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101
Chit-Chat / Re: How old are you?
« on: September 13, 2011, 06:16:38 PM »
43, here. 
And I first read ElfQuest when a new friend at college in 1986 shoved the first graphic-novel collection of the OQ into my hands. (I don't remember at this point whether it has the honor of being the first comic book I'd ever read; or whether that was the issues of the X-Men Dark Phoenix saga another friend loaned me.) So that's, um, 25 years.
And I first read ElfQuest when a new friend at college in 1986 shoved the first graphic-novel collection of the OQ into my hands. (I don't remember at this point whether it has the honor of being the first comic book I'd ever read; or whether that was the issues of the X-Men Dark Phoenix saga another friend loaned me.) So that's, um, 25 years.
102
Art and Elfquest / Re: How many of you were on EQFanart.com back in the day??
« on: September 13, 2011, 08:16:12 AM »
Yeah, Icemoon disappeared really abruptly. (She was a member at RTH, and was active, and then after the winter holidays became uncontact-able.) A pity. Even if she lost interest, it would've been nice to have a "farewell" message of some sort from her. Ah well.
103
Art and Elfquest / Re: 2012 Fan Calendar Guidelines
« on: September 12, 2011, 06:52:39 PM »
I don't dislike her hair... I just wish it was shorter, for variety's sake. (I mean, like, OQ-Dewshine-short.)
Looking at that outfit more... boy, it must be annoying when she has to go to the bathroom!
(I thought that of Nightfall's one-piece from Hidden Year, as well.)
Yeah, if it's Chitter (and I agree, with that haircolor and the fur on the shoulders, I'd be shocked if it isn't her), I wonder what's up with the eye color?
Looking at that outfit more... boy, it must be annoying when she has to go to the bathroom!
(I thought that of Nightfall's one-piece from Hidden Year, as well.)Yeah, if it's Chitter (and I agree, with that haircolor and the fur on the shoulders, I'd be shocked if it isn't her), I wonder what's up with the eye color?
104
Chit-Chat / Re: Fight Club
« on: September 12, 2011, 04:36:17 PM »And I think that anyone who's frequented any forums has seen this happen from time to time. No matter how conflict averse you are, no matter how friendly you try to be, you are dealing with people from vastly different backgrounds and cultures, and something, sometime is going to ruffle someone's feathers. I don't know how it could be avoided without banning all posts that contain opinions or lifestyle disclosures.
As far as people leaving because they don't feel comfortable, it's regrettable, but it also can't be avoided. I was president of a support/civic organization for a while, and one of the big lessons I learned there is that you can never be everything to everyone. You can try your best to address problems as they come up, but eventually it's up to the disgruntled person to decide what it's worth to them. There's a limit to how much responsibility you can take for someone else's feeling and actions.
I do agree with this. I didn't mean the part about "not being able to tell from the post" in the sense of "people should be shielded from coming into contact with something that might upset them!" Because I agree that's impossible. I meant it to explain the idea of "clear advertising". It sounds like Foxeye had one idea when she set up Rants, of what sort of stuff might be found in there. But what actually got posted in there to date was something quite different from what she describes in the first post of this thread. And I can see where someone would come to expect one type of content in that area, and not realize the range of content that was acceptable there and could be expected to be found.
Part of the existing guidelines for this site and its forums -- as it appears to me, anyway -- state that we should respect each other, and not flame each other. (Persistently failing to do the one, or persistently doing the other, may be grounds for banning.) So, you see that and you think to yourself, "okay, got it". All I am saying is that if there's going to be an area of the forums in which those rules are suspended, that should be really, really clear. So that you can decide for yourself if you want to chance it. And so that it's clear that someone who is expressing a strong or even controversial opinion isn't breaking the rules of the site, they have a right to do that, *in there*.
Either way, though, yes -- apart from a hypothetical case of harassment or something, each person has to be responsible for their reactions. Or responsible for following the guidelines already given here for how to resolve a dispute.
If the discussion in this thread so far has made people feel unwelcome in this community... that's regrettable. But by just leaving, rather than discussing how what's been said here made them feel that way, it is impossible for us to take those opinions into account; or for them to discover whether they have misunderstood something, and they are not so unwelcome after all.
