UPDATE: Fantasy Reading Scene (for SCBWI)

UPDATE

I was working on this illustration a while back, but I had no spare time and had to put it aside. The composition was too busy, but now I think it looks a little better. I made a few major changes, like:

• Made adjustments to light sources
• Created bolder outlines
• Got rid of the Knight reading over the dragon's shoulder

The updated version of the submitted SCBWI illustration sans the reading Knight

Originally Posted on 2/2/19
Work in progress: One of several spot images I plan to submit for consideration with the SCBWI quarterly, Bulletin magazine. 
Testing out the grays, shading, and highlights. No color since all images need to be submitted in grayscale. I still need adjustments to the tones and values. (Also, note to self . . . Make better use of the negative spacing, especially around the knight area.)

Greyscale image, still in the works

Digital pencil lines are drawn over the scan of the original pencil sketch on a separate layer

Adding some green tones on a layer under the digital pencil lines

SCBWI NJ Conference 2018 + Art Contest Image

Had my first NJ regional SCBWI (Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators) event this weekend. Great time ... especially seeing old faces and meeting many new people.

My 11" by 17" entry image for the NJSCBWI "WONDER" art contest

THOUGHT PROCESS: 
The first thing I think of with the word "wonder" is outer space. Just staring at the stars creates a sense of wonder for me. So I knew I wanted that element in the image. I considered doing a closeup of a child's face inside a toy astronaut helmet, and in the helmet's reflection, the moon and other planets would be seen. But then I thought, instead of outside, have the moon appear inside floating over a child's bed.

The original pencil sketch concept for the SCBWI art contest

• I wanted the child dressed up in astronaut-like pajamas with a toy space helmet, but then realized there would be no personal interaction or expression without seeing the child's face.

• I wanted a question mark shape for the cat's tail in the lower right corner but I also wanted the cat to peer into the room, showing curiosity to what was happening. I had to compromise with limited spacing in that area.

• The lighting was another hurdle. Originally, I wanted a green glow, for a more mystical look. But knowing this would print out on my printer  -- green is a fickle color to control from monitor to paper. Then I re-considered, the moon usually gives off a blue light in night skies. So I saturated the coloring with blue, leaving only the reddish highlights to accent the bluish hues.

Color variation: The original base colors with white light highlights

To be honest, this image is not complete. I wanted to add more details to the room, such as a basketball, bookshelves, car toys and a ragdoll astronaut. The area above the moon was going to have a night sky filled with stars. But I was running out of time to print, cut and mount the image in time for the conference.

In this version, the foreground color was muted, white light highlights dropped, and the moon's size was increased.

RE: SCBWI Conferences 
I've gone to several SCBWI Winter NYC Conferences in the past, but I stopped going several years ago feeling it wasn't for me. The SCBWI Winter and Summer conferences are HUGE, with keynote speakers representing the top bestsellers in children's literature. It's entertaining and inspiring, but that atmosphere seems best for those already established in the market. The NJ conference is more personal and is a gathering of the people I see and know the most. Comparing the two, I feel that the NYC conferences are grander, but the NJ regional conference seemed more helpful. 

One problem I had at the conference was I could not find the rooms for the workshops in the hotel. The map provided did not help. I found just walking around reading every sign was the only way I could find the assigned rooms (of which two were relocated, which REALLY didn't help.) That never happened to me in NYC, which is about 5 times larger than the North Brunswick Hyatt hotel.

Throwback Thursday: Milo

Here's an old character I have been keeping for a certain story I wrote over 20 years ago. I named him Milo, after the main character from my favorite story when I was a kid . . . (Norton Juster's) The Phantom Tollbooth. That story captivated me like no other book, filled with crazy characters, wordplay, and imagination.

Old color comp of my character Milo for a picture book story

My character, Milo, is a smart nerdy little kid with a troublesome baby sister. Their story takes place on a Saturday morning, the time of the week when Mom & Dad sleep late -- appointing Milo the "Saturday Morning Boss of the House."

The first pencil sketch of Milo wearing pajamas

I originally pictured Milo differently with a big blockhead and very angular features. I was never satisfied by his look. Years later, looking at random sketches in a pad, I added big glasses to a doodle of a little boy's face . . . and that created the Milo character I was searching for all this time.

Pencil sketch of Milo readying for a major confrontation in the kitchen

One of the first major changes to the character was his clothing. I originally had drawn him wearing shorts, sneakers and a t-shirt (even a baseball cap in some sketches.) But since this story happens during the early hours of a Saturday morning, Milo should be wearing his pajamas. It made sense, though it never dawned on me until years later. Sometimes figuring out little details takes time . . .

Monsters and Bunnies: Nap Time

Another image from my collection of sketches called "Monstas and Bunnies". This is one of a planned set of 12. Once the set is complete, I plan to create a calendar for 2017.

"Nap Time" - finished sketch created with pencils scanned and colored with Photoshop

Possibly might try to KickStart this project, hoping the work itself will be enough to generate interest to get the calendar printed. If the KickStarter goes past the set goal, I plan to then turn the set of images into a children's book with a story about the Bunny and his year long travels meeting "Monstas".

Penciled cave background added and gray tone colored using Photoshop

Originally, I created a single image of a lion terrified of a group of bunnies. It was a sketch exercise I created for the website Illustration Friday, where I still occasionally submit new artwork, (work + time permitting.) The lion was high in a tree while several cute innocent bunnies were simply passing by. I got a lot of site hits and feedback from posting that image and it later inspired more similar sketches. But this time, the big creatures weren't frightened by a bunny -- they were adoring the bunny.

Original pencil sketch created around Spring of 2015

There something appealing about big giant monsters (many inspired by Sendak's "Where the Wild Things Are") being friendly with a small cute bunny. One by one, images appeared in my head and I started sketching them down. More to come ... 

UPDATE!: Sea Tea Time

UPDATE: Feb. 11, 2016
Image color touch-up and added a poem . . . officially FINAL!

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(originally reposted on Dec. 8th, 2015)
Was: Illustration Friday: Wet (aka Sea Tea Time)
Recently revisited this image over the weekend and added more detailing and color. I still feel the tone is too dark, especially with the water. It looks fine on screen, but when printing, everything seems toned down and the colors don't pop the way they do on a computer screen. Arrrggghhh!
Will probably play around with this image again in the future.

Cha-Cha-Changes: The latest and last revision to this image (for now.)

Update Text: Keeping the elements I liked from below, I made changes that I felt were not working in the image below:
• Stronger texture highlights were added.
• I felt the sun didn't fit with the style, so I redrew a more textured pencil sun instead.
• The coloring of the sky and water were too similar; adding textured shadows to the water and toning down the blue sky helped create a stronger contrast between the two.

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This is an old image I did last year* which I'm posting now for Illustration Friday. Every Friday a word is given on the website, IllustrationFriday.com. Artists and illustrators then submit an image that represents that word all during the week.
This week's word: WET

The digitally colored image made in Photoshop

*Below is the pencil sketch I drew during the 2015's SCBWI Winter Conference in NYC in February. I had no reason for drawing this image, just random inspiration. I've already purchased my tickets for this year's conference in February and decided to also show my portfolio this year, looking forward to it.

The original pencil sketch that was drawn on the back of a sheet during the SCBWI Conference