Just keep adding

This week I’ve been adding and blending a variety of colors for the feathers on Hilda’s head grabbing different shades of color from her eyes.  I’ll be using these colors for her entire body. I’ve also used a couple of different brushes and opacity of those brushes.  I started with setting in the basic colors for shadows and highlights using a solid round brush with no hardness. Be sure to vary your opacity. Once I have that done then I go back over it with a darker spatter brush to add depth and texture. Again making sure I vary size and opacity. Then do the same with white to create the highlights of the feathers.  Some strokes are smeared and some are just a simple quick click in one spot to get the effect of feathers.

As you can see here in a close up, I’m not trying to paint each individual feather, just the suggestion of them.

I’ll be spending a lot more time on her wings so please be patient with me. As much as I would love to do this every day, work gets in my way.

I also have to make a hunting fairy this weekend out of clay for my grandson, Dawson. I’ll post pics when I get him done.

Until next week.

Thanks, Ann

http://www.anartistview.net

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Hideaway Hilda shading

     I was able to carve out a few hours this morning to begin the shading process.

I started by adding some lighting in the background. From there I’ll grab most of my shading and highlight colors.

Don’t know about you but I always like to start with the eyes. Since, I hope they will grab you attention first. Then I added some basic shading to the hawks body.

Avery caught my attention this morning so I decided to try and finish her to give you an idea of where I am going with this. I blocked in the shading then spent the last 4 hours blending.

I will be adding more images as I find the time to spend in my studio.

Have an artful day!

http://www.anartistview.net

Hilda adding color

     Why does life always seem to get in the way of having a little fun?

Anyway, here I’ve refined my drawing.  Taking out the things that weren’t working and adding more to tell the story .I’ve then taken the drawing and scanned it into the computer. Using Photoshop, I’ve traced over the line drawing on a separate layer. Then I added the start of the background on the layer behind the traced layer. My next step was to block in the colors making sure I make a swatch of that color for future use within the books other characters.

Next I’ll be adding some shading and texture to give Hilda some depth.

Until next week.

Have an artful time!

http://www.anartistview.net

Giving life to a character

     As most of you know, I’ve been working on my second book in the series, Adventures Through the Enchanted Door. Hideaway Hilda will be one of the main characters along with the original characters of Dawson and Avery.

A lot of you have asked about how I managed to get the whole book done and since it is a very long process of writing and illustrating the book, I thought I might keep you in the creative process with me. An exclusive inside look at everything that will go into the creation.  Maybe then it won’t seem like an endless task on my shoulders.

I’ve been working on the writing for quiet some time now and have the story pretty much laid out. I’m about 3/4th of the way done and it is getting exciting. I’m at the point where I’ve got to put some characters on paper to seal them into an actual being so to speak. In other words…..they are clogging up my brain and they need to get out onto paper.

Let’s begin with Hilda Hawkins. I’m thinking this will end up being used as the cover image of the book.  Hilda is a bully of a hawk who loves to collect things. Things that don’t belong to her that is.

My first step is to make a rough sketch. It will take me a few days to work with her to bring out her unique features and character.  I’ve put her on her nest and  I’ll need to decide what she is sitting on. What is she hiding that is. After which I will need to bring her into the computer world for all the coloring details.

I hope you’ll join me on my journey.