New Sketchbook!

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Not a whole lot to look at. Just got a new sketchbook (that's always fun!) and since I had my scanner out anyway for the Oz cards I took the time to scan this.

So, yeah, for a change this is done with pencil on paper instead of Wacom tablet and PS. OoooOoO. ;o)

Renae told me to draw Batman looking like "What the--?" So, I gave that a try. Just goofin' around.

Let me know what you think and thanks for stoppin' by!

~Ray

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Batman Cinematic!

Hey, all!

Got an extension on one of the projects that has been kicking my butt, so I decided to take some time to relax and just draw for fun today. Kinda give me a restart for tomorrow morning (and the upcoming week).

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This just kinda came out when I started sketching. Going for a classic Batman in cinematic style. Wanted to do something quick and thankfully this only took a couple of hours, especially since I sketched the background and relied on colors. ;o)

As usual, it was done entirely in Photoshop 7 with my trusty Intuos II Wacom tablet.

Batman Wallpaper 1024 x 768

I also did my first writing today since finishing NaNoWriMo back in November. I wrote a flash fiction (under 1,000 words) story for my online writing group. I'll have that posted up soon as well.

Anyway, it's gettin' late, so I will say goodnight and have a wonderful tomorrow.

Thanks for stoppin' by.

~Ray

Illustration Friday - "Monster"

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Just a quick digitally painted sketch for the latest Illustration Friday; prompt of "Monster."

Anyone who takes their anger out on a child, physically or verbally, is a monster.

Listening to Gary Jules "Mad World" (from the Donnie Darko soundtrack) while drawing this:


Gotta get back to the Wizard of Oz sketch cards. Still a couple hundred to do.

Thanks for lookin'.

~Ray

Wizard of Oz sketch cards!

Yippee!! My newest project (the one I've been hinting at) is Wizard of Oz sketch cards for Breygent and Warner Bros. And I'm psyched!



I'm hard at work on 'em, as there's very little time left to get through them all (not sure if I'm allowed to say how many). The best part is that a bunch of the Golden Goat Studios members are working on them, too. Mark Winters, Renae De Liz, Josh Ross, and Brent Engstrom are all wizarding up some cards alongside me (actually, I think they're all beating me).

So, go to this link for more info: http://OZ.GoldenGoatStudios.com

In other news, we've inducted a new Goat into the studio:



Renae De Liz, an incredibly talented artist with a flare for making her characters live and breath. Go read all about her and help us welcome her to the studio.

Thanks for stoppin' by!

~Ray

Jeremy Fiest's "8 a.m."

This is the film we shot on John's boat in Marina Del Rey right before the San Diego Con last year. Jeremy (director) and Jordan Gray (editor) did a great job in taking it in a different direction than anticipated and it gave it it's own flavor. John Robert Johnson, who also produced, gave a fantastic performance. This is our first glimpse of something from their new film production company, Tornado Alley Entertainment. It's not quite finished (some sound tweaks and whatnot), but close:



I'm credited for sound. I pretty much just held the boom mic and tried not to fall asleep (I was exhausted). Oh, and I ran around town buying props (which were incredibly difficult to find in LA). Think I maybe ran the camera for a few shots. Anyway, it was a blast.

Check it out and let me know your thoughts. You should also visit the Tornado Alley Entertainment MySpace page or the GGS message boards to let Jeremy and John know what you thought!

Thanks for stoppin' by!

~Ray

Illustration Friday - "Feet"

Okay, I'm kinda taking the easy way out this week, but there's a lot going on around here so I don't have time right now to do up a new image. And besides, the first thing that popped into my head for "Feet," the latest prompt for Illustration Friday, was this image of one of the Proudfeets, part of the familiy of Hobbits from the Lord of the Rings. And this is one of the sketch cards I did for Lord of the Rings: Evolution, the latest LOTR series from Topps cards. You can view the rest of my cards on that site by clicking my name from the list.

