Susuki Airi Red Hat

I’ve been wanting to make an all ink drawing for a while now. This time I chose to draw Airi Suzuki. It’s a shame I got into ℃-ute (and Berryz Koubou) a little late to the party. I listened to a couple of their songs back in the day but never really delved into all their projects. On the plus side I have plenty of new material that will be new to me. I’m really glad Airi decided to continue singing after ℃-ute retired. I wont lie out of all the ℃-ute members Airi captured my attention the most (although everyone is winning me over when I started checking their songs and videos out, but I still think Airi is my favorite).

One artist that gave me the final push to finally draw this piece is ungrochika an artist that focuses on making art with ink. Her art is quite beautiful do check it out.

here is her twitter

and her instagram

Not only is she an artist but she is also a DJ (and to top it off she is extremely cute too), do check her out.

Here is the final piece:

reference used (and a piece by ungrochika that guided me a bit). I don’t know where the photo of Airi is from, if you know do let me know.:

and the process:

Hasta la proxima,

-NUBE

March 12, 2019 0

Riku KHII Bust

Whenever I have time I have been playing through the Kingdom Hearts series before I go ahead and play Kingdom Hearts III. So far I have finished the original, saw the 358/2 days scenes, I started playing Chain of memories but it was quite straining so I went ahead and saw the scenes on youtube. Anyway I finished Kingdom Hearts II about two weeks ago. And I gotta say, the design for Riku in Kingdom Hearts II was definitely the best version so far. I’ve seen his design in Kingdom Hearts III and so far KHII is still the best. Both with the cloak and the his normal clothes.

As a side note, after finishing Kingdom Hearts II I decided to go back to Chain of Memories and slug through it. I really don’t like quitting. I’m almost done with Sora’s section then there should be a short section where I play as Riku.

Here is the finished piece done with my G pen and my Copics:

I made a quick background with Photoshop and Corel Painter:

References used:

Process:

Digital background process:

That should be all for now.

Hasta la proxima,

-NUBE

February 21, 2019 0

Happy Valentines Day 2019

Welp today was Valentines day so since I want to participate in the seasons holidays a bit more so that the years don’t feel so monotonous I of course made a drawing for today. I’ve been wanting to do a purely pen drawing this time. I also wanted to try out siiteiebahiro ‘s style for a while now. So I used this chance to give it a try. What’s funny is that as I was trying to find the link to Hiro’s twitter account I stumbled upon one of his videos where he showcases his inking process. Looking at it, it is obvious why they both look so different when it comes to the way the hair was inked. Having said that I’m glad I didn’t see it till after I was done so that I could compare both styles.

I used Airi Suzuki as a reference for this piece using a photo from her photobook “Aoiro”. I just changed some things to make her in the manga style and having her hold a gift.

Here is the final piece:

References used:

Here is the process:

Hope you guys had a great day today.

Hasta la proxima,

-NUBE

February 14, 2019 0

First drawing, inking and painting of 2019

I took about a week off from Christmas to New Years but have been working on some new pieces during that time. On around January 3rd I started to work on the first artwork of 2019. Of course I decided to make a drawing/inking/painting of Sayumi Michishige. I had bought her new photobook “Dream” last year but didn’t open it till New Years. I really loved it. Some of the photos are quite magical and give a fairy tale feel.

What I ended up doing was choosing some photos from her “Dream” photobook, Instagram and some others I had stored up. I wasn’t too sure about how I would have done the background but it turned out to be a good opportunity to try out using some patterned papers that I have been collecting over the years. I have been stockpiling them but I haven’t actually used them in anything till now (I tried making one before with The Kubo artwork but it was a failed attempt). I did edit these patterned background, which makes me excited to see what I can do with them. Speaking of the background I wanted to draw the rabbit from the Haro Moni show where they had a segment going on amusement rides to promote merchandise. But I was afraid I would be a little too similar to an amazing painting done by koha . You can check it out here

I really love the way she was painted and the way the rabbit stands in the back. When I finished my painting and I went to look at Koha’s I was surprised at how different our styles and techniques were.

For the color selections I decided to scan my current Copic swatches that I use traditionally to choose colors. From there I used the colors I had closest to what I wanted and edited them as needed. (I would upload the swatches but as I was working with them I noticed that they were a bit off so I need to go through them and make sure the colors are correct).

Here is the final piece:

And just for you guys who stop by here some other versions (I liked the idea that I could change the tights design, heck even the color should be easy to change):

This one is with out any lightening of some lines from the original drawing-

And one with Sayu using a polkadot design instead of the bunnies-

Here are the references used:

This is the main one I used but I obviously edited her pose and added some different clothes (the one on the bottom) –

And here are the rest (the Usa Chan Peace pose being very important):

And this is the patterned paper I used as the base for background –

I didn’t really focus too much on documenting the process because I just wanted to paint without any distractions and just enjoy the process. Having said that, here are the few I pictures of the process I do have:

Sayu as a brunette:

I’ve gotten quite comfortable just painting it all on one layer, at least with these more realistic pieces. The background I do make another separate piece since I can work much faster that way without having to mess with the main subject. I do want to paint Sayu in a traditional medium, I have some Arches water color paper that I have been wanting to use for a couple of months now so hopefully that will be done soon.

