This was done in Colour Matters which is actually a CAD Design program for Fashion Illustration.

Old Sketches

I was going through some old sketch books from about 5 or so years ago and found this. I have some more joints I'm going to scan and post up later.

Cover #2

Juan has started the beginning stages of coloring the 2nd cover. I was going to do a 3rd and had been waffling on so many project ideas over the last month that I ended up getting nothing done at all. He asked me to do some un-inked character sketches in pencil so he could color them digitally. So that is what my next project will be. The piece will likely resemble the one of Ritsuko which is a few posts below.

Finally!

The first piece is complete! Juan did such a ridiculous job words can't truly convey how amazing his painting skill is. I can’t wait to see what he does with the 2nd cover, if we can execute what we have in mind I think it’s going to blow this one away!

Almost there

Well, the colors for the 1st piece are nearly done, I won’t even comment. I’ll just post when it’s done, nuff said. On that note I am in the process of actually finalizing my character designs, so far I started with Ritsuko. Here is a sketch, I’m about 97% set on her look.

I'm still here

Sorry for the delay in posting but I've been torn between sketching character designs and reading/writing for the Graphic Novel. I feel like my ambitions are pulling me to and fro and I haven’t been able to focus on any one aspect which is a tad frustrating. With that being said I figured it might be cool to post up a piece I did two years ago that got me honorable mention in the Official Blizzard Fan Art Contest.

Got somethin' brewin'.

I did some sketching recently and I'm gonna try something a little different. It's based on a story concept I have which I might or might not use but I think I can at least make the visual interesting. I have to collect some reference images first so as soon as I have something I will post my progress.

P.S. Juan started the color job on the Issue #1 piece, my word! I'm stoked about how it's coming out! I can't wait to see what he does with the 2nd piece.

Cover #3 and beyond.

I have a concept in mind for my next cover piece. The odd thing is, these covers are based on unfinished story concepts I have in mind. I’ve slowed down a tad on the art side these last few days as I have been writing a lot more lately and ideas have actually been coming out. I need to continue to work to focus my efforts and get out finished product(s) whether it be art or writing. I hope to have something to show by the end of this week.

The other version

This is the other revised version with the larger figures.

The Revised Version

I made some revisions to the piece; First off I extended the staircase in the foreground to encompass the entire width of the illustration. It makes it easier on the eye and gives the piece more depth. I also shrunk the two combatants so the sword can be seen in its entirety. I have another version where I simply fixed the stairs and left the characters in their original scale. However I think I am leaning towards the version where they are scaled down. I will discuss it with Juan and come to a decision before the coloring process gets underway or if anyone else has feedback feel free to leave a message. On a side note he started working out the flats on the Issue #1 cover so look out for that in the future.

Revisions, revisions, revisions....

After discussing the piece with Juan I will take his advice and make some revisions to the background. I think it will make things more clear and help the perspective also, once it's done I'll be sure to post it up.

The Completed Piece

Well, I spent my entire weekend working on this bad boy! I was so locked in I didn't even bother with incremental updates. I haven't been this focused on a serious art project in about two years (which is good). I think it might be a tad busy but I really wanted to try and add a background to really give the characters the feeling of actually dueling in a convincing setting. I think if colored properly it will really come alive and have nice clarity (I'm looking at you Juan *grin*). I struggled with elements of the composition, in particular the sword placement. I feel it needed to have the entire blade within the piece. Like I said on several occasions, careful planning ahead of time will avoid conflicts like this. I do feel good about this one regardless and hope the next pieces (and sequentials) will be even better.

It's getting there.

So far I am pretty pleased with the piece, I'm trying not to nitpick and get caught up on too many small aspects of it. Like I said before next time I will plan it out thoroghly before hand, as it stands now I am basically creating this in a "freehand" fashion. I also passed the first cover off to Juan for coloring, here's hoping he finds the time to finish it with a fairly decent turn around.

Cover #2

This is the first stage of my second project. It's going to be done with an issue #2 cover in mind. I won't give away what the final piece will look like, I'm just gonna keep plugging away at it and see where it takes me. I'm using a thumbnail sketch that I am working from but it's extremely loose. I scanned it in high rez and blew it up to use as my road map for the illustration. I am still working things out in my mind but I need to start planning my work out in more detail. That way I don't waste a lot of time fidgeting with elements of the work when I am trying to create the final product.

