Jephyr's Photoshop Pics Chosen For The Spring Student Art Show

Hi,

I normally attend Mesa Community College, but as I inch closer to my degree I'm in a bigger hurry to take the classes I need.

After a "Grad Check", I had a short list of classes I'd need to finish my Fine Art and Digital Illustration degrees.

Before the Spring semester I was down to just two Computer Art classes but I couldn't work out taking them at MCC, so I expanded my search of other Maricopa Community Colleges that it's part of.

I did find one, a Photoshop class I needed at Chandler/Gilbert Community College.  I'd never even been there so I drove there one day and discovered it wasn't much further from me than MCC.  So I registered and the next thing I knew I was taking a class for the first time at another college in the system.

It turned out to be a really good experience.  I felt rejuvenated taking a class where I felt unknown, and like I could have a "clean slate" as far as past expectations.  Not that I've ever really had a problem at MCC...but though I can't explain it...that's how I was feeling.

Over-all I had a very good experience, learned a lot, and added to my portfolio. 

Anyway, I hope to be able to share more about the semester in other posts but I'll get on with today's.

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I was very honored to have two of my class projects from this semester chosen by my instructor, Robert Burget, to be included in the 2016 Chandler/Gilbert Student Art Show which I'll share below.

Above:  Our instructor asked us to create a Triptych using our Photography.  Since I'd spent a good portion of 2015 shooting photos all over Arizona I put this series of images together.

The awesome guy in the center is "Teton Ken" who I met at an exhibition at the Superstition Mountain Museum north of Apache Junction, Arizona, in 2015.   He plays a prospector and totally looks the part...and was a lot of fun to talk to!  

The landscape to the left is a distant view of the nearby Weaver's Needle, and to the right is a view of the Superstition Mountains...which come complete with a history of gold mining and the legend of the Lost Dutchman's Mine. 

ART 270 - Photographic Process Imitation - Woodbury Type Cabinet Card - Copyright 2016 - Jephyr

Above:  This second image is from our Historical Photography Process Project where we were asked to research old photography methods, choose one, and create an imitation of it.

I found myself really drawn to a process called a Woodbury Type, which was widely used between 1864 and 1910.  It created rich, warm single toned images, mostly in shades of brown, and was often used in printing "Cabinet Cards" which people of the time gave to each other....as calling cards or for advertisements and so on.

I imitated Cabinet Cards like those I'd seen from that era...and added a saying like ones often found on the originals...although I couldn't resist adding a touch of humor.

: )

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Well, that's it for now, thanks as always for stopping by!

See you next time!

7-9-14: First Life Drawing Charcoal In A While

Hi,

This morning I decided to head on over to Mesa Community College to a Life Drawing Open Session for the first time in quite a while.

I thought it went from 10 am to 1 pm but about 9:30 I re-read the e-mail and realized it started at 9 am.

Click Image To Enlarge

At first I debated about going but quickly decided to race on over.

I burst in about 10:15 and fortunately there was a small group...so I was able to still find a good spot.

By the time I had my easel and all set up it was getting close to 10:30 and so at last I jumped into my drawing.

It's always fun to draw very lean people because the "landmarks" on them are easier to see.

And maybe you can tell that Rebecca was both very tall and lean.

I wish I'd had more time because she had a beautiful, exotic face...but sadly working in that kind of detail in such a short time meant doing that was outa reach for me.

Anywho...I'm glad I went after-all...and plan, God willing, to go to the next one later this month .

Thanks for stoppin' by...see ya next time!

Jephyr's Video Chosen For MCC's "Tracers" - Video And Animation Show

Hello,

Yesterday I trekked over to the Mesa Community College campus for the first time in a while to take part in "Tracers", a video and animation show put together by MCC Digital Art instructor Chris Todd.

www.mesacc.edu/programs/digital-arts

 

Chris Todd's Awesome Poster For "Tracers"

Chris has been teaching at MCC for 6 years now and has amassed a growing number of excellent student video and animation projects...and he shared 15 to 20 or so of them during the show. 