In other news, I'm working on another fun sketch card assignment for a well-known film and book. I'll have more news on that soon. Gotta get 300 done in a couple of weeks on top of my other coloring and lettering projects. Just busy, busy, busy.

Thanks for stoppin' by!

~Ray

Holy cow, I'm on ebay! - LOTR Sketch Cards

RAY @

This is nuts! The LOTR cards are starting to arrive in stores and already they're getting up on ebay: Me on ebay

So far most are only set for $.99, but here's one for $24.99: Me on ebay for $24.99


There was another one on there under Ray Dillion (extra I), but they corrected it as I was posting this. But, if you're interested in getting one, you might keep that in mind.

And this is pretty cool. The highest priced card so far is from one of my favorite LOTR Sketch Card Artists, Rafael Kanyanan, for $311: Artist selling for a lot more than me no ebay

This just makes me feel cool. ;o)

I don't get any of that money, but it'd be cool to see those bids going crazy.

Anywho, thanks fer lookin'!

~Ray

Illustration Friday - "Tea"

Hey, all!

Whipped up a quick sketch-painting for Illustration Friday using Painter. Still only the third thing I've ever done with the program. Used the acrylics function. Worked alright. But, yeah, pretty rough and quick. I'm kinda loopy from cold medication right now. Trying to fight it. Airborne works nicely, but it's been pretty persistant.

When I think of tea, I think of my dad. Growing up, he used to always carry around an old Nestea jar with the label partially ripped off, filled with tea. I think his jar was even taller than the one shown here. It was like a liter of tea! ;o)

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Didn't have a reference or anything and I want to again remind you of my medicinal loopiness. ;o)

Also, tea is a hard color to pinpoint.

I'm going to see if I'm coherent enough to get some more work done ...

Thanks for lookin'!

~Ray

Best Mom Ever!!

Renae De Liz is the best mom ever! She puts so much work and passion into making things special for her son, Tycen. She built and painted him a cardboard castle for his room, made him a awesome Spider-man suit for Halloween, and now this for his birthday:

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She doesn't think it's all that big of a deal. No matter what, she thinks she could have done a better job or done more to make it even more special, but I (and everyone else that's seen what she does) find it absolutely amazing.

Click to see more of his birthday

I did the colors on the Incredi-Tycen piece that got printed on his cake and made the little sound fx bursts, which is why I'm posting about it here. You may have seen the previous post about it here.

I'm happy to say she will also be here in Kansas visiting next week. Can't wait!!!

Thanks for letting me help with all this, sweetie!! ;o)

*UPDATE* -- Here's the lucky little guy:



Wow. That is one happy boy. Ha! ;o)

~Ray

Lord of the Rings: Evolution Gallery!

Hey, all!

My entire gallery of 306 sketch cards is now up on the LOTR Sketch Cards Website. Just look down the list of artists on the left and click my name. I'm about the 10th person from the top. Here's a little sample of some of my favorites (they aren't all in that painted style, though):



Here are a few favorites in various styles:







Click here for full gallery: http://www.LOTRsketchcards.com

The cards are supposed to be in stores in February. They sell them just about everywhere. Look for them in the checkout lines at grocery stores, Wal-mart, Target, etc. Also in most gas stations. There's only one sketch card per box, but you might get lucky.

Thanks for checking them out, everyone! And your comments are very appreciated!

~Ray

Song ...

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Two posts in one day?!? Ohmigoodnesh!! ;o)

Today is Sunday and I've been workin' like a dog for the last several weeks, so I decided to take a little time to re-energize. Plus, I've really been wanting to get back into the Illustration Friday exercises.

This week's prompt was "SONG."

I've been listening to a lot of James Blunt and really loving it. Beautiful voice, romantic, powerful lyrics. But, most of his songs are reeeeeaaally sad. :o( Painfully, hauntingly sad, for a sap like me. One song in particular that gets me is "Goodbye, My Lover." It's a song about a relationship that ends too early and you feel like that really was the one for you.

