Sketches and Scuplts

Hello everyone!
I'm snowed in today so I thought I'd take some time to post some of what I've been working on lately.

Sculpting:
I started working on a replica of the Amulet of Dibella from Skyrim. I used two different kinds of sculpy this time in hopes of painting the 'jewel' to look more realistic as I didn't have one that looked right. In the future I'd like to use metal clay and real stones to create a more precious version of this.


The uncooked sculpt.


After being cooked.


Some sanding and priming to the 'jewel.'


The jewel was then painted, and the rest of the amulet was painted for metallic and aging effects. Now I'm on the look out for beads to make it look as accurate to the game version as possible.

Sketches:
While on the subject of Skyrim I've also been doing some sketches of my characters in situations that arise in the game. My dad is currently borrowing my scanner, so I have more that need to be scanned, but in the mean time here are few new sketches.

Merion got separated from Onmund while defending the city of Whitefun, but after fruitlessly searching for his body she found him safe behind the city's walls after their victory. It's hard to loose a follower when you're so used to having them around.


A traveling mercenary marking Merion's map to show her the job she was going to do. It's not much fun to talk someone into giving you their job but then you have so many places marked on your map you have NO IDEA where they just indicated they were going. That's why she looks confused/annoyed, she has no idea where this woman has pointed to.


Sky-gazing is popular in Skyrim and I can see why. There's just so much to absorb and take in, especially after being cooped up in underground dungeons for days on end.

Be sure to stay tuned, I've got some more news and artwork coming up!

Clouds Parting

Hello everyone!

The last month and a half have been rough. Between the sickness and death of a close family member, dim job prospects, printing disasters, and loosing some self esteem I've managed to start picking things up again and moving on with projects. I now have portfolios printed for new prospective art jobs, I've got a really good commission going, an Illustration contest entry to work on, some possible job opportunities opening up, and a small press table for VA Comicon this September to look forward to. Things are finally looking up and moving along.

As such I have finally finished a 3 page update for Or Maybe Not that I've been fretting over for the last month. So enjoy! There will be more to come. I'm not sure if I'll stick to Friday updates or move to Monday but we'll see. I'll spread the word when I make a decision.

As always I'll be posting sketches and drawings at my art tumblr and my Nabyn page. I might slide things over to my Deviantart too but I don't use it as much. I'm trying to be a little more active on it lately but tumblr and Nabyn are good for me so far. I also keep my portfolio site updated with all my best work and previews of comics. Speaking of which, I will be posting a few pages from my newest Alencia story "Noble Deed" soon as I prepare to print the story as a mini comic for VA Comicon this September. Keep an eye out for it!

Offering

Hello all!

I have returned from my emergency trip to my Uncle's funeral and started back at work. I've been busy with that, trying to get portfolios printed for job applications and things are feeling stressful and at times overwhelming. To combat this I treated myself by picking up a copy of Skyrim that was on sale (Don't worry, I will be limiting my playing time). So as an offering of being absent and artless while I sort things out, here is a portrait of my character, Ciel DreadHawk.

Done with non-photo blue pencil, Pocket pentel brush pen, and PhotoShop CS5.5

Comic Comeback

Hey Everyone! I'm currently working on some new pages for the revival of "Or Maybe Not", a slice of life geek comedy that me and Ryan Moody started in 2008 and are working on once again. He's got a stack of finished scripts for me so I'm working on some content for a new web comic. I'm hoping to update once a week, and some updates (most at this rate) will contain multiple pages. So far I'm working on the first script which will be 3 comic pages. I also have to do a banner for the webpage which will be on Smackjeeves.com. We had a keenspace one I made a few years ago but I've lost all the information for it and cannot find it. So with a new year we will start fresh!

But while I work on that and deal with job/work stuffs, here is the DA page containing all the old OMN comics that we had on LJ http://omn-comic.deviantart.com/ As the comic goes on I'll see if I can revive that too.

I'm hoping to finish the pages this weekend but we'll see how it pans out. I'm very excited to finally have a webcomic up and give OMN the chance it deserves.

(Click the image to see it move!)

Concepts from Chaos

Hello again everyone! I've been going through my sketchbooks to see if I have any meager offerings for you and I've found a few.

A sketch of Alencia and Theolyn from a month ago. I've been slowly building their world and I've been looking at ideas for noble formal wear for Alencia's home town of 'Argate.' I'm trying to combine medieval costume with Indian Saris. I think the mixtures of fabrics, in both textures and patterns, will blend nicely with the cuts of the costumes. I'll post more of those as I go. (Pen on sketchbook paper.)

