Illustration #5 - I Sorta Took A Shortcut

Ok, I'basically had 1 day to do this last drawing since we're leaving on a family trip tomorrow and my son's going to turn his project in before we leave. Soooooo, rather than redrawing the original sketchbook drawing, I just went over it in ink with very few adjustments. Therefore, I'm now noticing an issue with the position of his legs and foot - not quite right. But oh well...

Do I still have my pouch of ammunition and gunpowder? Yes, I do!

One thing that I'll take away from this little mini-commission is the importance of time management. I need to expect to do multiple drawings for a single illustration - in some cases, probably lots! But, this was fun - hope I get an "A."

Now, it's off to Disneyland. I plan to take the sketchbook as we'll have to take turns waiting with the baby for some of the rides - I'm guessing she won't make the height requirement for Space Mountain.

4 Down - 1 To Go

Illustration #4, again, would be a decent 1st draft. I like the proportions of the foreground figure (for the most part). But, there are several things that I would adjust if I had time to do it again.

He got up to the shed and almost screamed as he almost walked right into the path of an armed guard. But, he realized the guard was asleep.

As I'm rapidly running out of time - we leave for Disneyland tomorrow afternoon - I'm working even more quickly and letting things go that I normally might spend more time on. But, I still have one more drawing to do, laundry to put away, suitcases to pack, dogs to bathe...

Short Story Illos #2 & #3

I managed to knock out a couple more illustrations over the last couple days AND still get some dishes done.

#2 was a quick one since it's a distance shot - little detail to worry about. I wish I hadn't used the thicker pen in the background trees, creating that darker line. Should've just stuck with a thin line, atmospheric value. Oh well...

One day on the farm, when Jake and his brother were plowing the fields...

#3 there are aspects of this that I really like, however the proportion thing is still a bit of a struggle. The table is too short and so the soldier looks at bit cramped under it. Also, the boy is a bit too young looking - proportions seem to work BUT they fit a younger age than I intended.

The recruiter was a Colonial Regular and had obviously been in many battles for he had scars on his face and a bandage around his head.

I actually have one more almost completely done - just not photographed. One more to go. I'm getting a little less meticulous as I really only have one or two more days to work on them. Wish I had time to add a watercolor wash!

My First Illustration Job!

Well, Ok...my son asked me to do some illustrations for a short story he did for his English class.

My first thought was "No - it's your project." But, I talked to the teacher who said students were allowed to have outside help on the illustrations. And, my son has always been the type who would rather have dental work done than do anything arts/crafts.

So, I thought it would be a good learning moment for me - translating text into 5 illos. Now, I have less than a week to do it (and I still have to be a mom and homeschool teacher), so they won't be the quality I'd send into a publisher. But, it's still good practice nonetheless.

The story is about the Revolutionary War. So, these are some sketches I've done, just practicing figures and costumes. Luckily, I have LOTS of books about this period in history among all my homeschool resources. A couple of figures are pretty close copies to some in a Revolutionary War coloring book (disclaimer in case you recognize them). Of course, I won't be using those figures - the rather stiff-looking General (above) I copied for warm-up and for the uniform. The woman (below) I used for the pose (her face and hair are different, and she was holding a long canon ramrod in the original - not waving). Hmmm, now that I see her on the screen, her head looks too small for her body - YIKES!

Anyway, this is a rather serious story so I'm trying not to make the figures too "kiddy cartoony" - that's my goal anyway.