a r t . p o o p a g e

BBC Sherlock

2012-01-29T12:29:00.001-05:00

I am a very big fan of the BBC Sherlock series! Realism isn't really my thing, but I like Benedict Cumberbatch enough to give it a shot. :)

Reference photo / testing this SAI brush setting / texture

As always, sorry for the lack of updates! I think I need to give this blog layout a face-lift soon...

Happy Lunar New Year!

2012-01-23T20:39:00.001-05:00

Wishing you health and happiness! :)

Happy holidays!

2011-12-24T19:22:00.000-05:00

Wishing everyone a wonderful Christmas and Happy New Year! :)

It's been a busy time at work, so I don't have too much personal art to show lately! But I am learning a ton about modeling and animation. :)

Shark card in action!

2011-11-27T18:49:00.001-05:00

I recently received this from Jay Wong, who was kind enough to send me photos from his wedding. I'm always happy to see my work in action (and it's actually my first time seeing it in print!). Best wishes for the newlyweds! :)

If you would like to use this card at your wedding, click here for more information! There is no charge for using it and I only ask you make a donation to a foundation involved in shark conservation.

An update: The possession and consumption of shark fin products is now banned in Toronto! There is now a call for a shark fin ban at the federal level. Please sign the petition here!

Convocation!

2011-11-05T23:28:00.003-04:00

I'm finally convocating this week! I wanted to give some thank you cards. :)

thank you!

PaintTool SAI + Photoshop CS5

It might sound crazy, but as much as I draw them, I often have a hard time getting chibi proportions right (what "proportions"? lol)...

This is closer to what I really look like. Awww yeaaaaa :'D

Going to print these tomorrow!

one fish, two fish...

2011-10-15T01:30:00.001-04:00

Another birthday card! This one's for my dad. :)

a fishy birthday

brown Sharpie + watercolours on paper

I used a different watercolour paper this time (Strathmore CP 600 series) and the surface seemed to be repelling water. Very strange behaviour... I still swear by Windsor & Newton HP 150 lb watercolour paper! I was just too lazy to cut the large sheet I have...

EDIT: whoa! Blogger finally updated their picture viewer? Looks a bit like Tumblr/Facebook now, but I like it. :)

Crabby

2011-10-10T16:15:00.002-04:00

Here's a quick birthday card I drew for my mom! She really likes eating snow crab legs, so I decided to draw her a crab (snow crabs were a bit difficult to draw in a cute way so chose another species...).

This was originally the back, but I decided it was a tad morbid and didn't include it in the final card. :'D

untitled

Sakura brush marker + watercolours + watercolour pencils on paper

status update!

2011-09-25T19:42:00.001-04:00

Sorry for the lack of updates! I am currently working at a biomedical animation studio and haven't had much time to work on personal drawings.

Hopefully I'll get some things in over the weekends. :)

derpy hands part 1

2011-08-31T04:03:00.002-04:00

So I've come to the realization that I draw really atrocious hands. :'D
I've known it subconsciously for a long time, but never had the willpower to really confront it. Going to start trying now! It's going to be an arduous battle ahead...

Took some time to draw from my own hand and 3D models from PoseManiacs as a starting point.

My permanent facial expression while drawing these:

I intend to dedicate some time regularly to practicing hands. I'm pretty embarrassed because after modeling the skeletal hand in Maya and drawing a bunch of hands for my master's research project, I should have good knowledge of the hand structure. Yet it just doesn't really translate in my head.

Any tips for drawing hands would be awesome!

TnB: Taiga & Bani

2011-08-28T04:02:00.003-04:00

Ahhhh, I can't stop drawing Tiger & Bunny! It's a severe addiction... I wanted to do something more stylized and not painstakingly rendered after doing those portraits. I just wanted to have fun so I didn't get hung up on details or refining for once! I've forgotten the joys of doodling! :)

タイガー＆バニー！

PaintTool SAI 1.01

Eagerly awaiting episode 22 subs!

Random: Wow, I just noticed how the art style is completely different in the last 6 blog entries. I am so bad at drawing consistently - I like changing it up! I never figured out whether this was a good or bad thing... D:

Black out the sun

2011-08-27T06:43:00.006-04:00

I've been a huge fan of Darren Hayes since his Savage Garden days and ~~Darren~~ his new music video for Black Out The Sun is gorgeous! I wanted to capture the colour palettes and mood (and didn't even begin to attempt to capture the likeness of Darren...*sigh*). There was a bit of optical flare abuse in the video, so I wanted to include that as well!

