Mark

Ron

Thursday: Alien Contact

It was a hectic day so I have to post this in progress. I have a few more ideas to try out before I can call this complete.
Also, I want to give some credit to Issara Willenskomer...I used some of his downloadable design elements for the background textures and effects. Check out his site, DesignBum . Not only does he have some great downloads but his work is really outstanding too.

Wednesday

This sketch was inspired by Sophie Jodoin's paintings. A friend turned me on to her work a few days back...her work is really unbelievable.

Tuesday's Sketch

Another sketch from looking at a magazine ad.

Illustration Friday: Extremes

This is an example of just having a single word in mind (in this case "Extremes") and seeing where it takes you. This piece is a little disturbing to me because it started as a self-portrait but in the end I think it feels more like a vampire version of the Joker. I blame this interpretation of myself on the fact that Halloween is around the corner.

Some more work...

I wanted to try a few experiments with the "Absinthe" sketch. In the background, to create more texture, I used a lot of pieces from the vector packs I bought at the Go Media web site. They have a lot of great resources for designer and illustrators on their site.

Absinthe

Zach

Another Sketch

I had time for one more quick sketch today...still trying to stay loose and quick with the illustration.

Animation Project Concept Drawing 2

Another attempt at a style for my animation project...not totally happy here but maybe I have just been staring at it too long.

Sketches from 10/9/07

Some face sketches today from magazines. I'm trying to do these in 20 minutes each just to stop myself from tightening up. Like most artists I know, I really am striving towards a look that is loose and unlabored but still feels finished. I am far from there yet, but some of these are on the right track.

Microsoft Illustrations (part 2)

Microsoft Illustrations (Part 1)

These illustration were created to be a part of web movie for Microsoft. In all there were about 75 illustrations that I completed over the last few months. I will continue to post more in the coming days.

Animation Project Concept Drawing

Here is a illustration I finally finsihed up--it is a piece of an animation project that has been on the back burner for awhile now. It still isn't quite where I want it but the mood is starting to feel right.

New Sketch

I haven't been able to post much lately because of a project I have been working on for Microsoft. I just finished that up and will post a bunch of images from that job as soon as I am given the okay.

Here is a sketch I did from looking at a picture in Entertainment Weekly of Tim Gunn from Project Runway...still working out the best way to draw with the cintiq and trying to get comfortable working directly on the computer. I'm going to try to get back to some more regular posting of my experiments now that I have a little more time.

Sketches 7/19/07

I have been tied up on a new animation/illustration project so my sketches-of-the-day have fallen off. To replace that idea for now, I'm posting a bunch a quick sketches that I have been doing at night to stay sharp. Most of this is sketched from John Buscema's work. I have been trying to get my hands on everything of his I can lately. I think if I draw his stuff over and over again, it may rub off on me.

Cintiq Sketch of the Day 2

Another of my sketch of the day attempts...this one is a little different approach than Monday's. I still drew directly in Photoshop, but tried starting with the shadow areas first and then working on the midtones, etc. The last drawing I did in the opposite way...not sure which I like more. This approach was much quicker but it seems to be a little less subtle.

I am copying my friend Peter Krause's idea, for doing a sketch of the day. This one is sketched from a photo in Sports Illustrated of Rafael Nadal...all done in Photoshop on the Cintiq tablet again.

Sketch for the Extended Version of Fever

Another experiment...

I was trying to see what would happen if I drew directly in Photoshop (on a Cintiq tablet). It is a bit of a departure in style from most of my work but I think it is valuable to try things outside of your usual pattern in order to improve. I typically like to work with more graphic shapes and hard edges, but in this I was going for a much more painterly feel. I also tried to not use any reference and just draw straight from my head...just to push myself a bit.

I've learned a lot of great techniques for an illustration like this from the DVD's at the The Gnomon Workshop . They are a really excellent resource.

The Departed

Here is a drawing (and the pencil) I did as an excercise to stay sharp. The coloring was done in Photoshop on a Cintiq tablet, but the the inking and pencils were done traditionally.

You can click on the images for a larger view.

Recent illustrations for a Microsoft campaign

I just finished a large number of illustrations for a Microsoft anti-piracy campaign. Below is a sampling of the 70 or so images that were used in the final product, a 4 minute web movie titled "Suspicious Cargo". You can view the movie by clicking here .

Click on any of the below images for a larger view.