Rendered

I just made this monstrosity in Photoshop. I'm pretty ashamed of it. It's hideous. I was just messing around with value painting and then overlaying that painting with color. Just an experiment. But it made me realize something interesting. Today, products designed for mass appeal are all marketed with rendered mascots and fonts. Cheap toy packages, cereal boxes, movie posters. All of the artwork is rendered to look quasi 3D.

Flat 2D design is the realm of high end snob products with the exception of website and professional sports team logos.

I don't know maybe the lowest common denominator likes their imaginary spokespeople and product names realistically lit.

I personally get a headache trying to navigate the cereal aisle. Too many highlights and drop shadows give me a migraine.