Now all the love's gone...

PaintTool SAI 1.01 + Adobe Photoshop CS4

Okay, I swear I will fix my sleep schedule in two days...

fish

2011-08-26T05:10:00.003-04:00

I felt like drawing at an unreasonable hour again! I felt the need to wash the animu out of my system lol! I forgot about these fish I drew about a year ago. I was going to paint them, but ended up subjecting them to major texture abuse instead. :'D

deadfish

Pen & ink + PaintTool SAI 1.01

Multiple textures from CGtextures

I...really need to fix my sleep schedule.

T&B: Kaburagi T. Kotetsu

2011-08-25T22:24:00.008-04:00

Finished ~~procrastinating on packing~~ drawing Kotetsu while listening to his dorky character song lol! I'm not really satisfied with it but I think it's time to move on. I've had enough of Tiger & Bunny portraits! I had a pretty difficult time with this drawing - not used to drawing older men with darker skin tones. And that hand! And that watch! And that hat! Ugh! I'm too ashamed to admit how long this took me... Might have to give him plastic surgery later. :P

This one is supposed to match the Barnaby I drew earlier!

Kaburagi T. Kotetsu

PaintTool SAI 1.01 + Photoshop CS4

Although I really enjoy drawing Barnaby, Kotetsu is actually my favourite character from Tiger & Bunny. You just can't help but like the guy. Two days until ep 22! :D

WIP T&B: Kaburagi Kotetsu

2011-08-22T04:19:00.002-04:00

I tried so hard to fix my sleep schedule, and it lasted about three days... I decided it was time to attempt a drawing of Kotetsu from Tiger & Bunny to go with Barnaby. I just couldn't get into drawing Kotetsu's hair - not curly/layered enough for my tastes! ;)

I was discussing with some friends about drawing speed and I think I'm a really slow artist. This is where I'm at five hours in (from blank canvas)... I expected this to be done in less than three hours. :(

That hand/arm is giving me a lot of grief (and just noticed the strange colour difference from his face haha...)!

Shall continue at a more reasonable hour!

Shark-loving couple!

2011-08-20T23:39:00.010-04:00

Finished the new shark card! I must thank the enthusiastic engaged couples who have contacted me about using my shark card for their wedding. This wouldn't exist without their support. :)

I wanted to make it as close to my original shark card as possible (yes, I reused the border and background :'D), but I quickly realized it's hard to draw the same way you did a year ago!

If the text is too small to read in the picture, I am basically allowing couples to use this illustration for free as their wedding card, etc. as long as they show me their commitment to the cause. :)

Terms of use and instructions on how to get the high-res file from me after the jump:

Requirements
1) Pledge to boycott shark fin soup at your wedding
2) Donate to a recognized charitable organization that aids shark conservation
3) Send me an email at huijoyce@gmail.com with a donation receipt and how you plan on using this illustration. I'm also open to uses other than as a wedding card, just contact me. :)

Technical specs
- I can send you either a high-resolution print (350 dpi .tif) or web-ready (72 dpi .jpg, w: 1024px) file of this illustration.
- I work in RGB mode so the reds will be quite a bit duller when you print compared to on screen (sorry!)
- This illustration is sized to fit four postcards on an 8.5x11” sheet, with 0.2" bleed.
- The print version will not have the watermark with my web address, but will have the Illustration © 2011 Joyce Hui in the bottom right corner.

Terms & conditions of use:
1) Copyright: All rights remain with Joyce Hui, the Illustrator.
2) Licensing: The illustration is licensed for one-time, non-commercial use as a printed wedding card only.
3) Modifications: The illustration may not be modified or reused for any other purpose, with the exception of adding text to the blank back side. Please contact me about any other usage.
4) Credits: The Illustrator should be credited as Joyce Hui, where possible.

Adding Text
I recommend you use a design program such as Adobe Illustrator or Photoshop to add text. If you don't have the necessary knowledge or tools, printing places usually offer this service. Please email me if you would like me to add the text and create a print-ready PDF file for you. However, there will be a small fee for this service.

Printing
I usually go to local printers for postcards, but I've gotten two of my full colour, double-sided business cards done at Print100 and I was pleased with the quality. Sorry I don't have any other recommendations!

