I've had a bit of anxiety toward posting, and haven't really been on the site much, in the last year or so... but I've been pretty proud of some of the portraits and other pieces that I've been drawing lately, and I think it would be a positive step to share a bit more, and attempt to be a bit more social again.

Thank you all for being patient with me, and I hope we'll all be able to enjoy dragons and art for years to come. <3

Thank you all. <3

I should think of something special to celebrate~ I've been trying to practice, and be more active with my art, and this is such an encouraging milestone.
It's been quite a journey, but it's been such a positive experience, and I'm glad to have shared it with all of you.

As always, I'll do my best to keep learning, and I'm really happy that my art could touch the community, online.

Congratulations to  silverturian
I'll try to get in touch, then try a timed speedpaint after work, tomorrow~

I think these are a fun way to practice drawing with new ideas, and something that people don't have to be online at just the right time for, like a stream raffle. Hopefully, it's fun for all of you, as well. ^_^

Going to try another speedpaint raffle. Starting now, drawing on 7/1/20, around 9 AM CST. No entry fee.
Planning to stream the speedpaint on 7/2/20. Also, to make sure everyone has a chance, there will be no consecutive winners.

This should make it a little easier to get in contact with the one that wins the raffle.

To enter, like before, watch my page here, and comment with "I'm in!" <3

First, thank you, everyone~ <3
This raffle really blew up beyond what I was expecting... I'll start streaming in around 2 hours, then draw a name at 11:30 CST, on stream.

With the size, I want to make sure everyone knows it's a fair drawing. ^~^
 Omnirok was a big help with the random selection code. Thank you~

Winner:  Sharkiity <3

It's so exciting to try something new like this. It really feels like a fresh step forward. If things go well, It's likely that I'll try this again next week, to get the ball rolling, give a few other people a chance, and hopefully continue to grow as an artist.
Thank you all for your patience, and support. ^~^

I'm really nervous about this... but working up the courage to give it a try.
Recently, I've done a few speedpaints and pieces for friends... I'd like to become more comfortable doing art for others, and feel like a more supportive part of the community.

So, I'm going to try a speedpaint raffle. Starting now, drawing on 6/17/20, around the same time. No entry fee.
Planning to stream the speedpaint on 6/18/20.

I think I can try this, and still make progress on other art, without getting sidetracked or bogged down. If it goes smoothly, maybe I'll try it again, or maybe I'll try an experiment with a YCH, if that's interesting.
To enter, watch my page here, and comment with "I'm in!" <3

A few months ago, I drew a Flamedramon daki, and it's now up for sale on InkedFur!
Check it out, if your're interested, or would like to support these sorts of projects.

It's really exciting to make this available... Perhaps it'll be the first of many. ^_^

https://inkedfur.com/dakimakura/Flamedramon-a

Lately, I've been thinking about posting practice and studies that I do into scraps.

I've been doing more painting and muscle studies lately, trying to learn, usually based off of things like references from Line of Action, and Google Earth Plein Airs. A friend suggested that maybe the studies would be interesting or inspiring for people to see, so I've been thinking more about uploading some as scraps.

I'm extra motivated today~ Come say hello at
https://picarto.tv/Chromamancer

I'm back from vacation, and I've been doing a number of practice sketches and speedpaints, so I may post some of those. Haven't decided if I should post them as scraps or main gallery type pieces, yet, though.

Anyway, thank you all for the support, and welcome to any new watchers.
I hope the season is treating you all well.

Featuring all these artists, with a slitplay theme. ^_^

DoublePopsicle / LizardLars / Ember-Dragoness / cookiedraggy / TheSecretCave / mindkog / risenpaw / Lapatte / chromamancer/ zuriku / krayxii / kloogshicer / jetshark / achiga / feretta / ElectrycPynk / caruilon / slash0x

Click here to download the pack!
Mirror

I’ve never been invited to take part in something like this before, so it’s been really exciting to be a part of. I have a bit of stage fright in a sense, but I’ve really enjoyed talking to the other artists in the pack, and I’m really proud of the mood of the piece I’ve contributed. ^_^

I've been on this site for almost 8 years now, and just noticed the milestone when checking in on things, today. ^_^

For quite a long time I've felt disconnected from the community. Even before I set up my account here, I lurked, watching other artists... Wishing that I could make things that could be memorable and special for others, and be a source of inspiration, like the artists that I look up to.

Over the last few months, I've been trying to be more adventurous with my art, and putting in some more serious practice time. I think I've met some really great friends recently, and it's really been a blast. I'm going to do my best to continue growing, and attempting more interesting projects, and hopefully I'll actually be able to make it to some of my art goals...

Thank you all, and please let me know if there is something that I could do better. ^_^

The podcast is over now.

It was fun. Thanks to everyone who attended, too! :D
Hopefully, I'll be able to join in, and do that again, some time.

I recently thought it might be fun to try painting dragons into existing photos, as a way to practice working with some more realistic color palettes and tones... Instead of hunt around and try to find royalty free images, I thought I would ask you all, to see if any of you have photos that might need an additional dragon or two. ;)

If I pick a photo to work with, I'll definitely cite the original source of the photo, too. So, if anyone has an interesting nature photo or two that I could use, maybe post a link. :)
It might be a fun thing to try.

