NUDGE

2012-01-12T20:02:00.000-08:00

I've been steady adding content and plugging away at HITT, so I apologize for the lack of content to the blog. However, I did do a bit of goofing tonight. Here's me as an 80 action hero. I actually don't have a scar on my cheek..heh. I grabbed a frame from a film for reference. Can you guess the film? A hint would be the earrings I put in my ear.

Happy Holidays!

2011-12-06T10:41:00.001-08:00

Shutterfly is a great site for making personalized Christmas cards. I made one last year, but decided to spend a bit more time on it this year. Anyway, if you’ve happened by the blog, this card is for you!

The dreaded redo

2011-11-17T08:52:00.001-08:00

Recently, I've started to illustrate in a more referenced and tighter style than that of the first several pages. Also, I'm repetitively using one filter technique in Photoshop that I'm really happy with. This wasn't discovered in those earlier pages. So - as much as I hate to do it - I have to revisit the first 6 pages and either redrawn them completely or somehow involve the newly discovered techniques. Basically, there is a lot of effort being put in the grey-scaling stage of the process.

More color studies for HITT

2011-11-17T08:51:00.005-08:00

I really like the textures and randomness of this style of coloring. This may be a bit muddled, but I'm on the right track...and it sure don't look "comic booky".

A nod to SWEETS

2011-11-17T08:51:00.003-08:00

I’m well on record as being a huge fan of Kody Chamberlain and attribute this very production blog to his SWEETS production blog, which I urge everyone to follow. I’ve also garnered huge influence from his art style. His loose, gestural images as well as his skilled integration of digital effects really speak to me.

Until SWEETS, his writing style was unknown to me. And, honestly, I’m still not sure I’d know it. Knowing someone’s work based on their writing seems more difficult to me that just “looking” at rendered art and recognizing who did it – but I suppose it can be done. That being said, Kody’s book is bound to hold merit by the simple fact that he wrote the dialogue that his “drawings” will be portraying. As the hand that arranged the shots, he knew when the illustrations were successful. The vision of many writers suffers in writer/artist collaborations. Perhaps the artist doesn’t fully comprehend or understand what the writer is trying to say. Maybe the artist doesn’t get the subtleties. When the writer and the artist are the same, it’s like the creator’s vision is being mainlined. It’s pure and the storytelling will be there.

One of the things Kody Chamberlain urged the readers of his book, SWEETS, to do was to read it again. I am and in doing so discovered things I initially missed or glossed over. The experience makes the book richer, even though you already know the ending. In the second reading of this first chapter, I recall initially having a difficult time, especially at the chapter’s end. There is a lot of information that comes at you and you’d best be paying attention. On the second reading, things are really clicking. This is definitely a book that requires two readings. And that’s a good thing.

Well, now I’m off for chapter two (and I’m really excited about it).

HITT tracks

2011-11-17T08:51:00.001-08:00

In efforts to provide the proper tone to HITT, and get you out of that gritty, “hard case” noir malaise that so many private eye tales are told, I’ll link some music. This is HITT. This is HITT's world.

The first thing you learn about HITT is that he’s funky – and the first thing you learn about funk is that it’s all attitude.

...sallying forth and what not

2011-11-17T08:50:00.003-08:00

In reviewing this production blog, I noticed the lack of content. Well, there is only so much I can provide - so, largely, you'll have to wait for the finished product. However, I've assembled you some pieces of the book that I've felt the call to twitpic - which, sadly, has gotten more attention than this blog. I'll do better.

The dreaded style change

2011-11-17T08:50:00.001-08:00

I've never heard other artist talk about it...maybe because they're such professionals that it's not an issue or they've drawn for so long that their style is established, however, I've recently matured to a newer art style.