105
Art and Elfquest / Re: 2012 Fan Calendar Guidelines
« on: September 12, 2011, 08:57:20 AM »
I don't mind the fox tail -- I've seen others do it. 
*I* want to know how her mother figured out how to two-color-ombre-dye leather like that!
I also mourn for her lost short hair. This length/style feels kind of... generic to me. I'll cross my fingers that there's at least one or two female elves in FQ who have a cute, short 'do.
*I* want to know how her mother figured out how to two-color-ombre-dye leather like that! I also mourn for her lost short hair. This length/style feels kind of... generic to me. I'll cross my fingers that there's at least one or two female elves in FQ who have a cute, short 'do.
106
Chit-Chat / Re: Fight Club
« on: September 09, 2011, 09:47:23 AM »
In a sense, I think that even this discussion has been a little hampered by the fact that not everyone here got to see the exchange that prompted the problem in the first place. And that, prior to that exchange, the Rants section had been used by people to vent about problems affecting their lives, to which people had replied in sympathy.
The actual post that touched off this whole thing wasn't that type of post.
It was more of a post that fit in with the type of thing Foxeye was describing from other communities -- ranting about a general social/political issue in the world today, and expressing opinions on it. It wasn't a post that was directed at any specific individual here. But -- the social issue about which the OP was ranting did relate to at least one other person here in a very personal and intense way.
I think that posts that are about "here's something I am going through personally, which is difficult" are very seldom going to result in the type of argument or hurt feelings that would cause a real problem. Because I just don't see us as the type of community for someone to go into a thread such as that, and sharply criticize or condemn the poster for the problem they are having -- that's too obviously a kind of personal attack, and I think people would generally regard that as uncalled for.
It's trickier if someone wants to rant in a general way and criticize generally those who have particular kinds of personal problems. That isn't meant as a personal attack on anyone. But, I think it's kind of understandable for someone to whom it applies personally to regard it as an oblique attack, and to make the point that the OP isn't talking about a faceless, generalized population, there are real people to whom the rant applies, and some of them are right here.
(And I have to say -- there was no clear indication from either the subject line or the opening paragraphs of the post to realize that it would stray into the territory it did. So IMO, it wasn't a situation of, "well, you could just avoid reading it if it was going to upset you". The part that caused the upset kind of came out of left field; again IMO.)
But yes -- all that said, it seems like a good idea to separate out (as Foxeye has already done) an area for posting about personal issues, from an area where it's intended that things could get really contentious, but they aren't supposed to be personal.
The actual post that touched off this whole thing wasn't that type of post.
It was more of a post that fit in with the type of thing Foxeye was describing from other communities -- ranting about a general social/political issue in the world today, and expressing opinions on it. It wasn't a post that was directed at any specific individual here. But -- the social issue about which the OP was ranting did relate to at least one other person here in a very personal and intense way.
I think that posts that are about "here's something I am going through personally, which is difficult" are very seldom going to result in the type of argument or hurt feelings that would cause a real problem. Because I just don't see us as the type of community for someone to go into a thread such as that, and sharply criticize or condemn the poster for the problem they are having -- that's too obviously a kind of personal attack, and I think people would generally regard that as uncalled for.
It's trickier if someone wants to rant in a general way and criticize generally those who have particular kinds of personal problems. That isn't meant as a personal attack on anyone. But, I think it's kind of understandable for someone to whom it applies personally to regard it as an oblique attack, and to make the point that the OP isn't talking about a faceless, generalized population, there are real people to whom the rant applies, and some of them are right here.
(And I have to say -- there was no clear indication from either the subject line or the opening paragraphs of the post to realize that it would stray into the territory it did. So IMO, it wasn't a situation of, "well, you could just avoid reading it if it was going to upset you". The part that caused the upset kind of came out of left field; again IMO.)
But yes -- all that said, it seems like a good idea to separate out (as Foxeye has already done) an area for posting about personal issues, from an area where it's intended that things could get really contentious, but they aren't supposed to be personal.
107
Art and Elfquest / Re: More Final Quest teasers
« on: September 07, 2011, 09:08:46 AM »
Yeah, I don't know about that. Unless something else has majorly changed, Final Quest appears to take place "only" about 60-100 years after SATS, which itself only takes place about 10-15 years (probably less) after the end of KOTBW and the Shards storyline.
