2D Digital Art Basic

2D art, digital photos, logos, and other images are created using a computer and appropriate programs. Yes, your digital camera is a computer, a specialized computer. Designing and creating logos and business graphics is often done using 2D art. For some applications, a drawing is scanned into a computer then finished. 2D art is easier than 3D art but is more difficult to make it look realistic.

This is not a classical art class. We will not spend much time on the types of things that a school art class would provide. If you do not have some art training, this may be a disadvantage. Composition, color theory, style, and perspective will not be extensively covered. We will utilize these in our class however, the focus of the class will be training on the tools used to create 2D art. We will provide specialized training based upon student requests.

Basic (4 one hour classes) this may change

What programs to use

• There are two main types of 2D programs: Bit Mapped (paint) and Vector (draw)

  • Painting programs like Photoshop, Paintshop Pro, Corel Paint, Corel Painter, Paint.net (free)

  • Vector programs like Illustrator, Corel Draw, Inkscape (free)

  • Digital Photo programs like Picture Publisher, Paintshop Photo Express

  • Freeserifsoftware.com has some reasonable tools (free)

• Vector programs are resolution independent

  • Small file sizes

  • Print to various sizes without resolution loss

• Bit Mapped programs resolution is based on the canvass size

  • Large file sizes for printing

  • Will not scale up without resolution/clarity loss

• Many programs can be tried for free before purchase

  • Students often get very substantial discounts on retail prices

How to create a picture

• Determine the size and resolution

  • Web images limit to 1280 width and 720 height at 72dpi (average screen resolution)

  • Print size in inches at 150, 360, or 720dpi

    • Print images will use a lot of disk space

      • An 8”x10” @ 720dpi will use 120MB! (the size of a sheet of paper)

• You can always shrink an image without a significant loss of information

  • Going from a 8”x10” to 2”x3” will have less detail of course

• You can not generally increase the size by more than 50% without resolution loss

  • Expanding an image forces the program to create new information from the information already present. This will create 'jaggies' and blocky areas often visible in the print

How to use the application tools (selection, paint, cut, paste, crop, layer)

• A blank canvass (page) awaits our expression

  • Brushes, primitives and shapes, rubber stamps

  • A graphics tablet is ideal for serious art work

    • Using a mouse is like using a bar of soap to paint on canvass, not the best tool

• Undo, the digital artist best friend

• Creating a simple landscape using painting tools

  • Filling areas

  • Smoothing, smudging, dodging, burning, and other blending effects (not available in paint.net)

  • Using a smearing brush (not available in paint.net)

• Adding a sky layer

  • Layers make compositions

  • Objects can be on separate layers

• Adding some text

  • Creating a drop shadow

  • Changing the font

• Cropping the image

  • Scaling, rotation, and other transformations

• Selecting an area for fills and color changes

  • Copy and pasting a selection

  • Masks make editing easier

  • Undo when things just don't work out

How to choose a palate and color scheme

• Nature uses a palate

• The color wheel or color picker

• Contrasting colors add depth

• Dramatic color shifts are hard for the eye to appreciate

• Opposing colors make the eye work harder

• Foregrounds are normally lighter or clearer, backgrounds are normally darker or hazy

• Observe the world and its color palate, view the horizon and how the light changes

• Images that utilize a small color palate are more accessible (logos, business, TV, movies)

• A wild color palate with saturated colors can make for a memorable image (pop art)

How to use filters and effects

• Retouching a digital photo to improve focus or sharpness

• Converting a photo to a painting like image

• Changing the contrast, colors, and lighting

• Effects like lens flare, glass, mosaics

• Getting carried away with effects

How to save the image and create a web ready version

• Always save your image in a non lossy format like psd, targa, tiff or the program's default format

• Layers and other features will not be saved in jpeg, png, or gif formats

• Keep your images in a folder associated with a project or activity

• Once saved save as or export to jpeg format

  • Resize the image if it is greater than 1280x720

  • 800x600 is a good size for web pages