I recently set up Telegram!
Projects are still underway, and I'm making progress on things. I'm not always all that active, when I don't have anything ready to post, though, but I'm going to try to be more active and social. Less of an internet hermit...

So, if anyone wants to chat some time, feel free to drop me a line on Telegram or Skype some time. :)

Well, I made my Alicorn print public on Shapeways.
I've had really good, positive feedback from people that I've shown my printed version to, and some people seem to be interested in it.
So, I played a bit of Tetris with the pieces in the print layout, and I think it's ready now!

https://www.shapeways.com/product/E.....A2W/alicorn1-5

My test print is made from White Strong and Flexible, but I've allowed the design to be printed with a few other colors, as well.
Do you think I should upload Earth Pony, Unicorn, and Pegasus variations of this, as well?

Also, let me know if you have any questions or comments about the design.
I'm rather inexperienced with 3D modeling, but it's always fun to learn new things.

I'll try to put together a guide on how to assemble it, when I get some more elastic, too. That's what I was waiting for, at first, but kept getting side tracked.
I figure it's better to upload the design, and let people enjoy it, than just let it sit...

This journal is a bit late... I've been working on several different projects lately, so I haven't been inactive. Just inactive on here.
I've felt really guilty about that, and that's made things more difficult in a way to post things and stay in touch. I'm going to try and catch up with things, now, though.

The Nordgard card game expansion I've been working on is going to be released soon, and I'll actually be at Anthrocon this year for the release, so I'm very excited about that!
I'll post a few illustrations from the set, as teasers, and because I'm proud of them. It was an interesting challenge to try and draw characters that fit in Blotch's art style for that universe, since I am much more familiar with dragons and fantasy art, but after some feedback from Teagan on a few pieces, my art was approved. That was a really awesome experience.

I've also been working on that Nargacuga costume some more, and several parts of it are done, but not the whole things. The wings are going to work like fans, so I can open them or close them based on movement and body posture, but this whole costume has been quite a puzzle. After 3 or 4 attempts, I think I'm making progress in that area. Eventually, I'll finish the Nargacuga costume, too.

The 3D Pony print I've been working on is complete, too. I still have to pose it, and take some pictures... I'll probably upload that soon, too. Basically, that's a 3d printed ball jointed pony, with around 25 points of articulation. I think it's turned out quite well, too. I might try to sell a few at cons, some time, or I'll just make the print available for purchase on Shapeways.
I'm still working on my 3D jointed dragon model, but I'm making progress on that, too.

Over the time since I've last posted, I've built up some fun sketches, as well. Hopefully I'll finish one of those soon, and have some more dragons to upload. :D
If anyone wants to get in touch, as well, I've been relatively active on Skype. Feel free to drop me a line. I won't be around this weekend, though.
Perhaps I'll even run into some of you at the con!

Well, it looks like we're hanging on, for now. We made it through the holiday season, but things are still rather touch-and go. I'm still rather worried, but a bit more hopeful, at least.
Thank you for all your support. :)
I've been getting antsy to make some more art. I have a new dragon mask almost done, but I'll probably wait until spring, for it to warm up enough to paint outside.

Anyway, time for a Livestream!
I'll mainly be doing some character sketches, but feel free to drop by, check out what I'm working on, and leave a little feedback. :)
I'm re-working a few from last time.
http://www.livestream.com/chromamancer

Today's date amuses me.
Also, I'll make sure to add a few more friend codes. Thank you all for those. In Pokemon, I've been catching things in the friend safari, and breeding for IVs.
It's really neat to see how they improved the breeding system in X and Y.


Anyway, time for a Livestream!
I'll mainly be doing some sketching, but feel free to drop by, check out what I'm working on, and leave a little feedback. :)
http://www.livestream.com/chromamancer

Offline! I'm rather pleased with the sketches. The video has been saved!

I've been working on some more projects recently, so I may be a little late to post this.

Friend code exchange time!
Mine is 4339-3425-8428
I have electric type in the friend safari, apparently.
Trading Pokemon is always fun, too!

I'll be livestreaming some more art and sketches in a week or so, as well.
They'll be related to an interesting project.

The Double Rainboom premiere is happening in around an hour over at http://events.everfree.net/2013/03/.....orld-premiere/
I'm rather excited.

It was a lot of fun and an awesome project to work on.
I hope everyone has just as much fun seeing the result. :D

I need to write these more often. When I don't post art for a while, I start to feel guilty about it, and it is difficult to stay active.

