Artist insight Dragon rider
Step by Step: Bringing dragon and rider to life
1
Creating thumbnails
I always start with rough sketches, to help me figure out what the basic layout will look like. When I’m doing them I think about placement of each of the key elements and how to bring attention to the focus. I usually do these in ballpoint pen in my sketchbook, or digitally.
2
Sketching
3
Colour and oil
After I find an idea I like, I proceed to a slightly more refined sketch. I start to think a bit more about form and what, practically, is going on. This phase enables me to spend some time considering the precise camera angle, lighting, graphic design of the composition, and maybe some values.
The white stuff
One thing I think of when I think of Canada is snow. So from the beginning I wanted this to be a snowy scene. This was one of the elements I used to help convey the Canadian location for the tournament. That, and the moose horns!
Cold play
The colour palette is made up primarily of cool tones, to help give the image the cold feel I wanted. There are notes of warmer tones, but they’re there to help balance out the overwhelming cold colours.
Once I’m happy with the sketch, I add colour. I do this either with gouache or digitally using Photoshop. I like using digital media during this phase because it’s easier to make adjustments to the overall colour scheme. Between the digital colour comp phase and the oil painting, I’ll gather my reference and transfer my sketch to a surface that I’ve prepared.
June 2016
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