When I was much younger man, I had the dream of becoming a comic book artist. To that end, I picked up pads of paper, pencils, pens, bristol board, a lettering guide – all the things you needed to learn the trade. And I worked at it. Hard. I explored the venue, even going so far as to pick up a full set of Dr. P. H. Martin's watercolor dyes. This was important, because these were the materials that professional colorists used in the days before digital color came along.
But those days were long ago, and I remember them fondly. Now, I find myself coloring cels for my latest animated piece, and you know what?
I HATE COLORING!!!
Gah! It is repetitive, annoying, and necessary. Three things that are guaranteed to drive me nuts. Honestly, it's the repetitiveness of coloring that really makes me nuts. I spend half an hour on one cel, and there are still fifteen to twenty more to do in the set. I lose track of where I am, what color I'm using, which layer I'm on – let me tell you, the keys crtl + z have become my best friends.
So, with that having been said, project moves along at a constant pace. It is giving me considerable experience in using a graphic tablet, and the end result does have a hand-made, painterly quality to it, which was the original intent. So, it seems to be working. It's just slow and steady. That kind of makes me crazy, as I've always like “fast” art. I know that taking your time and making it right is what is necessary, it's just that once I start a project I want to be done with it. Maybe I'm just crazy.
Well, I haven't finished everything for this milestone, so I need to get back to the grind. Stay tuned...
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