Thanks and enjoy! :)

Summer's end

2011-08-15T04:33:00.004-04:00

Ahhh drawing always keeps me up late at night! Here is a rather ominous looking summery illustration. :)

summer's end

Sakura microns + Photoshop CS4 + PaintTool SAI 1.01

Paper texture from CGtextures.com

(I'm totally going to look at this tomorrow and want to tweak it, aren't I? :P)

Anyway, I should get back to the shark card soon. Hope to get it done in a week!

I feel like I achieved a lot today! I wanted to draw something:
1) original - I've been drawing too much fanart lately...
2) female - I've been practicing drawing males but was starting to feel rusty
3) full-body - portraits are my cop-out :'D
4) to practice lineart and inking - I feel I've been relying on digital painting too much. I tend to work out my anatomy while I paint (with gratuitous horizontal image flipping and free-transforming), so I wanted to get back to sketching on paper. I had to Photoshop my inked lines a lot though hahaha!
5) to practice cel-shading: I'm still pretty noob, so critiques are welcome!

I'm also glad I got to break out the swirly clouds and water. I haven't really drawn those since 2006 in an xxxHolic fanart. So fun! :)

T&B: Barnaby version 3

2011-08-14T05:15:00.007-04:00

I ended up spending the night giving my Barnaby illustration more plastic surgery and refining the CGing. I think school has caused me to become much more ~~obsessive~~ persistent with reworking my art. Okay, someone take this drawing away from me, I'm probably going to want to tweak it again in a few days... :P

Barnaby Brooks Jr.

PaintTool SAI 1.01

Revised gag version because I just can't take Barnaby all that seriously (especially after episode 19 :'D)!

"Kotetsu-san... Why did you bitch-slap me? *weeps*

It is Saturday, but the subs for episode 20 aren't out yet... Sadness. D:

WIP: new shark card

2011-08-10T16:16:00.002-04:00

The details are taking a while! But I wanted it to be clear the people are the bride and groom this time around. :)
Still some ways to go...

I'm going to apologize in advance to whoever uses this for their wedding cards - the reds are not CMYK-friendly at all. B-but I really enjoy painting in RGB mode. Yay for screen displays?!

WIPs & doodles

2011-08-06T00:21:00.004-04:00

Doodle sketch for new shark card that will be freely available to couples getting married who are against shark fin soup! I plan on fleshing it out this Sunday. :)

Tiger & Bunny has hit the point of being an addiction lol. The show's just too good and they keep ramping it up with each episode! I must admit I first liked Barnaby's character design for jokes (I mean, look at that hair!), but it's really grown on me. Barnaby's hair is so time consuming but it is my favourite thing to draw right now. :D

I had all these test render times of like a minute or two during the last couple months, and I never figured out what I should be doing during those short intermittent periods. This is what happens when I'm left to my own devices... 99% of the drawings are really bad but I thought I'd share more evidence of my obsession lol! ;) 23 pages and counting hahaha!

T&B: ivan

2011-07-30T03:25:00.006-04:00

Ahhhh I have neglected this blog for so long! I handed in my final animation for school recently (though there are still some tweaks to do)! So now it is time to draw some animu and dang, am I ever rusty! I gave him plastic surgery a gazillion times but it still doesn't look quite right... Ah well, I've lost patience and copped out with another portrait. :P

ivan

Photoshop CS4

This was originally supposed to be Barnaby from Tiger & Bunny (the most underrated show of the season!!), but the more I worked up the face, the more it looked like Ivan/Origami Cyclone to me so I just changed it... But I'm not really much of an Origami fan. Must draw Barnaby next! :)

Sharks in our oceans, not in our bow(e)ls!

2011-06-08T12:43:00.005-04:00

I have become a bit of a shark conservation activist recently, and I had the pleasure of creating a couple of quick illustrations for Shark Truth, a nonprofit group based in Vancouver, BC, that aims to educate Chinese communities on the environmental issues surrounding shark fin soup, promote awareness, and ultimately, put an end to shark fin consumption in Canada. These illustrations will be printed and used as signs in a photo mob. Credit must be given to my friend who misread "bowls" as "bowels", which led to the creation of the second illustration (Hey look! I sort of used my medical illustrator skillz! lol)

Sharks in our oceans, not in our bow(e)ls!

Photoshop CS4

Recently, California introduced Bill AB376 to ban the sale of sharkfin soup. Some Chinese communities have expressed anger at a proposed ban of shark fin consumption, crying "racism" and touting that shark fin soup is part of the Chinese culture. However, they only represent a part of the Chinese community and many of us support this bill. The team at Shark Truth has been working hard on creating a "mob photo" to submit to the California government in an effort to ban the sale and consumption of shark fin and to demonstrate that the Chinese also support this move.

