Friday, November 29, 2013

haven't done any Bio comics in months.. sort of. Both of these were drawn quite awhile ago and abandoned. Dunno why. Found them in a sketch pad and decided to finish them. The first one is sort of a template for doing a Biography comic for other folks. Sort of. The second... NO idea what I was thinking. These things are supposed to be journals based on what I was thinking at the time. So the original thought is lost. Which is fine. I think it works pretty well as it is. Otherwise, I've only had time for quick sketches recently. I do want to do a Bio comic regarding mom's death, but it keeps getting larger in my head which stops me from doing it. Perhaps once the holidays are over I can get to it. Or something. For now, more sketches.

Monday, November 25, 2013

Another one of these, and a redraw at that. I think when I do finally come out with this comic, I will do posters like this for everyone. Did it for Fite, and it was kind of fun. Besides, advertising is usually my weakest point. Should be more aware of this kind of thing.

Sunday, November 24, 2013

So another in this style and though I've said it before, I think we have a winner. This is 'pinball style' because it was inspired by old pinball machine art of which I'm quite fond. I think it has the right blend of cartooniness and animation, still remains 'mine,' and is appealing. I lengthened torsos from the last version, made them a little less angular, removed some outlining in places like hair and belts. This one feels most 'right' of any of the styles I've chosen thus far. It is labor intensive, though; the outlines took a long while as they all have to be done by hand. I don't think inking them would work as it would look too organic, something I generally really like. In today's animation, though, the line work is obviously done in vectors, and I don't see a reason to hide this fact. I still love my ink but this comic needs a different approach. As for the sketching step, that comes relatively easily and since they're such simple shapes, they're easier to pose. So that's my store and I'm sticking to it... for now.

Saturday, November 23, 2013

Ok, some more of THIS stuff. Well, this is my first actual day off in nearly a month and all I felt like drawing was rabbits. And I'm -still- messing about with the Delve stuff. Why? Because I can do it better, I know it and I'm not satisfied. Eventually I will have to consider the designs done and move on and I understand that. To be fair, the focus of the project has changed and as such, I've had to switch things around to reflect that. What was going to be a quick and dirty D+D comic with rabbits turned into something "deeper" and more complex. There was a script and some pages started. Deep down, that didn't all feel right either and I knew I could draw better than that. So I pushed, pulled and tightened. Then I decided I wanted to try and make something more commercial in hopes of actually making some money off one of my comics for a change. Then I started watching more current cartoons and the style switched again and again. Eventually there will either BE a comic or there will be stacks and stacks of designs for the same characters which will prove, if nothing else, that I'm flexible when it comes to this kind of thing and might help in a portfolio, though I've pretty much given up on the animation industry as, let's face it, I'm too old for that game. So yah, Sharp AGAIN. I honestly feel that this version is more up to date and has more appeal than the last take on this style. I was very careful to do a greyscale test to make sure that the palette was balanced, something that's been off in the past. I've simplified as much as I can without losing character and haven't, I hope, lost myself in the process. Oh, and there's an ink drawing of the OTHER rabbit because I love my pen and it's good to stay flexible. So there.

Some more quick sketching as I haven't had time for anything else. Top is a continuation of yesterday's Blundt, the grizzled rabbit barbarian. Below is yet another version of Sharp as my mind flows back and forth on what I want out of a series I haven't even written yet. Ah, well.

Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Haven't really drawn anything in awhile. My mom passed away and I switched jobs at the same time which meant for a lot of travel and a lot of running around and really, honestly NO time for artwork at all. I'm still in training and will be next week as well, just in time for the holiday season to really get in swing. That's a life in retail, though I have hopes that this one will be better than the last. That being said, I still have this need to draw and no time. That will change after training. I should have more time than ever before to draw. Let's hope I make the best of it. These two quickies are made with a Radio 714 nib, the same model that Charles Schulz used when making Peanuts. They're long since gone, the company having gone out of business in the 60s. I found some on eBay and took a chance. I can totally see why Schulz liked them as they're far better than the current Speedball drawing nibs, smoother than crowquill. Well, I have three. I'll just have to make them last.

EDIT: here's a color version of the rabbit. Felt good to be able to do at least that.