I remembered a number of my classmate's animations from my Art 202 class with Chris...and was fascinated to see the wide variety of subjects and styles represented by all the various videos presented.

Some were humorous, others a tad dark, one was "video game" based, others wove through narratives about family or friends, some tackled social issues, while others floated in sheer whimsy...seeing the individual approaches to assignments each student had taken was very interesting and in many cases inspiring. 

Tracers was an excellent show!

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 I was honored to have been asked by Chris to include my "Transformation" animation, "Late Again", in the show.

(please see the video below)

Late Again was a "Pareidolia" assignment created for Chris's Art 202 class.

A pareidolia...is when we perceive something recognizable in a random object....like seeing faces or animals in clouds for example...or the face of someone on burnt toast 

You can read more about that project in my February 26, 2013 blog post.

Here's my video/animation "Late Again"...hope you enjoy it!




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In 2013 I was also honored to have been chosen by Chris to have this same video appear in the Student Art Show.  You can read more about that here:

http://artmusicpoliticsfaithhopeandlove.blogspot.com/2013/04/jephyrs-transformation-animation-chosen.html

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Thanks for stopping by!

Blender Boy! Jephyr Gets Back Into 3D!

 

Hello again!

The Halcyon Days of Jephyr the 3D Dood

In 2005, MCC the college I attend had greatly expanded their 3D Animation and Design classes and were offering several degree tracks in that area.

 

I took a number of those courses, including Maya Animation, 3 Dimensional Computer Design, 3D Modeling, Compositing, and Digital Film-Making, a class on video editing, screen-writing and storyboarding, etc.

In my last semester of those classes I created a 7 minute long video that combined what I'd learned in those classes:  my original 3D modeling and animation, with photos and live action, green screen composites of my instructors and fellow students:

 http://www.artistjeffcurtis.wgd-entertainment.com/Visitation.htm

You'll find other Maya images animations of mine on my video and Art 170/Maya3D pages on my website...And animations/videos on my YouTube channel:  JephyrX.

Here's a composite of some of the projects I worked on in 2005.  You can click this image to see a larger view of it:


Various 2005 Maya Projects:  Copyright 2014, Jephyr

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It's All Over For Jephyr The 3D Guy!  (Or Is it??)

Sadly MCC's Maya / Digital Film-Making program was discontinued...but I'd purchased a student license and had Maya on my laptop and have always been intending to get back to it. 

BUT unfortunately had gotten so busy with other Fine Art classes and other things that with each passing year I'd open Maya less and less often, until I was literally never using it.

Then last fall the reliable computer I had the software on crashed and was unsalvageable.

Since then I spent a little time looking into installing Maya on my newer desktop.  I downloaded a free student copy that was supposed to be good for 3 years...but could not get it to install correctly...and so I just got back into other things.

I'd really begun to think that my days as a 3D guy were probably behind me.

The following video was made for my Maya Animation and Modeling classes.  I took a 3D character I'd designed and created, then rigged it (put animation controls on it), and did some animation with it...a little movement and a walk cycle....then set it in a background and put some original music I'd written and recorded under it: 



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The Birth Of Blender Boy...And Other Tales!

Recently I stumbled across some beautiful images and animations made in Blender 3D...which fired up my interest in looking into it.

Blender was originally developed to be sold like any software...but then was given over to the "internet community" as an open source model (FREE to use for ANY purpose), and interested developers have been constantly updating the code to keep it up with changing technology.  http://www.blender.org/

Sometime around 2005 when I'd been taking all those 3D classes I'd tried Blender but it seemed like it was cumbersome and difficult to use...especially after I'd been using sleek software like Maya and Shake, and had become so familiar with their use.

But I was in for a surprise when I tried Blender again in the last few days!!



The download and install on my computer were a BREEZE and it opens VERY quickly. 

The interface, while quite different from Maya, has definitely been improved.  So far I've found all of the "bells and whistles" I'd come to rely on in Maya.  And its functionality has been radically improved.

