Andy Martin on roughs and ideas

Ok so after a busy two days in the studio with Mr Andy Martin
the 3rd years have made some great work, which I'll post on the ill-us-tra-shun site later.
In the meanwhile here are some of his words of wisdom relating to roughs and ideas:


Andy Martin Top Tips on roughs and ideas

Ideas:

o Get the ideas down on paper. It doesn’t matter if you can draw particularly well (or if drawing is eventually incorporated into the image) Drawing is the quickest way to express / convey an idea.


o Generate as many as possible, do this in the format you have been given to work in, as this will affect the ideas you generate.


Roughs:

o Do a few but send /present them one at a time to the client/art director.


o Consider the psychology of which order to present the roughs, some times it might help to show a weaker rough along side one you really like in order to get the one you favour through.


o If you really only have one idea (which is not a good starting point !) at least go to the trouble of having versions of this idea to show.

o If you have an image with multiple ideas within it, extract all the ideas and create multiple images with a single idea in each.

Checklist for your first commission

It is easy to loose your head when you get your first commission from someone really important. Don't forget to get the following information so that you don't panic. If in any doubt just ask. Avoid being left with any feeling of 'vagueness'.

1. Your brief
2. The fee
3. Format - size, dpi, colour
4. Contact details - make sure the client has yours ( keep your mobile by your side!). Make sure that you have their telephone number and email address.
5. Rough deadline
6. Final artwork deadline
7. Delivery details (type of file, emailed, posted, FTP site)
8. Keep communicating with the client, not too much so that you become annoying - you don't want them to panic. Just don't avoid them! Pretend that you are in control (even if you are in a flap) and fill them with confidence. It will all get done.

Images - The best of Britsh contemporary illustration

Images is the UK's leading illustration competition, annual, awards show, and touring exhibition dedicated to showcasing the very best contemporary illustration published in the UK.

Images is unique in that it is Britain's only jury-selected illustration competition, judged by a highly regarded panel of industry experts, spanning multiple categories.

The annual celebrates illustration excellence and is distributed to a specially targeted list of international commissioners and sold worldwide.

I would highly recommend that those of you in Year 3 consider entering your work into the A.O.I Images book. The call for entries for this year will be in April 2009 and the book would be published in 2010. The entry fee for students is approx £20. Your work will be judged and if selected will land on the desk of those in power of commissioning illustration. ( You also have to pay for your work to be published in the book - it sounds expensive but pays for itself if it gets you more clients!)