The Art and Times of Nicholas Hendriks

Happy New Year!

2012-01-03T21:06:00.001-08:00

First post of 2012: a WIP.

Any advice would be appreciated.

Gorgon's Sword

2011-12-31T15:25:00.000-08:00

Another one! One last post before 2011 ends!

New Tablet!

2011-12-30T19:04:00.000-08:00

A little while back my old Wacom Sapphire (I would make this a link, but I can't even find a webpage for this product anymore) bit the dust, and left me without any means of doing any digital work at home. It so happens that I have been plenty busy with work, and do didn't have any time for personal work anyway.
However, now that the Christmas holidays are here, I have some free time, and wouldn't you know: I got a beautiful little Bamboo Connect for Christmas! It's exactly what I wanted: no extra buttons, a manageable working area, not to mention an awesome colour scheme.
Anyway, here are the fruits:

Did this one last night -

Did this one periodically throughout the day today -

These are both renderings of old sketches. I've got some new sketches I want to render in the same fashion, which may happen tomorrow.

Gryffindor

2011-10-01T21:04:00.000-07:00

Long time, no post.
Here's a quick one I did tonight for an art jam.

Square Foot Show

2011-07-27T08:39:00.000-07:00

AWOL Gallery in Toronto hosts an annual show called the Square Foot Show. It is named this because every piece submitted must be exactly one foot by one foot in size.
I signed up for the first time this year. Each artist is allowed three pieces. Here is a photo of one of my pieces.

The other two I'm not posting, because they're kind of garbage. Buuuuuut I'll submit them anyway, and hope there's someone out there with different taste than me, and a lot of money.

Dragonfly for my Mom

2011-07-20T18:49:00.000-07:00

Decided to post this painting I did for my mother's birthday.

I was hesitant because I more or less directly ripped it off of a photo I found on the internet. I will admit that outright. If you search "Green Darner Dragonfly Wallpaper" on Google, you will find it.
However, I made no money from it, and I make no claim that it is my own. I simply did this for my mother's enjoyment. So here it is.

Another Art Test

2011-07-17T19:21:00.000-07:00

Here's another art test I did which didn't wind up landing me a job. Apparently I was close, but no cigar. Oh well. Back at it.

The goal was to create a fake screenshot of an iphone game which involved cute little monsters in a petshop. It's a cute idea, and if I had an iphone I would certainly get this game when it comes out in the fall.

Calliphoridae megacephala

2011-06-06T12:11:00.000-07:00

A birthday gift for my brother.

10" x 12" Acrylic on canvas

I'll try to take a better photo of it later.

*EDIT* It occurs to me that it will be difficult to take a better photo of this painting, seeing as I have given it away.

Bdr Walker

2011-05-30T17:19:00.001-07:00

This was done for an art jam.

The Girl - Pretty happy with it, considering I've always had trouble with drawing babes. Her one arm is super derpy, and there is something weird going on with her face that I can't pin down, but otherwise I'm fairly happy with the girl.

The Robot - Would like to spend more time detailing the panels and interior, but the deadline snuck up fast, so I had to call it quits.

Game test

2011-05-24T13:27:00.000-07:00

I recently did a test for a game company in Toronto, which unfortunately lead to nothing. However, I'm fairly happy with the piece I created.

Oh well, on to the next job application.

Markers

2011-05-14T00:24:00.000-07:00

Enjoy, C&C.

New Website!

2011-04-18T08:36:00.000-07:00

Woo! I own land on the internet! And not subsidized housing type land, like this blog, but real owned land I bought with my own money!
http://nicholashendriks.com
Check it out! Any crits or comments on the site would be appreciated too, as I want this thing looking good for industry day in a week and a half.

BG WIPs

2011-03-31T20:03:00.000-07:00

Here's some teaser stuff for my fourth year film.
Two ends of a long pan.

Both are still works in progress.

I'm trying to get just a hint of a Polaroid feel to these. I have no idea what they look like on other people's monitors, and I know my monitor tends to be a little off kilter colour-wise.
Let me know what you think!

Mentor Meetings

2011-03-20T06:20:00.000-07:00

Done on a post-it note.

Influence Map

2011-02-12T10:45:00.000-08:00

This is a DeviantArt meme, but I think it's a good one. Worth doing, if you haven't already.
You can find the template here.
*EDIT* Thanks to Ian MacDonald for pointing out a stupid mistake on my part.

