Making Scientific Figures with Illustrator & Blender: Motivation & Intro for the workshops
TLDRChristopher Gutierrez, an artist, scientist, and assistant professor at UCLA, introduces a workshop series on creating scientific figures and art using Adobe Illustrator CC and Blender. Illustrator, a vector-based, subscription-required tool, and Blender, a free, open-source 3D graphics program, are highlighted for their capabilities in producing high-quality visuals. Gutierrez shares his journey from a poorly designed figure in his first paper to mastering the creation of impactful visuals using templates, emphasizing the importance of clear scientific communication. The workshop aims to equip scientists with the skills to effectively express their research through compelling figures and promotional materials, ultimately enhancing the visibility of their work.
Takeaways
- 🎨 The speaker, Christopher Gutierrez, is a multifaceted individual with roles as an artist, scientist, and assistant professor at UCLA.
- 🛠️ The workshops aim to teach practical skills for creating scientific figures and art using Adobe Illustrator CC and Blender.
- 💡 Illustrator is a vector-based program requiring a paid subscription, while Blender is a free, open-source 3D graphics program.
- 🌟 Christopher emphasizes the importance of clear scientific communication through well-crafted figures and art.
- 📈 He shares his personal journey and the evolution of his figure-making skills, from a less polished early figure to a more refined one.
- 📚 Christopher discusses the importance of creating journal templates to maximize figure real estate and present information effectively.
- 🤝 The workshops were inspired by a collaboration with a grad student, Katie, which resulted in a high-quality published figure.
- 🔬 Scientists are encouraged to learn figure-making tools to better convey their research and avoid reliance on external artists.
- 🎓 The speaker has experience giving these workshops at various institutions, including the University of Michigan and the University of Waterloo.
- 🎨 Christopher showcases his own cover and promotional artwork, demonstrating the application of Illustrator and Blender in scientific communication.
- 📹 The upcoming Blender workshop will focus on introducing the software and covering topics of particular interest to scientists, such as working with atomic or protein data.
Q & A
What is the primary goal of the workshops mentioned in the transcript?
-The primary goal of the workshops is to provide basic, practical skills and useful pointers for creating scientific figures and scientific art using Adobe Illustrator CC and Blender.
What are the two software platforms discussed in the video?
-The two software platforms discussed are Adobe Illustrator CC, a vector-based program for graphic art, and Blender, a powerful 3D computer graphics program.
Why does Christopher Gutierrez emphasize the importance of creating good figures?
-Christopher emphasizes the importance of creating good figures because journal art departments often do not have the time or resources to rescale or adjust images, so it is the responsibility of the researcher to provide high-quality figures.
What is the role of templates in Christopher's workflow?
-Templates play a crucial role in Christopher's workflow as they help him maximize figure real estate, organize his thoughts better, and create more effective and visually appealing scientific figures.
How did Christopher improve the figure from his first paper as a grad student?
-Christopher improved the figure by reducing the size of the scatter plot, increasing the sizes of the 2D images, and using journal templates to better organize the information and maximize the use of space.
What was the motivation behind creating the workshops?
-The motivation behind creating the workshops came from Christopher's personal experience of dissatisfaction with the figures in his early publications and the realization that scientists can often create better representations of their work than external artists.
What is the significance of scientists learning to make better figures?
-The significance is that scientists, who have a deep understanding of their research, can convey their complex ideas and results more effectively to a wide audience through well-crafted visual representations.
How did Christopher's collaboration with grad student Katie demonstrate the potential of in-house figure creation?
-Christopher spent a week teaching Katie some Illustrator basics, and she was able to produce a figure that was considered much better than the one commissioned from an external artist, showing that scientists can create high-quality figures with the right tools and training.
What are the benefits of using Blender for scientific image creation?
-Blender offers a powerful physics engine that allows for the simulation of realistic lighting and setting of physical properties of materials, making it ideal for creating 3D images and visual representations of scientific data.
What does Christopher encourage participants to do after creating figures or artwork from the workshop?
-Christopher encourages participants to share their creations on social media platforms like Twitter or Instagram to showcase their work and engage with the broader community.
What is the structure of the upcoming workshops?
-The first set of workshop videos will focus on Adobe Illustrator, covering topics for beginners to advanced users, and part 5 will demonstrate using templates in the workflow. The Blender workshop will introduce the software's main aspects and cover topics of particular interest to scientists.
Outlines
🎨 Introduction to Scientific Figure Making Workshops
Christopher Gutierrez, an artist, scientist, and assistant professor at UCLA, introduces a series of workshops aimed at teaching basic skills for creating scientific figures and art using Adobe Illustrator CC and Blender. Illustrator is a vector-based, subscription-based program, while Blender is a free, open-source 3D graphics program with a powerful physics engine. Gutierrez emphasizes the importance of clear scientific communication and shares his journey from an artist to a scientist, highlighting his experience in creating figures for scientific papers. He also discusses the significance of providing high-quality figures to journals and the benefits of using templates for figure creation, showcasing an improved version of a figure from his early career.
📈 Advanced Illustrator Techniques and Blender Basics for Scientists
The second paragraph delves into the specifics of the Illustrator workshop, which will cover a range of topics suitable for beginners to advanced users. Gutierrez plans to conclude with a demonstration of using templates in his workflow. For Blender, he clarifies that the workshop will not cover everything due to its complexity but will focus on aspects particularly relevant to scientists, such as inputting atomic or protein data to create scientific images. The goal is to familiarize scientists with the basics of Blender to enable them to produce quality images. Gutierrez also encourages participants to share any figures or artwork they create using the skills learned in the workshops on social media platforms like Twitter or Instagram.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Scientific Figures
💡Adobe Illustrator CC
💡Blender
💡3D Graphics
💡Physics Engine
💡Templates
💡Figure Real Estate
💡Scientific Art
💡Promotional Artwork
💡Workshops
Highlights
Introduction to the Making Scientific Figures with Illustrator and Blender workshops by Christopher Gutierrez, an artist, scientist, and assistant professor at UCLA.
Illustrator is a vector-based program for graphic art, while Blender is a free, open-source 3D computer graphics program with a powerful physics engine for realistic simulations.
Christopher Gutierrez's background as an artist has been instrumental in expressing scientific ideas, a goal of the workshops.
The workshops aim to provide tools for clearly expressing complex scientific results to a wide audience.
Christopher first developed these tutorials at the Quantum Matter Institute at the University of British Columbia.
Personal experience with creating unattractive figures in early papers inspired the creation of these workshops.
Creating journal templates can help maximize figure real estate and improve the presentation of scientific data.
By using templates, Christopher was able to significantly improve the quality and size of a previously published figure.
Scientists learning to make better figures can enhance the presentation of their research and avoid reliance on external artists.
A collaboration with a grad student, Katie, resulted in a significantly improved figure published in Science, inspiring the workshops.
The importance of presenting research results well to ensure the visibility and impact of scientific findings.
Christopher has created covers and promotional artwork for his own and colleagues' publications using Illustrator and Blender.
The first set of workshop videos will cover Adobe Illustrator, from beginner tips to advanced techniques.
The Blender workshop will focus on introducing the software and topics of particular interest to scientists, such as inputting atomic or protein data.
The goal is to familiarize scientists with Blender to enable them to create high-quality images for their research.
Christopher encourages sharing of any figures or artwork created using the workshop tutorials on social media.
Transcripts
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