Bad Clients entering the Art and Design Industry
A C+P from chrisoatley.com :
What Do Bad Clients Look Like?
Many years ago, I was offered what sounded like a nice freelance gig.
An oil painting. A huge portrait of a couple that would be given to them as a gift.
The painting would have taken me about two weeks.
I quoted my hourly rate which was around $35/hr at the time.
2 weeks (80 hours) x $35/hr = $2800
If you ask me, for a huge double-portrait in fracking oil paint, 28-hundy is a legitimate steal.
But the man offering the job did not agree. In fact, he was shocked and offended. He had a much lower figure in mind…
He the offered me $25 for the portrait.
I asked him how much he got paid for his job and if it was higher than $12.50 a week.
…and that’s the end of that story.
Granted, the “$25 Portrait” example, although true, is ridiculous. No sane artist would accept that guy’s offer.
My point here is that bad clients usually look bad right from the beginning.
It’s desperation that blinds us.
It is our desperation that gives power to the bad clients.
I'd say this example represents 90+% of the job offers I've had while freelancing. Perhaps not to this extent, but similar. With the huge pool of internet artists for both companies and private individuals to choose from these days, generating the kinda money an artist deserves is no easy task.
Draw this Again: Bengosha
I drew the cyberpunk ninja Bengosha a long time ago. He was originally created for a character design contest and then used as a character example in the book 'The Art of Drawing Manga'. This year I started working on a new book about digital techniques due for release in 2014 and decided to include a Bengosha revamp.
I still like a few aspects of the original, even if it is a very old piece, although I hope anyone else agrees that the new art is an improvement! I've never been an amazing artist and probably never will, but I still like to think I'm pretty good at busting out a cool picture here and there when I put in a lot of time and effort :)
What is Anime and What is Manga?
I've worked as a manga inspired/influenced/style artist for years. Although a large percentage of people I meet don't really know what manga is! Let alone understanding the differences between it an anime. Older relatives, or those completely removed from popular culture often need educating. For most people who are unfamiliar, I'll usually just say I draw "Japanese style comics and cartoons". However, I don't think the answer to "What is manga?" or "What is anime?" is a simple 'one description fits all scenarios' sentence. With a little help from Wikipedia I thought I'd try my best at summing it up these definitions.
What is the difference between Anime and Manga?
Anime is a term to describe animation created in Japan. In the west, the term is “anime” is defined as a style and genre of animation typically originating in Japan, and can often feature detailed, colourful imagery, unique, in-depth characters and action orientated plot lines either set in the past, present, future or often within a fantasy setting. The meaning of the term ‘anime’ can sometimes vary depending on the context it’s used in.
Manga is a term to describe comics created in Japan, or produced by Japanese Manga Ka (artists), primarily for a Japanese audience. The style was developed in Japan though the mid to late 19th century with heavy influences from western and American comics combined with the long and complex history of Japanese art and wood-block prints. In the western world, the term is often defined as a style of drawing originating in Japan and many western artists have adopted this style and refer to themselves as Manga artists.
We could summarize, that typically:
Anime = animation in a typical Japanese cartoon style. Often in full Colour.
Manga = comics in a typical Japanese cartoon style. Often in black & white and with grey tones.
How would you describe anime and manga to the uninformed?
Amazon Affiliate
I decided to join up to Amazon Affiliates today. If you want to purchase my books, or indeed [amazon text=any other book through Amazon&template=Search], be sure to do it via clicking on these referral links below. Many thanks for your support :)
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New Set up and Wacom Cintiq 22HD Review
I just want to give a quick overview / review of my work area. Nothing too in-depth, but hope it's useful to get a gist of another digital artist's set up.
Here's my 2014 set up: Upgraded Lenovo Y500 Notebook PC running Photoshop CS6 + a Wacom Cintiq 22HD mounted onto Dual Ergotron LX Arms
The Cintiq 22HD
I've now used it to create three or four recent artworks over the last few months. It's working out well. I use the adjustable Ergotron Arm to have it in a floating, elevated position for day to day use and bring it down to the desk at around a 45 degree angle for art projects (see above). I decided to program the Cintiq buttons from top to bottom (for Photoshop use) as:
- Step Forward
- Step Backward
- x (swap foreground and background colour)
- b (brush tool)
- Touch strip: mostly use for brush size
- Ctl
- Alt
- Shift
- Pan/ Hand tool
These would work great for me. The trouble is I often forget to use the the Cintiq's buttons as I'm so used to keyboard keys. And while, in theory, simply having to shift my right thumb to press the buttons would potentially simplify and speed up work flow, most projects still require me to use several other useful short cut keys so often neglecting the buttons and instead sticking exclusively to the keyboard seems to make sense right now.
The screen size is good. I didn't feel I needed the extra couple of inches from the 24" version, and the lower weight from the 22 incher means the adjustable arm I use doesn't have a problem keeping it suspended off the desk. It's not cutting edge screen tech, but gives a good quality result far greater than my previous monitor set up and I have no complaints. Also glad I didn't pay the extra for the touch version as I doubt I'd make use of those features.
At the moment the pen uses a standard nib, which I'll probably change to a felt nib as I like the added friction and softer tip feel. I'm still wondering if I need to get a 'Smudge-guard' glove to reduce palm friction. So far I've not really found this to be a problem so I'll stick without and see how I get on using it over the coming year.
The Set up
My keyboard [Microsoft Wireless 6000 v3.0] sits to my left (since I'm right handed) and it's pretty comfortable to use while I rest my palm on the desk/palm rest and my elbow on my chair's arm.
I've since extended the Ergotron laptop arm so the screens don't butt up against each other or need to overlap and there's enough space under the tech to clean and dust. All cabling is concealed within the arms themselves.
My printer [Epson 1500W Stylus Photo A3+] fits nicely at the back in the corner typically covered with a custom made cover to keep dust at bay.
My mouse [Microsoft Wireless Mobile 6000] sits on a gel filled mat, which saves me from RSI.
The Cintiq is connected to the laptop via a DVI to HDMI cable. This required opening up the back of the tablet to attach (twice, since I've since extended to cable length from 2m to 3m).
I also bought a Intuos Pen for when I take my laptop elsewhere and obviously the Cintiq has to stay at home. I've used it the Intuos once so far and liking it. I'd better start coming up with some new artworks so I can put this new tech to use.
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