Gung

2011-02-05T22:20:00.000-08:00

My old D&D character.
3 hrs, Adobe Photoshop CS4

Pistols

2011-02-02T14:16:00.000-08:00

I've been trying to post more stuff, without just posting crap.
More weapons, of a different type.

Oddish!

2011-02-02T14:01:00.000-08:00

There's apparently some kind of Pokémon thing going on at Deviantart. I don't know if I'll bother entering genuinely, but I thought up my team. Here's member numero uno.

*EDIT*
I've discovered that I'm not the first one to give Oddish double ear-rings in that particular spot. For the record, I had not seen this, and did not intentionally plagiarize this idea. I consider it... great minds, thinking alike.

USB Key Paint Job

2011-01-26T05:12:00.000-08:00

I have a bad habit of losing usb keys, so I picked up a new one a few days ago.

I figure this way I'm less likely to forget it somewhere.

I was inspired originally by the Orks from Warhammer 40k, but as I progressed, I started thinking more Watchmen meets 300 meets Starcraft, or something.

Sketchdump

2011-01-24T18:00:00.000-08:00

Been on a bit of a weapons kick for the past week.

Some more stuff. As always, comments, crits, etc.

Enjoy!

Stock trees for my film

2010-11-23T22:40:00.000-08:00

More exist, but these exemplify the style I'm going for in my film:

Film, D&D

2010-11-18T23:25:00.000-08:00

This is a style and colour test for my fourth year film.

This is my D&D Character, Cernon. His name is derived from Cernunnos, the mysterious Celtic horned god.

Seeking help for little Dexter!

2010-11-02T17:53:00.000-07:00

My roommate Derek's two year old nephew is suffering from liver cancer and cerebral palsy (read the full story at http://www.littledexter.com). His medical costs are huge, and his parents are struggling to cover them.
We are looking to help them out by raising as much money as we can. Our main source of income is through our contact with Pampered Chef.
PLEASE HELP! You can buy products through our Pampered Chef Website. All the products are very high quality, and come with great warranties!
Please help if you can! Every purchase counts!
Thank you!
-Nick

WIP

2010-10-30T06:56:00.000-07:00

I'm pretty happy with this one so far, so I fully intend to finish it.
It's for my sweetheart.

Gotta fix both hands, do the feet, etc.
Comments, crits welcome.

Bear

2010-10-29T22:32:00.000-07:00

For film/fun.

2010-09-09T16:36:00.000-07:00

Here's a bunch of other stuff I did for HitGrab during my summer internship. I presume it's all released now, so it should be safe to post online.
Copyright for all of artwork in this post belongs to HitGrab Inc.
This first batch is from the LevynLight game.

This is all from Mousehunt. First a base, and then traps.

I know I did one more trap, I'm just not sure where I saved it. . . Oh well, it wasn't that exciting looking.
Critique, enjoy, etc!

HitGrab

2010-08-12T22:55:00.000-07:00

Blogger uploads images backwards to the way you select them, so these images are in opposite chronological order.
This is some of the work that I have done while working at HitGrab this past summer. It has been a great experience. I have learned a lot, met a bunch of great people, and got to know some existing acquaintances much better. There's not a whole lot else to say about that, so let's move along.
All of this work is copyright HitGrab Labs. They are a social gaming company based in Oakville, Ontario.

I have more recent paintings, but they haven't been released yet, and so I am unable to post them.

Arabian Nights

2010-07-17T17:25:00.001-07:00

Just a speedpaint thingy. Update sorely needed.
I've been painting tons at work, but unfortunately, most of it I can't post, because it hasn't been released yet.
I'll see if I can get permission to post some of it.
~nick

REMOTE PATROL

2010-03-09T17:44:00.000-08:00

A little concept piece for my fourth year film.

Also, thinking about using this format for the screen ratio.

Facilities

2010-01-27T14:35:00.000-08:00

My friend Stephanie Chan lent me a couple of great books. The first one was The Art of Mass Effect. I've never played mass effect, and if I do, it likely won't be for a while yet, as I'm off video games for the duration of the semester. However, the book has some great material in it; eye candy for sci-fi lovers like myself. Spaceship, alien, and weapon designs galore.