Faux Covers are fun

2011-11-17T08:49:00.003-08:00

I had a great story idea for Hitt this weekend and wanted to play around a bit with a faux cover and title. During and at the end of the exercise, I decided most of my images (especially cover images) of Hitt should show him being a bit more playful or quirky - and not so morose. Additionally, I've decided I may change the title to something a bit closer to the insurance and claim investigative world. Specifically, the title should contain buzz words like "claimant", "surveillance", "adjuster", "retainer", or "discoverable". I don't know - we'll see.

Progress

2011-11-17T08:49:00.001-08:00

Alright. I've been perusing some of the other production blogs and creation blogs and really felt bad for not posting anything in a while. The good news is that my lack of contribution to my this blog has no bearing on my creation of pages in the book. I've been able to finish several pages at an acceptable clip and I'm absolutely moving forward.

I've even given Hitt a soundtrack of sorts. Below is one of the inspiring tunes I listen to when I wrote him and now as I illustrate his story. If you get to the album, check out Lagos City - great grooves. I'd like to fashion Hitt as a funky noir.

Yeah.

Asus EP121

2011-11-17T08:48:00.003-08:00

So it has come and I'm really pleased. Setting the device up is really simple and you can go anywhere with it. I'm looking forward to actually being able to illustrating in a coffee shop or cafe. The new baby has arrived, too. So now I hope to get back to Hitt and churning out some pages. Stay tuned.

More color experiments

2011-11-17T08:48:00.001-08:00

So I've sold the Cintiq and am now waiting for the new hotness, which is the ASUS EP121. This has put a month long monkey wrench in the production of my project, but I hope to have the new tablet PC by next week. I've made the change for mobility's sake. Even though I loved it, the Cintiq wasn't the mobile studio that I thought it would be and, hopefully, an art student in Colorado will garner some good use with it. She’s already told me she loves it.

To keep a steady progression, I did break out the old Wacom tablet at do some more coloring experiments. I think I like how this page has shaped up and it's not too much work to do it. It involves laying in textures and putting in colored layers in various modes to get a specific look with the color flats. The flat colors I chose weren’t just for wanding, but actual colors of the items on the page. I also played down the zipatone, which I'll admit that I got a bit crazy with in prior projects. I did use the zipatone here to render out tone a bit more. I simply took my gray-scales layer, zipatoned them, and then erased back through so I’ll have the gray-scales on one layer and the zipatone on another. The end result is me finding a quick method that I'll be doing over and over again for the series.

-bxtn

Steady Steppin'

2011-11-17T08:47:00.003-08:00

Just a quick update with the goings on! I’ve made some great page advancements and have a finish date set around spring 2012. I’ve even started writing the next 3 issue chapter, though I’d like there to be a one issue event to tie things together. Anyway, thanks for stopping by – I’ll keep trying to post to keep the blog somewhat fresh.

Eye Flow

2011-11-17T08:47:00.001-08:00

So here is the finished page with the flow path. I'm really eager to color all the pages, but am waiting till I finish the book. Some good color holds will help with the foreground and background elements.

Eye Flow

2011-11-17T08:46:00.005-08:00

If you perused my art blog (this is the “Hitt production blog” if you don’t know where you are) then you know I’m particularly attentive to trying to make my comic page flow and “point” to were I want your eye to go. I’m almost finished with this page and I thought it would be a good opportunity to show how it’s already starting to direct the observer’s eye. We start at the “Angel’s” ponytail and go right up the male angel’s wing, which point’s to…well…I’m trying to create a very sexy and devious vibe here. Anyway, the “devil’s” wing and the lines of the bar take us to the second panel.

In the final panel, our devil, having had just successfully enticed the angel to leave the heaven and hell party, presses the down button on the elevator. A bit of symbolism here combine with the flow. I hope its working and I’ll post the finished page.

The page layouts is a technique I picked up from Cully Hamner – other guys may do it also, but I haven't seen it anywhere else. The first panel brings you in and the last panel dumps you out.

