How to Create a Golden Mechanical Owl in Illustrator – Vector Plus Tutorial

Apr 29th in News by Roctopus

We have another great Vector Plus tutorial available exclusively for Plus members today. If you want to learn how to craft custom mechanically styled characters in Illustrator, then we have an awesome tutorial for you. In this tutorial, Roctopus will take us through the process of creating a golden steampunk inspired mechanical owl illustration. Let's learn more about this tutorial at the jump!

Author: Roctopus

I'm a vector illustrator. I've been using Illustrator in it’s various incarnations for twelve years (and counting) and am still learning new things all the time.

This Vector Plus Tutorial is Filled with Creative Instruction

I have been using Illustrator in it’s various incarnations for 12 years (and counting) and I'm still learning new things all the time. In this tutorial, I would like to take you through my method of working and give you a few tips and techniques that I used to create "Bubo: The Mechanical Owl."

In this tutorial, I will take you through techniques including using the Blending Tool, Clipping Masks, Compound Paths, Blending Modes, working with gradients and some effects. I have not included any color breakdowns for gradients as there are too many to list, all can be found on the reference file supplied though. Be sure to look in the Swatches palette, as I reference them by name throughout this tutorial.

Plus members can Log in and Download! If you're not a member, you can of course join today! You can view the final illustration below or a here.

This is a Fun and Comprehensive Tutorial

You can also see some more of my illustrations in my Flickr stream, or on my web site roctopus.net. I would be happy for you to drop by and take a look. This is my take on the mechanical owl from the 1981 film "The Clash of the Titans." The original model featured in the film was made by Ray Harryhausen. I kept the mechanical essence of the original, but added my own take on the owl's form. I love all things mechanical, clockwork and steampunkesque. I took the main form back to an egg and worked to make it as simple and elegant as possible.

Plus members can Log in and Download! Otherwise, Join Now! Below are some sample images, which show the development of this lettering illustration throughout the tutorial.

Vector Plus Membership

As you know, we run a premium membership system here called Plus that costs $9 a month (or $22 for 3 months!) which gives members access to the Source files for tutorials as well as periodic extra tutorials, like this one! If you're a Plus member you can log in and download the tutorial. If you're not a member, you can of course join today!

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