The second book was Mechanika, by Doug Chiang. I was introduced to Chiang's work fairly early on through the Art of Star Wars: Episode One, which features a hell of a pile of his designs. The great thing about his new book (Mechanica), is that while it discusses the design aspects of creating vehicles and aliens, it also provides step-by-step instructions on how he lays down his media to arrive at his finished piece. It's like those Draw 100 Sea Creatures or Movie Monsters books they used to have, but matured.

I'd recommend both of these books to anyone who wants to get some inspiration, and some directions, respectively.

I tried out Chiang's marker and pen technique the other day, and I think the results are pretty neat looking.

I did these on the cardboard backing of a pad of paper, which gave them a nice texture and a middle tone to work into. I first used a set of gray markers, 0.5, 2, and 4, then inked the linework, and added some darker shadows with a 6 and 7. Highlights are white pencil. Then I dicked around in Photoshop.
Tadaaaaa!

Also, while I'm here, Sam Neilson, whose Deviantart account I've linked before, wrote a great article about Abstraction. His whole blog is worth looking at, he's got great work posted there.

First post of 2010

2010-01-20T12:39:00.000-08:00

Sorry, sorry, haven't posted, same old, same old.
So, here are some life drawings, layouts, and something I may have already posted? Not sure. ALSO, check it out: CLICK HERE to see my portfolio for my summer internship. I've got a link to it on my sidebar as well. I wish there were a directory for everyone in my year's portfolios, but alas, no such luck. Everyone has some great stuff on theirs. There's some stuff on there that you've already seen on my blog, but likely a few items I didn't remember to post on here.

More Stereoscopes

2009-10-03T10:47:00.000-07:00

This past week I took a bunch of pictures out in the beautiful forest next to Sheridan. It was a perfect day for photography, cool, overcast, but things were still nice and green.
Here are some stereoscopes I tried to do while I was out there. Some of them work better than others. I had a lot that didn't work at all, but that's to be expected.
If you are having trouble making these work, refer to my instructional post.

WIP for COW

2009-09-27T21:27:00.000-07:00

I'd better get to bed soon, but I thought I'd post this WIP for Conceptart's Creature of the Week event. This week's theme is "Red Hot Doom."

I'm not really sure how this relates to the "doom" portion, come to think of it.

COW 115: Bipedal Insectoid

2009-09-23T06:33:00.000-07:00

This is my Creature of the Week entry for Conceptart.org.

It's not as finished as I wanted it to be, and I'm not very happy with the colours, but I guess I'm still getting used to digital painting.
C&C always welcome.
-Nick

Rendering Practice (read: Fan Art)

2009-09-20T13:31:00.000-07:00

I've been spending quite a bit of time on Deviantart looking for good digital painters, and trying to learn how they do what they do. This is the current product of said search.

Character copyright goes to Pokemon (obviously).

District 9

2009-09-06T08:50:00.000-07:00

I went to see District 9 yesterday. It was pretty excellent.

MS Paint!

2009-07-18T17:46:00.001-07:00

So I did more than this today, but I didn't save, and photoshop ate it. Oh well.

10 min in ms paint.

Softened the edges a bit and threw some colours on it with photoshop.
EDIT: It's supposed to be an ornithomimus.

Random Sketchdump

2009-06-28T20:38:00.000-07:00

I just felt like an update was in order. Here's some stuff.

Fatman!

WoW Fanart

2009-06-01T15:57:00.000-07:00

I was home sick today, so I thought I'd use the time productively.

You'd likely have to play World of Warcraft in order to get this joke.

I actually found this to be very enjoyable, which is particularly surprising considering how frustrating I normally find painting. Not finished, but this is as far as I'm going to take it. It was just intended as an exercise / something to keep me busy.

Back to work tomorrow, I suppose. But first, supper!

Brass

2009-05-04T21:33:00.000-07:00

He's my Dungeons and Dragons character, which I will hopefully be playing over the course of this summer.

He's a warforged barbarian, and he hits harder than Bobby Brown.
The lineart is india ink with a sable brush. Turns out inking with a brush is a ton of fun! The colours are done in photoshop, and the stone texture is courtesy of http://mayang.com/textures.

ANYWAY YOU WANT IT

2009-04-20T20:44:00.000-07:00

This was so much fun.

Human Audio Synch, and a Skull

2009-04-08T11:17:00.000-07:00

Here are another couple of school assignments.
Animation (Drew and Derek):

Not finished, but what else is new?

