In this tutorial you will learn how to create a leaf-filled, vector tree – step by step. Some of the techniques we'll use are custom made brushes to create the leaves, and Gradient Mesh Tool for creating light and shadows. So let's get started!

Step 1

First, we'll work on creating the custom brush.

Select the Pen Tool (P) and draw the shape of a leave. Fill the shape with green and set the Stroke to a darker green.

Step 2

Create a curved line with the Pen Tool (P) across the leave using the same color as the leaf's Stroke.

Step 3

Make two copies of the leaves and change the color of the fill to a darker and a lighter green. Group each leaf (Command + G). Now make a duplicate of each leaf (Command + C) and (Command + V).

Step 4

Place the leaves next to each other so some of them overlap, and rotate (R) each leave so that they are all tilting towards the same direction.

Step 5

Double-click on the Scale Tool. Make sure that Scale Strokes and Effects is selected and press OK.

Step 6

Now Select all the leaves and group them (Command + G)

Step 7

With the leaves still selected, set the width to 45px. Make sure that the Constrain Width and Height Proportions option is activated.

Step 8

Set the stroke to 1pt. Select the leaves. Now open the Brushes window. In the top-right hand corner of the window there is a small triangle facing down – click on it. Chose New Brush…

Step 9

Select Scatter Brush

Step 10

Chose:

• Size: Random between 76% – 134%
• Spacing: Random between 65% – 119%
• Scatter: Fixed – 6%
• Rotation: Random between 41° – 110°

Step 11

Now we'll go over how to draw the tree.

Create a new layer and call it "background picture." You need a picture of a tree to use as reference while drawing the tree. I've chosen to use a picture I took myself, but you can use any picture you want, since we'll only use it to trace the trunk of the tree.

Step 12

Place the picture of the tree in the "background picture" layer and lock the layer (Command + 2).

Step 13

Create a new layer and name it "trunk."

Step 14

Select the Pen Tool (P) and start tracing the outline of the tree in the "trunk" layer.

Step 15

Hide the "background picture" layer. Fill the shape with a dark brown color and set the Stroke to none.

Step 16

Now we are going to create some shades on the trunk. Select the Brush Tool (B), and with a round brush paint a thick line on the inside of the trunk following the outline of the first shape. Fill it with a darker brown and give it a Transparency of 45%. Repeat the same on the left side of the trunk.

Step 17

Select a lighter brown and place a line in the center of the trunk with a Transparency of 30%.

Step 18

Select all the parts of the trunk and group them (Command + G), and then lock the layer.

Step 19

We are now going to use the brush created before to finish the tree.

Create a new layer and call it "leaves." Lock all the other layers.

Step 20

Grab the Brush Tool (B). Select your new leaf brush from the brush pallet. Make sure the fill is set to blank. Paint an outline of where the leaves from the tree are going to be placed.

Step 21

With the Brush Tool still selected, start painting in all the empty space inside the outline you just made. Leave a couple of holes to make the tree more realistic, and retouch the borders by adding extra leaves.

Step 22

Now we are going to create some shading and light on the leaves with the help of the Gradient Mesh Tool. Create a new layer and name it "light," and lock the other layers.

Make an outline of the silhouette of the top of the tree with the Pen Tool (P) or the Pencil Tool (N). It doesn't need to be precise, but try staying within the edge of the leaves.

Step 23

Fill the shape with an average green color and set its stroke to none.

Step 24

With the shape still selected go to Object > Create Gradient Mesh. Check the preview box. Set Rows to 4, Columns to 4, Appearance of Flat, and Highlight at 100%, then press OK.

If you get an error message read the following (Extra) tip.

Extra – Skip if You Don't Get an Error Message

If you get an error message saying that "the path has too many points to create a gradient mesh", then you can do one of the following:

• Redraw the shape without as many points
• Or go back, select the shape, and go to Object > Path > Simplify. Check the preview box, and bring both the Curve Precision and the Angle Threshold down until the Current pt is under 100. Then you are ready to repeat Step 24.

Step 25

We are now going to color the gradient mesh and you can chose any colors you want based on what effect you want. For the example I'll choose some colors that will create an effect that there is sunlight reflecting on the left side of the tree and a bit of shadow on the right.

Select the shape you've created and click on the Direct Selection tool (A)

The gradient mesh has created 16 sections in your shape. With the Direct Selection Tool click on the middle of the first shape.

With that area selected, chose a yellowish color that is not too bright.

Step 26

Repeat the step above selecting the other areas of the gradient mesh and giving each area an appropriate color. I've chosen to place brighter shades of green and yellow on the right and darker green on the left and bottom of the mesh. You can see what colors I've chosen for each area below.

Step 27

With the Selection Tool (V) select the shape with the gradient mesh.

Step 28

Open the opacity window (Window > Transparency). With the shape still selected Set the Mode at Soft Light and Opacity at 71%.

Final Result

Now you have the tools to create your own vector forest.

Tip

If you have extra time you can retouch the edge of the gradient mesh with the Direct Selection Tool, if necessary, so that it matches better with the form of the tree. You can also use the same technique to add more realistic shadows to the trunk of the tree.

Final Image Preview

Step 1

Before we start, I wanted to let everyone know I will be using Illustrator CS4 for this tutorial. Don't worry, everything I am creating can be done in the other CS versions, I just wanted to let you know because the panels in the images will look different. Below is an example of the new Gradient Panel with a bunch of new goodies, but for this tutorial we will only be using the features that are in the other CS versions.

Step 2

Create a new document, then make a 190 px wide by 290 px tall rectangle with the Rectangle Tool (M).

Step 3

With your Direct Selection Tool (A), select the top left corner of the rectangle. With the point selected, the Control Panel defaults to the Anchor Point options. Press the second to the left button, converting the anchor point to a smooth point.

Step 4

Repeat the previous step with the top right anchor point.

Step 5

Fill the rectangle with a Linear Gradient from the Gradient Panel and change the first swatch to a pink color and the second swatch to a darker pink color.

Step 6

Use the Gradient Tool to adjust the gradient by clicking and dragging from the middle of the shape to the bottom.

Step 7

Copy (Command + C) the shape and Paste in Front (Command + F). With the new shape selected, use the Selection Tool (V) and scale the shape to half of its original size. After scaling, place the the copied shape towards the bottom of the original.

Step 8

Change the first swatch in the gradient fill to a light pink and the other swatch to a slightly darker pink.

