Holiday Card Design 2019

Happy Holidays, everyone!!

Happy Halloween 2019! (I)

My Number One Fan requested a t-shirt design featuring Baba Yaga for Halloween, and who am I to deny her? I was surprised by how many people don't know this ragged queen of witches, a figure I'd grown up with, flying around in her pestle, gathering up souls and taking them back to her chicken-footed house in the deep, dark woods. She's worth looking into, for sure. Below is the final project, and some process shots for a deeper look at how I make these things.

I typically start with reference pictures. I find things on the web for details, and I'll model the particular pose myself:

Then I go work with some blue pencils. I'm not quite ready to do this part on the tablet, but I'm getting there. I don't know what it is about blue pencils, they just allow me to be bolder and messier:

Usually inking the initial drawing is the hardest part, it's actually kinda terrifying. But this time I scanned the blue pencil drawing onto my tablet and used that, and now I'm hooked! So good! Usually I have to do a bunch of work to separate the blue lines from the inks in Photoshop, but the tablet allows me to use different layers, and to create nice clean lines that are perfect for the next phases:

Then I block in colors and start thinking about where the light should be coming from:

Then I spend a bunch of time adding details n stuff, usually whilst watching some terrible horror movie or other:

Maybe a total of 12 hours, start to finish? A true meditation for me, and a delightful Halloween surprise for her. Happy Best Month, everyone!!

Halloween Radness 2019! (I)

I was a little late with this one this year, doesn't mean I don't love this big monster any less. Happy birthday to us both! Click here to see last year's, and you can follow the links back to 2012 when I started these Halloween portraits. Happy Best Month, everyone!

Peter and the Starcatcher (GD)

Another poster for Mira Loma Theater! And look at that main title lettering, riiiiiight? Made it myself on the 'pad, y'all! See last year's poster by clicking here, or click "Show Posters" over there on the right to see more...well, posters I made for shows.

Crazy Eight (GD)

I transferred to the ER one year ago! I couldn't have gotten through this past year without the seven incredible people I trained with, who inspire me and give me the courage I need every damn shift. To show my appreciation for my gang - my Crazy Eight - I made this design and had it printed on stickers from moo.com. If you're curious, that's a flying Uncrustable, which is a very popular snack at the hospital. And he's smoking a cigar, because everything is kinda just nuts at our job, including us.

Humpback (I)

Found an old sketch, threw some color into it, nbd. Just warming up for some upcoming projects - stay tuned!

Harry My One True Love (V)

My first video! Starring Autumn Fuentes, Mason Stone, David Tenenbaum, Virginia Bell, Hilary Mackenzie, and Maret Orliss, all household names these days, of course. This was shot on a loooooong day just after my senior year of high school! What? True story. Click the image below to enjoy a tale of love, loss, and betrayal. DRAMA!

MerMay! (I)

My friend Tiz said her favorite marine animal was a jellyfish, so I created this version of her for #mermay this year. It took me a year to get it done, but isn't she fantastic?

My Stand Up Routine, 2005 (V)

You've all been like, "How do we get more facial movement out of this dude?" And I'm like, "Stand up comedy, bruh." Possibly the most terrifying thing I've done. Click the photo below to watch me skate the edge of a tonic-clonic while I babble about the weather, taxi cabs, French bulldogs, and my (possible) boner. This was my final performance for a class I took in New York City, hosted at New York Comedy Club for an audience of friends and family. I was so nervous I'm surprised I was even intelligible. Enjoy?

2019 Showcase Poster (GD)

30 Day Music Challenge (GD)

A couple of friends and I took the 30 Day Music Challenge on Insty, posting a song a day based on the daily prompts. It was...less fun than it seemed like it was going to be, but I got to do a smidge of graphic design. Follow me! @owlhenry

Matador (I)

Christmas Card Design 2018 (I)

The annual Christmas card design. Happy 2019, everyone!