Heading to NFC
Posted a year agoGoing to be hanging out with
scarneck and other nerds, but if anyone else wants to meet up I'll be at the NFC 2024 (aka tomorrow).
No clue who's coming :)
scarneck and other nerds, but if anyone else wants to meet up I'll be at the NFC 2024 (aka tomorrow).No clue who's coming :)
Little product review (XP-Pen, Wacom)
Posted 2 years agoI usually don't do things like these, but after my second XP-Pen screen tablet 'breaking' (more like deteriorating) in almost the exact same way my first XP-Pen did, forcing me to buy yet another tablet, I had the urge to write about it.
XP-Pen (XP Pen Innovator 16, Artist Pro 16)
First of all, while I know some of my friends like XP-Pen, I can no longer recommend their products, at all.
Obviously it's meant to be a more affordable alternative to Wacom, but the tablets themselves feel quite "flimsy" and after a little more than one year of use, both of them started to have severe screen problems (flicker, grainy pixels, random flashes, black screens). These issues seemed to be related to just... randomness. Sometimes they work fine for hours, sometimes they turn into a disco. Literally knocking on the table the tablet was standing on, fixed or broke it. Mind you, these tablets barely ever moved from their spot on that table.
Also, the screen's surface tends to get scratched up easily after use. That was a major reason for the first switch to another XP-Pen, as the first screen started to feel like drawing on sandpaper. The second one was laminated and a bit better.
Besides the clear technical deficiency, I actually DO like how the tablets are designed with the controls on the side, front and center. Especially the rotating wheels worked very well; more on that later. Another thing they did well, is just the general "appearance" of the product. Packaging was nice looking, box was filled with the goodies you would expect; cleaning cloth, 10+ pen tips, super nice and hefty pen holder, glove and so on. It made a really good first impression (unlike Wacom).
Wacom (Cintiq 16 Pro)
Before ever using a screen tablet, my main tool was an Intuous, and before that another wacom pen tablet. They both still work, no scratches, no issues - so I knew Wacom would be a purchase that should (please) last more than just a year.
But maybe I expected a bit too much from them, on all other fronts... Wacom comes across as incredibly stingy and uninterested. I get a table with 1m long cables, three cables instead of one, I have to order a separate remote for it (another $100), it comes with a whole 3 (!!) replacement tips for the pen, no glove, box was paper thin and tore while opening, tablet wasn't even shielded, and so on.
And then there's the design of the tablet itself... which I really don't like. It's minimalist to a fault. I'll get used to it in time, but taking away the control buttons from the side of the tablet to force me to use a dumb remote just feels wrong and kind of makes the whole drawing process feel "cramped" in a way? The back buttons don't really feel nice either - they're too far up and are just identical plastic bumps, giving me no way to know what I'm pressing (as I can't see it either).
Just for reference: with my XP-Pen, I had 1 (longer but still kinda short) USB-C table, a little stand and my pen. With my wacom? I have 3 cables jutting out of it (HDMI, Power supply, USB-C), limited options on how far I can go from my PC due to the length, one hand busy with holding a remote, other holding pen. I just feel more restricted in every way. Doesn't look as nice either with the taped-together cables coming out behind it... what the fuck where they thinking?
But, on the other end... I can just feel how nice and sturdy it is. It's a brick, yes, but that's what I hoped for. It doesn't creak (like the XP-Pen) when I touch it - and having integrated legs instead of a stand is a bonus.
But then there's the remote, and the buttons on the back: stiff, kinda hard to distinguish by feel... and the wheel on the remote is in every respect worse than the XP-Pen's integrated controls (to the point where I'm trying to find other way to quickly rotate the picture).
Yeah, I really don't like their design philosophy... Grrr.
My Conclusion.... fuck
XP-Pen has the far better design, the more professional appearance (from packaging to pen holder), seems less stingy... but the quality is shit.
Wacom lacks behind in almost every aspect except for the overall product quality.
I wish I could have a Wacom, with the design of an XP-Pen. But ironically, after checking XP-Pen's shop, they seem to now change their own design to look identical to Wacom... which would take away the only advantage I feel they have on them.
And yes, at least for me, it just feels natural to have your left hand on the screen, rotating the picture with your thumb while drawing; like you would when holding a piece of paper. Now I awkwardly have a hand sitting on a table fiddling with a remote.
I'll get used to it, but I still can't help but feel I downgraded... by buying the clearly better product? It just feels off.
And for everyone who has a working, nice XP-Pen - maybe I'm just unlucky with these, but two attempts were enough. And warranty is another topic entirely of course - this is more about my experience with the products :))
XP-Pen (XP Pen Innovator 16, Artist Pro 16)
First of all, while I know some of my friends like XP-Pen, I can no longer recommend their products, at all.
Obviously it's meant to be a more affordable alternative to Wacom, but the tablets themselves feel quite "flimsy" and after a little more than one year of use, both of them started to have severe screen problems (flicker, grainy pixels, random flashes, black screens). These issues seemed to be related to just... randomness. Sometimes they work fine for hours, sometimes they turn into a disco. Literally knocking on the table the tablet was standing on, fixed or broke it. Mind you, these tablets barely ever moved from their spot on that table.
Also, the screen's surface tends to get scratched up easily after use. That was a major reason for the first switch to another XP-Pen, as the first screen started to feel like drawing on sandpaper. The second one was laminated and a bit better.
Besides the clear technical deficiency, I actually DO like how the tablets are designed with the controls on the side, front and center. Especially the rotating wheels worked very well; more on that later. Another thing they did well, is just the general "appearance" of the product. Packaging was nice looking, box was filled with the goodies you would expect; cleaning cloth, 10+ pen tips, super nice and hefty pen holder, glove and so on. It made a really good first impression (unlike Wacom).
Wacom (Cintiq 16 Pro)
Before ever using a screen tablet, my main tool was an Intuous, and before that another wacom pen tablet. They both still work, no scratches, no issues - so I knew Wacom would be a purchase that should (please) last more than just a year.
But maybe I expected a bit too much from them, on all other fronts... Wacom comes across as incredibly stingy and uninterested. I get a table with 1m long cables, three cables instead of one, I have to order a separate remote for it (another $100), it comes with a whole 3 (!!) replacement tips for the pen, no glove, box was paper thin and tore while opening, tablet wasn't even shielded, and so on.
