for my work that helped get the all important first book deal. I did half my portfolio on classic fairy tales from around the world which was a blast. Then I did the other half doing images from current magazine articles in kids lit (highlights, Spider, Cricket, etc.). This worked well. On my first trip to NY I landed an agent and a book!