Raven Madness

Catch Up

2009-10-27T09:41:00.000-07:00

My day to day blogging is done on my http://artistsquest.blogspot.com/ blog. So I really have neglected to keep this up to date. Here are my recent illustrations for Macmillan Books:

New Commission On The Horizon

2009-02-24T07:52:00.000-08:00

I had a call from my agent about a possible 30-40 page full colour illustration commision. It is not until April but I will be given some idea of what's expected soon.

I will be working on a new look to my characters over the next few weeks. Perhaps a change to the button noses. I'll post up my progress on here. My workflow needs improving if I am to keep to the deadlines so I am going to have to look at the modelling, photography, and software involved.

2008-12-31T06:30:00.000-08:00

I was trawling the net seeking the general consensus of how next year looks in the Children's book market. It seems the Americans have vowed to spend less on young fiction. I'm not sure if this includes picture books, but nethertheless books will be sold, and I intend to have my illustrations in them:¬)

Also in my travels I looked in on the publisher who gave me my first break: Mantralingua Books. I discovered that two of the interactive CD ROM's featuring had won Silver medals in Multimedia awards! One in 2006 and one in this year. The CD's featured my models and their giggery-pokery. It would have been nice of them to mention it to me.

Here's a link to the publishers page:

http://www.mantralingua.com/pages.php?pageid=6

My New Blog

2008-11-12T04:35:00.000-08:00

I would appreciate it if you could link to my new blog where I will be posting regularly.

http://artistsquest.blogspot.com/

Thanks. Hope to see you there:¬)

The Lap Of The Gods

2008-10-30T17:31:00.000-07:00

That's where my illustration career is at at the moment. Nothing new there:¬) I'll be posting on my other blog for the forseeable future unless something else illustrationwise turns up.

This is the last illo of the current brief: Clara Dreaming from the Nutcracker. I had to make her look pretty and that is quite tough with plasticine. I hope I managed it.

I want to finally start work on some sculptures, so will be posting sketches and marquettes on the other blog. I have been putting this off for far too long, maybe five years or more. I want to know if I can make it as a sculptor.

Making a change

2008-10-16T13:53:00.000-07:00

I will be posting my illustration work here as and when I do it, but I'm going to posting more on my 'personal blog.' There I will be following another path. Hope to see you there:¬)

Time Is Up!

2008-10-15T10:14:00.000-07:00

Well it was for me at 2am this morning. so here is the last of the Red Riding Hood illustrations. Can't say I'm over the moon with them, but the briefs and timescale made 'perfection' a little harder to attain.

I won't bore you with the details but the elements required in some of them made composition tricky.

My favourite clay smoothing silicone tool is a casuality of the frenetic activity, as is the softbox collapsible shooting tent, (portable photographic 'studio'). The steel frame snapped. There are countless decapitated models lying about, like a defeated army on a battlefield.

I have five flashcards of farm animals to finish for the 31st, but other than that I don't know what the future holds.

I will be posting some thoughts on where I am going to go next on my Artist's Quest blog. I want to make this blog show what really makes me tick. At the moment it is just the bare bones, but I want it to reflect my interests in sculpture, the human form, nature, Celtic and Nordic mythology, Pagan and Buddhist belief, spiritual healing, Tarot, Runes, fantasy. I also want to actually produce things that people can own so theris a direct connection between them and me.

Unequal Challenge?

2008-10-09T01:00:00.001-07:00

Just when i though my deadline was too ludicous, these extra jobs came in! I had to make ammendments to the farm poster by the 8th October. I had to move some chickens into the foreground, move the nest and give it more contrast, rotate the stable and add a horseshoe and lighten the stable to make it show up better against the dark background. The stable didn't look right lighter so I lightened the field instead. But then the red tractor didn't look so clear, so i changed it to blue. These changes required quite a bit of work particularly with masking.
The three images above the farm were required for the Nutcracker poster. Unfortunately I missed them, (what with the pressure and all that). The reason being, that the numbers for the artwork I didn't do, were the same numbers as those which were cut from the brief. Why they had duplicated the 'unique' numbers is a mystery to me but in the heat of battle I left out the wrong images.

The first image is The land of Snow from the Nutcracker and is representational. The next is the Land Of Sweets. And the third is an image for a theatre programme featured on the poster.

And despite taking the time to post this, I am really up against it at the moment. Unfortunately so many late nights working have made my eyes suffer. I am not going to risk my health so I am going to take things a bit easier regardless of the deadline. Having said that I hope to be there or thereabouts in the end.

Hop on the horizon:¬)

2008-10-07T05:34:00.000-07:00

First crop

2008-10-06T01:50:00.001-07:00

The Art director wanted less cutesy more Tim Burton. I have less than 2 weeks to do these 16 illustrations so I am not able to create a new style in the time allowed. I have just dispensed with the usual dots for eyes as a gesture of good will:¬) I'm really having to cut corners here which is frustrating. I literally have no time to think so mistakes may creep in. I'm just flying by the seat of my pants at the mo.

Nutcracker Poster

2008-10-01T09:42:00.000-07:00

This is getting really hard now. 7 hours non-stop Photoshop post production, trying to meet todays deadline.

Starting the models for the next deadline, (Red Riding Hood), this afternoon:¬)

Wolf In situ in the scene

2008-09-28T16:03:00.000-07:00

This shot is not wide as I wanted, but he who pays the piper and all that. Also I had to get stuff into the scene that would have far better suited a landscape shaped image.

Or

Deadline No.1

2008-09-24T11:48:00.000-07:00

Here's a character from the first poster, a kid's theatre production of Red Riding Hood:

I have 2 posters and 17 illustrations to do in less than 2weeks. To put this in perspective the last poster took me 2 weeks plus on its own!! Admittedly there was a lot of models to make for the farm poster and the background needed quite a few textures to be created. Iam aiming to get the first poster finished by 1 am of thursday morning. i still have loads to do for that. The next poster needs to be finished by Monday so I can start on the other 17 illo's. This is tough but I am going to try my best. I have some business ideas I'd like to pursue after this job. I just hope it doesn't take too much out of me:¬)

My Sculpture Blog

2008-09-21T16:36:00.000-07:00

I have started a blog which I hope will encourage me to keep alive the flickering flame of ambition to become a serious sculptor. I will post images, poetry etc which inspires me and the artwork I produce. I will also post any figurative digital work on there.

Ravenmadness has become blog soley relating to my plasticine illustration work. The new blog will be about my creative ambitions, feelings and day to day influences.

I have just posted a few pictures of my local surroundings on the blog on the link below:

http://artistsquest.blogspot.com/

The bad guy

2008-09-18T07:15:00.001-07:00

He needs a bit of cleaning up but here's the wolf hot off the press. I was trying to get a jump on the Red Riding Hood commission but I just got approvals today for two posters on theatre. So I'm going to have to change my plans. Such is the life of the illustrator. I'll be back to the wolf in about a month.