(Reasoning: in KOTBW, Shuna is shown to be a little girl, while she's a young adult, probably a teen, in Shards. I'd put her in her 20s in SATS, at most. In old Final Quest promo images, Shuna is shown as elderly. It's hard to judge exactly how old she is by her physical appearance -- she could be as "young" as 65 or as old as 100, depending on whether a hard life ages humans prematurely in this world, or conversely whether being around the Palace has magically extended her life a bit.)
When Leetah and Cutter were reunited in KOTBW, he asks her to remove his wolf-blood, and initially she responds enthusiastically (something like, "I've waited so long for you to ask me to do that!"), but then in very next panel she realizes she "knows nothing of waiting" -- after all, in her personal timeline, she and Cutter have "only" been together approximately 20-25 years; whereas, she's talking to him just after he's spent over 500 years waiting to be reunited with her. So the upshot of that (I'd have to go back and read it again to be sure how it falls out) is that she almost kind of talks him out of making a hasty decision about doing that.
Given that she came to that conclusion, would 600+ year old Leetah really feel after only about 60-100 more years that she is "fed up" with waiting for Cutter to make a decision about his wolf-blood? It seems like it would be too soon for her to become "fed up" -- because really, most of the time, what is there about his having wolf-blood for her to be fed up about? Nothing, really.
Leetah has always seemed to understand that his wolf-blood is part of what makes him HIM. And they've all had the experience of watching what happened to Skywise as he adjusted to not having wolf-blood. What would it mean to the CHIEF of the wolfriders to give up some of the abilities that his wolf-blood gives to him?
The only reason Leetah has wanted to remove Cutter's wolf-blood is that she's afraid of eventually losing him to old age and a natural death. (If he gets that far! ) But that eventuality is a long way off. Although neither she nor Winnowill ever stated outright if they knew, it's possible they know in a general way what a wolfrider's natural life-span could be; and haven't we been given estimates that it could be as long as 1500-2500 years? Cutter is an extremely long way from it becoming an issue, in other words; and there is no real reason for Leetah to become impatient about it during the time-frame we seem to be talking about.
If anything, I'd think that removing Cutter's wolf-blood would increase the danger of his dying sooner. The example of Skywise showed that removing the wolf-blood removes some of the senses and abilities that the wolfriders have, which presumably makes them better at the lifestyle they lead (hunting and so on). It's impossible to imagine Cutter giving up those things that wolfriders enjoy, like hunting. But removing his wolf-blood could make him less good at them, and thus increase the odds of his dying by accident.
Otherwise, though... yeah, not sure what that cryptic hint could be referring to! But then, I was no good at trying to guess at the cryptic hint given to us about that picture ("what is Cutter missing?" ... um, his vest? New Moon? Sure, Leetah was with him, but otherwise, technically speaking, "the entire rest of the tribe" was missing from the picture... so what? Ehn, these kinds of riddles just irritate me.)
(Reasoning: in KOTBW, Shuna is shown to be a little girl, while she's a young adult, probably a teen, in Shards. I'd put her in her 20s in SATS, at most. In old Final Quest promo images, Shuna is shown as elderly. It's hard to judge exactly how old she is by her physical appearance -- she could be as "young" as 65 or as old as 100, depending on whether a hard life ages humans prematurely in this world, or conversely whether being around the Palace has magically extended her life a bit.)
When Leetah and Cutter were reunited in KOTBW, he asks her to remove his wolf-blood, and initially she responds enthusiastically (something like, "I've waited so long for you to ask me to do that!"), but then in very next panel she realizes she "knows nothing of waiting" -- after all, in her personal timeline, she and Cutter have "only" been together approximately 20-25 years; whereas, she's talking to him just after he's spent over 500 years waiting to be reunited with her. So the upshot of that (I'd have to go back and read it again to be sure how it falls out) is that she almost kind of talks him out of making a hasty decision about doing that.
Given that she came to that conclusion, would 600+ year old Leetah really feel after only about 60-100 more years that she is "fed up" with waiting for Cutter to make a decision about his wolf-blood? It seems like it would be too soon for her to become "fed up" -- because really, most of the time, what is there about his having wolf-blood for her to be fed up about? Nothing, really.