And with that I end this first post of the year. Here’s to hoping we have a great year ahead of us, let’s keep working at it.

Hasta la proxima,

-NUBE

Usa Chan Peace! V(⁎˃ᆺ˂)V

January 10, 2019 0

Kanzaki Kaori Fallen Angel

In episode 8 of To Aru Majutsu No Index III everyone was left hanging with the scene of Kanzaki Kaori wearing her Fallen Angel cosplay for Touma as a thanks for helping the Amakusa followers. So I figured I would draw her after finishing up the Kojiro painting. When I was done with the Fallen Angel painting I went ahead and watched episode 9 of To Aru today and much to my surprise they did show a bit more of Kanzaki with her cosplay (a lot more…) (#ﾟﾛﾟ#)

Hmmm… I made her outfit much less revealing but figured it would only take a couple of edits to change it to fit more closely to the one shown in the anime, though looking at it closely I’m amazed by how much of her cleavage is exposed (to the point it doesn’t make sense)! Σ(ﾟДﾟ;)

So with that I decided to make two versions. This was done using a G Pen and then colored using Photoshop.

Original:

More exposed version based on the anime:

References used:

The image that made me make two versions:

Here is the process:

I am contemplating make another version that has more details to see how much I can push it but still have it look good. Personally I really like the way this version came out. I’ll keep practicing these simpler color versions. I need to be as versatile as possible to be a good artist all around.

Hasta la proxima,

-NUBE

December 7, 2018 0

Kojiro Hyuga Tiger

So I don’t know exactly how it happened but I seemed to have missed the announcement of a new Captain Tsubasa anime. When Japan released the announcement of them hosting the olympics there was this really cool advert that really embraced their pop culture. Among the many animes that made an appearance was Captain Tsubasa. And let me tell you that animation was gorgeous. It seemed to have a lot of it’s aesthetics based on the manga which I felt had the best anime interpretation of Tsubasa that had been released at that point. I really wished that the prospect of there being a new anime would happen but alas there were no plans at that time.

Here is the video. Looking at it now I do wonder if the first segment was in fact from the original series, it looks really good (the whole video is pretty awesome so I recommend watching the whole thing, but if you only want to see the Tsubasa segment it starts at 0:32 and has another segment at 1:08):

Now jump to about two weeks ago and I just happened to stumble upon Captain Tsubasa 2018. It actually looks quite good (definitely better than the 2002 version which I really did not like their art style and coloring). I personally still prefer the effects and animation from the original but this one is great. Or at least it got that way as the series kept going. The second part is definitely superior. But I do have to say, the opening animation was absolutely amazing. It looks even more like manga artwork was being animated.

Not the best version of the opening but here it is (you’ll see the segments that I mention as the opening reaches the end):

I really love Captain Tsubasa, although I really don’t care much for Tsubasa and his team. Truthfully every other important character from the other schools around Japan are much more interesting and appealing to me. As this post and artwork will lead you to believe, of course Hyuga is my favorite character out of all of them, though I do have some more that I really like. But Hyuga is definitely my number one.

Here is the artpiece:

It was done first with dip pens and then colored using Photoshop.

References used:

Here is the process:

Do any of you guys like Captain Tsubasa? If so who is you’re favorite character?

Hasta la proxima,

-NUBE

December 5, 2018 0

Quick drawing, Kamei Eri Mikan

Had to work at my other job today but after seeing the prompt for today’s theme on Pixiv I felt I couldn’t let the opportunity pass. And the prompt is Mikan (tangerine). Since that was the introduction song that got me interested in Morning Musume I decided to draw one of the members holding a tangerine. Since I have mostly been drawing Ai, Sayumi (specially) and Reina I felt it was only fair to draw Kamei Eri again.

I used a reference picture from her photo book “Thanks” and altered it to fit the theme. Could have played a bit more with the drawing but I am a bit tired and hope to rest for the hour I have before I need to call it a day.

Reference picture:

and that of the tangerine:

Just when I was about to post this post I noticed that WordPress did away with the tags, did they move them or are they now just gone? Will look into it when I have a chance.

Nevermind, it seems I’m more tired than I thought. I created a new page instead of a post so I had to redo it all again… （ー△ー；）

That will be all for now.

Hasta la proxima,

-NUBE

December 2, 2018 0

Inktober 2018 #31 Osaka Knife Final Day!

