Offering vector art....for a limited time.

[Mellyrose]

Hey all.

You might have seen/heard of vector art before. It's pretty cool and definitely tedious and hard to do. I just started doing it and I'm trying to refine my skills...so for a limited time, if anyone is interested, I am offering to do some vector art for free.

A photo must meet my criteria to be able work on it, so just because you have a photo doesn't mean it will get done...but I do want to work with you guys! ;)

Here is an example of it. This is only the 2nd one I've done, so it's not perfect.



Here is the original:



For anyone who thinks this is as simple as using the cutout filter in Photoshop (ahem, MATT), it IS NOT. You will not get nearly as nice of a result with Photoshop, and these are vectors, meaning you can blow them up to life size if you wish without losing quality. You also have way more control over color and shape when doing this kind of image. Here are some screenshots for the haters. :-P

[nwafan20]

That's nutso Mel! Good job! I would not have the patience to do that, it looks great!

[N790SW]

Hey mel :

Here my myspace http://www.myspace.com/bobby2470 does any of my pics match your criteria lol?

[SCOTYDEMCO]

Looks good and hard to do. I'll have to send you some shots Mel. What is the criteria that you need to work with?

[Mellyrose]

It needs to be a close up photo of a face, preferably with good contrast and/or contours/shadows. Wide open eyes are a plus; fun photos, with lots of personality are ideal since I'm depending on smiles or facial expressions as that's what really makes it "alive."


This was my very first attempt, right before the one I did of myself. It didn't turn out so great, but it's a good example of a well qualifying photo.

Original:


Vectored:

[nwafan20]

How the heck do you do that anyway? Is there a tutorial somewhere?

[Mellyrose]

I don't know. I've been wanting to try it for a long time, and was always intimidated by my less than perfect Illustrator skills. Lately though, I've been dabbling more and more in Illustrator, so that i can be more well-rounded with Adobe, and I finally just tackled my fear of paths.

I winged it...there might be some sort of tutorial online, but trust me when I say, it's a very aquired skill. That's why I am asking for your photos. The above images took me hours a piece to complete. It's tedious and frustrating...I need to get better!!!

[flyboy 28]

Neat. It reminds me of those commercials for investment options I think.

[Mellyrose]

Just finished one for a friend from high school who approached me on myspace to do this. This is another good example of an ideal photo to work with.



Original:

[Winglets747]

Have fun, Mel!

I last did some vector work in Illustrator a year or so ago. It took me a while to get to hang of it, but as you note the results are great.

[ATAIndy]

Those are great, I really like the second one. Keep up the good work!