Here in Canada, a ban on shark fin sales and possession has already been inplemented in Brantford, Ontario. The Scarborough Councillor is now also proposing a city-wide ban. So let's get this show rollin' in Toronto!

For more information on why shark finning needs to stop, visit the website for the Sharkwater documentary.

If you would like to use my illustrations to help stop the soup, please feel free to email me for permission. Please include details on how you plan on using the illustrations, etc.

Still to come on the shark fin agenda: Wedding card for free use. I haven't forgotten! The sketch is already done (scheduled for August). :)

Bunny!

2011-06-02T01:25:00.007-04:00

Sorry, not the cute, fuzzy variety. :'D

I got kicked out of my school building today because the janitors needed to wax our hallway. Perfect excuse to give in to my intense craving for some ~~smurfing~~ animu-drawing!

This is Barnaby (nicknamed "Bunny") from Tiger & Bunny, a surprisingly good anime this season. It's set up as a hero show and the plot is pretty predictable, but the great chemistry between all of the characters keeps me watching!

Barnaby Bunny!

Adobe Photoshop CS4

I tried to CG with the brush I normally sketch with. It was a nice change of pace. :)
EDIT: Did a bit of colour and blur tweaking.

Here are a couple of alternative versions. I ended up inking the original sketch and tried my hand at cel shading! I never really do clean lineart, so this was an interesting route to take!

I think this last one is probably my favourite, which makes me really sad because I spent considerably more time on the rendered version!

Copic multiliners + Adobe Photoshop CS4

Texture from CGtextures.com

Back to Maya tomorrow!

New website!

2011-05-24T04:08:00.022-04:00

It's been a month in the making, but I'm finally ready to launch my new website for my medical and scientific visualization portfolio! I really wanted to showcase my work based on projects so that I could include my process and any additional images that are related to the final piece. I really love it when artists post their process so I hope you will enjoy looking at mine! :)

Anyway without further ado, click to visit my portfolio !

About the design - I ended up matching it to my current blog layout. I drew a lot of inspiration from squidfinger's simple, but effective website, North Kingdom's archive page, and of course, this blog layout template.

I've been tired of my Flash website for quite some time, but didn't have the time/courage to pick up html/css/php. I finally felt up to the task last month and managed to finish my site ~~by stealing the code off Julie and Bea~~ with the help of some friends. I also learned a lot about why web designers/developers rage about IE all the time. IE really enjoys breaking everything. So much so that I considered turning back to Flash. I've managed to IE7&8-proof my website, but please use IE9, or better yet, Chrome or Firefox to view my site with all its css3 drop-shadow goodness! ;)

Here are some of the earlier iterations I started back in December 2010:

I love textured backgrounds but realized what a pain they were. I also decided to change things up a bit and (reluctantly) went for a lighter palette this time around:

Anyway, feedback is most welcome! Feel free to comment here or send me a message on my contact page. :)

Teddy bear wedding :)

2011-05-23T17:03:00.007-04:00

I'm happy I had a bit of time to draw a card for my dear high school friend's wedding! I haven't drawn much - let alone paint - lately. So I made quite a few blunders in the process and the illustration ended up a lot tighter than I would've liked. I've forgotten how unforgiving water media is!

Congrats to Kitty & Danny!

watercolours, watercolour pencils, white gouache & Copic multiliner on W&N hp watercolour paper

(sorry for poor photo quality, didn't have access to a scanner D: )

I always make cards without thinking about the envelope... so I had to make a sketchy one out of a generic brown envelope. I tried to make up for it by adding some decorations. :)

