LadyJudgement

be afraid, be very afraid... we have pencils, and we'll use them if we have to.

For Valentine's if you can fit it in...

LJ

saynomore,saynomore, nudge nudge, wink wink... say. no. more...

I've changed passwords twice now... Soul Train has me paranoid.

Yes I wanted to surprise you with a pic of your lady love... I tried versions of Sassy smiling, but the one shot of you both looking up, I thought she had the greatest expression, so that is the one I used the most, the hair is from your blue shirt pics of you both...

And yer welcome, like I've told you, it's a badge of honor to do a TA... until you've done one, and one you like, then yer just a spectator in this forum. And seriously I have you to thank for a lot...

What the heck one more... okay I'm done!

Thanks everyone, been wanting to do this one since Xmas, but it makes a better Valentine's gift. As for Sassy's eyes, I can't take the credit, the highlights were from this great shot of her looking up, I just tried to make her look right...

TA: yeah I know I have that email somewhere in my DA records, but lol it's been so long since I used it to mail you art, that I wasn't sure if it was current. Okies off to mail you these, I hope you have a fast connection, cause it literally is a total of 20 megs... let me know what Sassy thinks... glad you like it!

Yeah I'm really sorry it's early dude... but ya know what? I don't think I have a current email for you... lolol
So I am gonna have to keep these huge humongous 20 MBytes worth of files from you till you remedy that.

In the meantime, here are the SMALL versions:

Sassy... reference.

TA... reference, you would think I remember what you look like, I've drawn you so much.

Sketch... I think this one you saw months ago.

Ink... Changed as I worked on it...

Sassy Close Up... not EVEN actual size dude.

original layout Colored... before fixed leg...

Final Version... and this is the one I like, as I told ya before, the wife showed me how to "warp" just the figure of you last night, so that way I could correct the legs. Saved me hours of having to start over...

Anyway, hope you like it, the original idea was always to have you looking up at the stars and thinking of Sassy. I just didn't draw her in the sketch, cause I knew I had to do some scrounging from different pics. I made her eyes unusually large, because they seem to be that way, though only you would know.

So yeah send me your email, and I will get these out to you tomorrow morning.

LJ

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Bad weather friends.

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Waaay cool, I almost want to draw that one...

I didn't think of that, but yes, I would like to change the art to these:

First image, Second Image, and umm the Soul Train PC Cover, (can't link that here) THANKS dude!!!

Yeah, I hardly ever play anymore, well not COH, but you know the deal, one never really leaves COH, sooner or later something too cool is going to be developed and I will HAVE to come back!

But I appreciate the sentiment.

Hey T. Wanted to know if you could update my commission info with this link...

Pretty soon after March 16th, I won't be able to post in here... well unless I decide to return. But until then, that's my current information.

LJ

One of the great uses of flats, is that you can make an instant selection of the area, rather than lasso it all again and then start coloring. If you keep a new layer of all flats, and uncheck the eye on the side of that layer, you won't see the flats, but they will be there if you miscolor something, or have to start over, cause as you work you may want to change things.

Let's say I have colored the entire face AND the hair, but all on the same layer. If I need to change the hair color, I run the risk of messing up the face, unless, I lasso the hair, and work on a new layer. It's not always "safe" to keep an area in selection, as sometimes your hand might hit the wrong key and you could lose it and then have to do it over again.

However if you have the area flatted on the flat layer, you can select that with your magic wand, go back to the layer you first colored on and either change it there with color balance, or saturation... or save it on a new layer and start again.

A flat layer is basically a safety net. You can work without it, but unless you never make a mistake, you're playing with fire work wise. Chances are you will wish you had it, if you didn't make one.

Since it's you, I have it in my will that all my coloring secrets go to you. wink wink... I will send you a tute. That will keep me busy and out of trouble.

Yeah I got that too, had to keep hitting refresh. Anyway I made my peace with the guy, but I think I need a self appointed break. My account is ending in March, and I am sort of starting an entirely new art related career, so I think I need to clear my head before then.

Apologies to those expecting freebies, you'll get them, just not nearly as soon. Thank you to everyone on here for your support, this place is still my favorite on the web.

LJ

Thank you. It IS off here and there, but thank you for not mentioning that first, and then saying you liked it. Was that too much to ask for? Okay I didn't ask...

* breathe, breathe... *

whuhwhuhwhuhwhuhwhuh.... I'm... trying.... whuhwhuhwhuhwhuh....

Thanks, evidently I got called out for being lazy, cloning and drawing Popeye arms on this one... and yet they liked it overall. It's really tough to please everyone with every single piece you put up for sharing. It's not like I'm begging for praise, and I wouldn't mind criticism given in polite fashion, but it really bothers me when I get it as a compliment.

"THIS, THIS and THIS sucked, but overall I liked it."

What do they expect me to do at this point? Start over? Jump through their artistic hoops because they caught me being lazy? Okay ya got me, I didn't draw the entire skeletal structure on a layer below my line art... Yes my hands and feet suck... by God you are correct my color choices are not in keeping with section 12, line 14 of the Romper Room Penal Code for going outside the lines! Grrrrrrrrrrr.....

*breathe, breathe*

At least LL liked it... I just hope my next piece is to the liking of Mr. Nameless, Faceless... rhymes with Mutt Bod... I can't live with myself if I let him down...

(my name is LJ and I use sarcasm as a weapon)

Here's the Final!

Actual Size detail: here...

LJ

ack sorry hon, my day looks to be booked with family... but I will try my best... glad you like it.

... detail of upcoming piece, finish probably tomorrow sometime...

LJ

Colorized...

Reference: here

Sketch: here

Ink: here

LARGE file will be mailed off asap MB, hope you like it!

LJ

Try this: The Network

And THIS always helps in such matters...

Good luck.

LJ

Damn Bill Gates is everywhere...

Happy Birthday sir!

Try to vary your "stroke" weight, Illustrator lets you go from .25 to waaay over 40pt, so concentrate on line variety. Thinner for details in smaller objects, or "inside" the body.

Heavier to indicate shadow on a consistent side of the object, as in if your light source is coming from the left, then all of the right sides can be inked heavier. This is yours to decide, a common first time mistake is to make everything the same thickness or weight, and their by make the object look like a woodcut.

Which has it's merits, but if you vary your lines, you will get more 3 dimensionality. For hair, try indicating certain whisps and tufts with a medium weight, inside those areas with a lighter weight and again your heaviest for opposite the light source.

Some people do a chopping outline, and heavier shadows to indicate the sides and places of the forehead. Hair varies on each subject and their pose, so if you have multiple figures, you can get changes depending on where they are standing in accordance with "your chosen" light source.

Also think of your object, you wouldn't ink a baby in bold thick lines unless maybe it had fallen in a barrel of dirt, likewise you wouldn't give a gun light wiggly lines, unless you were going against the laws of physics.

Also keep your inking consistent from element to element. Both eyes should be done the same if the light is direct, lips are long curvy weights, not chicken scratched bristles you might use to indicate facial hair.

I will try to make up an example, but my main advice to you would be to make a calligraphy brush. I will see if I can write that up as a tutorial.

Otherwise, keep going... practice makes perfect.