This lion was done in Photoshop from start to finish.
As usual, I started with basic shapes.
Almost everything can be broken down into simple shapes. It is much less intimidating to start out a drawing with big, basic shapes like circles and triangles.
When adding details, it helped to look at photos of real lions.
I was not going for a realistic drawing, but some features need to be close enough for the viewer to identify the animal right away.
While finalizing the outline, Ty's aunt asked me to make the lion grin, because Ty is a happy boy and he's always grinning.
I changed the lion's hairstyle, eyes and mouth to resemble that of Ty's. His giddiness is infectious!
(You can see the changing process in the video at 6.13)
Putting in the base colors.
To create dimension, I added different shades of the base colors, shadows and highlights.
These are all the shades I used.
Adding a simple gradient background, with the spotlight on him.
Happy birthday Ty!
I hope you stay joyful and carefree!
Repurposing the image for other products.
All images © Lisa Ngan.