Introducing - Jacob Strauss !

[seanbon]

Hi Friendly Folks!

This is a continuation of my theme involving characters from an upcoming project: Pilgrim Adrift.
This fellow here is another of the protagonists who's journey we shall follow.
[Check out Joëlle if you haven't had the opportunity to ;D]

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"A seasoned Miasma Knight who prefers the term 'Diver', he had a surprisingly uneventful/untainted track record, up until the Belladonna Incident. Despite being one of the lucky few to have ever returned from the Puncture, relatively intact, he was convicted of dereliction of duty and held liable for all losses incurred. His sentence was auctioned off by the Admiralty, to be fulfilled at the whim of the highest bidder. Now saddled with the weight of indentured servitude towards his 'Investors', Strauss' remaining motivation is to fulfil his salvaging contract and earn his freedom from the shipyards."
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Alrigty, time to dive into the process !
[rubs hands together like a fly]

I wanted to start with a pose that accentuated Strauss' slouch and overall demeanor. As per usual, it isn't very accurate and not very close to what I want, but it lays down the foundation for the piece! It is, after all, just the first sketch~

Now this is more like it! Got all the major elements and shapes that I want in the piece. They will need to be refined, but the silhouette pleases me :D I threw in a quick and faint horizon line just to remind me of the perspective.

Now it is time to commit by placing down final lines!
I have to confess, over the last few years I seem to have developed a latent fear of this particular step. I believe it's a direct result of the underlying 'imposter syndrome' I've been trying to overcome as well :T
Anyhow! What I am trying to say is that I am actively attempting to get myself to love this phase again, and to feel less self-conscious about my work. Baby steps as they say!

This part is straightforward and just involves adding in the fill/mask for the character. Think of it as adding the 'meat' onto the bones. After this, it is time for~

Colours! I wanted a relatively muted palette for him so that I can apply high saturation later for focal areas :D
Almost there! We just need to add the shading and highlights~

And there we go :D!
I added some local shading/occlusion using a multiply layer and a saturated purple. There is also a darken layer with a gradient of dark blue coming from the bottom. I then used orange circular gradients on a soft light layer to bring attention to his upper torso and the corner of the helmet.
Last but not least, I used colour dodge to create little highlights to complement the soft light layer. I also, tweaked his left arm's width along with his waist, to make him look a little less beefy.
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Wowee! That was a lot more typing than I had anticipated. If you guys want me to keep the wordage down, just leave me a note ;D If you like it, let me know too~
I am hoping one day to try capturing the draw process on video, but this is still a brave new world for me so I'm going to need some time, and help, as I fumble my way through.

Be seeing you folks again shortly!
Cheers!!!

Comments

[scrawly]

What a great slouching standing pose :D. The way he stands makes him unique and memorable. And I like watching you creating the artwork, the way you progress from step by step really shows a degree of finesse and professionalism :).

[seanbon]

Thank you so much for those kind words ; w; <3 !
I love it that you're enjoying the 'making-of' portion of the post. Makes it totally worth it :D !

[trincowski]

Excellent drawing, @seanbon! The new comics look promising!
By the way, I've bought a SBI share for you.

Edit: You're on a roll. You got 2 more SBI shares from my Curation Initiative!

[seanbon]

Wow WOw :O <3!
Thank you so much!
I am feeling most fortunate today!

[moncia90]

I like your drawing, probably because I love Sea characters too.
Jacob's face seems to be not so happy!
Like Steemians' one in this period, right?
😉

Posted using Partiko Android

[seanbon]

Thank you ;D! There's always something mesmerising about maritime stories. There sort of like the unknown space adventure stories of the past~
Heheh, Jacob doesn't have a lot to smile for, probably bought at the tip as opposed to the dip ;)

[delishtreats]

Nice to meet you Jacob Strauss ;)

[seanbon]

He sends his thanks and salutations ;D !

[longer]

Excellent design and a captivating background story. Will check out more :)

Posted using Partiko Android

[seanbon]

Thank you :D !!
I'll make sure to post up more material as it is made!

[melinda010100]

Wonderfully done! Good luck in creating video. That is an unfamiliar world to me, too.

[seanbon]

Thank you!
I will try my best !!

[bleuxwolf]

Very nice job with this! And nice step by steps. Interesting detail about the light for this towards the end there to gather focus of a viewer’s attention. And yeah, the linearting can be daunting getting it exactly right and a long process. Though for me, my longest process by probably a little more is fine sketching. You know to get the designs right. So I guess that’s me “imposter syndrome” moment. XD Other than that, keep up the good work!

Posted using Partiko iOS

[seanbon]

Many thanks :3 !
Yeah, it would make sense that most folks have a tough part during their process. The best thing for us to do is to keep practising it seems ;D

[bleuxwolf]

Definitely! Have to get through the rough processes eventually. ;)

[veryspider]

I love this very much, Sean :D His back story is so fascinating ! That is quite a 'prize' indeed! To be an indentured servant to his investor XD Gosh~ You have a very interesting and creative mind !!! <3

Love the process also, they really show your shaping of the illustration and the personality of Jacob is also captured and illustrated well <3 I love it very much !!

upvotes and resteems

[seanbon]

THANK YOU o wo<3!!
Strauss is going to be grabbed kicking and screaming towards adventure, and will be subjected to the rollercoaster that is the whims of fate ; w;
It warms my heart to know you like my off-kilter stories~
Again, thank you for the upvote and resteem <3 !

[ryivhnn]

It was fun following your process. My favourite bit though was where you described yourself as rubbing your hands together like a fly XD

[seanbon]

Thank you! I'm also glad that you enjoy the imagery ;D
Huhuhuhu~

[c-squared]

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[seanbon]

Thank you :D !

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[creativecrypto]

Hello @seanbon, thank you for sharing this creative work! We just stopped by to say that you've been upvoted by the @creativecrypto magazine. The Creative Crypto is all about art on the blockchain and learning from creatives like you. Looking forward to crossing paths again soon. Steem on!

[seanbon]

Thank you so much :D !