Step 9

With the Star Tool, click on the artboard to bring up the Star dialog. In the dialog change Radius 1 to 50 px, Radius 2 to 25 px and the Points to 3.

Step 10

With the triangle selected go Effect > Stylize > Round Corners. In the dialog change the radius to 15 px.

Step 11

With the Selection Tool (V), squish the triangle horizontally to half of its original size. Next rotate the triangle 180 degrees.

Step 12

Fill the triangle with a Linear Gradient, make the first swatch a dark pink from the previous shape and the second swatch make a darker pink. Adjust the gradient so the darkest part of the gradient is at the bottom of the triangle.

Step 13

Place the triangle at the bottom of the bigger body shape creating a leg. Once placed, drag out a copy of the leg to other side. Simply hold down Alt + Shift while dragging the shape.

Step 14

Create a 200 px wide by 50 px tall rectangle and round the corners at 25 px.

Step 15

Go to Effect > Warp > Arch. With the Warp Options dialog open, change the Bend to 20 and the Horizontal Distortion to -49. Next, make sure to expand the effects by going to Object > Expand Appearance. If you don't do this you will get some unexpected results as the steps continue.

Step 16

Rotate the shape 45 degrees to the right so the shape is vertical. Next, place the shape over the top of the body shape. Once placed, Copy (Command + C) and Paste in Front (Command + F) the ear shape. Reflect the shape vertically by going to Object > Transform > Reflect and choosing the Vertical option in the dialog. Once reflected, move the copied ear to the other side of the body.

Step 17

Change the fill of the the ears to the first swatch pink color in the body shape.

Step 18

Select the first ear and go to Object > Path > Offset to open the Offset dialog. Change the Offset to -15 px. Next, move the offset slightly down and to the left.

Step 19

Change the fill of the offset to the light Linear Gradient that was used in the belly shape of the body.

Step 20

Repeat the same step for the right ear shape.

Step 21

Copy (Command + C) and Paste (Command + V) the main right ear shape. Rotate the copied shape 190 degrees and scale it down to half of its original size. Fill the shape with the original body gradient and place it behind the lower left side of the body.

Step 22

Copy (Command + C) and Paste in Front (Command + F) the arm shape, reflect it vertically, then place it on the other side of the body.

Step 23

Now that the body is done, we can start adding a face to the bunny. Start by creating an ellipse with the Ellipse Tool (L) that is 37 px by 37 px. Fill the ellipse with a Radial Gradient with the first swatch a dark pink and the second swatch the same pink as in the ears.

Step 24

Create another ellipse with the previous one, but smaller, and fill it with a dark pink color. Next draw two smaller white filled ellipses within the dark pink one. Now you have an eye!

Step 25

Place the eye shapes over the top left part of the body shape. Once placed, Copy (Command + C) and Paste the (Command + V) the eye shapes and place them on the other side of the body.

Step 26

Create a triangle like before and scale it down to half of its original size. Also like the other triangle, round the corners and fill it with the same gradient. Next, place the triangle over the middle part of the body below the eyes.

Step 27

With the Line Tool (\) draw a dark pink (same as the dark pink eye color) 3 pt line right below the nose, spanning the distance of the eyes.

Step 28

Draw a ellipse so the bottom fourth of it is the width of the line you just drew. Next, draw a rectangle that encompasses the top half of the ellipse up to the line you drew. Select the rectangle and ellipse and press the Subtract Shape Areas button from the Pathfinder Panel. While still in the Pathfinder Panel, press the Expand button. If you own CS4, Illustrator expands it for you!

Step 29

Fill the subtracted shape with the same Linear Gradient as the body gradient, but adjust it so the darker part of the gradient is at the top. Place the shape behind the line you created before.

Step 30

Create a rectangle that is 38 px wide by 40 px tall. Like with the main body shape, select the bottom left anchor point with the Direct Selection Tool (A) and change the anchor to a Smooth Point. Do the same for the bottom right anchor point.

Step 31

Place the tooth shape behind and below the mouth line on the left side of the nose shape. Fill the tooth with a Linear Gradient with the first swatch white and the second swatch a light gray. Adjust the gradient so the white is at the top of the tooth.

Step 32

Copy (Command + C) the Tooth and Paste in Front (Command + F). Create an ellipse the covers the bottom two-thirds of the tooth. Select the tooth copy and the ellipse and Subtract the shapes. Once subtracted, change the color of the shape to a light gray.

Step 33

Drag out a copy of the tooth shapes to the left side.

Step 34

Now it is time to add some hair. With the Pen Tool draw a hair puff shape towards the top of the body. Fill the shape with the same Linear Gradient as the nose shape.

Step 35

With the hair shape selected, Copy (Command + C) and Paste in Back (Command + B). With the copy selected, move it down slightly. Fill the copy with the same gradient as the main body shape and adjust it so the darker part of the gradient is at the top of the shape.

Step 36

The bunny character is done, but lets have some more fun to it. Let's make it look like the bunny just devoured a carrot! Use you Pencil Tool (N) and draw twenty – twenty-five small ellipse like shapes over the teeth and mouth area of the bunny (make these shapes a bit rough). Fill the shapes with a Linear Gradient, set the first swatch to an orange color and the second to a darker orange color.

Step 37

Draw an ellipse that is 45 px wide by 30 px tall. Draw another ellipse over that one that is 65 px wide by 30 px tall. Place the second ellipse so the bottom is in the center of the first one. Select both ellipses, Intersect the Shape Areas from the Pathfinder Panel, and press Expand. Next, fill the shape with the orange linear gradient you used for the small elements around the mouth, then adjust the gradient so the lighter part of the gradient is at the top of the shape.

Step 38

With the Pencil Tool (N), create some little ellipse like shapes around and below the previous shape. Fill these with the same orange gradient.

Step 39

Copy (Command + C) the original top ellipse shape and Paste in Front (F). Scale the shape down to half of its original size, then place it towards the top of the original shape. Change the first swatch in the copied shape to a green color and the second swatch to a darker green color.

Step 40

With the Pen Tool (P), draw a couple stems coming out of the carrot top. Fill these shapes with the same green gradient you just used.

Step 41

Create an ellipse that is 75 px by 75 px. Fill it with a Radial Gradient with the first swatch a light brown color, the second swatch a white color, and set the ellipse to Multiply from the Transparency Panel. Next, squish the ellipse vertically to half its original size. Place the ellipse behind all the carrot top artwork as a drop shadow.

