World 1-1.

This is part of a larger project that involves drawing classic NES game levels on landscape paper. First up,the ur-level of post-crash gaming, World 1-1!

 

This is the lineart version. Look for the color version later.

 

 

 

 

Gundam.

Some sketches of the original Gundam. Yep.

 

Neolithic stoneworks.

A few images inspired by the neolithic and bronze age stoneworks of ancient Ireland, particularly the tomb at Newgrange.

 

The Legend of Zelda: Ruins.

I love the original Legend of Zelda. In fact, it’s my favorite game of all time. So much can be said about it, and so much has, so I won’t rehash the more common material here. Instead, this will be more personal. One of my favorite aspects about the original game was the cold, lonely simplicity of the labyrinths. The dungeons all had the same architectural style, but different layouts and other variations. They all looked to come not only from the same civilization, but the same builder. Or, to be more out-there, the same imagination, perhaps one shared by a society very different from ours.

This is what I loved most about the original game; the mystery. Hyrule was an empty land bereft of any current civilization. Some people lived in caves, selling stuff or charging money for useless advice. Beyond that? Wilderness and ancient ruins, often with ominous entrances that resembled monstrous heads. It made you wonder who created these places, and why. Another great thing about the game was the manual; some of the artwork was wonderful, especially the artistic interpretation of the simplistic labyrinths. I’ve long had an affinity for the art in the manual, and I had been meaning to do some homages to it for a while now. Well, I finally got around to it, and here is what I came up with;

 

Statue and dungeon gate.

Envisioning a new interior.

These will be colored in the future.

Assorted Life Drawing pt.4 : Blue Snowball ice microphone.

Microphone. Indeed.

Always (work in progress).

This is a calligraphic illustration, or at least the preliminary sketch of one. This was done on 4 x 6 sketch paper. The final version will be done on parchment, and will look slightly different, with more details and better line quality.

Assorted Life Drawing pt.3 : Tablet.

Life drawing with ink, as I usually prefer it. This is just my tablet. Yep. I may eventually color this image.

Calligraphic sketch: Pig.

This is my re-imagining of the logo for the musical project Pig. Just more messing with calligraphy.

Assorted life drawing pt.2 : Starbucks.

More life drawing. A salted caramel cake pop from Starbucks.

Product reviews pt.3: Staedler mechanical pencils and leads.

Staedler mechanical pencils and leads.

Staedler is known for their drafting products, and one of their most common items is the mechanical pencil. Like most brands, they come in four sizes. 03, 05, 07, and 09. This post will also cover Staedler lead holders, leads, and sharpeners.

The mechanical pencils are a joy to use. The rubber grip makes them more comfortable to hold than other brands, and their thick bodies are the ideal proportion for a tool such as this. Like some modern technical pencils, they have a sliding indicator for lead weight, allowing you to keep track of what weight is in what pencil. This is particularly useful if you are using a large number of these with a large variety of weights. Sizes are color coded, and the overall appearance of the pencil is pleasing. If nothing else, it is a fine example of industrial design.

The only real issue I have with these pencils, aside from the cost, is that they have a higher than expected rate of mechanical failure. I have had to replace 05’s several times. Other sizes don’t seem to have this issue with the same frequency, but perhaps this is just because 05 is my default size for sketching, and therefore those pencils get more extensive use. This issue has come up in other brands as well, such as Pentel, but it is not universal.

All in all, these are my first recommendation when it comes to technical pencils. They look great, feel great,and are mostly reliable.

Staedler lead holders are even more reliable and solid than their mechanical pencils. They may be lacking in aesthetic qualities (though the metal grip on the one to the right does look nice), but overall they are very agreeable. Staedler sharpeners are…well…sharpeners. They’re reliable, but sometimes a bit stiff in their operation.

Staedler lead has a decent level of quality, though it isn’t appreciably better or worse than anything else I’ve tried. If nothing else, you get plenty o refills for a low price.