And then there's the design of the tablet itself... which I really don't like. It's minimalist to a fault. I'll get used to it in time, but taking away the control buttons from the side of the tablet to force me to use a dumb remote just feels wrong and kind of makes the whole drawing process feel "cramped" in a way? The back buttons don't really feel nice either - they're too far up and are just identical plastic bumps, giving me no way to know what I'm pressing (as I can't see it either).
Just for reference: with my XP-Pen, I had 1 (longer but still kinda short) USB-C table, a little stand and my pen. With my wacom? I have 3 cables jutting out of it (HDMI, Power supply, USB-C), limited options on how far I can go from my PC due to the length, one hand busy with holding a remote, other holding pen. I just feel more restricted in every way. Doesn't look as nice either with the taped-together cables coming out behind it... what the fuck where they thinking?
But, on the other end... I can just feel how nice and sturdy it is. It's a brick, yes, but that's what I hoped for. It doesn't creak (like the XP-Pen) when I touch it - and having integrated legs instead of a stand is a bonus.
But then there's the remote, and the buttons on the back: stiff, kinda hard to distinguish by feel... and the wheel on the remote is in every respect worse than the XP-Pen's integrated controls (to the point where I'm trying to find other way to quickly rotate the picture).
Yeah, I really don't like their design philosophy... Grrr.
My Conclusion.... fuck
XP-Pen has the far better design, the more professional appearance (from packaging to pen holder), seems less stingy... but the quality is shit.
Wacom lacks behind in almost every aspect except for the overall product quality.
I wish I could have a Wacom, with the design of an XP-Pen. But ironically, after checking XP-Pen's shop, they seem to now change their own design to look identical to Wacom... which would take away the only advantage I feel they have on them.
And yes, at least for me, it just feels natural to have your left hand on the screen, rotating the picture with your thumb while drawing; like you would when holding a piece of paper. Now I awkwardly have a hand sitting on a table fiddling with a remote.
I'll get used to it, but I still can't help but feel I downgraded... by buying the clearly better product? It just feels off.
And for everyone who has a working, nice XP-Pen - maybe I'm just unlucky with these, but two attempts were enough. And warranty is another topic entirely of course - this is more about my experience with the products :))
Streaming
Posted 2 years agoNow I'm one of the Cool Guys too!
Posted 2 years agoA friend shared a BlueSky invite code with me, so now I'm cool too!
katai.bsky.social
Good timing too, using Twitter makes me feel dirty.
katai.bsky.social
Good timing too, using Twitter makes me feel dirty.
Getting my Artist-life in Order
Posted 2 years agoSo, one of the reasons I'm so scatterbrained sometimes, is just my lack of organization. I'm the "name a file 'dwasfauaubia2b' and throw it in a random folder" kind of guy. Turns out, over the past few years, that lead to a couple hundred indistinguishable files...
For some reason, I felt like cleaning things up (not that that's gonna help... zzZZzzz). Took me almost half a day, but all my files are neatly organized now, I know how many half-finished or never-posted pictures I have, organized some early ideas, etc.
In addition to that, I spent some time finding (and recovering) all my old logins and put them into https://linktr.ee/khugin - I may even use PostyBirb or whatever that was called, one day. And no, I didn't set it up because of the drama, it's just a funny coincidence that everyone is "diversifying" now :)
And since I saw a couple of my friends manage Telegram channels for regular updates, I decided it can't hurt to try and do so as well. I don't really stream much, but I'm certainly getting back in the mood... and could be a fun (super boring) way to finish some half-finished projects. We'll see.
Telegram update channel will be on https://t.me/+pkdtLLe0OMA0Mjk8 - no clue how this stuff works, learning by doing.
For some reason, I felt like cleaning things up (not that that's gonna help... zzZZzzz). Took me almost half a day, but all my files are neatly organized now, I know how many half-finished or never-posted pictures I have, organized some early ideas, etc.
In addition to that, I spent some time finding (and recovering) all my old logins and put them into https://linktr.ee/khugin - I may even use PostyBirb or whatever that was called, one day. And no, I didn't set it up because of the drama, it's just a funny coincidence that everyone is "diversifying" now :)
And since I saw a couple of my friends manage Telegram channels for regular updates, I decided it can't hurt to try and do so as well. I don't really stream much, but I'm certainly getting back in the mood... and could be a fun (super boring) way to finish some half-finished projects. We'll see.
Telegram update channel will be on https://t.me/+pkdtLLe0OMA0Mjk8 - no clue how this stuff works, learning by doing.
Spring Cleanup
Posted 3 years agoJust moved pretty much all of the older stuff to scraps and deleted all the old, unnecessary submission folders - they only made things complicated anyways.
There you go - you find my gallery in scraps :)
There you go - you find my gallery in scraps :)
Broken tablet, whoops!
Posted 3 years agoWell, for once, my current art hiatus has more to do with technical difficulties than my mood swings :)
I bought a nice, shiny new tablet a year-or-so ago; finally switching from my pen tablet to one with a screen, and it was a damn good change (as you may can tell from the pictures I drew).
Well, sadly it already "broke". Well, kind-of; it technically still works, but the pen scratched the screen surface so much that I essentially barely see colors anymore (I noticed too late, I always thought the screen was just humid or wet somehow); and overall the cable connection seems iffy, frequently just turning the tablet off or giving me a heart-attack when it starts flickering full-white like a disco for a few minutes.
While I can live with the flickering, the roughened-up tablet surface ruins it for me currently (it feels like dragging your pen over sandpaper). It's my first screen tablet, I didn't know it also apparently requires additional protection (the manual doesn't mention any of that either!) - so I'm on hiatus for a bit longer until I can muster up a replacement.
I may squeeze out some drawings regardless, as I still technically can use it; it's just a motivation-sucking pain in the ass. Tried to do some pics yesterday, just gave up after the third flicker-storm. Grrr.
Well, I guess that's what I get for buying a knock-off product, I had fun with it for a year at least :)
I bought a nice, shiny new tablet a year-or-so ago; finally switching from my pen tablet to one with a screen, and it was a damn good change (as you may can tell from the pictures I drew).
