Adobe Creative Cloud Spotlight: Roberto Hartasanchez

Contributor Spotlight: Roberto Hartasanchez

Roberto Hartasanchez is a vector artist and graphic designer who he started his career as a computer engineer. After getting his masters in conceptual design, Roberto successfully pivoted his career to be a full-time stock artist and freelance designer. His vintage-inspired embellishment and vector elements have gone on to become best sellers. We caught up with the Spanish artist to find out more about his success and the challenges he’s faced in the stock industry.

Adobe Stock: Can you tell us a little bit about your background and how you got into design?

Roberto Hartasanchez: I am an illustrator based in a city in the north of Spain. I was always a creative at heart, but I studied to be a software developer and did a masters in conceptual design. I worked as a computer programmer, and even had a stint as a kite designer (life takes many unexpected turns!), before I became a full time designer. Now I can finally call myself a real illustrator!

AS: Why did you decide to sell your work in the stock marketplace? 

RH: I originally worked with the now-extinct Macromedia. When it died and I had to change software to work, and I chose Adobe Illustrator. At first, stock was a hobby – I was learning and experimenting with Illustrator, and I wanted a place to sell these “experiments”. I still had a day job as a designer in an advertising agency. Over time and over various jobs, what started out as a hobby became a unique and full time job. I’ve been full-time for about 3 years now. I’m lucky to be able to work on what I want and not have anybody tell me what I have to do.

AS: What’s the advantage of having your work available on Adobe Stock? 

RH: As a freelancer, the main advantage is to have your portfolio online is not having to think about the commercial side. There are no customers to answer to – you upload what you think is going to sell well. You are your own boss.
Sometimes I’ve found clients through my Stock portfolio – or rather, they’ve found me. People contact me after seeing my stock vectors and want something more exclusive or customized. These are usually small projects, but I find them rewarding, and it lets me get out of my daily routine of stock artwork.
Another advantage is that when your work is online, it can make you money over and over again – even when you’re not working because you are sick or on vacation. There aren’t many other jobs out there like this!

AS: What are the challenges of being a stock vector artist? 

RH: There are many talented artists out there, so consistently uploading good work and maintaining high quality is vital. When I started contributing to Fotolia (part of the Adobe family) with a basic level of illustrations, but being in the same marketplaces as great artists pushes you to push yourself day after day and produce better and more elaborate products for the customers.

AS: Can you tell us the process you go through when creating your vector work?

RH: In the first phase I make simple sketches in pencil of how I want a design, like guiding lines and silhouettes of the basic form. I leave spaces for text and fill with basic curves as decoration. In the second phase I digitize and vectorize the main elements. Then I convert the basic curves into ornamental elements.

One of my time-saving tricks when it comes to decorating a design is to have a Library in Illustrator of your favorite elements, frames, banners, texts, and so on. That means stopping from time to time and extracting elements you may want to use for future designs. This way you can easily access them in your projects later on.

AS: Where do you find inspiration? 

RH: My niche is vintage and Baroque designs, so my images are strongly inspired by styles of the 19th Century.

See more intricate designs from Roberto on Adobe Stock.