Leetah has always seemed to understand that his wolf-blood is part of what makes him HIM. And they've all had the experience of watching what happened to Skywise as he adjusted to not having wolf-blood. What would it mean to the CHIEF of the wolfriders to give up some of the abilities that his wolf-blood gives to him?
The only reason Leetah has wanted to remove Cutter's wolf-blood is that she's afraid of eventually losing him to old age and a natural death. (If he gets that far!
) But that eventuality is a long way off. Although neither she nor Winnowill ever stated outright if they knew, it's possible they know in a general way what a wolfrider's natural life-span could be; and haven't we been given estimates that it could be as long as 1500-2500 years? Cutter is an extremely long way from it becoming an issue, in other words; and there is no real reason for Leetah to become impatient about it during the time-frame we seem to be talking about.If anything, I'd think that removing Cutter's wolf-blood would increase the danger of his dying sooner. The example of Skywise showed that removing the wolf-blood removes some of the senses and abilities that the wolfriders have, which presumably makes them better at the lifestyle they lead (hunting and so on). It's impossible to imagine Cutter giving up those things that wolfriders enjoy, like hunting. But removing his wolf-blood could make him less good at them, and thus increase the odds of his dying by accident.
Otherwise, though... yeah, not sure what that cryptic hint could be referring to! But then, I was no good at trying to guess at the cryptic hint given to us about that picture ("what is Cutter missing?" ... um, his vest? New Moon? Sure, Leetah was with him, but otherwise, technically speaking, "the entire rest of the tribe" was missing from the picture... so what? Ehn, these kinds of riddles just irritate me.)
108
Chit-Chat / Re: Fight Club
« on: September 05, 2011, 12:08:17 PM »
FWIW, Foxeye, I don't think badly of you for the idea that you enjoy participating in that kind of debate -- and it doesn't at all make me discount your good nature and generosity.
I've definitely belonged to groups or frequented forums that are a lot more rough-and-tumble in the kind of expression of opinions they welcome. So for me, it's more of a "there's a time and a place" kind of thing, and also, wanting to know when I walk through the front door (as it were) what I expect to find inside. For whatever reason or reasons, it seems like a number of folks who come here have a view of what type of community it would be, that didn't expect the idea of no-holds-barred social/political debate and dark humor and so on. I don't think it means that those are bad things to want to engage in.
But it's true that not everyone will want to. And... I think it's also true that it feels like more of the spaces on the internet are like that -- rough, contentious, sometimes becoming uncivil -- that people come to value the ability to find some spaces (like this one) where it's a bit gentler and quieter.
A question for folks who frequent Scroll of Colors more than I do, or even more than I did before the site-change -- does, or did, SoC have parts of it that offered that kind of space for "be as frank as you want and have debates, but everyone leaves the acrimony at the door"? I know it had/has off-topic areas, but I don't really frequent those. And I know that even the EQ-related debates could get a bit hot at times!
I've definitely belonged to groups or frequented forums that are a lot more rough-and-tumble in the kind of expression of opinions they welcome. So for me, it's more of a "there's a time and a place" kind of thing, and also, wanting to know when I walk through the front door (as it were) what I expect to find inside. For whatever reason or reasons, it seems like a number of folks who come here have a view of what type of community it would be, that didn't expect the idea of no-holds-barred social/political debate and dark humor and so on. I don't think it means that those are bad things to want to engage in.
But it's true that not everyone will want to. And... I think it's also true that it feels like more of the spaces on the internet are like that -- rough, contentious, sometimes becoming uncivil -- that people come to value the ability to find some spaces (like this one) where it's a bit gentler and quieter.
A question for folks who frequent Scroll of Colors more than I do, or even more than I did before the site-change -- does, or did, SoC have parts of it that offered that kind of space for "be as frank as you want and have debates, but everyone leaves the acrimony at the door"? I know it had/has off-topic areas, but I don't really frequent those. And I know that even the EQ-related debates could get a bit hot at times!
109
Chit-Chat / Re: Fight Club
« on: September 02, 2011, 03:37:39 PM »
The background you gave above makes what you intended with the section make more sense... but my reaction to that is that while I can imagine it's quite possible to build such a community, I honestly don't know that we have the kind of community here that's looking for, or would benefit from, that kind of contained conflict and darkness.
