DaniDraws.com

When speaking about artists’ websites, an art director recently made a comment that caught my attention - he is annoyed when he can’t view them on his iPhone.

The comment was half-joke, half-serious, but it brought up an important point. You never know what potential clients are out there, and what they are using to view your work.

And so I went home and made an iPhone version of my web portfolio.

Why make an iPhone website? Is it necessary?

No, I don’t think every artist should go and make an iPhone portfolio right this minute. Quite frankly, I don’t expect a lot of visitors to my mobile site. However, I DO think artists should keep these ideas in mind. The use of iPhones and other mobile phones is on the rise, and artists should always be thinking of ways to make it easier for clients to access their work. At the very least, avoid flash and multi-media rich websites that don’t work on mobile platforms.

It was a fun experiment and it didn’t take long to create at all. I know it will make at least one art director happy, so that alone is worth it.

So if you have the know-how and a little bit of time, I say it’s worth the extra bit of effort. It might not matter to most of your clients - but it might mean the world to the few who happen to be on an iPhone.

Here is an in-depth review of how I put the site together.

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You work hours and hours on a digital painting. You render in tons of details, play with the values, and fuss with color until it is just right. You finally get it about perfect. And then you go to print it…

If, for you, this story ends in disaster this article is for you.

Let me start by saying that I am not an expert on this subject. Printing can get complicated and messy, and terms like ICC profiles, color spaces, and monitor calibration can really make your head spin. For the most part, I leave these things for the professional printing arena. In my own work and in this article, I try to keep things simple - creating good quality prints to display, promote, or sell without them looking stupid.

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Here is a question I received from reader Kyle:

What does a professional portfolio for possible employers look like? How many pieces of work should I use? How large is the physical portfolio? Do I take the physical portfolio into interviews or do I take in a resume and a disc with all of my work? Also, how did you go about shopping this portfolio around?

Truthfully, I don’t use a physical portfolio very often. My website does most of the grunt work, which is true for many freelance artists nowadays. The most an art director will usually see from me in terms of printed pieces are postcards and tearsheets. So if you haven’t already, BUILD A WEBSITE. They are extremely useful.

However… there are many occasions where you would need a physical portfolio, such as job interviews and reviews. Here is my take:

Art directors want to see ART. So do NOT make this more difficult for them than it needs to be! Keep the images neat, organized, and easy to see, and the presentation simple to browse through.

There is a tendency to over-think the physical presentation of a portfolio, as if the right amount of trickery or decoration will magically transform the the artwork. Just make it look nice and let the work speak for itself.

General Portfolio Tips

• Follow any guidelines set by the employer to which you are applying.
• Never use original art. Use good color copies/scans. Original art might get lost or damaged. Plus with the copies, you can make all the images a uniform size.
• Include samples such as postcards, business cards, or tearsheets that you can leave behind for the employer to keep in their files.

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When you paint digitally, one of the most intimidating tasks can be choosing colors. On a traditional palette, you might have 6-12 tubes of paint to work with, but on the computer there are millions of colors available. How do you work with options like that?

Here is how I have tackled this problem.

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I was recently sent an email from reader Lorraine, who teaches an illustration class at Sheridan College in Toronto. She asked me a few questions regarding the illustration industry today, and what advice I would give to her students who are about to enter the field. Here are her questions and my answers.

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Here’s a quick painting tip for you to consider.

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In a recent assignment, I had to create a sketch of a cat. In my short time as a children’s illustrator, I’ve had to draw many, many cats. At this point, they seem to come almost automatically. Say “Cat,” and I can have several sketches for you in a matter of minutes, without the need to research or look up reference.

The same goes for any number of animals - dogs, chickens, pigs - I’ve drawn them so many times, it’s easy to come up with several characters on the spot.

It’s a good idea for an illustrator to have a “catalog” of subjects that he knows really well and can draw from memory, especially when working in a specific industry like children’s illustration where you are asked to draw the same type of subjects over and over again. This kind of skill will give you a head start on virtually every assignment you receive.

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