Something a little different

[RHirsch]

Playing around with layers and digital watercolor translucency, as well as a bit of rim lighting. Not sure I quite have it, but the beauty of digital is I can strip off all the paint and start again if I don't like it tomorrow. Question: is it a problem if you have pieces in your portfolio that aren't painted exactly the same? Will it be viewed as "not the same style" even if your characters and ink look alike? I can see where one style of painting would be necessary for every page in a picture book project, but is it a drawback to use different digital brushes to paint with in general?

[smceccarelli]

I seem to be unable to have all my pieces look the same and always admire wonderfully consistent artists and how nice their portfolio looks when everything is together. I know how to go about that, but it´s just beyond me...I get bored to death if I always paint everything the same way (after a book is done I need to purge by doing something completely different). But as you say, it´s always my way of drawing and choosing colors, so there is a connecting element.
Bottom line: it doesn’t seem to be a problem so far. My agent actually thinks it´s an advantage because it offers several options to ADs. Two ADs I`ve asked said they don’t really care as long as you have good work in all „styles“. Look at Will Terry, he has two different ways of rendering and works in both.
Some part of me still longs for that consistent look, but I don’t think I have it in me.

[RHirsch]

@smceccarelli Agreed. I feel like if I can't explore then I won't grow, so I want to play around. But I've had an art director or two look at my work and say one or two pieces look like a different style and I don't see it, so I try to stay consistent without getting bored.

[A Former User]

@rhirsch Of the cuff , i would say your style comes through in your drawing, your character, your emotion, . I would think that the story itself would warrant how you paint it , giving it a more wash effect to make it feel more magical or dream like, and at the other end of the spectrum if you wanted to give the reader more a sense of gritty reality you might give it more texture. These things would be conversations to have with an art director, i think they would appreciate your ability to explain what emotion your going for in the piece. The fact that your thinking at that level. I wouldn't want to be locked into just one emotion , there are different stories out there, and what a great challenge to take them on. Chris

[Johanna Kim]

@rhirsch At a conference I attended, an art director/author/illustrator suggested organizing different styles into different categories in your portfolio. Because of this, I've tried letting the different mediums I work in help guide how I organize my work (e.g., digital or slick digital-looking, traditional or very textured or handmade-looking, bw illustrations). This way of organizing will probably change as I create more work and start to see styles emerge naturally.

He also said that if you're going to show different styles, make sure each style is equally strong. In the end, it's about making great art no matter how you make it. Per your questions, I don't see a drawback from using different digital brushes as long as the overall final look of all the pieces in a project look and feel consistent.

[RHirsch]

@c-davies Thanks! It's good to get perspectives from other artists, gets me out of my own head.

[RHirsch]

@johanna-kim Good points about organizing my portfolio, thanks for the input.

[RHirsch]

Liking this one better. A little more texture.