1. I tried out different bear drawings - was trying to find the most charming one. :)
2. I got carried away and ended up drawing everything with watercolour pencils (Steadtler)...
3. ...which was a big mistake lol! The colours got a bit dirty as a result of all the mixing and that brown pencil looked fine when I tested a small patch, but looked horrible in the real deal! I ended up adding a lot of watercolour to balance out the colours.
4. I often add a warm glaze over the painting to unify the colours a bit more.
5. This is the point at which the painting started getting too tight. Is this what medical illustration has trained me to do? :P
6. I often find myself asking the same question at this point in the process (aka I never plan properly beforehand...). Should I line it with markers or leave it as is? Looking back at this shot, I probably should've left it alone and lined it with brown col-erase. I have this bottle of brown ink that would've worked really nicely, but I haven't been able to open it with my weak hands/arms for several months now. :(

surgical tools revamp

2011-05-14T21:07:00.000-04:00

This isn't a exactly top priority project but I figured it'd be nice to have a good render of my old surgical tool models for my new website. :)

surgical tools

Autodesk Maya 2011 + Adobe Photoshop CS4

I was messing around with MIA materials in Maya and this is the best I could come up with for a metal texture (I think I used the copper preset blended with some chrome and satined metal). The cloth texture could use some serious work too (more imperfections and variation, etc.) but as always with these ~~procrastination tools~~ side-projects, it's time to move on for now!

I apologize for not updating my blog - I've been working on a new html/css website that will be launched soon (hopefully)! I plan on adding process for most portfolio pieces, but as I can't write as freely (aka ramble) as I do here, I might still retroactively add things here...

junk o:

2011-04-18T02:54:00.000-04:00

I finally get a chance to draw and what happens? I produce junk. That's how it goes, I suppose. :B

untitled

Photoshop CS4

sleepless

2011-04-10T05:49:00.003-04:00

I've been feeling a bit listless and unfocused these past couple of days. Deadline extensions are truly both a blessing and a curse! I also haven't been able to kick my terrible sleep schedule since I stayed up trying to render out coffee a few nights ago. Days like these I really miss living in downtown Toronto. I miss picking up late nights snacks at the 24 hour Metro and browsing used books at BMV on the weekend. I feel so cooped up right now! :(

So I thought a quick doodle might help ease the feeling...

untitled

PaintTool SAI 1.01 + adjustments in Photoshop CS4

EDIT: P.S. This is supposed to be a girl. <-- hilarious because usually anime artists comment, "by the way, this is a boy" in reference to their girly boys, never the other way around. 8D;;

late night coffee

2011-04-07T01:09:00.005-04:00

I actually don't drink coffee, but I came across this CGsociety thread last night and it piqued my curiosity. The thread houses an excellent, in-depth discussion about how to create a coffee shader in Maya using mia_x material. If you know me personally, then I'm sure you're not surprised at how I obsessed over this inconsequential, minute detail... After many, many hours of fiddling, this is what I've come up with:

I also took the liberty of populating the desk with random items! My coffee shader is still not as good as some of the ones in the thread, but I think it's time to move on (aka MRP is beckoning me)...

This sort of contributes to my MRP (5 seconds worth?!) and I'm learning so this shouldn't count as procrastination, right?!

EDIT: And yes, this shall be cold, stale coffee because I'm not willing to attempt steam right now lol.

return of Gintama!

2011-04-03T05:05:00.003-04:00

I have no idea what possessed me to draw this during deadline week. Actually, staying at school past 1 am regularly and staring at particles might do it... Anyway, here is another fanart of Gintama. After a one year hiatus, the new season of Gintama returns this Monday. I'm actually super excited, so I thought I'd draw something to celebrate! :)

april 4th

PaintTool SAI + Adobe Photoshop CS4

Looks kind of different from my usual stuff. It's oozing animu-ness. Ah well! It's not quite how I'd like it to be and there are a bunch of mistakes, but it is now 5 am and I must get back on track with school stuff tomorrow/today! 8D;;

It all sort of snowballed when I pulled out my tablet to do a quick stress-relief doodle (I was dismayed at how dusty my tablet had become from neglect):

snazzy!

PaintTool SAI 1.01

Shark finning card in the paper! :)

2011-03-23T12:32:00.012-04:00

Hi everyone! I just wanted to share that my "Say no to shark fin soup" illustration created for my sister's wedding is in The Globe and Mail today (page 2 of Life section)! A reporter initially emailed me about the guests' reactions to the absence of shark fin soup at my sister's wedding (which I deferred to my sister, naturally) and everything kind of came together this way.

I think it's fantastic that there is growing awareness of how cruel and unsustainable shark finning is, and I'm happy my illustration can contribute to educating the public. For more information on shark finning, be sure to check out www.sharkwater.com.

My work encompasses a variety of styles, but if you're interested in seeing more of my cute card designs, please visit my portfolio on Carbonmade. :)

UPDATE: I'm planning on creating a new card for free use by couples getting married! The only requirement is that the couple will make a donation to WildAid or any other legitimate organization involved with shark conservation (and of course, boycott shark fin soup at their wedding). Please look forward to it!

small preview!

