Man with big nose

Original image.

Analysis:
Not bad for my first sketch. I need a sharper pencil (or to have my pencil sharpener handy. Totally missed the mustache, and the whole mouth/jaw area needs more detailing/wrinkles. He looks like he got a face lift in my sketch. Ear is too small, too high, and too close to other facial features. I need to work on placement of features by adding my tangents in more before I start shading. Overall, pretty happy with the nose and eye although the bridge should be slightly wider.

New Year's Resolution

Even though it is not New Year's eve/day, there's still time to make a resolution. I've been thinking about it and I decided that I wasn't going to make a whole list of fancy resolutions that would attempt for a few days/weeks and then the resolution dribbles away into nothing.

I only have one true resolution that I would really like to do: work on more artwork. I've seen many cases of an ok artist developing amazing drawing skills just by constantly drawing. Case in point: Megatokyo. Look at the artwork of Fred Gallagher's first volume and look at his skill now. Even he admits he wasn't the greatist at figure drawing when he started. With my own art, I have definitely seen a marked change in my skill level when I started college to what I work on today. However with my full-time job as a graphic designer, I have let my skills dribble down to the occasional illustration (maybe one every 3-4 months) and I rarely sketch anymore. And sketching is where you come up with some of the best ideas sometimes. Also, I continually laud the fact that I can't draw hands and faces as well as I should.

That being said, my resolution is to spend 15 minutes (timed) a day on a random sketch of hands or faces and post each sketch to my blog. To encourage that I stick with the project, if I fail to post for 3 days in a row (except in times when we're traveling for vacation) we will cancel our cable. So look forward to the sketches, and I will be looking forward to seeing the progression of my skill over a year's time.

Me sketching...me

Hey look! Wasn't I a cute kid?! I've been looking for free sources of reference photos for my illustration work, ie., photos that myself, my family or my friend took and don't mind if I use for reference, and I thought what better to use then photos of myself. I've always liked this image of me climbing the fence, and I had fun drawing it freehand, particularly with the fence.

Sketched in a moleskin, the one sketchbook I seem to adore, especially the purse-sized version.

Second vector illustration

This is my second trial illustration using Illustrator. The reference photo is of my niece, Bella, although I primarily used her face/upper shoulders for the reference. Oh, and the outfit, because she always has really cute outfits on. The only thing I'm not fully happy with is the kneecap, but since this is digital, and I work on layers, this is infinitely editable and I can fiddle and fuss till my perfectionist heart is content. Yay me :) If I wanted to be particular, her eyes have no color and her hair has no shading, but I still like it a lot, as is.

I did this for a sample for a possible illustration job that I'm hoping to get. More news on that if I get the job.

Belated finished sketch...

It's been over 2 weeks since I finished the quick little samples of the young girl sketch that I posted last time. I should have posted them long since, but here they are now. I did a total of 4 in one night, which is quite different then my usual pace. 3 were traditional ink and watercolor (with a little color pencil thrown in) and the one with the solid green background is digital using illustrator (vector illustration, woohoo!). My favorite freehand one didn't get saved correctly, and I am not going to scan it again now. I am not 100% satisfied with the dress folds where her leg is coming forward. I liked the folds in the sketch better, but you could also SEE her legs in the sketch. I want to start taking drawing classes again, particularly classes that focus on a) heads, hands, and feet; b) fabric folds and drapery; and c) animation classes that focus on expression. I think that will help my illustrations out a lot in the long run.

Sketch in progress...

I'm working on samples of my illustrations using both traditional and digital media. I will be working on the same set of illustrations in both media. Tonight I worked on the digital version of one of my sketches from last year that I really like. This is the illustrator traced version of the image. I will be trying out both blocking in color with illustrator and using photoshop to "brush" in color behind the "ink" lines. I will also be using both a pen and a quill in my traditional ink and watercolor samples.

Achoo! complete

Tonight was a very productive night, as I finished the last little bit on my illustration for the CSUN illustration club student show Affliction, which opens tomorrow night. It is called Achoo! and it is very cute. I did it in a very rough format, working rapidly (for me, if not for the rest of the art world). I don't like the blending quite as much as the other pieces, but I really like the color and contrast in this piece: very rich, vivid color (for all it being a muted palette) and better contrast than my work normally has. I will consider doing more pieces like this as I finish in about 1/3 the time. But I will not make any decisions without trying more techniques out on my demo board. Even then i'll probably continue to experiment and grow and develop even newer techniques. Hopefully by that stage i'll have also purchased a Cintiq and Painter and will be working on digital art as well as traditional.

In addition to finishing up an illustration, I have done a quick sketch/color comp of the next piece I'm working on: a knight charging a monster, as seen from the knight's viewpoint. I think the end piece will be wider then what I sketched out, and I'm not so fond of the monster at the moment, since i am not very good at scary looking monsters (CUTE monsters, no problem) but I like it so far. I think it is more dynamic then what I usually do, and I can even push the final drawing a bit more then what I have so far.

All in all, the only disappointing news I have tonight is that I won't get an image of Achoo! on the website until a week from now when the show comes down and (hopefully) my scanner is installed on my computer once again.