Well, sadly it already "broke". Well, kind-of; it technically still works, but the pen scratched the screen surface so much that I essentially barely see colors anymore (I noticed too late, I always thought the screen was just humid or wet somehow); and overall the cable connection seems iffy, frequently just turning the tablet off or giving me a heart-attack when it starts flickering full-white like a disco for a few minutes.
While I can live with the flickering, the roughened-up tablet surface ruins it for me currently (it feels like dragging your pen over sandpaper). It's my first screen tablet, I didn't know it also apparently requires additional protection (the manual doesn't mention any of that either!) - so I'm on hiatus for a bit longer until I can muster up a replacement.
I may squeeze out some drawings regardless, as I still technically can use it; it's just a motivation-sucking pain in the ass. Tried to do some pics yesterday, just gave up after the third flicker-storm. Grrr.
Well, I guess that's what I get for buying a knock-off product, I had fun with it for a year at least :)
Give me your characters
Posted 3 years agoSince I occasionally run into the situation where I need to throw in a stock character (besides Edward) and regularly feel that its a waste to not use an actual character, I thought it could be a fun idea to create a little list of characters I'm allowed to miss-use ;) It could also be fun to see who's hanging around these parts - so why not?
Lets make this simple: If you have a character that's free for me to draw and put into dumb situations (with others), feel free to comment the name & reference (or 2-3 reference pictures, if there is no real ref) here. Perhaps give me a couple keywords for their personality. You can also add a line about common situations or potential ideas. Or do whatever you feel appropriate, I don't really mind either way :) And obviously, if you know someone who fits in here, you can just let them know too.
(Of course, most of my friends already know I sometimes just throw their characters in anyways, but even they can feel free to list some if they want!)
Just some minor rules, if you decide to do so:
- By adding your character here, you allow me to freely draw them and for me to upload that artwork if I want (of course, you can do the same, I don't care). I'll try to pick appropriate situations.
- I'm not necessarily going to tell you about a drawing up until its almost done. I tend to throw away a lot of sketches that didn't work out in the end, so I never know when a picture might finish until I'm pretty far in. Obviously, I will tell you if I know a picture will happen.
- You posting here doesn't in any way mean that something actually happens.
- Please don't spam this with 300 barely developed characters, this is not an adopt market! Quality over quantity - or, fun ideas over quantity.
(Feel free to delete your comment if something changes you decide to not want me potentially drawing your character.)
Now, here's the important bit: I don't want to raise any false hopes for drawings. I've been pretty bad at sticking to drawings and my brain just does what it wants anyways. This is meant as a potential resource for stock characters or fun ideas for me, but doesn't mean that I'll pick up yours (or any) - and even if I do, it could be 5+ years down the line. So please don't put massive efforts into an elaborate comment expecting something to happen! Even after this, I'll still tend to regularly use nameless stock characters whenever I don't feel like dealing with actual references.
Again, this is just for fun. Lets see who's around, and maybe it'll inspire something far, far, faaar down the line!
Lets make this simple: If you have a character that's free for me to draw and put into dumb situations (with others), feel free to comment the name & reference (or 2-3 reference pictures, if there is no real ref) here. Perhaps give me a couple keywords for their personality. You can also add a line about common situations or potential ideas. Or do whatever you feel appropriate, I don't really mind either way :) And obviously, if you know someone who fits in here, you can just let them know too.
(Of course, most of my friends already know I sometimes just throw their characters in anyways, but even they can feel free to list some if they want!)
Just some minor rules, if you decide to do so:
- By adding your character here, you allow me to freely draw them and for me to upload that artwork if I want (of course, you can do the same, I don't care). I'll try to pick appropriate situations.
- I'm not necessarily going to tell you about a drawing up until its almost done. I tend to throw away a lot of sketches that didn't work out in the end, so I never know when a picture might finish until I'm pretty far in. Obviously, I will tell you if I know a picture will happen.
- You posting here doesn't in any way mean that something actually happens.
- Please don't spam this with 300 barely developed characters, this is not an adopt market! Quality over quantity - or, fun ideas over quantity.
(Feel free to delete your comment if something changes you decide to not want me potentially drawing your character.)
Now, here's the important bit: I don't want to raise any false hopes for drawings. I've been pretty bad at sticking to drawings and my brain just does what it wants anyways. This is meant as a potential resource for stock characters or fun ideas for me, but doesn't mean that I'll pick up yours (or any) - and even if I do, it could be 5+ years down the line. So please don't put massive efforts into an elaborate comment expecting something to happen! Even after this, I'll still tend to regularly use nameless stock characters whenever I don't feel like dealing with actual references.
Again, this is just for fun. Lets see who's around, and maybe it'll inspire something far, far, faaar down the line!
Doing the whole Twitter AD thing
Posted 3 years agoAlright, I really don't like or use Twitter much, but I guess its an easier way to share occasional dumb sketches, failures and once-in-a-year stream announcements.
For anyone interested, its https://twitter.com/khugin_ad - please keep in mind that I'll post adult stuff on it (duh).
I'll make the profile private for now (I think that means you have to follow to see stuff?) since I'm uncomfortable having my porn just out in the open on Twitter. Maybe I'll revise that later, who knows, who cares!
Don't expect me to tweet every day though, I don't have a habit of speaking my mind about every little thing.
For anyone interested, its https://twitter.com/khugin_ad - please keep in mind that I'll post adult stuff on it (duh).
I'll make the profile private for now (I think that means you have to follow to see stuff?) since I'm uncomfortable having my porn just out in the open on Twitter. Maybe I'll revise that later, who knows, who cares!
Don't expect me to tweet every day though, I don't have a habit of speaking my mind about every little thing.
Ranting about art skills
Posted 3 years agoBecause I apparently have nothing better to do!
Nah, it's a fun excuse to write a journal every now and then. Also, don't take this the wrong way, I'm just throwing out my current thoughts; this isn't meant to come across as whining about any lack of skill, and more me reflecting about my current weaknesses :) This journal has no real point, it's just me talking.
