Pastels

If you are like me, you enjoy experimenting with different mediums. I decided to try using soft pastels after watching Lynn Chapman create one of her illustrations. Since I am just practicing and on a budget, I get most of my supplies at Michaels using a coupon. That limits my selection quite a bit, I know, as all they had on my trip was Artist Studio (which I read are not very good), and Faber-Castell, so I bought the FC pastels. Go to an online outlet like DickBlick.com, and you will find an overwhelming selection of pastels (their catalog has a whole section devoted to them).

Above is my first illustration with the pastels. Not bad for a first try, though, never having used them, I was a bit unprepared for the dust and mess. Not necessarily a bad thing, but you do have to be careful as the colors spread easily, as you can see on the sides (I used my fingers to blend). Another thing is you have to be really careful with the black. After I added the mouth and eyes, I dumped the dust in the trash, only to find some of it attached itself to the flesh color. My attempts to remove or blend it in only provide futile, much like cleaning up an oil spill with water. Will need some pastel pencils for the details. Also, have to research on how to get clean lines between colors without them smudging together.

All in all it was quite enjoyable, and I plan to do more in the future.

Below is the video of Lynn creating an illustration in pastels.

Making progress... sloooowwwlyyy

As the deadline for the Don Freeman grant approaches, I can say with certainty that I am making progress, though not near as fast as I would like. I will say, however, whether I make that deadline or not, it has forced me to really buckle down, and I see so much improvement over these last couple of months. And making the goal of the grant deadline will NOT be a deal breaker in my goal of getting a book contract by the end of this year. Lofty perhaps, but there it is.

As I have worked to get some finished illustrations, I continue to see areas for improvement, which in turn, puts me further behind. But, I do not want to risk turning in sub par work in what could be a stepping stone to my next goal (portfolio).

One thing I have been working toward is developing a character style that I like, and works with the way I already draw. The image below is an example of what I aspire to for all my characters. I like how both look, and the fact that I have found a way to create children of different ages. Still needs a bit of work, but I am so close, and I could not be happier with these drawings.

Another thing I have discovered about myself is that the faster I draw my characters, the better they turn out. What I mean is getting the whole shape of the character down quickly without too much thought on details, then going back and defining details. May be a no-brainer to some, but I am sure many of you can attest to times you got caught up in the details first.

Getting 10 finished illos by March 31 is getting tougher as the days go by, but I am confident that I will continue to work toward my ultimate goal of illustrating for children.

Thanks for looking!

Goals 2015

Happy New Year to you!

With every new year comes ever popular project of making resolutions—things we would like to accomplish, changes we would like to see in ourselves, changes we would like to make in our community... the list is endless. Perhaps it is the "refreshing of time" as it were that motivates us to refresh ourselves and our outlook.

This year, I am vowing not to make resolutions, but to set goals—concrete goals—that I write down on paper to accomplish by year's end. What's the difference you ask? Attitude and priority. To me resolutions are something we vocalize to ourselves and perhaps others as things we see that we would like to change about ourselves or our environment. But to my knowledge, most people do not write them down. We file them in the ever-crowded recesses of our brains with the idea that once we get started—get the gym membership, get the art supplies and paper—everything will move along by itself. The problems is that without an idea of where we want to be by year's end, or 6 months, or 5 weeks, many of us falter due to the lack of tangible results. We are, now, in this connected day and age, wired for instant gratification. And let's not forget that we are creatures of habit. It takes anywhere from a few weeks or more for a habit to form. When we don't see results in that first week, it is very easy to want to give up. And if you have not written anything down, how do you measure?

So for 2015, I have set some goals of where I want to be on December 31, 2015. Some are personal, so I'll spare you that, but as far as my illustration aspirations, the following are the goals I am working toward starting today:

• Apply for the Don Freeman Grant through the SCWBI. The requirements are 10 finished illustrations, which gives me one week each to get to 10, a do-able goal if I plan it right
• Have a contract by the end of 2015, if not sooner, to illustrate at least one book.
• Set up a portfolio website in the next 6 months (by June 1)
• Update the look of my blog in the next 2 weeks
• Draw something everyday

So there you have it. I would appreciate any encouragement and prayers as I embark on these next steps to working as a childrens illustrator. If you are a similar quest, leave me a comment so I can follow you as well.

Al the best to you this new year!

Boy pulling Christmas tree - Final

After looking at this, I was not digging the outline, and was ready to give up on doing it digitally. However, something inside me said to give it one more go, and below is the final result, which I am extremely happy with. Went sans outline, using shading to give it dimension, which I like a lot better. I also decided to turn his frown upside down. That came from a story idea, but as a stand alone illustration, it is not obvious why he is sad while pulling a Christmas tree.

Anyway, if you are in the area, leave me a note and let me know what you think!

Cobbler

One of my all time favorite stories is Leo Tolstoy's "Where Love is, God Is". The first time I heard it was Reba McIntire's version on the radio. Much shorter than the original, but still had impact. There are other versions, and it was even made into a claymation movie many years ago. Publishing a picture book version of this story, or perhaps a bit longer book, has been my goal for many years, and will most likely be on the radar until it happens.

Below are 2 attempts at character sketches. The first is my "blind" attempt (using no reference). Not good, but I think it is fun to see how someone develops their art, so I am sharing as well. The other is my second attempt after looking at some men sitting, and studying older men briefly. I also used Photoshops 3D primitives to work out his posture, which you can tell I was having trouble with in the first image. Overall I like how it turned out,but the face and hair need work as it does not have the "old troubled cobbler" look I envision. But a good first (second) attempt.

Process of learning...

 When I draw, I usually try to create the sketch first without reference. Probably not the most productive, and will most likely change as I get better, but for sketching it works ok. One example is today's sketch. The image below shows my initial sketch of a little girl screaming, working from memory and assumptions on how I thought she should be posed. What I ended up with was a little monkey faced girl attempting to take a bite some whatever might be out of frame. (Ok, it is not that bad, but obviously could be better!) Also shown are my further attempts to get her mouth right.

I have been going thru my copy of Drawn to Life: Vol 1 and came across some tips on using angles in your images. When I started the image above, I knew to balance herself, the girl would have her arms back as she leaned forward. After looking thru the text and further examining the image above, I knew her legs also needed to be angled to help with balance (and the dynamics of the image).

Not happy with the mouth either, I looked up some images of kids screaming, and found one of a little girl screaming at her sister (posed stock photo). I quickly sketched her to get a feel for the angles, and how her mouth was shaped. Thus the second sketch below.

Much more dynamic. Using this knowledge, I sketched the image below.

Still a work in progress, but much better than the first! I am also learning to simplify in the beginning to get the pose correct with shapes before I begin adding details, which helps a great deal as well.

If you don't have a copy of Drawn to Life (there are 2 volumes), grab one. There is a wealth of info there to help improve your drawing.

I will end this post by saying to any aspiring illustrators who happen by, don't allow "bad" drawings or "lack of skill" or "lack of progress" to discourage you into giving up like I did. I lost over 2 years of work because I did not have my priorities straight of what I wanted to do and the skills I had deep inside. Improvement takes time, sometimes years. And you have to do it a lot. I mean a lot. Keep your eye on the destination, but enjoy the ride as well. I have a quote on a sticky note some to that effect. Will have to dig it out so I can share it. And if you are looking for some good illustration information, Will Terry has a host of tutorial and advice videos and classes thru his YouTube channel, blog, and online school.