SECTION TWO
A PICTURES WORTH
by Tom Watson
“You don’t need to be a Michelangelo.”
PHOTO COURTESY TOM WATSON
A
ll writers know and appreciate the value of using
artwork to enhance the overall appeal of a story.
Images visually highlight a reference within the text or
offers additional information graphically - and extend the
presentation of information way beyond what you could
do with just text and still stay within the limits of your
assigned word length.
But what if you can’t f ind a photo or other artwork?
Creating your own graphics is a relatively easy way to
enhance or expand the information within your article.
You don’t need to be a Michelangelo, either - just basic
creative art skills and at least a simple drawing program
like those that come with most computers will help. Using
basic techniques, you can render very recognizable forms
that can then be enhanced and combined to create scenes
and instructive illustrations to complement your words.
Images of f ish are a vital part of the illustrations I use in
my self-reliance articles. Typically I need an image of an
active f ish as seen from above or side.
I use the same foundation art for each, easily created with
a few strokes of the cursor in the basic drawing tools that
come with my Mac’. The key is to develop a basic shape
that you can morph into specif ic shapes that will
Volume 02 No. 04 | 2018