Step 42

Create two more ellipses, as in the previous step, then place them behind the feet. Create another bigger ellipse, but make the brown color of the gradient lighter and place in between the feet shadows.

Step 43

Create a rectangle the size of you document and fill it with a Radial Gradient. Make the first swatch white and the second swatch a light yellow color. All done!

Final Image

Below is the final image we just worked on.

Final preview

Step1

Using simple shapes circles and ovals draw an outline quite similar to the one below.

Step 2

The wing place holder is a circle and for the tail i drew a triangular shape using the pen tool.

Step3

Added 3 more ovals to the wing shape

Step 4

Using the Direct selection tool (A) work on the Beak of the duck.

Step 5

Select the wing placeholder shapes and using pathfinder join them.

Step 6

Duck has started to come into shape once i used path finder to join the duck body with the triangular tail shape. Also draw three circles for the eye. You can see below their placement.

Start filling with colour and a thick black stroke

Step 7

Using the knife tool cut out at the points as seen below.

Step 8

Make sure the stroke is now Round Cap just to give the stroke some life.

Step 9

Here the tail needed some adjustments after using pathfinder , use Direct Selection tool and reshape the tail.

Step 10

Lets start coloring !

Create 2 copies of the body part on over another slightly shifted upward , using pathfinder tool subtract from shape area and then click to expand.

Step 11

Give the subtracted coloring a little bit of opacity to fit nicely.

Step12

Add shading to the head area in the same way

Step 13

Add some highlights by adding circle of white fill.

Step 14

For the background for the duck draw a freehand puddle in blue colour , create a copy and give it a stroke and no fill.

Step 15

Draw a few circles and give it a bit of gradient fill.

Step 16

Scatter filled circles in various sizes all around the puddle

Step 17

Give the outline a stroke access the dashed borders brushes Window>brush library>borders>dashed.

Step 18

And you are done! Here is a little duck in a waterpool setting !

Final result:

Here’s what we’re aiming at:

Step 1: Drawing the hull

Create a blank document, standard maximum icon size is 512 by 512 pixels (for Leopard). Create a vertical guide down the middle and draw the right half of the hull’s profile with the Pen Tool (P):

Copy (Ctrl+C) and paste in front (Ctrl+F) the path. Flip it horizontally then move it over to the left of the guide, snapping to it:

Now window-select the top points, hit Ctrl+J on your keyboard to activate the Join function. A dialog will appear, choose Corner. This way the rocket’s tip will be sharp. No respectable space rocket has a rounded tip!

Now join the bottom middle points using the same method but this time choose the Smooth option. No respectable space rocket has a pointed base!

The hull’s profile is complete. Select it then open the Object menu and choose Create Gradient Mesh. From the dialog set up the mesh as in the next picture. The idea here is to have as little points as possible but enough to start shading:

Step 2: Shading the hull

Pick the Direct Selection Tool (A), the white arrow from the toolbar. Select all points in the mesh and choose a medium gray color. Let’s decide that the light comes from the upper left corner. This means we have to make the right and bottom parts darker. The left and top points have to be lighter. Snce the hull is curved, though, the leftmost points have to be slightly darker than the inside to give a rounded 3D effect:

Now let’s refine the shading. Use the following image as reference. First add two vertical mesh lines using the Mesh Tool from the toolbar (U). We want to add two vertical, soft highlights down the sides of the hull. So we need to select the center points on each side and make them lighter than the points surrounding them. See the image:

Step 3: Coloring the bow

Let’s add some color. Specifically let’s make the tip red.
Select the mesh then go to Object > Path > Offset Path and choose 0 as Offset. We have effectively created a path replica of the mesh:

Make the path red then draw a circle at its tip:

With both objects selected hit Ctrl+7 to make a clipping mask. You’ll end up with a group. Set its mode to Darken in the Transparency palette. Now only the tip of the rocket is red:

Step 4: Adding rivets

The hull is comprised of a few metal plates held together by rivets. Let’s draw them with a hassle-free method.
Remember the circle we’re using as clipping masking for the red tip? Make a copy of it and drag it out of the mask. Now offset it twice by 3px, once inside and once outside the tip. See the next image:

Keep the two circles you created, deleting the center one.
Draw a small black dot then drag it into the Brushes palette. A dialog will pop up asking you to choose a brush type. Select New Pattern Brush:

The next dialog will let you set up the scale and spacing:

Apply this brush to the two circles, changing their color to a darker shade of the hull beneath, so the top circle will be dark red and the bottom circle dark gray:

Select both circles, go to Object > Expand Appearance. Then hit Shift+Ctrl+G to ungroup them. Now you can erase all the dots outside the hull:

Using the same method add another seam and two rows of rivets about one third from the rocket’s bottom:

Step 5: Making the rocket shiny

The rocket just launched so it’s still shiny. Let’s add reflections.
On a new layer draw a white curved wedge with the Pen Tool. Set the mode to Screen and the Opacity to 60%. Go to Effect > Stylize > Feather and choose 3 pixels as value:

Copy and paste in front this wedge. Clear the Feather effect and apply a white-to-black gradient:

Select both wedges then click in the upper right corner of the Transparency palette and choose Make Opacity Mask:

Make a copy of the reflection wedge, flip it to the right side and lower its opacity to 20%:

Step 6: Drawing the porthole

Draw a blue ellipse right in the middle:

Create a ring of rivets around it, using the method explained before:

Now fill the porthole with a horizontal gradient with the darker shade on the left. Also add a light gray stroke to fake rim highlights. Just make sure the stroke is lighter than the hull around it:

Let’s give the porthole some ambient lighting. Select Effect > Stylize > Inner Glow and refer to the next image for the settings:

Last thing to add is a reflection highlight to the glass.
Make a smaller copy of the porthole. Clear the stroke and all the effects:

Create another copy, stretch it so it resembles a cricle and move it over to the right:

Select both ellipses then select the Minus Front icon in the Transform palette. What results is a moon-like blade. Fill it with white:

Go to Effect > Blur > Gaussian Blur:

Finally set blending mode to Screen and reduce the opacity to 85%:

Step 7: Ambient highlights

We need to add some ambient highlights now.
Draw a pale yellow ellipse by the lower part of the hollow. Apply a Gaussian Blur effect, set mode to Soft Light and reduce the opacity to 90%:

Just copy the highlight to the sides, rotating the copies to match the hull’s profile and making them more transparent:

Step 8: The engine

To make the engine just create a copy of the hull (see Step 3), scale it down, move it below the hull and fill it with a copper-tinted gradient:

Just add an Inner Glow to simulate light coming from the exhaust:

Step 9: Drawing the sails

Draw the sail with a simple path then convert it to a Gradient Mesh:

Adjust the lines then refer to the next image for the shading:

Create the right sail with a symmetrical copy of the left one. Adjust its shading so the left part is bright and the right part is in the shadow. Then add wedge-shaped highlights (see Step 5):

Add a shadow to the left sail. Draw a shape, set its opacity to 35% and the mode to Multiply. Fill it with a black-to-transparent gradient if you have Illustrator CS4 otherwise use the opacity mask method explained in Step 5. Apply a Gaussian Blur to the shadow:

This is what we have so far. It looks great and it’s ready to be personalized and turned into an avatar:

Step 10: Completing the avatar

Fill the background with a light blue gradient to create the sky. Add your personalized insignia in a layer placed right beneath the hull’s highlights. I inserted my own logo and the bogus commission code “CLF-2009″. “NCC-1701″ is good too!
On a new layer beneath the rocket draw concentric smoke shapes, making them progressively darker towards the center. I used the Pencil Tool (N) with my Intuos tablet but you can also use your mouse. Just make the shapes a bit irregular (click to enlarge):

Now select all the shapes that make up the smoke and apply a 5px Gaussian Blur. Doesn’t it look great?

Just like tou did the smoke draw a couple of flares at the engine’s mouth (use yellow and orange) and some clouds in the sky (use white):

Finally draw some wakes flying off the sails, applying Gaussian Blur. And we’re done!

Conclusion

I hope this tutorial taught you interesting techniques and I hope you had fun. When you’re finished drawing your space rocket download my finished artwork to take a closer look. If you have any questions or doubts leave a comment and I’ll get back to you. A lot more material is on the way so check back soon!

This is one grumpy dude. He was created in Adobe Illustrator with the brush tool. I don’t use the program a lot, but when it comes to “inking” my drawings, I find it very useful. Here’s an in-depth look into the making of this cute little grandpa guy including:

I start by placing my sketch into a new Illustrator document. Go to File–>Place. Find your sketch file. Before you click OK, make sure the box that is marked “Template” is checked. Notice that your sketch has been placed on its own layer and has automatically been locked and changed to 50% transparency.

Be sure to select “Template”.

Locked and ready.

Get your tools ready. The default brush set will not do for most artists. Create a variety of brushes to use for your drawing, or open up ones that you have saved.

My brush palette features round calligraphic brushes in different sizes.

Laying Down Your Brush Strokes

To ink drawings in Illustrator, I like to use the brush tool. I like it better than the pen tool because it better simulates the traditional inking experience and results in looser drawings. Learning to trace a drawing on the computer with a tablet can be really frustrating. You may have to try several times before you get just the right stroke. Just keep practicing using your tablet and eventually you will find yourself pushing Undo less and less.

Some Tips to Get You Started

• How to place a sketch into a new document
• Some digital drawing tips
• How to fix little mistakes after you’ve drawn your stroke
• Ways to finish and color your drawing

• Try “drawing” with your brush, as opposed to just tracing your sketch. Try not to be too stiff and concentrate on staying loose and spontaneous. Try not to break your flow by fixing every little mistake. Just push through, and you can go back and fix it later.

 

Don’t concentrate so much on making an exact tracing of your sketch. Stay as loose as possible.

 

 

 

• Use a variety of line. I’ve made a custom brush palette with several different sizes, from a bold 7-pt line to a very thin .5-pt line. You’ll notice that any drawing I do has a balance of thick, medium, and thin lines. Also put some variation within the strokes themselves. Use a tablet and set the brush to be affected by your pen pressure.

 

Notice the use of both thick and thin lines in my little drawing.

 

 

 

• Lay down each stroke with confidence. Your lines will be smoother and more stable. Try to keep your strokes longer, instead of shorter. When drawing with your tablet, try to use your whole arm, and not just your wrist.

• Take advantage of the shape tool for those objects that are just too difficult to draw with the brush tool. I’ll usually resort to the shape tool for circles, ellipses, and squares.
  

 

The table in my Bake Sale Drawing was done by drawing two ellipses.

Fixing Your Drawing

When you have finished laying down your drawing, you can now go back and fix any small mistakes you may have made.

• Using the Brush Tool – Highlight the stroke that you want to fix. Now, simply “redraw” a brush stroke over it. Notice that the stroke that you highlighted changes. I find this tip useful for fixing slight curves, or changing the endpoint of a stroke.

I used the brush tool to lengthen this stroke.

 

• Changing the Thickness – If a stroke is just slightly too thick or thin, highlight it, then select a different brush. The stroke will change to the size of the new brush. You can also use the Stroke palette by changing the “1 pt” to another value. “2 pt” will double the thickness, “.5 pt” will half the thickness, and so on.

• The Pen Tool – If need to remove just a portion of a stroke, use the pen tool to add points to the path. Use the Direct Selection tool to delete the unwanted parts.

 

The ellipses I draw went straight through my pie. I used the pen tool to fix the overlapping areas.

 

Keeping Your Drawing Organized – Layers and Groups

If your drawing is a bit complicated, it will benefit you greatly if you stay organized. Group paths that are part of the same element, such as a person or an object, by selecting all the paths and going to Object–>Group (or pressing command+G). Now, when you click on one of the paths using the Selection tool, the whole group will be selected. This will make it easier if you need to move or resize your object. It will also keep your Layers palette more organized. If you want to add paths to your group later, click and drag them in your Layers palette. If you need to select a single path, use the Direct Selection Tool or ungroup by going to Object–>Ungroup.

How to Use Your Finished Drawing

You can experiment with different ways to finish your illustration. If you just want to color your drawing with solid colors, I like to use the pencil tool in Illustrator. Create a new layer and place it underneath your drawing. It may also be a good idea to lock your drawing layer, so you don’t accidentally modify it. Pick a fill color and set your stroke color to empty. Draw your shapes underneath your drawing. If you accidentally color outside the lines, you can modify the shapes in the same way fixed your brush strokes. Select your shape, then redraw your edges with the pencil tool to fix it.

Also experiment with different inking styles. Try different sizes and types of brushes to create different effects. In the picture below, I used a very thin brush to add some cross-hatching to my drawing. I liked how it gave it a more hand-drawn feel.