2011-03-22T21:40:00.001-04:00

I am currently working on an 8 second interstitial animation depicting actin filament assembly. Here's a preview image for now! I'm using Autodesk Maya 2011 for modeling and animation. I did a pretty hack job in After Effects - need to render out the depth map properly...

Ahhh the next two weeks are going to be craaazy! But I have quite a few things to share from this term. :)

hiatus

2011-03-10T21:35:00.000-05:00

Hello all! Sorry I haven't been updating my blog recently. I'm trying to get through a crazy term right now, so I will be back soon to retroactively add to February and March lol! :)

quadruple dose of animu

2011-02-20T05:41:00.011-05:00

I've developed a bad habit of not finishing what I started (when it comes to non-school work anyway)! So here's a batch of not-so-refined works and WIPs:

I generally tend to avoid fanart (unless for anime convention purposes...) but somehow that's all I've been drawing recently! B-but Gintama is just so goooood!

ginpachi-sensei~
PaintTool SAI + adjustments in Adobe Photoshop CS4

WIP: (Does Professor Layton count as animu?) I definitely plan on finishing this...eventually! I can't wait until the next game - Professor Layton and The Lost Future was so incredibly epic! I had the Curious Village in mind when I was drawing this, though. :)

PaintTool SAI 1.01

WIP: I haven't decided whether to fully render this in colour, or go for flat b&w.

PaintTool SAI 1.01

And finally, a quick chibi doodle for a friend! And yes, I enjoy super blinding yellow backgrounds.

Adobe Photoshop CS4

I must admit, I've been running away from reality (read: school) a bit recently. I need to get back on track starting tomorrow! I also need to retroactively add all those projects I finished in February here...

sukonbu princess

2011-02-05T02:38:00.008-05:00

I decided I deserved a break after a long week full of deadlines. :)

sukonbu princess
PaintTool SAI 1.01 + adjustments in Adobe Photoshop CS4

This is Kagura, from one of my all-time favourite anime, Gintama (its punchlines come straight out of grade school humour, but I love it...) . I'm trying to use SAI whenever I'm not doing school things. I've gotten so rusty at it! But I find it pretty amazing how we're capable of remembering shortcuts in so many different programs (thank goodness for procedural memory?!).

Will post school things when I can bring myself to open up the files again to save out images!

(PS. Any Gintama fans out there? Waiting for April 2011!!!)

I ♥ red fundoshi!

2011-01-30T16:32:00.008-05:00

This drawing is dedicated to the most passionate red fundoshi proponent ever. Check out their fabulous video!

red fundoshi + megane FTW!

PaintTool SAI 1.01

This is what happens when Joyce gets fed up with rendering kidney tubules and staring at dots for her info visualization project (more on those later). 8D;;

Transverse section of the eye

2011-01-20T03:34:00.002-05:00

This is my first fully textured Maya model! I actually finished this back in December, but didn't get a chance to blog about it. :)

Still image:transverse section of the eye
Autodesk Maya 2011

Turntable animation (compiled in Adobe After Effects CS5)

Reference image (drawn in Adobe Illustrator + Photoshop CS4):

The most difficult aspect of this model was making the layers fit snugly. Starting with an accurate reference drawing was key. To create the most anatomically accurate eye possible, I followed the steps provided in Basic Anatomy of the Human Eye for Artists by Linda A. Warren (Journal of Biocommunication), an excellent resource that goes in great depth of the measurements of the eye!

Kickin' off the year with Maya...

2011-01-06T20:09:00.004-05:00

I must admit, I hit a new low this New Year's Eve. I entered the new year with my favourite gal, Maya... The fruits of my labour:

I have never worked so hard during winter break in my entire life. Last year, my holiday was wrought with gradient mesh, but that seriously pales in comparison to what a holiday with Maya entails lol! Well, we did ask for an extension... /endrant

This model was surprisingly difficult and extremely time consuming (6 days++?! I stopped counting because it got too depressing...). Bones are always a lot harder to model than I think, especially small bones that are rather amorphous (i.e. carpal bones omg).

Anyway I'll wait until the final textured and rigged version to render out the mesh and stuff. I plan on texturing in MudBox or ZBrush (more programs to learn!).

paint sketches!

