Two reasons it pays to work digitally (for illustrators) (vlog)

WHY develop a digital style that you not only "can live with" but be PROUD of, so that when an assignment comes in, you will RUN to your computer and leave your paints in the dust? There are TWO very good reasons and I outline them in this short video.

You can also see it on my YouTube channel, along with all my other videos! 

Take-home points (in case you cannot watch the video or like written outlines)
Working digitally allows you to...

1.) Deliver the art in a VERY flexible format!
• Deliver final art in as many layers as client needs or you see fit. This added flexibility makes you more valuable to your clients
• Creating art in native digital format allows the artist more control over the final product. No scanning and dirty pixels to clean up and no overexposed/underexposed/shadowy areas in your scan. Among so many other things..

2.) Easier to make changes to your art (as long as you set your file up well)!
• You can isolate specific layers to make changes quicker and easier and also trouble-free!!! (If I had to go in and make a change to a watercolor? Forget it! Start over!)
• Changes look more organic when they are done in format that is native to the originally-created artwork. The final revised piece will look as natural as if the art was never revised.

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Video blog: Using the Wacom Cintiq and a brief diatribe on digital inking (for print output)

Here is a short video blog I put together for you. There was lots of Cintiq chat on Twitter the other day, and it inspired me to show you mine and explain a little of my process with it.

I want to clarify a couple of things I talk about.
Double-sized files
I just started working on 2X larger files, it is not a regular something I do all the time. It is kind of an experiment and so far it seems to be working well. Personally, I am thinking "fabric" right now, so for an illo that needs to be especially crisp and sharp as it is printed on fabric, I think it's a good way to go or at least a good thing to try. But, as long as it looks GOOD at 100% (and you are sure of this, because you have done your print-check :) ), then 100% is perfect! In the case of illustrating in Adobe Flash in particular, I think working a little extra larger as needed (working for print output) is a not a bad thing because, although the line is vector, if you use the "Brush" tool exclusively like I do, the line generally has more "character" to it, more variation, than a precise line a la Illustrator. This can be a double-edged sword at times. The verdict is NOT totally in on working extra large yet... But it IS what I am doing right now. (It is ALL trial and error, isn't it?)

"If I am doing a poster, I do it at 100% and deliver it that way..."
What I mean is, I will make my actual working file at actual size to print instead of twice as big. I will not make it, say, 48" x 48",  if it is actually going to print at 24" x 24". I will instead work at the actual to-print size,  24" x 24". The reasons for this are two-fold. 1) I find that inking for print in Flash larger  is a little more forgiving with any line variations than smaller, more detailed work like say, a 5.5" x 8.5" oversized postcard-sized piece of artwork. 2) The file size would be impossible to work in if it was 48" x 48". I think my processor would be smoking.

"When you're looking at a computer screen, it can be hard to tell what's real..." What I mean is, working on artwork in the digital space never seems like the size is equal to the same size of working on a piece of paper (whether it is or not).

Anyway, Hope you like the vlog. If you have any questions at all, please post in the comments! And please, forgive the hair-do.

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Winter Scene

(Please click on image to see larger view)
Here is a detail of the illustration that will soon be used for my latest promotional piece (children's).
See the original sketch here
This is an approx 3" x 3" square from the 5.5" x 8.5" illustration. My objective was to do a "big scene" with a lot going on, lots of people, activity and a fun, busy feeling. I think I have accomplished what I set out to, but I am still getting used to this one. I usually add in plenty of detail, but my focal points are usually larger. In this one, everything is small, and there are many things to look at, not just one main focal point. In some ways, this kind of bugs me, but I wonder if that's a function of my being outside my comfort zone. I'm sitting on this one to see how I feel about it in a few days. So far, the verdict is that I love a big scene like this, and I am happy with how this one came out. But I think I will make everything in future "big scene" like this just a little bigger across the board. I have a very hard time 'sticking to the script' when I am working in a way that really is not conducive to a lot of detail. I just have to add in detail, it's in my DNA. In this one I spent lots of time and energy on details in the people and in their clothing, and much of it is lost in the final. Oh well - live and learn, right? ;) (This WAS a Flash illustration detail experiment, and I did learn something from it. So, there you go.) Anyway, I hope you enjoy this one, and I would love to hear your thoughts.

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Breaking into Freelance Illustration - book review

Recently, I read "Breaking Into Freelance Illustration" by illustrator and author Holly DeWolf. I actually learned about the book before it was even published. A couple of years ago, Holly asked me if I would be interested in contributing to the book, and I was very happy to oblige. I knew Holly from the online community of illustrators, and I knew that whatever she was writing would be something I'd be eager to read myself! Her book saw the light of publishing day in September 2009 (F+W/HOW Books) and I of course could not wait to get my copy from Amazon. When it arrived, I couldn't put it down.