This is something I made in Maya. It's still pretty chunky, but I wanted to keep the poly count low, so I'm pleased with what I ended up with. I still don't know how to do one of those crazy 3D model flash rotation thingers that I've seen on other people's blogs, but here are renders of it:

I'll hopefully have something new to add soon that ISN'T school related.

Flipbook Page

2009-03-15T22:14:00.001-07:00

For those who don't know, Sheridan releases a sort of 'yearbook' every year, showcasing the work of students in the animation program - the ones who are willing to submit work and cough up 40 buckaroos, anyway. This is called the "Flipbook." I understand copies are sent around to studios and stuff.
Anyway, this is my submission. Second years get one black and white page.

I decided a layout showcase would make the most sense for me, seeing as that's what I want to do. I don't have anything next to folks like Frank Hong and Alfred Llupia, but I think my layouts are getting slowly better. I just need to sit down and really invest some time into them.

P.S. I just looked through Frank Hong's blog, and #!&@. I feel so shitty about my work now. This will be the motivation I'm looking for maybe?

A haiku

2009-03-06T10:01:00.000-08:00

Attention students
The school will be closed next week
Go home to your moms

By Nicholas Hendriks

Speed Paint

2009-02-09T21:06:00.000-08:00

You could say I was painting at a certain speed. . . slowly.
Anyway, I just did this before going to bed. I really don't like the colours, but w/e, it's a speed paint.

I should really learn to paint at a regular speed before trying to get quicker at it. I think I'm likely going to delete this post in the morning.

Stereoscope: Looking Into the Third Dimension

2009-02-08T12:47:00.000-08:00

For some time now I've been interested in stereoscopic imagery. I'm going to tell you all about it.
Before I begin, let me offer this disclaimer: there are likely all sorts of rules and standards to follow when creating stereoscopes professionally, but I don't know about them. This is all just stuff that I've discovered on my own. Much of it could be incomplete or completely wrong for all I know, but what you are about to read is what makes sense to me.

STEREOSCOPES: WHAT THE HECK ARE THEY?

A stereoscope is an image that, when viewed in a certain way, appears to be three dimensional. This image is usually composed of two smaller images, placed next to each other.
As most folks know by this day in age, seeing in three dimensions is possible because we (generally) have TWO eyes. Our eyes are set apart from each other, and this allows us to see two slightly different views of our surroundings. Using these two views, our brains are able to figure out how far away something is.

Our brains are very good at this, as they have been doing it since we were born. However, we can trick our brains. Stereoscopic images rely on doing so.

STEREOSCOPES: HOW DO I OPERATE THIS DARN THING?

If you have ever used one of those "Magic Eye" things that were so popular in the 90s, then you have a head start at stereoscopes. They are, in fact, the same thing.
The idea behind a stereoscope is to make your left and right eye look at different images. These images simulate the views that your eyes would see while looking at a real life scene.

This is easier said than done, as your eyes aren't used to doing this. They will naturally try to focus on one thing at a time. You must somehow trick your eyes.
One of the most popular ways to do this is to put your face very close to the image, preventing your eyes from looking at the same thing. While maintaining your eye position, slowly move away from the image, and your eyes should see the two images fuse into one. This is called "free fusing."
I have much more faith in you than this. I think that you can, and have free fused before without rubbing the skin off of your nose. Have you ever looked at someone, allowed your eyes to unfocus, and found that your subject appeared to have three eyes? Most people I know have done this at one point or another. Try the exercises below.

If you can do the exercise above, try free fusing the next image.

The mountains should appear farthest back, then the square, then the small point. The line to the right should appear to project forward from the horizon.
If you are able to unfocus your eyes, but can't get the images to cross over each other, try sitting farther away from the screen. Because you are making your eyes point outwards, if you sit farther from the screen, you won't have to force them out as far. This will always apply to this type of stereoscope.

If you can't get it to work, keep trying; practice makes perfect!

If you REALLY can't get it to work using either method described above, here's another method:

Get yourself two empty paper towel tubes. Place the first one against the right image, and against your right eye. Place the other one against the left image, and against your left eye. This will filter out all of the distracting surrounding images, and let your brain focus on only the two images you are providing it.

Keep trying, but give your eyes a break every once in a while. This is hard work if you haven't done it before, and you don't want to pull an eye muscle!

STEREOSCOPES: CAN I MAKE MY OWN?

