Illustrated Characters Factory

Unlike with comics, it's not common practice to stop and think about who created all the fantastic characters we come across in children's books. Illustrator Patricio Betteo hadn't asked the question either until he started to professionally illustrate in this field. Throughout a long career in illustration, his characters have appeared in books, magazines, comic strips, graphic novels, and even video games.

In this course, Patricio Betteo teaches you to create characters, from the first sketches in pencil to the final edits in Adobe Photoshop. Although most of the techniques taught during the course are manual, you can also follow the course using digital tools if you prefer.

Start the course by getting to know Patricio who talks about his work in the editorial world. He also shares his main sources of inspiration and greatest influences.

Begin creating your characters from the top down, starting with the head. To do this you need to be familiar with both the basic and irregular shapes. Do some exercises to help you visualize them in 3D.

Then work on expression through the eyes, eyebrows, and mouth to transform them into a face. Patricio advises you on how to add each feature one by one onto a range of different heads, like with a Mr. Potato Head.

Now move on to bodies. You can divide it into 3, 7, or even more sections. Using paper cutouts, gradually build up figures of different statures and proportions. Learn to exaggerate ratios for original and interesting results.

Next, Patricio gives you five key tips for your character creation process. He also shares an invaluable list of random inspirational ideas to unlock your creativity and let your imagination soar.

Start as you mean to go on by gathering reference materials as a precursor to the character creation process. Once all your ideas are on the table along with everything you've learned, do a sketch and refine it detail by detail until you're happy with it.

Copy or trace your sketch to define the final version before scanning it ready for the digital part of the process.

From here, separate and delineate the first gray areas. With the help of brushes, mark the areas of light and shadow in your illustration. Finally, once the tonal values are set, add color to your piece playing around with glazes, temperature changes, and other details to help you achieve the color you're going for. Then get ready to introduce the world to your finished artwork!

Create a lineup of fantasy characters ready to help you tell a story or illustrate a book.

Illustrators and sketch artists who want to broaden their repertoire and build on their character creation skills.

Basic notions of illustration and editing software are necessary for the course. Your teacher uses Adobe Photoshop to color his illustrations, but the skills learned can be applied to any pixel editor including Procreate.

For materials, you need scrap paper, notebooks, and basic drawing tools. You can also use a tablet and a scanner if you prefer.