HOME | DD

Description
Note: This is artwork I drew three years ago.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
Anime Series: Vandread
Start Date: 4/18/2003
End Date: 4/23/2003
Hours Worked: 5+ hrs. Drawing and 20+ hrs. Coloring
Materials: HB Pencil, Paper, 01, 03 & 05 Staedtler Pigment Line, Photoshop 3.0

I took mine time creating this drawing of Meia Gisborn. Before I started drawing, I first practice my skills with the How to Draw Anime & Game Characters book by Tadashi Ozawa. After practicing, I started drawing out the body outline. I decided to go back to a HB pencil instead of using the mechanical pencil because the HB pencil produce better textured strokes.

Unlike my previous drawings where I started drawing the character from start to finish with no breaks, I took several in between breaks for this drawing. I would draw the head and upper body, and then I would take a break. Then I would draw the mid-section and then take a break. Well you get the idea.

I decided not to draw Meia fully mummified because her shoulder pads looked too bulky under the wrappings.

Her hair was difficult to draw as well. It seems to come together in pieces rather than naturally flowing.

After the drawing out Meia in pencil, I would use the pigment liners to outline the parts. I did a bit of erasing to remove the extra grey markings, but I didn’t remove all the extra pencil markings. I scanned the 14.5” x 8.3” drawing with the extra grey markings into the computer. Most of the clean up was done digitally in Photoshop 3.0. It took some time to clean up the image on the computer.

By the way, I would like to mention that all my drawings are done in Photoshop 3.0. I have Photoshop 6.0, but I don’t use it because the functionally is harder to use than Photoshop 3.0. I only use Photoshop 6.0 for special effects that Photoshop 3.0 does not have.

After cleaning up the image, I would create the layers to color in the line art. I didn’t use the magic wand to speed up the coloring, but I used the pencil tool to manually color in each section. Coincidentally that is how I did my first drawing before I discovered how to use the magic wand.

After the coloring and shading (which took several hours), I decided to create a background. I wanted to create a space station background since Vandread is a science fiction anime.

Initially I decided on a brown and organic design, but I decided against it because it did not look too technological. I stuck with a more angular and simple design. I drew out the support stands for the space station on paper first and then I scanned it into the computer.

After creating the space station background I placed character drawing on the top layer. At this point the image looked too plain white so I decided to add lighting effects to add more of a dramatic effect.

At first I tried to find a way to create the lighting effects without merging the layers into one because I wanted to still have the option of manipulating the layers. I found a way of creating the lighting effects with the layers by creating a new top layer, setting the opacity to 1% and then creating the filter lighting effects. Though there were some drawbacks to this method. First, I could not see the bottom layer of the space station and Meia through the top layer. So it becomes a guessing game to where to place the lighting effects for the drawing. After many trial and errors, I finally got the lighting effects in the correct places. Even then the lighting effects did not look right for the drawing. I had no choice but to merge the layers together and then do the lighting effects.

Still even after collapsing the layers, it was still a pain to get the lighting effects in the correct place.

I decided to create to version of my drawings one with the space station background and the other with just a white background. Both of these pictures have been set to wallpaper size for your computer screen.

So here it is, about a week’s work here:

This version has the space station with light effects.

Description
Note: This is artwork I drew three years ago.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
Anime Series: Vandread
Start Date: 4/18/2003
End Date: 4/23/2003
Hours Worked: 5+ hrs. Drawing and 20+ hrs. Coloring
Materials: HB Pencil, Paper, 01, 03 & 05 Staedtler Pigment Line, Photoshop 3.0

I took mine time creating this drawing of Meia Gisborn. Before I started drawing, I first practice my skills with the How to Draw Anime & Game Characters book by Tadashi Ozawa. After practicing, I started drawing out the body outline. I decided to go back to a HB pencil instead of using the mechanical pencil because the HB pencil produce better textured strokes.

Unlike my previous drawings where I started drawing the character from start to finish with no breaks, I took several in between breaks for this drawing. I would draw the head and upper body, and then I would take a break. Then I would draw the mid-section and then take a break. Well you get the idea.

I decided not to draw Meia fully mummified because her shoulder pads looked too bulky under the wrappings.

Her hair was difficult to draw as well. It seems to come together in pieces rather than naturally flowing.

After the drawing out Meia in pencil, I would use the pigment liners to outline the parts. I did a bit of erasing to remove the extra grey markings, but I didn’t remove all the extra pencil markings. I scanned the 14.5” x 8.3” drawing with the extra grey markings into the computer. Most of the clean up was done digitally in Photoshop 3.0. It took some time to clean up the image on the computer.

By the way, I would like to mention that all my drawings are done in Photoshop 3.0. I have Photoshop 6.0, but I don’t use it because the functionally is harder to use than Photoshop 3.0. I only use Photoshop 6.0 for special effects that Photoshop 3.0 does not have.

After cleaning up the image, I would create the layers to color in the line art. I didn’t use the magic wand to speed up the coloring, but I used the pencil tool to manually color in each section. Coincidentally that is how I did my first drawing before I discovered how to use the magic wand.

After the coloring and shading (which took several hours), I decided to create a background. I wanted to create a space station background since Vandread is a science fiction anime.

Initially I decided on a brown and organic design, but I decided against it because it did not look too technological. I stuck with a more angular and simple design. I drew out the support stands for the space station on paper first and then I scanned it into the computer.

After creating the space station background I placed character drawing on the top layer. At this point the image looked too plain white so I decided to add lighting effects to add more of a dramatic effect.

At first I tried to find a way to create the lighting effects without merging the layers into one because I wanted to still have the option of manipulating the layers. I found a way of creating the lighting effects with the layers by creating a new top layer, setting the opacity to 1% and then creating the filter lighting effects. Though there were some drawbacks to this method. First, I could not see the bottom layer of the space station and Meia through the top layer. So it becomes a guessing game to where to place the lighting effects for the drawing. After many trial and errors, I finally got the lighting effects in the correct places. Even then the lighting effects did not look right for the drawing. I had no choice but to merge the layers together and then do the lighting effects.

Still even after collapsing the layers, it was still a pain to get the lighting effects in the correct place.

I decided to create to version of my drawings one with the space station background and the other with just a white background. Both of these pictures have been set to wallpaper size for your computer screen.

So here it is, about a week’s work here:

This version has the space station with light effects.