Create your own vector avatar with Illustrator

I don’t consider myself an “artist” as I’ve never had any formal drawing training (for the record, my background is more in corporate identity and layout – you know, lots of Helvetica and lots of white space). However, I’ve had the opportunity to work and spend time with many talented illustrators over the years. Being I know a thing or two about using Adobe Illustrator, I’ve always been inspired to try to draw things on my own.

My daughter recently had to draw a self-portrait for her art class, and the project inspired me to do one on my own. With all the vector avatars I see people using, I thought it would be a good project. After all, I figured someone like me should have a vector avatar. At first, I thought it was a stupid idea. I didn’t even know where to start. But surprisingly enough, after about 30 minutes, I actually created something that I thought looked pretty good, and the techniques are all pretty basic. It may appear like there are a lot of steps in this tutorial, but I do spend some time explaining as I go.

Simulating the CSS Box Model in Illustrator

Illustrator is a great tool for mocking up websites. In Illustrator CS5, Adobe added an Align to Pixel feature that ensures crisp antialiasing, and in a recent episode of Fridays with Mordy, we spoke about using Illustrator for various web design projects.

When designing for the web -- specifically for sites that will be built with CSS -- it's a good idea to get into the right mindset, so that you can easily translate what you create in Illustrator into code later on. In a previous post, I spoke about limited CSS export from Illustrator, but today, I'd like to share a way that you can simulate the CSS box model in Illustrator, which will ultimately help you create better design mockups.

Update: Books, Videos, and Blogs

Hey there everyone! I know, it has been a while. And I wanted to bring you up to date to let you know what I've been busy with.

Books
Real World Illustrator CS5 is complete and off to the printer. It should be shipping as of the first week of August. As always, you can find it online at Amazon, or at your local bookstore. The book has been updated to cover all of the features found in Illustrator CS5 including perspective drawing, variable-width strokes, bristle brush, enhanced artboards and symbols, better web design tools, and more.

Videos
I've published quite a few video training titles over at Lynda.com since CS5 has been out. You'll find titles that include Illustrator CS5 New Features, Illustrator CS5 Essential Training, and Flash Catalyst CS5 Essential Training. I'm also currently working on three new titles that should be out shortly: Illustrator CS5 for Web and Interactive Design, Illustrator CS5: Drawing and Painting, and Illustrator CS5: Typography and Special Effects. If you aren't already a subscriber to Lynda.com, you can sign up for a free 7 day full-access pass here.

Blogs
You may have noticed that I've freshened up the place a bit here (there's plenty more coming). In addition, I'm starting to systematically go through all my years of posts, updating them along the way. As newer versions of Illustrator have come out, newer functionality has addressed certain features. At the same time, much of the info I've written about still applies even today. So hopefully, you'll find all of this new information helpful.

Finally, in a few weeks, Fridays with Mordy returns with all-new episodes of learning and fun! If you missed any of the past shows, don't worry -- they are all recorded! So sit back with a cool lemonade or other preferred summer beverage, and watch a few!