Howler - final

Think this is finished. Not sure about the speech balloons though...

Howler - alternate version (unfinished)

Howler

Joe faces off with an alien noise fiend. Second entry for this month's forum art competition. To be inked and coloured, with possibly the addition of a couple of comedy speech balloons.

Durham Red illo for Dogbreath 21

Posted a coloured detail of this some weeks back - now that the mag is out there, here's the finished b&w image as it was printed.

2 minute portrait

I'm not going to make a habit of posting the images from my portrait diary - but I'm rather pleased with this one. This is a mature student I support, a 1-2 minute pencil sketch which was then inked in about the same when I got home.

Krool Heart - final version

Well, the blue thing kinda worked. Inked over them with a brush (the windsor & newton series 7 no less!) and a few different pens. Used the channel mixer to drop out the blue, but it was still faintly visible in places. I'll get the hang of it I suppose.

Colours added in photoshop.

The Krool Heart

Going to attempt the non-repro blue approach for the first time - so here is a pencil rough that I've turned blue in photoshop, then printed out ready to have a go at inking over. Not sure if I've used the right shade - but we'll see how it turns out. I'll post the inks later hopefully.

Zombie wife - final panel

Spoiler-ific panel from 'The Bucket of Blood'. Just couldn't resist posting it. Features my first attempts at colouring with a wacom too.

PS - thanks to Kevin Levell for the suggestion of the floating eyeball - too good to ignore!

Bucket of Blood preview 2

A selection of panels from page 4 of my strip for 'Back From The Depths'.

The original thumbnails provided by one of the writers stipulated 12 panels for this page, which I thought was going to be a bit of a stretch. In the end I went and added a few - which brings the final total to 16!

I've only got myself to blame...

End of the line, creep!

This is based on an excellent photo of one of the judges who policed this year's British International Comics Show. It was posted on the facebook page for the Minty fanfilm (which looks to be absolutely stunning, and will hopefully feature my new mate Banners as 'The Perp'). I asked them if I could use it as the basis for an illustration, and they obliged!

Hope to do more with it - this is a colour rough.

Slaine doodle

Very very quick sketch, done in red biro at work today, then photographed with my camera (hence it's a bit blurry).

My Bloated Zombie Wife

Nuff said.

Olly

First entry in the portrait diary - simple pencil sketch of my best friend and host this weekend.

Back from BICS!

I just attended my first. ever. comic convention. It was awesome, really really superb. Had a fantastic time, and, thanks to Kev Levell (for assuming that I would be taking it), had some interesting constructive criticism on my portfolio from - not least - Tharg himself. Old green bonce recommended the following: attend a life drawing class, tighten up the inks a little, try inking with a brush, and just basically keep drawing.

Oh, and thanks too to John Cahill, another small presser with loftier ambitions, for recommending the windsor & newton series 7 brush - I'll be tracking that down directly.

Had a great chat with PJ Holden too, who again offered invaluable advice.

So an idea occurred to me, and I'll start it tonight - I'm going to keep a portrait diary, take someone's photo every day and then pencil or paint or ink their portrait that evening. If I stick to it, I shoud build up a decent body of work whilst simultaneously improving my skills.

Onwards!

Business card

My first real attempt at one of these, gonna take a handful to BICS - you never know!

Vampire sketches

Amidst other projects (upcoming strips for Back From The Depths, Dogbreath & Zarjaz), I'm working on a strip I'd like to submit to another Future Quake Press publication, 'Something Wicked'. It's an annual horror anthology, and the most recent issue has just come out, so this won't see the light of day for some time - but that's fine, I've got enough on just now!

I'm adapting a short story I wrote last year, and it's a gothic Victorian setting. Don't want to give too much away at this stage, except for the fact that it will feature a (hopefully) disguting vampire-type creature!

These sketches were done last night, and I was trying to explore ways of redesigning a vampire, coming up with a new look for a classic monster. I want to make it genuinely scary, even though in the finished strip it'll probably only be half-glimpsed. Started off with pretty traditional vamps, then got to thinking 'what else has fangs in nature, and is utterly repulsive?' Well, spiders of course! Don't want to veer to far off course, but there may be some mileage in this...

Bucket of Blood

A couple of sneak previews from my contribution to 'Back From The Depths' - out in time for Hallowe'en!

Durham

Detail, coloured, of a last minute illustration I provided to accompany a text story in the forthcoming issue of Dogbreath. The full illustration features also Harvey, and will, of course, be printed in black & white.

Yaaaarrrrrrgggghhhhh!

A motley crew and no mistake.

A few pirates from my upcoming strip for horror comic 'Back From The Depths'.

Necronauts - final version

Happier with this - simpler, murkier and hopefully creepier.