The Becka Blogs

KOI Music Festival 2011

2011-09-25T22:08:00.000-04:00

KOI Music Fest came back for Round 2 last weekend.

This year I was smart and stayed for most of the day (the whole thing went from 1 PM til well into the morning) and I made a list of the different bands that I wanted to see. At the end of the day I saw eleven bands in total, and this girl was not disappointed.

Like last year, there was a main stage and about nine different venues around Downtown Kitchener, located at various bars, clubs, and cafes. This year though, the main stage was a bit bigger and located in the Crabby Joe's parking lot

I started out my day at Cafe Pyrus where Koetta Black played their set. Towards the end of their last song people were given a free copy of their CD and some stickers.

Koetta Black

I had some time to kill before the band Liferuiner played their set, so I wandered around downtown and ended up at the Main Stage. I saw the band Dancing With Paris all over the KOI facebook page before the festival - they won some contest and got to play on the main stage. This band was awesome live...I hope they come back again next year so that I can see the whole set.

Dancing With Paris

More Dancing With Paris...

Next was Liferuiner at the PSD (Peter Says Denim) Venue across the street. For some reason...I don't know why, but I thought the show would be something like the Christian Rock moshpit scene from Metalocalypse (minus the blood). Maybe I heard someone bash "Straight Edge" bands or something... Anywho, during their set, I totally got creamed at the EDGE of the moshpit.

Liferuiner

More Liferuiner...

I went back to the main stage, ran into some old friends (yay!) and watched bands Stray From the Path and The Real McKenzies.

Stray From the Path

The Real McKenzies - how about some Celtic Punk, eh?

Afterwards, my friend and I went to Capers Sports Bar and watched Blind the Carrier's set before heading out to The Wax to see Blind Witness. Both bands were so awesome...during Blind Witness' set, the place was packed.

Blind the Carrier

Blind Witness

We walked back to the second stage to see the band Hometown Beatdown, then went back across the street to see the last three bands play at the main stage - Dead and Divine, The Planet Smashers, and Protest the Hero. All of them were awesome (unfortunately I had to leave before Protest the Hero finished their set). It was like a big party that night in the parking lot downtown.

Dead and Divine

The Planet Smashers

Protest The Hero - I'm sorry that these photos suck!

...I look forward to Round 3 next year. ^_^

(More doodles coming!)

FanExpo 2011

2011-09-15T23:06:00.000-04:00

After the con ended on Sunday evening...those messy, messy pros.

About three or four weeks ago, my friends and I were in the Artist's Alley again at FanExpo Canada. Unfortunately, I didn't even get to see everything at the convention during the four day event - the space was a lot bigger than last year. However, it was a lot better for the crowds of people that entered the building, and the event was a lot more organized than last year by far (last year there was a lockout on the Saturday, the fire marshal was called or something...2010 was not a fun year for the con go-er). Thumbs up for the improvements! :D

In short, we all did very well, sold a lot of stuff, made contacts, the usual. I sold out of Issue #1 of Cadaverific and the Carnage prints, and got Issues #2 and #3 in the Silver Snail comic book shop in Toronto. There were also a couple of retailers from the US who were interested in getting the books into their comic book shops....we'll see where that goes.


Laura Vegys

Our Artist Alley neighbours were awesome, and IMO, one of the best rows for original and creative content (in other words, no thieves and/or scam artists!). These people included Laura Vegys, Lamin Martin, Stephen Daymond (Specimen B28), Vitaly S. Alexius (Romantically Apocalyptic), Matthew Mohammed (Rorschach Press/Black Bastard), Lucky and Peter Trinh (Maddy McGee, P.I.), and the guys at Powie Studios. A couple of the most memorable highlights from the Arists' Alley was meeting Jeff Smith (creator of the Bone series) and Jeff Lemire (Sweet Tooth, Essex County).

The dudes at the Specimen B28 table.


Promotion for the webcomic Romatically Apocalyptic.

Of course, it can't be a comic con without the cosplayers! Here are some of them...

From Soul Eater

Penguin and Vein

Kakashi from Naruto

Freddy Kruger

Super Mario!

I have no idea...but that is awesome.

Chuthulu!

From The Watchmen

From Pokemon

And finally, the Star Wars Blue-Ray promotion was in full swing...

Until next year then!

