First Art Piece of 2012

 

Boy, it's been pretty quiet around here recently!  Being sick three out of four weeks in January and traveling the other week really put me behind schedule.  Since I haven't figured out how to add more hours to the day, I've had to concentrate on one thing at a time in order to cross some items off of my "To Do" list.  And now, I'm very pleased to say that I managed to complete my first art piece of 2012!  (Yes, I know I'm already lagging on my New Year's schedule, but I'm totally counting this as my January piece since it was 75% done by the 31st!)

 

This is Ellis--the hero of my manuscript, The Beast of Bannock.  He's a thirteen-year-old boy trapped in a horse's body, here represented in his equine form.  I have wanted to do this digital piece since I sketched the picture last February during my "30 Horses in 30 Days" project.  Although it might not look that complicated, I spent a ridiculous amount of time making this piece represent Ellis to the best of my ability.  (Being an artistic snail while still learning the ins and outs of Photoshop certainly didn't help!)  I'm very pleased with the end result and consider it my favorite digital piece to date--not only from a technical standpoint, but also because the subject matter means the world to me.

 

I experimented with some new techniques and Photoshop doohickeys for this piece, including creating (and struggling with) clipping masks and playing around with effects and font types.  I also learned how to make my first brush (those scars in the background can now be used anytime, anywhere) and create an original watermark.  I especially tried to nail down my Bannock-style and a cohesive look in this piece which I can implement in future character sheets.  (I'd love to illustrate my entire cast of equine characters someday...) 

Now that this piece is done, I'm ready to jump into some writing, reading, and more art!  (And what better inspiration for me to get started on those revisions than seeing this image on my desktop?)  Since my portfolio is finally a bit fatter now, too, I also have an exciting art announcement coming up soon!  (Woohoo!)  I can't wait to share it with you, so stay tuned!  :)  

Note: Ellis and The Beast of Bannock are not published, but proudly owned by me.  I learned how to make a brush and watermark with this great tutorial on DeviantArt by vampiremackenzie.