Five years of plotting, planning, saving, praying, singing, dancing, visits, money and planes are about to finally result in what we've been planning towards. Finally today my other half leaves the USA and begins her journey to Scotland to move in with me.
Finally we can have normality.
Well, as normal as we ever are anyway!
A blog focusing on my projects.
Tuesday 7 June 2011
Tuesday 22 March 2011
Dragon Age II
WARNING : You will likely not understand any of this post if you have not played Dragon Age.
Well, I got Dragon Age II the day it came out and it ate my life but I knew it was going to.
My overall feeling on the game was super happy fun feelings. The storyline was very different to Dragon Age Origins which isn't a bad thing. Dragon Age Origins was the epic story dealing with an end of world scenario crossing the massive country of Ferelden. It was a story of kings, queens, betrayal and an epic battle against the Arch Demon.
Dragon Age II is more the story of a single person rising up from nothing to become the hero of Kirkwall and help change the world more than the Blight ever did. It looks like it'll be the biggest change since Andraste marched upon the Tevinter Imperium and created the chantry.
I am very intrigued to see what they come up with for the downloadable content.
The combat system I haven't fully explored yet but the mage combat has much improved. I can actually whack stuff with my staff and the levelling up system is much easier to work out too. I also enjoy the fully voiced character :D
Now, excuse me while I go play a new Dragon Age game as a rogue.
Well, I got Dragon Age II the day it came out and it ate my life but I knew it was going to.
My overall feeling on the game was super happy fun feelings. The storyline was very different to Dragon Age Origins which isn't a bad thing. Dragon Age Origins was the epic story dealing with an end of world scenario crossing the massive country of Ferelden. It was a story of kings, queens, betrayal and an epic battle against the Arch Demon.
Dragon Age II is more the story of a single person rising up from nothing to become the hero of Kirkwall and help change the world more than the Blight ever did. It looks like it'll be the biggest change since Andraste marched upon the Tevinter Imperium and created the chantry.
I am very intrigued to see what they come up with for the downloadable content.
The combat system I haven't fully explored yet but the mage combat has much improved. I can actually whack stuff with my staff and the levelling up system is much easier to work out too. I also enjoy the fully voiced character :D
Now, excuse me while I go play a new Dragon Age game as a rogue.
Thursday 10 March 2011
Yeah, So, schedules...
My Monday - Wed - Friday posting schedule was supposed to be simple but with things like decorating and Darksiders getting in the way it's not really surprising I lagged. (I often do).
So, in fantastical news, Dragon Age 2 should be with me tomorrow, I thought I best do a blog post before it gets here and no one hears from me for about 3 months while I dissect the entire game and figure out all the little interesting side quests and pretty stuff.
My blog post today is more art but it's very much a work in progress, it's my cat comic! Or at least the beginnings of the first page (I have another couple done but this is the one i'm refining right now)
Click to enlarge!
Just noting, this current part of the comic is set in my other half's house. Our cats live with her in America, I kind of plan on showing our stories through the eyes of our cats. Also, the comic won't be blue, I will be colouring it in proper colours like my last post, but obviously that will take time. :D
I hope to have a coloured page to post next time, just this one page though, don't want to post too much here of it.
So, in fantastical news, Dragon Age 2 should be with me tomorrow, I thought I best do a blog post before it gets here and no one hears from me for about 3 months while I dissect the entire game and figure out all the little interesting side quests and pretty stuff.
My blog post today is more art but it's very much a work in progress, it's my cat comic! Or at least the beginnings of the first page (I have another couple done but this is the one i'm refining right now)
Click to enlarge!
I hope to have a coloured page to post next time, just this one page though, don't want to post too much here of it.
Monday 28 February 2011
Wednesday 23 February 2011
Hunger at Work
I was back at work today after a 5 day mini holiday.
I wasn't exactly happy when I had to get up this morning. Going to bed post 3am and having to get up pre 8am can do that to you (when I say pre 8am I mean 7:59am). I was very crabby with the idea of getting up, spent a good 10 minutes trying to convince myself that I had some terrible incurable disease and that I couldn't possibly go to work through the pain/emotional trauma.
Realising that I was in fact alive and mostly well I fell out of bed and proceeded to go get dressed for the day. My "Go to work" clothing is very different to my "normal day" clothing. Most people pretend to get all smartly dressed to go to work, me? It's all about "What is near and what is clean/acceptable". I passed over the crazy skull/snake Tshirt thing that I love but it's not really a 'weekday work shirt' (Weekend is fine) and grabbed a plain purple T shirt and black trousers.
When I got to work, I made a cup of tea (Caffine/sugar influx was required) and put my sandwich in the fridge. After this I began my work duties and began my morning wander through "What I'd like to eat for breakfast".
I was talking to my other half about breakfast the other day, we were discussing how breakfast is nice if you're able to have something somewhat tasty. I always dream about pancakes, eggs, bacon, sausages, yummy things that are horrifically bad for you and when I finally got to go on my breakfast break I found myself very dissapointed in my Apple/Blueberry Porridge.
It was neither appley nor was it blueberry like... in fact it barley passed for Porridge. I was very sad.
I consoled myself with a packet of Canadian Ham crisps. They were pretty tasty, I should have skipped the porridge and gone straight for those.