I… made… it….. ヘ（。□°）ヘ

I guess it was a bit tougher than I thought after all…

This time I had the idea of Osaka from Azumanga Daioh. Since it’s Halloween I kept remembering the scene where she had a knife. It started with that then I eventually evolved to what I ended up with. But because I didn’t really have anything in mind I just made up things as I went along. Eventually it turned out kind of like a slasher movie scene. I wonder how I could have made the background look better though? (・_・ヾ

So, yeah that perverted lolicon teacher was a thing. I remember laughing a lot at it when I was a kid but now as an adult… that situation truly is very spooky scary skeletons. Poor Kaorin. (●ฅ́дฅ̀●)

In any case, Happy Halloween!

While I was drawing Kimura sensei and I put him behind the bush I noticed too late that the position of his hands were in a rather … dangerous position so I had to change that in any possible way which luckily didn’t look too bad. ╭( ･ㅂ･)و ̑̑ ˂ᵒ͜͡ᵏᵎ⁾✩

References used:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/darkcloudxero/45607395612/in/dateposted-public/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/darkcloudxero/31785430738/in/dateposted-public/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/darkcloudxero/31785430858/in/dateposted-public/

Process:

It was at this point that I was seriously in a spooky situation so I had to think fast and fix it.

Doesn’t look good now at all but I was hoping that the future me at that point would be able to fix it.

Welp, that’s it for now. This Inktober experience was quite enjoyable but it was also … stressful? I had to keep this rhythm going which was comforting but there were times where I didn’t have enough time to work on any drawings so I had to rush it and try to beat down the clock and also upload it here, Pixiv and Twitter. Yet despite everything I managed to do it.

I’ll try to be a bit more consistent with my updates from now on but using color is something that still takes me a while to do. I hope to be able to do so at least once a week.

In any case,

Hasta la proxima,

-NUBE

October 31, 2018 0

Inktober 2018 #30 Schierke

Hey it’s almost Halloween so how about drawing a witch girl from Berserk. Schierke was a great addition to Guts team. She is definitely at the very least the second strongest member. I really like her design and personality.

Almost at the end of Inktober… it was much easier than I thought surprisingly. oh!((ﾟoﾟ#

References used:

And here is the process:

Hasta la proxima,

-NUBE

October 30, 2018 0

Inktober 2018 #29 Mimikyu

I know that a lot of people think that the Pikachu-Like Pokemons are lazy but I really like this Mimikyu design. Having such a gloomy Pokemon that feels it has to hide his true identity with a Pikachu costume is quite amusing for me. It really makes one feel for Mimikyu. That whole segment of the game was one of my favorite story-lines of the game actually.

Reference pictures:

Process:

Hope you guys like it.

Hasta la proxima,

-NUBE

October 29, 2018 0

Inktober 2018 #28 Akko Kagari

I finally watched Little Witch Academia!

I happened to have a bit of time last week and saw the OVA and loved it. It was so fast paced and the animation was absolutely beautiful and the amount of movement the characters did was really fun to watch. After that I of course watched series. It got slow from time to time but I enjoyed it quite a bit. It touched me quite a bit in certain episodes, I was rather surprised and pleased. I want to talk about it more but I will save that for another time.

As for the drawing it is a quick one.

Here is the reference picture:

And here is the process:

That’s it for now.

Hasta la proxima,

-NUBE

October 28, 2018 0

Inktober 2018 #27 Berserker Armor

I’ve been mesmerized by Miura’s artwork when I finally decided to read it I think two years ago. Truth is that I probably would never have given his work a chance if not for my brother. I’ve seen covers and anime previews about Berserk but the promotional videos made it look like a generic anime about a guy that created a lot of bloodshed and gore. And it’s not that the series doesn’t contain this imagery but it is so much more. In short it is a masterpiece. (ﾉ^ヮ^)ﾉ*:・ﾟ✧

The protagonist Guts has so much tribulations and yet despite it all he continues to fight, though more importantly… live.

One of the cool additions to Berserk was the addition of the Berserker Armor. The way it can amplify his ability to fight beings far beyond humans capabilities but at the cost of his body is such an amazing idea. Dragon ball did this back in the 90s with Goku’s Kaoiken but since Toriyama was forced to continue writing all of that was thrown out the window with the Super Sayajin transformation. I really feel that the idea of having to think whether sacrificing ones body would be a good idea or not was a really interesting concept that would have made Dragon Ball Z better. Luckily Miura used this concept in a very interesting way that really makes one feel every fight that Guts has to go through with a lot of anticipation and excitement. If you haven’t given this series a shot please do. Just make sure you are of age since it has a lot of mature themes.

For this drawing I used three different pens. I used the G pen, the felt tip and the brush to paint the cape and the lower body. I was quite surprised that I was able to do everything that I was imagining quite easily. I was worried that I would have had to do Guts cape with my G pen. Thankfully I didn’t have to. °˖✧◝(⁰▿⁰)◜✧˖°