If I can make my own stereoscopes, then you surely can. All you need is a camera. Ideally a digital camera and access to Adobe Photoshop is best, but you can do it with a traditional camera and printed photos.
-Taking the Photos-
1) Figure out what you want to take a stereoscopic photo of. Make sure it's something with depth to it (for example, don't take a picture of your wall. That's not going to do anything). I like to take pictures of my room, as there's plenty of clutter there to give us an idea of spacial arrangement.
2) Pick a focus. A table, a chair, a doorway, a vase, whatever. Just make sure that you pick something that you will center and focus on for both of your photos.
3) Take your first photo.
4) Now move slightly to the left or the right. It doesn't really make a difference, so long as you are able to arrange them properly later on.
5) Focus your camera on the same thing as before. Your viewfinder should show almost the same picture. Most of the same elements should still be visible in most scenarios.
6) Take your second picture.
-Arranging the Stereoscope-
7) Develop/upload your pictures.
8) Place your two photos side by side. It is best if you can put them together so that there is no gap, as that is less distance for your eyes to travel.

9) Try to free fuse the images. If you are having trouble, try positioning yourself farther from the images, or shrink them down on Photoshop. The smaller they are, the easier it will be.
10) If you can free fuse the images, but they look very strange, try switching them. They need to be placed in the right order, or else they won't work.
11) Try any of the hints from above to help you free fuse them.

SOME THINGS TO LOOK OUT FOR
When your are taking stereoscopic photos, avoid the use of the flash. It is very important to keep the setting as constant as possible, and the lighting has a very large effect on this. Free fuse the image below, paying close attention to the shadows.

You may notice that the shadows appear to be attached to the object casting them, instead of stuck to the surface they're being cast upon. This is because the light source emitting the light has moved. To avoid this, make sure that your flash is off, and your light source is separate from the camera.

Another point to watch for is the distance between your photos. Generally, to create a believable stereoscope, you can position your camera shots about two to three inches apart. This is about the distance between your pupils. However, if your subject is very large or very far away, you may want to space your shots farther apart. This is so that your eyes can get a better look at the subject. For example, the following stereoscope is the view from my apartment balcony. The two shots are about ten feet apart.

If your subject is very small and you are close to it, you should only move your camera a small amount. Otherwise, your eyes will not be able to cover the distance between the images. Even if they do, the images will be so different, your eyes won't be able to connect them.

STEREOSCOPES: THE DIGITAL REALM

An interesting idea is to apply these same principles to three dimensional environments other than real life. For example, video games. Because the camera-environment relationship acts in the same way, we can apply the same principles to video games in many cases. A few examples I have created follow.

EVE Online:

Half Life:

World of Warcraft:

I find the World of Warcraft ones work best.

DRAWING YOUR OWN

If you want to, it is possible to draw your own stereoscopes. This is not an easy task, and requires a fairly strong understanding of the way stereoscopes work. You should pay attention to the following rules:
1) The closer something is to you, the more it will shift between the two images.
2) Your eyes are able to move independently on a horizontal plane fairly easily, but not on a vertical one. Do not shift images up or down, as your eyes won't be able to fuse them.
3) Start simple.
4) Be precise. Use rulers, protractors, compasses, etc. Your eyes are very fussy, and you need to make the images read as clearly as possible.
5) BE PATIENT! It may not work at first, but try again.

I hope this has been interesting to read. Good luck on your adventures in the third dimension!

NICK AWAY!
*Runs off*

Kob

2009-02-03T16:20:00.000-08:00

A Kob is a type of African antelope. It's very pretty. I drew some pictures.

This was actually concept stuff for a character design assignment.

I used a China Marker. It's a surprisingly versatile weapon.

Fantasy Stuff

2008-12-25T20:55:00.000-08:00

This stuff is mostly inspired by a comic I'm working on. Look through some older posts to find out more about it, if you want. Otherwise, just be aware that it's based on a computer game from the 90's called Majesty, by Cyberlore and Microprose.

These skeletons are done without reference, except for the skulls. So cut me some slack. I know there are problems with them.
-Nick

A painting, a layout, and some random pictures

2008-12-01T22:09:00.001-08:00

A painting I got back today:

A layout I got back a while ago:

Here are some pictures I drew for fun:

More animation!

2008-11-25T20:18:00.001-08:00

Another one!

This one still needs a lot of work.

Animations

2008-11-22T08:01:00.000-08:00

Animations, new and old!
The floursack animation from first year. Not the greatest, but there are some things I do like about it.