Carnage Pinup

2011-08-24T10:32:00.000-04:00

Alrighty, here is the end result from my mini rant about 3 (?) weeks ago...

To get the pose, I took a few screen shots from a music video on YouTube (Suicide Silence - Disengage). I thought the vocalist, Mitch Lucker, was a perfect model for Carnage.

However, this is where I began to run into problems...Lucker of course is wearing a t-shirt, so it was difficult to map out where the ab muscles + trunk were in this position. Fortunately, Andrew Loomis (hopefully) saved this pinup.

Of course, after I finished penciling this, I find an old Spider-Man comic book that had MANY similar poses like the one above. The irony... -_-

I'm about to leave for Toronto shortly, and yes, I'm at the MTCC for the whole convention. My table is A55 - pretty much across from the Marvel booth. Come and see me! :)

Happy Wednesday...

Male Anatomy is So Weird....

2011-08-06T22:04:00.004-04:00

I still have issues with drawing male anatomy. It doesn't matter if I use a reference - the figure almost never looks right after I pencil it.

For example...

...I guess the basic sketches look somewhat decent. At least I've got the pose that I want to use for my Carnage drawing (here I was deciding between two of them - the top left and the bottom right poses).

Then I add more of the muscles, and that is where I get thrown off my groove. I've shown my drawing mistakes before on this blog, but this is so embarrassing....

Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha...

I think the bottom pose looks better, but the top one...at least from the chest up....looks more aggressive. However, there is a whole lot of (unintentional) codpiece action going on...I have no clue how that happened... Iiiiieeeeeyieyie... :-/

To be continued....

Cover Art

2011-07-20T19:53:00.002-04:00

Here is the finished cover art - both books are now finished and ready to be picked up!

Issue #2

Issue #3

As I mentioned in my previous post, this year I got my comic books printed at Guerilla Printing. They're a great place for any artist who's looking for an alternative printing company to get their art/promotional stuff printed. They print anything from booklets, flyers, business cards, stickers and buttons, etc. and their turn around time is great. The books look good, and the staff were very helpful and friendly.

The New Puppy!

2011-07-12T23:56:00.001-04:00

This is the new Labradoodle puppy, Raven. In this photo she was 12 weeks old. Surprisingly, she's been quite a mellow pup, but she has been getting a bit more willful everyday. Furniture's been her new favorite thing to climb on.

Below are a couple of pics from the weekend where she turned 4 months old.

Meanwhile, my comic books will be printed on time for FanExpo (whew!). Just got the proofs today from Guerilla Printing, located in Toronto, and they look good. Just finished correcting a couple of GLARING spelling mistakes on one of the proofs (totally my fault), but other than that they're ready to go.

You'd think after being in the Artist Alley at FanExpo twice I'd be use to it by now? Nope, I still get nervous. Worse, I get harshly critical of my work and keep thinking "it's not good enough". But I keep going...

To be continued....

Update!

2011-06-30T21:17:00.004-04:00

First off, I apologize for not updating the blog for almost a month now. So much has happened since my dog was put down.

I've been busy with colour flatting work, and I've been getting together 2 issues of Cadaverific for FanExpo (online tickets go on sale at midnight tonight!). Here are a couple of samples of the covers I've inked.

Partial cover art for issue 2. See the full version on my flickr page.

Partial cover art for issue 3. See the full version on my flickr page.

On top of all that, we also have a new member of the family - a three month old puppy. Dakota will never be replaced, but there is room for another.

Pics will soon follow.

Totally Forgot!...

2011-05-27T21:49:00.001-04:00

I mentioned this bit of news on my webcomic site, facebook page and twitter, but not here. So much has happened this month.... I will be having a table again at FanExpo Canada at the end of August (Thurs. 25th - Sun. 28th). So far I'm planning on printing issues 2 and 3 of Cadaverific for the show...currently looking for a good local printing place so that (hopefully) I can save on shipping costs....

In the meantime, take a look at this year's guest list. It's pretty awesome.

Goodbye Dakota

2011-05-26T23:49:00.002-04:00

I'm sorry, but this isn't going to be a happy post...

Last Monday I posted a Sikotik World comic on my webcomic site, featuring my dog Dakota. It's a highly ridiculous comic...but I have trouble looking at it now. Yesterday we had to put him down. He was 12 years old.

