The Beautiful Illustrations of Rochelle Frank

Early on this month, Rochelle Frank wrote in to share some of her beautiful Hub images with me. Says Rochelle:

This drawing (pen and color pencil) was for my homophone Hub. I needed something to represent an eager “be” and a reluctant “flower”. I couldn’t find any free clipart that expressed that thought.

The ABC illustrations I did (below) were for a children’s book proposal. I used them with the Hub I did on trying to get a book published. The originals are marker and Prismacolor pencil. I like using the color pencils because they aren’t as messy as paint or pastel.

I found these illustrations to be so beautiful, I asked her to share a bit more about her image-creation process and provide us with some advice on making our Hubs more visually stimulating. Luckily for us, Rochelle Frank was happy to oblige!

Read on for this talented Hubber’s sage advice:

Like many new Hubbers, I started out wondering how to illustrate my articles. I was aware of copyright issues regarding photos and graphics.

I didn’t even have a digital camera at first, except for the one on my desktop Mac.

For a few Hubs that I recycled from my previous print publication articles, my photographer friend allowed me to use to photos which had appeared with the newspaper features, since we both still owned our rights.

I also set up displays of recipe ingredients (or combat boots, or other items) in front of my computer and took iMac photos. Free clip art and public domain images are sometimes also used.

I put small items on my scanner to make images for others.

Finally, I began using some of my own drawings to illustrate Hubs. Scanning original work and putting them into a photo application, I was able to size, crop pr ‘tweak’ them a bit.

Most of my original works are drawings are just pen, sometimes colored with markers or Prismacolor pencils. Even my larger, more detailed drawings are made with colored pencils. There’s no real secret to drawing with them, but they are much less messy than paint or pastels.

Since I “do art” infrequently (and when I do, I might do a little bit and then put it away for awhile, before finishing) I don’t have a dedicated space to make a mess. I can put the pencils and art paper tablet away easily, and get it out again when the inclination hits.

Yes, I was an art major, but my degree is in Art History. I have always drawn and doodled. In college I did cartoons and drawings for the CSULB paper (as well as writing).

Later, as a teacher, I made a lot of my own original teaching materials. As a substitute teacher, I sometimes would start the day by drawing a large outline of a shark or a cartoon character on the chalkboard. It got their attention and sometimes their awe.

They would ask,”Can you teach me how to draw that?”
“Yes,” I would answer, “if we get all of our regular work done.”

I’m a fan of how Rochelle Frank has used illustrations to inspire people and catch their attention in Hubs and classrooms alike. I also appreciate the care she has put into only using images she has the legal right to use. If you’re not sure which licenses enable you to use another’s images, check out our Learning Center guide on proper image use, which will give you an introduction to common image licenses and the manner in which Creative Commons images should be attributed in the Photo Capsule.

Thanks for sharing your beautiful images and insights from us, Rochelle Frank!