164 replies to this topic

[Bishop Steiner]

GonaDie, on 21 September 2015 - 06:02 AM, said:

Wish I knew what I actually need.There is a buch of pricey stuff on the net, but I have no idea if I need it.And I kinda don't want to spend a lot of money to simply ''try''.Cuz you know...space poor. Do you have any advice on what should I get besides a pencil and an eraser?

depends a lot on style and preference, but I find a few things to be indispensable:
A good drawing pad or clipboard
https://www.google.c...yOYmegwS1wYDgCg
(Calculator not really needed, lol, but storage, and the ability to draw comfortably anywhere, shifting positions, etc, priceless)

a variety of pencils
Mechanical Drafting Pencils, essential for good clean line work
http://www.dickblick...afting-pencils/
You can go cheaper, but once you have a good metal pencil, hard to go back.

Lead holders
http://www.dickblick...drawing-pencil/
versatile, and allows you to do a lot of differing jobs, cleanly.

woodless are amazing
http://www.dickblick...oodless-pencil/
allowing you a lot of control and variety of style. Best shading pencils ever, IMO

good erasers
http://www.dickblick...art-eraser-set/

Paper stumps
http://www.dickblick...y-paper-stumps/
once you start blending and shading with these, they become artist crack.

That about covers your basic, IMO pencil work stuff.

Now for finished line work?
Micron Drafting Pens. Especially in .005, and 01.
http://www.dickblick...gma-micron-pen/
Cool Grey Manga MArkers
http://www.dickblick...ems/21342-1219/

and I do like having a variety of decent Pilot g2 type gel pens, as they can be great for bold outlining, .05 and .07mm.

and the less glossy the paper, the better, as glossy paper can flare when scanned.

Oh, and yeah...a good scanner.
http://www.epson.com...zmap=B11B210201
because clean uploads is mandatory. And the 600 DPS your average all in one scanner/printer has is really not enough.
Mind you, I keep a sub 100$ Canon also, because for drafting purposes, the DPS is less essential, and it keeps my platen on my good printer cleaner (and less mileage, period)

So, not counting inks, or scanners, you can have a pretty solid kit for under 50$ for getting the basics started. Well stocked, maybe $100?

And while not essential, one of these:
http://www.amazon.co...arpenerguide-20
really saves the day (I have found even the most expensive manual sharpeners can be inconsistent on my leads)

*shrugs*

[GonaDie]

Bishop Steiner, on 21 September 2015 - 06:34 AM, said:

depends a lot on style and preference, but I find a few things to be indispensable:
A good drawing pad or clipboard
https://www.google.c...yOYmegwS1wYDgCg
(Calculator not really needed, lol, but storage, and the ability to draw comfortably anywhere, shifting positions, etc, priceless)

a variety of pencils
Mechanical Drafting Pencils, essential for good clean line work
http://www.dickblick...afting-pencils/
You can go cheaper, but once you have a good metal pencil, hard to go back.

Lead holders
http://www.dickblick...drawing-pencil/
versatile, and allows you to do a lot of differing jobs, cleanly.

woodless are amazing
http://www.dickblick...oodless-pencil/
allowing you a lot of control and variety of style. Best shading pencils ever, IMO

good erasers
http://www.dickblick...art-eraser-set/

Paper stumps
http://www.dickblick...y-paper-stumps/
once you start blending and shading with these, they become artist crack.

That about covers your basic, IMO pencil work stuff.

Now for finished line work?
Micron Drafting Pens. Especially in .005, and 01.
http://www.dickblick...gma-micron-pen/
Cool Grey Manga MArkers
http://www.dickblick...ems/21342-1219/

and I do like having a variety of decent Pilot g2 type gel pens, as they can be great for bold outlining, .05 and .07mm.

and the less glossy the paper, the better, as glossy paper can flare when scanned.

Oh, and yeah...a good scanner.
http://www.epson.com...zmap=B11B210201
because clean uploads is mandatory. And the 600 DPS your average all in one scanner/printer has is really not enough.
Mind you, I keep a sub 100$ Canon also, because for drafting purposes, the DPS is less essential, and it keeps my platen on my good printer cleaner (and less mileage, period)

So, not counting inks, or scanners, you can have a pretty solid kit for under 50$ for getting the basics started. Well stocked, maybe $100?

And while not essential, one of these:
http://www.amazon.co...arpenerguide-20
really saves the day (I have found even the most expensive manual sharpeners can be inconsistent on my leads)

*shrugs*

Damn.That's a long list.Well, I guess I will be running on insta-soup for a month

[Bishop Steiner]

Marack Drock, on 21 September 2015 - 06:40 AM, said:

I use Tombose pens. My set was around 250 USD.

