I thought I would change things a little on this blog, and hopefully add some extra interesting content. In the past I have only put an image of the final artwork on my blog. But from now on I am going to add the earlier stages of a project too.

These extra bits of artwork could be sketches and vector development work, as well as various colour choices, shading and highlights and the adding of little details etc.
I'm hoping these extra bits of info will help paint a clear picture of how a project develops from the initial idea right through the various stages of design until the final vector artwork is created.
This first project is a character design for Red Rabbit Rooter, which is a drainage/sewer company from Pennsylvania in the USA.

Brief : A character needed to be created based on the Red Rabbit theme. He needed to be a positive happy face for the company and show quickness and speed, he also needed to be carrying a plunger to symbolise the sewer business.

Initial Sketches :

Stage Two : Rabbit number 02 was chosen for development. It was decided to change the clothes worn by the rabbit to include longer trousers and a shirt.

Stage Three - Vectors : Next stage was to create the vector artwork. As you can see there is a major difference between the sketches and the vector artwork. Everything suddenly looks a lot more polished. I find it easier to judge a character with a little bit of colour whilst also seeing a black and white version, hence I usually send my inital colour ideas as well as a B&W version of the character.

Stage Four - Colour and Details : With feedback from the client it was then possible to develop the colours whilst adding all the little details that bring the character to life.

Final Character Design : With the shading and highlights added as well as all the little details such as his name badge and cap motif the character is now finished. All these little details really help bring the character to life and give him the personality he needs to appeal to his audience!

Here is the final character as he will appear in all his marketing and promotional duties. I am really pleased with the final outcome as was the client Jenna Peppler. I hope he does his job and helps to promote the company long into the future!

I introduce you to 'Red' the face of Red Rabbit Rooter...

Please feel free to let me know what you think. If you need anything from me (Nathan Shelton) then please feel free to get in touch and I will be very happy to hear from you. Cheers!

Email nathan@antcreations.co.uk or call on 01858 462779