Post or else...

I apparently HAVE to post, because I haven't posted in nearly a year. I guess time flies when you're busy....A new job, a NEW new job...a new nephew when we were expecting a new niece...I guess life happens. :)

Two new pieces of art currently ongoing...a dragon for Jan, almost done...if I can ever figure out what to put behind him. And a CUTE (really serious here) entry for the disease/sickness/affliction themed illustration gallery show at CSUN in March. When Scott saw it and I told him the story behind it, all he had to say was I was "...seriously well adjusted..." You'll get the full story when I post the art. And one day, Scott WILL actually get artwork created for him by me...sorry Scott, I must be too well adjusted for the first 5 or so tries on your artwork.

I'll post more later when it's not past my bedtime.

Site temporarily down

This is Deathshade posting for Nightengail, I took our home web server down to repurpose the hardware. I'll try to bring her site up again soon.

Yay! Four new images on the website

There are now 4 new images on the website: 3 colored pencil illustrations and one watercolor piece. The watercolor piece is one from last year that finally got scanned. I found someone in Glendale who does large-format scanning with about what I expected for prices. (I would always like less expensive, but it is still decent pricing)

The first colored pencil illustration is my namesake and one of my oldest acceptable drawings redone in my new style. It is a mechanical nightingale based on the oriental fairy tale "The Nightingale." I really didn't like any of the other illustrations I did for that project, but I always loved the mechanical bird. I decided to wait until my skill level caught up with what I wanted the bird to look like. I might work on one of the more dynamic poses I had for the bird at a later date, but for now I'm pleased with the one that I did.

The last two drawings are for an online baby store that will be opening up soon: www.notyouraveragebabyshop.com. I had a lot of fun working on these illustrations, and working with the owner of the online store. The site is not live yet, but there is a nice placeholder page with a vaguely familiar image on it.... :)

I have a number of sketches that i'll be turning into illustrations at some later date, but I have two projects that I plan on working on next...I better get to them!

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Workspace

Although I do have an art desk (and a computer desk, I have taken to working on my current illustration in the guest/computer room. Around me are all the necessities of a good colored pencil illustrator: my trays of colored pencils, and all the pencils I've been using (the ones that are on the bed, and not in the cases) an electric eraser, and refill erasers, pencil sharpener, an iPod with an audiobook (currently Flyte by Angie Sage), a back pillow, and of course (most importantly) jelly beans for a snack!

When good stuffed animals get schnockered

This is what happens when your stuck on a sketch revision. You start drawing very inappropriate, but none-the-less amusing, images. I think i'll work on the other illustration for a bit and then come back to this one. Ok, not THIS one specifically, but the actual revisions I'm supposed to be making. I think the drawing of the animals may be about an inch or so high, at the most.

So this is what the workforce feels like....

Where does all my time go these days?! It feels like it has been ages since I've posted an update on the blog. And it has. The last blog I remember posting is a reflective commentary on post graduation/entering the working world. Oh, for the freedom of school and surfing the net at every available instance. (yes, I LIKE school....if i could get rid of finals, I'd LOVE school!) But I guess we all have to grow up some time. (but i don't want to...)

I'm slowly learning to find a balance between fun and illustration in my off hours. My newest favorite thing is the Secret World Chronicle, a pod cast created in part by one of my favorite authors of all time: Mercedes Lackey. heh...I just happened to look on the website again while linking to it and I noticed a little blurb at the bottom right side of the header: "Illustration by Larry Dixon." For those who aren't familiar with Mercedes Lackey and Larry Dixon, they're married. It helps to be married to the illustrator of your project.

...a little of topic, but that's ok. Anyway, my newest favorite thing is the podcast, because I can listen to a wonderfully written story and draw at the same time. All the fun things i want to do together!

I have one small illustration job that's in the works. I'm not divulging much, other than it's going to be the identity for an online store! So far the project has been a lot of fun and right up my alley with the cuteness factor.. I think me and my client are both experts at writing novel length emails! She's fun to chat with and has lots of good ideas. Other than that, I have illustrations for friends and family that are LONG overdue.

Babies R Us

I've been overwhelmed by babies recently. Every where I turn there are babies. Maybe not literally, but it sure feels that way. With Bella, and another baby Buschman (the OTHER Buschmans, that is) that is on the way our immediate family is starting to develop their next generation. Two of my other cousins just had little girls, my boss just had a little boy, and one of our closest friends is going to have a baby boy in May. I have 5 gifts for babies/children sitting behind me at the moment, waiting to be delivered to their recipients.

I've been asked, particularly by Jessica, when is it going to be my turn. Unless by accident, not any time soon. As much as I love babies, I really enjoy the lifestyle that my husband and I have. I'm sure people look in askance when we go out to dinner and sit there reading the whole time, and not saying one word to each other, but we are both extremely happy to be doing that. I also REALLY like not having stinky diapers and spit up to deal with. Furthermore, I don't need a baby to mess up my house. I am quite capable of that, thank you.

