Drawing symmetrical objects in perspective can be a challenge. In situations like this, I generally use Google Sketchup to help me with my accuracy This video explores the powerful tools that Sketchup provides for working with repeated shapes and symmetrical forms. Even if you're saying "Yeah, yeah - symmetry is no big deal in perspective..." would you change your tune if I asked you to draw an object that 7-sided with rotational symmetry? Sometimes a little bit of 3D saves a lot of time.
People are good at being creative, and computers are great at repetitive tasks. Why not let your computer do what it's good at and focus your energy on the more creative work? As a digital painter, you should be on the lookout for repeated elements in a painting: large or small. This video shows how to efficiently paint a threaded screw through the use of duplication and the transform tool.
The goal of thumbnail sketching is to generate a large variety of design possibilities in a short amount of time. With this goal inmind, it's not 'cheating' to take a non-traditional approach. This video shows how to "built" your thumbnail sketches instead of simply drawing them. Using robots as subject matter, we'll first build a set of modular components, and then mix and match them to create a large variety of robot designs.
Sometimes you'll find yourself working with a repeating pattern, and want to quickly expand it. This video offers an alternative to the 'Pattern Preset' with a quick, manual, method to expand your subject. This is a technique for keyboard shortcut lovers.
If you're a traditional painter, something like a flock of birds means only one thing: lots of work. Photoshop offers some time-saving alternatives for digital painters. In this video we'll take a look at the use of duplication to quickly populate an entire flock of birds. Remember: this isn't cheating, you're simply using the tools Photoshop makes available to you.
The goal of making thumbnail sketches is speed. You're trying to get a lot of ideas onto the page as quickly as possible. This video explores the concept of symmetrical thumbnail designs. Specifically, it offers a single-button solution to create these horizontally mirrored drawings. Photoshop actions can be a huge time-saver if you know how to use them - and this 'mirror action' is no exception.