Admin Post: Community Check-In for November

[goss]

Wow, I can't believe it's the last day of the month already! We'd love to have you check in and chat with us. How have things been with you?

Did you take part in any fandom activities in November, or have you been working on any personal art projects? Are you currently trying to meet a deadline? Feel free to share upcoming challenges that have got you excited, any frustrations you've been experiencing, possible goals for the next month, and so on.

-

Also, just a reminder that the Prompt Generator challenge is still on (even though it seems like everyone - myself included - needed this entire month as a break) and is supposed to end tomorrow. What do you guys think, should we extend the challenge? Or perhaps instead focus on organising the group art project for December? Let us know your thoughts in the comments. :)

Comments

[mific]

I have a pic drawn but not had time to colour or ink it yet. Work's been really busy with masses of other deadlines. I could do with an extra week, but I'll do it anyway and add it to the challenge later, so no worries either way.

[goss]

I could do with an extra week

Yeah, I think we can extend the challenge for one more week, and that would also give us a chance to solidify exactly what drawing activity we're going to do for December. I'm going to put up a poll to get an idea of how many people would be interested in a group project.

[mific]

Oh I forgot to mention. I was busy the first part of the month with art for the Steve and Bucky exchange, which has gone live now so I can link to it: By Any Other Name - it’s a comic, part painted, part digitally finished. I was super lucky and scored art by Albymangroves as my gift, which is gorgeous: One Day Tell Our Story.
Also posted 2 short SGA fics, and am now embroiled in a Secret Santa artwork, and a fic.

[alias_sqbr]

I posted art for Black Emporium Dragon Age rare pair exchange (and another as a treat), it was very well received and I got some great fic as a gift.

[darthneko]

That paint over is awesome and the other one is so cute!

[alias_sqbr]

Thank you!

[dylan_mx]

That art is so great *__* well done!

[alias_sqbr]

Thank you!

[goss]

Aww, these are both really lovely. I like the effect of the softly blended tones, especially in the first one without the outlines - kinda reminds me of a Renaissance painting.

[alias_sqbr]

Thank you! That's what I was going for so I'm glad it works.

[mekare]

Oh wow those are some lovely pieces! I love the dreamy quality of the first one

[alias_sqbr]

Thank you!

[mific]

Like both of these, especially the tenderness of the paintover one.

[alias_sqbr]

Thank you!

[jainas]

I scanned all my inktober pics and am currently in the process of hosting them on deviant art (with about zero reaction, which is a bit frustrating... clearly I have been spoiled by the reactions of the people here!) ;)

I drew a little, mostly doodles, but did a small three-pieces series that I like a lot... Actually I was wondering if reposting it here outside of a challenge would be okay?

In December I know I will draw a lot of cards as I did last year, which I look forward to as it is great fun; I will take part in Art Yuletide; and I am planning a couple of illustrations... maybe. ^^

[goss]

I have been spoiled by the reactions of the people here!

Awww, I definitely agree. I think one of the best things about this community is how generous and supportive its members are when it comes to encouraging each other. As artists, we ALL know how much those little boosts of confidence matter when it comes to creating. ♥

Actually I was wondering if reposting it here outside of a challenge would be okay?

We would love to have you share links to any artworks you've been creating over the past month right here in the comments section of the Monthly Check-In post.

In December I know I will draw a lot of cards as I did last year, which I look forward to as it is great fun

Oh yeah, same here. In fact, this weekend I'm planning to start on making some of my Christmas cards. :)

[jainas]

So, what I did this month:
- My inktober scanning and repost (all but one as I forgot to scan it): https://jainas.deviantart.com/gallery/64714584/Inktober-2017-Quotes

- An "Old gods" set of portraits drawings all done in the same style, black, white & gold with a background pattern I like :
- Thot: https://jainas.deviantart.com/art/Old-gods-Thot-715910294
- Anubis: https://jainas.deviantart.com/art/Old-Gods-Anubis-715920407
- Bastet: https://jainas.deviantart.com/art/Old-Gods-Bastet-716007721

[mekare]

Oh wow, that pattern you used as background for the gods is fantastic! Gives them the right atmosphere I think. And only using gold, black and white was a really good choice.

