Illustrated Children's Stories: Characters and Settings

A course by Giovana Medeiros , Illustrator

Illustrator. Lisbon, Portugal.
Joined February 2020

Learn how to adapt the illustration of a classic story, from sketch to digital finish

100% positive reviews (100)
1,704 students
Audio: Portuguese
Portuguese · Spanish · English · German · French · Italian · Polish · Dutch

Learn how to adapt the illustration of a classic story, from sketch to digital finish

Get ready to see the world through your imagination's magic lens. This is an invitation for you to reinterpret stories, follow your ideas, and discover your path in children's book illustration. Giovana Medeiros, an illustrator of stories ranging from everyday life to fantasy who has worked for clients such as Chronicle Books and Harper & Collins, will be your guide in this adventure.

In this course, learn the whole process of creating your own illustrated story, adapted from a classic tale. Giovana shows you the steps and secrets to complete the first pages of a children's picturebook, combining manual drawing techniques and digital editing.

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What will you learn in this online course?

18 lessons & 29 downloads

What will we do in the course?
2 minutes, 48 seconds
Necessary materials
2 minutes, 59 seconds
Mood board
9 minutes, 49 seconds
Thumbnails
17 minutes, 30 seconds
Thinking about human characters
10 minutes, 58 seconds
  • 100% positive reviews (100)
  • 1,704 students
  • 18 lessons (3h 31m)
  • 29 additional resources (14 files)
  • Online and at your own pace
  • Available on the app
  • Audio: Portuguese
  • Portuguese · Spanish · English · German · French · Italian · Polish · Dutch
  • Level: Beginner
  • Unlimited access forever

What is this course's project?

Make three composition studies with characters and scenes from a classic story of your choice, and a finished illustration in Photoshop with manually-made textures using gouache paint.

Projects by course students

Who is this online course for?

Anyone interested in illustration and creative processes, illustrators who want to work in the children's sector, and people looking to learn new Photoshop techniques.

Requirements and materials

To take this course, you’ll need basics drawing knowledge.

As for the materials, you will need gouache paint and other materials of your choice for manual drawing. To digitize your creations, you will need a computer with Adobe Photoshop, a graphics tablet, and a scanner. It is recommended to have an iPad with Procreate installed, but it’s not mandatory.


Reviews

1,704 Students
100 Reviews
100% Positive ratings

Giovana Medeiros

A course by Giovana Medeiros

Teacher Plus
Illustrator

Graduated in Illustration from the BCFE School in Dublin, Brazilian illustrator Giovana Medeiros combines digital and manual techniques with gouache, watercolor, and collage. Her work is inspired by children's stories and fantasy, everyday scenes, nature, and fashion.

Throughout her career, her work has been seen in magazines, advertising campaigns, games, and as prints. However, the publishing world has always felt most at home. Some of Giovana’s clients include Chronicle Books, Harper & Collins, Cottage Press, Zara, FTD, Itaú, My Taxi, Oxford University Press, Auzou Editions, Hallmark, Usborne, Charlesbridge, and Bloomsbury.


Content

  • U1

    Introduction

    • Presentation
    • Influences
    • What will we do in the course?
  • U2

    Knowing our tale

    • Necessary materials
    • Pointing and drawing visual references
    • Mood board
  • U3

    Drafts and more drafts

    • Thumbnails
    • Thinking about human characters
    • Thinking about animal characters
    • Thinking about the scenario
  • U4

    Final compositions

    • Joining drafts
    • Thinking about colors
    • Drawing in Photoshop
    • Creating gouache texture
  • U5

    Finishing in Adobe Photoshop

    • Applying textures and final details 1
    • Applying textures and final details 2
    • Applying textures and final details 3
    • Customer delivery and market tips
  • FP

    Final project

    • Illustrated Children's Stories: Characters and Settings

What to expect from a Domestika course

  • Learn at your own pace

    Enjoy learning from home without a set schedule and with an easy-to-follow method. You set your own pace.

  • Learn from the best professionals

    Learn valuable methods and techniques explained by top experts in the creative sector.

  • Meet expert teachers

    Each expert teaches what they do best, with clear guidelines, true passion, and professional insight in every lesson.

  • Certificates
    Plus

    If you're a Plus member, get a custom certificate signed by your teacher for every course. Share it on your portfolio, social media, or wherever you like.

  • Get front-row seats

    Videos of the highest quality, so you don't miss a single detail. With unlimited access, you can watch them as many times as you need to perfect your technique.

  • Share knowledge and ideas

    Ask questions, request feedback, or offer solutions. Share your learning experience with other students in the community who are as passionate about creativity as you are.

  • Connect with a global creative community

    The community is home to millions of people from around the world who are curious and passionate about exploring and expressing their creativity.

  • Watch professionally produced courses

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FAQs

Domestika's courses are online classes that provide you with the tools and skills you need to complete a specific project. Every step of the project combines video lessons with complementary instructional material, so you can learn by doing. Domestika's courses also allow you to share your own projects with the teacher and with other students, creating a dynamic course community.

All courses are 100% online, so once they're published, courses start and finish whenever you want. You set the pace of the class. You can go back to review what interests you most and skip what you already know, ask questions, answer questions, share your projects, and more.

The courses are divided into different units. Each one includes lessons, informational text, tasks, and practice exercises to help you carry out your project step by step, with additional complementary resources and downloads. You'll also have access to an exclusive forum where you can interact with the teacher and with other students, as well as share your work and your course project, creating a community around the course.

You can redeem the course you received by accessing the redeeming page and entering your gift code.

If you're a Plus member, when you complete a course you've purchased, you'll instantly get your personalized certificate. You can see all your certificates in the Certificates section of your profile. You can download your certificates as PDFs and share the link online. Learn more about certificates.
Illustrated Children's Stories: Characters and Settings. Illustration course by Giovana Medeiros

Illustrated Children's Stories: Characters and Settings

A course by Giovana Medeiros
Illustrator. Lisbon, Portugal.
Joined February 2020
  • 100% positive reviews (100)
  • 1,704 students