The Sketchblog

Just some random sketches. That's a quote from my favorite Todd Snider song. It's one we often sing before he goes to sleep.

I guess I felt like drawing dancing people.

Here are the other two tourists I did for a Business section story. I have a nasty habit of doing self-portraits in a lot of my stuff but I don't think anyone has ever noticed.

The original sketch

Stingy business lady

Original sketch

Final illustration.

I get to do illustrations for our weekly calender/weekend publication from time to time and this one was on a fun topic. Merrie Leininger did a story on where to find strong drinks around the Reno area and we came up with this concept for the cover. Where do you go if you want to get bombed (get it, bombed?). I have little (none, actually) first-hand knowledge on the subject so I had to ask my co-workers all kinds of questions to make sure I got the drinks right. "Martinis aren't the ones with salt on the rims, right?"

I spent a couple of hours making this illustration and it printed well. The problem is that the paper we use in the newspaper is very much like toilet paper. All the detail I put into my drawings usually disappears. I suppose I should stop worrying about all the minor things like the fire and reflections in the glass but, I get too attached to how things look.

So, for my sake more than yours, here are a few detail shots.

Here's a sneak-peak at an illustration that we will be running this weekend on tourists in Reno. The idea was to have a picture of the average tourist, and this is what we came up with.

As I said before, I love drawing old people and assume you like to look at drawings of them so, here's a closeup of his cute little face.

People ask me all the time how I do these drawings. It starts out with a pencil sketch (8.5x11) with a little shading that I scan in. I darken up the lines to make them look more like I inked it and then color it in Photoshop. Viola!

I have had a childrens book on the back burner for several years now. The biggest problem is that it takes me so long to make progress on it that by the time I have a new illustration done, I look back and want to change everything I did previously. So, this is the first incarnation of the first page and after collecting dust for a few years, it became......

...this! Much better.

I can't post the words, because, well... that would defeat the purpose of selling the book. Here's the second page. I'm sure I'll redo it next year.


This one's ok. For now. Maybe not.

I've recently wanted to redo this page completely. My wife is trying to talk me out of it.

I like this page, I just need to add some details to finish it off.

The rest are just sketches for a few of the remaining pages.

Eek. Needs to be reworked. His head gets bigger in the next one.

I'm actually excited to do this page. I love drawing water.

More to come!

Random people at Ben & Jerry's and the mall.

Lincoln fell asleep on Tara at church. Ward Conference can do that to you.

Random sketches and a caricature of a news anchor in Palm Springs- Matt Lomand, or something like that. He had me on his show to do caricatures and, he could, quite possibly, be the most annoying person I have ever met.

Missionaries at General Conference

I coloried a few church sketches in photoshop. Pushkin made his way in there somehow.