[mific]

Those Old Gods pics are lovely with the stylisation and the gold detailing.

[amberdreams]

I do like the idea of doing something for the prompt challenge - I got an interesting combo of words - but it's writing deadlines as well as art ones that are kicking my bum at the moment. So I'm not sure whether I'll have much time before Christmas either. Which sucks.

But I'll keep an eye on the comm and pop over if I can.

I posted a few completed art challenges in November and just realised I'd forgotten to import some of them here, so thanks for the reminder!
J2 Reversebang 1 - https://amberdreams.dreamwidth.org/811152.html
SPN Reversebang 1 - https://amberdreams.dreamwidth.org/813279.html
J2 Reversebang 2 - https://amberdreams.dreamwidth.org/814001.html
SPN Reversebang 2 - https://amberdreams.dreamwidth.org/814289.html
Wincest BB art - https://amberdreams.dreamwidth.org/812207.html
DCU Bang - https://amberdreams.dreamwidth.org/810888.html
SPN_Cinema art for Hero - https://amberdreams.dreamwidth.org/811614.html

And now I've listed them all, no wonder I was running round like a blue-arsed fly this month! Strewth.

[darthneko]

Those are gorgeous and I love seeing the sketches and process for everything.

[goss]

Wow, go you for getting so many challenges completed! *\o/*

[jainas]

Well, that's a lot of drawings! Kudos to you ! :D

[mekare]

Wow so productive! I hardly managed anything this month.

[darthneko]

I’ve pretty much not picked up a pencil at all this month. >_< On the other hand I’ve written around 39k in words, so that was a plus, and there’s a writing deadline chewing my tail off right now. I’ve cleaned up my inktober art (all 6 of them that I did, woohoo =P) but utterly failed to batch them up to send to my long-suffering Patreons, and also utterly failed to work on a commission I owe sketches to. So yeah, kinda fail this month on the art front, nothing but words. =P

[goss]

I’ve pretty much not picked up a pencil at all this month.

Haha, that's been me as well. /o\


On the other hand I’ve written around 39k in words

Wow, very impressed! *high-fives*

[mekare]

Well at least you were creative in another way, so give yourself a pat on the back.

[olivermoss]

I really want to do something for the holidays, but am feeling very uninspired. Right now my creative energies are going into photography and into the gingerbread house I am making for an article I am working on. Trying to do random sketches anyway to keep my hand in.

[goss]

into the gingerbread house I am making

Ooooooh! I have always wanted to try that. Please share pics whenever your article goes up. :)

[mekare]

Hey great! I've never done one, but just now my first try at Nuremberg Elisen gingerbread is almost ready. Such lovely smells.

[dhampyresa]

I drew stuff! I painted with oils! It was fun.

I am also considering getting a graphic tablet. I've never had one before -- any recs/advice/etc?

[sqbr]

Just the stuff I said in my post, which may or may not be applicable: https://drawesome.dreamwidth.org/36525.html

[dhampyresa]

That looks super useful, thnak you!

[dylan_mx]

Yay for painting!

About tablets, I personally own a Wacom (Intuos Draw Medium, because that's what they had in the store xD and the price was 70€) but I've heard Huion tablets are great too and slightly cheaper.

The most important thing is check the resolution (higher is better) and the size of the drawing area. About the size it depends on how you feel better, some people say it's better to have a big one, other say a smaller one is better ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ I'd say read online recs/see youtube demos and go with your instinct.

Before my current tablet I had a Bamboo One and it was very good (it lasted 5 years only because I dropped my pen and it stopped working :( )

As far as advice I'd say get a program you're comfortable with (you don't need photoshop to get amazing art) and learn keyboard shortcuts: it makes it way easier and faster to switch between tools!

Also it takes a while to get used to using a tablet so don't get discouraged if your first drawings are all wobbly and weird :)

[dhampyresa]

Thank you for the advice! I would never have thought about keyboard shortcuts.

[syntheid]

As far as tablet size goes, think about whether you tend to say, fill up large sheets of paper with one picture or draw small things. If the latter, a small one is going to be more comfortable. Technically we should all try to draw from the shoulder versus the wrist, but regardless of how much I try to force it, I draw small, so I found a large tablet unwieldy. Larger tablets will kinda force shoulder drawing, though, so typically professionals go as large as possible.

