(Figure 1) Brain Venous MCA Graft
(Figure 2) Head.mov
When did you first start using OsiriX?
I most likely started using Osirix in late 2006, but really only dabbling in it.
Who introduced you to it?
That would be fellow medical illustrator, Andrew Swift. Andrew and I have chatted back and forth via email showing sample projects we’re working on. Some of his Osirix samples simply blew me away. From there, I went to the Osirix web site, watched the tutorial videos, downloaded the software, joined the Osirix Yahoo Group and began tinkering with it during my off time.
Why did you choose to use OsiriX for this specific illustration?
Getting the right view to visualize specific anatomy that isn’t in the standard textbook view is my aim. Of course, when you go for a more difficult pose, you either a) have a prop; b) are a wizard at anatomy; c) have all the time in the world. Let’s face it, having one of those three is usually all you get. Osirix becomes a beneficial visualization aid to all three. While it isn’t the only tool to use, it’s a great assistant combined with an anatomical library at your fingertips, current knowledge and that of an expert to finesse the illustration. In the provided illustration (Figure 1) I wanted an anterolateral view of the head seen slightly from above to give the best view for a series of bypass graft scenarios. I could have used a model to pose for the head, then posed a brain and skull in a similar fashion, but I opted to see what Osirix could do for me. The downloaded “Head.mov” really helped in getting me started (Figure 2). I used a brain model positioned in a similar pose for the additional anatomy. DiComm data sets were also used to see the vascular anatomy.
What difficulties have you run into?
Everything was difficult initially. Truth be told, it still is. Every time I have a handle on Osirix, something new happens and I’m off to explore and tinker.
This app wasn’t made for illustrators, but for radiologists. Fortunately, our tribe has a medical mind and geek out on this kind of software for our needs and that of our clients. So, like any other app, I dive in, get dirty and see what happens. I feel very lucky to have a neuro radiologist contact in the area to work with from time to time. Being on the Osirix Yahoo Group has been a boon to knowing a few tricks from the radiology pros, but hands-on or remote training would be a plus to move my understanding from “I know enough to be dangerous” to “Go ahead, bring it on”.
What was your process of taking the OsiriX reference and creating your final illustration?
My process:
Generate pose via Osirix dataset movie and build off of that with plethora of anatomy books and visual resources. Sketched concept was second. Client approval was third. From there, the art was refined, scanned and built in Illustrator (head, skull and vascular anatomy), Painter (brain) and then the composite was created in Photoshop for the final render. This illustration is part of a larger project and served as a start of a visual library for Swedish Neuroscience Institute in Seattle. The additional illustrations comprised of normal anatomy and two STA-MCA bypass graft options.
David “red” Ehlert handles biomedical and editorial illustrations at Cognition Studio, an award winning company located in Seattle, WA. He’s also the staff certified medical illustrator for over ten years at UW Creative: a graphic design, illustration, photo and web team at the University of Washington. He’s taught at the Art Institute of Seattle as well as providing digital demos to the scientific illustrator class at the UW.
David specializes in story telling through tradigital means. Tradigital is the perfect harmony of traditional drawing and digital rendering. Clients include hospitals, biotech, medical device, medical legal, research facilities and ad agencies. He’s a member of the AMI, oddball on the AMI listserv, web committee member and is on the Board of Governors. David is a grad from the UIC Bvis program (class of ‘97). He’s married to Kristine Johnson, the design side of Cognition Studio and also a UIC BVis grad (class of ‘98).
Dave loves movie trivia, obscure music, word play, drawing from his head, playing games, adventure running, and major league soccer.
Well done, Red! Thanks!
True, OsiriX is a great way to get oblique views for illustration reference, and making a detailed QTVR is a valuable long-term asset for any medical illustrator.
While I made one in 1995, using a decent skull model and a scratch-built virtual QTVR camera set-up in SoftImage3D (this has come-in very handy ever since), being able to do this as a DICOM tool in OsiriX makes this available to EVERY anatomical artist
, MI- trained or otherwise. And it can still be edited/filtered.This is recommended as a great exercise for the new-comer to the software-=> you WILL use it, so make it with care.
Since any organ can be done as well, another useful suggestion is an arterial tree of frequently-visited regions.