I know I'm sounding like a baby is all negative things, and I am aware of what a joy a baby can be. I personally like being the Auntie and spoiling them, and having fun with them, then sending them home to mom. All the perks, none of the negatives. I think I'll let DeAnna have the third Walton grandchild. At this time, all I'm looking for is a happy medium of work, illustration, games and books, but for now, 3 out of 4 isn't bad.

My thoughts on design

I've been working at PrintFellas for approximately a month now and I've been enjoying it a lot. I've been expanding my knowledge base in computer graphics, learning many tricks of the trade and time-saving techniques. I still feel slow, but I think I'm getting faster. Well...except when I'm trying out new tutorials at home. Then I'll follow the steps provided and try out 10 other things to see what would happen if I changed something. I've been learning more and more that layers are my friend and there's never such thing as too many layers.

Would I have learned more than what I left school with if I had focused solely on graphic design instead of graphic design and illustration? Undoubtedly, but illustration has been an ongoing pleasure (albeit a sometimes pain as well) that I wouldn't trade for anything. Also, I am not dependent on the computer alone to create my artwork. I love working on my colored pencil illustrations, even if I don't get as much time to work on them these days then when I was in school.

Should I have learned the majority of the things that I'm learning now while I was in school? Probably. One can argue that there are so many facets in trying to teach someone graphic design that teachers are required to pick and choose what to pass on to students in a 14-16 week period. First, training someone to have an eye/skill for good design, including what makes design good or bad. Second, typography and learning how to use it effectively to hone your design/message. Third, color and color theory: what meanings the correct hue, shade and tint/tone a color can bring to your design; anyone who says there's no more than 10 shades of blue (or any other color) has never designed before. Fourth, learning the medium that your designing: if it is web, understanding how RGB and web pages work/function; if it is print, then understanding how cmyk, printing processes, and types of paper interact with each other to create the finished product; if it's packaging, then understanding everything for print as well as how things are assembled three-dimensionally; if it's environmental graphics, then having an understanding of ALL three of the prior processes, since it is likely they all will be used on a job.

There is a fifth area of training that teachers must teach their students, the one that started this rant/postulation initially: teaching the students how to USE the design programs. The main problem with teaching the design programs is that there are students at every level of education when they start schooling, and unfortunately teachers have to go at the speed of the slowest student. In the lower level classes, the teachers must assume that you've never worked with the programs before. This frustrates students like me, familiar with the computer and with most of the basic workings of the program. To further compound the issue, the initial computer training classes are often taught by grad students and then the students learning are confined to the knowledge of the grad students, which may be limited. Granted, upper level classes, such as packaging design, expect you to have a working knowledge of all the programs necessary to complete your assignments, but students can make it to those classes without having learned the necessary skills. I went through half of my graphic design classes without learning something new from the teacher. Mind you, I only had 6, but I still took more graphic design classes then the MINIMUM needed to graduate with an emphasis in graphic design.

I don't have an answer to the problem of how to teach graphic design efficiently, but I will mention my most useful class. I took Magdy Rizk's Graphic Design Production class, and he spent at least half of all the classes on lectures, including technique/process demonstrations, showing samples of good design and what to look for, and showing us the printing processes and teaching about paper, ink, etc. He even took us to a printer to see the printing process in action. That class is the one I learned the most from in all my graphic design classes at CSUN.

New website up and running!

Welcome to v0.7 of the new Nightengailart.com. The layout I kept simple and clean for a starter website, but I have ideas in the works to integrate my illustration and the website layout. The links page should be operational soon, and the home page might change a bit, but we're pleased with the website so far.

Please let me know what you think, and if there are any glitches or suggestions, tell me.

Interviews and more

I've been sending out resumes like crazy and working on my website, in hopes of getting it up and running. Been going on a few interviews and have a few more scheduled for this week and next.

The new website is coming along well. At this point we're making minor changes to the appearance, and tweaking details. Version 0.1 should be up and running within two weeks, but hopefully sooner.

This weekend I have my niece's baptism to attend. I am one of her two godmothers, and am very happy to be one. I'm looking forward to playing with her and spending time with my sister.

I am sick...blah

Everyone's been getting sick except me, and I was happy that all I had was a sore throat and stuffy nose. But yesterday I managed to get more than that and now I'm not happy...this is when I wish I had a working bathtub.

Portfolio rework

Today I started really reworking my portfolio, and I got 9 pages in it done. I still have 2 major projects that I need to fix up and then a few additional projects that I'm going to start from scratch and create to add to my portfolio. I've been printing and reprinting pages to make sure they're up to my standards of acceptability. The image I'm posting is one of the best pages in my portfolio (according to Eric) because I've made the layout look all three-dimensional. I've also been using many tutorials and guide books to learn more and more tricks and techniques to the programs I've been using to get the most out of them.

Postcards Finito!

After good feedback from my illustration group today, I have finished the final version of the first postcard mailers. Although only one front illustration is show, I have designed fronts for all the colored pencil illustrations I've done so far. I won't order them all at once, but space them out in hopes of attracting attention to my artwork. Now as far as illustration stuff goes, I need to do a quick redesign of my website (just so my artwork could be on the main page) and update my portfolio. But before that, more graphic design in preparation for my interview on Wednesday.