The brief: to create 20 illustrations to explain certain navigational clues which underline the video course, The Beginner's Guide to Natural Navigation.

The brief was to help the hiker find his/her way, direction, ascertain distance. Whilst I was drawing the various tips, I tested them out on my own walks.

I created one ‘banker’ illustration to ascertain the style which needed to be carried through the illustrations consistently: type, colour palette, format and stroke. This helped to create a group of drawings suitable for the video course. Any additional illustrations can be added in the same style later as required.

I felt it important to apply a more realistic style to tell the story. I drew on an iPad Pro using Adobe Draw in layers. There was a short time-limit on the project and this homed me into a ‘no-frills’ approach. The final artwork was produced at high-resolution (ratio 16:9) in case they were going to be used in different settings, e.g. print.

The illustrations were then animated by Ranald Lloyd-Williams, RLW Film and a few back-and-forths were required to get the sequence right. Good communication with the animator was key, so as to understand how best to supply the illustrations in terms of labeling and grouped layers to make the animator’s task as easy as possible.

The project management was undertaken with www.freedcamp to get each task through to sign off and to assure allocated times were adhered to keep the budget in check.

The illustrations help explain sometimes difficult concepts to imagine. They also help to focus on that clue and break up the chapters of the video course.

The course has a member-sign up and offers exclusive ‘members-only’ course discussion area, where Tristan answers questions and adds bonus examples. I can really recommend it to avid walkers, runners and nature-lovers. It is extremely informative even for experienced walkers; it is inspiring, especially after this COVID-19 period, where we all have had time to reconnect with nature.