So, I assume this isn't exactly new to most artists, but I'm definitely the kind of artist who hates their own art, especially if it's older than a year or two. To the point where I sometimes feel tempted to just remove it - but I won't because I also hate deleting things or losing data ;)
Whenever I get an idea for a picture, while I'm drawing it, I always reflect over style choices I apply, but don't really like. Things like flat faces, always similar angles, lazy triangle eyes (90% of Edward), lack of shape/definition, lack of consistency, shitty hands, etc. Especially the lack of consistency, is what kills me every time: I can't draw two circles of the same size. One eye is always smaller, one ear is always larger, one arm is always longer. It got a lot better with the new screen tablet (I had one without screen before), but that flaw hasn't quite disappeared yet.
Obviously, that's a practice thing (everything here is); but while I'm doodling at a new (stupid) idea for a picture, that requires me to draw 5 similar faces, it becomes painfully obvious that each face looks a little bit off in a different way - despite me attempting to use the exact same methodologies as always. At the time of writing this, I've drawn a dozen faces, and only two really look similar enough for my liking - grrr! In one, Edward looks bulky as hell. I guess my take-away is that without layers and a resize tool, I would be totally lost. I'm looking forward to the day where I won't need it anymore - in 2055 or so.
By the way, this is also the reason why I avoid doing commissions. I just don't feel confident / consistent enough yet. For every drawing I upload, there are 40 failed attempts I never end up finishing, hahaha :)
From time to time, I decide its time to develop my style a bit further. The eyes are one of the areas I tend to go lazy on, and instinctively draw them too small - but I actually like big expressive eyes and an overall more cartoony touch (the thing I'm experimenting with once again right now). Some artists draw in a way that gives them so much freedom for details (like larger noses, different cheek shapes, etc) so I sometimes try to implement that as well; too bad it rarely sticks around!
(for reference, last time I tried that resulted in things like https://www.furaffinity.net/view/28193142/ )
In my current case, it certainly doesn't help that I picked one of the facial angles I'm weakest at: almost exactly facing the camera. Whoops - but my dumb brain requires it that way. At least I don't have to do much anatomy this time...
God, I hate anatomy. The day I figure that one out, is the day I'll throw out a picture every day.
Nah, it's a fun excuse to write a journal every now and then. Also, don't take this the wrong way, I'm just throwing out my current thoughts; this isn't meant to come across as whining about any lack of skill, and more me reflecting about my current weaknesses :) This journal has no real point, it's just me talking.
So, I assume this isn't exactly new to most artists, but I'm definitely the kind of artist who hates their own art, especially if it's older than a year or two. To the point where I sometimes feel tempted to just remove it - but I won't because I also hate deleting things or losing data ;)
Whenever I get an idea for a picture, while I'm drawing it, I always reflect over style choices I apply, but don't really like. Things like flat faces, always similar angles, lazy triangle eyes (90% of Edward), lack of shape/definition, lack of consistency, shitty hands, etc. Especially the lack of consistency, is what kills me every time: I can't draw two circles of the same size. One eye is always smaller, one ear is always larger, one arm is always longer. It got a lot better with the new screen tablet (I had one without screen before), but that flaw hasn't quite disappeared yet.
Obviously, that's a practice thing (everything here is); but while I'm doodling at a new (stupid) idea for a picture, that requires me to draw 5 similar faces, it becomes painfully obvious that each face looks a little bit off in a different way - despite me attempting to use the exact same methodologies as always. At the time of writing this, I've drawn a dozen faces, and only two really look similar enough for my liking - grrr! In one, Edward looks bulky as hell. I guess my take-away is that without layers and a resize tool, I would be totally lost. I'm looking forward to the day where I won't need it anymore - in 2055 or so.
By the way, this is also the reason why I avoid doing commissions. I just don't feel confident / consistent enough yet. For every drawing I upload, there are 40 failed attempts I never end up finishing, hahaha :)
From time to time, I decide its time to develop my style a bit further. The eyes are one of the areas I tend to go lazy on, and instinctively draw them too small - but I actually like big expressive eyes and an overall more cartoony touch (the thing I'm experimenting with once again right now). Some artists draw in a way that gives them so much freedom for details (like larger noses, different cheek shapes, etc) so I sometimes try to implement that as well; too bad it rarely sticks around!
(for reference, last time I tried that resulted in things like https://www.furaffinity.net/view/28193142/ )
In my current case, it certainly doesn't help that I picked one of the facial angles I'm weakest at: almost exactly facing the camera. Whoops - but my dumb brain requires it that way. At least I don't have to do much anatomy this time...
God, I hate anatomy. The day I figure that one out, is the day I'll throw out a picture every day.
Browsing Art on FA feels weird.
Posted 3 years agoJust a minor rant before bedtime, because I clearly have nothing better to do :)
Have you ever noticed that YCH, YCH Reminders, Adopts and Stream Announcement submissions are making up like 50-60% of everything in "Browse"? At least it comes across that way - It feels pretty excessive. The thing is, most of the adopts are just endless recolors anyways, and YCH pictures are placeholders - I wouldn't count neither as "finished" art pieces.
I almost feel as if those things should be separated into some kind of Marketplace, or have their own section. I wouldn't count them as art, they are trade offers. Most of the actually completed art is just buried underneath mountains of recolors or the 100th reminder for some YCH.
Also, while we're talking about "Adopts"... who the hell finds it worthwhile to buy the 20th recolor of the exact same character? Those things feel so unimaginative and mass-produced. Usually it's literally just palette swapping. Some accounts seem to have nothing but hundreds of these copy & paste adopts. If you're about to spend money for a character, why not just talk with an artist and get a custom character design instead of "Template B-047"?
Not that it really matters - I just find the obscene amount of these types of pictures kind of comedic at this point :)
Have you ever noticed that YCH, YCH Reminders, Adopts and Stream Announcement submissions are making up like 50-60% of everything in "Browse"? At least it comes across that way - It feels pretty excessive. The thing is, most of the adopts are just endless recolors anyways, and YCH pictures are placeholders - I wouldn't count neither as "finished" art pieces.
I almost feel as if those things should be separated into some kind of Marketplace, or have their own section. I wouldn't count them as art, they are trade offers. Most of the actually completed art is just buried underneath mountains of recolors or the 100th reminder for some YCH.
Also, while we're talking about "Adopts"... who the hell finds it worthwhile to buy the 20th recolor of the exact same character? Those things feel so unimaginative and mass-produced. Usually it's literally just palette swapping. Some accounts seem to have nothing but hundreds of these copy & paste adopts. If you're about to spend money for a character, why not just talk with an artist and get a custom character design instead of "Template B-047"?
