Aya - page 4

How the character sleeps or interacts with essential props....really, the list goes on and on of what information is important to know. Does it ever end? I suppose when the story or the production concludes is when the list of behaviors/attitudes/poses is done. (At least by whomever the creator/artist that created that character.) However, the torch may get picked up by another artist :)

Aya - page 3

If your character has a job occupation/mission/purpose, that must be included too in their attitudes/expressions to further explain who this character. What they do and how they do it is very important as well as any props they interact with or sidekicks they work/live with :)

Aya - page 2

Designing a character is so much more than a pretty concept doing some cool pose. Character designers must define EVERYTHING about the character they're drawing. From the way they they move, to how they smile, frown, pick up an item, jump, run, falling down and the list goes on for miles. This is why the character's anatomy is so critical in order to communicate this information. All those circles, ovals and other shapes that make up the anatomy are the visual foundation of every character (even the ones made in 3D CG).

Time is Money...but how the heck do you judge pricing for your work/time as freelancer?

Charge by the hour....or charge by the project....it's a debate commonly had by creative and non-creative freelancers alike. Here's a helpful article to aid in this crucial decision:

Charge by the hour or by project? 

Aya's character rotation- COMPLETE!

When doing an animation rotation for any character, often 5 poses is enough assuming that the design is symmetrical and details mirror each other from left to right side. "Aya" is asymmetrical in her design: one arm has a bracelet, one ankle has a charm anklet, the robe she wears is torn and her hairstyle is differs depending on which way she's facing. All of these details must be accounted for and therefore "Aya" needs more than 5 poses in her rotation to show everything.

Aya's character rotation

Time to flex and train my skills in character design :)

I call this character "Aya" and she's a character from a story I'm developing on my own. This piece is a character rotation in progress and it's meant to show the character from all sides so an animator can understand how she's built and therefore, how she'll move.

Jubilee quick doodle

Rounding out the batch of quick doodles is Jubilee from the X-Men universe. Copyright by Marvel Comics, of course!

Quick doodle of Dr. Strange

A very dear friend of mine asked for a quick sketch of Dr. Strange. I drew him but Dr. Strange is copyright Steve Ditko and Marvel Comics. Always respect the original creator, folks :)

Jean Grey and Phoenix quick doodle

Yet another quick doodle, this time of Jean Grey and Phoenix. Characters are copyright Marvel!

Wonder sketch

Quick little doodle I did today of Wonder Woman :)

I drew her but the character herself is copyright DC Comics!

Aspiring to work for Walt Disney Studios one day?

Follow the hyperlink below that leads to an article for some great tips as to what you need to know to join their team of awesome artists:

http://collider.com/how-to-get-a-job-in-animation-at-walt-disney-studios/

My own picture day!

After my most recent post called "Picture Day", I was asked to do a drawing of myself on my own picture day during the holidays. Brings back memories of hating dresses but it still feels nostalgic in a good way :)

Picture day

A time honored tradition. Family members take that one special yearly photo that is supposed to be that precious child at their best. I remember those days as a child being dressed in a velvet dress around the holidays with a ribbon in my hair, tights and shiny black shoes. I couldn't wait to get it over with. Looks like this little guy is of the same mind!

Guilty little girl.....

The old 'try-to-get-out-of-trouble-by-looking-innocent' routine, eh? Wonder what this little girl did...

"Tales of Lyla" pages sneak peak

If you haven't joined us on the magical journey in "Tales of Lyla" yet, check out these samples from issues 1-3!

I'm the color stylist on the crew; which means I color the pages and put in FX using color. I receive pages that have only black linework, put in base colors, then shading/mood and of course the sparkly FX depending on what's happening in the panel. The time it takes to do each page varies depending on environment, lighting and mood. The page on the far left is from issue 1 and has a very detail intense design and many, many areas in need of FX such as glow for the windows. That one took a few days to execute from start to finish because of the level of detail and needed FX to set the mood.

The page in the middle had a simpler color approach that I had already established in earlier pages from issue 2 so there was less planning and more executing. There were a bunch of FX to take into account though such as bubbles, steam, water, dirt, dust and cobwebs. In the final panel, there were several light sources on the far left from specimen jars so each has their own lighting and how that lighting affects other shapes surrounding them like the walls.

The page on the far right is form issue 3. The last panel on this page has a lot of FX in the form of clouds, lightning and magic. In order to achieve depth of swirling dark clouds in the sky, extra layers of varying darkness needed to be added.

Tons of love goes into every single page from all of us on the Lyla crew : )

Every issue is easily available for download for a mere couple of dollars or so:

Easy ordering for issues 1 - 3