Wacom used to be kind of the only brand worth buying but that’s not true anymore. They do have some perks like a chargeless pen and some of their non-screen tablets have touch pads or extra buttons and come bundled with software, but if you’re on a budget, there’s plenty of alternative brands and even decent free programs.

(Sources are me going through an embarrassing amount of devices and programs over the years, so if you want more detail let me know, but I’m not sure exactly what to rec without your personal requirements, ahah.)

[dhampyresa]

Thank you for the advice!

What's a good beginner art program? I've never done any all-digital art before.

[syntheid]

Somewhat depends on your goals?

Like if you want to produce digital art that still looks like traditional art, you'll probably want to just jump into a program that can do that (like ArtRage or Painter or Clip Studio Paint, which have brush engines that are excellent at mimicking traditional media), but the learning curve can be steeper. Some programs might not be able to handle really large file sizes, so if you want to draw and print out large files you'll have to make sure it handles up to the sizes you need (if you don't care about printing this doesn't matter as much).

But if you're just looking for something that's a relatively low bar to get into and just do something... If you're on Windows and don't mind paying a bit (does have a free trial, though), I think Paint Tool SAI might be the easiest to just use with a decent feature set and brush engine. It's not available for Mac though. Also Windows-only is Microsoft's Fresh Paint, which is interesting for a purely painting/drawing focus. Pretty limited, but might be good as a learning playground if you don't need a lot of image editing or layers.

I've also heard good things about FireAlpaca and Krita but also have heard mixed opinions on whether they're easy to use depending on who I talked to. Since they're free, though, it wouldn't hurt to try them out and see what you think. They're also available on all platforms.

There's also stuff like Tegaki (http://te2.tewi.us/) and Oekaki boards (or MS Paint for that matter, but the former two have social aspects) if you just want something real basic as you're learning to control the tablet with the hand/eye disconnect.

[goss]

I painted with oils!

Nice! Oils are a medium I have never attempted, but from watching Bob Ross clips they look fascinating to try.

[dhampyresa]

They've got a really nice feel, but I always forget how colours work when I'm using them. It's frustrating!

I hope you get to try them!

[mekare]

Ah you were linked already, I had the same question a couple of weeks ago and sqbr was so kind to write a post about it.

[dhampyresa]

What (if anything) did you end up picking?

[mekare]

I didn‘t buy one yet. It‘s more a longterm idea to get one. For now I‘ll stick to traditional materials with the little time I have.

hooray for the Holidays!

[minoanmiss]

I've signed up for Yuletide, though I haven't written enough yet, and for holiday_wishes, which everyone should look at and consider joining (it's all voluntary and so lovely!) and have been getting my cards designed and ordered in order to start writing them up soon. (If you want a card, let me know!)

Re: hooray for the Holidays!

[goss]

Yay, Holidays! And Yay, Yuletide fic and art! \o/

[syntheid]

I spent most of the month working on a full portrait for my gw2 necromancer to put up on her profile on toyhou.se: https://toyhou.se/1129651.dyddanwy

Still working on one for my guardian, too, as well as a couple holiday things, and just playing around with paints still.

[goss]

a full portrait for my gw2 necromancer

Cool! I like the flowing style and the glowy purple hues. :)

[mekare]

Those are some cool shades of purple!

[mekare]

So November has gone quicker than I expected. Fandom-wise I started a 12-Day-Advent challenge in my new community supergirl_tv, got some new members there (YAY!), signed up for the Yuletide Art exchange and fandom_stocking, as well as the perfect_duet advent surprise challenge. I'll be busy during December making stuff for all these things.

Artwise I posted:

My DCUbang Supergirl piece

Inktober round-up

My other DCUbang Batman piece

Wonder Woman art

An illustration for a Superbat fic

One Clint-centric Marvelbang piece

Doctor Who and another Superbat art piece experimenting with masking fluid

A piece of meta-art an exeriment of putting meta-thoughts on fandom into a piece of art

Now I surprised myself with how much I actually did in November. The challenge pieces were mostly ready before that though.

Oh and I got into a new (old) fandom: Due South and am so IN LOVE with the characters right now.