I kind of think that what we (some of us) witnessed was a real clash of community expectations, that is difficult to reconcile. That is -- it's one thing to invite people to post about inner conflicts or troubles that aren't necessarily very nice; it's something pretty different to try to set up a no-holds-barred debate club, as it were, where someone can engage in spraying emotional buckshot at any and all readers, with the expectation that anyone who does read it should just brush it off.
I'm not saying the latter is a terrible idea. I'm saying it takes a certain kind of community to make it work, in the way that it sounds like the place you were modeling it on actually worked.
I imagine that a bunch of us here have been on the internet for a long while, and seen a lot of different kinds of communities; and we've become more experienced about what to expect (maturity level, cussing level, trolling level, etc.) based on the community we enter. Something I've come to realize is that I can handle... contentiousness amongst posters, let's say, in communities that are geared towards something I am less emotionally invested in to begin with.
But this is a community that has come together for two related reasons: a real love of ElfQuest (which many of us admit we have an emotional attachment to going back years), and a desire to share artwork (which is something that for many people is bound up in ego and emotion, and the act of sharing it can be a fraught one even for experienced artists).
In a context like that, finding out about some of the struggles and frailties of my fellow community members doesn't bother me... but I can see where it's a context of heightened emotion for some, in which finding out that one's fellow community members can be casually cruel towards another part of your identity (even if they didn't think they were addressing anyone personally) is far more intense than it would be if you were in a forum/community centered around a subject less important to your own identity to begin with. (As, for example, sharing my art with others is bound up in my identity; whereas, talking about a sports team I follow really isn't.)
In a community that has as a part of its rules/standards "respect each other" and "no flame wars", it seems like it might be difficult to successfully maintain a portion of the forum in which those standards are suspended. Especially if that kind of particular "fight club"-style Rant Board experience is a relatively rare one elsewhere, so that not many of the people coming here are used to it or expecting to find it.
That's just me, though. If you want to continue that experiment, go for it; I'll just know to stay far away from it.
I kind of think that what we (some of us) witnessed was a real clash of community expectations, that is difficult to reconcile. That is -- it's one thing to invite people to post about inner conflicts or troubles that aren't necessarily very nice; it's something pretty different to try to set up a no-holds-barred debate club, as it were, where someone can engage in spraying emotional buckshot at any and all readers, with the expectation that anyone who does read it should just brush it off.
I'm not saying the latter is a terrible idea. I'm saying it takes a certain kind of community to make it work, in the way that it sounds like the place you were modeling it on actually worked.
I imagine that a bunch of us here have been on the internet for a long while, and seen a lot of different kinds of communities; and we've become more experienced about what to expect (maturity level, cussing level, trolling level, etc.) based on the community we enter. Something I've come to realize is that I can handle... contentiousness amongst posters, let's say, in communities that are geared towards something I am less emotionally invested in to begin with.
But this is a community that has come together for two related reasons: a real love of ElfQuest (which many of us admit we have an emotional attachment to going back years), and a desire to share artwork (which is something that for many people is bound up in ego and emotion, and the act of sharing it can be a fraught one even for experienced artists).
In a context like that, finding out about some of the struggles and frailties of my fellow community members doesn't bother me... but I can see where it's a context of heightened emotion for some, in which finding out that one's fellow community members can be casually cruel towards another part of your identity (even if they didn't think they were addressing anyone personally) is far more intense than it would be if you were in a forum/community centered around a subject less important to your own identity to begin with. (As, for example, sharing my art with others is bound up in my identity; whereas, talking about a sports team I follow really isn't.)
In a community that has as a part of its rules/standards "respect each other" and "no flame wars", it seems like it might be difficult to successfully maintain a portion of the forum in which those standards are suspended. Especially if that kind of particular "fight club"-style Rant Board experience is a relatively rare one elsewhere, so that not many of the people coming here are used to it or expecting to find it.
That's just me, though. If you want to continue that experiment, go for it; I'll just know to stay far away from it.
110
Art and Elfquest / Re: [2012 Calendar] Costume Changes (Was: Who's drawing who)
« on: August 26, 2011, 07:46:46 PM »
Ohhhh. My mistake. I'd noticed some instances recently of more than 10 pieces being uploaded at a time, and figured it wasn't hardcoded.