After the porridge disaster I went back to my desk and I was starving. People think I exaggerate and I suppose I am somewhat in the greater context but for me at that moment when I'm hungry I feel like I'm gonna die of starvation. I kind of sprawl over my desk and my mind tempts me with all the tasty things it wants to eat and no matter how tasty my Lunch Sandwich is, because of my previous hunger pangs it's never what I want it to be. It's never a pizza or a grilled cheese sandwich or anything...
Or cake... ah screw it, tomorrow I'm gonna be bad and get something really fatty for lunch and go straight for the Canadian Ham crisps for breakfast.
At least I'll enjoy it!
I wasn't exactly happy when I had to get up this morning. Going to bed post 3am and having to get up pre 8am can do that to you (when I say pre 8am I mean 7:59am). I was very crabby with the idea of getting up, spent a good 10 minutes trying to convince myself that I had some terrible incurable disease and that I couldn't possibly go to work through the pain/emotional trauma.
Realising that I was in fact alive and mostly well I fell out of bed and proceeded to go get dressed for the day. My "Go to work" clothing is very different to my "normal day" clothing. Most people pretend to get all smartly dressed to go to work, me? It's all about "What is near and what is clean/acceptable". I passed over the crazy skull/snake Tshirt thing that I love but it's not really a 'weekday work shirt' (Weekend is fine) and grabbed a plain purple T shirt and black trousers.
When I got to work, I made a cup of tea (Caffine/sugar influx was required) and put my sandwich in the fridge. After this I began my work duties and began my morning wander through "What I'd like to eat for breakfast".
I was talking to my other half about breakfast the other day, we were discussing how breakfast is nice if you're able to have something somewhat tasty. I always dream about pancakes, eggs, bacon, sausages, yummy things that are horrifically bad for you and when I finally got to go on my breakfast break I found myself very dissapointed in my Apple/Blueberry Porridge.
It was neither appley nor was it blueberry like... in fact it barley passed for Porridge. I was very sad.
I consoled myself with a packet of Canadian Ham crisps. They were pretty tasty, I should have skipped the porridge and gone straight for those.
After the porridge disaster I went back to my desk and I was starving. People think I exaggerate and I suppose I am somewhat in the greater context but for me at that moment when I'm hungry I feel like I'm gonna die of starvation. I kind of sprawl over my desk and my mind tempts me with all the tasty things it wants to eat and no matter how tasty my Lunch Sandwich is, because of my previous hunger pangs it's never what I want it to be. It's never a pizza or a grilled cheese sandwich or anything...
Or cake... ah screw it, tomorrow I'm gonna be bad and get something really fatty for lunch and go straight for the Canadian Ham crisps for breakfast.
At least I'll enjoy it!
Tuesday 22 February 2011
Q Factor!
I'm watching "Celebrity Don't Forget the Lyrics". Their "Celebrity" is Gareth Gates. You remember him right? Gareth "I lost out to Will Young 10 years ago on Pop Idol and have no music career" Gates. With his magically disappearing stutter.
Got me thinking about what celebrity has become. I watch X-Factor and the people that say "I want to be FAMOUS!" Make me want to get a big hammer and bash their heads in with it. Really? The only thing you want in life is to be famous? You want to walk down the street and be chased by everyone? Paparazzi aren't fun, no matter how cool Lady Gaga makes them sound in her song.
People who want to be famous should be discounted from that show. It really annoys me, oh and people with Sob Stories... In fact no, they just need to change the groups. Instead of like 16 - 30, over 30's, groups and such, it should be this:
Sob Stories
(Parents died, kid died, evicted, made redundant... etc)
Single Parents
(Self explanatory - such hard working single parents want to make the life of their kid better lol)
People who want to be famous
(I want to be like MADONNA!)
Car Crash TV
(Wagner)
That's got "success" written all over it. Louis Walsh should obviously take the Car Crash TV category. Same Difference, Wagner and Jedward should prove this. Cheryl would take Sob Stories, she's a sucker for them, Danni would take Single Parents and Simon obviously is the "people who want to be famous" category. I'm gonna write this in an Email and send my suggestions to ITV.
We'd also change the show's title to "Q Factor!"
Reason being is that Q is a pretty useless letter. It can't do anything without U can it? These contestants, if they really had X Factor, they'd already be famous and wealthy. They need a U to make them 'get there'.
Simon Cowell is their U and I dounbt he cries himself to sleep over all the Q's that don't quite make it. (Like Gareth Gates. He was a judge in pop idol too remember and he only got nasty after that. Nigel was the nasty one there.)
So yeah... Who's got the Q FACTOR!?
Got me thinking about what celebrity has become. I watch X-Factor and the people that say "I want to be FAMOUS!" Make me want to get a big hammer and bash their heads in with it. Really? The only thing you want in life is to be famous? You want to walk down the street and be chased by everyone? Paparazzi aren't fun, no matter how cool Lady Gaga makes them sound in her song.
People who want to be famous should be discounted from that show. It really annoys me, oh and people with Sob Stories... In fact no, they just need to change the groups. Instead of like 16 - 30, over 30's, groups and such, it should be this:
Sob Stories
(Parents died, kid died, evicted, made redundant... etc)
Single Parents
(Self explanatory - such hard working single parents want to make the life of their kid better lol)
People who want to be famous
(I want to be like MADONNA!)
Car Crash TV
(Wagner)
That's got "success" written all over it. Louis Walsh should obviously take the Car Crash TV category. Same Difference, Wagner and Jedward should prove this. Cheryl would take Sob Stories, she's a sucker for them, Danni would take Single Parents and Simon obviously is the "people who want to be famous" category. I'm gonna write this in an Email and send my suggestions to ITV.
