Little Hippos

Here are some quick sketches I did tonight. Still trying to work out the kinks.

Pink Hippos and a Random Elephant

Here are some character concepts I worked on this weekend. Hope you like them.

I had some problems with my scanner again. I have to scan the images in as a photo so they don't look so pixelated. Any way for some reason there was a major difference in the color between these two scans. Let me know which one you think looks better. And if any one has some scanner pointers, I'm all ears.

Here is a random elephant. I love drawing elephants. You can do some much with their trunks, and really add to the emotion, depth and movement of the image. Hope you like these.

Next Challenge

Ok, I had a blast sketching some images for Jason's' Challenge. So I came up with another challenge idea. If you you could redo or update one of your favorite childhood cartoons what would it be? I thought about it for awhile, then the Herculoids popped into my head. This is an old cartoon from the late 60s early 70s. It's the cheesiest thing I've ever seen, but there is something about it that I love.

The concept is actually pretty cool. A barbarian and his family run around saving the world with a Dragon, Triceratops that shoots meteors, two blobs that can shape shift, and a giant Gorilla made of Stone. I loved Igoo, the rock ape as a kid he was my favorite. The dragon Zok was pretty cool too. He shoots lasers from his eyes and tail.....sweeeeet.

So I did my own version of how I would update the characters and make them a little more edgy or modern. I would love to redo this cartoon and have the freedom to run with it. So here is my little perspective of the Herculoids: Zandor, Tara, Dorno, Gloop, Gleep, Tundro, Igoo, and Zok.

Sooooo the challenge is on the table fellas, What cartoon from your childhood would you like to redo or update. I'd love to see what you come up with. I had a hard time deciding between Herculoids, Space Ghost and Thudarr the Barbarian, can't wait to see what you guys come up with. I couldn't fit the entire image on my scanner, I'll try to shrink it and scan it later.

Game On!

I was out of town over the weekend with some of my buddies and had some time to sit down and do some art work. I finally got a chance to work on the friendly art challenge from Jason and Tom. The concept was who would win in an all out rumble between super heroes. This was a hard one for me since there are so many that I like, and then I had to have one of my favorites take out another!

So I picked my all time favorite, Superman vs one of my top ten Thor. I figured it would be a great rumble, but in the end Sups would pound the God of thunder. Sorry Goldie locks, but your going down. (I screwed up Supermans face on this one, but liked the concept)

I had so much fun doing this I decided to sketch out a few more. Here is another match up between two different men of steel. Colossus, who is one of my childhood favs vs Steel. A little Marvel DC match up again.

In the end Colossus is the coolest "Steel Man" around (well next to sups).

Here are a few other randoms I did while I was on the plane. I think I had some guilt in taking out Thor, so I had to do a tough sketch of him. Hope you like it. Tom, Jason, let me know what you think. And I have an idea for another little art challenge. I should get the post up by the end of the week.

Let's Rumble Bub!

I rented the Hulk vs Wolverine this week, I've been waiting for this one to come out for awhile. I loved it, great cartoon that stayed true to the characters. It's a little on the violent side, so I'm happy I screened it before I let my 3yr old son watch it. But I watched about 3 times. There is also a Thor vs Hulk on there too. So it's worth the rent. Keep in mind that I love all three of these characters so I might be a little bias.

Anyway this is a sketch I did while I was watching it. I tried a few new things and it didn't exactly work out the way I pictured it in my head. Let me know what you think.

Earlier today Jason a fellow artist issued a friendly challenge to see who would win in a super hero throw down. He has a really cool pick of Spidey whooping up on Daredevil, and asked Tom and I what we could come up with. I have about a thousand ideas buzzing around in my head that I can't wait to put down on paper. I'm thinking a little JLA vs Avengers maybe? I probably can't get to it until next week, but my gears are turning. So this little pic doesn't count towards the challenge, but I'm really looking forward to sketching some stuff, and I can't wait to see what Tom and Jason come up with. Good luck fellas. Let the rumble begin!

Randoms

Here is a few quick random character sketches I did. Trying to work a few characters out in my head. This is what spilled out on paper. They're real rough, but I had fun doing them.

Nuff Said Bub!

OK Wolverine might possibly be the biggest superhero bad ass around. I love this character, his never say die, just another day at the office attitude. Or maybe as an Italian I think he might be part of our crew, I mean he's short, hairy and has a temper. Come on he has to be Italian.

Besides my drawing addiction, I have recently become addicted to checking out other artists websites. It's really cool to see what other artists are doing, and how they do it. I follow about 25 sites that range from the pros to some guys who just love to draw like me.

