Maximum illustrations
BY CHUCK GREEN To get the maximum from stock and clip art, you need to develop a knack for seeing inside illustrations. For seeing beyond the limited application the illustrator had in mind, to the limitless potential of how the whole or its parts might be used to illustrate our specific applications.
In most cases, you need nothing more than a drawing or paint program. To dissect EPS images, you need a drawing program such as Adobe Illustrator, CorelDRAW, or Macromedia FreeHand—or for TIFF images and photographs, a paint program such as Adobe Photoshop or JASC Paint Shop Pro.
Image 1: Image addition One way to turn a two dimensional drawing into a three-dimensional idea is to add two or more images together. Adding, for example, a juke box to a crowd scene might be used to illustrate a story on the business of music. I used a drawing program to eliminate the central elements from illustration A (below), added illustration B, then changed some of the colors (C). Resources: Jukebox: from Musicville by Image Club Graphics, fotosearch.com; Crowd: from Schoolsvilles by Image Club Graphics, fotosearch.com
Image 2: Idea inserts Another simple way to make an image uniquely yours is to insert text between two different elements of a drawing. Some clip art images are “layered” into logical groups so that all you have to do is select the piece you want and drag it into place. Here, I divided the two basic figures (A) and inserted the story between them (B). Resources: Nurse/Patient: from Dynamic Graphics, dgusa.com
Image 3: Talking pictures One easy way to steer an illustration (A) in your direction is to add words—in this case, by way of cartoon-like balloons (B). By simply drawing a simple oval and triangle, you can make any illustration speak to a specific subject. Resources: Passengers: from Dynamic Graphics, dgusa.com
Image 4: Wrapping paper It's easy to think of clip art as a two-dimensional solution. When you learn to look at images more closely, you find ways to use them in three-dimensional projects—packaging, binders, and imprinting. Once this image (A) is printed (B), it will be die-cut and assembled into a standard-sized, #10 business envelope. Resources: Landscapet: from Dynamic Graphics, dgusa.com
Image 5: Color shift You can totally change the effect of an image by doing nothing more than changing its colors. In this case, an image colored with a conventional palette (A) takes on a completely different tone with a palette of unexpected colors (B). Resources: Parachute: from Dynamic Graphics, dgusa.com
Image 6: Pull picture Look at your collection closely and you will discover many illustrations within illustrations. Try pulling one piece of the image out and combining it with text. In this case, I found a logo for a travel agent (A) within a larger nautical collage (B). Resources: Nautical: from Dynamic Graphics, dgusa.com
Image 7: Image subtraction What can you subtract from an image (A) to change its meaning? In this case, removing the clutter around the central image projects the idea of a more peaceful setting. I put the cluttered version on the cover of the brochure (C) and the peaceful version inside as a payoff to the headline (B). Resources: Marina: from Dynamic Graphics, dgusa.com
Image 8: Photo clip Combining a clip art drawing (A) with a photographic image (B) adds another dimension to both. A program such as Adobe Illustrator allows you to combine both types of images and to match colors. Resources: Vacation/Waiter: from Dynamic Graphics, dgusa.com; Food: Digital Vision, Essential Food collection, fotosearch.com
Image 9: Motion pictures If you've done any surfing on the World Wide Web, you've undoubtedly seen plenty of animated art. Look closely and you'll find the seeds of countless animated GIF's in your clip art collection. All you need do is think of the parts of an illustration that you can move around the screen or fade in and out (A) and, perhaps, add them to other elements (B). 
You create the individual pieces in your paint program and assemble them in a program such as Microsoft GIF Animator. Resources: Bulb/Worker: from Dynamic Graphics, dgusa.com
Image 10: Picture pattern A pattern of images makes an effective, subtle background. You simply copy and paste the same image (A) on a grid (B). Use different shades of the same color to blend the images into the background and give them a three-dimensional effect. Resources: Clock: from Dynamic Graphics, dgusa.com
Image 11: New angle Drawing programs allow you to add perspective and distort images freely. It doesn't take a lot of distortion (B) to add interest to this flat image (A). Resources: Camera: from Dynamic Graphics, dgusa.com
Image 12: Soft-spoken shades Sometimes the most soft-spoken ideas have the biggest impact. Printing an image in a variety of shades of the same color, is a subtle but effective technique. I found these pieces within a larger image (A), pulled them out, and added color (B). Resources: Furniture: from Dynamic Graphics, dgusa.com