Bokeh

2011-11-17T08:46:00.001-08:00

I absolutely love the way it looks. Bokeh is that blur that you see when points of light are outside your depths of field or just out of focus. The aesthetic, to me, is beautiful and I want to use it one way or another in the story. Last month, I threw some Bokeh on a page that I was working on and I absolutely loved it. Though, I’ll likely fix some areas with the clone stamp brush, it looks pretty interesting here. I also did a posterize edges filter on my grey tone layer and I like the edge it gave….hmmmmm.

A bit on the writing process

2011-11-17T08:45:00.001-08:00

Below is the script for chapter one. Each page represents a “page” in the comic so that I can “visualize” the story length and each scene is a different color. Most of the scenes I write (and lets be honest – the writing will be the strength of the project and the art will be its vehicle) are typed quickly and only when I’m in the mood. I never try and force the writing.

I write the scenes first and then spend time connecting and altering those scenes so that the story moves forward and has an advancing and resolving appeal. During this process I’ll have a mind to keep certain things shrouded in mystery, develop a character a bit more, or explain something.

Hitt Lives

2011-11-17T08:44:00.005-08:00

Completely scripted, Hitt’s story will be delivered in three 22+ page comics. The comic, however, may become chapters to be delivered online. I’ve been reading the tealeaves a bit and I’d like to take part in the digital revolution. The problem, however, is my ego wants to see this project on book shelves. I don’t know…I’ve got time to decide.

So anyway…now that the book is scripted, I can start the process of nailing down the dialog. Each bit of dialog is an opportunity to advance the story, flesh out the characters, and provide appealing beats. So that’s where we’re at now. We’re nailing down the dialog on the finished script.

Who is Randall Hitt?

2011-11-17T08:44:00.003-08:00

For lack of an accessible term, let’s call the long established fictional portrayal and attitude of private investigators – PI noir. Thanks to books, movies and TV shows, PIs are regarded as persons who are cleverer than their situation. In a nutshell, that is who Hitt wants to be – that’s pretty much who he needs to be. In his younger more self-conscious days, Hitt romanticized private investigation because it gave him an “above the fray” role in his mind. Maybe he needed that frame of mind to armor his small town beginnings. After all, how can a bumpkin be relevant to the worldly wise moneyed? He doesn’t fit the bill as a PI Noir protagonist. That’s mainly because in real life, this fictional genre can only hope to be a state of mind – at best. After all, day to day life isn’t very noir-like.

Over time, Hitt’s attitude, a mental mechanism to comfortably cope with pretty girls and awkward social settings, became who Hitt is. And by the time he was 30 and had successfully operated his own real investigative service, Hitt was the real deal to a world that thinks PIs are cleverer than their situation.

Or so he thinks.

Illustration Style

2011-11-17T08:44:00.001-08:00

II’ve been doodling all my life. In 2006 I purchased a Wacom tablet and started to explore digital doodling. Around the same time, I gave serious consideration to putting a comic together. Initially, everything I drew really looked – I don’t know…comic booky. I read books and tutorials where the standard was pencil to inks then inks to bright colors. As much as I love comics, I really don’t like the “voice” that traditional comic art speaks with. And that is the reason I wandered into a technique that many other comic creators do really well. I love using photos and heavy reference. I won’t lie; it does make some aspects of illustrating easier – but not all. Also, good photo referencing creates an aesthetic that critics won’t admit to or ignore completely. If you can pull it off, photo referencing gives your art specificity, consistency, and authenticity. When telling a story, the author may need something to be particular and identifiable. Speaking for myself, you don’t really want to see an interpretation born from what I think that “something” looks like. It may be off and you won’t recognize it. Everyone knows that to successful communication with images relies on recognition. But there are notions and information “communicated” in the detail – detail that photo reference provides.

The illustration below is actually my first character study of Hitt’s girlfriend. She’s based on my wife, Angela – plus sleeve tattoos and dreads. I used about five different references here. Hopefully, my ability to draw marries and hides parts of a photograph that I used only as a guide with correct anatomy. Listen, I can work out anatomy like any other decent artist – I just don’t have the time. Besides, looking at specific postures and poses bump the inspiration.

