Manga Guy Face sketch to be used in an upcoming book project I’m working on.

Fighter guy sketch to be used in an upcoming book project I’m working on.

Manga Girl Doodle

Death Note fan art pencil sketch. It's a work in progress. I still need to ink and then colour. Might tweak a few bits also.

What is Death Note?

"Death Note" is a gripping tale of power, morality, and the consequences of playing god. The story revolves around a high school student named Light Yagami who stumbles upon a mysterious notebook, the "Death Note," dropped by the Shinigami (death god) Ryuk. This ominous book grants its wielder the ability to kill anyone whose name is written within its pages, as long as the writer has their face in mind.

Driven by a desire to rid the world of criminals and create a utopia under his rule, Light embarks on a dark and twisted path, adopting the alias "Kira" and becoming a vigilante deity feared by both law enforcement and criminals alike. However, his actions attract the attention of the enigmatic detective known only as L, sparking a deadly game of cat and mouse between two brilliant minds.

As the stakes escalate and the body count rises, Light's moral compass becomes increasingly skewed, blurring the line between justice and tyranny. "Death Note" explores themes of power, justice, and the nature of good and evil, challenging viewers to question the limits of righteousness in the face of absolute power. With its intricate plot twists and morally complex characters, "Death Note" remains a timeless masterpiece of psychological thriller anime, captivating audiences with its suspenseful narrative and thought-provoking themes.

Cat Girl Work In Progress. Might be a while before I finish this one.

Work in Progress:

W.I.P. I'm 85% complete with this one. It’s been sitting on my hard drive in this state for weeks. Perhaps another 3 hours and I’ll be done with the colouring- just need to find the time.

Cintiq Girl finally finished :)

In May 2013 I worked at the Wacom stand at the MCM comic expo in London.

I created 'Cintiq girl' especially for the event and spent most of my time there demonstrating the new Cintiq 13HD graphics tablet screen combo, which was pretty cool!

On the Friday I tried out Manga Studio 4 (Now known as Clip Studio) to digital ink her. It seemed like an ok program, but not sure I’d use it again and I couldn’t figure out if there’s a way to create anti-aliased lines? I then spent the weekend working on the colours in Photoshop CS6 in between chatting to customers, but still needed a day to finish after I got back.

Also wanted to see how my new laptop handles large Photoshop files. This one is about 1.5GB! (this image is 6% actual size) and it seemed fine for everything other than smudge tool.

Thanks for checking it out!

About the Cintiq

Wacom Cintiq is a line of interactive pen displays by Wacom, catering to artists and designers. It integrates a high-quality display directly into the drawing surface, enabling users to draw, paint, and manipulate digital content directly on the screen.

The series offers various models with differences in size, resolution, and features. Notable among these features is the pressure-sensitive pen that provides precise control and simulates traditional artistic techniques. Some models also include multi-touch capabilities for gestures like zooming and rotating. Widely utilized in animation, illustration, and graphic design, the Cintiq series has become a favoured tool for professionals and enthusiasts seeking an intuitive and direct digital drawing experience. For the latest information, it's recommended to check Wacom's official sources for product updates and releases.

Anime Girl - Something I doodled over the weekend. I was experimenting with different drawing styles again and after this one, I finally decided to give up on my Edding 1800 profipens. I’ve been using them to ink for a while, but the ink flow sucks, they’re not true black and they generally seem too dry to draw a consistent non-grainy line. I want to find a new set of super fine line-line pens which work for me. Suggestions welcome!

Manga Guy - something I doodled over the weekend.

Exhibiting at Comic Con

It was invited to attend my first comic convention-like event as an artist. Japanorama - A Japan and anime themed event held at the National Space Centre in Leicester from 4th-5th of May 2013. It was described as:

I was described as:

Ben Krefta from Organic Metal, is a hugely popular artist and designer, who runs online tutorials

A quick summary of what happened

I was one of several guest artists given a stall in the 'Artists Alley', along with talented artists: Chie Kutsuwada, Laura Watton-Davies, Jodie Azhar, Emma Vieceli and Dock. The aim- to talk to visitors of the show, sell our own selection of art related goods and potentially take commissions.

Unlike the others artist in attendance, I'd never attended this kind of live event. I had no idea what to expect. I made do with selling several postcard size art prints, which I'd sign for customers. I'd talk to fans and discuss potential commissions. To be honest, I was unprepared and I probably wouldn’t have considered going had I not been invited. In the end. I'm glad I did- it was a great experience.

Chatting to fellow manga inspired artists and fans alike was a worthwhile experience. It's something I usually only do from behind a computer screen. At one point, we got up on the main stage to give a talk about working as manga inspired artists in the UK. Again, presenting art related info is something I'd previously only done via my website or art books. The public speaking side of things felt a little daunting, yet all worked out in the end.

I'd be happy to attend a few more similar events in the future to get a greater feel for the whole con-going experience and see how they compare :)

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Some things aren't worth posting

I’ve drawn hundreds of unsuccessful sketches like theses over the years, which ultimately get thrown away. They represent the worst of my ability! But I wanted to share them so aspiring artist know that:

1. Drawing something good is hard! Be proud of yourself when you achieve it.
2. Everyone has off days
3. Just because you drew a thing, ask yourself is it always worth throwing it up on the internet?

Also here's some caricatures

I doodled these in an attempt to merge real people into a comic book or manga style. I'm just experimenting here and still need practice. But, I learned a thing or two.

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