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feebsaint · Posted: Mon Mar 12, 2001 9:15 am

I'd like to thank all of the incredible input in my "Paladins In Progress" post, that helped make these pieces much better than they would have been, otherwise. If you want to see the great comments, go here.

I'm posting both versions of "Ehlonna," as the art director of Dragon Magazine has yet to pick his favorite of the two. Other than that, here they all are:

Whaddya think??

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~-Mike May-~

mikespencil.com

"I Draw Stuff"

Plouffe · member Member # Joined: 17 Nov 2000 Posts: 225

looks great but um i dont see a difference in the first 2??? same pose , same shading , same clothe, what am i missing?

Charybde · Posted: Mon Mar 12, 2001 9:23 am

I really like'em, and I like your use of brown/sepia monochrome instead of black & white : it gives a great look.

And I can't see any difference between the first two.

feebsaint · Posted: Mon Mar 12, 2001 9:25 am

You're missing the comparison of the eyes in the first two :P

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~-Mike May-~

mikespencil.com

"I Draw Stuff"

[This message has been edited by feebsaint (edited March 12, 2001).]

Enayla · Posted: Mon Mar 12, 2001 9:26 am

The first one looks much meaner than the second one, first off...

I really like them. Lots of movement and action in these images - something I have a problem achieving. Sweet work

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��.You have a kind of sick desperation in your laugh.��

Bizarde · Posted: Mon Mar 12, 2001 9:57 am

Hehe, i see you had a lot of fun in doing those pics. obviously great work.
the "heironeousa" is my fav

ps: the last one look a bit unfinished [?]

~bizarde

sear · Posted: Mon Mar 12, 2001 10:01 am

hi there mike,
no doubt, i just love your work!
keep posting

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sear

all hail to my hands

Eric Pommer · Posted: Mon Mar 12, 2001 1:48 pm

I quite like them, and the sepia effect looks terrific! How did you manage it? Were these scanned into PS and then modified, or did you draw them in colour as they are?

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Mindplaces: Artwork by Eric Pommer
Character Portraits, Mythic Fantasy illustrations

http://www.mindplaces.com

Cos · Posted: Mon Mar 12, 2001 4:26 pm

very kool mike, I like them all. I hope you will be doing some more of these

feebsaint · Posted: Mon Mar 12, 2001 8:53 pm

Edit: Bad link

Thanks guys (Cos & Eric).

Eric: I'm glad you liked them so much! I appreciate how enthusiastic your post was! To answer your question...

I did these all in painter 6. Strangely, I was just using my favorite painter 6 sketch tool, dirty marker, to rough out the figures. Because of how little the project paid, and the tight deadline, I ended up goig digital from start to finish.

The original plan was to deliver images similar to my trademark sepias, like my Soprano's caricature, or my "Traveler. The feel of these were enough to really please the art director, though, and he had no problem with the shift in media.

I will probably be incorporating some limited & subdued colors in future illustrations like these, as an experiment in progress of personal style.

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~-Mike May-~

mikespencil.com

"I Draw Stuff"

[This message has been edited by feebsaint (edited March 12, 2001).]

GreenPeach · Guest Member #

I just went to your website, holy shit.
I'm sorry I haven't found it before.

I suggest you all have a look if you have not already and are into characters. Or charicatures. Or cartooning. Or drawing. Or undies.

Poxin · Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2001 12:08 am

Nice me likes!

I love pelor1, somthing about the feel of it all.

i'd love to see these in colour

goofball · Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2001 12:47 am

howdy!

Well i like the third en the last the most!
because, there's sumpin wrong with the anatomy of the first 2. th curve of the body at the waistline is not vary likely in my point of view... but who am i...

The fist one i like alle together, but especially the sword with the "swoosh"

And the last one, well LOVE the expression on his fase! His expression reads: "f**king windows, yet an another blue screen...RAAAWWW

only 1 thing about the last: the arm + hand on the front are more human than ogre.. and well i thought that u were going for the ogre look!

well thats all...

Let's All Play Warcraft

(sorry for the bad english, I'm Dutch)

feebsaint · Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2001 12:50 am

I prefer undies.

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~-Mike May-~

mikespencil.com

"I Draw Stuff"

feebsaint · Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2001 12:53 am

Thanks everyone!

