May the Fourth Be With You!

May the 4th Be With You!

"May the Fourth Be With You" is a pun so bad and obvious, I'm ashamed I didn't come up with it first...

No, it isn't Bucky O'Hare.  It's Jaxxon, the giant, green rabbit which was part of Marvel Comics "Star Wars" series.  

Yes, when I was a kid I actually bought the issues that introduced Jaxxon and, as you can guess, I have a soft spot in my heart (and probably head) for the character. 

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PART ONE:  Here are the digital pencils.  They were originally done on a 1,000 x 1,500 pixel canvas, but I shrunk it down to 900 pixels to keep the file size within reason on the site.

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PART TWO:  And here are the digital inks.  They were done mostly with a 5 pt. Hard Brush, and a patterned brush for the stippled background of the Cantina walls.  

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PART THREE:  Here is the color plate.  I created a New Layer and set it to Multiply to color the page but keep all the linework.  I finished the whole thing off by adding the lettering, above.

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Done digitally in Photoshop

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Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Andromeda

Andromeda

Here is the original entry for Andromeda to the "Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe".

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And here is my entry for Andromeda to the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Redux.

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STEP ONE:  I created a New Document 1,000 x 1,500 pixels in PhotoShop and did some really quick digital pencils/scribbles for the pose.

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STEP TWO:  In a New Layer, I did some digital inks over top the digital pencils... er, scribbles.  Rather than do something a bit more painted, I decided to leave it more closely to a pen-and-ink type of drawing.

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STEP THREE:  Creating a new MULTIPLY Layer, I colorized the drawing.  This time, I chose to go with coloration similar to a vector-based style.

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Created digitally in Photoshop.

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March M.O.D.O.K. Madness 2015 (Part 2)

March M.O.D.O.K. Madness 2015 (Part 2)

With apologies to Shepard Fairey this time, here's another submission to March M.O.D.O.K. Madness 2015.  Whew!  Just made it in under the wire before M.M.M. closes for another year... :-D

UPDATE: Speaking of Shepard Fairey, I was contacted by Louise from the Artsy website.  Here is a LINK to more Shepard Fairey and Shepard Fairey-inspired art for those of you who are interested.  Enjoy that and the other art-related links on their site!  :-)

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This was done digitally in PhotoShop.

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March M.O.D.O.K. Madness 2015

March M.O.D.O.K. Madness 2015

With apologies to Geoff Darrow and his awesome cover to Hard Boiled #3, here is my submission to March M.O.D.O.K. Madness for 2015.

Fingers crossed, I may try to get another submission in before the end of the month if I have the time.  We'll see how that goes.  :-S

For those interested, here's the process...

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STEP ONE:  Here is a quick sketch done in Photoshop in black-and-white showing the basic layout.  I was vaguely inspired by Geoff Darrow's cover to Hard Boiled #3 (and by "vaguely inspired", I mean I blatantly ripped it off).

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STEP TWO:  I then did some rough layout in black and white to figure out the tonal values, final composition, and begin fixing some of the errors in the initial quick sketch.  Also, "Turn that frown upside down, M.O.D.O.K.!"

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STEP THREE:  Here I used a MULTIPLY Layer to lay down the basic color scheme, and then created various new layers to paint on top of that for the finished color work.  This was pretty much the finished picture, but...

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STEP FOUR:  Then I decided that it worked better if I trimmed the top and bottom.  It seemed to make it a bit more cinematic and was a better composition.  I also blurred the person's head so it wasn't quite as gory and also seemed to add some depth of field to the finished picture, as well.  Hmmm, I'm not sure why I keep giving M.O.D.O.K. a haircut like Moe Howard from "The Three Stooges"... 

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This was done digitally in Photoshop.

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Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Phoenix II (Rachel Summers)

Phoenix II - Rachel Summers

Here is the original entry for Phoenix to the "Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe".

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And here is my entry for Phoenix to the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Redux.

I read X-Men back when I was an early teen and really liked the aesthetic look of the Rachel Summers version of Phoenix in issue #199 (yes, kids, I'm really that old).  So, when it became available for the OHotMU:Redux, I had to grab it!

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STEP ONE:  OK, I decided to go through and do some really quick thumbnails to find a good pose (each one was just a couple-a-few minutes).  I decided to go with "E".  In some ways, I almost like the thumbnail pose better than the finished picture... Oh, well.

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STEP TWO:  I blew up the thumbnail and got to work digitally inking over the top.  I then did some flat grayscale and then flat color over top of that.  I then used that as a base to start building up more highlights and some shadows, as well. 

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STEP THREE:  I then added New Layers and kept building colors on top of each section, which I broke down into Red, Yellow, Skin Tones/Hair.  Once finished, I erased the white and added something vaguely Phoenix-shaped energies as the background. 

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For those of you who are interested, here is an animated .gif of each step.

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This was done digitally in Photoshop

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Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Phastos

Phastos

Here is the original entry for Phastos to the "Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe".

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And here is my entry for Phastos to the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Redux.