Following a tutorial for "beginners" on YouTube *, I had an image output in a very short time...the image of the cup posted above  ^^^.

I KNOW I still have a LONG way to go...but I'm looking forward to getting back into 3D...and eventually creating full scenes and animations again!!

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Thanks as always for stopping by!!

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* Blender Tutorial For Beginners: Coffee Cup - 2 Videos
Made by tutor4u - www. LittleWebHut.com

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y__uzGKmxt8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ChPle-aiJuA

These videos demonstrate how to make an image of a cup with a handle using the cycles render engine.

Blender version 2.64 was used for this tutorial.

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And lastly as a reward if you've read to the bottom of this post:  :)

The eminent linguistic philosopher J. L. Austin of Oxford once gave a lecture in which he asserted that there are many languages in which a double negative makes a positive, but none in which a double positive makes a negative — to which the Columbia philosopher Sidney Morgenbesser, sitting in the audience, sarcastically replied, “Yeah right.”

Found on StumbleUpon from the following site:

http://colonp.in/post/1137072722/yeah-right





Jephyr Posts A Few More Images From The Ol' Sketchbook

Hi!

Hope you're day is going well!

I finished another semester of college recently as I inch closer to completing my degrees in Fine Art and Digital Illustration at Mesa Community College.

I usually pour myself into classes so even if I only take one it quickly begins to eat up most of my free time.  So when a semester ends I realize how much I've had to put aside my own interests.

One thing that suffers is how much time I can spend on my own art...both on the digital painting side but also in my personal sketchbook.

As I looked back through my sketchbook over the semester I didn't like a lot of my efforts recognising now I was often too tired to really feel inspired about drawing. 

Thankfully I still enjoy sitting in a coffee house, or after a meal sketching...so it's only in retrospect that I can see that about individual drawings.

Fortunately there were still a few that I felt I could share here:

I call this guy "Crunch".   ^ ^ ^ ^ ^

I'd found a tiny little Mexican Restaurant, owned by an older couple.  He took the orders, and she was the chef.  They spoke only Spanish between themselves and I had the impression she spoke no English.

There were only 3 tables inside and all of them were occupied so I found myself sitting out on the covered patio. 

That wouldn't have been my first choice but soon enough I was very happy about it.

It was a beautiful day.  The sun was shining but there was a gentle cool breeze so the temperature was just right. 

The patio is set off the roadway just far enough that I could indulge in some people watching without being seen myself.  There were pretty girls and street people...and young toughs...and old timers and families passing by. 

After my meal I began to scribble in my sketchbook and eventually "Crunch" began to appear. 

As I was getting close to finishing him, there was a knock on the window beside me and the old guy who took my order (and was a little gruff with me at the time) was smiling down at my work.  A few moments later his wife also tapped on the window and smiled and gave me a thumbs-up.

All in all a very good day.  :)

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I really enjoy using the "scribble" technique to begin a drawing...and use it fairly often. 

(see my May 2, 2012 blog post for more examples)

The old woman, admiring her coiffure above, is another case in point...begun as a scribble.

I'd started the sketch a day or so before and then sat one evening in a fast food joint and finished her up.

Sometimes I go "un-noticed" by the people around me, other times I see that people are interested in what I'm doing but don't approach me.  And then sometimes, usually after someone first gets the courage to come over and break the ice, I get a steady stream of people coming over wanting to see what I'm up to...and often we end up in conversations that cover all kinds of ground.

It can be a lot of fun.

That night I had a lot of company...and was enjoying my sketch...so it was definitely a good night.

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The sketch above, and the next two, fall into a category the guys over at Concept Art call my "super-exaggerated" anatomy.

They are done without any references so I know that the anatomy isn't perfect...but it does help me practice movement and musculature in my characters...and makes me hungry to really understand anatomy so that in the future I can spew out this kind of work without reference but have the anatomy be more accurate as well.




 

 

 

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The next drawing below came at the end of the semester, and after a few weeks of sketching again on a more regular basis.