P. Whitley, A.D. of Dragon, really loved these... he's going with them as they are. Of the first two, I was relieved that he much preferred the 'meaner' looking girl. I know that these are all good paladins, on the good/bad scale... but they are all paladins that mean business. Like my buddy, Jeremy, said... "It's not like a good paladin will be smiling, cheerily, when he/she's fighting a bad guy." (not unless they're really enjoying the mayhem)

Poxin: I may be incorporating a bit of color into this style soon, as I just got off the phone with the A.D., and he thought it would look cool, too

... Not for this set of art, though. I'm leavin 'em be... but thanks for the lovely thought

Goofball: Nope, he's not an ogre... he's a half-orc.

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~-Mike May-~

mikespencil.com

"I Draw Stuff"

[This message has been edited by feebsaint (edited March 12, 2001).]

AnKart · Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2001 3:05 am

Mike you rock , you really do
I was just wondering is this digital or traditional media?

BooMSticK · Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2001 3:30 am

awesome work, mike. They turned out very well indeed.
,Boom

feebsaint · Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2001 4:39 am

Ankart & Boomstick... Thanks!

Ankart: Check up a few posts (posted at 8:53, I think). I explain it there. But, a quick answer is, it's digital.

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~-Mike May-~

mikespencil.com

"I Draw Stuff"

zenonithus · Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2001 1:59 pm

Really good characters. I should improve on my sketching / drawing skills. My work looks so laim when I look at these. Look forward to seeing more.

Anthony J · Posted: Thu Mar 15, 2001 5:11 am

your illustrations are great Feebsaint!

Can you put up some tutorials on how
you go about drawing dynamic figures.

I'm really interested in illustration

see if you can, I think others on the forum will want to see them too.

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Digital Painting Gallery
http://anthonys.8m.com

"you must feel the force in order to use it Obi-Wan..."

Lomi · Posted: Thu Mar 15, 2001 4:24 pm

really cool, the second paladin imo is the best though, and the third looks to me more like a monk

Lukias · Guest Member #

Mikes mean!, I also recommend checking out his site *and* contributing to his efforts in holding drawing comps (so far theres only been a few dedicated artists/entries

)

feebsaint · Posted: Fri Mar 16, 2001 12:26 am

Lomi: thanks for your observations! I admit she's more monk than paladin, but I drew her as best I could from the descriptions given me by the A.D. of Dragon. He was remarkably pleased with them all, and he actually pointed her out, as his favorite... so I guess that'll have to do. Still, I don't disagree at all with your observation. Great insight.

Lukias: I'm mean? I hope not! You're a stud for recommending people to my site and project. Thanks a ton!

zenonithus: Thanks!

Anthony J: I really like the idea of the tutorial. Maybe what I'll do is add a dynamic figure drawing tutorial in my "How To" section of my site, and link to it here

I'm probably going to have some new tutorials there within a week or so... so keep checking back

Wow... everyone, you comments are great. I've been getting some great job offers, due to these pics, and I'll keep that info updated on my site, too! Thanks again!

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~-Mike May-~

mikespencil.com

"I Draw Stuff"

Curi0us_George · junior member Member # Joined: 14 Mar 2001 Posts: 23

Just one word . . .
Sweet <pronounced with a german accent>

MonkeyBoy · Posted: Sun Mar 18, 2001 11:08 am

Nice work. It's hard to produce an image with a budget in mind and not work yourself down to sub-minimum wage. I have been following your (and Allen Tew's, btw) work for some time. Your lines carry a great deal of spirit; as some one growing up looking at a pencil as an artistic instument, I always like to see some one's work that inspire that warm fuzzy feeling that a bithchen pencil job can do. Allen Lee has "IT", Vess has "IT", and so do you.

Your rendering is great (gotta love those gibs).

Crits: Last pic's contrast range is limited, and would read better with some direction in this regard. 3rd picture composition "floats" a bit- a backfround anker might work as an expediant solution.
D&D/Dragon as well as the comic industry have drifted steadly in the direction of "style over substance". Granted that these pics were developed for the modern pop D&D style which favors inexplicable straps, pauldrons, and spikes everywhere with no regard to funtion or practicality, your work would gain in merit with greater attention to the real. Just as a fantasy creature gains substance by being rendered realisticaly, so do the objects that seround them. Armor that would block free motion of limbs, flails tied to the hip (ouch!) and long hair flying free detract a bit from other wise sharp work. Just nits, picked.

Thanx for shairing your work... planed to ride the bike today; after seeing these, I think I gotta draw now. THANX!

Rhysling

Lukias · Guest Member #

HAHA Mike, sorry thats just slang where I'm from, its like...err... the shit or bad ass. Its a good thing.