We'd also change the show's title to "Q Factor!"
Reason being is that Q is a pretty useless letter. It can't do anything without U can it? These contestants, if they really had X Factor, they'd already be famous and wealthy. They need a U to make them 'get there'.
Simon Cowell is their U and I dounbt he cries himself to sleep over all the Q's that don't quite make it. (Like Gareth Gates. He was a judge in pop idol too remember and he only got nasty after that. Nigel was the nasty one there.)
So yeah... Who's got the Q FACTOR!?
Friday 18 February 2011
Faffing About again!
I now have 5 days off work, I plan on use most of the time to decorate the spare room but today is just a 'meh' day. Meh days are days spent watching tv, eating and playing videogames, I feel they are a good beginning to a 5 day weekend :D
Today I think I'll dedicate to the 90's like I did my evening last night. I had a whole lot of fun listening to Oasis, drinking a glass of white wine and playing Super Mario 3 and 4. I kept dying right enough but I did find it fun!
The old Nintendo games are still harder than most games you play now. New games are more complicated story wise but in the old days it was just diabolical. I still cannot complete super mario 1 and I think i've only seen the end level once in 25 years...
I get quite annoyed with it lol.
Later this evening I'll also be working on drawing. Drawing is a good passtime, might do a second posting, see how i feel later. :D
Today I think I'll dedicate to the 90's like I did my evening last night. I had a whole lot of fun listening to Oasis, drinking a glass of white wine and playing Super Mario 3 and 4. I kept dying right enough but I did find it fun!
The old Nintendo games are still harder than most games you play now. New games are more complicated story wise but in the old days it was just diabolical. I still cannot complete super mario 1 and I think i've only seen the end level once in 25 years...
I get quite annoyed with it lol.
Later this evening I'll also be working on drawing. Drawing is a good passtime, might do a second posting, see how i feel later. :D
Wednesday 16 February 2011
Oodles of Doodles
Well, I was working today which you know, is about par for the course on a Wednesday. I had a pretty quiet day and quiet turned to restless which turned into boredom which turned then into doodles.
I doodle a lot in work, on any piece of paper that someone isn't using. I just can't help it and so today I present a highlight reel of my daily doodles.
First of all, it's my ye old faithful "I'm bored and wanna draw."
Link!
It was just a normal picture of link at first... until I made a small mistake with my pen at the left side of his mouth and decided he'd be a vampire. So it's VAMPIRE LINK!!! WHOO!
I love vampire link lol. So then I decided that I was gonna draw something easy peasy. The one thing I can draw without thinking is a cow. So, that came next.
Huh, I seem to have a vampire theme going on today. So yeah I drew the vampire cow and gave her a martini glass and called him Mootini. I enjoyed drawing him and he made me smile :)
After the cow, I thought I'd stick with an animal theme so, i began drawing a kitty and called it Kyo...
The reason I called him Kyo is because he's a bit tubby... poor Kyo. He's not that tubby really, I mean, I think if he had half a chance he would get to double his current size.
Next, I started to draw a horse...
It became apparent very quickly that I cannot draw horses. In fact, I'd go so far to say that I suck at drawing horses. He then became a monster of some kind, maybe a dog horse? I dunno but thats what happened.
Last, but by no means least was my dragon.
Mwa ha ha ha ha, he's cute but he dreams bad things. Notice the artistic utilisation of an orange highlighter. I was hunting for a green one for the grass but then my phone rang and I had to do some work. It was very sad.
So yes, I think I may do a bigger better version of the sleeping dragon. I think he's cool and I just need to decide what colour to do him.
So anyway, after Monday's post about nothing, I thought a doodle post would make things much better!
I doodle a lot in work, on any piece of paper that someone isn't using. I just can't help it and so today I present a highlight reel of my daily doodles.
First of all, it's my ye old faithful "I'm bored and wanna draw."
Link!
I love vampire link lol. So then I decided that I was gonna draw something easy peasy. The one thing I can draw without thinking is a cow. So, that came next.
After the cow, I thought I'd stick with an animal theme so, i began drawing a kitty and called it Kyo...
Next, I started to draw a horse...
Last, but by no means least was my dragon.
Mwa ha ha ha ha, he's cute but he dreams bad things. Notice the artistic utilisation of an orange highlighter. I was hunting for a green one for the grass but then my phone rang and I had to do some work. It was very sad.
So yes, I think I may do a bigger better version of the sleeping dragon. I think he's cool and I just need to decide what colour to do him.
So anyway, after Monday's post about nothing, I thought a doodle post would make things much better!
Monday 14 February 2011
Faffing Aboug
Quiet day today, not much to report.
Took a break from drawing and such to admire the flowers my other half sent me. They're very pretty. Red Roses. Took some time to just watch TV, currently a documentary on why the UK froze this year. Proving to be interesting.
So, in closing. It's a faffing day. I promise Wednesday will be a more interesting blog post.
Took a break from drawing and such to admire the flowers my other half sent me. They're very pretty. Red Roses. Took some time to just watch TV, currently a documentary on why the UK froze this year. Proving to be interesting.
So, in closing. It's a faffing day. I promise Wednesday will be a more interesting blog post.
Friday 11 February 2011
Bioware Fangirl - Does tricks for EXP
Mass Effect & Dragon Age.