My art today is so much looser and grittier that when I started. The coloring technique is loose, too. If the artist is a computer and the finished art is the internet, then the technique that I’ve started is a super-fast connection. For me, methodically rendering anything would be dial-up. In a world where art lives in the moment – it has to be done fast. And let’s not forget that I operate a business that’s not drawing for a living. For me to take part in this, again, it has to be fast.

In the future, once the pages are getting churned out, I’ll post my process.

Why a book about a private investigator in Atlanta?

2011-11-17T08:43:00.001-08:00

Well, I am one…in Atlanta no less – and research is the key to making a story ring true. The more you know about something, the easier it is to write from it. I’ve always noticed people’s fascination with my job and my intent is to craft a story around the day to day of it. John Grisham’s been doing it for years!

I also enjoy how versatile the private investigators archetype can be. One of my favorite movies is the Zero Effect with Bill Pullman. I really enjoyed their portrayal of such a classic character model as the private eye. My intent with Hitt is to make the PI model very day-to-day, grounded, and unadorned. The movie, “Gone Baby Gone” pulled that off pretty well. So here we go – let’s get started.

Below is some art that will reflect what I believe the interior art will look like. I’m a fan of monochromatic color schemes. Not only that, I want to be able to create this fast. Not inattentively fast, but assembly-line fast.

What is November the 17??

2011-11-17T08:42:00.000-08:00

It's the great Move Day!! I'm moving the contents of my production blog to here so folks won't have to click around. Ya know.

Who is Jake Ellis?

2011-10-04T12:39:00.001-07:00

Some fan art for a really good book. Go check it out.

Everyone loves Skottie!

2011-09-18T13:20:00.000-07:00

Skottie Young! One of the coolest and most giving guys working in comics. I urge everyone to check out his online presence - though I guarantee most of you already have!

Faux Covers are fun

2011-09-12T07:43:00.000-07:00

Spidey's Rogues

2011-08-03T13:03:00.000-07:00

Took a break from the other project to do some classic superhero stuff. It's amazing how many of Spidey's Rogues are green.

More Queen & Country

2011-07-08T04:34:00.000-07:00

Here's my version of a character roster sheet you see at the start of each book. It's always fun to see the varying artists' take on the characters. I can't tell you how much fun it was to do this.

I know Queen & Country...

2011-06-28T16:53:00.000-07:00

Here is two quickie pieces I did. It's one of the absolute best series in comics.

EP121 is here

2011-06-25T07:19:00.000-07:00

Got a chance to tweak and dial in my Asus EP121. Here is the fruit of my labors. I had to go and download the pressure sensitivity drivers from Wacom to get it to work right. Without that, you're drawing with dead lines.

No one likes dead lines.

Blob

2011-02-25T07:18:00.000-08:00

Another warm up done.

Where I'm at...

2011-02-21T14:08:00.000-08:00

This is what I'm doing and where I'm doing it. http://hittcomic.blogspot.com/

I'll continue to keep this blog alive with warm up pieces or stuff to break the monotony of working alone on a project. However, please stop by my production blog for my comic, Hitt.

Sam Guthrie

2011-02-20T20:16:00.001-08:00

I don't know why I'm all about the Muties lately.

Hank McCoy

2011-02-20T19:02:00.000-08:00

Scott "Slim" Summers

2011-02-20T07:19:00.000-08:00

Loosening up with Cyclops.

Smokey and the Bandit

2010-12-26T17:29:00.001-08:00

David Lopan (Big Trouble in Little China)

2010-12-17T19:51:00.000-08:00

Playing Pretend

2010-12-12T21:44:00.000-08:00

So I’m thinking about doing a short crime fiction series. Born out of images and fleeting elements I’ve tied down here. Daryl Hitt is a private eye.

Master/Blaster

2010-11-18T21:44:00.000-08:00

Who Run Bartertown?