2011-01-05T02:52:00.001-05:00

My aunt and uncle bought me a 5x7" Robert Batement sketchbook for Christmas, and they're expecting it to be filled by next Christmas! I decided to get cracking before the start of school. I've taken a real liking to the pen and watercolour combination (or more accurately, water-soluble pencils). I expanded my water-soluble pencil set recently so hopefully I'll have time to do more of these later on!

page 2 (doodled while brewing teas in Professor Layton and Pandora's Box 8D;;)

page 5

sakura microns + steadtler water-soluble pencils

I'm not sure what I'll fill this sketchbook with yet (only 2.5 pages/50 so far!) but I might go with a cute OD theme for the whole thing. :)

More holiday fare!

2010-12-31T03:19:00.004-05:00

Here is a simple card I drew as part of a secret santa gift exchange. :)

From your Secret Santa

watercolour + water-soluble pencils + sakura microns

Paper texture is digital! lol!

I realized how much I missed traditional media after doing this painting! One day... one day I'll have time to get back into painting...

Happy holidays!

2010-12-21T04:04:00.008-05:00

Hope everyone has a wonderful holiday and best wishes for the new year! :)

yuki

Adobe Photoshop CS4 + texture from CGtextures

I was trying out a different style here. It didn't really turn out how I envisioned - I was too torn between the flat style I was going for and the rendering I'm used to. So it ended up in between (which is almost always the worst place to be)... Will try again later!

I have more Christmas card ideas brewing - we'll see if I get a chance to work them up. :)

The pirate bay

2010-12-20T15:52:00.006-05:00

Another drawing for a friend (bartering system again)! I couldn't get into this one as much as the last one - have I already exhausted my desire to draw anime things?! :P

pirate bay

Adobe Photoshop CS4

I really need to work on life drawing/anatomy (as usual). I was going to reference off PoseManiacs again, but I always fear that it will become a crutch. I need to exercise more discipline and use that website as a learning/practice tool rather than a reference image depot.

Next on the list (that may or may not get done...): a Christmas card. The ideas have been brewing in my head and on paper, but nothing strikes my fancy yet...

Crack that whip! ;)

2010-12-18T01:21:00.005-05:00

Ahhh, finally satisfied my anime-drawing craving! Being able to draw loosely and not worry about refining the details was a very welcome change of pace. This is a potential character design for one of my friends who is in the process of developing an RPG. :)

hustlin'

Adobe Photoshop CS4

pose reference from PoseManiacs

More anime things to come! I do have lingering school commitments I have to attend to over the holidays so I'm trying to ~~procrastinate~~ pump out as many personal pieces as possible now!

I'll retroactively add my final 3D models and screenshots of my 2D animatic, but right now, I don't really want to look at them. ;)

Nephron forests...in colour!

2010-11-26T00:49:00.003-05:00

For pathology illustration class, we were asked to come up with a couple of different colour palettes for our midterm sketches in preparation for our final illustrations. I actually really enjoy colour studies, but this was during a period of tight deadlines and stress. Feeling pressed for time and rather uninspired, I turned to some of my favourite artists for inspiration (aka raided DeviantArt, a site I no longer frequent, but remains chock full of eye-candy!)

My first attempt was based on OeffeO's beautiful piece Dream State

My second study resulted from a sad attempt to colourize my grayscale midterm sketch...

My last study was based on loish's whimsical illustration, glow

Pathology colour studies
Graphite + Adobe Photoshop CS4

I'm not sure which colour palette I'm going to go with for my final. I'm leaning towards either the first or third option!

Making babies! (Final chapter)

2010-11-25T23:31:00.007-05:00

Here are my final illustration boards on medical malpractice case (part II for case background):

Maternal-fetal relationships during labour
Graphite + Adobe Photoshop CS4 + Illustrator CS4

In my (limited) experience, getting through the drafting stage where you're working out all the nitty-gritty scientific details (especially important in medical legal visualization) usually presents the greatest challenges. After all of the research, critiques, and verification of scientific accuracy, rendering is usually where I can relax a bit. But surprisingly, I ran into a lot of difficulty with this project.

As a friend pointed out, I tend to use flatter colours with low-moderate contrast (reminiscent of the anime drawing habits I'll never escape!). So I had many issues with capturing the depth of the birth canal and pelvis. Anyway, I tried my best to remedy that with darker shadows and greater contrast. It's something I need to work on!

For those who are interested, here are some progress shots:

You know you're on the road to becoming a medical illustrator when you feel no awkwardness from spending hours rendering up that inferior view lol!