111
Art and Elfquest / Re: [2012 Calendar] Costume Changes (Was: Who's drawing who)
« on: August 26, 2011, 02:32:13 PM »
I think the "only add 10 images a day" thing isn't hardwired, though. And I think Foxeye said that these will NOT show up under Recent Art?
AFAIK, "only add 10 images a day" is just supposed to be a courtesy rule to keep from shoving other new art off the front page of Recent Art.
So for this particular project, you wouldn't have to worry about it, I think.
AFAIK, "only add 10 images a day" is just supposed to be a courtesy rule to keep from shoving other new art off the front page of Recent Art.
So for this particular project, you wouldn't have to worry about it, I think.
112
Art and Elfquest / Re: [2012 Calendar] Costume Changes (Was: Who's drawing who)
« on: August 25, 2011, 08:57:35 PM »
Not the largest copies, but I think they can all be found here (if we're talking about the group shots that appeared, amongst other places, in the Official Roleplaying Game book?):
http://digilander.libero.it/abode/gallery.htm
eta: I had a look around, but I can't find them posted anywhere in a larger size. I've scanned a few, but not all of them. It seems to me that that would be the best way to do it -- get someone to scan them from the book, at a higher resolution.
http://digilander.libero.it/abode/gallery.htm
eta: I had a look around, but I can't find them posted anywhere in a larger size. I've scanned a few, but not all of them. It seems to me that that would be the best way to do it -- get someone to scan them from the book, at a higher resolution.
113
Holts / Re: Looking for Holt
« on: August 16, 2011, 03:44:04 PM »
Emberra: the holts in the first post of this thread are pretty clearly labelled (I think), and the ones listed in the first section are all active. Style of play, language, and whether they allow character creation should all be noted, if known.
http://www.elfquestfanart.com/index.php?topic=202.msg1836#msg1836
http://www.elfquestfanart.com/index.php?topic=202.msg1836#msg1836
114
Art and Elfquest / Re: 2012 Fan Calendar Guidelines
« on: August 12, 2011, 05:17:50 PM »I just finished the sketch for my Nightfall full body shot and was flipping through the pages of the last issue of OQ. I couldn't help but being drawn in again and finding myself tearing up at the end. How can it be that it manages to do it after reading it for the millionth time? That truly is the magic of Elfquest for me, I guess.
I totally do that at any number of scenes, even when I'm just flipping through.
115
Art and Elfquest / Re: How many of you were on EQFanart.com back in the day??
« on: August 07, 2011, 07:09:22 PM »
How far back was "back in the day"? I was definitely putting some stuff up on the previous version of EQFA (previous to this one), as "sgaana" I think, but I imagine it wasn't until 2007 or 2008 or so.
116
Art and Elfquest / Re: [Tools of the Trade] Coloring with Prismacolor Markers
« on: August 07, 2011, 10:10:23 AM »
Congrat's!
Unfortunately, I'm in the position of only having used Copic Sketch markers (with a flexible brush tip), so I don't think that any of the techniques I've worked out for using them would necessarily translate to the Prismacolor markers. (Which I have occasionally eyed, and would like to experiment with -- but yeah, having invested so heavily in a Copics set, for a similarly
amount of money, I'm reluctant to spend even more on Prismacolor markers.)
But I have to echo what Treefox says:
* paper makes a BIG difference. While you are in the experimental phase, I would suggest getting a bunch of different types of paper, and maybe copying the same drawing onto each of the types, and then color each of them. It may let you see the best how different the effects are depending on the paper finish.
* Look for paper sold in art stores specifically as "marker" paper.
* I've said this before, but I particularly like doing my marker coloring on HP Laser Photo Paper (matte finish, 8 mil, 54 lb).
Do you have access to a cheap laser-printer? I acquired a little HP LaserJet that only does b&w on sale at like Staples, and it's a godsend to my process. One of the things I was trying to work around was that my scanner can't really handle paper larger than 9x12. Therefore, for larger and more complex pieces of art, I often draw parts of it on several sheets of paper, ink it, then scan in the inks to clean them up a bit, and print them out on the laser-printer directly onto the paper I want to color on. That ensures that the color piece will fit on my scanner.
Pro: laser-printed lines are impervious to markers, so you don't have to worry at all about smudging or smearing. Con: not all types of paper will fit through the laser printer (bristol board won't).
