Having just the right image to illustrate your article can really drive home your point. As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words.

There are fantastic stock photo and illustration resources available online, but sometimes you still can’t find just the right image. That’s where skill with Photoshop and Illustrator come into play. I’ve often manipulated photo and vector illustrations to create the exact image I needed for a project. Of course, sometimes I simply have to create something from scratch.

When trying to decide whether to go with a photo or a vector illustration, the first consideration is how the final piece will be produced. Digital work (PDFs and web-based designs) have little limitations, so full color photos aren’t a problem. If the piece will be printed, will the client’s budget cover CMYK/process color printing? If so, again, you can go with full color photos. It’s when the budget is tighter that you need to be more careful in selecting the type of illustration. Not all photos work well when converted to black and white. Here’s where simple line art and spot-color illustrations shine.

Another consideration when deciding on the type of illustration is the intended market. For instance, if the piece is geared to children, cartoon images work well.

If your illustration includes a face (human or animal) that’s looking to the side, be sure to place it so it’s “looking” at the text it’s illustrating. Doing so subtly directs the reader to the appropriate text. Unfortunately this may require flipping the image, so keep that in mind. If the illustration, for instance, is a sports figure wearing a uniform with text or numbers, flipping it is a problem.