Island Tales!

Island Tales is a comic anthology based on folklore and mythology from the Pacific. Some stories are adapted from traditional stories while others are modern retellings of the classics.

Created by our great friend Stephen Smirl. He's a genius and one of the nicest guys in the universe!

This first story I'm illustrating for them is based on the old poem "The Battle Between Two Chiefs" and the legendary Chief Gadao.

Pencils, Inks, Colors, & Letters by ME.
Written by Jeremy Fiest

FOLLOW ISLAND TALES!!
http://www.twitter.com/islandtales
http://www.facebook.com/islandtales (Almost 15,000 fans!)
http://www.islandtales.com



I pencil, ink, color, and letter digitally in Photoshop CS5 with an Axiotron Modbook (Apple Tablet Computer)

You can also see Island Tales work by my wife, Renae, and I. She pencils 'Pono Loa' and I ink and color.

I will be doing a ton of work for Island Tales, so stay tuned for more! And please spread the word! Let your comic shop know, share it on your social networks. Help us make this something special! Thank you!!

Thanks for looking!

~Ray

RayDillon.com | Twitter | Facebook | MySpace | DeviantArt

Marvel's X-Men vs Agents of Atlas samples

Doing some sample sequential pages for Marvel in between my normal work. Going slow at it because I'm super-busy, but having fun. Kinda wish I could just abandon the pencils and do my normal approach, sketch/ink/color/letter or paint/letter. Feels more natural and that's what I want to do for them eventually anyway, but have to prove myself as a penciler first. Hard to break in as a full-production artist right off the bat.



Oh, and these are "real" pencils, they're penciled digitally using Photoshop and the Axiotron Modbook Apple Tablet Computer.

Thank you for looking! Love to hear your thoughts!

~Ray

ARTISTS: Todd McFarlane Bio DVD - HUGE inspiration!

Are you a struggling artists fighting to make something big happen with your life and art? Do you have a family to take care of? Are you a Todd McFarlane / Spawn fan? Do you just like biography DVD's? You gotta see add this to your collection! I've watched this DVD somewhere between 1 Million and 1 Billion times and it STILL keeps me highly motivated and inspired to keep goin!

Hearing him and his wife tell the stories of when they lived in a trailer, he was working two jobs, and staying up all night at the table. Him sending in 40 submission packets a month before finally getting picked up, and the rise to fame and success. Seeing the roots will be an invaluable asset to anyone struggling to make it!

And seeing how his constant drive and attitude propelled him to success is a big lesson, too. He worked mopping floors, and by cracky, he was the fastest floor mopper ever! Turned it into a challenge!

You also get to see the quirky side and the family side of Todd McFarlane.

It's a fantastic, motivational story and a really well-made DVD. Get this, take the inspiration, and make things happen in your own life! And, please, share the link: http://bit.ly/aRAakO

~Ray

Artists: You need this book!

Hey, you! Are you trying to learn perspective and it's super confusing?? Or are you well versed in perspective, but hate how long it takes to set up grids and what a pain it is to plot points 3 feet away from your paper? This is an absolutely essential book for any form of artist, not just comics. Features PERSPECTIVE SHORTCUTS that will definitely improve and speed up the way you work.

PLUS, it is a GRAPHIC NOVEL! I mean, it's literally all illustrated panels following characters as they discuss perspective. Fun, fast read and you'll understand perspective more than you ever have. Trust me, I read ALL the perspective books! All the complicated, dragging, confusing ones with chapters on just how to make a spiral staircase with perfect measurements. THIS book is what you're looking for.

PREVIEW: Peter S. Beagle's "The Last Unicorn" - IDW

A comic book adaptation of the classic novel. Also made into an animated feature in 1982. Drawn by my wife, Renae De Liz, who was highly inspired by the movie as a kid. Inks/Colors by me.

More info: http://idwpublishing.com/news/article/904/

Please HELP Our Family Keep Our Home!

My Wife and I are both comic book artists. We're in a rough spot with the home we currently live in and need your help! We have a 6-year old boy, and another baby boy on the way in February.

http://www.Raydillon.com/help.html



This isn't just donations, this is a chance to get original artwork or have us work on your projects. We've worked for IDW, Image, Archie, Topps, Upperdeck, film and gaming companies, and more. We just need help getting over a hurdle so we can stay on track.

Please, go to the following link and read what the situation is. Any help is greatly appreciated! If all you can do is spread the word, that would be wonderful!!

Thank you so much for your help!!! Our family thanks you!

~Ray

And please help spread the word!!

