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(Software: NeoIcon/ Hardware: PowerMac 7500/100)
| Like any form of illustration, before you begin, it's best to give a rough pencil sketch on paper. And also have in mind what kind of drawings you want, say a cartoon one or a serious one? I start by sketching roughly how my icon should look on a rough paper, and from there, it's easier to begin with mouse clicks in the computer. |
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(2) |
(3) |
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| I have a "square" face, so starting with a square would give a good guide for my features. Note I drew a bit up, allowing some space for chin. |
Remember you're dealing with pixels, when drawing curves, always do it slow and adjust accordingly, with more practice, you should realize the limitations. |
Don't worry about deleting or adding, you can always add it back, or delete them. Now I delete the top for clearer view of where my face will occupy the whole canvas. |
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(6) |
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| I then just draw whatever I can to make it look like what I want it to be. Realize the left and right specs (eyes) is not balance, but visually it looks fine. |
Always do fine tuning when making icons, you will see the different results just by changing a few pixels, compare (4) with (5). |
Start with flat colors, get the colors right from 256 colors isn't that easy, but it's definitely enough. |
(FINAL)
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Finally, adding shadows and highlights will make it look more interesting. This is a very simple icon, with simple lines and flat. It took me around 20 minutes to create this icon, which then I created 30 different expressions of it. |
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