Lyrics like "I saw the end before we'd begun..." - "I've seen you cry, I've seen you smile. I've watched you sleeping for a-while. I'd be the father of your child. I'd spend a lifetime with you." - "Goodbye, my lover. Goodbye, my friend. You have been the one. You have been the one for me."

Man, that's sad. :o(

So, that was on my mind. The sketch is of me (with current stage of beard, though, I kinda forgot the few hairs in my mustache) sitting in a chair in a lonely room, lookin' all sad, whistlin' that tune. Kinda goofy. Kinda melodramatic. Kinda true and kinda sarcastic.

As always, entirely Photoshop 7 and a Wacom tablet.

Thanks for stoppin' by.

~Ray

"I'm THIS many!"

Hi, all!

This is another collaboration between Renae De Liz and myself. This time an invitation to her son's third birthday. She did the drawing, I did the inking, coloring, and lettering.

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You can also view a poster version here.

Her plan is to have an Incredibles themed birthday party next Saturday. She'll have the poster, a balloon arch (which sounds awesome), and cut out sound fx hanging from the ceiling. I'm really happy and excited to be a part of such a cool thing for Tycen's birthday. She's gotta be the best mom ever. Wish I had parties like that growing up. ;o)

On other things, I'm almost done with one coloring project, so I can get on the other two. Got that new card project starting in a couple of days. Just not enough hours in the day... especially when I've piled too much on myself... back to work ...

Thanks for stoppin' by.

~Ray

Inks of "Love Letter"

Here are a couple of pages I inked over pencils by Renae De Liz, who's work I love; characters so dynamic and expressive. I was in an inking mood and she was short on time, so I agreed to ink it. These also happen to be her first sequentials ever, and darn good sequentials they be.

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They were inked in Photoshop 7 with a Wacom tablet as part of a project for PandamoniumComix.com

Check 'em out and let us know what you think!

Thanks for stoppin' by!

~Ray

Why ain't you be updatin', foo'!?

I know. I'm a stinker. Well, I'm just super busy.

. Just finished lettering Noble Causes #18.

. Coloring a back story for an upcoming issue of Image Comics' "Fear Agent."

. Really needing to get caught up on my other coloring projects. Both graphic novels: "Nothingface" and "the other one I still don't have permission to talk about"

. About to start a really cool sketch card project that I can't tell you about, but will hopefully be able to soon.

. Also about to start lettering a book called "Pencilneck"

Been doing some other random things like inking and whatnot. Will have previews of that sort of stuff soon.

So, I'm swamped again. Especially through March. It's going to be a tough month.

Oh, and I haven't set up my own gallery of these yet, but you can now view ALL of my Lord of the Rings: Evolution sketch cards online at http://www.LOTRsketchcards.com!! Just look for my name and let me know what you think.

Back to my workout. Have a great day, ever'body!

And thanks for stoppin' by.

~Ray

The Premiere of "Monkeyboy!"

The newest of the Golden Goat Studios Webcomics is Brent Engstrom's "Monkeyboy!" Brent is a good friend of mine, living in my hometown. He's been working on developing and producing strips and comics of Monkeyboy since High School. Since then there have been a few books published, hundreds of strips for the K-State newspaper, and even a short in Image Comics' and Erik Larsen's "Savage Dragon" comic series.

The latest incarnation, I'm proud to say, is this weekly updated webcomic. I just finished working up the site and getting everything working over there. We'll be updated every Tuesday:

http://www.Monkeyboy.GoldenGoatStudios.com

Also, check out Mark Winters' "Glimmer," updated Sundays, and Aaron Weisbrod's "Nightmare World," updated Thursdays.

Thanks for stoppin' by!

~Ray

Fairchild from Gen 13

Inspired by the draw-off between Renae De Liz and "the machine" over on the Digital Webbing Forums. Did it in a bit different style than usual. Inks were a bit rushed.

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Photoshop 7 and a Wacom tablet.

