Scan drawings or Digital Draw ?

Started by ryosuzuki, 06-20-2010, 17:31:26

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ryosuzukiTopic starter

Was just wondering how everyone goes about their design work.

Do you generally scribble and sketch on paper, then scan in the work so you can ink it, or do you draw direct in photoshop or illustrator (i.e. using a table etc) ?



james_ashby

I usually draw it all digitally, With a good Intuos tablet you can very quickly just get working straight away within photoshop and illustrator... Well that's what i do anyway. It's personal choice at the end of the day.


brookeroberts7

Digital drawing is when a drawing is created using graphics software. Instead of using a pencil and paper, digital artists draw with a tablet or a computer, along with a device such as a mouse or a stylus.Pencil is very difficult to scan well, in part because graphite is reflective. I believe scanners work by bouncing light off the surface of the image, which tends to obliterate a lot of the detail and contrast in the drawing.

Ensafeindia

With a good Intuos tablet you can very quickly just get working straight away within photoshop and illustrator... Well that's what i do anyway. It's personal choice at the end of the day.

Ensafeindia

#4
Design processes can vary significantly from one person to another, and the approach often depends on several factors such as the type of project, the designer's skills and preferences, and the resources available.

Traditional Sketching/Scanning: This method begins with designers drawing or sketching their initial ideas on paper. This is often done during the brainstorming stage, as it allows for quick visualization of ideas. The sketches can afterward be scanned or photographed and imported into a digital program, where they are further refined using a tablet and stylus or other tools. Sketching by hand initially could give a more organic feel to the design and allow for more freedom in the conceptual phase.

Digital Sketching/Drawing: With digital tools and technologies becoming more available and advanced, many designers create their work entirely digitally. For this method, designers use a graphics tablet or a drawing device like an iPad with Apple Pencil. Programs used can range from Adobe Illustrator/Photoshop to Procreate, Sketch, Figma, and many others. One main advantage of this method is the virtually unlimited options for editing and tweaking without starting over or using up physical resources.

Combination: Some designers combine both methods, sketching their ideas out on paper first for the inherent tactile and unrestricted experience, then transferring these concepts to a digital program for refinement and finalization. The transition could be done through scanning or using digital drawing apps that capture physical sketches and sync with the designer's preferred digital platform.

let's dig deeper into the design process.

If we're talking about Graphic Design, digital tools tend to be prominent in the process. Here's a deep dive into the entire process which predominately uses digital tools:

Concept Development: This might involve some traditional sketching or mind mapping to brainstorm ideas and establish a direction for the project. It often involves research about the subject matter, market, and competition.

Digital Sketching and Wireframing: Once the general concept is clear, designers might create digital sketches or wireframes using graphic tablets or software like Adobe Photoshop or Sketch. This stage involves creating a basic layout of the design without much of the detailed graphic elements.

Design and Illustration: The next step is to create the actual elements that will go into the design, which might include color schemes, typography, illustrations, photos, and other graphics. If the designer is creating an illustration, they might sketch it out digitally using a software like Adobe Illustrator or Procreate. For layout and aesthetics, they might use Adobe InDesign or Illustrator.

Prototyping and Mockups: Designers will then draft a detailed version of their design to simulate the final product's look and feel. Tools like Adobe XD, Figma, and Sketch are often used for this, especially for user interface and user experience (UI/UX) design.

Refinement and Finalization: Feedback is collected and revisions are made to the design. Once everything is laid out as desired, the design is finalized.

It's important to remember that while typically the digital approach has been more associated with graphic design than other areas of design, many other design fields like industrial design, fashion design, architecture, and more are also making effective use of digital tools in their workflow.

On the other hand, some designers still like the tangibility of drawing on paper and then digitizing their work:

Concept Sketching: In the beginning, the designer may sketch multiple concepts on paper. It's often quicker and feels more natural for some.

Scanning or Photographing: The sketches are then digitized by scanning or photographing them.

Digitally Inking and Coloring: The digital file is then imported to a program like Adobe Illustrator, where it can be inked using a pen tool or a brush tool. A graphics tablet is often useful in this stage.

Adding Finishing Touches: Designers can then add color, shading, textures, typeface, and other elements within the digital workspace. Tools like layers and filters offer much flexibility and control over the final output.

Export and Printing: Finally, the completed design is exported in the required format for digital display or printing.

