I was really unhappy with the way this was coming out once I started to add color, but with some help from the GutterZombies I’ve gotten it to a state that is at least satisfactory. I’m just happy to be finished.

As part of our “professional checklist” of things we need to have before/when we graduate I finally made up a business card. It’s pretty simple, and it follows from the theme of the website to keep my representation of myself consistent. Front and back:

The front will have a matte finish and the back should be upside down (you flip it vertically to orient it correctly). Ordered from nextdayflyers.com, recommended by one of my teachers. I’ll probably post pictures when I get them in.

Playing around with Brushes some more with my finger:

Also: My stylus came! It was a little tough to get used to because it needs to be almost perpendicular the whole time, but as you can see, it’s a vast improvement over my index finger:

I’m so friggin’ pumped for portable digital sketchbook painting. SNOOCH TO THE NOOCH.

A friend of mine had an iPhone, but after having it for a while decided he missed haivng a real keypad and got something different (I think he went with a Blackberry). Anyway, out of what must have been sheer insanity he graced me with his old iPhone! I’m on Verizon so for now I can’t talk on it, making it pretty much an iPod touch, but hey, that’s cool with me.

I was aware of a couple digital painting apps for it via some of the artist’s I follow, and having a portable, digital mini-canvas is just way to freakin’ awesome to pass up. I’ve settled on the Brushes app, and I messed around with it at the laundromat yesterday:

It’s got all kinds of rad features. You can sync it up to your computer wirelessly through the browser and using a separate program for your mac you can export .mov files of the painting process as well as really hi-res images. I have to say though, painting with my index finger is a huge pain in the ass. I sent off for a cheap stylus, so hopefully that’ll get here soon and I can really go to town.

Other noteworthy apps I’ve acquired: Pret-a-Yoga and YogaTrainer (customizable voice-guided routines!), Docs (PDF reader for all my pirated eBooks!), Sega Gensis emulator (SONIC ON IPHONE!), and VeganXpress (informs you of vegan options at popular restaraunts!)

Finished the boxing pin-up of Doug Baron’s Sugar Ray Finhead.

For Sequential Art class, taught by Joe Kubert, we had to script and pencil a 3 page story. We then trade off with a partner and do their inks and colors. I wanted to do something with architecture and cityscapes because I’ve been drawing mountains, forests, and barbarians all year (not that that’s a bad thing, I just need to show that I can do more than just that). So I wrote a 3 page parkour chase scene. Really basic plot, but it’s visually fun and it’s about the right amount of story for 3 pages.

PAGE ONE

1. Jack and Tracey, dressed in athletic attire, are lounging on the edge of a rooftop. We see the city in the background. It is mid-day and all is calm. Tracey is looking at Jack mischievously out of the corner of her eye.

2. Extreme close up of Tracey’s hand tagging Jack on the foot.

TRACEY (op): TAG,

3. Tracey bounds away as Jack looks surprised and begins to react.

TRACEY: YOU’RE IT!

4. Jack starts chasing Tracey across the rooftops.

PAGE TWO

1-3. They run, vault, jump and maneuver across rooftops, Jack always just behind Tracey as they weave effortlessly around the urban obstacles. These panels don’t need to be contiguous, they are more like snapshots of the chase. The lighting should slowing shift towards evening.

4. Tracey is ascending a pipe on the side of a wall of a building and Jack is close behind. Lighting should be sunset, but we don’t see the sky yet.

PAGE THREE

1. Tracey has jumped to a nearby fire escape and is climbing up, Jack should be mid-jump from the pipe to the ladder.

2. Tracey is standing on the edge of the building, exhausted but happy, as Jack climbs up, also very tired.

3. They stand, winded, overlooking the city during sunset. Taking the moment to rest. Jack is hunched over. This panel should be a really spectacular view, and serve as a moment of rest for the reader (and the characters).

4. (inset panel) Extreme close up of the Jack’s hand tagging Tracey on the leg.

JACK (op): YOU’RE IT.

5. The chase begins anew as they leap from the rooftop.

And here are the pencils:

Kind of distracted today. I think I’m going to continue the painting and make it into something more finished for a friend.

Some more progress with the fantasy piece. Redrew the centaur’s right arm to better fit the perspective and I think it works a lot better. Also made the minotaur a little angrier (“needs more battle fury!” as someone from gutterzombie put it) and worked on the lighting a little more.

Also working on a pinup of Sugar Ray Finhead, a character created by Doug Baron, a teacher I had in first year. I’m going for an old-timey boxing photo kind of look, partly because I think it’ll look cool but also because he prints the book in b+w and maybe he’ll throw it in ;).

Here’s the finished drawing for the fantasy painting. I think the human part of the centaur could use a little more work, but it’s time to jump into painting.

[Edit] Some more progress. Quick layout of values.

Sean Murphy came in to school last Thursday to talk to the 3rd years and answer any of our questions about art or the business of comics. He’s an awesome artist, super fast, and very honest about his experiences and opinions. After school I got a portfolio review from him which was very positive, especially regarding my coloring. He suggested that I contact some editors in advance of the next convention to set up interviews and get on their radar. The next day I emailed Sean to thank him for coming in and looking at my stuff, and I asked him if he could put me in touch with some editors because, well, I don’t know any! He put me in touch with Chris Warner at Dark Horse.

I sent Sean an email thanking him for everything (again; I’m sure he’s sick of my appreciation by now haha) and asked if he had any critiques or suggestions for my colors because he tends to rip on them a lot (and let’s face it, there’s a lot of crappy ones out there) so I knew he’d be honest. He replied:

Well I wouldn’t be helping you out if I thought you weren’t any good.  I won’t lie to someone and tell them I like their stuff when I don’t, and only once in a great while do I bother forwarding art.  But the stuff you sent is compairable to Dave Stewart here and there.  Love the textures (not a fan of cuts on my stuff).  And your color theory is balanced and sound, which is the hardest thing for colorists to understand.  Whatever kind of brain a colorist needs, you have it.  Sure there are small things here and there which could use a tweak, but it’s so close overall that it’s best for you to just keep working and figure things out for yourself.

That totally made my day.

But then! I hadn’t been to GutterZombie (a colorist forum) in a long time and decided to drop by and post some of my recent stuff (bascially the same coloring sampler I sent to Chris). Laura Martin (an award-winning colorist and easily one of the best in the business) said:

Oh hell yeah, these are all beyootiful!!

So basically I’m on cloud 9 because I’m fairly confident that reactions like these indicate that I’m not going to starve when I get out of school. Though I’m still totally expecting Jamie Kennedy to pop out and tell me I’ve been “X”ed. (Too dated? TOO BAD. SCREW PUNK’D.) And just so this post isn’t devoid of artwork, here’s some progress on the fantasy/mythology ‘pencils’. Also, I’ve decided to start out grayscale with this painting because I really want to nail the values.