Good Photo, Bad Drawing. 4

Good Photo, Bad Drawing. 3

Good Photo, Bad Drawing. 2

Good Photo, Bad Drawing

Here the first installment of a new series on world of spokes 'Good Photo, Bad Drawing'

Enjoy.

Texture

Work has picked up and free time at the studio is at a premium right now. When I do get a second for side projects, I've mostly been experimenting with texture for the kirby short. Here are some examples.

Hand Up

Animation Complete

I finished all the hand drawn animation last week. Left on the to do list: Backgrounds, detail drawings, and some minor tweaks. I still don't see this thing premiering before the new year,but I am glad to see that the end is near.

Things I have learned since starting this process:

I will not be creating another animation in this style. It has taken entirely too long and would not be cost effective in any business venture.

Let others help. I've been so afraid to let anyone in on this project that I've only really shown it to three people. Allie has been the only one to help and the guy doing the sound hasn't even seen it yet. I'm a very private person, but sometimes it's better to get these things out there and get some crowd reaction.

Let the computer do more. I was so hell bent on this thing having a hand drawn feel, I completely ignored any digital help the computer could have done. The last few days I've been thinking how a few different rendering techniques could have saved me months of work.

In the end, I'll be proud of the finished piece. It's even inspired a few more ideas for animations that I hope to produce in the future. If nothing else, the experience of making this animated short has given me a sense of purpose in an otherwise directionless time in my life.

Font vs Typeface

Do you know the difference?

Another Bear for my childhood

I wasn't a huge fan of winni the pooh growing up, but I can still recite a few lines from the saturday morning cartoon's theme song. I'm feeling nostalgic today and this made me laugh.

Side Projects

Along with kirby, fixing and maintaining bikes fill my spare time. Currently, I'm rebuilding this Raleigh. It's a bit small for me and I'll be selling it once it's finished. So, if anyone out there needs a sweet red single speed, let me know.

Filmed by Bike Write-Up

I got a little write up on Filmed by Bike's website. Their a great organization that combines two of my favorite things bikes and films. I've submitted movies into the festival three years in a row, but sat out last year. The kirby animation has dominated all my free time for nearly a year now.

2 scenes left

So close, soo close...

Gourd-n-Pork

Illustration for a upcoming event we're hosting.

Only Four Scenes Left.

PedalMation is GO!

My website 2.0 has been launched! It took a bit longer than expected, but what doesn't. I have to thank my good friend Sean Fitzgerald for all the coding work, he's amazing.
I hope to continue adding illustrations and videos in the coming months to the site. Here's an illustration that did not make the cut.

I love tracing.

Introspective and Important

not really.

The Good, The Bad, and The Freelance

Life Cycle

You know the old saying "the more things change, the more they stay the same". I've been feeling that way a lot lately. It's not so much that things don't change, it's that most change is so gradual and incremental we hardly ever see it's effects until long after it has happened. The hardest part about change is the small day to day cycles we constantly are trying to program or unprogram in our routines. Through constant analysis and retooling of the little things we do each day, real change happens.

It's Official

A few days ago I received this piece of junk mail. I think receiving junk mail for your start up business makes you official. It's cheezy but I liked it so much I hung it in the office. It's my only signage for the time being.

Staying Busy

Pedalmation.com is almost ready for the relaunch, finished a scene for Kirby today and I just posted an updated reel to my vimeo site. All positives, but it also means I've been working less and have had more free time. Good for me, bad for the bank account. All is well though, picking up small jobs here and there. Staying positive and optimistic.

Here's a shoe!

what's going on

What a busy summer. Things here at the studio have been productive. Kirby is still slowly coming together. Just six more scenes and all the animation will be done. I'll still have to figure out the backgrounds and add more detail to a lot of the drawings. The end is in sight however.

Until then check out this student film I mentioned in a blog post some time ago. It's called Slim Picking Fat Chances and it's great. It has an old warner brothers animation feel with some fresh witty humor.

milhouse

Allie took this great picture.

www

rebuilding pedalmation.com, here's a still from the design process.

I got new glasses

They're a little taller than I usually get, but still my classic black plastic frame.

Repetition

One thing bicycling and animation have in common is repetition. By repeating the same steps over and over you create something that is larger than the sum of it's parts.

It's been awhile since I've written anything about cycling. While I still enjoy it and try to ride everyday, it's become a very personal journey for me. Plus, it's kind of monotonous and there really isn't much to write about.

The same can be said for the kirby animation. While I continue to find a place for it everyday, there's not much new to report.

Both also have meditative qualities to them, which helps me clear my mind. I think this can be achieved by just about any activity with a lot of repetitive qualities.

American States United

Never forget where you come from.

U-S-A... U-S-A!

Movie Night

Went and saw Toy Story 3 last night, and it was even better than I expected. The animated short before the feature alone was worth the price of admission.It's also the best use of 3d glasses I've seen yet. It was the best short Pixar has created in quite awhile. The feature was great too, but for me the real charm was revisiting those characters that were such a part of me becoming an animator. Funny, well written and a joy to watch. Kirby gives it one paw way up!

The Closer.

I've been called many names in my life. The closer is my favorite. I take the slop that people throw at me and I make it into something useful. If there's ten hours left and the whole project needs animating, call me. I like to think of myself as the Mariano Rivera of what i do, but it's probably more like a Jonathan Papelbon. I want myself to be all cool and collected, but in reality it looks emotional and sporadic. Some where in the middle is probably most accurate.

In case you're wondering, my least favorite nickname has been lotion, but even that is kinda fun now that I'm older and can laugh at myself.

DANCE!

Happy Friday Ya'll!

It's a work in progress

So, I've decided to not set any more deadlines for kirby. The animation will get done when it's done. Forcing unnecessary deadlines on this project only makes it feel like work, and that's the last thing I want this to be.