My two favorite games right now. Currently I'm playing Mass Effect 2. I think I'm about half way through the game so far and I am both amazed and awed by the size, beauty and complexity of this game. You feel like this world really exists, codex entries giving background information on every race you meet that I personally have read through for hours on end.
I love the character development and how the decisions you take in Mass Effect & Dragon Age have far reaching consequences into both the later stages of the game and even the next in the series. I found myself sitting for about 20 minutes last night agonising over a decision for one of the characters in my team. Do I play the Renegade or Paragon option (good or evil?) and what would I do in this situation?
Honestly, I eventually just closed my eyes and picked an option. Turned out to be a good option! All happy in the world of the Normandy (my ship for those that don't know)
I also had a revelation that made my jaw hit the floor (if anyone in the know is reading, I'll just say... the collectors.) I honestly was so shocked at the information presented to me I felt like I had been just told some real world bad news... Dragon Age made me feel like that too.
Another game that gave me real emotion was Fable II but mostly it was just fury at how cheap I felt after the End Game.
Anyway yeah, no doodles tonight, just some random musings and RAVING about ME2 if anyone has the ability to get this game (or Dragon Age - Ramblings on that due in MARCH BABY!) you should invest some money in the game and all the mission DLC.
In other news: I need a phrase to end my posts. Just leaving off seems odd. Lets go for the ever faithful:
Have a Nice Day Now :)
My two favorite games right now. Currently I'm playing Mass Effect 2. I think I'm about half way through the game so far and I am both amazed and awed by the size, beauty and complexity of this game. You feel like this world really exists, codex entries giving background information on every race you meet that I personally have read through for hours on end.
I love the character development and how the decisions you take in Mass Effect & Dragon Age have far reaching consequences into both the later stages of the game and even the next in the series. I found myself sitting for about 20 minutes last night agonising over a decision for one of the characters in my team. Do I play the Renegade or Paragon option (good or evil?) and what would I do in this situation?
Honestly, I eventually just closed my eyes and picked an option. Turned out to be a good option! All happy in the world of the Normandy (my ship for those that don't know)
I also had a revelation that made my jaw hit the floor (if anyone in the know is reading, I'll just say... the collectors.) I honestly was so shocked at the information presented to me I felt like I had been just told some real world bad news... Dragon Age made me feel like that too.
Another game that gave me real emotion was Fable II but mostly it was just fury at how cheap I felt after the End Game.
Anyway yeah, no doodles tonight, just some random musings and RAVING about ME2 if anyone has the ability to get this game (or Dragon Age - Ramblings on that due in MARCH BABY!) you should invest some money in the game and all the mission DLC.
In other news: I need a phrase to end my posts. Just leaving off seems odd. Lets go for the ever faithful:
Have a Nice Day Now :)
Wednesday 9 February 2011
Wonderful World of Wings
First, apologies for lack of update on Monday. I had some sort of alcohol related thing going on... deadlines seem to disappear in those instances.
Onto today's blog:
I've been giving myself little goals to work towards and the past week it's been Feathered Wings. I can draw bat/mammal wings pretty good as I was always rather obsessed with Dragons, but feathered wings, not so much.
My dragon wings:
That was like a 2 minute photoshop sketch. If I was doing it really detailed i'd have knuckles on the wing 'fingers'. I've always drawn these kind of wings but recently I've been needing to draw feathered wings for some characters in a story I've been writing with my other half.
Feathered wings on the other hand...
Kind of sucky!
So I embarked on a mission to turn my feathered wings into something worth showing. I've posted a picture up here recently with wings on it, but she's not very good either, it was her pose I was looking at practicing. I began looking online for wing anatomy and started to realise where I was going wrong. I was thinking that the wing was much shorter than it really is when actually it's just an arm with no fingers.
So I started to practice and research and came up with this!
I dunno if it makes sense to other people but it made sense to me lol!
So yes, with my newfound wing anatomy, I drew this (And I am very proud of it)
So yeah, let me know if it makes sense lol.
Onto today's blog:
I've been giving myself little goals to work towards and the past week it's been Feathered Wings. I can draw bat/mammal wings pretty good as I was always rather obsessed with Dragons, but feathered wings, not so much.
My dragon wings:
Feathered wings on the other hand...
Kind of sucky!
So I embarked on a mission to turn my feathered wings into something worth showing. I've posted a picture up here recently with wings on it, but she's not very good either, it was her pose I was looking at practicing. I began looking online for wing anatomy and started to realise where I was going wrong. I was thinking that the wing was much shorter than it really is when actually it's just an arm with no fingers.
So I started to practice and research and came up with this!
So yes, with my newfound wing anatomy, I drew this (And I am very proud of it)
Friday 4 February 2011
General Musings!
I've been spending today cleaning and clearing out stuff in my spare room and bedroom. My other half is planning to move here in May and so that kind of means she needs space to put her stuff. Its amazing how much crap you get over 25 years. It's even more amazing when you're living with your parents!
So yeah, loads of toys got given to charity today, I found my old Game Cube, I'm going to put it in the spare room for my Niece to play with. I'm sure she'll appreciate it, it's got Legend of Zelda (She's four but she's my padawan).
Speaking of Legend of Zelda;
This is the picture I was doing of link when I went looking for pictures of his hat :P
So yeah, loads of toys got given to charity today, I found my old Game Cube, I'm going to put it in the spare room for my Niece to play with. I'm sure she'll appreciate it, it's got Legend of Zelda (She's four but she's my padawan).