Keyser Söze/Verbal Kent

2010-11-17T10:25:00.001-08:00

I'm doing some movie bad guy pieces for some friends. Here's the first.

Progress

2010-11-05T16:16:00.000-07:00

Progress (edits)

2010-09-30T14:17:00.000-07:00

Getting closer to finishing an issue and I wanted to do some color edits, add SFX, and general tweaking. Since I posted these pages, I’ll show the changes. The only thing that is still up in the air is the lettering and word balloons. I’ve read so much indicating that if you letter without Illustrator you’re an a-hole, that I’m still not sure if I need to buy it or not. My main concern is that I don’t want things to start separating when they go to print.

CAN YOU HEAR ME, BRONZE!!!

2010-09-09T20:18:00.000-07:00

I watched Mad Max again the other night and decided to do a Mad Max piece. I may color it later. This is Mad Max era not that lamo Road Warrior...well...The Road Warrior has its place.

Thanks for stopping by.

2010-06-23T05:59:00.000-07:00

Here is the direction I’m heading regarding colors. I like the indistinct and loose grunge style coloring technique that is heavy on textures. All in all, this is a pretty fast method and I really like the look of it. I'll tie down the lettering later.

Another Character Ref...

2010-05-01T21:32:00.000-07:00

Got some of his scenes coming up and I need to get to know him a bit...

Hustle and Flow

2010-03-25T07:15:00.000-07:00

Here is what I saw in efforts to get your eye from one panel to the next. Hope it works.

Progress

2010-03-25T06:49:00.000-07:00

This page has been done along with several pages following. This one is kinda complete in its narrative-ness so I thought I post. But no more pages for awhile - got to save it, right? Maybe I'll repost when I color them down the road.

Progress

2010-03-22T09:32:00.000-07:00

I love color opposites and arranging them together. Here is something I did a couple of weeks back.

Progress

2010-03-13T09:09:00.000-08:00

Once colored, this page should really come alive. I poured over the work of lots of illustrators to see how they tackled mist and fog. I finally decided it was best not to draw it at all.

Progress

2010-03-03T19:53:00.000-08:00

So I've changed a bit of things in panel 3 due to wonkiness. I'll color the page and add font fx/sound fx when I've finished with all the pages of the scene.

Progress

2010-02-27T22:59:00.000-08:00

Here is as far as I got on revising this page today. If I can steal away, I may finish in the morn.

Bell

2010-02-24T16:38:00.000-08:00

Here is a character based on a good friend of mine. Though Jonny isn’t a gay Satanist with a panache for murder, Mr. Bell is. A lot of experimenting going on here – I hope it works.

All New Flavor!!

2010-02-15T15:36:00.000-08:00

Months ago, I’ve come to a realization regarding the book I’m writing and the accompanying illustrations. I’d peruse my script with its serious and real-world affectations and look over pages, test pages, character designs, and color tests (which I didn’t want to do) and I came to a sobering realization – the art don’t match the story so much. Also, the method was too damn slow – I mean really slow. My images failed to get the message out and I felt I was suffering from petrified, static illustrations. I’d bury my head in the sand regarding the “truth” of how long the project would take to complete given my snail’s pace.

So I started to experiment. I’ve come to see that looser, less exacting line-work offered images that spoke activity to me. The freer renderings divorced me from the minutia of backgrounds and objects that was not the focus of a piece or panel anyway. I’ve learned that my writing and illustrations are born of quick emergent inspirations that slow deliberating art will never adequately capture. This was a significant discovery.

I poured over artists like Jason Shawn Alexander, Kody Chamberlain, Matthew Southworth, Brett Weldele, and the highly popular, Guy Davis. These guys showed me that loose illustrations could not only carry an amazing story – complete with all the subtleties, significance and settings you’d require, but they could be done considerably quicker. Also, if I need the assistance of a photo - so be it. I'm not trying to set the world ablaze as some big shot illustrator, but I am trying to arrange "images" that will tell you a story. Below are two pages of the same scene. The latter is my renewed style - much better. Much better flow, too.

