David James

Renewed pop-art style from James Design Studios

Based on a style from an era decades old, and in true pop-art fashion, this illustration of Marilyn Monroe is the introduction to a series of artwork destined to be printed on canvas. This artwork from David James of James Design Studios, has clean lines and sharp colours perfectly rendered in Adobe Illustrator. Originally, the composition was only to be developed in illustrator, and then hand painted on canvas, making one-of-a-kind art with little or no chance of duplication. Mid way in the design process, it became obviously clear that the software was perfect for the final render… the flexibility of the vectored curves and the selection of Pantone colours made the process a success.

Marilyn vector details and colours

A limited number of prints will be made of this image and the one canvas print is already sold. To order a print or to own the next illustration in this series on canvas, feel free send an e-mail for dates and prices. Custom portraits can also be commissioned.

I hope you enjoy this exciting new line of artwork inspired from a classic style.

Cheers,

David.

As a part of the Canadian Army, I’ve been volunteering my time in helping an affiliated cadet corps. The 19^th Alberta Dragoons is an Army Reserve Regiment that was disbanded several decades ago and has been represented by a cadet corps here in Edmonton, for almost as long. Not only does my Regiment, the South Alberta Light Horse, have an interest in keeping this lineage alive, it is also my old cadet corps from… let’s say… a “few” years ago, and when they asked me to help them with their cap-badge, I was pleased to help.

At the time, I didn’t realize how many different attempts were made at making this icon. I researched everything from the origin of the badge and its original drawings to the type of horse that needed to be illustrated. There was a difference in the cap-badges themselves that I noticed, the old badges looked skinnier than the new badges, and the fonts from the drawings didn’t match the official issued graphic. I basically had to rebuild this icon in vectors and select the elements that worked.

Outline of icon from physical cap-badge dimensions

Adjusting the text to suit the flow over the banner

Adding some depth to the text and some details that were lost in the banner

19th Alberta Dragoon cap-badge

Vector based graphics are amazing. I started illustrating with Adobe Illustrator in the late nineties when I was hired to create drawings for a sign language dictionary. I enjoyed the flexibility of the software, especially the undo feature.

Now that this graphic is created in vectors, it can be scaled up, it can be used for print and embroidery, it can even be used in animation. Best of all, it can be archived so it will not be lost again.

I’m not much of a fan when it comes to walking machines, I think it is next to impossible and impractical. But, many people like the sci-fi “mechs” so much that its accepted in movies as something possible and an icon of future times. So what would one of these thing really look like? How would we use them? Here is my vision of what the army would use one for… a reconnaissance platform.

Rough concept art

Details added, perspective adjusted

Colour and tones adjustment

I hope you like it… Let me know your opinion of these machines.

Cheers, David.

I just wanted to make a little public service announcement for friends and colleagues who work with cameras in cold weather. Pack Ziploc freezer bags with you that are big enough to put your camera into.

Now you’re thinking that I’ve totally lost it! Poor guy has been chained to his computer too long. Well, just check this out…

Once you have taken your photos outside for long periods of time, your camera will get cold, especially if you have a DSLR that you can’t put into your pocket. The cold shouldn’t have much effect on your camera (depending on the model and make) other than quicker battery degradation. The concern is when you go back inside a warm house or vehicle. Moisture in the air will collect on the cold surfaces of your camera just like it does on windows or on the outside of a glass with ice water in it on a hot day. It’s only December and I miss those hot days already. Now imagine what that moisture would do to your sensor or your circuit board or your optics… Yikes! Say goodbye to the performance of a camera worth several thousand dollars!

So what do you do? This is where the Ziploc bag comes in. Place the camera in the Ziploc before you get inside; try to squeeze out as much air as you can. Bring the camera into the warmth and let it warm up inside the bag. You may notice some moisture on the outside of the bag, that’s okay… thankfully; it is not touching your camera.

Once the camera is warm enough, remove it from the bag and you should be fine. I like using a pelican case for this same reason. After a wintery outdoor shoot, seal the camera back into its case and let it warm up before opening it.

If you are reading this from a warm part of the world, please stop laughing. I’ve taken photos at -46 degrees Celsius (-51 Fahrenheit) and my kit survived.

FYI: This is friendly advice and should not be taken as a 100% solution to water/condensation damage. Use this as a precautionary step to help the life of your camera. I will not be liable to replace any of your equipment if anything should go wrong. There are so many circumstances outside the example I’ve given, so please be careful. I just hope this saves you and your camera any expensive frustrations.

Happy shooting,

David.

Just wanted to show a few steps in making a digital painting in Photoshop. I’ve shown some completed work and thought it would be informative and interesting to show some “in-progress” images…

Luke rough

Most illustrations start off in gray-scale. You don’t need to do this, but it helps me develop the depth in the face.

More details

Now the depth and expression start to emerge from the face… I’ll spend another hour or two developing the hair and tunic, then on to the colour.

Luke in colour

This is the finalized Luke that will be used in another painting… oh, the beauty of Photoshop.

 
I hope you enjoyed this, David.

Here’s a wallpaper of the Senna illustration for those with a dual screen… Enjoy.

3360 x 1050 Wallpaper

So glad I have a “day off” so I can get work done… Strange but true  :^)

New ad for JDS Photography.

I love checking things off of my JDS Photography, to-do list.

Close-up of the Senna digital painting

After watching the movie on Senna’s life, I was inspired to make this. Ayrton Senna was one of the best F1 drivers in the history of the sport, who died in a racing accident in 1994.

Ayrton Senna, Digital art by David James

I love using Photoshop to create fine art!

Painting in Photoshop

Photoshop is an amazing bundle of software; so diverse that it’s next to impossible to master all of it. Photographers enhance and correct their photos with it, Designers build elements for websites and ads in it, and magazine covers would have average looking people on them if not for Photoshop.

The best part about using Photoshop to paint with is the brushes don’t need to be cleaned.

This is an image that I painted in Photoshop to use on my Twitter account.