Next Project

2008-09-16T10:54:00.000-07:00

I was toying with the idea of starting on the front cover of my 'Zak Spanner And The Zargonites' book. But in light of my financial situation I feel it would be a better idea to start on my backlog of commissions. These are all still awaiting roughs approval, but I want to keep the ball rolling after the last job.

So I started on the wolf from the red Riding Hood commission. I'll post my first attempt in the next couple of days.

I am going to start a parallel blog relating to my begininings in fine art sculpture. I will start off with my influences and some sketches. I plan now to have two creative strands - my 3D illustration work, (3D Realm) and Fine Art sculpture, (Elemental Spirit).

Definitive website

2008-09-13T08:25:00.000-07:00

I have uploaded a new website. I've tried to make it simpler to navigate and to be more in keeping with the style of work. I want to create a clear division between my plasticine illustration and my ambitions with 'real' sculpture.

http://www.3drealm.co.uk/

I am waiting for rough approvals for Little Red riding Hood at the moment. But I really should be geting on with creating some of the models for it in advance.

I am tempted to get on and finish my 'Zak Spanner' story though. I need to tweek the text and work on the book cover. But I get the feeling that if I don't prepare for the Macmillan finals I could get caught out.

Finally

2008-09-09T11:18:00.000-07:00

These are the last couple of illustrations for the Jack And The Beanstalk brief. The shapes were a little awkward to say the least. Jack emerging through the clouds to find the castle, (with six turrets), above him was difficult to compose with such a wide shot.

The sleeping giant image is L shaped so I had to convey the impression of the size difference between Jack and the giant in quite a confined space. The brief was quite tight so the composition was difficult to try to get right.

Still three more to go.......

2008-09-05T03:38:00.000-07:00

Some of these images have been quite tricky to create. The perspective, and matching characters to the background have taken quite a bit of time to get right.

The images are very small between 5 and 8cm and this has caused issues too.

New Deadline approaches

2008-09-01T09:30:00.000-07:00

Thes are a couple more Jack And The Beanstalk illustrations. The shapes are a bit awkward to deal with in terms of composition. The actual illustrations are a bit smaller so I hope the details will show up ok. The deadline is even tougher than the last one so I hope I can get it all done, and that the quality doesn't suffer.

At Last!

2008-08-26T08:51:00.000-07:00

Here is the illustration I have been working on. I spent an unbelievable amount of time on the digital background. But I did so in the knowledge that I will reuse this for the next brief with its deadline already at my throat.

I have worked hard on the models which included re-working the cows 'snout' which I felt was originally too 'cartoon' like for the poster. It is bloody hard trying to get a clean look to plasticine and this brief really tested my resolve.

The colours in the image reproduced here aren't as vivid as the real thing. When I tried saving the image for web at maximum res, even for this relatively small image, the file size was over 300kb! Which shows the range of colours and textures in the illo.

The actual illustration is 7,000 pixels across! so my computer's 2GB memory couldn't handle rendering the background in one go. I had to render a chunk at a time and join them in Photoshop. The cows were the same cow but I made different versions by altering their black spots. These were made from plasticine rolled through a pasta machine. That way I could cut several shapes and move them around the model to create unique patterns. I also modelled the cow in different poses and photographed it from different angles.

One of the important things to keep in mind is the direction of the sun. When photographing the animals I had to keep in mind where the sun was in the digital background. On a couple of occasions I wanted to flip an animal in Photoshop but that meant the light was then on the wrong side. So I then had to re-shoot the model with the light on the opposite side to what looked correct in reality.

The rippled reflection of the swan couldn't be faked convincingly in Photoshop. So I had to apply the image of the plasticine swan to a digital 3D polygon, add a mask to it, (to cut the swan from the polygon square), and hide the polygon from the virtual camera. This produced a reflection in the water which I could superimpose in Photoshop.

All the models had to be given their own fake perspective shadows. All the bushes were made individually in digital 3D. All the textures were custom made and there were three layers of digital grass combined and judiciously removed in Photoshop.

In the rough the farmer was upper body only, but because this is an A2 poster, he seemed to dominate too much, so I remodeled him with legs so I could set him further into the image.

Behind Schedule

2008-08-18T15:34:00.000-07:00

Just about sums it up. I have got very bogged down trying to create digital backgrounds for my current briefs. Things are not going as smoothly as I would like, given the time I have got left. I try to rationalize things by thinking the background will suit the next few illustrations as well. But I have a number of actual clay models to produce in addition to composing the images. So I'm trying not to panic. But I have got a number of other Jack And The Beanstalk Illo's to get done for the next upcoming deadline. So things are going to be tight.

I hope to be able to post some images very soon.

Back In The Saddle

2008-08-08T11:23:00.000-07:00

I've come back to a couple of deadlines. I'm not sure exactly what the dates are due to a bit of shifting about here and there. So all I can do is get on with things and send them to the editor as I do them. It feels a bit unprofessional, but the deadlines seem a bit informal anyway. Once the roughs are out of the way for the 'Nutcracker' brief I will start to really apply myself to the Jack And The Beanstalk finals.

I want this to be my best work. I don't like my previous work, I guess I don't often like any of my work that has gone before. I do sometimes look over my work from months or years ago and think some of it's ok.

I have decided to uae digital 3D for all my backgrounds now and build up a library of backdrops. This will be hard work in the beginning. But hopefully in the longrun I will have enough 'stock' to allow me to adapt and manipulate existing scenes for future briefs. This will give me more time to spend on the actual models.

I have a few personal projects I want to turn to but I have enough commissions to keep me busy for a bit.

I deleted my previous post because I felt it crossed the line from business to personal again. But the spirit of the post was positive and I am looking forward to making great strides in my business and personal life in the coming months.

I'm Off

2008-07-27T03:43:00.000-07:00

Up country for ten days to visit relatives. I'm taking some work with me:¬( Japanese Theatre illustration roughs need to be done.

See you when I get back:¬)

My Schedule

2008-07-23T12:03:00.000-07:00

I have 3 A2 posters, 14 pages of Jack And The Beanstalk, 17 pages of Red Riding Hood. The roughs for RRH are due on the 31st of July. But I'm off to visit relatives for 10 days from this Friday, so they need to be done by then.

I have been working on how the hell I'm going to render the backgrounds to these illustrations, nevermind the models themselves! I'm going to opt for digital 3D backdrops, so I have been working on these. I have to create digital models and work on textures. I'm going for a realistic effect but hope this will work with the plasticine models. I will just have to see how things go. As usual it feels like I'm making it up as I go along!

Quacking on with things:¬)

2008-07-17T11:08:00.001-07:00

Out on the hill......

2008-07-17T04:57:00.000-07:00

Duck next........

Another Beanstalk

2008-07-16T06:50:00.000-07:00

This is a spot illustration for my ongoing commission. All plasticine again.

New 3D Realm Webpage

2008-07-15T02:38:00.000-07:00

Like this blog, I felt my website should be more relevant to my style of work. Here is the homepage as a work in progress. The character is to be simply animated.

