Who are scientific and medical illustrators and what do they do?
Scientific and medical illustrators are artists who illustrate concepts in science and medicine, often for explanational or educational purposes. There is a strong emphasis on the accuracy of information preseneted in the drawing. Although illustrations can be expressive, often scientific and medical illustrators work in a tighter style in order to show certain information clearly.
When people think of scientific/medical illustrators, they often think about textbook illustrations or museum displays. This is only part of what they do. Some people illustrate for magazines and journals, others bring their skills to Hollywood. Think also forensic reconstruction, animation, and prosthetics. The possibilities are endless.
What's the difference between scientific and medical illustration?
Scientific illustration includes all sciences, although people often use it to refer to natural science illustration. Medical illustration is a subset of scientific illustration, focusing on the human anatomy, clinical techniques, or anything related to the human body.
There are so many imaging techniques these days, not to mention photography. Why do we still need illustrators?
You got my attention. Can you recommend some books and online resources? I would like to go to school for this. Which schools offer programs like this? What are some career options? I don't want to be a starving artist. How well do jobs pay?