Illustration Friday: Adrift

Illustration Friday: Adrift, originally uploaded by speartoons.

Cartoon of cat and dog on and iceberg. Dog says, “On the bright side, at least the snow has melted.”

When this week's word, "adrift," came up for Illustration Friday, I thought of all the snow in my backyard and my poor pets. They have had a hard time with the snow. And Indiana hasn't gotten the kind of snow that has assaulted the east coast. We've had only a small taste of Snowmageddon.

I drew this in Adobe Illustrator CS2

illustration Friday-Focused

Here is my digital illustration for this week's topic on Illustration Friday. This week's word is "focused."

When they announced the word, I immediately thought of a camera. After all, I've been having all sorts of fun with a point and shoot camera. But the thought soon left me, so obviously, that didn't have much of an impact on me. If I didn't care all that much, I didn't expect anyone else to care either.

When I went back to the sketch, the word, "cheese" stood out. Why do we say cheese when we pose for a camera anyway? Wait, a minute... cheese? What animal is the most focused? I thought of my cat. That critter can get focused on anything that moves. Cats... cheese... mice.... I wondered what connection could be there.

Here were the sketches I made as I was thinking and doodling. As I was thinking of a mouse, I thought how focused one feels if they get the feeling they are being watched. 

I took my illustration into Adobe Illustrator. I started drawing the mouse.   

I begin drawing by using the pen tool. It takes a little while to get used to, but you can't beat the accuracy and the flexibility once you master it. The pen tool allows you to draw with a mouse or a digital tablet equally well. When I finished the drawing, I took it into Live Paint, eliminated the unneeded strokes and started filling in areas with color.

Next, I began drawing the cat. I put each character on a different layer so I could move them around and apply different effects to each.

I put the eyes and whiskers of the cat on different layers to I could apply a glow to the eyes, and a faded effect for the whiskers. Next, I added a layer of dark color just above the cat layer. This helped everything pop a little more and give a little mystery to the cat.

I drew this all in Adobe Illustrator.

Illustration Friday-Wilderness

Illustration Friday-Wilderness, originally uploaded by speartoons.

This is my sketch for Illustration Friday. This week's word is ";wilderness" Whenever I think of wilderness, I envision the old Hanna Barbera, Yogi Bear cartoons. As a kid, I thought everyone was mean because they wouldn't feed the bears. This is how I would have liked those cartoons to turn out.

My idealism changed when we went on a vacation to the Smoky Mountains and I saw a bear charge a tourist. That settles it. It's not a good idea to feed the bears.

I drew this in Adobe Photoshop

Illustration Friday: Confined

Illustration Friday: Confined, originally uploaded by speartoons.

Illustration of a mom and two children looking at the snow from a window. There is nothing like a snow day to bring the joy to children and depression to parents.

Yes, my kids have a snow day today. And mom is home with the gang. I hope she is having a better day than the poor women in this illustration.

I drew this for Illustration Friday. This week's word is "confined."

I drew this in Adobe Illustrator

Sketch: A Family Reunion

Chamberlain Family Reunion, originally uploaded by speartoons.

Sketch of a photo from the Anderson (Indiana) Herald-Bulletin. The article was about the Chamberlain Family Reunion on Christmas Day. The article is at http://www.heraldbulletin.com/archivesearch/local_story_359201717.html

The photo had the patriarch of the family holding twins that were his great-great niece and great-great nephew. It was a great choice for Illustration Friday's theme. This week's word was "pioneer." The gentleman had traveled to Anderson, Indiana from the south when he was young to look for work. He found it in the factories and soon his family followed.

The Anderson Herald-Bulletins owns the copyright to the photo I based this sketch on.

Cartoon: Musical Tech

Spear-Cartoon_3560, originally uploaded by speartoons.

Cartoon of boy and dad at computer. Boy says, "You're listening to classical music on the Internet? Doesn't that violate some techie code of conduct?"

I drew this comic in Adobe Illustrator CS2. It also is for Illustration Friday. This week's word is "music."

Illustration Friday: Blur

Cartoon of boy and mom. Son says, "I don't know what the principal told you. For me, the food fight was a blur."

I have to admit, I wasn't usually the boy starting a food fight in the cafeteria. I was the kid observing the whole melee, hiding and admiring the troublemaker for his chutzpah. It's much safer that way, and the teachers like you better.

I drew this for Illustration Friday. This week's word is "blur."

I drew this comic in Adobe Illustrator CS2

Webcomic: Skinny Halloween

Spear-Cartoon_3551, originally uploaded by speartoons.

Cartoon of girl and dad. Girl says,"I don't know. I was hoping for a Halloween costume that makes me look skinny."

I've noticed Halloween costumes have gone from the old, traditional creepy crawlies to the more... oh... bewitching. Come one, people! kids have enough pressure on body image. Give them a break!

I drew this web comic for Illustration Friday. This week's word is "skinny."