It was not easy to accept that you don’t have to labor so on a piece. Think of what you have to say and how much you’re saying. I’m happy to say that my new, more forgiving style has given me a platform to move forward in my project. I’ve completed a huge body of pages for the book and am moving at a confident pace. I’m tons happier with my illustrations and ironically feel that they “look” more real that the prior arduous efforts.

This is fun.

Using Camcorders to get poses

2009-11-08T18:52:00.000-08:00

I've read that many illustrators use a shot of themselves to get a pose right. In my day job, I use several video capture programs. As such, I've found that grabbing frames or stills from a video feed allows you to get multiple shots to pick from. In the reference shots below, I placed a camcorder on a tripod at the top of the stairs. The video is only about 40 seconds long. I just plugged it in the computer and grabbed what I thought would look right in the scene. Fast and easy.

Keeping the same Bake

2009-11-08T11:39:00.001-08:00

I don't know what pros do, but anytime I illustrate my character's bake (or face), I copy it on an id page for the character. I guess I'll do the same for the body, too. When I digitally draw him, I’ll open the arrangement of faces and draw the new face in the panel I’m working. It’s pretty handy.

2009-10-14T06:05:00.000-07:00

Wow, I really can’t give Freddie Williams II enough props for authoring the latest installment to “DC’s Guide to” books. As with many digital illustrators, I soaked up all the publications for creating sequential art digitally. One has to take a tip from here and grab and technique from there – it’s all pretty time consuming, slowing up the learning process and thus – the illustrating. Freddie Williams’s book, The DC Guide to Digitally Drawing Comics, is specific to comic pages and shows you how to use the computer to do the things we know it can do. That’s always been my problem – I know the computer can do something, I just don’t know how to do it. One of Williams’ techniques that were featured in the book is a tool for getting perspectives right. This was invaluable to me. I actually thought I would be limited to spotting my perspectives on each illustration (that would suck) because I could not figure out a way to get the guides right – and believe me, I know how to create and use the fundamental 1 point, 2 point, 3 point perspective guides. For me, the book has addressed problems that I’d face, even before I knew I run into that problem – like saving, storing and formats for colorists.

I have to say that I haven’t been confused with the book much at all. Sure, you have to have a great working knowledge of Photoshop, but many other “How to” books lay out long descriptive expositions on the basics. Other books also have been overly dense and do not seem to illustrate the uses of the techniques they reference. Freddie Williams’ book does. It’s short, to the point, and in and out with the application.

If you’re like me, then you’ll probably use a mixture of the methods you’ve discovered on your own with Williams’ tips. You may incorporate various art programs or have established a different way to conduct a similar method. Either way, the book is way worth getting. It’s the most relevant book I’ve found.

Kirby's influence is everywhere

2009-09-16T11:18:00.000-07:00

I spotted this ice cream van as I was heading home from work. Amazing I tell you.

Archangel and Iceman

2009-07-20T22:01:00.000-07:00

Beast and Cyclops (no blue fur)

2009-07-13T19:56:00.001-07:00

youwantsomemore,wellheresomemore

2009-05-23T10:53:00.000-07:00

A bit of action

2009-05-16T21:29:00.000-07:00

How about a fire fight on the streets of Morocco.

Something...

2009-04-06T19:46:00.000-07:00

Here is a page I've almost completed. I'm not putting my newbie coloring hands on it either. Leave that for the pros.

The Thing

2009-01-25T15:19:00.000-08:00

ME

2009-01-25T15:18:00.000-08:00

Doctor Bong

2009-01-25T15:16:00.000-08:00

GRODD

2008-12-22T08:36:00.000-08:00

Silver Centurion Iron Man

2008-12-20T08:21:00.001-08:00

Abe Sapien

2008-12-18T18:19:00.000-08:00

The Rogues

2008-10-13T13:59:00.000-07:00

GL Corps

2008-09-27T17:33:00.001-07:00

Booster Gold

2008-09-25T20:04:00.000-07:00

I took a break from the pages and storytelling for something a bit more fun. I know I really should be updating my art posts more and maybe I will.