I also like to copy and paste my drawing into Photoshop. The beauty of creating your drawing in Illustrator is that you can resize it any size canvas you like. I keep it on it’s own layer and paint underneath.

This is an example of a drawing that I brought into Photoshop to color.

I hope this helps you create more interesting line drawings in Illustrator. If this has helped you, let me know — I’d love to hear any success stories. Leave a comment or email me a link to your image. Also leave any questions or further suggestions. Happy Drawing!

Final Image Preview:

Step 1:

Step 2:

Step 3:

Step 4:

Step 5:

Final Image:

Download AI Vector Bart Simpson

Step 1

It’s easiest if you start with a simple sketch of your design. It isn’t worth it to get super detailed at this point, the sketch is mainly for reference. Next scan your sketch and place it in a new Illustrator file. Be sure to lock the image so it wont move around while you’re working with it. Select the sketch and go to Object > Lock > Selection

Step 2

Next you can begin to outline your sketch using the pen tool. (I outline using a .25 stroke in cyan)

Step 3

Once you have entire shapes outlined, open the pathfinder pallet Window > Pathfinder. You’ll want to select all the shapes that you want to merge together and then press the add to shape button then press expand. Continue this process through your whole sketch. You may want to use the direct select tool to adjust shapes more precisely.

Step 4

Now that you have all the shapes made you can begin to color your illustration. (I go to COLOURlovers to help find a great pallet to help with this step.)

Step 5

In this step you will be adding the outlines and strokes to the shapes to give them definition. Start by selecting a shape, then copy it, then paste it in place. This pastes the shape exactly on top of the previously copied shape. With the shape still selected send the shape behind by pressing command [. Next go to Object > Path > Offset Path. You can use the values shown but you may find that different settings work better for your illustration. After you have offset the path you can press the  add to shape button then expand like in Step 3.

Step 6

Now that you have your new shape all you need to do is adjust the color to add variation . Add strokes to some of the shapes that are more simplistic. Include things like the body, wings, and feet then copy them and use the pathfinder to make one large shape to add an outline around the entire object. You will need to use this technique to add outlines around entire objects. (Many times I’ll add multiple outlines to create a more dramatic effect.)

Step 7

For the details such as the ones on the owl’s wings, feet and eyes, you start by making two overlapping circles. Then use the pathfinder and press the Subtract from shape button then press Expand. This gives you a crescent shape. Then scale and position the shape appropriately and set the opacity (I used 40% opacity).

Step 8

This step shows the owl with all the details in place.

Step 9

It’s important at this point to start thinking about how your design will look on the different devices, e.g., phones, mp3 players, and game consoles. Since these devices are so different in shape it’s essential to “build in” room to adjust the layout for each device. In my design I gave myself plenty of room to adjust the top (clouds and moon) and the bottom (barn and hills) I tied it all together with a huge gradient background. This means that no matter what the device looks like I can scale all the elements to fit.

Step 10

Now place your other elements and adjust their scale and position.

Step 11

Now to add the shadows for the house and tree. Start with the pen tool and draw a rough outline of what the shadow should look like.

Step 12

Next, use the direct select tool to adjust the shape. Once you have the general shape of your shadow, use the add anchor point tool to add more precise shadows, like the shadows cast from the doors.  Pay attention to things like where your light source is in the illustration.

Step 13

Add any extra details or embellishments for final touches to your piece (I added some stylized swishes in the background. To create these I made one shape, duplicated it, and then varied the transparency).

Step 14

Now with the work done in Illustrator, it’s time to move over to Photoshop.

Step 15

Create a new Photoshop document with these specs. Since the elements created in Illustrator are vector, you’ll need to work with them rasterized in Photoshop. Starting big is always best when you’re making DiNGS.

Step 16

Begin copying and pasting the elements from Illustrator to your new Photoshop document. When you paste be sure to select pixels (Some may argue to keep these smart objects but hold your horses, you’ll see). Continue this process for all the elements of the illustration.

Step 17

Next add drop shadows on the owl, moon, and clouds with a layer style.

Step 18

For the hills use an outer glow with these settings.

Step 19

To add a little depth to the illustration, use the Burn tool with a 300 pixel brush with the exposure set to 20.

Step 20

To add the light spilling from the barn’s door created a new layer and with a small brush paint in the yellow at 20% opacity. Then clean up the area around the door with the eraser tool with the hardness set to 100%

Step 21

Next it’s on to the rising sun behind the hills. Create a new layer behind the hills and use a 1700 pixel soft brush with a darker yellow hue and click once to get the sun. Next use the move tool to position the sun behind the hills.

Step 22

Use the custom shape tool to make rays emitting from the sun. Make the shape super big (I made mine twice the size of the document) then center the burst around the sun.

Step 23

Next, rasterize the shape layer and use a large soft eraser to blend the ends of the rays into the background.

Step 24

To blend the rays even more into the illustration, set the blend mode screen and uncheck the black blend box.

Step 25

To make the sky have some harsh contrast, create a new layer and add a black to transparent gradient. Don’t gradient the entire document instead only drag the tool down about 1/3 of the entire document.

Step 26

To create the stars, I’ll share a technique I learned years ago (If I knew who to credit I would). Start by creating a new layer and filling it with black. Next go to Filter > Noise > Add Noise..

Step 27

Now go to Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur and set radius to around 120. Then press command L to adjust the levels. Set the histogram to look similar to this

Step 28

Set the layers blend mode to screen to make the black disappear. Next use the eraser tool with a diameter of about 30 pixels to erase some of the stars.

Step 29

To add a distressed look to the image download plywood and concrete textures. (For more amazing high res textures check out CGITextures.com.) Place the plywood on the topmost layer and the concrete above the wisps. For the plywood layer, set the opacity to 30% and the concrete layer to 25% opacity with both layers set to multiply mode.

Final Image

To see it super-sized click here.

Final result

This is what we will create, a baby seal in a familiar environment.

Step 1: The eyes

Open a new document and set the artboard to whatever you want, I used 600px by 400px.
Let’s draw the eyes.
Draw the outline.

Let’s add an ambient highlight. Make a copy of the eye shape then draw a big ellipse over it. Select both objects then click on Minus Front in the Pathfinder palette. This subtracts the big ellipse from the eye shape, leaving a moon-shaped swath. Make it white and lower the Opacity to 30%.

