Practice Makes Perfect...Or At Least a Lot Better!

Wow! Just found this website called Ctrl+Paint through Chris on AnimationSeven! Haven't tried any of the tutorials, yet, but excited about having this resource, since I'm self taught, and constantly looking for new ways to learn.

I also appreciate Ira Glass' quote about needing to work to get better. That's what I hear time and time again....PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE!! Always good to remember these things (like becoming great at whatever you do) don't just happen....we have to work at it .

The book Outliers, by Malcolm Gladwell, comes to mind....also a great resource.

Digital Airbrush Shout Out

Okay, I should really go work, but first, another digital tool I've recently come to love....drum roll, please....dtl-dtl-dtl (ooh, how do you type a drumroll sound?).....uh, ta-daaaa! It's the digital airbrush!

I love you, digital airbrush, for making shading so awesome! I love you for your flexibility, in opacity and size and erasibility! XOXO, to you!

"Songbirds"

New work, created in last couple of days:

7 Keys to Being a Freelance Illustrator

Here's a very helpful article, by Christina Forshay: Seven Keys to being a Freelance Illustrator.

She refers to herself as a "zygote illustrator".....that means I must be a, uh, pre-zygotified cell, or something!:)

Thanks, Christina, for taking the time to write this.

Crayola Mona Lisa

Did this, for fun, one day.

I love to experiment....this is my version of the face of the Mona Lisa, done with crayons, and using some different colors.

It's a little light, but I feel like she's peering out of the page....

Square Root of Squirrel

Teaching math yesterday and thought of this silly thing.....first, I thought, "Square root of squirrel." That morphed into "squarel root." I decided to scribble it out, for fun.

Okay, now back to the work I'm supposed to be doing!:)

Illustrations

I've almost completed illustrations for my first children's book! Hooray! The author does not want any info posted, yet, but as soon as I can, I will. 

It's been a great learning process and I hope to continue doing this because I've really enjoyed it!

Looking forward to being able to put a picture of the book in my sidebar....

Cross Hatching Lesson

I've added a super cool cross hatching tutorial on my "Resources" page. It's fun just to see Dan Nelson's work! Just found it through a Tweet by Bob Ostrom.

Doodles of a Star Wars fan....

Something I drew, for fun.  I thought I made this up, but I think others have actually created some version of this concept, before.  I'm thinkin' it won't hurt to share it on my little ol' blog, though.....

Snowflakes and Enthusiasm?

It can be difficult to think highly of snowflakes, when you're covered in mounds of them, but....

The poet, Henry David Thoreau, wrote in his journal that a snowflake is the product of enthusiasm. "How full of the creative genius is the air in which these are generated! I should hardly admire more if real stars fell and lodged on my coat."*

Art is the product of enthusiasm, too.  I know that sometimes, when we're trying to earn a paycheck, we create artwork we're not necessarily enthusiastic about, but, at those other times, isn't it awesome to have something in your head that you just have to get out with paint, paper, canvas, sculpture, or whatever your chosen medium is? You hardly want to stop and eat, because you're so driven to complete the piece?

That is a product of enthusiasm!

And while we can't quite reach the capabilities of the Genius who creates snowflakes, it sure is fun to try!

*From The Journal of Henry David Thoreau, pp. 87-88

Heron Painting

Here's something I created this morning....it's my first "painting" done solely on the Wacom.  It was fun!

I could develop it some more, but am stopping for now....better work on other stuff.

Hmmmm

Just realized I said I wasn't going to post any more work, right now, because of my current illustration work, and yet, I have posted 2 new characters!  Well, okay, you know how it is.....I made some time to create them (and apparently, to post on my blog:).  Hey, I had to....they were in my head and I had to get them out!

Party Animal

Here's another one of my characters.....he and Carlos (below) are a couple of my original animals from that college sketchbook, just "amped up" a bit.

I don't have a name for this guy, but I do know he's a party animal.....