Thumbnails

2008-09-18T14:38:00.000-07:00

Here's an example of how I thumbnail my comic. I've learned thumbing is pretty important for pacing and making sure the story and art mesh well. I make a panel design for its own layer in Painter. This helps me keep everything center. In the beginning, each panel actually has its own layer, too. This ensures that the damn computer crashes an adequate number of times.

Orang Utan Studios

2008-09-16T13:57:00.000-07:00

I did some character designs for a Peter Rogers over a Orang Utan Studios. I read some of Peter's script and I really hope this book pans out because it sounds really interesting. I wish I could've illustrated the book, but time wouldn't allow.

Chupacabra/Yeti Hybrid sighting

2008-06-03T14:38:00.000-07:00

We're all scared around here.

Different Eyes

2008-03-20T18:12:00.000-07:00

There is something about going back and looking at one's own illustrations months to years later. It is an ugly side to the wonderful event of growing and gaining experience as you engage in your own art. It’s what you leave behind – your naïveté.

The problem is see is when you illustrating a book. What happens when you advance way past where you were when you began illustrating the book?

What a pain.

Anyway, here are some studies. It’s all I’m showing right now. Heh.

GL Corps

2008-01-31T20:48:00.000-08:00

...well at least a few of them anyway. I love big-eared Guy.

Recent stuff

2008-01-24T20:56:00.001-08:00

I'm not a huge fan of coloring - the learning curve is brutal.

Noel the Illustator

2008-01-13T06:26:00.000-08:00

I know a kid who is way cool. This kid loves to draw and has a real appreciation for art. He even came up with his own character - the Illustrator. His dad's into comics, so he gets it honest.

Anyway, here he is.

2008-01-02T16:33:00.000-08:00

The Atom

2007-12-30T23:10:00.001-08:00

2007-12-28T20:50:00.000-08:00

Color Holds

2007-12-25T18:48:00.000-08:00

I'm new to this technique. I hope I pulled it off okay. I like to keep my greys and they may have gotten in the way with the tat. This guys has been such a joy to write and draw. Why is that with mean people?

Man of 1000 podcasts

2007-12-15T14:58:00.000-08:00

I did a headshot of the sweet old David Price. A good buddy of mine.

Here

Scalped

2007-11-04T16:25:00.000-08:00

Written by Jason Aaron and illustrated by R.M. Guera. This is going down as a must read from me. Guera's figures and faces are great actors for Aaron's characters. Bad Horse and Carol half done here. As you can see, I use the eraser tool as much as the pencil tool to get the right line.

Movement

2007-10-28T13:34:00.000-07:00

Tried using different pencils in Painter. I seem most happy with the 2B pencil, but the sketch pencil offers a good line as well. Tried using a real pencil, too.

Screw that.

More sketches

2007-10-21T05:22:00.000-07:00

Aye, more sketches.

Trapped Creativity

2007-10-19T17:14:00.000-07:00

Haven't been able to draw anything for a while cause work as been nutso. I got a chance to at least get a sketch out. Its probably best that I do some figures without finishing them anywho.

Headshots

2007-10-14T06:38:00.000-07:00

I found these on my other computer. These were really fun to do and I gave my self a timelimit on them.

B.P.R.D. Colors

2007-10-12T13:49:00.000-07:00

I finally got around to coloring this.

Motorbike designs

2007-09-22T06:44:00.001-07:00

One of the characters in my book will utilize a bike in several scenes. Now I just have to design one for him. I want the bike to be futuristic without borrowing to heavily on all the really cool designs for "futuristic bikes", though I really want a Tron-like wheel design. Right now, some of the sketches are looking a bit to "slow". Still hammering...