Later I was thinking about where her sad face and look came from. 

Then I remembered seeing a mug-shot of one of the stars of "That 70's Show", Lisa Robin Kelly, after a DUI arrest.

I did a google search I found the photo again...and was struck by how much seeing this image just one time influenced my drawing.

These sub-conscious connections to my drawings come to me from time to time and I really enjoy when they do!

(I hope nothing but the best for Lisa Robin Kelly)

 

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Finally, this last drawing came about one day after a meal at a little Greek cafe.  It probably falls into the "super-exaggerated" anatomy because of the over sized feet and musculature. 

 

Later I returned to the cafe and realized I might have also been sub-consciously influenced by the table tops there. 

They are apparently left-overs from the previous restaurant and have an Asian-Chinese flavor with flowers painted on them...and honey bees.

 

I call this picture "Worth It"...imagining our hero got into a bee hive to eat some honey and is now being chased by its angry occupants.

 

 

 

 

Well...that's it for now. 

 

I'm already at work on more pages from my sketchbook and plan to finish up a lot of my digital paintings this summer.

 

So look for those in the future.

 

As always I really appreciate you stopping by.

 

Until next time...God Bless!

 

 

 

 

Jephyr's Transformation Animation Chosen For The 2013 MCC Student Art Show

Jephyr's Transformation Animation Looks Over The 2013 Mesa Community College Student Art Show

Hi...thanks for stopping by!

I've had a bit more good news recently.

In my last entry here on April 18, 2013 I shared that my "Identity" project for my MCC Art 202 class had been selected for a 2013 Maricopa Community College - Chancellor "Artists Of Promise" Award.

Now I'm happy to share that my Transformation Animation from that same class was selected by the instructor for the 2013 Mesa Community College Student Art Show.

This is my seventh work chosen for the show over the years.  (See my website Honors and Awards Page to learn more)

There are many talented students in the Fine Art and Digital Art programs so it is always an honor to have something you create for a class picked for the show.

If you'd like to read more about what this project was all about, my blog post for February 26, 2013 described the assignment and I posted storyboards made for it.

Here's the final video which was  looped with other student videos and projected at the show.  (as seen in the image above)







Thanks again for stopping by!

Newest Video: "Pareidolia" (Transformation) Animation / Animatic

Screen Capture From The Video

Hello,

In my last post I wrote about working on the second assignment for my MCC Art 202 class...a 1 minute minimum Pareidolia* Video (transforming one object into another).

Our instructor was covering the "motion and animation" capabilities of Adobe Photoshop and After Effects CS6.

He gave some quick but intensive lectures about the use of time-lines, puppet warps, rotoscoping, and key-framing etc using the software...and showed the class a variety of different animations and videos as examples and inspiration.

I was glad I had some experience already using Adobe Flash and Autodesk Maya...this gave me a toe hold on all those concepts...and that was very helpful.

As of that last post I had created the storyboards for the project and had just begun animating it.

I was planning to use photographs for the project...but when my instructor saw my hand drawn storyboards he encouraged me to draw all the elements I'd need.

Now I'm glad I did!

I ended up putting in countless hours for the final video...and was especially driven because I only had a 30 day trial of After Effects and it was due to expire several days before the project due date.

All in all I learned a ton and hope to be able use a lot of it in future projects.

Anywho...if you have a moment please give the video a look.  The video minus credits is just around 1:30 long.





Thanks as always for stopping by! 


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*   A pareidolia...is when we perceive something recognizable in a random object....like seeing faces or animals in clouds for example...or the face of someone on burnt toast.

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Visit http://www.jephyr.com to see many more examples of Jephyr digital painting and artwork.

Art 202 Pareidolia Animation Storyboards For Adobe After Effects Assignment

Edit:  You can see the finished animation this post refers to in today's update:http://artmusicpoliticsfaithhopeandlove.blogspot.com/2013/03/finished-assignment-pareidolia.html

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Hello,

Our spring semester is really flying by in my Art 202 - Digital Art Survey class.