Now go to Effect > Blur > Gaussian Blur and choose 3 px.

Let’s add the main highlight. Just draw a white circle in the upper right corner of the eye.

Now draw a small black ellipse above the eye and to the right: it’s the seal’s funny looking eyebrow. Blur it a bit too.

The eye is done so copy and flip it over to the right. The main highlight must be moved back to the right of the eye of course. Also draw a vertical guide to mark the center of the seal’s face.

Step 2: The nose

Draw the right half of the nose, snapping it to the guide.

Copy and flip it over to the left side, joining the points on the guide so you have a single path

The nose has a highlight too. Draw a big circle on top of it then combine it with a copy of the nose, like we did for the eye’s ambient highlight. This time, though, use Intersect instead of Minus Front. Only the overlapping shape will be left.

Finish the highlight off by making it 40% transparent and by blurring it a bit.

Step 3: The muzzle

Now for the muzzle we want a comics feel to the lines. I have a tablet so I’ll use the Brush Tool and control the brush’s diameter with the pressure.

If you don’t have a tablet just use a brush tip that tapers to a point or create your own (I’ll cover custom brushes later in this tutorial). Or you can simply draw a path that ends in a point. Draw the lip as a simple arc then copy and flip it to the other side of the guide.

Create the mouth by drawing a circle on top of the lips. Use the Scissors Tool to split it where it crosses the lips, then discard the unnecessary segment.

The mouth must be a closed path, though, so duplicate the lips and split them where they meet the mouth. Then join the three paths into a single one.

We can now fill the mouth with a simple gradient.

Finally let’s draw the lower lip with a half-ellipse tapered at the ends, filled with black. Add a Drop Shadow effect too.

Step 4: The whiskers

Draw a bunch of black circles or ellipses. Arrange them in a grid or some other pattern you like.

Now create a rectangle on top of them and fill it with a white-to-black gradient.

Select both it and all the dots then click on the upper right corner of the Transparency palette and choose Make Opacity Mask from the drop-down menu. The opacity mask will make the dots fade out from the lip.

Copy and flip them to the other side.

I think we should scale down the muzzle to make the seal look more like a baby.

Let’s create a custom brush to paint the whiskers with.
Draw an ellipse then hit Shift+C to select the Convert Anchor Point Tool and click on the far right point.

Move the top and bottom points over to the left. This is the shape of our brush: it starts round then it tapers to a point.

Drag the shape into the Brushes palette. From the pop-up dialog choose New Art Brush and set its properties like in the next image.

With this brush you can paint the lips in the previous step if you don’t have a tablet. Now use it to paint whiskers growing out of the black dots. Variation is good, don’t make them symmetrical.

Step 5: The head

In this step I’ll introduce an easy technique you can use to quickly render round objects when realism isn’t the priority. We’ll use it to shade the head, the body and the flippers.
The head is a simple ellipse. Fill it with a vertical, medium-to-dark gray linear gradient. We make the top lighter because it’s lit from above.

Now create a smaller copy and fill it with white. Apply a generous amount of Gaussian Blur and voila: instant shading. As you can see the bottom of the head is darker than the top to imply shadows. This is very basic shading but it gets the job done.

Step 6: The body

With the method explained above draw and shade the body.

The head casts a shadow onto the body.
Make a copy of the head’s bottom ellipse, the dark one, and select Send To Back from the Object > Arrange menu (Shift+Cmd+[). Move it down and to the right by a small amount. Blur it then set it to Multiply mode, 75% Opacity.

Step 7: The flippers

Draw and shade the flippers with our quick method. The seal is finished. Isn’t it cute?

Step 8: The environment

Now that the seal is complete you can finish the illustration off by adding an Arctic environment of your choice. I won’t give you detailed instructions here because I want to leave you some creative freedom. If you work in a design agency I know you need it real bad!

Here’s an overview of how I created my (admittedly simple) environment anyway.
The ocean and the sky are created with linear gradients, the floating ice platforms are simple white paths. Their thickness is filled with horizontal white and blue gradients (white where the ice is lit, blue where it’s in shadow). The iceberg is a simple white path with blue patches to simulate cracks and crevices. All reflections are created by duplicating the items, flipping them vertically and lowering their opacity. That’s it.

Conclusion

We have created a fun character using very basic techniques. Sometimes that’s all you need.
You can download my source file (AI CS4 format) to take a peek at how I did it. Play around with it and maybe give our baby seal a proper family!
As usual fire away any questions in the comments. Praise is welcome too…
And if you liked this tutorial don’t forget to:

This is the more detail hand drawing:-

Step 1

Here we start the process. Scan the artwork into your pc. Open a new document with RGB color mode. Go to file > Place. Place the artwork on the stage. Reduce the opacity to 50% and lock the layer.

Step 2

Create a new layer and move it below the artwork. Rename it as feather. We start with the feather because it is at the backward of all part for the ‘bird’. Start illustrates and fills it with black color. You will get this:-

Step 3

Secondly, create a new layer and rename it as body. Draw the white feather as it is just above the feather layer. Sure, fill it with white color.

Step 4

Create a new layer, name it as mouth. Draw out the mouth and set the gradient as shown below:-

Step 5

This is the process to draw out the eyes. Still, create a new layer and name it as eyes. You need to use the pathfinder for this part:-

Step 6

after all, you will get this:-

Step 7

This part will be a bit more difficult but still using the same technique. Create a new layer and rename it as leg. Simply follow the steps shown below. You may also use your own color for this part.

Step 8

Lastly, create a new layer and draw out the tree. Put this below the legs layer.

Step 9

To make it look more real. Simply create a new layer and draw out the shadow for each part that you think is necessary.

Step 10

Here is it! Cheers! Hope you enjoy this. Any question, simply email me or leave a comment here. Thanks!

Tips:

• Differentiate each part with different layers and rename it properly. You can modify or enhance the work easier and in a better way.
• CTRL + C to copy
• CTRL + F to paste in front in same position

15. To add extra pop to the image and emphasize the key character, choose a range of colours that, while complementing the scene, really stand out. For the character I have coloured the hair pink: not only is this relevant to the look of the character, it also makes her stand out. Remember, stronger colours bring things forward, and cooler colours send things back positionally.

Final result

Behold the dynamic cuteness this rodent oozes!

Step 1: The body

Draw the main body shape with a circle then squash the top a bit.

Fiil the shape with a brown gradient to obtain some roundness.