Busy, busy

2008-07-10T10:49:00.000-07:00

I had an email from a design studio I worked with on my last commissiom. They said the author didn't make clear what he wanted when he asked for a shellfish as a thumbnail image. I had photographed my crab from a different angle to the main illustration but they really wanted a Scallop or something similar. So I created one in plasticine. I modelled the basic shape in white, then put some pink clay through a pasta machine and layered this on top. I then cut away strips of clay with a scalpel and incised grooves into the surface to blend it together. It's only going to appear as a small image so the detail should be sufficient.

Below the scallop shell is an image of three armatures for the current commission. They are for the hen, duck and horse. Below that are the animals at various stages of development. The horse and duck are semi-roughed out. I modelled the hen's body but decided I would need more detail for the head. So I did that separately and added it to the body in Photoshop! Shown at the bottom of this post.

New Approach

2008-07-06T15:50:00.000-07:00

I have been giving some thought to my career - how I promote myself, the direction I want to go in etc. In a similar way to Tara on the Silver Apples Blog

I have been getting a reasonable amount of work through my agent relating to my plasticine method of illustration. This seems to be the most viable way of earning an income at the moment. The trouble is that the models I create are just a means to an end and eventually they disintegrate. The illustrations produced from them are not suitable for anything other than the use intended. I put a lot into them and I feel that this energy remains in them, so it can be a bit disappointing to see them crumble. It feels like a waste of creative energy.

Turning Point
I was working on a figure this week and I got a bit frustrated. I have been using moulds from heads I made when I was up against a tight deadline a couple of years ago. But I have always considered these a bit of a compromise. Aardman use this approach in making models for their Stop Motion films. This week however I decided to build up the head from scratch. It took ages. I use baby oil to help smooth the clay but if further sculpting becomes necessary the plasticine quickly turns into toothpaste! So the less than satisfactory method of moulding is the only option with plasticine.

So I was thinking about some changes and a kind of two speed approach to my illustrations. One for Educational and the other for Trade books. For Educational I'm going to try to make my workflow as fast as possible by using a combination of elements including more digital. For the tradebook market I am going to create permanent models/plaques in wax cast in polyresin which I will photograph as per usual. But I will frame these up and market them afterwards to supplement my income.

Raymond Mason is an artist known for his relief sculpture, (example below), and this is the sort of thing I am looking at. Although my style is very different to his.

Aims
1. Complete the two ongoing commissions this month.
2. Change the banner of this blog to make it obvious what the content of it is!
3. Create a co-ordinated approach/style to self-promotion: Blog, Website, Etsy, Flicker, etc.
4. Work on my new book. adapt the style of illustration, and phrasing to current trends.

In the cards

2008-07-04T15:28:00.000-07:00

Firstly I owe someone an email. I'm cogitating on this as we speak:¬)

Ok, so the other week I flipped out a bit. My head is full of bandicoots but I've got the tamed right now:¬)

Life at the moment feels different. It's a feeling like all the planets in the solar system are starting to line up. Like in that cinematic masterpiece, 'Tomb raider' ;¬) I'll explain in a minute...

On a side note, I have had replies to a couple of Friends Reunited contacts, and I got some polite replies but which lacked the reciprocal emotional content I sought. Now, this would have bothered me a couple of weeks ago but for some reason less so now. I think things have shifted for me or more accurately I've shifted them. When I had my 'blowout' in a previous edited post, I had kicked a certain emotional crutch away. This was the equivalent of kicking an addiction. I feel stronger for it.

...back to the planets. I listened to the tape of my Tarot reading and although she didn't state the names of the cards, she described the prospects for my career which were pretty encouraging. I drew a card at random from the 78 card deck on wednesday and it was the Major Arcana card: 'The World.'

This card is not for little ends, but for big ones, important ones, ones that come with well earned cheers and acknowledgements. The Querent's hard work, knowledge, wisdom, patience, etc, will absolutely pay-off; they've done everything right.

On Thursday I drew another card from the shuffled deck: 'The World' again! On Friday I drew anotther Major Arcana card: 'The sun.'

The money you were waiting for arrives and a bonus has been added, the project you've been working on comes out perfectly and you get all the credit. Traffic lights turn green for you, liars come clean and apologize, the garden blooms, the sky is blue, the weather is warm and sweet. As the song goes, "Here comes the Sun...." and absolutely everything is going to be all right.

Anyone who really knows me would understand that I don't consider myself particularly talented, ( and I'm not fishing here), and I don't seek adulation, but a bit of success wouldn't go amiss:¬)

These are big cards and very auspiscious. I have some major stuff going on in july. It's something I've been meaning to get sorted out for quite a few years now. And to be honest I'm a bit anxious about it. What I do know is that this is a turning point.

I've also got what I hope is great book idea. I have written the story and I'm going to design the cover and post it here in August prior to sending it to my Agent.

Mazey Day

2008-06-28T14:04:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pictures and couple of videos of a local samba band - SambaCeltica during Penzance's Mazey Day carnival this weekend. It was a great day. We watched 3 processions in all.

In the second video the giant fish had to be prevented from poleaxing the crowd with its fin because of the wind:¬)

You can click on all the images to enlarge, (except the last one).

Body Popping

2008-06-27T17:05:00.000-07:00

Sorry this is nothing to do with illustration but I admire these guys awesome talent. I love dance but have never gone in for body bopping. They have even choreographed their fingers!

Turn the sound up:¬)

Mean Ugly Giant!

2008-06-26T07:05:00.001-07:00

But I kinda feel sorry for him.

Losing The Plot?

2008-06-24T13:29:00.000-07:00

Is putting six teets on a cows udder the thin end of the wedge?

I didn't even think about the teet count at the time. I just kept on whacking them on to the plasticine udder:¬) I guess it didn't help that they kept on falling off. I didn't do the research though. I think I must have been thinking of the undercarriage of a pig:¬)

Disaster has been averted now though. I Photoshopped the rogue teets out.

*Edited

Creating A Brand

2008-06-22T04:01:00.000-07:00

I often come up with 'one off' ideas. Sometimes a story will form in my mind with no particular build up or long term plan for the character. This is ok but maybe this is missing a trick. Most literary characters carve out a niche for themselves. They have a unique persona that can be latched onto by the audience. They can be a book in themselves and spawn further adventures. My Last Acorn story was driven by the message rather than a specific character.

I also wrote a story a while back which I really had high hopes for. The main character was different, but he didn't have a strong enough identity, and his name seemed like an afterthought. So I decided to approach the project from the angle of branding. There was no definable brand with this story. I started to sketch some new character designs and think of a name which would be memorable. Preferably the name would allow me to reinforce the brand in its typographical treatment. I think I have come up with something which I can develop as one complete package. I'll post a flavour of this later.

Here's my latest WIP the cow from Jack And The Beanstalk:

Bean Stalk

2008-06-19T11:24:00.000-07:00

This is what I've 'bean' working on. Although I haven't had approval for the roughs yet, I thought I'd get some of the main 'props' done. I have just cut the model out from its background using Photoshop. I will await the go ahead from the Editor before I create the watercolour matte. Believe it or not the actual model is 2 1/2 foot tall. It is based on an armature made of garden wire and covered in papier mache. This was originally already a beanstalk I made for an illustration over 5 years ago. But then I stripped and cut it down to make a tree for the dog illustration below.

