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Mara Jade!

Mara Jade is one of my favorite characters from the Star Wars universe.  The moment I read Heir to the Empire, I was hooked.  It’s only fitting that I do her justice with some awesome fan art.  And I see no better piece to for a semi-walk through.

From pencils to  inks to colors:
This is just a super rough walk through to give you an idea of how I work.  The Pencils are rough, as I figure out the pose and proportions.  I also rough in highlights, to give myself and idea of the light source.

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I using the inking stage to take that even further, and add depth and shading.

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I color in photoshop.  I first make the ink a new layer, in which I delete all the negative space.  The magic eraser is your best friend here.  I throw in some rough colors on a new layer under the inks.  Then I refine.  I also go back to the ink layer and change my lines to soften the image.  It’s a lot of just playing around and seeing what looks best.  The final step is adding the water mark.

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New Tools

Excuse me while I get a little philosophical.

I’ve recently expanded my repertoire of art supplies to include markers.  Now I will admit I’m a bit of a snob when it comes to my art supplies.  In art classes I favored oil paints and charcoal and pen and ink, with a few brief forays with chalk pastel.  I liked the tools I was familiar with.  They were the tools of the masters.  I always thought, growing up, that markers and crayons were for little kids.  I was absolutely wrong about both of them.

I acquired a set of Copic markers in cool gray, and another set of the warm gray.  With a few splashes of sharpie thrown in, I’ve come to truly love the effect they create.    I am in love with markers.

Expect many pieces in the future featuring my new-found love.

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Some Make Up Tips

sfx makeup, special effects make up, horror, gore, trauma, wounds, bloody nose, veins, scary makeup

Since Halloween is quickly approaching, I thought I could impart some quick and easy tips to get you up and running.

1) Less is more. This is always one of the first things I go over when teaching a make up work shop. You don’t need to use a ton of make up to get the desired effect.  Start with a really thin application. It is always easier to add more than to try to take some off.  You’ll also thank your self at the end of the night when you don’t have to wash as much off.  That is one of the key things I’ve learned through my years of working at a haunted house.

2) White is a great tool–but it is not the end all be all of make up.  A thin coat of white can give an awesomely ghastly pale complexion, but too much and you look like a clown.  If that’s what you’re going for, great. But in most cases you only want a little bit of white. Try applying white to the highlight areas only.

3)The same can be said for black.  Black is also wonderful and I use it all the time, but it’s an accent, not the base.  Use it to darken shadows, not as the shadow itself.

4) A fun little trick for making eyes look really sickly is to apply a little bit of red right under the lower lash line, just like you would with eyeliner.

5) Also for that sickly pallor: A little bit of yellow on your highlight areas, and a smidge of purple on your shadows and you will rock the sick look.

6) Veins can be a really fun look.  Take a thin brush, and trace really light thin lines on the face and neck, or even your hands.  The eyes and mouth are a good place to focus, but if you need some ideas, google is your best friend. Reds, purples, and blues are great for veins.

Stay tuned for a part 2, but these should help you get out the door for some trick-or-treating.

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The Paynes’ Asylum

comic, panel, work in process, page, victorian dresses, crows, nurse, insanity

Welcome to the asylum.  This dark graphic novel follows Doctor Paynes’ attempts to confront and control the darkness in all of us. But in this house in the hollow, one can never trust their own senses.

Written by Karl Custer, drawn, colored, and lettered by me.  Check out Karl’s own site at http://www.uncleyo.com/

The following are some screen caps.  If you want to see more, spread the word about this delightfully dark tell. Hopefully you’ll be able to follow the good Doctor from your local book store.

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Died Blue

This was a portrait study done the summer of 2008.  I wanted to attempt a portrait that was reminiscent of the Victorian Era.  I used a reference of myself for the lighting, but mostly she is drawn from my imagination.  She was a practice for my painting skills, and is still one of my favorite pieces.

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Fall is Coming

Fall is quickly arriving here in Bucks County, which is always my favorite time of year.  I find that very appropriate timing to getting this website up and running.  I’ll try to keep you, the reader, updated with the artistic goings on of my life, and my maybe even my thoughts and some art–movies, theater, music, what have you.  I hope that will keep you entertained.

New art will be posted as I can, so check back often.

October and Halloween is swiftly approaching.  If you haven’t yet, check out http://www.activeacreshauntedfarm.com/ for a look at the haunted house I work at.  It keeps me busy, and I will certainly be posting more about it as we go along.

Thanks for stopping by.