Going digital...

©2008 Tom Barrett

Here is another one of my forays into digital illustration. Many of you may recognize this little tug from previous posts. This was done completely in Photoshop using some custom brushes (actually only one of them) from this guy. I am quite happy with this as it came out looking painted like I wanted it to. Those of you who use a tablet can attest, I'm sure, to the difficulty of going from pencil and paper to stylus and screen. I guess like anything, it is a medium that must be practiced (mostly hand/eye coordination, and getting used to not being able to turn the "paper" if needed). It is kind of funny to realize that even on screen, you have to layer colors to get the effect you want. What's neat about digital is how loose you can be with the art by not having to worry about making a permanent mark (mistake!) that will require starting over, compared to some traditional mediums I enjoy working with. If you haven't yet experimented with digital illustration, give it a try!

IF: enough

The paper Emily was given to color on just wasn't big enough!

I never know if I'll have time to re-work or color my IF illustrations by the end of the week, thus the B&W sketches. I am very happy with this sketch, though the composition could be better (i know, too much space at the top right).

Anyway, in my efforts to get a portfolio started, I would like to clean and color this one. Any and all suggestions welcome!

Inspired by music

©2008 Tom Barrett

I don't often listen to music when I create (either work or pleasure) as I find it too distracting at times. However, I think I have been listening to the wrong music. Through illustrator Corey Godbey's blog, I found this music. It is really beautiful and found it inspiring. So I pulled out my tablet and began sketching in Photoshop, with no direction, just letting the music lead me, and the above illustration came out. I let that same song (still playing as I write this) play over and over while I drew. What a great experience!

Not that the above is any great work of art, but it didn't matter. The whole experience was relaxing, calming and one of the best drawing times yet. I have ask Corey what that song is so I can find the CD, or more similar to it.

Happy creating!

Painting with light

I love photography, especially macro photography. It is very exciting to be able to get close-up images of different items that we are unable to appreciate with the naked eye. My camera—a Minolta DiMage Z1 that I bought about 2 years ago—is not a professional one, but it takes amazing shots when I get the settings correct. And it's SuperMacro feature is what I used to get some of the shots below.

It has been quite rainy the past two days, and on my daily walk today, I noticed a beautiful purple flower on the vines covering my neighbor's fence. I went and grabbed my camera and took a trek around the yard taking macro shots of whatever caught my eye. Enjoy!

My cat Tiger!

Don't know the name of this flower, but love the water drops on it.

My wife's pink rose. ©2008 Tom Barrett

Banana Spider. ©2008 Tom Barrett

Tomatoes in my garden!

Small ant on a watermelon blossom.

Fly on a watermelon blossom. Was excited to get this one.
I thought he would fly away as I got the camera closer!

Baby watermelon, about the size of your pinky finger.

An Award... for me?

Back on July 9th, Edrian Thomidis nominated me for the above award. Today, I checked my blog and Paola de Gaudio nominated me as well! I have thanked both and am honored that they included me in their list of favorite blogs.

The rules of accepting are as follows:-
1) Put the logo on your blog.
2) Add a link to the person who awarded you.
3) Nominate at least 7 other blogs.
4) Add links to those blogs on yours.
5) Leave a message for your nominees on their blogs.

Choosing 7 is quite difficult as I get something out of everyone's blog. But there are some who stand out.

Alicia Padrón – She was the first blogger I met, and continues to inspire and encourage me.
Kathleen Reitz – I am always amazed at her talent, and it encourages me to strive for that same level of perfection.
Kathy Hare – for her amazing colored pencil drawings and technique.
Kim Fleming – for her willingness to include the rest of us in her book illustration journey (Surprise Mondays)
Linda Silvestri – for her great informational tidbits, back stories on animal idioms, and humorous sketches
And last but not least, my two nominators, Edrian and Paola!

Thanks to all!

Illustrator Tasha Tutor passes

Doing research for a freelance design job, and came upon the news that a well-known illustrator by the name of Tasha Tutor had died on June 18th at the age of 92. Many of you may have already heard this news. Honestly, I had never heard of her until today. Kinda surprising since her latest book was published in 2003. (Wow, 87 and still drawing. We all should be so lucky!) I am going to head to the library this weekend to see if I can find some of her books. Should be inspiring!

This article was interesting.

Her family has a website as well.