A new project in the works

I am working on a splash page style piece of Kumagae, it is in a very early stage so I dont have anything to show yet. Hopefully by the middle of the week on into the weekend I will have some content to show. I am doing pinup/covers right now to get my feet wet and shake off any rust I have. After a few pieces are done I will then start working on sequential pages from sample scripts I have.

Ok, I lied

This is the finihsed Black & White piece, I actually was forced to go back and re-do the work I did during my last post. I saved my image in a low rez format, which meant it could not be colored properly at only 150dpi. With that being said I decided to go back and give Kumagae's tunic the same leather texture treatment I gave Ritsuko below. I feel it gives it nice contrast in terms of blacks and whites, the Mask on the Warlord was to get the same treatment but I think I'll leave that up to my colorist since it was such a large space with flat black I felt it took away from the piece overall.

Phase 1 complete

Well, this is the finished Black & White version. I could continue nitpicking at it for days but I've decided to leave it be and move on to the next phase. Considering I didn't plan it out other than a small thumbnail I must say I feel pretty good about this (especially since it's my 1st Adobe Illustrator piece). I learned a lot and my next project should fare better in terms of some technical aspects which you wouldn't be aware of unless you had the original vector file. Juan is going on Vacation so the coloring likely wont begin for another two weeks. I might mess with it though and see what I come up with.

Monday morning Quarterback

Well, I worked on the piece a little bit over the weekend. I've decided to add a bit more detail on the Monk instead of handing it over to Juan right now. I wont post it up until it's done but I think what I have planned will come out nice and I already have the ground work laid out for it. On a side note I have also been brainstorming what will be my 2nd piece consisting of these characters, I actually like the idea of creating comic covers so I will continue that trend for the next project.

Almost there

The piece is about 95% done, I have to fix the folded arm portion on the Monk but it's damned near done. I shouldve planned him out better but I may just have to go back and re do the arms from scratch, oh well it is a learning experience none the less. Once I complete it I will post up the finihsed Black & White.

Beyond Day 4

I am nearing completion of the piece, after the final figure goes in I will tweak some things here and there. Look for a post either tonight or tomorrow. After that is done I will send it off to Juan to color, I'm stoked about that because his painting skill is elite. Once it's done I will start a 2nd portfolio project.

Day Three

I'm a Night Owl, I worked on this most of the day Saturday but as the day turns to night I gain focus and before I know it it's 4:30am. I've been this way as long as I can remember; Hell, even at work I tend to hit my stride post lunch time. With that being said I got a lot done today, I had a scare though. My original file got corrupted somehow and wouldnt allow me to open it. However my buddy Juan told me I should be able to open it in Photoshop. He was right which saved me from losing my temper. So I can still do what I have to do with a few work arounds. It sucks though because I wanted to have the finished piece in Illustrator but I'd have to go back and do a lot of work which isnt worth it right now. As it stands the Black & White portion of the illustration is nearly done, I have 1 more character to add towards the bottom and then I will either color it myself or pass if off to Juan to do (he is far superior than I am at coloring).

Day Two

I'm getting into this piece, I spent last night working on it and didnt log on to WoW at all not even to check my mail. The piece is about 2/3rd done in terms of the actual drawing. I tweaked the proportions of the Dragon Warlord's Face (above Kumagae) and finished Kumagae as well.I put a placeholder font there for now and will begin work on the bottom section by placing the supporting characters there. Hopefully by the end of the weekend I'll have some coloring to show.

Genesis

No, not it's not the Bible. Hell, it's not even the old 16 Bit console. But it is my first forray into blogging. I've decided to commit myself to changing my career and pursuing comic art/illustration. I had been running from my destiny for about a decade or so, but I cant run any longer. That being said I have started my first project. It's based on Kumagae which is a character I created and intened to develop into a full fleged Graphic Novel/Comic Book at some point in the future (distant or near I dont know yet). I took a different approach on this however, I decided to do it all from scratch in Adobe Illustrator. Normally I would thumbnail, then blow it up and pencil it. Afterwards Ink it then scan it for coloring in Photoshop. After day 3 it's so far so good, I'm very nitpicky with it but for my first try I think its coming out satisfactory.

Chaz