Three things I love about this book

Its a creative business book that's also a fun read
There is no slogging through the content in this book. It's packaged well in fun-sized, easily digestible morsels. This helps make it an addictive read. It's a flexible one, too—for the reader, it would be as comfortable to consume the entire book in a few longer sittings, as it would be to pop off a few pages at a time over the course of a couple weeks, say, on your daily commute.

It features real-deal conversations, observations and advice from a variety of active, working illustrators and designers
I love that there's snippets from working professionals from all walks of illustration: children's, editorial, art licensing, logo designers, and more. This not only helps to illustrate personal experiences in so many different areas of the industry, but it also illuminates how similar all of our experiences as creative professionals are, how we all often struggle with the same fundamental challenges, and how some general solutions to these problems can be retro-fitted to our own particular situation with just a fresh eye and an open mind. Though each of us may concentrate on different areas of the industry and, as such, have very individualized,  specific goals for our respective work, there is more that is fundamentally similar in all of our experiences than is different.

A great introductory book for young illustrators... and a good reminder manual for the established
Many business books for creatives tout the same, classic, tried-and-true fundamentals. Good advice is good advice, right? This book shares some of the same, but also shares so much more—Holly's voice shines right through the words on the page. She's personable and honest, like a good friend who doesn't sugarcoat things. Holly acts as an invisible mentor, dispensing some real tough-love advice, but in a completely comfy, "positive-vibes" type of package. She definitely has a way with words, proving a strong ability to cover a lot of material in a way that's neither overwhelming nor disorganized, while maintaining her loose, conversational tone. All in all, it's an easily digestible book on the business of art that's great for artists who have an aversion to business books.

There is a lot more to love about this book. If this mini-review has piqued your interest, I hope you will pick it up!

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A little bit of writing in "Art Tips"

Just a quickie post to let you know my latest: I have a little written bit in the "Art Tips" column of the Jan/Feb 2010 issue of the SCBWI Bulletin. I'm really proud of it and I hope you enjoy reading it! (P.S. My tip: it really works!)

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Rosie is Complete!!

Please click on images for enlarged view

Rosie is complete! I am very happy with this portrait. It was so fun to work on. Even though I felt, in a way "freer" creatively with this portrait, note how my style is the same as my other portraits, extremely detailed and pretty tight. (See the monster I've created?? LOL just kidding folks! ;) ) Anyway I hope you have enjoyed checking out Rosie's beginning 1,  2 & 3, middle 1 & 2 and this final piece.

I am saying good bye to pet portraits now, but some time in the future I will be creating a book featuring many of my favorite pet portraits. It is a project that I plan to do in the future, probably this year. It's been my goal to do this for years, and I might have the time to do it this year! I'm not sure of which company I will use for my book, it depends on a few factors unknown at this time. But you can be assured that print quality is extremely important to me and will be a major priority.

To all those folks who have tuned in time and time again to see what I was up to on the pet portraiture front, a HUGE THANK YOU for all of your support, comments, feedback and general interest over the years. I'm forever grateful to you and I appreciate it so very much. Please keep in touch, and please continue to visit me here to see what I am up to! I can say that this year is going to be GREAT! XOXO

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Happy New Year's Day! Rosie Finished Ink!

Please click on all images for a larger view.

I'm so excited to paint in Rosie's portrait. I love how it is coming out so far, but all that this portrait represents is so important to me as well. This will be my LAST pet portrait and I have thoroughy loved doing pet portraits for the last five years. Choosing to do pet portraits as a business touched on many key areas that I wanted to grow in, and - BINGO - it worked beautifully. I am so much smarter in these key areas now and so much wiser.

I reaped so many hidden-treasure benefits as well from doing pet portraits. Ah, I will miss doing them. I'm so proud of all I have accomplished personally and professionally with my pet portraits though. It's funny as a career artist the line is incredibly blurry between personally and professionally, isn't it? Starting pet portraits really built my skills to a point where they are stronger than I -  gee - than I guess I ever imagined they might be. As an artist, I don't think I've have ever had a terrible confidence problem (although I'm human, I've had my days) - but another gift that pet portraits gave me along with further artistic growth has been the gift of building my confidence more, as well. This has also led to REAL business knowledge, practice and confidence,  and the courage and confidence to build the dreams, for REAL, that for a long time I'd had, but I guess I'd sort of buried*. So pet portraits have also been a HUGE catalyst for my growth in other creative areas. 

After Rosie I will give the pet portrait business a big smoochy kiss and a bear hug goodbye, maybe some noogies. But until then, I'm going to enjoy completing my final portrait maybe more than I have out-and-out plain just enjoyed a portrait, just for the fun of it, just for the art of it, no strings attached, in quite awhile! :)

*I like to refer back to this post once in a blue moon when it is appropriate, because although I'm "eating crow" happily now (being a children's book artist), it just goes to show how a person's attitudes about something, about themselves and about what they are capable of, and let's be blunt, about taking criticism, can change so drastically. It's interesting to see everyone's path is different and unique, and the mental shifts we make when we make decisions for ourselves and what we want to focus on as our main goals.

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