This is an illustration I finished yesterday. On the left is the original sketch that I did for the painting. My handwriting is sloppy, but on the writing on the monster are the colors that I wanted to use.
Sometimes I like my sketches better than my finished paintings. Sketches are looser and just have a certain ease about them. I don’t worry about being “perfect” when I’m sketching something out. I hold my pencil with my ring finger and pinky finger sticking out and that just lends itself to a drawing that isn’t as precise. However, when I am working on a finished painting I hold the pencil the same way that I would if I were writing and I end up with tighter drawn lines. I’ve been working on giving my finished paintings the same easiness as the sketch. I’m going to be working on a few new illustrations today and when I do the outlining I’m going to try holding my pencil differently and see what kind of results I get.
I paint with watercolor, and outline in graphite or charcoal. I like the way charcoal outlining looks but it’s become the bane of my life. Primarily because it is so difficult to find a brand of charcoal pencil that draws smoothly, isn’t too dark, and sharpens well. I had been using Prismacolor brand that I buy from Dick Blick but for some reason they are no longer available. That being said, I decided that I would try switching to an outline in graphite for awhile.
I have illustrating to do but I will be sure to post my progress tomorrow!