Step 2: The pot belly

Take a copy of the shape and move it down. Set it to Screen mode.

Now crop it using a clipping mask. Move the gradient up so the bottom is darker.

We are satisfied with the belly now so let’s flatten it to a single object. Select it (it’s a group) then click the first icon in the Pathfinder to get rid of the clipping mask.

Step 3: The tail

The tail is a simple triangle. Place it behind the body and shade it with the appropriate brown gradient. Make sure the darker shade is at the top to simulate a shadow cast from the body.

Step 4: The nose

The nose is a triangle, too, but add a point at its top and move it up. Hit Shift+C to select the Convert Point Tool then click-drag the point to turn it into a smooth node. This time make the bottom darker to simulate light coming from the top.

Step 2: The lips

Draw the right lip with a simple path. Load the Artistic Ink brushes and select the tapered one. It looks too fat!

Click on the Properties icon at the bottom of the Brushes palette. Reduce the Width until the lip is thin enough. When you’re satisfied mirror the other one.

Step 6: The giant teeth

While drawing the teeth I noticed the nose needed a highlight: it’s a white ellipse with some blur applied (Effect > Blur > Gaussian Blur). The teeth are made with a simple path. Next draw a vertical line straight down from the lips. Apply the tapered brush to it.

Add a light gray-to-white gradient to the teeth. Offset them to create a smaller copy. Modify the copy’s gradient as in the next image: light gray-white-light gray. Finally go to Effect > Stylize > Feather and blur the copy’s edges to blend it with the main teeth.

Adding a shadow to the teeth is easy. Make a smaller copy and move it behind. Make sure it’s dark brown. Apply a good amount of Blur and reduce the opacity to about 60%.

Step 7: The mouth

Draw the shape for the mouth and fill it with a brown gradient. Fade it out by setting the bottom spot’s opacity to 0%.

Step 8: Adding glow

Simulate ambient reflections by adding an Inner Glow effect to both the nose and the body. You can find it in the Effect menu under the Stylize group.

Step 9: The eyes

Create the right eye with a simple ellipse. Go to Effect > Warp > Arc and bend the eye upward. This is what makes the hamster smile!
When happy with the results go to Edit > Expand. Fill the eye with the same two-tone brown gradient we used before. Mirror the other eye.
If you take a close look at small animals (and their counterparts in comics) you will notice that their facial features are small compared to the head. So the big trick is: scale down all facial features (eyes, nose, lips, mouth and teeth) for extra cuteness.

Step 10: The ears

Create the right ear with a circle filled with a brown gradient. The inside is just a smaller, lighter circle. Mirror both circles over to the left.

Move the outer, daker circles behind the body and select all three objects. Join them by clicking on the first icon in the Pathfinder palette. The body and the ears are now one single shape. Notice how the glow effect correctly surrounds the ears.
Just blur the inner, lighter circles to blend them with the main body.

Step 11: The paws

Using the same method create the paws and attach them to the body. I also rounded the tip of the tail but that’s to your discretion. The hamster is finished.

Conclusion

To complete the avatar create the appropriate background. Mine is a simple three-tone gradient with white soft wakes about the hind paws and tail. I’m sure you can come up with something better. The idea is to make the avatar dynamic. It’s the least you can do after inflating the hamster, don’t you think?

Stay tuned because I’ll release the hamster in an icon set very soon. And if you liked the character and the tutorial please share them. Link love is good for ya!

Blog Action Day Day 2009: Climate Change

Climate change is an important issue that affects everyone on this planet. If you are reading this, you are probably a designer, illustrator, or involved in these industries in some way. Being part of these industries, we have a unique responsibility to visually communicate issues such as climate change. That makes it fun an easy to spread the word about climate change through artwork like in this tutorial. Even if you are not part of the design industry, you can learn more about climate change form the Blog Action Day site.

Final Image

Below is the final illustration we will be working towards.

Tutorial Details

• Program : Adobe Illustrator CS4 (tutorial can be completed with other version of Illustrator)
• Difficulty: Intermediate
• Estimated Completion Time: 30 minutes – 1 hour

Step 1

Create a new document and with the Ellipse tool (L), create an ellipse.

Step 2

Fill the ellipse with a radial gradient from the Gradient panel. In the Gradient panel, change the first color stop in the gradient to a light orange color and change the second color stop to a orange color. Next, from the Gradient panel, select your first light orange color stop and change the Location to 43. Select the Middlepoint on the Gradient Slider and change the location to 60. With the Gradient tool (G) move the center of the gradient slightly up and to the right.

Step 3

Create a new ellipse and fill it with a radial gradient. Make the first color stop in the gradient white and the second color stop a light gray color. Change the location of the gradient’s Middlepoint to 87.

Step 4

Create a new smaller ellipse in the center and to the right of the previous ellipse. Fill the ellipse with a radial gradient with the first color stop a light cyan color and the second color stop a dark cyan color. Change the location of the gradient’s Middlepoint to 87.

Step 5

Create another ellipse in the center of the previous ellipse and fill it with black. Next, create two other smaller white ellipses and place them over the black ellipse. Now we have an eye!

Step 6

Select the white eye ellipse, Copy (Command + C), and Paste in Back (Command + B). With the copy still selected, move it up slightly. Change the fill of the ellipse to a dark orange color. Select the white ellipse again, Copy (Command + C), and Paste in Back (Command + B). This time, move the copy down slightly and change the color to a light yellow color.

Step 7

Select all the eye shapes, Copy (Command + C), and Paste in Front (Command + F). With the copies selected, move them to the right of the main ellipse shape and scale down slightly with the Selection tool (V).

Step 8

With the Rectangle tool (M) create an rectangle about the width of the eye shape and about a fourth of it’s height.

Step 9

Go Effects > Stylize > Round Corners and in the Round Corners dialog, change the radius to 10 px. The radius might change depending on dimension of your artwork. Just play around until you get something similar to the preview image below. Next, go Object > Expand Appearance.

Step 10

Go Effects > Warp > Arch. With the Warp Options dialog open, make sure the Horizontal radial button in selected, change the Bend percentage to 25, and change the Horizontal Distortion to 40. Next, go Object > Expand Appearance.

Step 11

Change the fill of the warped shape to a linear gradient. Make the first color stop in the gradient a red-brown color and the second color stop a dark red-brown color. With the Gradient tool (G) adjust the gradient so the darker part of the gradient is at the bottom of the shape.