I stripped the bark off and reconnected all the bits of wire framework and built the whole thing up in green plasticine. It was like creating Celtic knotwork which is more like maths to me than art. Having said that, at times I quite enjoyed creating the sculptural form.

Todays progress

2008-06-18T14:45:00.000-07:00

I have been working on the plasticine models for Jack Of The Beanstalk. The cow is udder construction:¬) The beanstalk is nearly finished. I'll post a pic tomorrow. There are a few of the roughs below, It's difficult to put my all into sketches when I know that I will only use the roughs for the background watercolour, and all the characters will be clay, like in this example:

Illustration

2008-06-13T15:11:00.000-07:00

Firstly I want to congratulate Gretel from the All Around Us Blog on her recent commission. She is testament to the truth of the saying 'Talent Will Out'. The underuse of this talented illustrator has been nothing short of criminal. For me it has been a symbol of the way the Illustration industry ruthlesly dashes the desires of many a dedicated artist. Thankgoodness the world has been put to rights. Now maybe the rest of us humble illustrators can breathe a bit easier.

This has been an odd week. I got all introspective at one point, my teenage son edged closer to independence, my deadline loomed large and passed not without incident, the Blue-Beetle blog which wafted into my life and which I had been following with interest, was suddenly snatched away by forces unknown.

I'll concentrate on the illustration as this is supposed to be an illustration blog. Friday was the deadline for my roughs. Friday morning began with a powercut! In my mind I was hastily considering a plan B to my usual email method of delivery. The only possible alternative I could come up with was carrier pigeon.

Thankfully the power was restored within the hour so I rapidely put the finishing touches to the roughs. I scanned them in on my new all-in-one Canon scanner copier,(an amazing £36 purchase), zipped and uploaded the images to a free file server after 9 hours of solid graft. I checked the file server later and the design studio hadn't downloaded any of the files! I guess it was an early weekend for them!

Having done a fair bit more sketching than I would normally do for a job, (normally I just do stickmen thumbnail sketches). I really started to enjoy it, maybe even more than the modelling part.
BTW I think the first song in the playlist is simply beautiful

RAVEN GLADNESS

2008-06-11T14:28:00.000-07:00

I was strolling along the beach yesterday evening when in the distance I saw three black shapes descending onto the crags of the distant cliff. They were the size of cormarants but were almost ghost like in the way they came to earth. I suspected they were ravens. I have never seen them in the wild before but as the title of this blog suggests I do have an affinity for them. In flight they are as majestic as a bird of prey.

I rushed up the bay to get a closer look. Unfortunately I don't have a close up lens. But I tried my best to get a shot - I failed, but my wife did do a better job.

A Couple Of Things

2008-06-09T13:21:00.000-07:00

Felt a bit disconnected today. I get this feeling from time to time. Nothing actually significantly new happens to cause this feeling, it's just a matter of a shift in perception. I guess it was a slow day in terms of drawing. I had to drag the pencil kicking and screaming across the page, rather than gently coaxing it. I have a deadline and it could get a bit naughty if I don't stop procrastinating. This 'dead air' may have lured me into feelings of stuckness and isolation.

The disconnection is real and constant but I try not to acknowledge it. There is a root to the situation and there is a remedy. The laws of nature and nurture really come into play here. I think biologically I am a social animal, maybe not overly gregarious and certainly not attention seeking, but I need people. Other than my wife, kid's and the internet, I just have me. Although it has been stated that you should not go on blaming others for your lot in life, I can't help bringing my parents into the equation. The nurturing I received/endured have a lot to do with how I functioned socially.

I remember as a kid never being able to express myself. Every time I exercised freedom of expression I was branded as a show off. I think with hindsight this really changed my personality. By default I considered myself shy as a teenager but was that the real me. I think that was the nurtured me. I walked away from every friend I ever had because I didn't think I was worthy of attention. I've left it pretty late but I'm going to see what the unurtured me could have been like. This could be dangerous but I'm interested to find out. For this to happen I need some self-confidence back and this is something I can do something about.

One other thing, and I could be on my own here, (not literally this time), have you ever wanted someone to say something for /about you which you wanted to express but were too frightened to admit. I'm guessing that's what a best friends for. At my recent Tarot reading and at previous ones, I have wanted them to mention something that I have never said out loud. A secret that I keep to myself, (trust me it's nothing remotely dodgy), which has affected my whole life and something I will take to my grave. I just wanted someone to say it out loud. I guess I harboured a belief that when these magic words were spoken, my bonds would break and shower of golden sparks would cascade around me as I rose spiralling into the air - or am I just visualizing the scene at the end of shrek?

I'll probably delete this post because as I said these feelings are fleeting which I guess is a good thing.

James Morrison - Wonderful world

2008-06-09T04:27:00.001-07:00

Blonde antidote

2008-06-06T07:06:00.000-07:00

I have been working on my Jack In The Beanstalk commission but I thought I could do with a change. I have returned to my CGI character and changed the hair and improved the skin tone.

She is still just in a neutral pose.

Where I'm At

2008-05-31T05:36:00.000-07:00

I received a commission through my agent during the week. I've been asked to illustrate the Jack And The Beanstalk story. It's another educational job so the pay is not brilliant but it's welcome at the moment. This job calls for 14 illustrations with very elaborate backgrounds. My last job ended up being 30 illustrations cut to white backgrounds. It turned out to be a lot of work for the money. But there again I was grateful for the commission.

The background imagery of J and the B will pose me some real issues, but the foreground elements will have to be modelled, ie Jack, Jack's mum, the cow, the hen, etc, not forgetting the stalk itself.

The thing is I'm not sure whether to render the background in watercolour on digital 3D. Some other items will have to be built such as a table and bird cage. The other issue is perspective. There will be shots looking up into the clouds from the base of the beanstalk and others looking down to the ground. I'll have to shoot the characters with the background image in my minds eye. I'll probably have to create the backgrounds first and pose and shoot the characters to fit the perspective.

A story idea came to me the otherday. When I began to jot it down It started to take on a life of its own. I have no idea where its headed. It was originally envisiged as being for younger children but it has matured into something more suitable for early teens.

On the money front, I think I could have a sustainable income from Educational Illustration if the commissions were to come in at a consistent rate. But with my style it could take too much out of me unless I can streamline my workflow and create a consistent style. As thing stand at the moment, the commissioner has no more of an idea how my final illustrations will end up looking like than I do! The leap of faith the Art Director is willing to take is quite humbling to me.

I went to college to be an Illustrator I ended up qualifying as a Graphic Designer. I had loads of ideas and I was excited by having to fulfil a brief. The trouble was I couldn't sleep very well at night for 2 years. I couldn't turn the tap of ideas off. I didn't think I was very good at Graphic Design so I just filed the certificate away and forgot about it. The thing is that I did win several briefs at college, so I guess there must be something there. Editorial illustration is a synergy of ideas, design and technical skill. So I am going to revisit this area of the industry. I am going to try to get my ideas out into the open in whichever medium does the job. This is a more lucrative field and is perhaps more worthy of creative exploration.