My primary paper is now 30 dollar Canson 11 by 14, 160g paper.

And holy **** yeah quality graphite bars and such are Damn expensive. I use a set of 25 graphite pencils myself and that was well in the 100-200 dollar range (ordered mine from France though).

I have a bamboo tablet that is well over 5 years old. Only thing I hate is replacing the nibs on the pens. Easily gone through 100 of them now.

Painting is probably the most expensive for me. The canvases, brushes (I use a 35 brush set of professional brushes that are more than my Tombose pens x_x) and then the paints alone can be in the price range of Manga markers and such.

Art is probably one of the most expensive things ever.

Also I love to see people who take drawing and everything by hand, over electronic drawing. No disrespect to those who do at all, but I love to find those who still do tactile art instead.

some of it's mental...but I prefer paper books to ebooks, too. (And still listen to Vinyl, or as a default, bluray music. If I MUST use digital, it's FLAC ....mp3 are for people with bad hearing and crappy earbuds)

When I epaint something, it makes good commercial sense. It's also a HECK of a lot easier to fix screw ups (though I find acrylic painting pretty forgiving too, but darn hard to upload, lol)....but....what exists? When I paint something for a friend, and can give them a physical painting, instead of a print? I do think it means a HECK of a lot more.

for instance, I did this as a gift for a dear friend (like a little sister to me)

on art board, if I recall (Might have been a canvas, it has been a few years)

colored charcoal



copic manga marker


etc......
And I'd say it holds a lot more value to me, and to the recipient than if I had epainted it, then sent them a print through Deviant Art, you know? (Combination of ink washes and acrylic paint,s btw)

Is one method superior to the other? Not really, both have their place, but I am happily anachronistic. I just feel hand drawn has more "soul" and I get more satisfaction when doing it. Plus I feel a heck of a lot less like it's been mucked up and Lucas'd to "perfection".

Guess I'm a hipster.

(and don't get me started on the photography side)

GonaDie, on 21 September 2015 - 06:52 AM, said:

Damn.That's a long list.Well, I guess I will be running on insta-soup for a month

well, like I said, you can get a good start with just the first half. The clipboard...nto mandatory, but once you have a handheld pad, I think you will find ti hard to go back to fixed surfaces. I do have a full glass top, angled art desk, too, but I actually find myself seldom using it, and getting far more creativity sitting on a sofa, with the TV on, and my laptop on the coffee table with whatever reference pieces I have dialed up.

Edited by Bishop Steiner, 21 September 2015 - 07:02 AM.

[GonaDie]

Bishop Steiner, on 21 September 2015 - 06:56 AM, said:

some of it's mental...but I prefer paper books to ebooks, too. (And still listen to Vinyl, or as a default, bluray music. If I MUST use digital, it's FLAC ....mp3 are for people with bad hearing and crappy earbuds)

When I epaint something, it makes good commercial sense. It's also a HECK of a lot easier to fix screw ups (though I find acrylic painting pretty forgiving too, but darn hard to upload, lol)....but....what exists? When I paint something for a friend, and can give them a physical painting, instead of a print? I do think it means a HECK of a lot more.

for instance, I did this as a gift for a dear friend (like a little sister to me)

on art board, if I recall (Might have been a canvas, it has been a few years)

And I'd say it holds a lot more value to me, and to the recipient than if I had epainted it, then sent them a print through Deviant Art, you know? (Combination of ink washes and acrylic paint,s btw)

Is one method superior to the other? Not really, both have their place, but I am happily anachronistic. I just feel hand drawn has more "soul" and I get more satisfaction when doing it. Plus I feel a heck of a lot less like it's been mucked up and Lucas'd to "perfection".

Guess I'm a hipster.


well, like I said, you can get a good start with just the first half. The clipboard...nto mandatory, but once you have a handheld pad, I think you will find ti hard to go back to fixed surfaces. I do have a full glass top, angled art desk, too, but I actually find myself seldom using it, and getting far more creativity sitting on a sofa, with the TV on, and my laptop on the coffee table with whatever reference pieces I have dialed up.

Oh, and one more thing: what software do you use for digital painting? I have a drawing tablet and a printer which has a scaner so I just need some proper software.

[Bishop Steiner]

GonaDie, on 21 September 2015 - 07:02 AM, said:

Oh, and one more thing: what software do you use for digital painting? I have a drawing tablet and a printer which has a scaner so I just need some proper software.

I would say start with GIMP, and whatever your tablet came with.

Reason I say start with GIMP, is it's free, and a little more intuitive, IMO than Photoshop.