This morning I kept thinking I could still hear him sleeping on my bedroom floor. I'd turn over on my bed and I see a black dog on the floor, then realize that it's actually my big black monster claw slippers. One of the worst moments of the day.

Goodbye Dakota.

TCAF 2011 (Saturday May 7th)

2011-05-09T00:44:00.002-04:00

Yesterday I spent a good chunk of my day wandering around TCAF in Toronto. Like last year, it was awesome. I think maybe it was a bit more crowded this year?...There were a couple of moments were it was a bit difficult to get around the library, but the traffic jams didn't last very long.

Highlights; exploring the two floors, talked to almost everyone I wanted to talk to, met James O'Barr (creator of The Crow), and talked to some new people. Caught up with Noel Tuazon (artist of the graphic novel Tumor, which has been nominated for an Eisner Award - congrats!), Alex Jansen (Kenk, Pop Sandbox), TX Comics artists/Kill Shakespeare dudes (of, course...), Scott Chantler (Two Generals, Tower of Treasure), and Stuart and Kathryn Immonen (Moving Pictures, etc., etc.). New stuff - currently browsing the Nobrow Press website (loved loved loved looking through their books), they were located on the second floor. Also enjoyed looking through James Turner's work (Warlord of Io)

Lowlights; missed day two.... Also, I'm no expert at these things, but I must say this - if I'm interested in reading your comics/webcomic, please don't ruin it for me by using this horrid, HORRID sales pitch;

"I'd like it better if you'd buy my book(s)".

Yes, I realize you need cash moneys, but no....that is not the way you sell your work. Using that pitch is beyond stupidity. Don't do it. Ever.

So that pretty much sums up my time at TCAF, the next post should (hopefully) have pictures.

*****************************************

Computer update...long story short, got a consultation at Future Shop, found out that the LED screen light burnt out. The cost to get that part replaced - about $1,000. Insanity. Currently I'm typing all this on the (family) desktop computer, and this is why I pretty much don't have any pics on this post (kinda need my laptop for the downloading part... -_-).

So my options are a) find someplace that would replace the part at a discounted price (haaa - pipedream), b) buy a new laptop or c) buy a desktop, but I'd lose the flexibility of having a laptop and being able to work anywhere.

I will do my best to get page 119 up sometime tomorrow or Tuesday on beckacomics.com. I may not have my script available, but I can pretty much remember what I had typed on the laptop. Until then...I'll update on my twitter if anything changes.

AAAAAUUUGH!!!

2011-05-07T07:34:00.001-04:00

Awesome - my laptop needs to be repaired (currently typing this on my iPod). No blog post for TCAF for a while, and possibly no webcomic update this week.

Beyond frustrated!

To be continued...

Toronto ComicCON Fan Appreciation Event, 2011

2011-04-20T18:51:00.006-04:00

Yeah, I know I'm over a week late with this one (I promise this won't happen with the TCAF post next month).

Over a week ago I went to the Fan Appreciation Event. It was my first time attending a Toronto ComiCON event, put on by the same people who are behind Fan Expo Canada. Much smaller than I expected it to be, but it was a far more relaxed and comfortable comic con. From what I saw there was a good turnout, and it was easy to move from the retail section to the Artist Alley. It was nice to go as a con-goer and explore the Artist Alley a bit more than I normally would as an exhibitor (not counting TCAF, this was the first time going as a con-goer since losing my "con virginity" in 2008).

Some of the highlights; stopped by Phil McClorey's table and picked up a copy of The Book of Methusela #3, got one of the stories from that issue signed by Sam Agro, hung out at the Kill Shakespeare table (surprise surprise) and got a free [reject] t-shirt. Also, talked to some of the other artists/creators from Artist Alley, and finally, Michael Cho actually remembered who I was this time! Yaaaay! And my sushi lunch was awesome. You all needed to know that, right?

Some very minor lowlights; drinking a disgusting peach drink that tasted more like peach vomit, walking into someone else's fart cloud in the retail section, and finally, an embarrassing group photo at the Kill Shakespeare table (I say embarrassing more for myself than anything - go narcissism!). Of course I decided to skip the concealer that day...of...course... O_O

Stiff and sleep deprived. Oh, yes.