Unfortunately, I'm in the position of only having used Copic Sketch markers (with a flexible brush tip), so I don't think that any of the techniques I've worked out for using them would necessarily translate to the Prismacolor markers. (Which I have occasionally eyed, and would like to experiment with -- but yeah, having invested so heavily in a Copics set, for a similarly
amount of money, I'm reluctant to spend even more on Prismacolor markers.)But I have to echo what Treefox says:
* paper makes a BIG difference. While you are in the experimental phase, I would suggest getting a bunch of different types of paper, and maybe copying the same drawing onto each of the types, and then color each of them. It may let you see the best how different the effects are depending on the paper finish.
* Look for paper sold in art stores specifically as "marker" paper.
* I've said this before, but I particularly like doing my marker coloring on HP Laser Photo Paper (matte finish, 8 mil, 54 lb).
Do you have access to a cheap laser-printer? I acquired a little HP LaserJet that only does b&w on sale at like Staples, and it's a godsend to my process. One of the things I was trying to work around was that my scanner can't really handle paper larger than 9x12. Therefore, for larger and more complex pieces of art, I often draw parts of it on several sheets of paper, ink it, then scan in the inks to clean them up a bit, and print them out on the laser-printer directly onto the paper I want to color on. That ensures that the color piece will fit on my scanner.
Pro: laser-printed lines are impervious to markers, so you don't have to worry at all about smudging or smearing. Con: not all types of paper will fit through the laser printer (bristol board won't).
117
Art and Elfquest / Re: [2012 Calendar] Costume Changes (Was: Who's drawing who)
« on: August 04, 2011, 03:02:51 PM »
This was the URL of the old "Elvish Fashion" website, but as I thought, it's completely gone now. Does anyone know who this user was?
http://mira.telepelwen.com/eq/eqlist/fashion/
http://mira.telepelwen.com/eq/eqlist/fashion/
118
Art and Elfquest / Re: [2012 Calendar] Who's drawing who
« on: August 04, 2011, 08:47:54 AM »
Windrider -- good to know! I think two of my three have 1 basic costume choice, and the other one I'm probably going to have to make up somewhat anyway...
There was a person a long while ago (I mean back in the days of the old Scroll) who had a website that had a page for each character, and on that page there was a collection of images of each of the character's costumes throughout their history. But then that page went away... I still have it bookmarked at home, I think, but by now the page has probably gone away entirely.
It was such a useful resource -- not just if you're doing pics of canon characters, but also for someone like me, when I'm designing new costumes for fan characters. (I am not a very creative costume designer, so I like to look at a "library" of classic elements to choose things I'd like to incorporate.) It's the kind of thing that would be even easier to add to now that all the EQ comics are online... and it's a project I'd consider doing, but it'd be nice not to have to reinvent the wheel (i.e. re-gather those images that had already been collected by the person who first did the project).
I think two of my three have 1 basic costume choice, and the other one I'm probably going to have to make up somewhat anyway...And if you're looking for references for costumes from other eras, this thread on the Scroll has lots of images: http://www.elfquest.com/social/index.php?do=/forum/-3/eq-characters-costume-changes-minor-plot-spoilers/page_1/
Tavie
There was a person a long while ago (I mean back in the days of the old Scroll) who had a website that had a page for each character, and on that page there was a collection of images of each of the character's costumes throughout their history. But then that page went away... I still have it bookmarked at home, I think, but by now the page has probably gone away entirely.
It was such a useful resource -- not just if you're doing pics of canon characters, but also for someone like me, when I'm designing new costumes for fan characters. (I am not a very creative costume designer, so I like to look at a "library" of classic elements to choose things I'd like to incorporate.) It's the kind of thing that would be even easier to add to now that all the EQ comics are online... and it's a project I'd consider doing, but it'd be nice not to have to reinvent the wheel (i.e. re-gather those images that had already been collected by the person who first did the project).
119
Art and Elfquest / Re: 2012 Fan Calendar Guidelines
« on: August 04, 2011, 08:33:55 AM »Wolfriders 5 heads tall, humans 7.5-8... How about the rest of them (Gliders, Wavedancers, High Ones etc.)? I'm trying to work on my elf drawing skills, so this info would be very helpful to me
Quote:
>>
>But Ember and Teir are 4.5 heads tall. The usual Wendy wolfrider proportion is 5 heads tall. (Human proportions are usually 7.5 to 8 heads tall.) So if their heads were about 10% smaller, give or take, they'd look like they fit the figures better.
