One time we had to draw several soda machines for the Soda section. First we need to find out which models existed when.
All the machines must be in the same perspective, with the same lighting and maintain the same proportions.
The search
Diving deep into the web and books.
Materials we were able to find.
The beginning
Once all the materials were collected, the drawing stage starts. The main thing to remember here is not to rush and analyze everything thoroughly.
Instead of drawing the machines one after another which would have been more evident, we decided to draw them simultaneously, step by step.
The benefit of this approach is that we have the ability to spend as much time as we want on polishing the illustrations, but once we stop, all machines will be on the same level of detail. The problem in drawing them sequentially is that there is a chance we lose our drive polishing the third picture and knowing there are four more like it ahead.
Construction
As all the machines must be in the same perspective, it’s best to start with skeletons that can be drawn in Illustrator.
All machines are arranged in a row and gradually filled with details: panels, buttons, recesses for glasses, moldings, etc.
At this stage it is best to finalize all the geometry so as to spend less time on it in Photoshop later, focusing more on drawing.
Drawing
Time for Photoshop. All the contours are exported in individual PSD files, one for each machine.
The grids are used to draw the cabinets.
 |
 |
 |
АТ-2М |
АТ-26 | АТ-48 |
Gradually, the skeletons grow details.
 |
 |
 |
Now there is a hint at materials: glossy and matte surfaces.
 |
 |
 |
Refining small details.
 |
 |
 |
Near-final detalization of the AT-114 machine.
And the final one. We added glare, glow, lighting is adapted to match the environment, reflections are finalized.
Drawing shadows
To create the contrast between the materials of the machine cabinet and the floor we draw composite shadows: once a shadow is drawn, we apply a small-radius noise to it which we then gently blur. This gives the illusion of a grainy surface.
Illustrations
Some of the machines have illustrations. They are drawn and applied on the cabinets.
Small things
To bring the scenes to life, we add small details to the machines.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Main stages of the process on the example of AT-14 machine:
/x.gif){kind=small}
Linear illustrations
Linear illustrations of the period objects will help to further emphasize the age of the machine.
Soda machine of the future
Later we get the idea to add a future machine, as if they never stopped being produced. The industrial designer creates the sketches.
And we draw the machine based on them.
Faceted glass
We assemble the materials and draw pictures for the page.