New website

2008-05-28T13:04:00.000-07:00

I've been putting the finishing touches to my website. There are still a couple of sections to complete though. 3DRealm

I sent a copy of my Last Acorn story to my Agent. I suggested a couple of viable publishers I thought could be interested. I got a phone call the next day from my agent, who happened to be on the way to see the editor of Random House, on a prearranged visit. This spookily happened to be one of the publishers I had mentioned!

Samba Season

2008-05-22T15:22:00.002-07:00

Samba season is approaching. There are several parades and shows featuring local samba bands. The vid below features SambaCeltica with the obligatory crazy woman. Actually I wish I could completely lose my inhibitions, but I guess I probably wouldn't know where to stop:¬)

I love samba bands. The video really doesn't do the experience justice. There's nothing better than having your inner organs massaged by the primal beat of a dozen or so drums.

2008-05-15T07:24:00.000-07:00

Just finished my latest brief with three more illustrations. I posted them on my agents blog:
Great Creative Imaginations

There was another possible job in the pipeline with an Irish publisher. But unfortunately my style is not always that cost effective for some of the more cash strapped educational publishers. The money would have come in handy, but I do put a lot of work into my illustrations and some times they can be a really hard slog. So I need to be paid a reasonable fee to compensate for when things are tougher to accomplish.

My reading with the medium the other week was encouraging. I asked mainly about career, but also about spirit guides and relatives. She said I had two guides but that other people's guides don't always show themselves to her.

I could have asked questions about other people I know, but in a way I felt that would be an invasion of their privacy:¬) The cards all seemed to indicate that I was on the right path both creatively and spiritually. I drew the Hermit card a couple of times.

I would have translated this card literally if I was doing my own reading, but she said it meant I was being guided.

I asked about my creative ambitions in sculpture. The medium said I lacked confidence in my ability to succeed. She said I am so intent on seeing what the future holds that I am not noticing the good times happening right now.

She gave me a tape of the reading, so I need to get hold of a player to reveal more of the cards. I do remember her saying one of the cards indicating I had a special gift, (debatable), and that within six months I would be offered an exciting project! but it was up to me to act on it.

I have been reading this book:

It's basically about the laws of attraction. which is mentioned on Blue Beetles blog . I find the whole idea that your thoughts have substance in quantum terms, very intriguing. In the same way that the expression 'you are what you eat' applies, so does 'you get what you think about.' Even if you think about what you don't want, you'll end up attracting that to you. So if you think 'I don't want to be fat' -you'll be fat. Far better to say 'I want to be slim'.

I come from a long line of depressive relatives, so in an attempt to avoid this disposition I am pumping my subconscious full of positive vibes. I found this forum with links to some meditation audio files which can work on your subconscious while you sleep.

Forum

2008-05-09T09:21:00.000-07:00

Here are a couple of images from my current brief. I still have a way to go and the clock is ticking. Next post: My Tarot reading and something called 'The Secret.'

Psychic Consultation

2008-05-06T01:14:00.000-07:00

I'm going to see a psychic medium today. I'm not sure what I'm going to ask her yet. It's something I've always wanted to do. I would like to know if there is anyone around me. I'm not sure about people who have passed over. I was never really that close even to my own nearest relatives.

Do I ask about career, future happiness? I guess I could handle less than encouraging news about my career, but not future happiness. Maybe I shouldn't ask questions which could provide unpalatable answers.

What do I believe in? Tha afterlife, Angels, Fairies, Ghosts?

Gretel, propriator of the excellent All around us blog claims to have seen fairies. Some people might scoff, but for me I'm envious. I have a memory of seeing Angels outside my bedroom window when I was a kid. Was it a dream? But if it was why does the memory linger?

With the noise and distraction of everyday life, is there a myriad of mystical activity just below the radar of most of us busy people?

Recently scientists stated that the chances of life on another planet such as ours is increasingly unlikely. They concluded this because as we get ever more sophisticated at looking into space, the more we find non-life sustainable planetary systems. To me this makes life on Earth seem more and more miraculous. If life on Earth was the result of a chance happening, then surely there's a chance it could occur again somewhere else. If this isn't the case then ipso facto, life on Earth is here by design. And if that's the case, then anything is possible, Fairies, goblins, even a sustainable income from illustration.

Local pics

2008-05-03T09:46:00.000-07:00

Here's a pic of St Michael's Mount and a sky shot looking towards Penzance from Mounts Bay.

New Webpage

2008-04-28T03:25:00.000-07:00

This is going to be the homepage of my new site. I still have a fair bit to do though. I have be given approval for the roughs by Macmillan so i really need to get on with it. I'll post some images shortly.

Site Banner

2008-04-22T05:36:00.000-07:00

I've been testing the beta version of the 3D software I use. It's been driving me nuts, as has my new website design. Here is a possible banner and another of my character who will be appearing in a section of the new site.

Something for warmer weather!

2008-04-08T07:10:00.000-07:00

At one point I wanted to be a fashion designer. I think women will be grateful that I didn't go down that route. I'm not sure my creations are that practical for everyday use!

I'm Back!

2008-04-05T08:24:00.000-07:00

Did you miss me?.....

Spent some time in Reading visiting relatives. The place becomes less and less appealing each visit. It's the epitome of the consumer society and had me yearning to return to my impoverished Cornwall. That's not to say that I'm not partial to the odd electronic gadget...

I just bought a widescreen pc display after battling on with my prehistoric monitor for the past few months. I had an issue with everything becoming too fat, but fortunately I soon realised after trying to make some images thinner, that I had the screen resolution set wrong!

The house move has stalled, on account of a lack of buyers knocking around in the present economic climate. I'm hoping the half term holidays will bring some fresh buyers into the county.

I haven't had the go ahead from Macmillan's yet, for the next set of illustrations. It's been weeks since I sent off the roughs:¬(

I'm going to switch broadband providers. I have been with Virgin for years but I want to combine my internet connection with my phone by going over to Talk Talk.

I need to organise my life a bit. I think a 3rd mid-life crisis could be on the cards, so I think I'd better channel my energies in a constructive manner. I've pretty much run out of friends now, due to them moving away - can't take a hint;¬)

As much as I love my family, sometimes it's nice to be able to confide in a friend. This is something I miss. Not always though, it depends on my relationship with myself. I do feel as though something needs to change, I just don't know what yet. Change is scary but lack of change can be more so.

Because the move has stalled I haven't been able to create a ceramics studio yet. I'm starting to feel frustration at not being able to sculpt clay. This may be at the route of my current demeaner.

CGI Tamara update

2008-03-12T15:05:00.000-07:00

I've re-built my character with more of a flowing geometry. I think it gives her a softer look.

more CGI plasticine tests

2008-03-07T15:12:00.000-08:00

I have a commission on the go and I'm waiting to hear back about the roughs but I am going to start work on the finals to avoid any nasty last minute rush!