I don't recall that any of the info in the Gatherums addressed the proper proportions for Gliders/High Ones/etc. That's where I got the "wolfriders = 5 heads tall" info from -- Wendy did some figure guides for animators that broke down proportions, but they mainly applied to wolfriders and elves of related size (Sun Folk and Go-Backs, I guess). I suppose the idea was that since those are so short, they are the most difficult for other artists to figure out how to do?
It's also true that while Wendy provided these guidelines, I think she also isn't completely consistent with them. She's PRETTY consistent, but I think she also plays it by ear depending on the piece.
So -- a quick examination of a couple of pictures by her that have High Ones standing upright reveals a little variation:
* The picture of Savah and Yurek from the Lovemates calendar has both of them at approx. 8-heads-high proportion.
* Timmain on the Pin-Ups calendar is aprox. 7.5 heads high. (When measuring "heads", you also have to account for poofy hair. That is, try to figure out what the size of the skull is, not what size the head is when you add on poofy hair.)
Therefore, I think it's broadly safe to say that the Gliders and High Ones and Wavedancers are probably the same as human proportion, in height; of course you can tell they're elves by their willowy rather than sturdy build.
120
Art and Elfquest / Re: [2012 Calendar] Who's drawing who
« on: August 02, 2011, 08:50:50 AM »
Do we need to call the outfit for every character we're doing? Or only in cases where there are enough choices for it to be a question?
121
Art and Elfquest / Re: 2012 Fan Calendar Guidelines
« on: August 02, 2011, 08:46:19 AM »I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks so.
Yeah. The funny thing is, the elves in the background look a bit better.
But Ember and Teir are 4.5 heads tall. The usual Wendy wolfrider proportion is 5 heads tall. (Human proportions are usually 7.5 to 8 heads tall.) So if their heads were about 10% smaller, give or take, they'd look like they fit the figures better.
(I have that same problem all the time; I wind up with heads that are too big. It's something I correct after scanning the inks and fiddling with them in Photoshop, before printing them out for coloring.)
122
Art and Elfquest / Re: 2012 Fan Calendar Guidelines
« on: July 29, 2011, 10:30:21 AM »
This seems fair.
The fact that there's so many people wanting to participate is fantastic!
The fact that there's so many people wanting to participate is fantastic!
123
Art and Elfquest / Re: 2012 Fan Calendar Guidelines
« on: July 23, 2011, 05:02:22 AM »
Coming up with the poses is the part I dread the most. 
124
Art and Elfquest / Re: 2012 Fan Calendar Guidelines
« on: July 21, 2011, 08:17:33 AM »Yeah, it's the Calendar Teir, as well as the new picture that Wendy shared from Final Quest (which hopefully we'll see more of after this weekend's presentation at Comic Con *little jig*).
The pic of Teir looks great! (Although... hey, look, I am a big proponent of "people should draw guys' nipples", but man... those are a little scary.)
I'm a little discouraged, though, that WaRP appear to have abandoned EQ.com or the SoC in favor of FaceBook.
(or, to properly express how I feel, 
). I mean, both the Moonshade picture and the Teir picture were posted on FB, not on the Scroll at all... until other Scroll posters happened to mention it. Would it really kill WaRP to post something to FB and then ALSO post it in the appropriate thread on the Scroll? Why are people on the Scroll acting like it's not okay to repost the artwork in a thread there? (There was hesitation over posting the Moonshade piece, and I'm not sure the Teir piece was ever actually posted there, except as a link.)
The same goes for whatever comes out of SDCC. Is it really too much to ask that images, possible movies, or con reports be mirrored on the Scroll or somewhere easily findable on EQ.com, rather than just on FaceBook? It leaves those of us who don't use FB feeling like we don't matter.
125
Art and Elfquest / Re: Calendar for 2012?
« on: July 05, 2011, 07:04:32 AM »
Yeah, me too. I like the challenge and the excuse (/prompting) to create canon fan-art. I feel more a part of the community here at EQFA than I do at the Scroll, since the revamp, unfortunately.