The 7 P’s are my modular approach to concepting. I don’t always use it, but I teach the approach to my students and I use it for myself when I’m stuck on a design or if I want to make sure I have clarity on what I’m aiming at. I also find it helps me get more consistent results in my work. Mainly because it forces me to map out certain constraints which helps to focus my creativity.

The 7 P’s are:

1. Purpose (the main idea or reason for the picture)
2. Plot/Protagonist (story, person, place or thing…what you’re using to get the message across)
3. Proportions (realistic? stylized? large? small? etc.)
4. Pose (what is the ideal pose to convey the purpose?)
5. Personality (internal or hidden aspects of the protagonist that inform the idea)
6. Perspective (what is the vantage point of the scene)
7. Presentation (exploration of value and colours…focus on elements and principles of design…rendering style, 2d, 3d, etc.)