ART SUPPLIES

Saturday, December 30, 2017

A quick iPad Pro sketch

I I finally got an iPad Pro to go along with my Apple Pencil I got last years here’s a quick doodle I did while watching the Nightmare before Christmas with our 4-year-old twins.


This was created using Procreate, Apple Pencil and Ipad Pro. As I said this is just a doodle since I had the twins climbing all over me while I was trying out the pencil/ipad/procreate combo. 

You can also check out my YouTube channel for more videos about sketching and I'll be posting more videos there from my sketches using the ipad as well. 

I''m hoping to do a review of the Ipad, procreate and pencil combo from a not-so-advanced sketchers point of view in the coming months. 

Here's the Amazon links for the Apple Pencil and Ipad Pro:

Apple Pencil: http://amzn.to/2DCOVgx

iPad Pro 12.9":  http://amzn.to/2CmvJGP

Thanks and see you out there.

Sunday, December 17, 2017

MY FIRST-EVER SKETCHBOOK

I created a flip through tour video of my first sketchbook on Youtube. Click the title or the sketch below to view it on Youtube.


 video of my first sketchbook

Here's a list of supplies I generally use for sketching that are available on Amazon. 

My main sketchbooks these days are Stillman and Birn Beta Series A5 sketchbook






Pentel Aquash water brush: This works for quick watercolors and on thinner papers such as general sketching paper.

My palette: Prima Marketing Watercolor Confections: The Classics (I took out the Prima paints and replaced them with half pans of M. Grahams and W and N paints)

Noodler's Eels Black waterproof ink: This is a slow drying ink so be patient. It is also only waterproof on certain paper so test it before you use it something you really like. 

Platinum carbon ink bottle ink black 60cc: This is my main ink I use in my fountain pens. Unfortunately I can't find a U.S. supplier so it takes a few weeks to get through Amazon so order ahead of time. I also love the shape of the bottle it comes in.

Note: I'm an Amazon affiliate so I get a small commission from amazon when you click on any of the above links and make a purchase. It doesn't cost you anything extra. 



Monday, December 11, 2017

SKETCHBOOK FLIP THROUGH AND TOUR VIDEO

So I took the plunge and posted a video of one of my sketchbooks on Youtube.

One of the sketches from my third sketchbook.

I started sketching a year ago and have completed three sketchbooks plus a few pages in several others. A few of my sketchbooks have specific themes so anytime I get inspired to draw something that fits into that theme I use that particular sketchbook.

Here's a link to my video on Youtube.



Also here's a list with Amazon links of the art supplies I used to create my sketches. If you have any questions about my work or any of the supplies I use leave them in the comments below and I’ll do my best to answer them.

The first sketch I do in my sketchbooks now is a sketch of the supplies I will use to draw with.
I found that this is a great way to break in a new sketchbook. 

My main sketchbooks are Stillman and Birn Beta Series A5 sketchbook






Pentel Aquash water brush: This works for quick watercolors and on thinner papers such as general sketching paper.

My palette: Prima Marketing Watercolor Confections: The Classics (I took out the Prima paints and replaced them with half pans of M. Grahams and W and N paints)

Noodler's Eels Black waterproof ink: This is a slow drying ink so be patient. It is also only waterproof on certain paper so test it before you use it something you really like. 

Platinum carbon ink bottle ink black 60cc: This is my main ink I use in my fountain pens. Unfortunately I can't find a U.S. supplier so it takes a few weeks to get through Amazon so order ahead of time. I also love the shape of the bottle it comes in.

Note: I'm an Amazon affiliate so I get a small commission from amazon when you click on any of the above links and make a purchase. It doesn't cost you anything extra. 


Thanks for checking out my blog and the video. Please subscribe to my blog and youtube channel. I hope to do more sketching videos soon.




Thursday, December 7, 2017

DESIGNING A NEWSPAPER PAGE 1

Here’s a 2-minute video using Adobe Indesign to create a newspaper front page that I made a couple of years ago for the Capital Press newspaper in Salem, Oregon.

I generally will try two or three different arrangements when I build a cover and that is what you will see here. Click on the link below.
Here’s another example of creating a centerpiece using both Indesign and Photoshop.
CP1-1201-A01fishb
This may get a little complicated, especially if you don’t know Photoshop and/or Indesign very well. But here is how I created the centerpiece.