Shark-Man fan page

2007-09-11T19:30:00.000-07:00

Here's a fan page I did to get some practice. Everyone needs to check out Thrill House's great comic, Shark-Man.

Okay I lied...

2007-09-11T06:37:00.000-07:00

Shark-Man will be next. Here is a character of mine that I'm trying different coloring techniques with. I'd be nothing without tutorials when it comes to Photoshop and Painter.

Sketching out a figure

2007-08-28T14:57:00.000-07:00

Working on a fancintric Shark-Man page tonight. Here is what it looks like when I begin to flesh out a figure. The Mechanical pencil and the 2H pencil are the tools of choice. As I draw, I’ll vary the size of the mark as needed. This works now until something better comes along. Next art you’ll see here will be the finished “inked” Shark-Man page.

The Beatles...sexy?

2007-08-27T19:09:00.000-07:00

Music. Ah, the octane for the soul. If you like the sexy sneer side of things, I’d go for QOTSA. Josh Homme has a way of selling a darker side of sexy to the masses. I got my wife into the Queens long ago and now she’s a true acolyte. Check out Mondo Generator and EODM for more goodness.

We went to see Def Leppard the other night (leave me alone) and I had a great discussion with a friend about who was the better band, The Beatles or The Rolling Stones. Now its folly to argue something like this with anyone, though I brought up the fact that The Beatles failed to be “sexy” whereas the Rolling Stones had sexiness wafting off of them. My friend brought up, “Why Don’t We Do It In The Road” and I graciously accepted the pebble of a point for The Beatles. But, honestly, I really don’t think the Beatles sold sexy.

Hmmm…no.

Keep that art moving!

2007-08-27T13:12:00.000-07:00

I’ve noticed that the more I lock down a line, committing to it by giving it an inked look or making it darker, then the less fluid it becomes. Anyway, more art. Here is a good friend of mine and his son. I did this for them on Father's Day.

Backpacking

2007-08-27T08:39:00.000-07:00

My wife and I love to go backpacking. The Appalachian Trail isn’t too far away and we go there often. Recently we visited Cumberland Island on the Georgia Coast. They have horses that roam wild (scared me to death in the middle of the night) and a rifunkulous amount of armadillos. They are literally everywhere. The place was beautiful and you can kayak in, which is what we did. I'd urge everybody to get outside for the love of Pete.

Some pics.

B.P.R.D.

2007-08-27T08:21:00.000-07:00

Mignola's books are among my favorite. I’m planning to do some pages (complete with panels and pacing) some independent books to get some experience in page layouts. Here is one of BPRD around the Black Flame trade. I wanted to capture the dynamic between Roger, Diamio and Liz.

Hope you like.

Use of References

2007-08-27T08:13:00.001-07:00

Sometimes to get a particular pose right, I'll look at a picture. Here is an earlier sketch of the Red Hood and me prior to coffee. Great character by the way.

earlier sketches

2007-08-27T07:58:00.000-07:00

Just to keep the art going, here are some older sketches from earlier experiences with the ditigal medium.

Bon appetit.

The Blob

Jonah Hex

Daredevil

Zatanna

Art

2007-08-26T18:45:00.000-07:00

Here I am fleshing out two characters. So you know, I travel with my business a bit and I like to engage in the wonderful world of art in spare time. So the tackle of the typical draftsman such as numerous pencils, pens, canvases, drawing boards, etc are really not conducive to my lifestyle. I’m perfectly content with the challenges of Photoshop and Painter. I have an Intuos 3 that I do everything on. It’s great because I can check in a hotel and quickly set up my laptop with the drawing tablet. No bubbles - no troubles.

Ugli Fruit

2007-08-26T18:17:00.000-07:00

I’m always amazed at how a casual pass by the fruit section of the local grocery store usually reveals some exotic fruit that I’ve never seen, let alone, heard talk of. Today I beheld an ugli fruit. They looked like severed, malformed, rotting baby heads. Don't be fooled by that courtly picture over there.