Tuesday, June 07, 2011

Um...I do? I think?


Who's that handosme blue silhouette?  Me.  It's me.  It looks like I have a tumorous growth on my back, but I swear that's just the way my shirt falls.  Anyway, I'm not going to spend too much time talking about this one because I'm not that crazy about it.  The story turned out a little differently than did the synopsis I'd received earlier and upon which had based my illustration.  Needless to say, the night before it was to print I had to completely rethink my ideas and whip out something new.  Many thanks to the ever awesome Lindsey Turner for reading the story as she put it on the page and for not only signaling me that my original idea wouldn't jive, but for also helping me come up with a solid concept to match the actual story.  Basically, the Amazon order fulfillment station(s) they're building in Chattanooga mean herald Amazon getting some special deals with the state of Tennessee that the other businesses in Tennessee don't find fair.  Plus, there's some ther stuff about stepping on the TN constitution.  To be honest I was having a "my brain's not working" kind of day and it really just didn't click.

The other illustration (which should actually appear at the very top) is my favorite from this week.  It's about cutting the cost of your wedding.  Well, not YOUR wedding.  You might not be getting married.  And if you are, someone as high-toned and fancy as yourself may not NEED to cut costs.  Whatever.  Anyway, the article is also about sustainable, eco-friendly, green weddings!  But I was told to just focus on the cost cutting part.  I'm really pleased with this one because I think my groom doesn't look like me.  My male charactes always look like me...or so I'm told.  I completely disagree.  You know...apart from admitting to using my silhouette in that other illustration...for which you're welcome.  :)  Anyway AGAIN, I think he looks like a more handsome Nathan Lane.  My bride looked like Jennifer Lopez at one point (by accident, of course) but during the inking stage some of her features changed slightly and she ended up looking like she does in print...which is cute...I think, anyway.

Someone say something about these things.  If you haven't figured it out yet, I'm really just a child shouting out in a big ol' effort to be the center of attention.  Only, I cuss more than most children and ride a pretty badass motorcycle.

10 comments:

Aaron Radney said...

The wedding piece looks great Shane. Bride, however, ... looks a bit like she's got a joker smile on.

pamela said...

I recognized you as the model for the shopping cart guy.

Anonymous said...

You draw excellent hands! I'm so envious. (I wish I knew more about cartooning! Did you ink that by hand?) (Also I always draw myself in illustrations, too, sometimes by accident.) Anyway, I love the attention to detail...the little crumbles of dollar sign... and the smooth surface where the groom sawed and the jagged surface where the bride used a sledgehammer. Very nice!

Lighthouse Pilot said...

Aaron, thanks for the compliment chased by a stern look for the joker comment. ;) No, you're right, I have a tendency to widen my mouths a bit much.

Pamela, :)

Freudiantypo,
Thanks! Hands can be tricky, but fortunately, I have two of them I can use for reference! Plus, the more I draw them the more I build up my visual library of what they can and can't do. And kudos for putting yourself in illustrations as well, both on purpose and by accident. We're beautiful people and the world needs to see us. ;)
Also...thanks for the observation about the smooth and jagged surfaces! I was proud of that one. Sadly, however, I forgot to put the jagged surface on the broken part of the dollar sign. Oh well. So is there some place I can see some of your work?

histrionicsdotzip said...

There really isn't, actually...I should work on that. And none of it is really "inked." The furthest I got with that was putting gray areas in my black and white comics using photoshop.

If I can round some up maybe I can send you an email!

Anonymous said...

Sigh. I am both "freudiantypo" and "histrionicsdotzip." I need to pay more attention. Yeesh.

Anonymous said...

here's one small example of a page of "comics"

http://www.flickr.com/photos/tamaraburross/4091529970/

Feel pretty impotent in comparison with your glowing work.

Lighthouse Pilot said...

freudiantypo/histrionicsdotzip/Tamara,
I knew it was you, but I enjoy pretending you're two different people so that it feels like more people actually look at my blog. :)

I dig your cartoon so I'm about to send you an fb message about it!

Oh yeah...you're too kind.

Amanda said...

How come the groom has his wedding band on the wrong hand???

Lighthouse Pilot said...

That's easy, Amanda. It's because I'm an IDIOT. Look closely and you'll see that I am, however, both right and wrong at the same time...which makes me completely wrong by default. Sadly, he has a ring on each hand. I don't remember doing that, but I suspect I penciled the incorrect one first, penciled the correct hand next, forgot to erase the first and then inked overboth of them. (I was kinda racing against deadline, but that's no excuse) Anyway, maybe this guy is a polygamist?

So...is this an Amanda I know or an Amanda I don't know?