Not that it really matters - I just find the obscene amount of these types of pictures kind of comedic at this point :)
Uploading Old Stuff (Attempt 2022)
Posted 4 years agoI was just busy looking through some backup-folders to realize I have a ton of little random drawings I've never bothered finishing or uploading. I kind of hate my older art, but I guess if I stumble over them I might as well try to clean them up real quick and just throw them on my FA - and then I realized I wrote a journal almost exactly like this 3 years ago... without ever uploading anything hahaha.
I'm so bad at doing this administrative shit :)
Oh well, we'll see if I'm better this time around - I've at least one ready to upload... and I remember doing a whole series of Edward + Tentacles - but I can't quite find it. Maybe I should stop just dragging "backup" folders into "backup" folders all the time!
Oh and thanks for the species suggestion in my last journal, it was highly appreciated!
I'm so bad at doing this administrative shit :)
Oh well, we'll see if I'm better this time around - I've at least one ready to upload... and I remember doing a whole series of Edward + Tentacles - but I can't quite find it. Maybe I should stop just dragging "backup" folders into "backup" folders all the time!
Oh and thanks for the species suggestion in my last journal, it was highly appreciated!
What's a good druggie / junkie species?
Posted 4 years agoJust curious what you guys think, I've been toying around with a couple ideas but haven't found a species that really fits (in my mind) yet. Similar as to how hyenas are perfect punks, what kind of species could fit a junkie? I don't even care if it's some stereotype I'm not aware of, it's all just for fun anyways :)
I mean, outside of my usual raccoon / dog / cat / horse wheelhouse!
I mean, outside of my usual raccoon / dog / cat / horse wheelhouse!
Upgrades!
Posted 4 years agoAlright, so I've long been frustrated with my lack of consistency while drawing. Some days I couldn't even get a circle right - it really varied from week to week; it's an issue I've had forever, and always dampened my motivation to draw anything.
After over a decade, I've finally been convinced to invest a little bit of money and replace my dinky letter-sized, 12 years old Wacom tablet... and bought a graphic tablet with a screen! "XP Pen Innovator 16" to be exact. I was always afraid of that step, because I had the chance to try one of those tablets 10 years back, and never got comfortable with it - so I figured wasting money on something like that would be a waste.
Boy, was I wrong :)
I'm still in the process of getting back into shape, figuring things out with the tablet and getting used to actually look where I draw; but so far it's going quite well. I'm having fun!
I don't want to jinx this, I know myself well enough - but hey, I guess it can't hurt to give an update and write more frequently than once every 2 years or so.
Also, after going through half a dozen tutorials and looking at many different styles, I think I finally found a technique to draw eyes that I like. I often just experimented around or defaulted to stupid triangle-eyes - which added to my inconsistency.
Cheers!
After over a decade, I've finally been convinced to invest a little bit of money and replace my dinky letter-sized, 12 years old Wacom tablet... and bought a graphic tablet with a screen! "XP Pen Innovator 16" to be exact. I was always afraid of that step, because I had the chance to try one of those tablets 10 years back, and never got comfortable with it - so I figured wasting money on something like that would be a waste.
Boy, was I wrong :)
I'm still in the process of getting back into shape, figuring things out with the tablet and getting used to actually look where I draw; but so far it's going quite well. I'm having fun!
I don't want to jinx this, I know myself well enough - but hey, I guess it can't hurt to give an update and write more frequently than once every 2 years or so.
Also, after going through half a dozen tutorials and looking at many different styles, I think I finally found a technique to draw eyes that I like. I often just experimented around or defaulted to stupid triangle-eyes - which added to my inconsistency.
Cheers!
Whoops!
Posted 4 years agoShit, I really didn't realize that a full year passed since my last upload. Somehow, it didn't feel that long - despite how dreadfully slow 2020 was!
Ah well, I'll just have to catch up and start uploading again :)
Ah well, I'll just have to catch up and start uploading again :)
Unsure about what to do with art from other creators
Posted 5 years agoNow, I know it may sounds silly, but I'm a bit split about what to do with commissions or gift art I've received over the past years. I'm not big on getting commissions, mostly because I seem to have rather bad luck with them, but it worked out a couple of times at least - but I haven't uploaded them myself yet.
To explain my problem: I really dislike the idea of mixing other art into my own gallery, since I would like for it to stand on it's own legs (and not because it contains cool art from someone else). At the same time, I feel like it's a missing piece that should be on here somehow (I'm kind of a completionist... it's complicated).
I've long thought about creating a second FA account purely for that stuff; but I can barely keep one account updated - so that idea is kind of out.
Another idea I had, and the one I might go with, is posting pictures that aren't mine in my "scraps", to cleanly separate the two galleries. But now I feel like I'm insulting the original artists by calling their work "scrap" hahaha... fuck.
What do you think is the best solution here? Upload it to the junk gallery? Separate account? Just ignore everything and leave things as they are? If you're an artist, and I would upload your picture in my "scraps" gallery, would you feel insulted?
Eh, it just bugs me. I've been thinking about what to do with this for years now, I want to find a proper resolution. I'm just thinking openly here since I never write journals anyways!
Edit: Whoops, I mean "Scraps", not "Junk" - I was brain-afk there! Thanks for pointing it out xD
To explain my problem: I really dislike the idea of mixing other art into my own gallery, since I would like for it to stand on it's own legs (and not because it contains cool art from someone else). At the same time, I feel like it's a missing piece that should be on here somehow (I'm kind of a completionist... it's complicated).
I've long thought about creating a second FA account purely for that stuff; but I can barely keep one account updated - so that idea is kind of out.
Another idea I had, and the one I might go with, is posting pictures that aren't mine in my "scraps", to cleanly separate the two galleries. But now I feel like I'm insulting the original artists by calling their work "scrap" hahaha... fuck.
What do you think is the best solution here? Upload it to the junk gallery? Separate account? Just ignore everything and leave things as they are? If you're an artist, and I would upload your picture in my "scraps" gallery, would you feel insulted?
Eh, it just bugs me. I've been thinking about what to do with this for years now, I want to find a proper resolution. I'm just thinking openly here since I never write journals anyways!