By the by, my creepy pinup page is in issue 10 of Kill Shakespeare, which is available today. **UPDATE: Anthony Del Col somehow got a hold of the t-shirt doodle above and now there's a blog post about me. Aw shucks guys...(thanks!).

To be continued...

Doodling with Becka: Steampunk!

2011-04-04T23:48:00.003-04:00

Again, I was too lazy to break out the scanner. Ladeeda.

This rough sketch needs some more tweaking before I work on the inked version (e.g. the mask, the top hat). The costume is based off of a photo....I wish I knew someone who was really into Steampunk stuff and could model some of the clothing. O_o

To be continued...

.....Also, I think I'll be attending Toronto ComiCON this weekend, just to walk around and stuff. Yay!

How Do You Catch a "Granito"?

2011-03-27T13:36:00.007-04:00

If you've been following anything from the comics world online this past weekend, you've probably learned a new word for fraud - "Granito".

Bleedingcool.com has been posting articles about this guy who's stolen work from professional comic book artists, cartoonists, photographers etc., CLAIMING it as his own, and SELLS THEM at comic cons. He's even weaseled his way as a "Guest Artist" at a few of them (e.g. at last weekend's Wizard World Toronto, this weekend's MegaCon). The Facebook Page, "Rob Granito is a Fraud", has gotten nearly 2, 000 "Likes" in about two days. Various artists and creators have been posting links, screenshots, and stories of the work that Granito has traced, copied, and ripped off from them.

Thanks to the internet, this guy has been caught and called out on his bogus claims. However, there are still others out there, making their way into comic cons, making profits from stolen art and claiming it as their own. A couple years ago at FanExpo Canada, there was a table behind us where these girls were selling bookmarks with screenshots of various anime printed on them, being sold at ridiculous prices. My friends and I were very angry seeing these girls selling more bookmarks than we were selling prints of our original work combined (there were 3 of us selling art). Did any of us report it? I don't think so...and I certainly didn't.

Not reporting it was of course very stupid, but what do you do when you see someone in the Artist Alley who clearly is a fake? Sure, there's the internet, but is there someone at the comic con who you could go to to report someone who's clearly stealing and selling someone else's work? I'm sure by now the people at MegaCon are quite aware of Mr. Granito, but last time I checked the Facebook page, he is still there, selling his "art".

On a slightly different thought, I wonder what procedures do take place when a faker is caught in the Artist Alley vs. a faker sitting with the Pros.

(UPDATE: From the comments in yesterday's Sequential post, FanExpo Canada has banned Granito. YES!)

(UPDATE #2: Wizard World and Chiller Theatre have banned him as well. Other Comic Cons would be daft not to follow suit.)

....And by the by, how about some reference material for the art scammers out there??

Doodling With Becka: Foreshortening and Hands

2011-03-15T23:32:00.004-04:00

The trick to foreshorten in about 5 breathtakingly awesome steps;

1) Look at pictures/drawings of figures with foreshortened poses.
2) Take pictures of the foreshortened pose.
3) Draw that pose.
4) Practice, practice, practice...break some pencils, practice some more.
5) Movies, YouTube, Google SketchUp also helps.

Pretty much the same logic applies to drawing hands and feet.

I now leave you with the rest of these doodles....

.....ALSO, if anyone's in London (Ontario) tomorrow (the 16th) it's Comic Book Literacy Day at the London Public Library. I'll be bumming around somewhere in there.

KS Pinup, With Colour!

2011-03-02T21:02:00.000-05:00

Based on the scene from Issue 5

Oopsies...I totally forgot to post the finished KS pinup! Believe it or not, I had to start over colouring this a couple of times. Still learning new colouring tricks!

This isn't actually the final version that I submitted, but it's pretty much what it looks like. The only difference is that I forgot to give Hamlet the scruffy/5 o'clock shadow in this one. This pinup should be in either issue 10 or whenever the second volume of Kill Shakespeare comes out. Issue 9 was just released last week.

To be continued....

.....Oh! Forgot this also, you can also get a copy of "Cadaverific!" at Silver Snail Comics in Toronto!

Oblivion, Coloured (Singles Awareness Day Piece)

2011-02-09T21:08:00.001-05:00


Coloured in Photoshop CS4

Ok, so the story is basically this....

