The Boy and the Telescope

Knackered

Well my manga skills may leave a lot to be desired (in fact they're crap), but I think my doodles aren't too bad. 

I've had a really long day/week/year so I thought I'd draw myself on the way to work tomorrow (I probably won't be this well dressed).

Origami Kitty

I'm having a really busy week so I'll be posting some quick updates just to tide things over.

I thought I'd show off my unimpressive origami skills with these origami sticky notes. There's instructions for penguins, pianos, hats and a bunch of other things. First up is the Cat!

Plans for the Weekend

If all goes to plan I'm hoping to get my head down and make some music this weekend.

As I mentioned just before the New Year I have a whole pile of recordings with ideas for new tunes, so perhaps I'll get a 'work in progress' posted on Soundcloud before the weekend's out.

I hope you enjoy the drawing of Jules listening to his walkman too. ^_^

More facial expressions with Bobby and Jules

Artwork created and owned by Andrew Gardner © 2014

Bobby: Facial Expressions

Here's some facial expressions for Bobby and I'm extremely pleased with the results. 

These are based on a Tom & Jerry expressions sheet I found on Pinterest (I loved Tom and Jerry as a kid), and practicing expressions has really shaped Bobby's design and helped me to think about how the little things project the emotions of a character.

For example the tired expression on the far-right of the above image; Bobby's extended tongue helps him to look out of breath and panting, but I also made the tuft of hair on his head lank and fallen to help him look truly knackered. 

When I continued experimenting with different expressions I began to notice how other artists design their characters to help to bring out their emotions. The folds above a characters eyes make them much more dynamic, and because of Bobby's large beak obstructing the majority of his face, I found adding some extra detail to his eyes helped to make the emotion easier to understand.

Artwork created and owned by Andrew Gardner © 2014

Bobby Sleeping

I wanted to practice drawing characters in different poses and situations, so here's Bobby asleep against a wall with a drink in hand.

I like the way his belly follows ahead of the rest of him, and I think he really suits those sandals.

Artwork created and owned by Andrew Gardner © 2014

If you're happy and you know it clap your...

I've been gradually getting back into drawing these last couple of weeks and one of the things I've always had trouble drawing was hands. They would always end up looking disproportionate and leaving a lot to be desired.

So this morning I had a look for some tutorials on Youtube and a video from Mark Crilley appeared, my wife had recommended his videos to me before and I have to say it was fantastic. I followed his instructions and I was really happy with the results, it was certainly an improvement.

The image above is the one I drew this morning and the drawing below was done on my break at work, I had just enough time to apply the ink. Here's a link to Mark Crilley's 'How to Draw Hands' video too.

  

Day 52 of 100 Happy Gaming Days: Awesome Pikmin Birthday Card

Here is the amazing handmade Pikmin birthday card I received from my wife! The Pikmin even swings from side to side!!! 

Special thanks to my lovely talented missus. ^_^

Here's a link to her deviantart page as well. http://spiraxdracowolf.deviantart.com/