A #TinyDoodle: "Just Add Water"

A #tinydoodle created with my Micron 01 pen and some Derwent Inktense blocks.

Doodle with a glass of water

You see it, right?

I love creating found object doodles and post them on Instagram, "Found Object Art" gallery on Flickr, Pinterest, Tumblr  and in my Found Object Art portfolio.

Daily Sketch: "Floating"

My Daily Doodle. 

This was experiment with water textures. I used a bunch of layers and played around with opacity levels as well as layer masks. I wanted to create the impression that just the girl's face and upper torso were above the water, with the rest of her gently floating beneath the surface. I also wanted to create some interesting light reflections as well as a hint of the darker textures down below.

As is usual when doing my Daily Sketches, I didn't really know what I was going to draw when I opened up my blank canvas. I started with some watercolor and semi-transparent textures first, with blues and greens and violets, adjusting transparency. At first I was going to do an underwater scene but then changed my mind. I sketched the girl on a separate layer, then created the color of her skin, hair etc. beneath that layer.

Created entirely in Photoshop with a wide variety of custom brushes.

I've always been fascinated with water textures, and had been hoping to illustrate an underwater picture book someday. Looks like I'm going to get my wish. :-) Stay tuned for more news, hopefully soon....

Daily Sketch: "First Encounter"

My Daily Doodle. 

EDITED 10:51 AM: A few people have asked me what medium I used to create the above image, so in case anyone else is curious, here's additional info:

I created it entirely in Photoshop.

I'm experimenting with my own custom-made brushes but also other brushes I've found online (and users have granted permission to use in commercial works). My newest acquisition: brushes by Alex Dukal. I emailed with Alex to confirm it was ok for me to use his brushes in my commercial picture books. Alex Dukal is an amazing illustrator, by the way. He regularly posts fascinating process videos showing how he creates some of his illustrations.

On how I got the effect of the little creature guy fading into the water:

Because it was a quickie sketch, I cheated by copying and pasting that textured water layer, with the creature guy in between two layers. Then I fiddled some more with the textures and opacity. Ever since seeing Richard Jesse Watson's hands-on demo at SCBWI-LA 2011, I've been inspired to experiment more with textures, even though my art tends to be more cartoon-y. 

I may or may not use these brushes in future book projects, but I like knowing I have the option. I never want to get into an illustration rut, so I am constantly experimenting and trying new techniques and tools. Playing around with these new art tools in my Daily Sketches is the perfect way to learn how to use them, figure out what works and doesn't work for me.

Plus it's fun. :-)

On how long it took me to draw the above illustration:

About 40 minutes. It would probably have taken me less time, but I'm still familiarizing myself with how some of these newer brushes work. But before you email me with "Wow, that's so fast! Could you whip a drawing off for me, too?", please read my Daily Doodle FAQ.

Morning Drawing: "Reaching"