Are you looking for something that will jumpstart your creativity? Are you stuck in a digital rut? Do you just sometimes feel that you just want to get your hands dirty? While it might sound cliché, sometimes you just need to get back to basics and in the digital age, this may truly mean getting your hands dirty.
In this day and age it is easy to rely on the sameness of a Visa card, some internet links and the talent of some Photoshop skills to acquire your needed resources. But sometimes getting back to basics can mean turning off the computer, dusting off the art supplies, and looking at where all of the techniques we take for granted had their origins.
Robin Williams: Handmade Design Workshop is about discovering new sources of inspiration for your design, the exploration of illustration techniques, and using items like carving blocks, clay, and scratchboard to enhance your digital creations. It is about looking at new ways to work and making your digital designs stand out. This book is 240 pages long and is divided into six chapters.
Part 1, "Materials," are an essential part of creating handmade elements and working with the wrong materials can make or break your experience. This chapter will look at not only the surfaces on which to create, but the stuff to put on those surfaces, how to transfer an image to a surface, how to heat, cut, score and perforate your surface, but how to glue it down as well.
This chapter goes through all sorts of materials and equipment by naming names and giving advice on what works for what kind of application, as well as what kinds of problems you might have with a given product and tips for making it work for you.
Part 2, shows you how to "Texture Your Surface," so it will give you a two-dimensional feel that draws the audience into the piece. It is one of the quickest ways to add a human touch to your digital design. The goal here is to work with handmade textures and then scan them into your computer for use in your own graphic designs.
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