Here are a couple of tests. I have to take children through some craft making exercises. Originally I was going to just feature just the hands but with 3d, apposed to linework, sometimes it doesn't look right fading bits of an image out.

The first image is a fairly raw one just to give an idea of what I'm working on. The second one is getting closer to the effect I want.

2008-02-25T15:45:00.000-08:00

Ive been working on improving textures of eyes and skin as well as some simple animations. Please click the image to see an example. Just refresh the page to repeat the effect.

How I make my images

2008-02-21T06:21:00.000-08:00

This is a quick rundown of the processes involved in making a 3D image. I will elaborate on the different stages in later posts.

Doppleganger

2008-02-19T10:02:00.000-08:00

I've been trying to recreate the look of my plasticine models digitally. Here's my attempt at a boy character. I photographed some modelling clay and added some extra fingerprints for the texture.

House selling

2008-02-17T06:39:00.000-08:00

A family came round to see our 3 bed house the other day. They had 7 children!!!!
They loved the house but were disappointed by the size of the 3rd bedroom. They needed a double bed to fit in there, three girls would share the larger room and four boys would share the remaining room.

The third bedroom is reduced in size by the boxing out of the stairwell. So I came up with an idea to accomodate a double bed. I decided to illustrate it using my 3D software. I created an image of the room with a raised bed from scratch and emailed it to the agents. I wait to hear their reaction.

Cosmic Ordering

2008-02-09T13:28:00.000-08:00

Well as far as I'm concerned it works. I wanted 2008 to be a year in which I moved forward. Last year was a bit stagnant so I felt changes needed to be made.

I've not always had a positive attitude to life. I guess this is a hangover from a fairly strict and at times negative chidhood. Subconsciously I probably sabotage myself and this is hard to counter. Positive affirmations can 'trick' the mind into a more positive state but it is easy to let this routine lapse.

I have read a lot about Cosmic Ordering and I thought I'd give this a go. Probably the best exponent of the 'art' is Stephen Richards. Basically the philosophy is that the universe is abundant and everything is connected. Ask the cosmos for your hearts desire, (within reasonable limits). You then imagine yourself in the new house, car, or see yourself wearing the new suit etc. In short you make the request, and adopt a frame of mind as if the request has already been fulfilled.

It's vital that you have a positive state of mind and you truely believe that your order is being fulfilled. Cosmic Ordering encompasses all the benefits of the laws of attraction. This is the idea that a positive disposition will 'attract' good things to you. Deepak Chopra for example is a medical doctor with a great knowledge of the mind body connection and the authority on the laws of attraction.

I read Stephen Richards book and placed my order. I felt that I needed some extra help so I bought a CD by the same author which uses subliminal reinforcement to add impetus to my orders.

I requested that I receive an illustration commission and the opportunity to buy a house which my wife and I have always been keen on buying. I haven't had an illustration job for nearly a year, partly because I have not been promoting my work. So it was amazing that within a week of my order that my agent phoned up and offered me two jobs. Then in the same week the house I requested came onto the market! This house has been a holiday let for the past 8 years but all of a sudden it appears in the local property pages!

The house move has taken an unexpected twist but this is to be expected with Cosmic Ordering. If you request in specific terms, the cosmos may well change things to suit your better interests.

I will post updates on my progress.

Not relevant but really funky

2008-01-31T15:06:00.000-08:00

2008-01-24T13:10:00.000-08:00

These are the final couple of images from the brief:

Latest commission images

2008-01-20T09:04:00.001-08:00

I had to draw and write like a child for a couple of the illustrations. I had to do quite a bit of re-composing in Photoshop. The drawings had to be scanned in and superimposed onto the pieces of paper the characters were holding. I used the 'multiply' tool to make the images blend into the paper.

Illustration Commission

2008-01-15T01:25:00.000-08:00

At last I can wander out of the illustration wilderness. Yes I have been given two commissions. These are the first in a year and the first with this agent. It is with a big Publisher. It doesn't pay brilliantly but it's a start. I hope to post some images as soon as I square it with the publisher in question.

First realistic skin test

2008-01-07T06:27:00.000-08:00

This is a render of the torso of my Tamara character. I have been learning a 3D software program called 3D Max which has a great SSS, (Sub Surface scattering), facility. This allows you to alter light scattering characteristics of the dermis layers.

New Year - New Purpose

2008-01-05T04:36:00.000-08:00

I'm back after spending the back end of Christmas with relatives.

My wife and I both participated in separate Secret Santa's this year, but despite us both carefully choosing a suitable present for our recipient neither of us got our gifts!

Actually Christmas wasn't too bad, but it has galvanized some thoughts about last year and my plans for this year.

1. Get fit. - I'm really serious this time!
2. Move House.
3. Get something sorted - Can't divulge this one!
4. Get my Illustration career back on track: Portfolio, Website, mailouts, etc.
5. Send my book out to more publishers.
6. Start producing sculpture, (depends on '2')
7. De-junk the whole house.

I've read the 'Cosmic Ordering Guide. This like many books is all about the laws of attraction. I have always had a pretty negative outlook, so I feel it's time to do something about it. It's also about the 'Flow.' Instead of just trying to save money,for example, you should create a flow of money in by allowing some to flow out.

As for as the negativity is concerned. I read about a method to monitor negative thoughts. Put an elastic band, (or something similar), on one wrist, and everytime you react negatively to something, you should move the band to another wrist. According to the person who came up with this method, you should work your way down to 21 changes a day. This he recons could take between 4 and 8 years!

Anyway Happy New Year everone:¬)

Learning Curve

2007-12-20T13:51:00.000-08:00

I've been busy learning some new 3D software and it's proving very time consuming and pretty frustrating. Teaching yourself can be much harder than having a tutor looking over your shoulder ready to help you out when yo get stuck. I have ordered a book to help me out as some issues have defied even a Google search. Realism in digital 3D is a real challenge and is very current with the release of the film Beowolf. This film benefits from all sorts of cutting edge software. Motion capture is extensively used and Lip Synching software costing tens of thousands, is out of my league. I have been trying out SSS, (Sub Surface Scattering), which involves mimicking the effects of light entering and reflecting away from the skin. I will post some early results later.

Earth Wisdom

2007-12-11T03:27:00.000-08:00

This is the title of a book I recommended to a fellow blogger and cartoonist Chichi. The book is by Glennie Kindred. Here's the amazon link

It is a must have book for anyone interestedin tree lore, ancient rituals medicinal value of trees, etc.

This is an extract:

Towards A True Balance

Be mindful!

Husband the earth. Protect

her from greed and violence. Build

humbly, plant trees, grow flowers and clothe her

with dignity. respect all her creatures. Honour her

natural laws and the universe which cradles her.

Above all, heartily worship the Source of All that Is.

This world needs secret heroes! Be brave, speak the truth,

heal the sick, male peace. Be strong, serve patiently, love

generously, live simply. Enjoy fellowship, eat and drink modestly,

celebrate the festivals. Breathe deeply, sing and make music,

walk of ten, cycle and recycle. be thrifty, prefer cashflow to

possession, give good measure. Let your work be your prayer.