A couple of weeks ago, I was asked if I could draw a cartoon of a guy falling in love with a "blonde Brazilian surfer girl". Honestly, I was very reluctant to draw it, but with Valentines Day/S.A.D. coming up I decided to do so. And of course, because I'm morbid, I added the monster in the background. >:D

Overall, I enjoyed working on it, and now I really want to watch the movie Jaws.

To be continued...

My Contribution for Singles Awareness Day...

2011-02-07T21:45:00.001-05:00

There is a story behind this, but I'm not gonna go there tonight.

Penciled, black and white ink, touched up on Photoshop.

Mannequin Woes

2011-02-04T23:55:00.003-05:00

When drawing anatomy and various poses, I have plenty of access to references to use in the studio other than the internet. I try to rely less and less on Google images since it can quickly turn into a time waster (well, at least for me anyway...).

In the studio/office, I use the "how to draw" anatomy books, or even some anatomy textbooks. I'll use the webcam for hand gestures, facial expressions, and now for poses. Before, I used a mannequin as a reference for poses, but now I'm about ready to chuck it out the window.

It's one of those small, wooden, unisex mannequins that have VERY LIMITED body movement. My latest annoyance with it is if it's positioned in a certain way, the waist area gives out and the top half slouches over.

For instance:

On the left is the pose I ended up guestimating (an almost inked piece), since the Mannequin decided to be difficult and kept slouching backward. Take note of the knee, see what I meant with the limited movement? Frustration plus!

Thus ends my rant for today. Studio pet peeves anyone?

To be continued...

KS Pinup, Inked

2011-01-29T14:09:00.002-05:00

I didn't expect to get more involved with the touch ups after I scanned it, but I think this will do.

Coloured version coming up ~~shortly~~ eventually...

A (Brief) Update!

2011-01-29T02:08:00.001-05:00

Hey there! How's life?

I've been busy colour flatting, among other things, and later this morning I'm scanning this pinup for the boys at Kill Shakespeare (the scene above is from issue 5, both that and Vol. 1 are out now).

More to come....

So, How's it Going?...

2010-12-23T21:04:00.000-05:00

Right now I'm feeling a bit something like this....

(drawn on the tablet)

...a bit out of sorts. But that's ok, the season's almost over.

I had been hoping to post a whole lot more this month. Instead, I've been terribly negligent of the blog. However, I'm not going to make excuses. Sometimes, one needs to step away from one thing, then come back to it later. I believe one of my great grandparents (both of them were artists) said something similar to that, according to one of my grandparents....or I could be making the whole thing up.....*siiiiighs*.

Yep, I'm scattered today. This whole month has been such a blur that I don't even remember what I did yesterday, or the day before that, and so on and so forth. Someone asked me what I wanted for Christmas and I don't even remember what I said (adults, does anyone out there find that question harder and harder to answer as you get older???).

I haven't made one of these silly lists for maybe a couples of years I think? Anyway, for your amusement, my Christmas List;

1. I want my sanity back. Sooner is better than later.

2. I find that Sweeney Todd is an excellent movie to watch during the holiday season (it was released in theaters December 2007)...why don't I have it yet?

3. I would very much like to go to the movies. Escapism!

4. Sleep. On Christmas Day.

5. This guy that I drew here.

....(from a video on youtube....the drawing does no justice, and I am such a NERD. Oh the shame... >_<)

6. ....I was going to type "chocolate covered coffee beans", except that there are actually some in the kitchen...

I think I'll go get me some now.

It's That Time of Year...(Where's Stan??)

2010-12-01T17:34:00.002-05:00

Ok, ok, as much as tend to loath the commercialism aspects of the holiday season (a.k.a. "X-mas"), this video is both epic and metalicious. Stan, where are you???...

More paintings a-coming...

From "Ew" to "Yes and Win!"

2010-11-26T20:43:00.000-05:00

Before.....

...and after.

Booyah.

Bad Day in the Studio?...

2010-11-26T15:35:00.001-05:00

I cannot fathom how one, simple concept could give me so much grief! I've been working on a Christmas watercolour series, one of them being The Magi following the star. The discarded version looks something more like Magi/Arabian Garden Gnomes trapped in a blurred out muddy acid trip desert of a wasteland, gazing up to a greenish-blue mess of a sky. No stars. And one of them looks happy about it. >_<

To be continued...