Step 12

Copy (Command + C) the eyebrow shape and Paste in Back (Command + B). With the copy selected, move it down and to the left slightly. Change the fill of the copy to a dark orange.

Step 13

With both eyebrow shapes selected, rotate them to the left slightly with the Selection tool (V). Copy (Command + C) the eyebrow shapes and Paste in Front (Command + F). With the copy selected, go Object > Transform > Reflect. In the reflect dialog, select the Vertical radial button and press OK. Next, move the copies to the other side of the face above the other eye. Select the dark orange shadow of the copies and move it the left side of the eyebrow.

Step 14

Create an ellipse about the size of one of the eyes and place it in-between the eyes towards the bottom.

Step 15

Fill the new ellipse with a radial gradient. For this gradient we are going to add one more color stop, making a total of three color stops in the gradient. To do this, click in the middle of the Gradient Slider in the Gradient panel. Next, change the first color stop to a lighter orange color than your original light orange from the main sun shape, change the middle color stop to the same orange color as the main sun body shape, and change the last color stop to the same light orange as the main sun shape. Change the first Middlepoint of the first two color stop to 65. Finally, with the Gradient tool (G), scale the gradient so the center of the gradient is in the top right corner of the ellipse.

Step 16

Copy (Command + C) the nose shape and Paste in Back (Command + B). With the Direct Selection tool (A) grab the bottom anchor point and drag in down and to the left, creating a shadow.

Step 17

Create an ellipse about half the size of the main sun shape. Draw a rectangle covering the top half of the ellipse. Select both shapes and press the Minus Front button in the Pathfinder panel.

Step 18

Fill the new mouth shape with a linear gradient with the first color stop a red-brown color and the second color stop a darker red-brown color. With the Gradient tool (G) adjust the gradient bottom up so the darker part of the gradient is at the top of the mouth.

Step 19

Copy (Command + C) the mouth shape and Paste in Back (Command + B). Move the copy up slightly and change the color to your dark orange color. Copy (Command + C) the mouth shape and Paste in Back (Command + B) again. This time, move the shape down and change the fill to your light orange color.

Step 20

Create an oblong ellipse that is about one third the size of the mouth. Copy (Command + C) the ellipse and Paste in Front (Command + F). Move the copy down slightly and scale up about a fourth of the original size. Next, select both shapes and press the Minus Front button from the Pathfinder panel.

Step 21

Fill the new shape with your dark orange color. Copy (Command + C) the shape and Paste in Back (Command + B). Next, scale the copied shape up and change the color to your light orange color. Center both shapes on the bottom of the mouth shapes you have already created.

Step 22

Select the newest curved shapes you created, Copy (Command + C), and Paste in Front (Command + F). Scale down and rotate the shapes to the left with the Selection tool (V), then  place them on the left top side of the mouth. Next, Copy (Command + C) the original curved shapes, Paste in Front (Command + F), rotate and scale the shapes to the right, and place on the right side of the mouth shape.

Step 23

Select the main dark mouth shape, Copy (Command + C), and Paste in Front (Command + F). With the Selection tool (V), hold down the Shift key and scale the copy bottom up slightly. Still with the Selection tool (V), squish the copied shape from the bottom up until the copy is about one fourth the original size. Change the first color stop in the linear gradient to white and the second to a light orange. Also, change the Location of the Middlepoint to 80.

Step 24

With the Star tool (found under the shape tools in the Tools panel), click on the artboard to open the Star dialog. In the dialog change Radius 1 to 30 px, Radius 2 to 15 px, and the Point to 3 (your radius dimensions might be different depending on the dimension of your artwork, just make sure that Radius 2 is half the size of Radius 1). Squish the triangle shape horizontally to about half it’s original size. Place the triangle over the center of the teeth to the right . Next, select the teeth and the triangle and press the Minus Front button from the Pathfinder panel.

Step 25

With the Ellipse tool (L) create two ellipse toward the bottom of the mouth shape, making sure half of the ellipses are hanging outside of the mouth shape. Select the main dark mouth shape, Copy (Command + C), and Paste in Front (Command + F) two times. Select one of the copies, select the right ellipse, and press the Intersect button from the Pathfinder panel. Repeat the same for the left ellipse. Fill both ellipses with a linear gradient with the first color stop a light pink and the second color stop a pink color. Separately adjust each ellipse’s gradient with the Gradient tool (G)  from the top right of the ellipse to the bottom left.

Step 26

Select all the mouth shapes and place them on the sun’s face. Next, Rotate the mouth shape to the left slightly.

Step 27

With the Star tool, click on the artboard to bring up the Star dialog. Create a star with a Radius 1 of 100 px, a Radius 2 of 50 px, and 3 Points (like before these dimensions might be different depending on your artwork). Next, go Effects > Stylize > Round Corners and in the Round Corners dialog, change to Radius to 20 px. Expand the shape and squish it down slightly with the Selection tool (V).

Step 28

Fill the triangle with a three color stop gradient, making the first color stop a light orange color, the second a orange color, and the third a dark orange color. Select the Middlepoint in between the first two color stops in and change the Location to 65. Next, change the Location of the second color stop to 60 and the Middlepoint Location of the last two color stop to 15. Adjust the gradient from top to bottom with the Gradient tool (G).

Step 29

Make a copy of the triangle so you have a total of two. With the copy selected, go Effect > Warp > Arch. Within the Warp Options dialog, select the Vertical radial button and change the Bend percentage to 30 and expand the appearance.

Step 30

Make a copy of the first triangle, move, and rotate the copy so it radiates from the sun face shape, creating sun bursts. Make sure the triangle is behind all other artwork by going Object > Arrange > Send to Back. Next, rotate and place copies of the triangles, alternating between the two, around the sun. Make sure that all the triangles are sent to the back.

Step 31

Select the main sun face shape, (Command + C), and Paste in Back (Command + B). With the copy still selected, move it down slightly and change the color to your dark orange color.

Step 32

To add just a little more detail and fun to the sun, draw varying sized ellipses above the corners of the mouth. All done!

Final Image

Again below is the final image we just created.

Sample Usage

Below are some sample images of this tutorial in use. One is a logo for a fictional alternate energy learning center for kids (just made that up, but you get the point). The second one is a global warming diagram for children (not very accurate, I know). It is easy to apply this illustration to other projects or adapt it to other illustrations (like the earth illustration in the Global Warming diagram). Try to see what you can use it for!