The Art of Scamps
Updated Oct 2024
Need scamps? You're in the right place.
Good quality scamps help win pitches.
Rough and ready quick drawings getting ideas down on paper. A lot of my output involves making scamp artwork. For production companies and collaborations with other creative agencies who need to generate visuals quickly.
Scamps are very similar to storyboards or mock-ups. They help frame an idea, giving an art director or advertiser something to see that can help 'proof' a good idea, pushing it to the next stage, or decide if they aren't quite working, to help find the right direction.
They're an important early part of the creative process where speed and clarity are more important than the quality of the image.
Note: I often work under NDA's (non-disclosure agreements). That means the work is not for public display, on websites or social media. Scamps are often only for private use and owned by the company they are created for. The examples on this page are from real projects, and I've been permitted to share them. Just in case you're production company looking for a scamps artist and are worried about privacy.
Scamp artwork examples
These examples are from various projects I've worked on with leading production houses around the UK. From TV adverts to product design, it's often about facilitation, taking other people's ideas and converting them into images without being precious.
As you'll see in these examples, even at the early stage colour can be introduced a little, which often helps align with branding when presenting to clients. I've worked under direction with an art director to help achieve their vision, and I can offer ideas too.
Scamps happen at the very beginning of the process, and can on occasion stressful when they are created alongside conversations - that can go in different directions, but they don't have to be.
I have a background in comic art and improv comedy, and studied sequential art and communication design as a student. Learning the shorthand for storytelling and attention-grabbing that comics use so often really helps when it comes to composing images. Scamps can get messy quickly, and less is often more when it comes to choosing images for a presentation.
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