Put on the whole armour of light! Unearth the beauty in

everything. Inhale the spirit of goodness. Kindle kindness,

especially towards yourself, embracing the sweet

silence of your own soul. Fear nothing. Accept

what you are and-while you have

breath-give thanks.

By John P Rogers

Spriggan Hill

2007-12-09T06:06:00.000-08:00

There is a hill, a stones throw away from my house, which has a number of myths associated with it.

It was said to be home to the giant Trecrobben. He used to enjoy a game of bob buttons or in this case rock throwing. His counterpoart was the Giant Cormoran, the Giant of St Michael's Mount, (incidently the giant featured in the famous 'Jack The Giant Killer' legend.)

It is said that somewhere buried deep in the hill is a crock of Gold guarded by Spriggan's, the spirits of dead giants. If anyone attempted to dig for this hoard, the Spriggan's, (initially of diminutive size), would grow to their former giant size and ward off the treasure hunter. This is a fate that befell such an unwary man.

'It is not many years since a man, who thought he was fully informed as to the spot in which a crock of the giant's gold was buried, proceeded on one fine moonlight night to this enchanted hill, and with spade and pick commenced his search. He proceeded for some time without interruption, and it became evident to him that the treasure was not far off. The sky was rapidly covered with the darkest clouds, shutting out the brilliant light of the moon--which had previously gemmed each cairn--and leaving the gold-seeker in total and unearthly darkness. The wind rose, and roared terrifically amidst the rocks; but this was soon drowned amidst the fearful crashes of thunder, which followed in quick succession the lashes of lightning. By its light the man perceived that the spriggans were coming out in swarms from all the rocks. They were in countless numbers; and although they were small at first, they rapidly increased in size, until eventually they assumed an almost giant form, looking all the while, as he afterwards said, "as ugly as if they would eat him." How this poor man escaped is unknown, but he is said to have been so frightened that he took to his bed, and was not able to work for a long time'.

Robert Hunt, Popular Romances of the West of England.

This is a quick sketch I did some time ago:

The reason I mention the hill in this post is because my wife and I went up said hill on a recent stormy evening. We have never been up there that late before and by the time we headed down again it was pretty dark. We were near to the site of an ancient well when I clearly heard an 'oi' coming from a few yards away. which made me flippin' jump.

A really strong wind was swirling around the rocks but I am sure the 'oi' was not attributed to it. And the conditions discounted the possibility of it being the call of a far off farmer. There was no one else around as we were the only people mad enough to be up there on such a wild evening. Besides which my wife didn't hear anything.

I'm not sure I'm brave enough to venture up there at night on my own but I am curious to see if there is more to this.

Wife's touching memorial to her husband

2007-12-05T03:38:00.000-08:00

Buddhists don't fear death. There is no regret and no sadness because of their belief in reincarnation and their practice of non-attachment. For everyone else there is grief and longing, as illustrated by this amazing gesture of love this woman has for her husband. She commissioned this marble sculpture from the Australian artist Peter Schipperheyn.

Final Version

2007-12-03T05:25:00.000-08:00

My Xmas Card for 2007

2007-12-02T15:42:00.000-08:00

Computer woes

2007-11-22T14:18:00.000-08:00

Due to intermittent computer failure I have been unable to post very much stuff lately.

I have major Vista/Driver problems. I can be working away and suddenly everything goes dead.

I had a bit of a black wednesday this week. The PC wouldn't re-start, my 15 year old workhorse of a TV gave up the ghost. And my zip bust whilst out shopping! Things definitely happen in three's. Should have broken a match:¬(

New Post

2007-11-07T04:47:00.000-08:00

I've just posted a couple of quick character watercolour sketches on my Wizard illustration blog.

Cue fanfare!

New Year new start

2007-11-04T09:27:00.000-08:00

I'm back from a trip up country to see relatives. I normally make a big thing of celebrating Samhain but this was not possible this year. I did however make some Celtic New Year resolutions.

I have questioned the direction that the digital work is taking me. So I have decided to go back to Children's Book illustration. I have read a lot of negative discussions about the current state of the market for this type of illustration. But I'm sure there is work out their if you look in the right places. I don't want to go back to my old style, I want to start afresh with watercolour. So I will start work straight away and see what develops.

I will also be creating some sculpture and jewellery to hopefully subsidise me whilst I build a portfolio.

Gordon Bennett or should I say Brown

2007-10-28T14:44:00.000-07:00

Here's my first attempt of an actual likeness in digital 3D. I have temporarily painted the hair in Photoshop and added a colar and tie, both of which will be modelled in 3D.

I hope to animate him as well. I will concentrate only on political subjects for editorial illustration for now as I'm not sure of the direction scatilly clad women are taking me!

I also want to create a watercolour portfolio for children's illustration as I am starting to miss this kind of work.

Skin Deep

2007-10-16T12:59:00.000-07:00

Here's a close up of the face. All the textures were created in Photoshop before applying to the model.

Hair apparent

2007-10-11T14:37:00.000-07:00

Here are a couple of versions of a new 3D hair plugin I've been trying out. It can be animated to blow in the wind etc. It took me a while to create. Let me know which you prefer.

wider shot

2007-10-02T15:23:00.000-07:00

Tamara

2007-10-01T15:08:00.000-07:00

This is my latest project:

Website Gallery WIP

2007-09-16T14:34:00.001-07:00

I've been working on a new website. I'm trying to create a kind of virtual gallery. The navigation for the site will mimic that of a real gallery. The pictures will also be clickable. The pictures will possibly be lit up by the spotlights on mouseover. There will also be an animated 'guide' in some kind of videocom above the navigation pane. She will simply announce the destination page on loading.

It needs some work yet. I may add wooden floors, the lights need lining up and all the thumbnails need adding etc.

The Travelling Sketchbook

2007-09-11T14:46:00.000-07:00

These at last are my illustrations for my alotted double page spread in the Travelling Sketchbook I am on the verge of printing and sticking these images into the book. I'm just trying to decide between the two versions of the girl. The images were created using the 3d application - Lightwave. Everything was created from scratch without 'cheating', ie not using any preset models or textures.

8 Random things about me

2007-08-23T04:11:00.000-07:00

I've been tagged. These are the instructions from the taggers Blog:

I've been tagged by Clare- http://www.clareart.blogspot.com/ to tell you 8 random things about myself:

Here goes:

1. Seven years ago I gave up my business and moved away with my family to start a new career and life in Cornwall.

2. Years before it was fashionable to do so, I got married under a palmtree in the Carribean.

3. When I was a kid I'm sure I saw an angel outside my window one night in bed. Maybe it was my imagination or a dream, but if so it's odd that the memory persists.

4. The only foods I can't stand are celery and grapefruit, and I haven't eaten beef for over 15 years.

5. My star sign is Libra.

6. I have two children.

7. I've always had an extremely slow heartbeat.

8. My great grandmother was known for her ability to read tea leaves. I however have explored my psychic abilities and sadly have not inherited her gift!