Edit: Whoops, I mean "Scraps", not "Junk" - I was brain-afk there! Thanks for pointing it out xD
Old Pictures & Silly Art Decisions
Posted 6 years agoAloha!
I've been drawing some random stuff over the past 4-5 years that I never "finished" and uploaded here (or anywhere), so I'll probably start cleaning them up a bit and do so over the next months. Just don't be surprised if the quality jumps around a lot, as they are old and I had a lot of art-style experiments during the years.
Which brings me to my next point - yes, finally, I've managed to decide on question #204821.3! The answer is plantigrade. Yes, yes, I've been struggling around with a lot of silly stylistic questions over years: Square eyes, round eyes, triangle eyes, big eyes, small eyes or no eyes? Five fingers or four fingers? Digitigrade or Plantigrade? Coinslot nipples or realistic nipples? Hair or "headfur"? Compact muzzles or long muzzles? Cartoony or semi-"realistic"? Should Edward have three or four tentacles up his butt? Questions like these are the reason why I tend to switch things around a lot, as I'm usually just randomly experimenting with things and changing my mind all the damn time.
And as stupid as it may sound, feet are actually a rather big problem: They decide about stance, movement, possible clothing articles (aka "shoes"), etc. And while I personally prefer digitigrade, plantigrade just wins out in the long run. Especially if I want to get more "movement" in future pictures.
I'm also trying to get my eyes "bigger", but I often tend to forget to do so since I'm used to draw them tiny for some reason. All of this just for the slim hope to one day (~35 years) be more consistent when drawing my random trash :D One day, I might even manage to remember my SAI settings without re-guessing them every couple of weeks!
So, what are your silly art-style decisions you guys had to make over the years? Don't tell me I'm the only one with this type of OCD :)
I've been drawing some random stuff over the past 4-5 years that I never "finished" and uploaded here (or anywhere), so I'll probably start cleaning them up a bit and do so over the next months. Just don't be surprised if the quality jumps around a lot, as they are old and I had a lot of art-style experiments during the years.
Which brings me to my next point - yes, finally, I've managed to decide on question #204821.3! The answer is plantigrade. Yes, yes, I've been struggling around with a lot of silly stylistic questions over years: Square eyes, round eyes, triangle eyes, big eyes, small eyes or no eyes? Five fingers or four fingers? Digitigrade or Plantigrade? Coinslot nipples or realistic nipples? Hair or "headfur"? Compact muzzles or long muzzles? Cartoony or semi-"realistic"? Should Edward have three or four tentacles up his butt? Questions like these are the reason why I tend to switch things around a lot, as I'm usually just randomly experimenting with things and changing my mind all the damn time.
And as stupid as it may sound, feet are actually a rather big problem: They decide about stance, movement, possible clothing articles (aka "shoes"), etc. And while I personally prefer digitigrade, plantigrade just wins out in the long run. Especially if I want to get more "movement" in future pictures.
I'm also trying to get my eyes "bigger", but I often tend to forget to do so since I'm used to draw them tiny for some reason. All of this just for the slim hope to one day (~35 years) be more consistent when drawing my random trash :D One day, I might even manage to remember my SAI settings without re-guessing them every couple of weeks!
So, what are your silly art-style decisions you guys had to make over the years? Don't tell me I'm the only one with this type of OCD :)
Sorry guys, I fucked up D:
Posted 8 years agoIt's the same thing that bugs me since 2 years, and now I have to put an end to it.
I'm still not done with the raffle pics; and the problem is, that they just completely art-block me. I've always had the problem that I can't draw "when I have to", and while I thought that it got better, it hasn't. It got to the point where I pretty much was afraid to upload anything else, since I didn't want to piss off people that still wait for a raffle pic - but I kinda have to "cancel" those completely at this point. My brain just doesn't let me draw them.
Sorry, I fucked up, and I should've known better to begin with. I may be able to make up for it with something random down the line, but I can't really say.
Still, I finally want to free that "block" up a bit, and get more active again / actually upload stuff more regularly again. Sorry again for disappointing like that, I really wish I could've done better D:
I'll probably cleanup and upload some "old" stuff I've done during the past 2 years, that I didn't upload yet over the next few weeks.
I'm still not done with the raffle pics; and the problem is, that they just completely art-block me. I've always had the problem that I can't draw "when I have to", and while I thought that it got better, it hasn't. It got to the point where I pretty much was afraid to upload anything else, since I didn't want to piss off people that still wait for a raffle pic - but I kinda have to "cancel" those completely at this point. My brain just doesn't let me draw them.
Sorry, I fucked up, and I should've known better to begin with. I may be able to make up for it with something random down the line, but I can't really say.
Still, I finally want to free that "block" up a bit, and get more active again / actually upload stuff more regularly again. Sorry again for disappointing like that, I really wish I could've done better D:
I'll probably cleanup and upload some "old" stuff I've done during the past 2 years, that I didn't upload yet over the next few weeks.
Sorry for the delays, guys!
Posted 9 years agoI know I haven't been active at all recently. The raffle pics are still on top of my todo list, but as always, I'm just very slow with requested pics and unhappy with the results so far - that's why it's taking a bit. Also, time is running damn fast, lately!
Sorry again for the delays, I haven't forgot - I'm just slow! Grrr!
Sorry again for the delays, I haven't forgot - I'm just slow! Grrr!
Update about raffle-winner pictures
Posted 9 years agoHello!
As I warned beforehand, I'm a bit on the slow side when it comes to "finish" pictures, that's why it's taking me a while to get them done (especially since I want them to look good, but I'm not quite happy yet). So, just as an update / info, it'll still take me a little while but they should start to trickle in by next week (I mainly do this stuff on weekends)!
Sorry for the delays, but yeah well, I'm slooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooow! D:
As I warned beforehand, I'm a bit on the slow side when it comes to "finish" pictures, that's why it's taking me a while to get them done (especially since I want them to look good, but I'm not quite happy yet). So, just as an update / info, it'll still take me a little while but they should start to trickle in by next week (I mainly do this stuff on weekends)!
Sorry for the delays, but yeah well, I'm slooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooow! D:
Thanks to all my watchers! Raffle over!