But the one if you are seriously getting into it, I would recommend is Corel Painter. As free options, I have heard a lot of good about Krita and RealWorld Paint. I've got a lot less experience with that, because I only have a Bamboo, and I just have not gotten comfortable at looking at a screen when I draw vs the surface I am drawing on.

[GonaDie]

Bishop Steiner, on 21 September 2015 - 07:32 AM, said:

I would say start with GIMP, and whatever your tablet came with.

Reason I say start with GIMP, is it's free, and a little more intuitive, IMO than Photoshop.

But the one if you are seriously getting into it, I would recommend is Corel Painter. As free options, I have heard a lot of good about Krita and RealWorld Paint. I've got a lot less experience with that, because I only have a Bamboo, and I just have not gotten comfortable at looking at a screen when I draw vs the surface I am drawing on.

So how do you paint your stuff? With a computer mouse? Or you use something else?

[Bishop Steiner]

GonaDie, on 21 September 2015 - 07:51 AM, said:

So how do you paint your stuff? With a computer mouse? Or you use something else?

paint what stuff? I don't think I've posted any digital art yet. None of what I have done has satisfied me.

Most I tend to do is use GIMP to clean up and edit things.

[GonaDie]

Bishop Steiner, on 21 September 2015 - 08:00 AM, said:

paint what stuff? I don't think I've posted any digital art yet. None of what I have done has satisfied me.

Most I tend to do is use GIMP to clean up and edit things.

Sorry, I expressed myself wrongly.What do you use when you work with GIMP? Computer mouse?

[Bishop Steiner]

GonaDie, on 21 September 2015 - 08:05 AM, said:

Sorry, I expressed myself wrongly.What do you use when you work with GIMP? Computer mouse?

yeah, mostly. I need to force myself to use the tablet more, but it just...doesn't click for me.

[GonaDie]

Bishop Steiner, on 21 September 2015 - 08:13 AM, said:

yeah, mostly. I need to force myself to use the tablet more, but it just...doesn't click for me.

Ah,ok.I get it.Thanks for the answers! I won't bother you with my silly questions anymore

[timaeus]

Bishop Steiner, on 21 September 2015 - 08:13 AM, said:

yeah, mostly. I need to force myself to use the tablet more, but it just...doesn't click for me.

Is it the disconnect between what you're drawing on and where you're looking plus a slick plastic surface? I know those two are the biggest for me. Taping a sheet of plain paper to your tablet can help when it comes to the feel of drawing on one. The other just takes time.

Marack Drock, on 21 September 2015 - 06:40 AM, said:

Art is probably one of the most expensive things ever.

It sooo is. It's really hard to get people to wrap it around their heads that it does cost so much, AND that it can be just as hard to do as any other job out there at times.

[KuroNyra]

Incredible!
Theses mechs looks absolutly incredible!
Congratulation to you!

Also, do you have spare pants? Because of you, mine jus got from white to brown...

[Pariah Devalis]

Surprised you didn't put up that excellent ACH you did a while back.

[Bishop Steiner]

Pariah Devalis, on 26 September 2015 - 10:15 AM, said:

Surprised you didn't put up that excellent ACH you did a while back.

i did one?

[Sarlic]

Good stuff Bishop.

I really like them.

[ChapeL]

Bishop Steiner, on 20 September 2015 - 08:56 PM, said:

it's an older piece, but yeah..... made it before MWO had introduced one.....

I'm sorry that Stalker is SO DOA... look at all those low energy hardpoints! *sigh* N00b !

Sillyness aside... I'm seeing influence from Verybad's MW4 Mektek model in the torso. I like that the legs are a nice compromise beween the classic art and the more recent back canted ones .

[Steinar Bergstol]

Want. That. Vulcan!

[Bishop Steiner]

ChapeL, on 26 September 2015 - 01:35 PM, said:

I'm sorry that Stalker is SO DOA... look at all those low energy hardpoints! *sigh* N00b !

Sillyness aside... I'm seeing influence from Verybad's MW4 Mektek model in the torso. I like that the legs are a nice compromise beween the classic art and the more recent back canted ones .

Well... Tbh, never saw the mektek one. I based mine off of the leopard class dropship, actually, lol.

As for the hard points? Well, yeah, noobage. Well.. Aside from the party where irl the modules arc up..... And this would cross the lasers..... Which could be bad, lol

[TheArisen]

I'm surprised you didn't put your Hammerhands in here.

[Robot Kenshiro]

Me like so much. You be my BFF. Ok. ...ok. lol
Awesome stuff Mr steiner.

Rather see more posts like this then the garbage PSR posts I've seen of late. "Oh I'm tier 1 I'm so leet and awesome...."
This is just what I needed to see. Awesome mech artwork from a fellow mechwarrior.