FEMA Publications Catalog - Design

Hi All,

After I retired from the Air Force, I was hired on at the Federal Emergency Management Agency(FEMA), as a designer in the Publications Section.  Over the next three years I worked with FEMA print publications, prepared books for printing, archived files, assisted contractors designing for FEMA.  I also designed books, leaflets, products for print and web, and whatever other projects they had for me.  It was a great job.  It was always fun and challenging -- and like any job, occasionally a little frustrating.

Today I'm going to highlight the FEMA Publications Catalog.  A little background - when I was hired, the Pubs section was in the midst of change and my boss Ken dedicated me to work with the FEMA publications and to develop and "run" some new processes (as well as work on graphic design).  FEMA has numerous publications and most are designed by contractors.  So one of the first things I developed was a QC, cataloging and master file archiving system, and then I'd annually put out a FEMA Publications Catalog.

Cover - FEMA Publications Catalog. Note - the
design is set up in accordance with DHS
House Styleguide - not necessarily the way most
would set it up.

As new products came in, I would make sure it was set up in accordance with Dept of Homeland Security House Style Guidelines, assign publication and catalog number (don't ask why two numbers -- long story), and "brand" it on the back cover.  I'd make changes/fixes as necessary, preflight the files and ensure they were ready for commercial printing.  Then I'd pass the files on to the printing specialist and work with them (if necessary), thru the printing process.

Intro page in the catalog -- some info about the
catalog and FEMA resouces on-line

The Publications Catalog that hadn't been done in quite a while when I arrived, so I started from scratch.  As new products and reprints came in, they were put into the catalog.  When ready, we'd print a small run and post on the web.  I left FEMA almost a year ago, to move out west, but the catalog is  probably still on the FEMA website.  The catalog didn't have all the publications, as I've described, but it included the most current materials.

One of the internal pages.  The books are listed
by category.  These are "Flood" books

I know FEMA has taken a beating in the media at times, but I really enjoyed working there.  I can't say enough about the people at FEMA.  They are dedicated, and some of the best!
Thanks FEMA -- I'll always treasure my time working with you.

A page of Disaster Recovery Center signs.
They're signs for the centers out in the field,
where people get disaster assistance.

Have a great week everyone....Tom

Barry Sanders - Yes Another Football Pic

An old friend of mine, Greg, has been after me for years -- "Tom, do a picture of Barry Sanders.  He was the greatest running back of all time" -- and so on, and on.  Well, Greg's been a Detroit Lions fan forever, and God knows, they don't usually have a lot to cheer about, so finally I got around to working on it.

All joking aside, I've been wanting to work on this one for a while.  I figured I'd do a combination technique using a pencil illustration and Photoshop to finish it out.  After a little searching around, I found some reference material and decided on the layout.  Next - I got out a big handful of pencils, a pad of bristol board, and got to work.  I like working out a nice pencil rendering using a variety of pencils from the hard 4H pencil all the way to the very soft 4B (and all the others in between).

Pencil Portrait of Barry Sanders - base illustration

I scanned the portrait in to my iMac and worked on adding a little more detail in and darkening some of the tonal values.  I did this in Photoshop using a Wacom tablet.  Using the brush tool in photoshop and the pen stylus and digitizing tablet - it has a similar feel to painting or airbrushing (and it's much more forgiving if you make a mistake).

A great feature in Photoshop is the ability to work on various layers.  It's just like it sounds - like transparent overlays that stack up from bottom to top.  So as I go, I create layers and worked in some color on the uniform and his face.  I keep it kind of soft, allowing the pencil to show thru.  Then I added some additional texture and color on a couple of layers using the powder blue color and some really large irregularly shaped brushes.  Afterward I adjusted the layer opacity, giving it just the right amount of color and texture.  For me, there's quite a bit of adding and subtracting in these processes too - it's a process.

Finishing touches were applied with a nice border; a rugged almost rock like texture which is opposite of the soft translucent colors over the image.  I selected the border area and painted in some light and dark colors.  Next, I started experimenting with various filter effects until I was pleased with the colors and textures.  I finished it with a Layer Style, using the Bevel and Emboss effect.  I selected the Inner Bevel style and Chisel Soft technique, and adjusted the depth, size, and softness until I was happy with it.

Barry Sanders portrait...finished artwork

Finishing touch...a nice white stroke around the image and my signature.  And there you have Barry Sanders - who, in the opinion of my buddy Greg - "is the best running back  in football history."  Glad you aprove Greg.

Have a great week everyone.

White House Upgrades If......

Hi Everyone,

Yes, it's true, I was inspired last week by Donald Trump.  Ha - anyone that knows me personally would laugh at that, because I'm not really a fan of his TV shows or his politics.  But, he's been in the news a lot, talking about running for the Presidency (or maybe just trying to get attention to boost his show's ratings).

So I started thinking about what if he were elected President.  He's so extravagant and over the top about everything in his life - what would he do if he were President of the United States?  And then it occurred to me; I think he'd probably take down that ratty old White House and replace it with a grand, amazing and ultra modern Trump Presidential Tower.

So, like many of the works I do now, I start with a pencil sketch.  Sometimes I ink it, like a comic as I've done here.  Then I scan the piece, bring it into Photoshop, make the necessary adjustments to the file (brightness, contrast, canvas size, resolution, etc...), and finally I start working in the color.  I work in layers, so I can work front to back - or vice versa.

Mr. Trump - thanks for the inspiration.

"Man, this old place needs some serious upgrades"

Hope you enjoy your week everyone.  See you next time.

Tom

Caricatures - Commercial Illustration and Fun Gift

Hi All,

I recently dug out my caricature book to show a prospective client, some samples.  It brought back a lot of good memories.  One of my favorite types of artwork to create has always been the caricature.  During my 22 year career in the Air Force, I'd done probably 200-300 caricatures.  It's a fun medium to work with and because AF people are continually moving around you always are saying "so long" to someone; and a caricature makes a great "going away" gift.  It's a unique gift, with a fun and goofy likeness of the person....they're always a hit for the recipient and everyone else as well.

There's also a commercial illustration application to this as well.  Magazines and other publications feature various styles of caricatures regularly to accompany stories in their publications.

I'm going to keep the text to a minimum this week and include several of the old school caricatures from the past, and a few updated commercial style ones as well.

Remember, if I can assist with any of your artwork needs, commercial or personal - let me know, I'd love to hear from you and I'd love to help.  (my contact info is in my blogs profile).  Have a great week and enjoy the artwork.

Gift for a colleague - Pen and Ink on Bristol Board

Gift for a colleague - Mixed Media (colored pencil, ink and
airbrush acrylic)

60 Yr Old Man - I was commissioned to produce this for a client
to give as a gag birthday gift.  Mostly colored pencil
with a little dry and air brush.

Gift for a colleague - Pen and Ink on Bristol

Michelle - Portfolio piece - ink drawing, scanned and
painted digitally

Arpiao - Portfolio - Local Sheriff, digital illustration

Timberlake - Portfolio - Pen and ink, scanned and
painted digitally

Pen and Ink - gift from my class to my First Sergeant
Academy Instructor

Gift for my old buddy - Mike - or as most of us
call him "Z"