Posted 10 years agoHello and thanks again for the support ~ I know 1000 isn't much, but I like milestones, and it's certainly one! :D
Alright, let's see what we have here with the raffle winners: I decided to increase the number of prices, since there were so many people participating (and I hate seeing too many loose). Originally, I expected maybe 10-15 participants, but it ended up with 47 participants - more than three times as much! And as mentioned, I'ld consider raising the number of prices if there are too many people.
Alright, for every 100 tickets there's 1 full picture and 2 sketchy/simple pictures to win. We have 231 tickets, so that's 2 full pictures and 4 simple pictures.
Here the results of the randomizer: (#150, #91, #21, #96,#97, #227, #29) http://imgur.com/1JYRFSw
Results for http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/7238290/
Kintuse won a full picture! (#150)
MrMaxwell won a full picture! (#91)
SkyRunner091 won a simple picture! (#21)
PepperThePoochyena won a simple picture! (#96, #97)
KishnievRat won a simple picture! (#227)
Thaine won a simple picture! (#29)
If for any reason, someone doesn't want their price, let me know and I'll just re-shuffle your ticket for someone else to get another chance at it! Sorry for everyone who didn't win anything this round, but I'm quite sure I'll do a few more raffles in the near future, they're fun ;3
Edit: About the content of the pictures, as specified in the raffle journal: One of your OC's either as a solo pic or with my OC's in them. Additionally, if two of you feel like throwing two wins togheter I don't mind doing that either ;)
I'll contact the winners and discuss the details. Have a nice day! :D
Alright, let's see what we have here with the raffle winners: I decided to increase the number of prices, since there were so many people participating (and I hate seeing too many loose). Originally, I expected maybe 10-15 participants, but it ended up with 47 participants - more than three times as much! And as mentioned, I'ld consider raising the number of prices if there are too many people.
Alright, for every 100 tickets there's 1 full picture and 2 sketchy/simple pictures to win. We have 231 tickets, so that's 2 full pictures and 4 simple pictures.
Here the results of the randomizer: (#150, #91, #21, #96,
Results for http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/7238290/
Kintuse won a full picture! (#150)
MrMaxwell won a full picture! (#91)
SkyRunner091 won a simple picture! (#21)
PepperThePoochyena won a simple picture! (#96, #97)
KishnievRat won a simple picture! (#227)
Thaine won a simple picture! (#29)If for any reason, someone doesn't want their price, let me know and I'll just re-shuffle your ticket for someone else to get another chance at it! Sorry for everyone who didn't win anything this round, but I'm quite sure I'll do a few more raffles in the near future, they're fun ;3
Edit: About the content of the pictures, as specified in the raffle journal: One of your OC's either as a solo pic or with my OC's in them. Additionally, if two of you feel like throwing two wins togheter I don't mind doing that either ;)
I'll contact the winners and discuss the details. Have a nice day! :D
1000 Watcher Raffle! (When it gets to that point!)
Posted 10 years agoEdit: Raffle will end at midnight, 3.1.2016 (tonight) (GMT+1 / EST+6) - or in other words: in 6 hours after this edit
It's a bit early, but since I write journaly in 3-4 month increments I'ld say it doesn't matter anyways!
Yes, yes... let's try this whole raffle affair! I already know I'll regret it ;D In any case, I was thinking to do a little raffle for when I (hopefully) get the 1000th watcher in (probably) a couple of months! Partially as thanks for all your support and partially just because I feel like it!
One fully colored picture is planned. Depending on the number of participants, I might go with two or more - but we'll see then! Now... this is a bit special: It won't quite be like a comission - I prefer to work with "ideas & suggestions", in the sense that I'ld like to retain a bit of artistic freedom when it comes to the subject / picture! Also, you're allowed to include my characters (Emerald, Ruby, Edward, Arthur, Blazeborn, etc) in your picture suggestion then, if it fits - but that's obviously not a must. Just ask by note if you need more details, hehe!
Now, how it works (I'll do it with tickets - because I like the game-y feeling of getting EXTRA POINTS!):
* Each person can post once and gets 1 ticket by default (and minimum!)
* +3 Tickets if you watch me! (yeah it's pointless I know, but whatever - everybody else has 'watching' as rule anyways)
* +1 Tickets if you watched me BEFORE this journal (just to be fair ~ It's supposed to be a 'thanks' to my current watchers, after all)
* +1 If you convinced (annoyed) someone to participate as well! (That person should mention your name in their post)
*-1 If I already drew you. Why? Because chances are I'm going to draw you again and again anyways! ;D This only applies once.
* +5 If you have big tits and a nice ass. (This is a joke. ;) )
Edit: You know what? FUCK the -1 rule. I hate subtracting tickets for that, and in many cases it doesn't really make sense anyways. If luck wants to hit someone I already drew, so be it!
Please link either a ref-sheet or a picture that gives me all the necessary visual details of your character! But that can also be discussed later, if you win! The raffle will happen once I get to watcher 1000 (I'ld estimate, a couple of months from now). All genders, species, shapes and colors allowed! I'm flexible when it comes to content & fetishes, but please read my profile description to see what I probably won't be drawing!
Oh - And there will be (cheap) champagner too!
It's a bit early, but since I write journaly in 3-4 month increments I'ld say it doesn't matter anyways!
Yes, yes... let's try this whole raffle affair! I already know I'll regret it ;D In any case, I was thinking to do a little raffle for when I (hopefully) get the 1000th watcher in (probably) a couple of months! Partially as thanks for all your support and partially just because I feel like it!
One fully colored picture is planned. Depending on the number of participants, I might go with two or more - but we'll see then! Now... this is a bit special: It won't quite be like a comission - I prefer to work with "ideas & suggestions", in the sense that I'ld like to retain a bit of artistic freedom when it comes to the subject / picture! Also, you're allowed to include my characters (Emerald, Ruby, Edward, Arthur, Blazeborn, etc) in your picture suggestion then, if it fits - but that's obviously not a must. Just ask by note if you need more details, hehe!
Now, how it works (I'll do it with tickets - because I like the game-y feeling of getting EXTRA POINTS!):
* Each person can post once and gets 1 ticket by default (and minimum!)