I also drew this cartoon in Adobe Illustrator CS2

Webcomic: Fast Trick or Treating

Cartoon of trick or treaters. There is a clown, firefighter and a princess. The firefighter says to the running princess, “Are you saying we should skip this next house?”

I drew this for Illustration Friday. This week's word is "Fast." I'm guessing the girl is clocking in at sixty five miles per hour and qualifies as fast.

I drew this comic in Adobe Illustrator CS2

Illustration Friday: Frozen

Illustration Friday: Frozen, originally uploaded by speartoons.

Webcomic of a dad and daughter. The daughter says, "I just realized your wardrobe is frozen in time."

Every dad will one day face the disgust of his daughter. Fashion can play a big part of that. Fashion is just another way of saying, "What were you thinking?

I drew this cartoon for Illustration Friday. This week's word is "frozen."

I drew comic in Adobe Illustrator CS2

Cartoonist/Illustrator Ricco Schacherl

Today, I discovered the work of Ricco Schacherl of Johannesburg, South Africa. He had a delightful cartoon for Illustration Friday's word, "flying."

I like how the cartoon shows the tension and hope in spreading your wings and flying. At the same time, the "kick me" sign shows it's not easy spreading your wings.

Here's the link to the site.

http://dogatesketchbook.blogspot.com/2009/10/illustration-friday-flying.html

Webcomic: I'm Flying!

Cartoon of injured boy. He says to another, "I learned even if it feels like you're flying, it isn't worth it to jump off a swing in mid air."

Yes, I tried this a few times as a child. The swing is an unforgiving master. I got smacked in the back a few time. But I didn't get any broken bones. I have no idea how I escaped that fate!

I drew this comic for Illustration Friday. This week's word is "Flying."

I drew this in Adobe Illustrator CS2

Germs' Rights

Cartoon of a germ and a boy. The germ says, “Don’t be a germaphobe, kid. What did we ever do to you?... I mean, besides that illness thing?”

I drew this comic for Illustration Friday. This week's word is "germs." How appropriate for a season in our lives where Swine Flu and hand sanitizers rule the day. Be sure to sneeze on your sleeve, please. Ignore those germ protests. They may have strength in numbers, but we have flu shots and Tamilflu

I drew this in Adobe Illustrator CS2

Romantic Patterns

Cartoon of a boy and dad with flowers. Boy says, "Last night, you two argued. Today, you come home with flowers. I detect a pattern."

Handy tip, guys. Flowers do the trick. And if you ever think it's better to be right than have peace, you'll want to dig a trench because it will be a long, cold war.

I drew this for Illustration Friday. This week's word is "Pattern."

Cartoon: Infinite ways

Cartoon of two boys walking. One says, "Today at school, I discovered there are an infinite number of ways to annoy a girl."

Yes, there are an infinite number of ways to annoy people, I'm going to try and find the infinite number of ways to be a blessing today.

This also works for Illustration Friday. This week's word is "infinite."

I drew this in Adobe Illustrator CS2

Cartoon: A Strong Dog

Cartoon of boy with pets. Boy says to dog, "Look at it this way. It takes a strong dog to admit the cat rules the house."

No doubt about it. In our house, the cat rules the roost. The only exception is when our dog is able to ambush the cat. Corners are very good for that.

I also drew this for Illustration Friday. This week's word is "strong."

I drew this in Adobe Illustrator CS2

Cartoon: Magnify That Brain

Cartoon of teacher and student. Student says, “Can I go to the science lab? I can’t handle your tests unless I magnify my brain."

I also drew this for Illustration Friday. This week's word is "magnify."

I drew this in Adobe Illustrator CS3

Caution to the Wind

Cartoon of man and woman. Man says, "Next time, when I throw caution to the wind, I'll make sure it's not a headwind. "

I drew this for Illustration Friday. This week's word is, "caution."

I drew this in Adobe Illustrator CS3

Wrapped Up in Apologies

Student Apologies, originally uploaded by speartoons.

Cartoon: Student says to teacher, "For anything I may do this school year, I'd like to offer a blanket apology."

Also works for Illustration Friday. This week's word is "wrapped." This guy is wrapped up in getting his apologies out of the way first. There's a few sports figures and politicians that could learn from that. Just apologize in advance when you're elected or get that multi-million dollar contract.

Please ask before using this cartoon. I can provide a watermarked free image upon request.

I drew this in Adobe Illustrator CS3

Cartoon: Dentist appointment

Cartoon: Dentist appointment, originally uploaded by speartoons.

Cartoon of dentis to patient: "You're teeth look great. But it looks like we need to extract your tongue."

My trip to the dentist was okay, but strange thoughts happen when you are in the dentist's chair. My tongue is fine, however.

This works for Illustration Friday. This week's word is, "impatience." It's hard to be patient when a dentist is inserting strange tools in your mouth!

I drew this in Adobe Iluustrator CS3.