A Few of My Favorite Marvels

Hello again, it has been close to if not more than a week since posting last. I must say Inktober got crazy there at the end. I have been sitting on the last few sketches for a week now trying to get the energy to ink them. Come on it was Halloween and the World Series, what's a guy supposed to do. So this was technically Inktober Day 26's artwork.

I started this drawing as just a doodle on a sketch pad during work. Wolverine was the first character that I got down, then Spiderman, Captain, and finally Iron Man. I have drawn these characters so much that I didn't have to look at photos or reference in regards to their postures. So ultimately I felt good about that. When it came time to ink the drawing a few nights ago I realized that I had just drawn the characters and no background, so it looked like they were just floating around. I decided to draw a city.

I am trying to get better at spotting my blacks. This means finding those large areas of ink that are supposed to convey shadows or just conveying a dark colored object. I've always had a hard time with this because after I made all the linework (think like a coloring book) I always assumed that I was finished. What I am finding is creating shadows with ink gives the drawing depth and makes the finished illustration more interesting.

On a side note I have started to put my artwork up for sale on my etsy store:
https://www.etsy.com/shop/AtelierLambert

Retro Iron Man

Here is a drawing that I have been waiting to complete for a few weeks, I have been a little busy lately. This is Iron Man, or at least what he looked like in the 1980's comic books. If you are unfamiliar with the origin story of Iron Man, you probably should pick up the 2008 movie titled Iron Man. Please do, I'll wait...

Ok so for this drawing I started out with a rough sketch in pencil and then scanned it into Photoshop to finish off some of the designing. I originally had the character straight, but decided to tilt him counter clockwise in order to give the drawing a more dynamic feel. While still in Photoshop I changed all the pencil lines into blue lines, so that after inking I could use the magic of Photoshop to make them disappear. For this inking process I used a quill pen although I normally try to use brushes exclusively. The benefit of this is that a pen tends to give a more steady and less organic line, which is perfect if you are drawing something metallic or man-made. Here's the drawing and I'll have some more soon!

Iron Man - First sketch of the New Year

My first sketch of the New Year, Iron Man! I'm fresh off winter break and I have been dying to draw some characters. I have been practicing my inking skills and it feels good to finally put the brush to the paper. Its always fun when I draw Iron Man. I like the freedom to experiment with his armor and think about how it forms over the figure. Its also fun to think about all the little compartments and what might be in them.

When I started inking this drawing it was morning and I had just drank coffee. Not a good idea when you are trying to get really delicate lines with a brush. I am using a cheap #6 sable brush to ink. Because the figure is in somewhat of a rigid pose I wanted to add a little bit more interest, so I added a background. In the past when I have done this I have noticed that I lose the figure in trying to put too much detail in the background. To combat this I tried to minimize the background detail and create contrast with the figure.

Iron Man

Iron Man is a pretty fun character to draw. It's kind of mesmerizing to draw all the little geometric shapes. I think it's interesting to see how the movies have influenced the characters design in the comic books. I remember reading armor wars a few years back and being pretty surprised at how dull Tony Stark's personality was.

Today I started off with a pencil drawing then spent about an hour inking. I am happy with how it turned out for the most part. What do you think?