Let me know what you think. Tired posting ... not ... very ... entertaining. Must ... rely ... on ... art ...

Thanks for stopping by. ;o)

~Ray

10Eastern Journal Project...

10Eastern.com*, an online drawing site, started a journal project where the sketchbook is passed around the globe to artists from the site. I happened to be one of those artists and recently got the sketchbook. Brent Engstrom, Golden Goat member and Beard enthusiast got me into it. He did a couple of pages and here are my couple:

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Pencil and marker.

Really cool to see what people around the world do.

I tried to do something that would encompass my work, sorta leave my thumbprint. Got some LOTR stuff in there, some superhero, monsters, and a dramatic, stylized piece sorta like a comic cover. Playing around with style and color.

Anywho, let me know what you think.

Thanks for lookin'.

~Ray

* 10Eastern.com has some REALLY graphic stuff on there, so be careful. *

The Style of Horror

Just playing around with style for a new horror project:

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Photoshop 7 and a Wacom Tablet.

I kinda like it, even though I slopped it out. I can move fast in this style, and it has the mood and intensity. It's basically just the combination of really thin lines, thick and rough shadows, texture, and harsh light and color.

Oh, and, yeah, the foreshortening on its right arm is a bit wonky. ;)

Let me know what you think.

Thanks for lookin'.

~Ray

Inking and Coloring notes...

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Did some quick notes for a friend on anatomy, inking, and coloring, and I thought they might be helpful to others as well.

Here I'm pointing out the trapezius and deltoid muscles. When people say they want a shoulder rub, they're generally speaking about their trapezius muscles, which aren't part of the shoulder (deltoid) at all. So, that's just to clear that up.

Next, I show one of the things that can be done to show depth in inking. Making the lines thinner near the light source and thicker on the other side of the object is a great way to bring the pencils to life.

Finally, for depth in coloring, I'm attempting to show that cool tones (blue, purple, green) recede while warm tones (orange, yellow, red) stand out. So, putting a little bit of purple in the shadows of the girl in this pic allows her face to pop forward a bit, or her hair, etc.

Hope that makes sense and helps someone out there. When I saw these things for the first time it was a pretty big breakthrough for my art.

As for what I'm working on, well, I'm back to coloring on my projects and just finished lettering Noble Causes #17 (great issue, pick it up!!).

Thanks for stoppin' by! ;o)

~Ray

Lord of the Rings cards are DONE!!

YAY!

Today I sent off the Lord of the Rings: Evolution sketch cards I've been working on. I did 306 in all (6 of which will be returned to me--hopefully the ones I requested). It's bittersweet. I'm really glad to be done, but I've really had a blast doing these. Each one is an experiment for me. I tried different styles, got carried away, and just enjoyed the LOTR universe. I'm so happy to be a part of this. I'll be beaming about this for many years to come. Can't wait for the next project (well, maybe a few weeks).

As soon as I have them okayed for public viewing, I'll post them up here (and anywhere else the WWW will let me). And, you can always check out progress at a great gallery site showing the work of all the LOTR sketchcartists work!

http://www.LOTRsketchcards.com
http://LOTR.GoldenGoatStudios.com
The TOPPS website

Now, if this sounds a little scatterbrained, that is because I have not slept yet. Last night I spent all night scanning and spraying my cards to get them ready to send out today (they're due at Topps tomorrow morning). I had to rush out to Fed-Ex and ship them overnight. When I got back, I didn't want to go to sleep at 10am and mess my days and nights around even worse than they've been lately, so I've been fighting sleep all day.

Tomorrow, I'll be getting back to my other projects, such as Noble Causes (lettering), Nothingface (coloring), and the other coloring project I have going. I've also got some Nightmare World stuff coming up. And I want to encourage you to check out the new GGS web comics! They're going great so far.

I hope you all had a great new year! I did, and I'm very much looking forward to 2006. We're living in the future, man!! ;o)

Have a great one! Thanks for stopping by.

~Ray