* +3 Tickets if you watch me! (yeah it's pointless I know, but whatever - everybody else has 'watching' as rule anyways)
* +1 Tickets if you watched me BEFORE this journal (just to be fair ~ It's supposed to be a 'thanks' to my current watchers, after all)
* +1 If you convinced (annoyed) someone to participate as well! (That person should mention your name in their post)
*
* +5 If you have big tits and a nice ass. (This is a joke. ;) )
Edit: You know what? FUCK the -1 rule. I hate subtracting tickets for that, and in many cases it doesn't really make sense anyways. If luck wants to hit someone I already drew, so be it!
Please link either a ref-sheet or a picture that gives me all the necessary visual details of your character! But that can also be discussed later, if you win! The raffle will happen once I get to watcher 1000 (I'ld estimate, a couple of months from now). All genders, species, shapes and colors allowed! I'm flexible when it comes to content & fetishes, but please read my profile description to see what I probably won't be drawing!
Oh - And there will be (cheap) champagner too!
Bringing order into the chaos!
Posted 10 years agoBah, after about 8 years of collectiong data, accounts and I-don't-know-what I decided to finally try and clean things up a bit! Sorting some files, doing some backups, recovering a few dozen forgotten passwords, merging some accounts... (Holy shit, I had a furcadia account! Why?) - and I even started to clean up my chaotic mess of a draw folder!
Yeah well... do you know that kind of person that just creates a "New Folder" every time they get fed up with the thousands of files filling up the screen and then throws everything into it, creating an endless undescriptive structure of "New Folder"'s with random files in them? I'm pretty much that kind of person. Multiply that with a couple years worth of random stuff, and you have a giant mess!
I (theoretically) like order and structure... it's just that my brain doesn't like to follow rules.
I've set up a tumblr account, meant for alternate versions of certain pictures (since I don't want to upload the same pic 4 times or so!) so that'll be my junkyard for that stuff - appropriately named katais-trash.tumblr.com. I'll also be setting up a dropbox acc soon to throw everything into that as well, just for redundancy (and comfort).
And now, if you excuse me... I need to throw all my desktop files into another "New Folder" folder, it's getting kind of full! :D
Yeah well... do you know that kind of person that just creates a "New Folder" every time they get fed up with the thousands of files filling up the screen and then throws everything into it, creating an endless undescriptive structure of "New Folder"'s with random files in them? I'm pretty much that kind of person. Multiply that with a couple years worth of random stuff, and you have a giant mess!
I (theoretically) like order and structure... it's just that my brain doesn't like to follow rules.
I've set up a tumblr account, meant for alternate versions of certain pictures (since I don't want to upload the same pic 4 times or so!) so that'll be my junkyard for that stuff - appropriately named katais-trash.tumblr.com. I'll also be setting up a dropbox acc soon to throw everything into that as well, just for redundancy (and comfort).
And now, if you excuse me... I need to throw all my desktop files into another "New Folder" folder, it's getting kind of full! :D
500 Watchers! Yaay!
Posted 10 years agoYou realize I'm just wasting your time now, right? ;D
And yeah yeah I know, peanuts, but for me it's many!
Hahhaa, a big thanks to everyone for watching, once more ~<3 Hope you're still enjoying ;3
And yeah yeah I know, peanuts, but for me it's many!
Hahhaa, a big thanks to everyone for watching, once more ~<3 Hope you're still enjoying ;3
Alright "coinslot"-nipples, you win!
Posted 10 years agoJust as a remnider, nipples usually look like this (NSFW) http://i.imgur.com/HE9YV.jpg
They usually DON'T have huge "coinslots" across the nipple to throw in your money!
Yes, I know - shocking, right?! When I had sex the first time I brought my whole piggybank along too, just to find out that women had no coinslots on their nipples to throw in my money!
And yes, I know why nipples are drawn with those "coinslots" or as "tubes" so often - or let's say, I think I know: It's much easier to give them a shape and a "puffy" look with it, especially while doing outlines. What annoys me about it, kinda, is just that you barely ever see anything else than theese "coinslot" nipples anymore.
But... maybe some people actually think nipple have "coinslots" on them? It sort of made me think: Is this a case of "Reality is Unrealistic"? Where people expect something/believe something because it's depicted so often in media, that they find it unrealistic or uninteresting without? (example: EVERY car dropping from a hill has to explode! Right?!) Maybe it's so common to see those nipples, because if you don't draw coinslots on them, people don't find it attractive since they're always looking for a slot to throw their money in? [add obvious metaphor about people wasting money here :D]
But alright - "coinslot"-nipples, you win! From now on, you can invest your money in my ti- I mean from now on breasts I draw will turn into big, milky (and hopefully sexy) piggybanks!
Don't ask me why I pointlessly ranted about this, I just had it in my mind for a while now xD
PS: But dicknipples are totally realistic.
PPS: I should probably mention that this journal doesn't contain any sarcasm or other preservatives. And it has only 3% fat!
They usually DON'T have huge "coinslots" across the nipple to throw in your money!
Yes, I know - shocking, right?! When I had sex the first time I brought my whole piggybank along too, just to find out that women had no coinslots on their nipples to throw in my money!
And yes, I know why nipples are drawn with those "coinslots" or as "tubes" so often - or let's say, I think I know: It's much easier to give them a shape and a "puffy" look with it, especially while doing outlines. What annoys me about it, kinda, is just that you barely ever see anything else than theese "coinslot" nipples anymore.
But... maybe some people actually think nipple have "coinslots" on them? It sort of made me think: Is this a case of "Reality is Unrealistic"? Where people expect something/believe something because it's depicted so often in media, that they find it unrealistic or uninteresting without? (example: EVERY car dropping from a hill has to explode! Right?!) Maybe it's so common to see those nipples, because if you don't draw coinslots on them, people don't find it attractive since they're always looking for a slot to throw their money in? [add obvious metaphor about people wasting money here :D]
But alright - "coinslot"-nipples, you win! From now on, you can invest your money in my ti- I mean from now on breasts I draw will turn into big, milky (and hopefully sexy) piggybanks!
Don't ask me why I pointlessly ranted about this, I just had it in my mind for a while now xD
PS: But dicknipples are totally realistic.
PPS: I should probably mention that this journal doesn't contain any sarcasm or other preservatives. And it has only 3% fat!
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