Been Busy Lately

I've been busy working on my first comic project so I haven't been able to draw much outside of that. I'm not sure how much I am allowed to say. I am stoked to be working on it. The subject matter is right up my alley.

I'm both penciling and inking the issue. I started inking with a pen as I usually do but it ran out of ink the night of my self imposed deadline. I switched to inking with a brush and fell in love with it. Lines created by brushes are so much more organic. It also saves time and money. You can get thick or thin lines without having to go back over them with a pen. And a bottle of ink lasts forever compared to a pen.

I'm expecting to learn a lot during this process. I'm hoping to learn how to work faster. The first two test pages I did took me nearly 25-30 hours to pencil and ink. Whew doggy! I've been given a nice chunk of time to finish these pages, but I am imposing a shorter deadline for myself. I want to spend an adequate amount of time and love on each page, but I would like to eventually be able to do a monthly comic and have time to work on other projects as well. I need to get back to my Fear Agent painting before it gets too late.

I still want to draw other things while I am working on this. It's good for keeping things fresh. I get to draw a bit during my break at the day job. I did this drawing of some bat werewolf creature thing at work the other day.

I better get back to the drawing board. One thing I will say in closing is that I LOVE drawing comics!! 10 hours of drawing is so much more fun than 5 hours at the day job. 8)

Keep on drawing

Here are a few things I drew tonight. After drawing my first ever official comic page. Once I get going it's hard to stop.


And here is what was left over after my day of drawing.

Process on Fear Agent painting

Here is the beginning of my Fear agent painting. I used a lightbox to transfer the original drawing to a new page and reworked some of the drawing, like the head and thinning his right leg a bit. This is the beginning of the under painting done in acrylic. This is to basically give me an idea of light and shadow and an overall idea of color placement. I am thinking about doing the final painting in oil which I haven't done in YEARS!!


I got my first official comic script today. WOOT! I am doing some test pages before it is official. So, I may not get back to this painting for a few days. I would like to finish it within a week or two at most so I can get it in to Remender before he makes the comic. I'm not sure how many issues are left. It's gonna be a sad day when Fear Agent is over.

Emerald City Adventures

I had a great time in Seattle this weekend at the Emerald City Comic Con. So many people there. It gets bigger and bigger every year. Next year it is growing to a three day event!! Pics are below!!

My main goal during this excursion was to get critiques on my art so I could improve, I always want to improve, and to see about finding some work at an independent publisher. The first thing I did was head to Artist Alley where all the artists set up shop. They sell original art, do sketches, talk about their experiences and their techniques and look over portfolios. This is one of the best ways to improve your skills. Learn form those that have worked on these techniques for years.

I talked to quite a few artists, some I have admired for years like Jason Pearson, Mark Texiera and Alex Maleev. I saw a ton of other artists that I love, but there was only so much time and so many people. I got great advice from them all. Most of them liked my storytelling techniques and my paintings, but I did get some great advice on how to change up my panels a bit, how to use silhouettes or focus on various body parts instead of always showing the entire figure or their heads every panel. Mostly they suggested I work a bit on my anatomy and proportions, but they liked what they saw. Pete Woods, who I met for the first time and was one of the nicest guys at the con, said my storytelling was spot on, but I could work a little more on the details of the buildings and the backgrounds.

I ended up not even showing my work to CB at Marvel this year. I felt as though I rushed through these pages. I didn't finish all 5 pages and I didn't spend nearly as much time on the last page or on the buildings. I also rushed my line work and shading. I'm kind of glad I didn't show my work to CB. He said to never show unfinished work. After talking to the other artists I am going to finish the last page and work on some of the things suggested then send them in.

Another thing I realized after looking around at other people's art is that I don't need to do so much texturing and shading. A lot of that is done in the colors. Some of my favorite artists do a ton of detailed shading and eventually I want to work that into my work, but for now while I am trying to break in I think it is more important to focus on good, solid storytelling. This will also help with speed.

