After completing another batch of A-Z characters yesterday (as seen below), I decided to pull out my lightbox and experiment with it in preparation for tweaking The Jock #1. I dragged out an old Gwen Stacy pic that I always mostly liked but a rogue lock of hair and some quite scritchy finishing always irked me so I decided to try and save that pic by inking it onto a new piece of paper using the lightbox.
It was actually quite a weird experience, as the light was so powerful even through two sheets of paper that I couldn't actually clearly see the black inklines I was putting down...the light was just bright enough to shine through, meaning I was virtually tracing by instinct, trusting my fingers to point the pen in the right direction as I couldn't actually tell if it WAS the right direction. Even switching pens made no difference.
The results were not the best...slightly shaky linework instead of more confident lines and some of the finer detail was lost as I couldn't precisely tell where I was drawing. This effect was worsened when I went in with a smaller penpoint to tidy up some of he rougher lines.
Still, overall I think I prefer the new version as it's bolder and less cluttered. I think in future I'll use a pencil to draw over the elements I want to correct and ink the corrections away from the lightbox. I don't know how people draw full pages from the lightbox but it's a handy tool to have...
9 comments:
So the one on the left's the new one? Apart from less feathering, it's like playing spot the difference. I've done a silly amount of tracing lately for the composites in #2 using my trusty lightbox, also known as a window. So was thinking of getting one of these Argos lightboxes, but if you can't see the lines there's not point, unless you can turn the brightness down.
And your pun titles are getting worse.
Mate,I used to have this problem when I used a ightbox at work. I found a good solution is to diffuse the light by tightly fixing a sheet of opaque paper - something like a grey overlay or tracing paper over the glass as this will knock out some of the light. I also found it useful to fix sheets of graph paper on it for lining up accurately.
Or you could wear shades.
And I'm with Tony, on the puns
The light's not blinding or painful on the eyes, it's just enough to slightly disorient you when using a pen as it makes the ink look translucent when really it's not.
The lightbox I have is A3 but tilted so that A4 is ok as you're working away from you but A3 lays horizontally, meaning you have to turn the box around so that you'r facing a triangle shaped side to draw on a sloping surface! As I only wanted the lightbox for minor amendments, this isn't too much of a big deal but would be a right pain in the arse if I needed to use it seriously...
...and get used to the puns, they're only gonna get deliberatly worse now---I saved you from Blinded By The Lightbox (mainly because I didn't know the lyrics to the next line), so all bets are off now...I'm Frank Castle with a keyboard, me...
"Cut loose like a deuce, another runner in the night..."
(You should have asked me!)
I'd have gone for 'Gwen and the art of lightbox maintenance'.
"I'm Frank Castle with a keyboard, me..."
More like Frank Carson.
I knew the melody but none of the lyrics...Cut loose like a deuce makes no sense. One half of a pair? What does that mean?
Blinded by the light as I'm out to cheat on my other half?
Songs don't need to make sense - My blood runs cold, my angel is a centrefold being one that comes to mind. If my missus was a centrefold my blood'd be pumping like a Texas oil derryk so it'd be hot, and I doubt Hugh Heffner ever had an angel in his mag, where would the wings fit? I don't think God'd be too happy either
"I sent you down to spread the word, not get your norks out in Hustler"
Oh, and if you're only doing odd panels here and there, why not just tape the panel on the lightbox in it's normal set up and have over lap at the top and bottom to make it easier on yourself?
I've used it once or twice on The Jock #2---mainly to move a Johnny shot (and yes, that sounds pervy)---and it's better than using it for full "finished" art.
The J Geils lyrics were about opening a jazzmag as an adult and finding your first love inside with the thought of all those blokes knocking one out to her. It's the sense of betrayal that comes with the corruption of his childhood innocence and that young love laid waste when you realise your object of affection is a trollop. Same old same old really...
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