The wave, boat and sack animation. I'm mostly satisfied with this one, though I'm sure it could be improved.

Also, my lift and toss animation. I regret not getting a chance to finish it yet, as I'm quite pleased with the direction it's going in. I'll likely make an effort to get it finished during our absurdly long Christmas break.

That's all for now, but hopefully I'll post my walk and run assignment soon!

Best Animation Ever!

2008-09-22T22:12:00.000-07:00

This is an animation I did of my roommates and I dancing. I like it.

Combines, Bears, Guns

2008-09-07T09:53:00.000-07:00

A few things from my sketchbook:
(This one wrecked three pages after it, courtesy of the markers)

I tried cleaning these guys up, but I'm not very good at digital cleanup yet.

Zombie Post

2008-08-17T21:39:00.000-07:00

Did a quick comic for the comic blog tonight:

Plenty to fix and do better, but I thought it was funny. Anyway, check out the rest of the comic at Deep Fried Life.

Mishmash

2008-08-14T18:01:00.000-07:00

I've compiled a bunch of random selections (aka selections I'm not ashamed to show you) into one huge, computer-crashing jpg. You're welcome. Please enjoy responsibly.

2008-08-14T15:08:00.000-07:00

Well I'm trying to get the hang of digital colouring (like I've said many times before), so here is an attempt at colouring the ship I designed and posted before:

Also, this is something I worked on a while ago:

And finally, this is awesome, and may bring back memories to some (Drew, in particular):

Yes, this is a plate full of icecream. Somewhere out there are small children who worship the long haired giant as their God.

DINOSAURS!

2008-07-20T21:20:00.001-07:00

Alright, it's been quite a while since I've done any considerable amount of drawing, so here is an update. I went to Drumheller for the weekend, which, if you don't know, is the dinosaur capital of. . . Canada? The world? I dunno, but it's dino crazy.

Ok, so now here are some dino-unrelated pictures:

A self portrait:

Hope you enjoy!

Quillia

2008-06-07T23:42:00.001-07:00

Here's a concept for a character from the graphic novel I am supposed to be illustrating. I need to buckle down if I'm going to get this done before college.

And yeah, I know her hand isn't drawn in, I was having trouble.

More from the bush

2008-05-25T19:49:00.000-07:00

More forests!

Forest!

2008-05-18T18:29:00.001-07:00

I've apparently got a mountain with beautiful rolling forests in my backyard, and never really knew about it.

I just beefed up the colour of the paper, which lends itself nicely I think.

I can see I'm going to be out there a lot. So long as the bears don't get me :S There are lots and lots of bears where I am.

Castles!!

2008-05-14T18:38:00.001-07:00

Everybody loves a good castle ruin!

I've been practising castles and stuff for when I get to work on my graphic novel. Maybe I'll be able to post some of that work soon. Once I've done some of that work.

Lioness walk cycle

2008-04-02T15:23:00.001-07:00

Here she be:

A few fixups are in order, but I am happy with it.

SP

2008-03-14T20:13:00.001-07:00

Another attempt at a self portrait. This time directly in photoshop. I'm still trying to get used to this tablet business.

Also, while you're here, check out the new webcomic Derek Spencer, Drew Petursson, and I are working on. It's not exactly high quality work, but it might make you laugh.
Deep Fried Life

Older Projects

2008-03-13T19:15:00.001-07:00

Here are some older assignments from first semeseter. I think they both turned out ok, though the box fold came out a little more papery than I wanted.

Altivo

2008-03-12T17:46:00.000-07:00

This is going to take forever, so it's just going to be the one video today. this is Altivo from the Dreamworks film Road to El Dorado. I'm very pleased with it, I'd say it's my best animation to date.

Long time no see

2008-02-21T13:40:00.000-08:00

Well alright folks, I guess this is long overdue. I haven't got a ton of stuff immediately available to post (still don't have a scanner), so I'll have to see if I can scan some sketchbook stuff some other time.

First, here is the background of for my digitally cleaned up pink panther walk. You don't get to see the animation, it's poorly done.

Next is the title page assignment from the beginning of the year. I don't really understand photoshop painting.

And last but not least, my most recent layout assignment.

Hands

2007-11-18T11:45:00.000-08:00

This should have gone with the last update, but I forgot about it:

Sorry about the image quality, the scanning process wasn't forgiving. I'll see if I can get a nicer quality image by the next update.