The Eternals are great fun for me.  I've always had a soft spot in my heart (some would argue the soft-spot is actually in my head) for Greek Mythology, and Jack Kirby's Eternals being the template for the Greek Myths drew me in as a kid.  Although, I have to admit it took me a few tries for me to figure out Phastos was short of Hephaestus when I first read about him; they didn't quite spell it out as directly as they did for Zuras, Ikaris, Thena, etc.  :-D 

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STEP ONE:  I created a New Document 1,000 x 1,500 pixels in PhotoShop and did some really quick digital pencils with a 50% gray.  Originally, I was gonna give him a bigger beard and some over-sized power gloves, but then decided to stick a bit more to the character sheet.

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STEP TWO:  In a New Layer, I did some digital inks over top the pencils.  As the picture turned out to be symmetrical, I just copied and flipped the arms and legs so they matched.

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STEP THREE:  I did a grayscale painting on a MULTIPLY Layer over top for lighting, then created another MULTIPLY Layer for flat colors.

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STEP FOUR:  I created several NEW LAYERS--one for each color--and add highlights and shadows over the top the flat colors.  I also decided to have some Kirbyesque Krackle radiating from the hammer.  (Queue M.C. Hammer's "Can't Touch This" :-)

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Created digitally in Photoshop.

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Shameless Self-Promotion...

A bit of shameless self-promotion...

My Facehugger-Valentine was listed on the Drowning Pool Facebook page on February 14, 2015.   Cool!  :-)

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Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Molecule Man

Molecule Man

Here is the original entry for the Molecule Man to the "Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe".

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And here is my entry for Molecule Man to the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Redux.

I first read a story with the Molecule Man in the pages of "The Avengers" while a kid in the early 80's.  He had near-godlike power--able to manipulate inorganic matter (later, they removed that limitation and it became all matter) and some funky lightning bolt scars on his face.

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STEP ONE:  I created a New Document 1,000 x 1,500 pixels in PhotoShop and did some really quick digital pencils with a 50% gray.  Mostly, I just noodled around until I was more-or-less happy with the pose I would use.

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STEP TWO:  On a New Layer, I did some quick digital inks.

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STEP THREE:  I created a NEW LAYER set to Multiply to layout highlights and shadows.

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STEP FOUR:  I did some flat colors with a New MULTIPLY Layer.

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STEP FIVE:  I created several NEW LAYERS--one for each color--and add highlights and shadows over the top the flat colors.  Lastly, I added some vague Kirbyesque Krackle to give him some suggestion of power.

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When I was a kid, I always wondered about the lightning bolt scars on Molecule Man's face.  In this case, I decided to make some sort of suggestion that the scars are almost like seams where his face (and probably rest of his body) are just a third dimensional wrapping around the immense power he wields.  For a while, they got rid of the scars on his face, but I thought that was one of the more interesting things about him, visually.

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Created digitally in Photoshop.

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Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Fenris

Fenris

Here is the original entry for the Polaris to the "Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe".

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And here is my entry for Fenris to the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Redux.

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STEP ONE:  I created a New Document 1,000 x 1,500 pixels in PhotoShop with a gray background.  This establishes a mid-tone which you can then add highlights and shadows.  I didn't bother doing too much with the jackets, as I figured I would be working on them in the top layer. 

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STEP TWO:  I did some flat colors with a MULTIPLY Layer.

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STEP THREE:  I created a NEW LAYER to add highlights and shadows over top the flat colors.  I then erased the gray background and created a new, colored background square and called it done.

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Created digitally in Photoshop.

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HAPPY NEW YEAR - 2015!!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR - 2015!!!

Yeah, it's a picture for 2015 done on the last day of 2014.  :-D

I'm a really big fan of Jack Kirby's O.M.A.C. (One Man Army Corps), so I thought I'd do a drawing of him to ring in the new year.

A Happy New Year to All!  :-)

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Here are the pencils, which I scanned in and then colored digitally.

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This was done with pencil on 9" x 12" Strathmore drawing paper and then colored digitally in Photoshop.

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Rankin/Bass Presents... The Thing

Rankin/Bass Presents... The Thing

Just in time for the holidays -- a mash-up of the Rankin/Bass "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" and John Carpenter's "The Thing".

(Click to embiggen -- or right-click on the picture and choose to view it in a new tab to see the pages full-size.)

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This was done digitally in Photoshop.

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It's a Good Life on the Island of Misfit Toys

It's a Good Life on the Island of Misfit Toys

I always assumed this is what happened to the man who was turned into a Jack-in-the-Box in the excellent Twilight Zone episode "It's a Good Life"...

(Click to embiggen -- or right-click on the picture and choose to view it in a new tab to see the pages full-size.)

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Two page comic done with Pen-and-Ink on 9" x 12" Bristol Board and colored in PhotoShop.

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Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Polaris

Polaris

Here is the original entry for the Polaris to the "Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe".

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And here is my entry to the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Redux.  

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STEP ONE:  I created a New Document 900 x 1,500 pixels in PhotoShop.  In this case, I forgot to save an early picture of this one, so here's the finished black-and-white digital drawing.

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STEP TWO:  I did some flat colors with a MULTIPLY Layer, and then went over top with some highlights and shadows with a New Layer.

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Created digitally in Photoshop.

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