Anyway, in December, I saw some animation tutorials posted by Zachary Rich
http://flamingo1986.deviantart.com/gallery/
My reaction could be best described by this video clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uXPlzdTcA-I

I've always enjoyed art and animation. Anime is probably the thing that got me interested in art in the first place, but for some reason, until I saw Zach's tutorials, I hadn't considered it at all.
I never thought about looking into Flash or Illustrator all that much... For some reason, I just thought of animation as one of those things I couldn't do, even though I never tried it.
Since then, I've passed my puppet animation test and joined the Double Rainboom team. http://www.doublerainboom.com/

Even though the project is almost done, I have helped with several backgrounds and I'm about to finish an animation shot. :D
It's a fun project to help out with, and I'm continuously impressed with the quality of work from everyone in the group. Even though I'm working on it, I can't wait to see this complete. :D


After this, I'm still planning on doing speedpaints and some more large illustrations. I'm looking forward to that, too. :)
Maybe I'll even be able to incorporate some Flash now, too. It would be neat to make some animated backgrounds, like Wizards of the Coast and Blizzard do...
Also, I set up a Livestream, so hopefully, I'll be able to start doing some more art on there, too.

Now, to try to get caught up on all the messages I've been putting off... I apologize to everyone who's been waiting, and thank you all for your support.
Here's to another year, with much more art to come. :D

My work schedule has been rather busy lately, so I haven't had as much time to work on art lately. It looks like there will be some more free time now, though.
I'm looking forward to spending some time making art and getting caught up on my messages.

Also, I'm getting frustrated with my slow art speed... There are so many things I want to draw, but I seem to spend so long working on things that I don't end up making some pieces..
After I finish up my current projects, I'm planning on doing some speedpainting practice. Perhaps, I'll be able to improve the speed and detail of my art.
There are always more things to learn, after all. :D

I'm going to Midwest FurFest this weekend, so I thought I'd check in and see who else is going. Hopefully, I'll get to see some of you there.
Also, I'm going to bring down a few prints for the art auction, too. It'll be my first time doing anything like that, so I'm rather excited for this con.

Anyway, how have all of you been?

In the last two days, I recently matted a few prints, and dropped them off to be entered into the MN Furs Cat Days art show.
It's my first time trying anything like that, so I'm feeling rather accomplished.
It'll be neat to see how that goes. :)

Also, the Nordgard card game has been released for a while. http://www.nordguard.com/about/cardgame/

I haven't been the most active online lately, but I have been making plenty of art. ;)
I've hinted before a few times that I've been working on a large project, and it's getting closer to release, and the preview site is up, so it's time for my announcement!

It's a card game based in the Nordgard universe, from the graphic novel by  blotch
The preview site is here: http://www.nordguard.com/about-the-comic/cardgame/

I've been doing graphic design on the cards, as well as a few illustrations.
It's an interesting project, and the illustrations I've been working on are rather different from my standard work, so it's an excellent learning experience, too.
The rounds I got to participate in while playtesting were rather fun, so it's been a very positive experience, overall. :D

So, I'll do my best to answer questions that aren't spoilers.
Spoiling too much would make the release less interesting, after all. ;)

After that, I do have several sketches that I'm looking forward to finishing.
Then I can apply some of the techniques I've been working on to some more epic dragons and fantasy art.

I recently realized that it's been a while since I've made a journal.
I have been doing well. I haven't been totally consumed by Skyrim.
There hasn't been much news with me lately. Next year, I might try and start attending the art show, or artist alley at cons, and maybe try and sell a few prints that aren't just done on a case by case basis. Also, I'm still planning on signing up for an actual painting class some time, because that sounds awesomely fun. Work can make my schedule a bit busy sometimes, though.

Anyway, I've been working on plenty of pieces of art lately, but they're mostly unfinished sketches.
Sometimes, when I start on a picture, I have a clear idea of what it's going to be, or what the point of the picture is. Other times, I just try and let things develop as I go. Here, I'm going to be talking about the latter type of piece.

One of my sketches turned out rather promising, but the background is my favorite part of the piece.
I've re-done many aspects of the subject and foreground and the background by now, but I haven't been totally satisfied with any of them. I just always think "That's nice, but it could be better."
Which leads me to re-work areas of the picture, of course.

I've seen several people brainstorm things on here, with good results, so I thought I'd post a journal, check in with everyone, show a WIP and a bit of my process, and hopefully do some brainstorming. Perhaps this will help me get the most out of this piece.
Anyway, here are some links to WIPs for everyone.

----

This is the most complete version I've made: http://img263.imageshack.us/img263/.....2/97899829.jpg
I have some hand drawn scales on the dragon, and a few from the brushes I've made. I tend to use the brushes or a few major scales as a "seed" and hand draw fitting scale patterns around them.

The background itself is http://img835.imageshack.us/img835/.....2/49157240.jpg
It almost works as a standalone, but it needs something to act as a focus.
The asymmetry of the dragon contrasts with the symmetry of the background a bit too much to be ideal, I think.

So, I've done some sketching with birds and other things. This one is rather rough, but should give you an idea of a phoenix pose... http://img46.imageshack.us/img46/9028/43546569.jpg
It has a bit more symmetry, to go along with the background. I'm doing some more sketching along those lines, at the moment.

----

Maybe I'll try a few more speedpaints to loosen up a bit, and play around with a few more digital painting techniques.
In trying to push every piece a bit farther than the last, I've been neglecting some of my simpler techniques, instead of finding ways to include them in my process.

How have all of you been?