I've been doing some cowboy characters just now, so I thought I'd pop one up here, and show how he developed from first sketch, to refined line, to coloured in.
I had the idea and image in my head quite clearly for this one, with the pose and outfit, so it was sort of just a matter of copying it out of my imagination and onto the page.
Which is sort of how I work. I sit and think for a while until I have an image in my head, and then try and replicate the image on the page. So the more clearly I can visualise the illustration before hand, the quicker it comes out.
So the first sketch here is pretty refined and complete, I didn't have to do a second version or fiddle with anything much to get it how I wanted it.
And then I put the colour on. Fairly straightforward outfit for him, basically blue, but I wanted a bit of variation within that too. Not just flat.
And then I knock back the rough line to 40%, as if it's on a light-box with a new sheet over it, and do the refined finished line on a new layer.
I've got a brown colour that I like using for my ink, and I set this layer to multiply.
So there he is, and hopefully it's a bit informative and interesting, or at least a mildly diverting read :)