Speaking of Legend of Zelda;
Wednesday 2 February 2011
Bioware ate my soul
Late blog post, I am bio-aware. (heh, that's funny to me anyway)
Lets see what can be blamed for this amazing phenomenon? Could it be work? Food? A good book? No, it was none of these things. What happened was, I was innocently walking down the street and then a huge vampire came and attacked me. Said something about being pathetic and needy... I figured, "hey, I want my vampires to be scary and like 'grrr'" So I called Buffy and she totally sorted out the situation leaving me to play Mass Effect...
Oh drat, I just gave the game away.
In preparation for 11th of March (Day of Reckoning, Day of Procrastination... hell maybe I should have saved my 2 days holiday for then...) I have been powering my way through Mass Effect 1 and am about to begin Mass Effect 2. I would like to have both of these complete by mid feburary so I can begin Dragon Age again... you know... in case I forgot what happened after I played it for 11 months straight. (I'm only not playing it now because I made my brother take it away, to another house.)
He said he'd give it back, I said he should keep it until I need it or nothing else will get played.
My thoughts on the first Mass Effect upon a second play through remain the same. Good game, good characters, fun shooting action. I hate the biotic powers, I can't use them properly, I'm more of a "Lets go in and SHOOT THEM ALL!!!" kind of gamer than then "Ooh, lets hang back and helpfully throw people around".
Even in Dragon Age my mages are all armed to the teeth. I'd give them lasers if I could and a tank maybe? Also, can't beat a good heavy suit of armor. And sharks... ooh, sharks with lasers!
Anyway, this blog post, fun as it is, is not Mass Effect 2 so, I'm gonna go play that and will give more detailed musings on Friday once I've gotten through a bit of it!
Lets see what can be blamed for this amazing phenomenon? Could it be work? Food? A good book? No, it was none of these things. What happened was, I was innocently walking down the street and then a huge vampire came and attacked me. Said something about being pathetic and needy... I figured, "hey, I want my vampires to be scary and like 'grrr'" So I called Buffy and she totally sorted out the situation leaving me to play Mass Effect...
Oh drat, I just gave the game away.
In preparation for 11th of March (Day of Reckoning, Day of Procrastination... hell maybe I should have saved my 2 days holiday for then...) I have been powering my way through Mass Effect 1 and am about to begin Mass Effect 2. I would like to have both of these complete by mid feburary so I can begin Dragon Age again... you know... in case I forgot what happened after I played it for 11 months straight. (I'm only not playing it now because I made my brother take it away, to another house.)
He said he'd give it back, I said he should keep it until I need it or nothing else will get played.
My thoughts on the first Mass Effect upon a second play through remain the same. Good game, good characters, fun shooting action. I hate the biotic powers, I can't use them properly, I'm more of a "Lets go in and SHOOT THEM ALL!!!" kind of gamer than then "Ooh, lets hang back and helpfully throw people around".
Even in Dragon Age my mages are all armed to the teeth. I'd give them lasers if I could and a tank maybe? Also, can't beat a good heavy suit of armor. And sharks... ooh, sharks with lasers!
Anyway, this blog post, fun as it is, is not Mass Effect 2 so, I'm gonna go play that and will give more detailed musings on Friday once I've gotten through a bit of it!
Monday 31 January 2011
Website: Pose Maniacs.
I had today off work, that makes me very happy.
I've not done anything with my cat comic over the weekend. I have a very short attention span for long running projects. I promise I will post something of Areia kitty at some point. I have been drawing over the weekend though, I have been practicing with different poses, all my characters are usually standing up, rarely sitting or anything because my understanding of anatomy isn't stellar.
I have however found an absolutely fantastic resource for interesting and varied poses.
Pose Maniacs is a resource for artists that's free to use. Each of the models you can see in 360 degrees or you can look at the moving images of people running. The models are all done showing underlying muscle tissue and it really gives you a good idea of what you're looking at when you look at a person.
This:
Is a picture I did using some of the resources of this site. I really like this picture, I'm rather proud of it. I think you should seriously go check it out.
I've not done anything with my cat comic over the weekend. I have a very short attention span for long running projects. I promise I will post something of Areia kitty at some point. I have been drawing over the weekend though, I have been practicing with different poses, all my characters are usually standing up, rarely sitting or anything because my understanding of anatomy isn't stellar.
I have however found an absolutely fantastic resource for interesting and varied poses.
Pose Maniacs is a resource for artists that's free to use. Each of the models you can see in 360 degrees or you can look at the moving images of people running. The models are all done showing underlying muscle tissue and it really gives you a good idea of what you're looking at when you look at a person.
This:
Friday 28 January 2011
Kyo - Kitty Cat 2
Friday is here, not that I can really celebrate as I'm working the weekend. That is an Epic Fail :(
Was doodling yesterday, having fun with experimenting with painting but it's no where near a 'show and tell' quality. So, I decided I'd continue on my kitty theme.
From right to left: Default Kyo Back, Lump Mode, Oooooh Kibble and/or Pettins! and finally, STRETCH!
Again, Kyo isn't really brown. He's a tabby like Aya. In fact...
From left to right: Aya, Kyo, Areia.
Aya in the comic will be black because he thinks he's a Leopard/Panther, when clearly, he's really not. Kyo in the middle is a teddy bear, hence the brown and Areia. Well, I'm pulled between yellow and pink because she's a bit... well, you know what they say about blonds and pink because she's a princess.
