The concept for this project was to create a photorealistic clock in Illustrator. I specifically chose a clock that was fairly simple and challenged myself to use as few shapes as possible by working more strategically with gradients and blur.

As I sketched my reference image, I focused on the simplicity of what made up the effects. I noticed that there was a single highlight around the front face of the clock that was brighter on the left corner and decided that this could be accomplished with a gradient sandwiched between solid shapes. I noticed the series of circles that comprised most of the ring's shadows and shine. I also noticed that the knobs were similar and mostly consisted of a single gradient with lots of color changes. The shadows on the face were extremely soft which gave it some great depth.

My first draft came together quickly following my goal to use as simple of shapes and methods as possible. I carefully created a gradient for the gold, picking all of the variations I could find from the original image and applied it to the two segments of each of the knobs. 

I used a clipping mask for the ring to keep all of the varied colors within the right bounds and then duplicated several ring shapes that I was able to reshape with anchor points to fit the general profile of the ring in the reference image. 

The reflection of the knobs utilized the same gradient but different opacities for certain colors that blend into the plastic more. 

A radial gradient was used on the inside of the watch face for shadow, and the only other shadow was a heavily blurred replica of the hands and center piece (combined into one shape)

While the feedback I got was positive, it was also noted that there were some details and variation in the metal that would help it look even more realistic. The shine on the front corner as well was more dispersed than it was supposed to be. The clock was also missing any base or shadow below it.

For my final draft, I fine-tuned the gradient that I sandwiched between the front and back faces to make a more realist-looking highlight that looked accurate all the way around. I also added small details and variations to the ring and knobs.

On the base, I strayed slightly from the reference image because I wanted my clock to be more self-contained while the reference image's shadow especially spread outside of the image even.

I feel that the final project accomplished exactly what I set out for it to accomplish. the result is hard to distinguish from a photograph without very thorough inspection, yet it is made with a minimal amount of shapes. I feel that the fine details that were added increased its "realism" greatly while the extremely fine details that were strategically left out did not detract from the effect.