I can share more details focusing on the tools and strategies designers use at different stages:

Brainstorming and Ideation: For this phase, inspiration can come from virtually anywhere. Some designers like to use Pinterest or websites like Behance or Dribbble to gather ideas and mood. Others like to immerse themselves in the world around them, finding inspiration from architecture, nature, fashion, and various other sources. Mind mapping tools like MindNode or even simple pen and paper can be helpful to jot down initial ideas.

Sketching: This can be done using traditional pencil and paper, but some prefer digital sketching for its efficiency and flexibility. Samsung's Note series smartphones, Microsoft's Surface computers, and Apple's iPads with Apple Pencil all have excellent note-taking and sketching capabilities. Some popular sketching apps include Paper by WeTransfer, Adobe Fresco, and Procreate.

Wireframing: Low-fidelity wireframes can be roughly sketched using pen and paper or digital sketch tools. Higher-fidelity wireframes often involve software like Sketch, Adobe XD, Figma, Axure, or Balsamiq. These tools help in laying out a design's structure and functionality.

Prototyping: Designers often use software like Figma, Sketch, and Adobe XD for creating interactive prototypes of their designs. They provide features that let you create clickable or interactive presentations of your designs to get a feel for the user flow and functionality before moving to development.

Design and Illustration: Designers widely use Adobe Suite applications like Photoshop for photo editing and digital painting, Illustrator for logo design and vector graphics, and InDesign for layout design (like magazines, PDFs). Procreate is popular for drawing and illustration work, especially on a tablet. Canva is also widely used for easy, drag-and-drop design creation.

Collaboration and Feedback: Tools like InVision and Figma allow multiple users to work on or review a design simultaneously. They provide features for others (like clients or other designers) to view the project and give feedback directly on the designs.

Presentation and Delivery: Tools like InVision and Marvel can be used again at this stage for delivering a final interactive presentation. These tools let designers showcase work as it's meant to be seen in its final context.

Handoff: Final design handoff to developers for implementation can be streamlined with tools like Zeplin, Avocode, and Sympli, which help generate useful assets, code snippets, and style guides from design files.

This time, let's take a look at the design process from a human-centered design perspective and go through important considerations at each stage:

Empathize: This is arguably one of the most crucial stages of the design process. To design effective solutions, you need to know your users and their needs deeply. Tactics can include user interviews, observations, immersion, and other ethnographic techniques. This stage's primary goal is to gain insights into user needs, thoughts, experiences, and motivations.

Define: After collecting substantial data from the Empathize phase, it's time to make sense of it. Designers synthesize their findings into meaningful and actionable problem statements. Techniques for this stage might include affinity mapping, where observations are sorted into categories to see patterns and themes.

Ideate: With some clear problem statements in place, the next stage is to start generating solutions. It's helpful to have a divergent phase where many ideas are produced, without worrying too much about feasibility yet. Techniques might include brainstorming sessions, sketching, mind mapping, or other forms of ideation.

Prototype: After coming up with some promising solutions, designers can start making low-fidelity prototypes. This could be as simple as sketching or using post-its on a wall, or more complex like creating interactive wireframes. This stage's goal is to visualize and test ideas quickly.

Test: The design solutions are tested, and the discovered insights are used to refine the solution continuously. This usually involves user testing, where prototypes are tested with users to see how effectively they meet their needs. The output from this stage often loops back to the 'Define' and 'Ideate' stages.

Implement: After satisfactory testing and refining, the design is developed and launched. However, the process isn't necessarily linear or definite. Real-world results can often lead to new insights and iterations.

Moreover, various tools and platforms can assist in the human-centered design approach:

Research Tools: Tools like Google Forms, Typeform, or SurveyMonkey for surveys, and user interview platforms like UserInterviews.com or UsabilityHub can provide valuable user insights.

Personas and Empathy Mapping Tools: Online tools like Xtensio and Persona.ly allow designers to create digital user personas, empathy maps, journey maps, etc.

Collaboration and Whiteboard Tools: Virtual whiteboard tools such as Miro and Mural allow designers and stakeholders to share ideas, create affinity maps, mind maps, etc.

Prototyping Tools: As mentioned earlier, tools like Adobe XD, Sketch, Figma, InVision, are used for prototyping and handoff. Given the remote work culture, these tools have become integral to the design process.