Animations!

2007-11-12T15:35:00.000-08:00

At long last: A real update.

2007-11-12T13:36:00.000-08:00

FINALLY!

So, here are some goodies from the royal winter fair. They are all out of order, but that doesn't matter.

Next up, here is my character sheet from Enzo's class. I'm not sure what she is/does, but I think it turned out alright, considering I generally don't draw women.

Below are a couple concepts for a character from a graphic novel I'm supposed to be working on. I'm having trouble finding the time between school and guitar hero.

And some splash pages.

Hopefully there will be more soon. Maybe some life drawings, if I can figure out how to get them scanned in nicely.
EDIT: There will be more shortly, or whenever youtube finishes uploading my videos.

Long overdue

2007-11-11T19:12:00.001-08:00

OK

SO

I know I haven't posted anything at all for a long time, so I'm going to fix that. Tomorrow. After class I'll use the scanners at school and scan a bunch of stuff to upload. Promise.
For now, I have something that I did tonight. It's certainly not finished. I am going to hopefully work on it more later.

Sundial Crab

2007-08-23T20:02:00.001-07:00

I really need to post some more goodies. In the meantime, here's a WIP for creature of the week at conceptart.org

I like the colour scheme, I just don't know how to execute it. It's supposed to be sort of an oxodized copper sort of thing.
Crits are more than welcome, I've got to get this done before sunday night, the deadline.

Coke Cap

2007-08-05T12:22:00.001-07:00

I wanted to paint something. . . this happened to be in front of me, so I painted it.

Coyote Skull

2007-07-30T21:00:00.000-07:00

10 Minutes, sketch from memory after seeing a coyote running through the forest - from a bushplane. I drew it while the plane was landing (that's right, it took 10 minutes for it to land). It would have been better if it weren't night, and if I had proper pencils, instead of using motor oil and a toothbrush.
I am a dirty liar, this took about 3-4 hours, from model, with a 3H pencil. I'm happy with it.

Sky?

2007-07-23T17:33:00.000-07:00

Ummm, here is some sky. Any suggestions as to what might go underneath it? I was thinking something either huge and futuristic (like a monstrous sprawling spaceship docking bay or a war zone), or something calm and placid, like one of those huts at the end of a dock like you see in places like Fiji. One way or the other, I need to be very careful with the composition, which is pretty crap already. The sky stops at about the halfway mark, so I may raise or lower it. Anyway, I'll work on it more in the next few days, so feel free to make suggestions in the meantime.

ZOMBIE!

2007-07-18T05:30:00.001-07:00

This one is 'ehhhh.' It's ok, but I think the pose sucks. I just like zombies enough to post it.

and a really rough colour

2007-07-02T19:27:00.001-07:00

Maybe

2007-07-02T19:09:00.000-07:00

I think this is going to be the viewpoint for my painting.

What do you think?

Iggy!

2007-07-02T13:24:00.000-07:00

Here's the start of a digital painting of Ignich chopping a murloc in half. I'll hopefully finish soon. I've got relatives visiting right now, so I likely won't work on it tonight, but I'll try to finish. At least I've come back to it once, so maybe I'm working towards finishing the odd piece.

Murlocs at the inn

2007-07-01T20:15:00.000-07:00

MRARLUARARARRARARARARURACK!!!!

Here are some thumbs. If anyone has ever played the game Majesty from Cyberlore and Microprose, you may remember that there was a really cool looking Inn. I want to do a painting of an inn out in the forest in winter. I got some masonite board from the jobsite for free, so now I get to do some actual paintings.

I need to actually finish something.

Nero

2007-06-26T21:00:00.000-07:00

Um I'm on crack?

Trolls and sliceometers

2007-06-24T20:54:00.001-07:00

I did a bunch of drawings today, and I'm going to post them in reverse order, for dramatic effect.
I was doing a lot of WoW art stuff.

EMO!!!!

This darker guy on this (^) page is likely the one I'm going to go with, though I do kinda like him flying through the air. . .

This is the first page of poses. . . I liked none of them very much. They were all too static.

Yes. He's going to be slicing a murloc into TWO completely seperate peices.
Hopefully I'll get around to doing a finished version of this piece. . . as well as the many other projects I have on the go.

2007-06-24T14:07:00.001-07:00

Bear
I'm trying to learn how to paint digitally.