I also got to talk to Rick Remender, the creator of Fear Agent. I showed him my drawing I did of Heath, the main character, and told him I was going to paint it. He told me that once I was done if I would send him a high rez copy he would put it in the back of one of his comics. This was probably the highlight of my trip. I freakin' LOVE Fear Agent!!

I got to see some old friends and others that I haven't seen in a long time. I got to see Sterling Gates who I haven't seen since he first broke in. Another great guy. We went to college together and spent many a class talking about comics. Now he is writing Supergirl and other titles for DC. It is so good to see someone you know getting to do the thing they love. You go, Sterling!!

I got to hang out with Liz and Scottie from Dark Horse. Liz is super nice and a great karaoke singer. 8) We went out to the Night Life and I met Chuck who has started up a new independent comic company, Creator's Edge. He has around 8 writers and only a few artists so I showed him my work the next day. He said he was interested and would send me a script next weekend. He has some great ideas. Woot!! It'll be nice to get some actual comic work. I am super stoked!!

I also talked to a few other publishers. Those that were looking for artists and checked out my portfolio showed some interest. I got to exchange cards and will be contacting them soon for prospects. One of them had a "Jack Burton Adventures" comic. Freakin' Jack Burton!! Big Trouble in Little China is one of the best cult movies ever!! I would LOVE to draw some Jack Burton!!

All in all it was a great experience and I made a ton of connections. It gets easier every year once you start learning how to approach people, how to respond to critiques and what to look for. When I approach anyone I try to shake hands, introduce myself and ask if they have time to check out my work. You have to get over the fan boy/celebrity feelings and get in there and start a conversation. Just go for it!! You aren't going to get anywhere in comics if you can't talk to people. When an artist or an editor gives you some advice always thank them for it. Don't try to justify what you did or tell them that you had thought of that as well. Even if you did think of what they said it will be perceived as not appreciating their advice. "Oh, I already thought of that..." Not good. Just thank them because everything they say has some bit of helpful advice. Even if it sometimes conflicts. One artist will tell you "This panel could use a little work" while another artist will tell you "This is a great panel. Try to do this more often!" Try to think of what direction you want your work to go. You can take all this information and use it to help you grow as an artist. And most importantly, Stay Positive!!

I didn't get nearly as many pics as I should have because I was too busy running around talking to artists and publishers. I missed the guy dressed as Slave Liea. That may be a good thing... (Laura Hudson got a pic!) I also didn't get to go to any of the panels. My train was late so I missed the Leonard Nimoy and Stan Lee panels. Curses!!! I tried counting the people in the line to get a picture with Leonard Nimoy. I lost track around 150. Each one was paying $65 for a picture. Dang! And autographs were also $65. Autographs for Stan were $45. I have to say I lost a little bit of respect for Nimoy and Stan. Seems as tho they were a couple of rich dudes exploiting their fans. But how can you not love Nimoy and Stan?!?!

I did get to play some Magic. There was a huge gaming section with Magic tournaments and D&D games going on. Dorks Unite!!

Pictures!!

This is the view of Seattle from the convention.

Lou Ferrigno!!
Death.
Black Widow
Nightwing
Supergirl
The evil rabbit dude from Donny Darko
Shadowcat
Poison Ivy and Catwoman. That lil boy was SO nervous. 8)
The Watchmen
Mojo Jojo, one of my faves. 8)
A damn sexy Robin with fishnets. Ha!
Stormtroopers as far as the eye can see!!
The hills in Seattle are intense!!
They also have actual alleys. I don't think I have ever seen an alley.
The seagulls were all over the place. I love the sounds of seagulls.
I love riding the train!! I was seated next to a family on the way down. We ended up playing card games and talking the entire way down. I had so much gun I forgot I was going to the convention. 8)
The train goes along the south edge of the Puget Sound. Makes the train ride more enjoyable. I love the water.

Can't wait til next year!!

Drawing so much I just wanna DRAW!!

I have been working my ass off getting ready for Emerald City. I am stating to do the shading. I usually go through and "spot blacks" which means I bring in the dark areas with basic ideas of composition involved. I start with basic forms, build the basic line work, then spot blacks, and then finally go through and add the finer details.