The bandana on Kyo is because people often confuse Aya and him with each other. I can clearly tell the difference, Kyo's a much bigger cat and way less whiney. Will maybe post another blog over the weekend with Areia... I may add a bandana to Kyo and maybe a tiara/crown to Ariea lol. I'll think about it.
Was doodling yesterday, having fun with experimenting with painting but it's no where near a 'show and tell' quality. So, I decided I'd continue on my kitty theme.
Again, Kyo isn't really brown. He's a tabby like Aya. In fact...
From left to right: Aya, Kyo, Areia.
Aya in the comic will be black because he thinks he's a Leopard/Panther, when clearly, he's really not. Kyo in the middle is a teddy bear, hence the brown and Areia. Well, I'm pulled between yellow and pink because she's a bit... well, you know what they say about blonds and pink because she's a princess.
The bandana on Kyo is because people often confuse Aya and him with each other. I can clearly tell the difference, Kyo's a much bigger cat and way less whiney. Will maybe post another blog over the weekend with Areia... I may add a bandana to Kyo and maybe a tiara/crown to Ariea lol. I'll think about it.
Wednesday 26 January 2011
Kitty Cat
This has been floating around in my head for a while. I keep thinking of doing this little comic but I never do because I think "The world doesn't need more cat comics." I figured, what the hell, my blog may as well showcase some of the ideas for it lol!
So, I give you cat 1:
Aya is a real live cat, he belongs to me and my other half but he much prefers her to me. He's a mommy's boy and I'm mom #2 that speaks in a funny accent.
This is the first little rendition of him. From left to right its: Default Aya, Default Aya Back, oh no! my shadow! and finally *WHINE!*
He's a special kitty. There will be 2 more kitties, Kyo and Areia, I've started a Kyo sheet and I've still to decide what colour Areia will be (Aya in real life is a brown and black striped tabby or some such, so is Kyo so it'd get confusing if they were both the same colours.)
Seeing as it's a drawing week, I thought I'd post something else just for the fun of it.
Me, if i was an assassin!
So, I give you cat 1:
This is the first little rendition of him. From left to right its: Default Aya, Default Aya Back, oh no! my shadow! and finally *WHINE!*
He's a special kitty. There will be 2 more kitties, Kyo and Areia, I've started a Kyo sheet and I've still to decide what colour Areia will be (Aya in real life is a brown and black striped tabby or some such, so is Kyo so it'd get confusing if they were both the same colours.)
Seeing as it's a drawing week, I thought I'd post something else just for the fun of it.
Monday 24 January 2011
Artistic Progression
I've been reading a lot of webcomics and fanfiction since I was 15. I started writing Harry Potter fanfiction and thats where I met my other half, through writing so it always makes me smile still when I do it. I don't really write very much except when participating in the NANOWRIMO, but I still enjoy it.
I've wanted to get into drawing more in the past 5 - 6 years and I got photoshop recently and a Wacom Bamboo tablet. It's gorgeous, I love it and I love drawing. I used to use Serif to draw, a free version and a cheap Trust Tablet. I thought they were great and they did me for what I was trying to achieve a few years ago.
I started drawing semi seriously in 2007 and of my first pictures I drew my favorite is of Arvahnna;
The background is pants bit I liked her staff and the wings and the general feeling of the drawing. Since then I think I've gotten much better. Part of me wants to redo this piece, another says to leave it be. I also sometimes think I should take down my older stuff but I still like my old drawings and I like to see the progression between Arvahnna and one like Senaleah.
I like her much better, it's no where near as pixelly and it's more detailed. Knowing I was only using this as a character profile page I didn't do a big fancy background. I'm not gonna use either these girls for my comic, these girls are in another story that me and the other half write for kicks.
For my comic, I want to go down a much more cartoony/sketchy route otherwise i'd be there all day drawing one person never mind a whole comic page. I have another idea as well for a silly comic that I might end up posting here.
I'm thinking this will be my cast of characters. The eye up top is how most of my random sketches start, pay it no heed, I just like drawing eyes. I want this here for a first drawing to see how my art progresses for the comic as I don't want to post it on Deviant Art.
I think this week I'll continue on an art theme!
I've wanted to get into drawing more in the past 5 - 6 years and I got photoshop recently and a Wacom Bamboo tablet. It's gorgeous, I love it and I love drawing. I used to use Serif to draw, a free version and a cheap Trust Tablet. I thought they were great and they did me for what I was trying to achieve a few years ago.
I started drawing semi seriously in 2007 and of my first pictures I drew my favorite is of Arvahnna;
I like her much better, it's no where near as pixelly and it's more detailed. Knowing I was only using this as a character profile page I didn't do a big fancy background. I'm not gonna use either these girls for my comic, these girls are in another story that me and the other half write for kicks.
For my comic, I want to go down a much more cartoony/sketchy route otherwise i'd be there all day drawing one person never mind a whole comic page. I have another idea as well for a silly comic that I might end up posting here.
I'm thinking this will be my cast of characters. The eye up top is how most of my random sketches start, pay it no heed, I just like drawing eyes. I want this here for a first drawing to see how my art progresses for the comic as I don't want to post it on Deviant Art.
I think this week I'll continue on an art theme!
Friday 21 January 2011
Sonic the Deadhog
Last night I couldn't think about what I wanted to write today, then I mentioned to my other half that I was maybe gonna write about Sonic. She said "Oh?". I think she's sorry she asked, I went on a bit of a rant and realised I had a lot to say!