Any way I recently came across two other blogs that had done some cool sketches of Wolverine and Sabertooth. They look awesome. Check out Tom and Jasons work at http://www.traversart.blogspot.com/ and http://www.mymindlessnegotiations.blogspot.com/ . Keep up the great work guys.

After checking out the sites I caught the Wolverine bug and sketched out a few of my own last night and this afternoon while the kids where napping. I tried a a new technique for a few of these. I used gray stock paper with ink and a white pencil on the first three. It gives the image a different feel. I came across it on a few sites, and my Comic Hero SKottie Young uses an assortment of different mediums which brings his art to life. I screwed up the last image of Sabertooth, I wan't sure if I wanted to ink it or pencil it as you can tell.

I figured I'd try something different for this round to try and branch out a little. I have to constantly remind myself to draw things how I see them. I have total talent envy of the pros and sometimes fall in the trap of trying to do it like them instead of letting my own style come through. Soooo these sketches are how I picture Wolverine and Sabertooth. Hope you like them, let me know what you think.

Because We Love the Chaos!!!!

CLICK ON THE IMAGES TO READ TEXT.

Well in case you didn't figure it out from my little comic, my wife and I are expecting another BABY!!!! This makes it number 3 for our little clan. We had our ultrasound this morning and saw the little buggers heart beat for the first time. It's amazing to see, even the third time around, it's still unbelievable. It's still early, she is only 8 weeks, but we are too damn excited to keep it to ourselves. Soooooo I figured I'd throw this image together to announce our up coming addition.

I talked to my 3 yr old son about it today, and he laughed. I don't think he gets it but he seemed excited. Probably because I told him mommy's belly is going to grow, and there is a baby inside. He was quiet for a second, just staring at me, then he started to laugh and said "Mommy's going to have a fat belly!" I cracked up and quickly told him that he may want to say that "Mommy has a baby belly, not a fat belly."

I love it, I'm so happy and excited. God has truly blessed my life. I'm in oncology offices every day for work, and I see the struggles that the cancer patients go through. In one way it breaks my heart to see these people suffering. In another way it inspires me to see how they fight! They are truly amazing people, and they constantly remind me to appreciate the little things in life. It's one of the reasons I can't wait to get home and hug my wife and kids everyday.

I never really needed the motivation to express my feelings for my family. I lost my father when I was eighteen, so I figured out what was really important to me at a young age. It wasn't money or material things, it was family, friends and time. I realized that life is way to short and goes by way to fast. The things I appreciate the most are the smiles, the laughter and the memories of growing up with my family and friends.

Now I get to create and share that laughter and see those smiles everyday with my own family. I feel like the luckiest man alive. I'm crazy about my wife, she is truly my best friend. And I don't even have the words to express what my children mean to me. So thank you God for this wonderful life. Three kids in four years, not to bad (but I think we might have to slow down the pace).

Hope you enjoy the pics. I tried out a couple new pens and techniques after looking at how Kazu Kibiushi puts his page layouts together.

Welcome to the family baby Romano, can't wait to hold you in September!!!!

How cool is that!!!!!!!

More Doodles

Here are some sketches I threw together for a buddy of mine form college. He is working on a children's book and asked if I would do some character concepts for him. Here are the rough first runs that I did when I had a few free minutes. Mike has a great concept for a book, can't wait to see what he does with it. Good luck Mike! More sketches to come. Take care.

National Sales Meeting Sketches

I just got back from my national sales meeting in Vegas.! Soooo, any time I have a meeting, there will always be doodles. Here are a couple I did with a ball point pen. They are rough, but I had fun doing them.

My coworkers think I need to seek professional help. I don't look forward to hitting the casinos, I would rather hide in my room and draw. Any time I have a free minute or get to a general session early I break out the pen and note pad. I'm probably the only dork that is excited to get to the room early since it gives me a few free minutes to sketch. I must have done about 40 doodles, but here is what I scanned in for now. More to come. I got a chance to draw on the plane as well. I'll post them later. Take care!

(the one of the Hulk sums up how I felt after sitting on my butt all day.)

I am Ironman!!!!

I am Ironman! Well, not really. I actually wanted to try out for the part of Tony Stark in the movie. Come on, what guy growing up didn't want to be a billionaire playboy that likes to partake in a few adult beverages. ( I have to admit, now a days I prefer my current role of father and husband, but it would be nice to have a few Billion laying around)

Well needles to say that train got quickly derailed when I mentioned it to my wife. It's amazing how she doesn't even need to use words to communicate exactly what she is trying to say. Come on you married guys you know what I mean. It's the classic tilted head and penetrating stare. It actually means, "OK you moron, you're almost thirty years old, just got married and have a kid on the way. Not to mention a full time job that pays the bills. So sure, go ahead quit, move to California and be a waiter."