I've been drawing so much lately that even during my "down time" I still want to draw. So I whipped out these quick gesture drawings of Moon Knight in various poses. The upside of working this way is that you can add these poses to your mental image library. The more you just draw everything around you or work with various poses and details and such, the easier it will be to bring these things to your work when you have to bring them out of nowhere. This is why it is key to always be drawing, even if it is just gesture drawing or poses. It can all add a little something to your overall work. Just Keep Drawing!!!

Progress toward ECCC

Here are the two pages I started penciling today. I drew three panels in blue pencil and started the final pencils on these two pages today. It's a low quality camera pic. I will scan them in once I get done with the final pencils. I try to capture basic forms in blue pencil not worrying about shading or line quality. I then go over the basic line structure with simple thin lines, really quickly to capture the energy and motion. I then go back and do all the details and shading which is what I will be doing later tomorrow and all day Thursday and Friday.

I have spent over 30 hours in the last 4 days working on these suckers. On top of the day job. But it is worth it. I only say this because I am amazed at how many hours of work you can get in when you focus.

It is time to really get this ball rolling. I have decided that I am going to full out go for it this time around. Last year, after talking to CB at Marvel I focused on Marvel and didn't want to pursue any other comic publisher. This year??? I am going to EVERY comic publisher. I am going to also approach any other outlet for some illustration. I'm down with doing book covers or interior drawings as well. Anything in the art world. Art needs to be my life. I am ready.

Getting geared up for Emerald City

I finally finished my Hulk painting. I am pretty happy with how it turned out. Of course, like with every piece of art I do there are a few things I would still like to work on. At some point you just have to say "I Am Done!!" and move on. I will post some process pics when I have the time.

I am now working on my sequential pages. I have a week to do 5 pages. I finished the blue pencils of one page today, shown below, and am hoping to get most if not all of the blue pencils on a second page done today. I just made some more coffee and soon I will be sufficiently caffeinated!! I draw them out in blue pencil then go over them in a regular pencil so that I don't have to worry about smudges or erased lines showing up in regular pencil. When I scan them in I can take out the blue pencil and just leave the final pencils, making it look cleaner and sharper. I better get back at it. So much to do in such little time!!

Hulk Smash

Here's my finished Hulk piece. It isn't the best scan, but it does look pretty nice when printed out. I am taking it to Emerald City and showing it around. I would be completely stoked to paint Marvel covers, but I would be totally comfortable with getting a sci-fi or fantasy book cover gig. Or even DC or Dark Horse or Oni Press or some other comic book cover job. I can't wait to show my work around. Super stoked and Super nervous. 8)

More sketching out about

I went and saw a great local band and a friend of mine, The Greater Midwest, at Kelly's Olympian tonight. As usual while I was there I pulled out some paper and started doodling. This is what came out of it. Mostly faces, hairstyles and some poses. Also just drew some crazy shit. Draw Draw Draw!!!

More work on my Hulk painting

Here's a pretty crappy camera pic of where I am on my Hulk painting. I still got a few days work to do on it, but it is finally coming along. I'll say it again. I like acrylics so much more than watercolors. I still want to practice with some watercolors, but acrylics are so much more comfortable for me. Once I get done I will scan it in and get a much better copy. I'm glad I bought that 11" x 17" scanner. Makes getting high quality copies a ton easier.

I'm hoping to get this painting done and at least one more before the con. I think I am going to paint the Fear Agent drawing I did awhile back. That should be a hoot. Fear Agent is good pulp sci-fi fun. Rick Remender, the creator of Fear Agent and a fellow Portlander will be at the convention. I'm looking forward to showing him my work. I showed him the drawing on Twitter and he responded with "Two-Fisted Action indeed." I'm hoping he remembers it. He has pin ups in the back of his Fear Agent comics and I would love to get a piece in there. I do love the comic. Robots, aliens, time travel and whiskey??? Hell... Yeah!!!