THINK LAYERS

I first cutout the trout on this stock image using Photoshop, enlarged it slightly on its own layer, erased the original image on the background layer and saved it as a PSD.
Rainbow Trout
I then pulled the psd image onto the page in Indesign, faded the bottom of the image with gradient fade.
Once this was done I wrote the headline and overlaid it onto the image. The font is the Universal Heavy.
Next I duplicated the image and brought it to the top, which now covered the text. I also turned off any text wrap on the image. Next I went into the Object menu tab and down to Object Layer Options where I turned off the Background layer.
I then added a drop shadow to the foreground trout making sure it was broad enough to give it some distance from the background and light enough so it didn’t obscure the headline text.
I could have stopped there but I’m thinking that if the text really was underwater then it would be a little bit distorted so I figured why not. If I’m gong to jump in I might as well get all the wet, or something like that.
Anyhow, there are a number of ways you can alter text both in Indesign and Photoshop. I chose to use photoshop just because for me it was quicker for what I had in mind.
FISH2
Above is the result of the layers and drop shadow. Now comes the fun part.

CREATE A PDF

In Indesign I saved the page as a PDF file. I then opened it in Photoshop. Once the pdf was opened I went to the Filter tab and clicked on Liquify.
From there I adjusted the settings so and tool size to get the effect I was looking for. After a couple of passes with a broad tool setting I made the tool about half the size and did a few drags on some individual letters to make it look not so uniform in its squiggles.
When I was satisfied with the results I again saved the image as a pdf.

IMPORT THE PDF

Once back in Indesign I deleted both the original image, the duplicated image and the headline text.
Next I pulled in the new pdf into a photo box and there it is.
Like I said there are numerous ways to achieve the same results. that’s just the way I chose.

You can visit www.capitalpress.com to read the complete stories you see on this page.


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THERE'S SOMETHING A LITTLE NOSTALGIC ABOUT FOUNTAIN PENS


When I was a cartoonist in high school I used to use a dip fountain pen and India ink to draw my cartoons for the school newspaper.

Drawn with a Platinum Carbon desk fountain pen and platinum carbon ink.


I loved the feel of the nib dragging across the paper, the scratching sound it made and the smell of the ink.

Add some '70s music and it takes me right back there to my desk in my room drawing all night long., barely going to bed before I had to leave for school.

When I started drawing again last December I purchased  some India ink and a few dip pens. It all came rushing back to me just as I had hoped it would. Unfortunately though, I have two 4-year-old boys and a 5-year-old boy running around the house so having open bottles of ink anywhere in the house is a disaster waiting to happen.

So I decided to give fountain pens a try.

I have three of them now. A Lamy Safari ...
(NOTE: these are my Amazon affiliate links below)





A Sailor Fude De Mannen



And a Platinum Desk Pen - Extra Fine DP-1000 (which to me is the most like a dip pen)





I also bought ink converters so I could use whatever inks I wanted to instead of going with the refill cartridges.

Each of these fountain pens have a quality all their own. I highly recommend giving one or all of them a try.

Although, at least for me, fountain pens don't quite feel like a dip pen, they do give me that raw, "just go for it" feel. And every once in a while, they will give that ink splatter effect that I get from a dip pen when the nib happens to stick to the paper. Now if they could just have that India ink smell (which by the way you should not use in fountain pens).

Feel free to click on the above Amazon links. It'll give me a few cents but won't cost you any thing extra.  Even if you buy something else from amazon while you are there. Thanks

Wednesday, December 6, 2017

A QUICK SKETCH OF THE US CAPITOL

My job is one of those, "Hurry up and wait" jobs. A lot of waiting in between mad dashes to meet deadlines.

Some of that time I spend doodling images that come across my desk. Here is one of the U.S. Capitol.

This is drawn on standard copy paper using a disposable Bic mechanical pencil and colored in Photoshop CS6. The sketch took about 15 minutes total. I actually did a rough doodle a few days ago and decided to add to it today.

I haven't been sketching much lately but I'm hoping to get back into it. It's been a whole year since I began sketching and I've learned quite a bit in that time. I still have a long way to go but don't we all ...  or maybe it's just me.

Saturday, December 2, 2017

A to Z SKETCHBOOK

S is for Skateboarder. My first sketch and watercolor in more than a year.  I always have trouble finding things to sketch. Well, maybe not ...