I hate it when she's right! Good thing she was. I think Robert Downey might have done a slightly more convincing job then a short Italian from Ohio who has never acted before.

Anyway my son was sitting on my lap and wanted me to draw a picture of Ironman. (He's a superhero nut like his dad, I'm so proud!) So I did the pencil sketch with his help. After he went to bed, I colored it in with prisma color pencils. One of these days I'll go digital or at least ink. I just haven't had the time to play around with it.

Hope you like it. Let me know what you think. Take care.

HULK SMASH!!!

Ok I've loved the big green guy since I was a kid. He has always been one of my favorites. Come on, who hasn't wanted to just go nuts and smash some stuff at some point in their life? Ok....maybe it's just a guy thing.

I loved the second movie. Ed Norton is one of my favorites, so when they casted him as Bruce Banner I was pumped. The only thing that ticked me off was the few moments that the Hulk looked tired. It was almost like he wanted to quit. Come on, he's supposed to get even more ticked and trash everything in sight. Sorry, my bad comic dork moment.

Any way, I did one sketch with a #2 pencil, one in colored pencil and the last one was prismacolor pens and some pencil. Just trying a few new things. Hope you like it. The image didn't scan great, it's a little grainy. I'll try to fix it when I'm not dead tired. Take care.

Quick Sketch

Here is a quick sketch for one my characters I am working on. Getting closer, but he's not quite right yet. Gonna try to post some more stuff later this week. Had a chance to doodle a little last night. Take care.

Wishing You a Fantastic Christmas!!!

It's been awhile since my last post. I've been swamped with work and family stuff so I haven't had much time to sit down and doodle. (probably why I'm posting this at 3am) So I figured I would do my version of a Christmas card. I mean come on, who doesn't love a Christmas card with superheros? This is a quicky I did with colored pencil. Hope you like it.

This is my favorite time of year. I can't wait to see my little buggers tear into their gifts. Watching them makes me feel like I'm a kid again. The excitement and anticipation is torture when you're a kid. I remember how hard it was to fall asleep on Christmas eve. I had a blast Christmas shopping for the kids with my wife this year. They are at such a fun age, and it was nice to get some one on one time with wife. She is truly amazing and I thank God for her and the kids every day. I'm looking forward to some time off with the Fam over the next two weeks.

So, from my family to yours Merry Christmas, and may God watch over and bless your family this holiday season.

Captain and Mary Marvel

I love this character. Mike Kunkel's "Billy Batson and The Majic of Shazam" has sparked my interest in Cap. I recently read Jeff Smith's "Captain Marvel and The Society of Evil", so now I am officially hooked on the character. As a kid I would always pretend that I could change into a super hero, and fly around the house like a wild man. I've launched myself face first off the couch, and much to my brothers dismay, a flight of stairs or two. Hey, he's the one that told me to do it. Turns out I can't fly, and thank God my brother can catch.

Now that I have a daughter of my own I can really appreciate Caps little sister, Mary Marvel. She reminds me of my little girl. She's fearless, full of spunk and constantly driving her older brother crazy. Yup sounds just like my little buggers. So I did this pic as a tribute to my fearless little Maggie Marvel and her big brother Captain Michael Marvel.

I posted the first rough sketch, and then final that I did in colored pencils. In the next few months I want to start dabbling with the digital painting. Let me know what you think. Hope you like it. Take care.

Willard

Here is another character concept for my next project. It's a quick pencil sketch. Still trying to work this one out in my head. I should have a few more posts in the next couple of days, been a little busy. Let me know what you think.

Quickies

Here's some quick sketches I did when I had a few minutes between appointments this week. These are both character concepts for my next project. They are real rough. I did them with a ball point pen on a legal pad. Let me know what you think. Take care.

eventually I'll have some time to post a few colored pics.

Rough Sketches

I've been pretty busy between work, family and finishing the last page of Rocco and Joey so I haven't had much time to draw lately. I try to find time to doodle whenever I can. (I actually did these while I was on a teleconference)

These sketches are a good example of how I develop most of my characters. I did them on a standard legal pad with a ball point pen. They are real scratchy since I can't erase. I have to work the mistakes into the picture.

Any free second I get (which isn't much) I try to doodle or work on my stories. Since I spend a lot of time in the car for work I use the window time to fine tune the stories in my head before I put them on paper. This usually leads to a mental image of a character that I try to sketch later in the day.

The first pic is Og, one of my favorite characters for my next project. You might have noticed him in some of my earlier posts. Hope you like them, let me know what you think. Take care.