Printed Sketchbook #1

Hi, everyone-

Here is the cover to my first ever printed sketchbook:

8 1/2" x 5 1/2" - 28 pages - B&W interiors - Cover printed on a golden parchment

- This book includes sketches, sequential comic pages, and digital paintings of all styles. It even has a photograph evolution of me on the inside cover. ;o)

- Back Cover: Left blank with a border for personalized sketches! The back cover is also a golden parchment, perfect for adding those white, gold, and silver highlights.

Back Cover Sketches: The back is blank with a small border for doing original sketches. Black and white is $15.00, full-color is $30. Or you can just by the book for $7 (add $2 to each for shipping). Please allow at least a month or two for the sketches to be completed. I have to attend the San Diego Comicon and finish some comics projects in addition to these sketches.

You can purchase a sketchbook with Paypal or Credit Card by clicking the buttons down below. Please include your full name, shipping information, email, and details of the sketch.

---------------------- -

Ray Dillon Sketchbook #1
+ COLOR back cover sketch
$30.00 + shipping



Ray Dillon Sketchbook #1
+ BLACK & WHITE back cover sketch
$15.00 + shipping



Ray Dillon Sketchbook #1
- NO back cover sketch
$7.00 + shipping


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If you have any questions, please post them here or email me at rayd@goldengoatstudios.com

Thank you all so much for your continued support. I really appreciate it.

Have a great day!

~Ray

Disturbing Commission

Commission from Heroes Con 2007 for Paolo Belfiore of Cadence Comic Art. Awesome dude doing awesome things for awesome artists, go check it out: http://cadencecomicart.com/

Forgot I'd drawn this. Kinda grosses me out. ;o)

Tools: Prismacolor ink liners and Copic markers.

Thanks for lookin'!

~Ray

Illustration Friday - "Worry"

* Click for larger *

Felt like doing something more like a pencil drawing, but this was still done in Photoshop 7 with a tablet.

Oh, and in case you're wondering why she's so worried about her pimple, it's not. It's a worry wart. Get it? hahah! I'm clever. ;o) That's why there's also a face on the wart. Because it's worried, too.

Yeah ...

Thanks fer lookin'!

~Ray

Illo Friday "Thanksgiving" + catching up: Lord of the Rings, Marvel: Avengers, and more!

Hi, all!

First up, my entry for Illustration Friday's prompt: Thanksgiving:

* Click for larger *

When I first thought of Thanksgiving, all I could think about was what I'm thankful for, and right now, the top of the list is my girlfriend and her son. They're everything to me. But, I've already done a few drawings of them and figured another might make the idea a little stale. I could look at sweet images of them all day, but you might not be as interested. Or maybe I was afraid of looking sappy. ;o)

At any rate, I decided to think beyond that. Only thing that I could think of wasn't too far from the original. I just spun the camera around on myself. This will be our first Thanksgiving together and my first time being "the man of the house." Which means I'll be carving the turkey for the first time. Must ... not ... mess up ... 0.0

So, anyway, this is what came out. A silly drawing of me being chastised by the turkey I'm attempting to carve. Whoopee! And done really quick with some rough tones thrown in to give it that autumn feel. Yay! ;o)

Hope you enjoy it anyway!

Now, onto other news...

It has been quite a while since my last blog. Four+ months, actually. I don't have time to get everything caught up, but here goes:

. San Diego was awesome! Sat at the Upperdeck booth, sketched and signed Marvel: Avengers cards. Met Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez (some of the many cool people there, Seth Green, comics folk, etc.)

. Disneyland was amazing. I really had no idea how magical the place really was. It astounded me. I'm so thankful to Renae for getting me to go.

. Broke down in California and ended up stranded for an extra week.

. Since that happened, I've been working my butt off to get back on schedule and stay there. Still butt-working...

Here are some of the main projecs I've worked on since last time: Marvel Heroes: The Complete Avengers sketch cards, Lord of the Rings: Masterpieces. There are quite a few others, but those are the big ones. They were a blast. You can see some previews here (click for more):

MARVEL HEROES: THE COMPLETE AVENGERS





Click for more!

And here's a HULK piece I did for an eBay auction. Click to check that out and see a silly picture of me:



eBay Auction | Larger Version

LORD OF THE RINGS: MASTERPIECES







Click for more!


And here's an LOTR piece I did for an eBay auction. It's already sold, but you can click to check it out anyway::



eBay Auction | Larger Version

Okay, so that's that.

I'm about to start work on a new sketch card set that are recreations of Vintage Movie posters from such classics as Invasion of the Saucer Men and Attack of the 50ft Woman!! Can't wait. Well, I can a little because I have a lot of other deadlines, but I'm anxious. ;o)

I guess that's all I'll blog for now. This is easily the most ridiculously long blog I've ever done, but I wanted to get it all in there. From now on I'll try to keep things updated more regularly, but it'll be tough.

So, thanks for stoppin' by. I hope it was worth your time. Have a great Thanksgiving!

~Ray