These are simple, but done with different techniques and programs. Up above is purely digital, drawn and painted in Photoshop.

The guy below was drawn in Adobe Illustrator according to a pencil sketch, then coloured in Photoshop. I’m happy with the ink lines I’m able to create, and they’re fast to do, too.

This strange woman was painted in black wash on paper, then coloured in Photoshop. Nifty! I want to be able to blend the colours more.

Still, all things considered, they look good to me, and my pics will continue to get only better.

Still playing with the digital painting. I think I get so carried away with the technical challenge I sometimes forget to make an interesting picture. Hence this horse, not doing much of anything. George Stubbs I am not! Actually, without the “ink” lines, this looks a lot like one of those paint by numbers kits. I promise I’ll get better with the digital painting soon. Still think you might be interested in seeing the process!

Of course, it would have looked better had I used a photo reference instead of drawing it and the reflections out of my head, but that’s the way I am.

Meanwhile, here are a few real ball-point pen drawings I did. It’s a medium I enjoy. Again, sort of frowned upon by the finer galleries, but I like doing the tones with crosshatching.

Young Nora was being obstreperous, as is easy to see from this photo, and she got my little finger this morning as I was trying to take something breakable away from her. So I’ve given her a new identity, as below:

So there.

I’ve been neglecting my blogging. That doesn’t mean I haven’t been drawing. Working on female faces here, trying to catch what’s special in a face that makes it a particular person. Easier to draw a generic face. But when you can’t get out to sketch real people, which is the best, there are always photographs. The problem with those is they’re static, and essentially someone else’s (the photographer’s) image you’re copying. Still, I feel like I’m increasing in accuracy, while keeping the drawings personal.

One thing that’s interesting is to watch documentaries, and freeze the image. It still belongs to the film, but you’re choosing it. The people below are from a short film about the late director Ken Russell:

Star Wars fans know who this is supposed to be:

Drawing things from DVDs. Freezing it this time, rather than just going on impressions as the movie plays. A lot of work filling things in with pencil! This and the below are based on Sharon Stone from the beginning of Total Recall.

And some random, imaginary profiles with my fine-line roller pen:

Good night, all!

That’s where these drawings are from. When winter sets in it’s less practicable to draw things out on the street. So I sit around looking at books, watching DVDs, also drawing anything that tickles my fancy. Hate drawing directly from photographs, but those give you different ideas, and also keeps one closer to reality. So here are imagined pictures I was drawing last night, mainly while watching episodes of “Star Trek Enterprise” on youtube via the computer.

I drew these in black and white, because I’m practicing computer colouring. Seems like a lot of work!

I’ve finally learned a comic colouring technique that’s relatively fast, and that I’m happy with. Check this series of youtube videos from the Overground Comic Company, if you want to find out more.

Meanwhile, I’ve been drawing a stack of things. Here are a couple of angry guys on horses a la Frank Frazetta for you:

Could call these “Pen and Ink,” but that seems too grand. The titles become dull also, because of the idea of putting something plainly descriptive in so search engines can find them.