We're already working on the second project of four...a Pareidolia Animation.

A "pareidolia is when a vague or random image is perceived as recognizable".   

(I found that definition on flickr and you'll find a few examples if you follow my link there)
 

Probably the most common example of a Pareidolia is seeing faces or animals in clouds.

Our assignment is to make a 1 minute minimum pareidolia animation using Adobe After Effects to assemble it.

We can use other software like Photoshop or Illustrator to create the images and our instructor will be covering rotoscoping soon...something I've always wanted to know more about.

The storyboards for the project are due today.  I've always resisted doing them...because I'd rather jump right into creating...but discovered I really enjoy the process of creating them and it really helps you put together your ideas.  So I'll probably find myself doing more of them for my own work.

I may or may not use the exact sequence or scenes from them...but I thought I'd share what I'm submitting in class today:

As you can probably see on this last group I moved away from "narrative" and got more experimental as I went along...something our instructor will probably like to see.

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Well that's it for now.

As always thank you heaps for stopping by!

Jephyr's Art 202 Photoshop Assignment: Identity Project

Image from Art 202 "Identity Project" - Copyright 2013, Jephyr

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Hello!

Yesterday, my Art 202 - Digital Art Survey class had a critique day for the Adobe Photoshop "Identity Projects" we've been working on for the last three plus weeks.

A lot of students in the class are just beginning with Photoshop but I was surprised at how good many of the submissions were.  There was so much inspiring variety...and lots of cool, sometimes very thought provoking images.

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As usual I really went into over-drive for my assignment and put in endless hours...and was generally pleased with end result...but you never know how it will be received by others. 

Sometimes what "speaks" to you as an artist...seems to completely miss the mark when you finally share it.

But in this case I was happy to find that there was a lot of positive feedback...and even a few compliments that would be wrong for me to repeat.  Let's just say I wish everything I did had this kind of response.

Below I'll post the full "Prospectus" I submitted to our instructor at the beginning of this assignment...but the summary will probably explain enough for most:

Project Summary: 

"This project will explore my own aging and its effects on my perceptions of life.  A series of self-portraits and other images will be shot with a digital camera and then enhanced and manipulated in Adobe Photoshop."

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So If anyone is still reading...and didnt' just go straight to the images...here they are...beginning with the "triptych and quadtrych" I submitted as the Final images for the project.

 (click to see larger views):

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(Triptych removed)

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Lastly, as you age, you become more and more aware of mortality.

While I'm not morbid about it...the older I get the more I find myself thinking about my own exit from this planet.

Here's a larger view of The Skull Image from the first Triptych.  I took several high contrast portraits of myself and a reference skull that I have and composited them together:



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And here's the prospectus I submitted for the project:

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Thanks as always for stopping by!

Jephyr Posts Third MCC Declare Success Your Major Video

Hi again,

Working Towards Two Degrees

As you may already know, I've been slowly working towards both Fine Art and Digital Illustration Degrees at Mesa Community College, taking one or two classes a semester.  

Initially I was only enrolling in courses that interested me...and wasn't honestly looking for anything else.  I primarily just wanted to learn about computers and computer art, and study fine art techniques.

But more recently I've discovered that I had taken most of the core classes for those two areas of study and have gotten serious about finishing up, and from now on will concentrate on only classes that apply to those tracks.

It'll be good to put a period on both programs and then if I want to continue taking classes I can just go back to taking what interests me.

Video Competition:  Newest Video Posted At Bottom

Over the last few years MCC has hosted a video competition for enrolled students.  I entered in 2011 for both the spring and fall semester and won 1st and 2nd places respectively.

The idea behind the contest is to promote the school...which isn't hard for me to do because I've had a very good experience there and think it's an excellent opportunity for prospective students.

Here's my first place video from spring 2005:




Two weeks ago an instructor told me the contest was going to be held again this semester and sugggested I begin working on a video and so I started putting one together right away.