I have to tag 8 other people. This is not compulsory, and if I have chosen you, and you don't fancy joining in, that is fine. Here are the rules:

1. Let others know who tagged you.

2. Players start with 8 random facts about themselves.

3. Those who are tagged should post these rules and their 8 random facts.

4. Players should tag 8 other people and notify them they have been tagged.

I tag:
http://magicalmiskellaneous.blogspot.com/
http://www.puflet-palace.blogspot.com/
http://ericas-attic.blogspot.com/
http://thecolourbox.blogspot.com/

more to follow...

The Wanderer returns

2007-08-08T09:17:00.000-07:00

I'm back after a week 'up country.' My mother is staying with me for a further week. I am still hopeful however of getting the time to publish some work on the blog this week.

Inspiration

2007-07-26T15:06:00.000-07:00

I came across this sculptor's work. He is the guy who created the statue of Bobby Moore at the new Wembley: Philip Jackson. His work is amazing.

I have recently bought a kiln and hope to produce some sculpture in the coming weeks. I have done a few sketches which I will show on the blog next week.

Happiness

2007-07-20T15:25:00.000-07:00

This is a link to a Ajahn Brahmavamson Dharma talk on 'Happiness'

Click here and just scroll down the page. There are several talks on different subjects on previous and subsequent pages.

I've found his talks very reassuring.

The Travelling Sketchbook

2007-07-17T14:24:00.000-07:00

The Travelling Sketchbook has made a stop here in Cornwall. It has been winging its way around the world collecting Artwork from contributing illustrator's for some months now. When it started its journey I actually had a diferent agenda in terms of illustration. I intend to create a digital image now instead of my originally planned traditional 3D offering.

Please watch this space.

New website

2007-07-11T05:44:00.000-07:00

As we speak I'm working on a new website. I have had a few technical problems with my web authoring software but hopefully I'll be able to post some screenshots soon.

There will be two sites, one called 3dRealm.co.uk and the other, LandOfLegends.co.uk.

The first will feature all my digital and traditional 3D illustration and animation work, and the second will be the project work I've been working on.

New smile

2007-07-03T04:02:00.001-07:00

The 'smile' looked a bit manic so here's a new version:

Face Morphs

2007-07-02T02:39:00.000-07:00

Here are some of the face shapes that I had to individually sculpt. I'm going to, start work on getting the script together now.

edit: one of the 'Ah's' is actually 'W'

First Facial Animation

2007-06-30T12:42:00.000-07:00

This is a small clip of my first lip synch test of my character:

Link

I had to create around 25 different face shapes so that the character can speak and make all types of gestures. I will post some more expressive clips later.

I am getting to the stage where I should be able to start producing my first story narrated by my 3D character. I intend to create a new website devoted to 3D character animation and purvey my services to website developers etc.

Ramble alert!

I feel at my most creative at the moment. I haven't writen off my illustration career, in fact I feel a bit in the wilderness without it. I am lost in some ways, but I do have the mental image of myself relentlessly plodding across a barren wasteland with the tiniest inkling that I am headed in the right direction. To what or where I'm not sure. But then maybe that's the feeling lemmings have as they head for the cliff:¬)

I do have a slightly unsettled feeling at the moment. I have carefully rebuilt my life over the past six years. Maybe too carefully. I'm not maudlin about it but something definitely needs to be done. Over the past few years as an illustrator I have had to cope with unbelievable loneliness even in the midst of a family which includes two teenage sons. But I have learned to accept this isolation with just the occasional blip. But there is a feeling of rebellion in the air.

I feel do I want to prove myself to be good at something. At school I was virtually written off by a number of teachers. There was a mix of things that I was reasonably good at: Athletics, Rugby, English, Biology, and Art. But I couldn't find a career which fitted my attributes. My father didn't want me to 'waste a subject' by studying Art. So I had to sneak into the Art room in my lunch breaks so I could take the GCE.

In the first year of my primary school I made my first glazed bit of pottery and proudly presented it to my father when I got home. He called it 'rubbish'! as he handed it back to me. I always remember being listed in 'The Golden Book' for my endeavours in creating a viking ship out of cardboard. I used to escape the constant torment of bullying by spending all my breaks in the Art room, building the hull, oars, shields, etc.

Feeling hard done by is a waste of time. And the sentiment 'I deserve a break' is rubbish. Nothing is handed to you on a plate, you have to bloody well fight for the success you want. And I'll never stop fighting.

First walk test

2007-06-17T10:04:00.000-07:00

This is my first attempt at a walk cycle. The model is topless, only because she will be wearing a 'floaty' dress using cloth simulation and I wanted to make sure the body moves ok underneath.

http://www.4shared.com/file/18078209/a37354b9/red_walk_mp4.html

Animation and new poses

2007-06-11T06:30:00.000-07:00

Here are a couple of poses made possible by creating the controls I added to the model, (in top picture). I realised I had originally made the arms too long so I had to back and start again! This created a lot of extra frustrating work. The joints are getting there. I just need to adjust the shoulders a bit.

As you can see I'm still deciding about the hair colour!

Voyeurism?

2007-06-09T05:51:00.000-07:00

My son pointed out this site to me:
http://www.192.com/
I've tried Google Earth but found the resolution a bit rubbish. The images you get on this site aren't in 3D but you get a clearer view. Here are a couple of pic's of a fellow Blogger's house.

Anyone recognise it? :¬)

Awkward poses

2007-06-04T06:50:00.000-07:00

Here are a couple more deformation tests. I put her in an awkward pose just to test her joints and how the skin and muscles deform.

more tests

2007-05-30T14:53:00.001-07:00

I actually made a Freudian slip and first wrote 'mare tests' for the title of this post! It is proving time consuming, tweeking the joints of the character. But once done this model can be the basis for all future characters.

I've reduced the creasing behind the knee and some at the hip:

http://www.4shared.com/file/16960709/2a5cbd98/LegBend_2.html

Leg Deformation tests

2007-05-29T15:21:00.000-07:00

One of the tricks with animating is trying to get the limbs to bend realistically at the joints. This is a test for the leg. The rest of the body is unnaturally static, but it's only the knee and hip I'm interested in. It takes a lot of work to avoid the look of bent latex tubing!

Here's the link:

http://www.4shared.com/file/16902385/c973ee4c/Leg_Deform_low.html

Handywork

2007-05-24T10:32:00.001-07:00

I have been working on detailing the hands. The hands will probably feature a lot in my project so I thought I'd better put some effort in to making them look fairly realistic.

The first image is of the UV map, (on the left),with a 'Bump' image. The Uv map is the mesh of the hand 'unwrapped' which allows me to paint details in 2D. The image then wraps back around the model. The dark tones correspond to depressions in the surface and vice versa for the light tones. This produces the texture layer. I also have to produce various other layers including colour which has to relate to the Bump layer. So for exaple I have to be careful to get the darker pink lines smack in the middle of the creases. The UV map always requires major tweeking. I had to drag every point of the mesh to get the details inthe right places.