Sonic The Hedgehog was a staple of my childhood. When I was young and was growing up with my brother, he was a Mario fan and always had a nintendo, I was always a Sonic fan and had a Sega system. Whatever the new ones were we bugged our parents for it for Christmas.
I have really fond memories of the Sonic games. The first one is basic but I still find it really hard (I have a Sonic Mega Collection disk for my Wii/Gamecube). It's still really bright and I found the art in it much prettier than the Mario games, especially when you compare the original Mario to the original Sonic.
The second game introduced Tails, a fun sidekick that had the ability to fly, not that you could control this flight but it was still fun to be able to team up with my brother at the same time and beat the bad guys.
Sonic 3 introduced Knuckles and the ability to have Tails fly and, shock! A save game!! I was so thrilled when I got that game, I remember being so excited with the idea I didn't need to sit and play that game from start to finish in one go, I could play a bit, go to bed, continue the next day.
Things were good even in the first Sonic Adventure game on the Dreamcast. It was a fun game if not the most amazing storyline or voice acting (The voice acting was very, very bad. Sometimes I wanted to stab forks into my ears to make it stop.) but the levels were fast and it still felt like a proper Sonic Game.
After that it began to go a little downhill, the second Sonic Adventure game took out the free roaming section and just had it as a level to level game. That wasn't so bad as that's how all the old sonic games were. What really upset me is Sonic and the Secret Rings.
I get that they wanted to go into a new direction with the games because it was a new console. But they went so far down a stupid route it made my brain hurt. I felt like in Sonic and the Secret Rings, they're using the motion sensor in the wii remote because they feel they need to use it for something.
What really bugged me is Sonic constantly runs and you use the remote to steer (Like a steering wheel) to steer him left and right. You tilt it backwards or forwards to make him speed up or stop/slow down. Its really clunky and the Wii motion sensor doesn't seem sensitive enough to me to pull that off without making you want to throw the remote at the TV. I hate there's no way to pick how you wanna control it.
I understand they wanted to try something different, but Super Mario did something different for the Wii and brought out the amazing Super Mario Galaxy. You used the traditional controls on the wii remote/nunchuck and used the motion sensor to do some small things. A much better use of the console controls rather than using the motion sensor exclusively just because they happen to be there.
I hope the next Sonic Game (After "Sonic and the Black Knight") is way better.
I would like to be in charge of the Sonic Team, I think I'd like to find out who made Sonic and the Black Knight and shoot him/her before they do more damage. Whats next? Sonic and The Great Gatsby? Sonic and the Merry Men? Or, more probably, Sonic and the Twilight Saga!
God I'm gonna go shoot myself.
Sonic The Hedgehog was a staple of my childhood. When I was young and was growing up with my brother, he was a Mario fan and always had a nintendo, I was always a Sonic fan and had a Sega system. Whatever the new ones were we bugged our parents for it for Christmas.
I have really fond memories of the Sonic games. The first one is basic but I still find it really hard (I have a Sonic Mega Collection disk for my Wii/Gamecube). It's still really bright and I found the art in it much prettier than the Mario games, especially when you compare the original Mario to the original Sonic.
The second game introduced Tails, a fun sidekick that had the ability to fly, not that you could control this flight but it was still fun to be able to team up with my brother at the same time and beat the bad guys.
Sonic 3 introduced Knuckles and the ability to have Tails fly and, shock! A save game!! I was so thrilled when I got that game, I remember being so excited with the idea I didn't need to sit and play that game from start to finish in one go, I could play a bit, go to bed, continue the next day.
Things were good even in the first Sonic Adventure game on the Dreamcast. It was a fun game if not the most amazing storyline or voice acting (The voice acting was very, very bad. Sometimes I wanted to stab forks into my ears to make it stop.) but the levels were fast and it still felt like a proper Sonic Game.
After that it began to go a little downhill, the second Sonic Adventure game took out the free roaming section and just had it as a level to level game. That wasn't so bad as that's how all the old sonic games were. What really upset me is Sonic and the Secret Rings.
I get that they wanted to go into a new direction with the games because it was a new console. But they went so far down a stupid route it made my brain hurt. I felt like in Sonic and the Secret Rings, they're using the motion sensor in the wii remote because they feel they need to use it for something.
What really bugged me is Sonic constantly runs and you use the remote to steer (Like a steering wheel) to steer him left and right. You tilt it backwards or forwards to make him speed up or stop/slow down. Its really clunky and the Wii motion sensor doesn't seem sensitive enough to me to pull that off without making you want to throw the remote at the TV. I hate there's no way to pick how you wanna control it.
I understand they wanted to try something different, but Super Mario did something different for the Wii and brought out the amazing Super Mario Galaxy. You used the traditional controls on the wii remote/nunchuck and used the motion sensor to do some small things. A much better use of the console controls rather than using the motion sensor exclusively just because they happen to be there.
I hope the next Sonic Game (After "Sonic and the Black Knight") is way better.
I would like to be in charge of the Sonic Team, I think I'd like to find out who made Sonic and the Black Knight and shoot him/her before they do more damage. Whats next? Sonic and The Great Gatsby? Sonic and the Merry Men? Or, more probably, Sonic and the Twilight Saga!
God I'm gonna go shoot myself.
Wednesday 19 January 2011
The Legend of Zelda - Time lord?
