Using that same 124 (plus a few) color palette that I used on the re-colored steamboat page, here's Page 7 of Card Cheat. I needed to do a daytime/outdoors scene to make sure I can make this plan work.
The answer is yes: This plan will definitely work.
So, like everything with the Card Cheat, Marc and I are working to make it the best that it can be. I was becoming more and more unhappy with my coloring on the first couple of pages, so I decided to start again from the ground up.
The entire book is going to be based on the original 124 colors that colorists used pre computer coloring. A nice 'limited' palette that helps us focus on mood and create really great effects. Limited only in that I don't stare blindly at the entire Photoshop palette anymore. I have a nice set starting point to create a rhythm from.
I've become a bit obsessed with the coloring in 70s and 80s European comics, so that's probably going to leak through a bit.... ok a lot.
I've finally finished up Sam Koi Episode Three this weekend (Emphasis on the finally. I'm surprised Rhiannon didn't kill me for taking so long).
We plan to have one more done this summer and then a collection of the four stories (plus extras!) at SPX this fall.
Pencils from issue one of Card Cheat. It's the introduction of one of my favorite side characters 'Jake'. He's just really fun to draw, all hungover and what not.
I letter at the pencil stage to make sure the dialogue fits nicely with the scene and to give Marc a chance to see his words on the page. From there he can make some tweaks to dialogue and ask for tweaks to the pencils if he thinks they need it.
The article went up on Fullbleed, so here's the final version of Kung Fu Designers!
Dr. Dremo's Taphouse of Tall Tales and Short Stories: The Horrors of War is the second in a series of genre themed anthologies from the DC Conspiracy. The 8 page story Mom wrote and I broke down in to a comic is in the issue.
It will be on sale this weekend at the DC Counter Culture Festival and you can also pick it up online at ComiXPress.
I'm working on an illustration for Fullbleed to go with an article on that has some general tips on going from Print to Web and easing frustrations in the transistion.
Kung Fu Designers!
The widgets should be out in a couple of weeks, but here's the final set of art I did for them.
Comparing the sketches to the final versions, they stayed pretty darn close. The one that went through the most revision was the icon for "Blogs" (the birds talking to each other). It went from something more abstract (floating bird heads), to something a bit more grounded.... as grounded as birds talking about books can be. The one that got completely scrapped with the hatching egg for "ABCs of Teaching Literacy."
I just blew it a bit with that one.
Reading Rockets contracted me to put together a set of illustrations for some widgets they're releasing over the next few weeks. They wanted the illustration to be a set, and being that they were so happy with the direction I took my previous work for them, I kept the linework simple and used animals.
These are initial sketches I sent for approval. A few of the illos changed as we went along.
I'm still working on the site tweaks, so things will keep looking off for another few days or so.
I'm no longer supporting IE6 (heck, I think I might even take the hacks I have for it out, so it'll just break in the browser). If even my parents have updated from IE6 to IE7, you have no excuse.
The Card Cheat proceeds at a good pace. The first update is done, and I'm on to drawing the second. We want to have at least the first two 'issues' in the can before we start running it, so we're looking at a June/July launch.
Man I'm beat.
Malcolm "Mal" Jones is an Alexandria, VA based artist. Find out more »
Use the contact form or email me at mal@maljones.com.
