Tag Archives: Digital Painting

Sleepy Hollow Illustration Process

Posted on November 11, 2011 by Dani

On Halloween, I shared a new illustration that I recently finished featuring Ichabod Crane from The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. Here’s some of the process work that went into the painting:

The original sketch, drawn on a regular sheet of paper. I used a red pencil to rough it out and then went over it with a regular pencil line.

Before I started painting, I did a few studies to figure out what direction I wanted to go with the color.

The initial color block-in:

Texture, shading, and details:

Final painting, with effects like wind and stars added:

Posted in Artwork, Process | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Photoshop: Textures and Brushes

Posted on September 7, 2009 by Dani

Psbrushdemo

I recently dedicated a couple Ustream shows to Photoshop brushes and textures. I love to take questions and chat during my shows, but these two episodes are the only broadcasts where I set out to actually teach specific lessons. So, I am putting them here in a blog post so they are easy to find and access.

Forgive my mumbling and bumbling; I don’t speak as well as I write. But these live shows were great because the viewers asked some really good questions that I wouldn’t have been able to think of on my own. I hope you find them extra informative to the stuff I’ve already posted here on the blog.

If you have a question or suggestion for a future Ustream lesson, go ahead and send me a note. I will post any plans for special broadcasts on the Dani Draws Live page (or you can keep track of me on Twitter). Please stop by next time and have your questions ready!

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Posted in Tutorials | Tagged , , , , , | 5 Comments

Ugly Grandma

Posted on July 29, 2009 by Dani

uglygrandma

This is a Photoshop sketch I made this morning. You can see me creating this painting on Ustream.

Posted in Artwork | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

How to Make Your Digital Paint More “Real”

Posted on June 7, 2007 by Dani
How to Make Your Digital Paint More Real

I like painting on the computer. I think the Layers palette and the Undo button are the greatest inventions in the world. However, I don’t like to create digital-looking artwork.

By “digital”, I am referring to artwork that’s utilizes flat color, precise shapes and curves, and calculated effects. There are plenty of artists out there with this style, and some of them are pretty darn good at it, but I am simply a painter. I like all the playful messiness that it involves. You would probably understand why I don’t like working in Adobe Illustrator that much; I only use it to create some occasional line work. But the advantages of the computer are too great to ignore (not to mention there is a significant lack of clean-up time).

I am constantly working to make my digital paintings look better, richer, and more interesting. Here is a small list of tips that I’ve come up with on my continuing journey.

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Posted in Thoughts & Advice | Tagged , | 7 Comments