This week I've been playing a lot of computer games (mostly assassin's creed Brotherhood but more on that in another blog) and found myself playing some Legend of Zelda, Twilight Princess. It's another one of those games I've played Zelda games since I can remember. My fondest childhood memories of computer games tend to be Zelda related ones. Link is also the one thing I used to draw, I was always obsessed with his foofy blonde hair.
After playing it, I realised it'd been many a year since I'd drawn a Link picture, so I started one and once i'd done the line drawing I thought "Good god, his hat is too big." It looked so ridiculous. I went and looked for some pictures online and as it turns out, no, the hat wasn't too big. In fact, it was a bit too small going by some of the Wind Waker pictures.
It got me thinking; Why does Link have such a big hat?
I thought at first that it was just a zainy fashion statement, but really, it's such an unpractical item of clothing for a swordsman. People can poke at it, it's gonna get in your face. I thought maybe he hid food in it but then I thought that would also be impractical and a bit smelly after a bit.
Thats when the truth dawned on me. Link, is a timelord.
I know, a little out there, but bear with me a second. Time Lords have cool gadgets yes? Well, Link has a bunch of those!
Dr Who himself would find it difficult to find such an array of cool weapons and items. This is only a selection of them too, there's hundreds. Magic capes that would make Harry Potter proud, a magical spyglass that Sherlock Holmes would pee himself for and, in Majora's mask, about 70 masks to both scare and delight!
Time Lords also have the ability to travel through time. Well, Link has been in upwards of 15 titles, all of which seem to span many long years and times, also, he is either a child or a young adult.
Now, I know what you're thinking. He needs a Tardis. But! My theory is that Link's hat is a Tardis! Thats how he keeps everything in it! You see, it's the perfect explanation of both the silly hat and the number of Zelda games there are.
After playing it, I realised it'd been many a year since I'd drawn a Link picture, so I started one and once i'd done the line drawing I thought "Good god, his hat is too big." It looked so ridiculous. I went and looked for some pictures online and as it turns out, no, the hat wasn't too big. In fact, it was a bit too small going by some of the Wind Waker pictures.
It got me thinking; Why does Link have such a big hat?
I thought at first that it was just a zainy fashion statement, but really, it's such an unpractical item of clothing for a swordsman. People can poke at it, it's gonna get in your face. I thought maybe he hid food in it but then I thought that would also be impractical and a bit smelly after a bit.
Thats when the truth dawned on me. Link, is a timelord.
I know, a little out there, but bear with me a second. Time Lords have cool gadgets yes? Well, Link has a bunch of those!
Time Lords also have the ability to travel through time. Well, Link has been in upwards of 15 titles, all of which seem to span many long years and times, also, he is either a child or a young adult.
Now, I know what you're thinking. He needs a Tardis. But! My theory is that Link's hat is a Tardis! Thats how he keeps everything in it! You see, it's the perfect explanation of both the silly hat and the number of Zelda games there are.
Yes Link, we are in awe of your AWESOME hat!
Monday 17 January 2011
Title: Super Flat Mario!
So, I've been contemplating recently the way Video Games have changed over the years. The thing that really brought it home to me was when my 4 year old niece saw me playing an old Super Mario game and said “Why is that flat?”
I was somewhat scandalised, I mean, it's not like she's never seen a 2d game before, she plays them on her mum's DS but it was just the complete shock on her face because she's played Mario on my Wii usually and it's Super Mario Galaxy and here was Mario as flat as a pancake.
She sat with me and played it once I explained that it was a game from when I was a little girl, she laughed and said “That was a long time ago!”
I'm only 25... but oh well I suppose 25 to a 4 year old is quite ancient. We played it for a half hour and said she had to go do something else. I followed her into my dad's room where she said “Granda, can I play your Xbox?”
There she was, 4 years old, playing my dad's Xbox kicking butt on one of the Shrek games. She then declared my Mario Game as crap...I wonder sometimes what the world is coming to. I suppose at least she likes the old Sonic games.
I remember being completely fascinated by the Atari games, but I remember when I was about 5, maybe 6, my brother Hugh got his first Super Nintendo. I remember thinking after that “Wow it's so cool compared to the Atari” and all the games of the Nes/Super Nes/Genesis era are my 'classic games'
Its funny how now the same thing happens with my niece. Classic super Mario is pants to her like the Atari was to me, her classic games when she's older will be Super Mario Galaxy and Shrek 2. I wonder what she'll be fooling around with? My new gadget right now is Kinectimals on the xbox and she's only 4 so, to her that's not new, it's just always going to have been there.
I was born in 1985 and I've seen it go from Green Screen technology to 3D motion sensor capture. I can't wait to see what games my niece will be talking to her friends about when she's 25.
Sunday 16 January 2011
2011 Begins Today
I've been thinking about starting a blog for a few years now and never really got round to it. "I don't have the time." Seems to be the most common of my concerns. But when I really thought about it I realised that I do have the time and I really should have something that can use to push my procrastinating self into actually finishing the projects I start.
So, the plan is to update on a M-W-F schedule and just see what I can do and how it progresses. I'm hoping people will read but if you don't then at least I have something to push me.
Starting tomorrow it'll be M-W-F and I think I'll make this a Computer Game Week.
~ Calamus
So, the plan is to update on a M-W-F schedule and just see what I can do and how it progresses. I'm hoping people will read but if you don't then at least I have something to push me.
Starting tomorrow it'll be M-W-F and I think I'll make this a Computer Game Week.
~ Calamus
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