Some character concepts for a character from a comic project I'm working on with my partner in crime, Ryan Moody. (ballpoint and brush pens on sketchbook paper.)

Another concept from my Alencia stories, she tries to exorcise this demon from a family's home but it instead ends up following her around and terrorizing her. His appearance may change by the time he finally ends up in the comic but this is the closest to what's in my head I was able to draw so far. Research for him is fun as it includes watching the Paranormal Activity movies, and episodes of 'Paranormal State.' (Reference used here. Blue pencil and brush pen on sketchbook paper, colored in Photoshop CS5.5)

And here's a large poster I did as a Christmas commission. The client asked for their nephew as a super hero. We brainstormed on concepts and I created the costume for him. The poster is meant to look like the cover of a comic book. The font is "In a Flash" by Walter Velez.

I hope you all had a great holiday, and look forward to the new year! See you in 2012!

Guns and Cars

Hey Everyone! I've been super busy with work lately so art has been slower as of late. I still have multiple projects going on including lettering my Alencia comic and brainstorming ideas for the next ones. I'm also hoping to do some painting soon. It's been a while since I've done any watercolor painting. In the meantime here are some sketches I did earlier this month at a Gun Club flea market/Family event. People were selling guns and war memorabilia of every kind, and there were even some civil war reenactors. One of which was nice enough to pose for me while he and another gentleman shared stories and history lessons about the war. It was pretty interesting.

I was concentrating so hard on drawing his hands that they came out far too big :P Still a fun exercise.

Bonus: Some observation sketches of cars in a parking lot. I was at the car repair place waiting for my dad to pick me up. Some crickets were fighting near by, resulting in one ripping the others' leg off. I was going to draw them but the looser of the battle hid under my shoe (and no I did not step on him). Needless to say, I need to practice drawing cars more.

Also, I'm working on opening an Etsy store! I'll be selling comics and artwork from it. And maybe some crafts later. I still need to take some product photos and spruce it up. As soon as it's done I'll be sure to post links everywhere! :)

Alencia: A Noble Deed Preview

Hello all! I'm nearing completion of my current Alenica solo story and I'm very excited. Alencia is a character who has been with me a long time and has grown into one of my favorite and most developed characters (in case you didn't realize by how much I draw her). My plan for her is to make episodic stories for her, with an over arching story arch. I've been doing lots of writing and planning and I'm on my way. The first story is nearing completion so I thought I'd share with you a preview of some of the pages so far, sans text.

Down the road I'd also like to formally introduce you to Alencia and show you my method and process in drawing comics, both in their own posts. I'm also thinking about releasing each 'episode' as a PDF file for a few dollars. Then when I get more stories done I can release a full book. I enjoy reading web comics but there is something so satisfying about holding a book in my hands and reading it. I also have grown a distaste for online e-readers for comics. I've been reading Dark Horse's 'The Thing' comic online and the e-reader for it drives me crazy. The panels don't always fit the screen size and it stretches some panels to pixilate them and I just really don't like it. If they release a trade for it I will buy it in a heartbeat. The Thing + Vikings = A-OK in my book.

Well enjoy the pages and let me know what you think! I'll get back to you on the PDF files once I figure out a good way to sell them. Maybe an Etsy page? We'll see.

$5 Bust Commissions

Hello all! I am opening $5 Copic marker bust commissions! For your money you get a colored bust of a character of your choice. Done with marker on Bristol Board.

Examples: example 1 example 2

To order: Send me a note titled “Bust Commission” and tell me what character you would like me to draw along with links to character references. Then I will reply with my paypal information and once I receive payment ($5 + $2 for shipping = $7). Then I will begin work on your character bust. I will send you an email, or PM, with a link to your commission. If you like it I will post it online and then send it to you via snail mail. If you do not want me to post it online, or wish for it to be a surprise for someone, please let me know.

I’m going to open 10 slots for this. Please know that I am currently looking for employment and learning to drive so while I will try to get these done as soon as possible there may be a delay. If you want your commission by a certain deadline then please let me know and I will do my best to accommodate you. Slots are first come first serve, and you may have more than one. I also reserve the right to turn down a commission if I so choose.

Thank you!

1.Erin P.
2.Erin P.
3.Erin P.
4.Megan C.
5.Megan C.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.

I'm not dead... I'm doing better!

Wow, we're at 200 posts now! :D

I just wanted to let you guys know that I'm not dead. I've got some exciting things cooking, I've just got a rush of projects due before spring break so I've been working on those.

Here's a little peek at some of the comic work I've been doing on the side:
THERE CAN ONLY BE ONE

Was that hand lettering I saw? Couldn't be...
Expect some cool projects, paintings, and comics coming up next!