Last week I received an e-mail from the school saying that the contest was "officially" on.

I began working in earnest then and put in a number of hours...and was approximately two thirds of the way to having it finished.

Then on Monday of this week I received word that the school hadn't been able to secure funding for the contest and would have to cancel it.

I was disappointed...but they also indicated that they knew a few of us had already been creating our videos...and that MCC was willing to buy them.

But only IF they were finished by Wednesday!!

Now that was an offer I couldn't refuse...so I quickly finished my video...changing a few things I had planned (like a voice over) so it could be completed on time and had it posted late Tuesday evening. 

So far it appears I was the only one to take them up on their challenge. 

Here's the result of those efforts:




Wednesday, when I went to school I was paid in cash!!! 

Cue the Hallelujah Chorus!  : ) 

Later I thought to myself:   “Any day I can make money from my art (including videos etc) is a good day”!

Thank you for stopping by!

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Stop by Jephyr.com to see more of my artwork and photography!

Jephyr: Life Drawing - Centurion Costume

Hello!

I went to another life drawing open session this week hosted by Dr Gingher Leyendecker at Mesa Community College.

Most of these sessions are with un-draped models but this time we had Jesse, one of the "regulars", wearing a Roman Centurion costume.

Centurion Jesse - Longer Pose - Jephyr 2012

I've developed some confidence when drawing the nude human form...but found myself challenged when drawing from a costumed model where you're not able to see all the "landmarks" of the body you'd normally use as reference points.

My conclusion: I definitely need to do more of this!!

Centurion Jesse - Short Gesture - Jephyr 2012

Thanks as always for stopping by!

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You're always welcome at Jephyr.com

Jephyr: A New Life Drawing 7-16-12

Hello!

Yesterday I went to another Life Drawing Open Session at MCC hosted by the most excellent Dr. Gingher Leyendecker.

Even though it didn't start until 5 pm I was a little late.  But soon enough found a place to sit and got set up in time for the long pose.

At first, I wasn't sure I liked where I was sitting and even got up and looked to see if I could find something better but quickly decided to stay put.

I struggled to find my groove in the beginning...and early on it even crossed my mind just to pack it in.

But soon enough I was finding my way...and even started to enjoy myself.

As always I needed more time...and would've loved to keep working on this and really tighten it up.

But I'll present it here as a "quick" study...imperfections and all. 

: )

<  Click the image to see it larger

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Thanks for stopping by.

Check out Jephyr.com to see more of my Artwork and Photography etc.


 

Jephyr Art: A recent Life Drawing (charcoal on grey paper)

Me again!  How are ya?!

I hadn't been doing any "life drawing" for quite a while (a year or more) and recently I've attended several open sessions hosted by the highly esteemed Dr. Gingher Leyendecker at Mesa Community College.

During the first 2 sessions (posted here May 4,2012) I felt soooo rusty...but last Tuesday everything felt a lot better.

I've taken 3 semesters of Gingher's Life Drawing classes and took her Art Anatomy class and learned so much!

I used to work very slowly but through the years I've been consciously trying to speed up and loosen up.  Tuesday I worked a bit faster and felt relaxed and comfortable...and was very happy for that!

As you might be able to tell, our model was a tall, very lean and muscular woman and so it was easy to see "life drawing landmarks" as I drew her.

Some models tend to slowly droop or shift in their pose.  I'm sure it is very difficult to sit steadily in one position for a long period of time.

But this model was rock solid!!

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BTW:  I'd be very interested to receive comments from you or have you vote in my poll (found at the top left...your vote is anonymous).

As artists we get used to drawing the human form.

But I'm aware that for some people these kinds of images may not be appropriate.

Do you think I should stop posting this kind of work on a public blog?

I don't really want to close my blog to those under 18 or label it "adult" because these studies are not mean to be sexual.

But I'm interested in your feedback about it and will certainly take into account your opinions about it.

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Thanks as always for visiting.

You're welcome at my web-site anytime:  Jephyr.com


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