Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Chandra, Page 19: Oh. That Looks Deep.

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Good morning ladies and gentlemen!  A sunny day here, in contrast to mushy post-Irene last week, and with it, page 19.  Jason and Dr. Bannister begin their investigation of the good doctor's quarters.

What works? The first and second panels are fantastic.  I think they really breathe and though I broke the 180 degree of action rule (great discussion here on Mark Kennedy's really awesome blog) by placing the camera on opposite sides from one panel to the next, it still totally works.  There's also a really great swooping effect of the composition of panel two.  They eye skitters from the vent and Jason's work, to the picture, over his back to the toolkit, and on to the doctor's words and posture.

We'll break it down further after the break.

Panel three is a bit of a letdown.  I feel I should have pulled back more and created more depth.  Panels four and five also have a kind of 'by the book' feel about them.  Ah well, you draw, you learn.  

I think Dave Sim, creator of Cerebus said it best when he said something along the lines of "The first 1000 pages you draw are crap."  Well, you're looking at page 19, ha ha.  Stick with me friends, I'll take you good places...only 983 pages to go.

BONUS to anyone who can name the print hanging on the Doctor's wall.

Something interesting:  When I drew Chandra, I averaged drawing five pages a day.  I'm not saying that to brag.  I'm saying it because it LOOKS like I hurried through them and I think that this is an illustrative point.  Kids, don't hurry.  Every page and painting and sculpture takes as long as it takes.  If you work when you're supposed to work, focusing on your goals, you won't butt up against deadlines.  Even self imposed ones.

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