Rugby Print and Disillusionment

Last Friday I said that today I would be publishing a post about a new Rugby print I was working on. I also intimated somewhere on the vast and unkempt world wide webby-thing that it was also earmarked as a possible calendar.

Well I did indeedy produce the photo's to show you what I was up to and I even had three attempts at a video showing me inking a portion of the print, but when all was said and done I just didn't have that feeling I need to have to complete the picture.

I guess my main concern lies with the method. Up until now I've been producing these sporting prints in water colour, but for the sake of a calendar I thought it would work best treated in Photoshop---hence the inking in.

But now I'm not so sure. Now I'm thinking water colour: I can actually see myself calmly working away at the endless layers in a very therapeutic manner, and in all the hustle and bustle of my life, that's a welcoming image; hell, in this mental picture I can even feel the sun shinning through the window and hear the bird song as I paint away my stresses.

But to produce 12 water colour paintings; of this detail and intensity; in between all my other projects; just doesn't seem feasible let alone possible. So that is my dilemma and that is why, more than anything else, this particular project is on hold.

Now this doesn't mean it's dead in the water, oh no. I have had this feeling before, and when I gave it some time and thought, I came back to the project and completed the picture, only to have it become my favourite painting to date.

But I guess the reason why I'm saying this is: don't be expecting to see the finished cartoon up here, any time soon, or even up for sale.

But that said, a promise is, indeed, a promise. And in the nature of all things honesty, here are the roughs and assorted notes to accompany it.

Early Stages of a new Rugby Print

I have tried many approaches to producing nice clean images, and now, thanks to a shiny new slim-line light box I've been brought (Thanks Jayne), I am now able to produce my initial scrawly illustrations on many pieces of paper and then compose them onto the finished image via the light box (thanks, once again, Jayne) in a kind of cut-and-paste technique. 

Below are a couple of pictures that show the initial sketching frenzy.

Yeah, right. You may squint to work out what the hell's going on. I had to pick the bones out of that lot. Light box or no light box, that lot was a test of anyone's concentration and or eyesight.

These particular sketches weren't used in the final picture, but they did give me an idea for another print.

Finally I patched a whole bunch of ideas together over two pieces of paper and created the final image, ready for light-boxing.

Now it's onto light-boxing the rough sketches through to a clean pencil line. This method is really good for water colouring as there are fewer lines and less to cover up with the paint, thus leaving me the ability to use delicate layers,
It's also worth noting that the character under my hand was eventually moved to the far right of the finished picture, breaking up the image slightly and not cluttering the over all look of the picture which is, by it's very nature, a cluttered drawing.

And here's what the finished pencilled picture came out like...plus a close up below

And finally onto the inking; and here's a few angles and close ups

Like I said: sadly this is how far I got. The two major points are (a) does the picture work and (b) do I want to do it in Photoshop or do I re-light-box it through and produce a watercolour.

And until that one is solved, it will go no further.

I could just finish inking it but I have so many projects to be doing, I cannot justify the time.

Oh well, I hope you enjoyed what I have done so far and if I do decide to carry on I will let you all know first here on the Diary of a Cartoonist & Writer. So please do keep on coming back, your involvement is appreciated more that you realise!

...and on a final point...

...the picture I last lost interest in? The one that turned out to be my most favourite painting to date? Well this is it in it's full, photographic glory. Click to enlarge.

On Friday I will be continuing my feature on the writing, drawing and completion of a syndication package in the creation of a cartoon submission Part IV.

I sincerely hope you enjoyed this post. If you did then please share it like a demented sharing person and keep on coming back for more of the same, and a whole lot besides.