A page of PITCHERS!

2007-06-23T22:18:00.000-07:00

One lonely page of pictures:

Black Pearl tattoo sketches

2007-06-11T06:23:00.001-07:00

Ok, here are some sketches of the tattoo that I'm designing for my boss. I'm showing them to him today to see what he wants. I really haven't had any guidance from him at all so far, so I'll see if I'm on the right track at all here.

Better Picture

2007-06-08T06:32:00.001-07:00

Ok, I did another sketch of what I'm going to do for my Norse mythology thingy.

Gotta go to work.

New Mission

2007-06-07T20:41:00.000-07:00

Ok, I didn't post twice that day. In fact, I haven't posted in a long time. BUT! I have a new mission. Two, actually, but I'm more excited about one than the other.

1) Likely more important, but less exciting, is a tattoo commission. My boss wants me to draw a sweet picture of the Black Pearl from Pirates of the Caribbean, and he's going to get it tattooed onto his back/neck. I should likely do this before moving on to

2) Huge picture of the Norse mythology world tree, Yggdrasil. It's going to be fairly complex, and I'm still working on the layout and design of the whole mess, but here's my idea to far:

It's gonna be sweet.
Updates soon to come I hope. I've got the weekend off, so we'll see what I can manage.

Wicked

2007-05-27T08:50:00.001-07:00

I've started reading the book "Wicked" by Gregory McGuire. It's a visually stimulating read. The two opening lines alone made me want to paint them.

"A mile above Oz, the Witch balanced on the wind's forward edge, as if she were a green fleck of the land itself, flung up and sent wheeling away by the turbulent air. White and purple summer thunderheads mounded around her."

The painting needs to be worked some more/redone, as I really hate the ground and the yellow brick road. I actually botched the whole thing originally when it was just pencil crayon, but they happened to be watercolour pencil crayons, so I just threw some H2O at it and voila! It was somewhat salvageable. I still am not satisfied with it though. The little green girl is the Wicked Witch of the West when she was still just Elphaba, daughter of Melena and Frex.
Hopefully I'll get some other stuff drawn up today, this actually comes from EARLY this morning, just after midnight. Maybe I'll post twice in one day!

THE FIGHT IS ON

2007-05-24T21:38:00.000-07:00

Drew, you're going down.

Trees

2007-05-21T19:43:00.000-07:00

Well, today's update is pretty small. . . actually, it's only one image. BUT! I do think it is a good one.

I was thinking about how cool trees are today, so I did this up:

I like the first one (top left) best, but I thought they turned out well enough in general, considering my complete lack of pencil crayon experience.

I had told Derek I was going to do some drawings of the human skeleton, as I should really get practised up on that before next year rolls around. Well, I'll get on that tomorrow :S

Content!

2007-05-20T19:48:00.001-07:00

As promised, I have a selection of today's sketchbook entries. I realize that the quantity could be improved (as could the quality :D), but today was a busy day and I didn't have too much time for drawing. I'll try to keep posting on a regular basis though.

This ^ is supposed to be a self portrait, but it didn't turn out very well IMO. I think I've done better ones. I tried again after this, but the result was even worse, so I didn't post it :S

I forgot to bring any coloured media with me, so I went to the only art store in all of Ft. Mac, and bought a $50 pack of watercolour pencil crayons. I tried them out today and am pretty happy with them. I'm not so impressed with the pricetag, but what can you do; I'm out in the middle of nowhere and I'm not going to go without pencil crayons for the whole summer.

Prelude to content

2007-05-19T13:54:00.000-07:00

Well, this is my new blog. It also happens to be my first blog, so this is something of a landmark event for me. Having never had a blog, I'm afraid I'm flying blind here, so if there are some sort of unspoken rules and regulations that I'm upsetting, please just bear with me.

My intention in starting this is, for the most part, to record my artistic achievements and present them to you, my readers. Perhaps I'll omit some of the lesser works, and give you all the impression that I'm better than I really am. Anyway, as I have already said, this is my intention. We'll see what it turns into as I develop it (or abandon it, we'll see in time). Maybe I'll turn all emo and use this as my personal record of all the wrongs the world has thrown at me. If that's the case, someone please smack me and tell me to straighten up.

I've got no artwork to post right now, but hopefully I'll get something scanned in or painted up in PS and show it off. Feel free to tell me what is wrong with it, or just tell me how wonderful and talented I am.