Abusing my blog to send this to a friend.

I’m interupting this blog in order to point to this giant elephant.

My wall-of-text days are long since over, so I’ll just let the rest of the internet do it.

I usually don’t comment on this sort of thing, because it’s not really what I’m involved in, but this new request from PETA is just silly.

Of course, common sense, heavily-ingrained agricultural societies, and western cultural boundries are just temporary annoyances; make way for PETA and drink yo’ momma’s milk.

This is to top off a few weeks ago when PETA basically said all mexicans should stay in mexico so they can live off a diet of white-romantisized non-lethal tortillas.

If these were jokes, they would be funny. But they’re true requests. I don’t hate PETA and I don’t hate animals, but whoever is spearheading recent campaigns may as well start saying “Let them eat cake!”

DURR HURRR YAYYYYY (I’m a few days late on this news, sorry)

The article states that Cecil will be able to switch back and forth from Dark Knight and Paladin. OMG Hax out of context much?

So far, I am unable to find any character designs of the two (perhaps yet to be released). Thanks Wikipedia:

DK Cecil:

Pally Cecil:

Golbez:

In any case, it is only a matter of time before Terra and Kefka are confirmed, amirite? Well you’d be surprized how much messege boards like to argue that it wont be them… Captain obvious needs to pay them a visit.

Trying the wp upload thing. Kinda sucks…

You don’t need Photoshop for digitial painting. At the bare minimum, you would need layers and anti-aliasing, which is basically someone’s Oekaki install.

If you’re looking for something more advanced than that, here are some moar free tool options:

• Aviary - Like a web-based Creative Suite. You can save your big layered work right on the intertubes.
• Splashup - Web-based Photoshop-like application for your browser. Looks a lot like Aviary.
• GIMP - Opensource Photoshop-like application for Windows. (Mac version here)
• Seashore - A very light opensource Photoshop-like application for Mac-only.

The most important thing you can do as a cartoonist is master human anatomy. Okay so maybe Charles Shultz and Art Spiegelman probably didn’t think it was the most important thing, and rarely is any cartoonist a Di Vinci. Nonetheless, being comfortable drawing a real human body is key to making the unrealistic version that is your own style.

I’m not a master of anything, nor a super famous artist. However, I have been drawing nude models off and on for about seven years. Figure drawing is personally one of my favorite things about visual art. It also translates glarringly well into the comics field.

Getting Naked

The best, time-tested method to learning anatomy is drawing nude models. Yes, actual naked people standing a few feet in front of you, making poses for five hours (and heros, they are). If you’re an art student or a former one, you’re probably yawning by now. If you’re thinking about become an art student, or are one and avoid anatomy/figure drawing classes for whatever reason, then this post is more for you.

Virgins to drawing nude models, never fear. When you’re in the artist mindset, a big hairy guy named Bruno with a droopy ballsack will, infact, seem like a piece of interesting pottery. That’s not to say that there isn’t an intimacy between you and Bruno. There is a unique relationship that goes on between artist and model for those brief hours. It’s a kind of relationship that I feel will become less and less familiar as more people turn to the internet for references.

Finding Naked People

You don’t have to be a student of Rich Fancy-Pants Art School to find people willing to get naked for you. Here are some other options:

• Draw your naked friends. If you don’t have naked friends due to cultural boundries and never-nudes, move onto the next step.
• Draw your naked partner/spouse. If your signficant-other can’t stay still naked for long periods of time due to hormones or the need to take out the garbage, move onto the next step.
• Enroll in a community college figure drawing class. The models will be provided and even some materials. A set schedule and constructive critisism from fellow students is also very helpful. Although it’s nowhere near as expensive as Rich Fancy-Pants Art School, tuition and supplies will actually cost you the same amount as a fancy pair of pants.
• Enroll in a night class or a community art group. This is far less official than community college courses. These are usually groupings made up of local artists who come together on a weekly bases to stay fresh on the basics. The models provided usually varry much more in age, gender, and body type, making it almost a better option than “official” resources. The price of these are usually a few dollars a week. Amounting to about 50 or 60 bucks for a “semester” if you will.

Keeping Nakedness in Your Life

So you’ve already drawn your share of naked people. You’re totally awesome and know the human body better than anyone on Deviantart and Gaia Online. Good for you. You should still keep signing up for the odd class now and then. Let the naked people help sharpen your blade

Google takes one more step towards owning the internet, fusing into one mighty trapperkeeper, and becoming The Puppet Master.

I’ve been testing Google Chrome out for the few minutes it’s been available. It’s actually a very attractive browser with the most intuitive mast and tab placement I’ve ever seen. Code is rendered perfectly, etc.

Download Google Chrome Beta

Enjoy! (Windows only, for now)

Update: Chrome is pretty resource heavy. On top of that it’s only beta, which leaves it lacking in the functionality department. In due time, user extentions/plugins/whathaveyou will be made and perhaps make this browser worth it. Also, porn mode. For now, I don’t recommend developing or testing on it; no need.

Update 2: The resource heavyness has to do with the initial design of the browser, and is actually intentional. What makes Chrome different is that each tab is run completely independent from the other. To quote a coworker:

That is the future of the web, by the way. Operating Systems will be phased out and replaced by the browser. The future is exciting :>.