Maya modeling month!

2010-11-12T23:52:00.005-05:00

Over the past few weeks, I've come to appreciate how much planning (and trial and error) is involved with modeling. I scrapped countless numbers of models due to poor planning. But that's part of the process - or so I'm told!

Here are my category 1 (bones) and 2 (surgical tools) models for class. My category 3 model is too crappy to be viewed at the moment haha. ;) These will be properly textured and thrown into turntable animations by the beginning of December!

On the topic of texturing, I've also been learning about materials and UV mapping. For class, we had to map photos onto our hand models. It honestly creeps me out a little bit... and by a little bit, I mean a lot...

I had a lot of fun with texturing this teapot! 8D

And here I am, up to no good in Photoshop! I've learned that seams are very difficult to deal with...

November is going to be a busy month - deadlines approaching...

Happy halloween!

2010-10-31T00:49:00.007-04:00

Hope everyone has a kickass Halloween! To celebrate, here's a quick doodle I did in Photoshop class a couple of weeks ago (not what I was supposed to be drawing :P) that I texture-abused afterwards. 8D

why, hello thar.
Adobe Photoshop CS4
texture abuse made possible by CGTextures and princess-of-shadows

With Halloween gone, I won't have an excuse to draw bloody chainsaw pictures anymore, will I?! D:

Return to the (now cystic) nephron forest

2010-10-29T23:01:00.005-04:00

For pathology class, I didn't enjoy the tissue cube study very much, so I decided to return to the nephron forest idea for my final illustration depicting autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD)! Because the target audience is the educated layperson (who would read Scientific American), I wanted to create a lush, immersive forest for the viewer to step into. I think cinematic design class is influencing me - I plan on using some pretty dramatic lighting and atmospheric perspective for this piece!

Autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD)
graphite + Adobe Photoshop CS4 + Adobe Illustrator CS4 for layout, 11x17" double-page spread

The clean lineart is going to be a real pain... Oh vasa recta, how I dislike drawing you...

EDIT: Just received some feedback today, I will be adding a timeline at the bottom and making the right side more "jungle-y"!

Making babies (part II)!

2010-10-28T21:07:00.009-04:00

It's midterm critique week which means drafts everywhere! Here are my final sketches for medical-legal class. I've been working on a medical malpractice case. The physician is accused of negligence for his allegedly premature decision to perform a forceps delivery, which may have led to a skull fracture and cerebral palsy. The position of the fetus' head during labour is highly relevant to this case. However, the maternal-fetal relationships present serious challenges to understanding and viewers not familiar with anatomy can get easily disoriented. My solution: contextualize everything by relating the anatomy of the fetal head, maternal pelvis, and maternal body to situate the viewer. I did these illustrations with the defendant (physician) in mind, so I wanted everything to look objective and to conform to medical conventions (e.g. obstetrical view).

Illustration board 1:

Illustration board 2:

Maternal-fetal relationships during labour

Adobe Photoshop CS4, illustration boards 4x3' each

Next steps: redo the lines in pencil and fully render everything...

Storyboard!

2010-10-23T01:35:00.014-04:00

If I had to pick the most intense course of the year so far, it would have to be my cinematic design class. With deadlines every week, I was forced to sit down and really think about my Master's Research Project (In a nutshell: Over the next eight months or so, I will create a short 3D animated film to explain how pain sensitivity increases in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. The film will target pharmacology/pharmacy students to both educate and inspire). After weeks of racking my brain and sleep deprivation, I finally have something (somewhat decent) to show

Perpetuating Pain storyboard

Adobe Photoshop CS4 + compiled in MS Powerpoint 2003

I was pretty proud of my accomplishments in the past two months. It felt really good to see my story come together. That good feeling didn't last very long, however... I met with my committee members this past week and there are many changes to be made - both in terms of visualization and scientific content. Well, the storyboard is meant to be a very fluid thing, so changes are to be expected! So back to the drawing board...literally!

Hopefully the next thing I post from this class will be my 2D animatic with narration (Adobe AfterEffects, here I come)! :)

Cubes of...pee?

2010-10-09T21:23:00.011-04:00

For pathology class, we continued to explore our topics through tissue cube studies. I am working to visualize the progression of autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD), a condition in which numerous fluid-filled cysts develop in the kidney from parts of the nephron and/or collecting ducts.

Tissue cube study

graphite on paper, 11x14"

To be honest, I wasn't overly inspired with this assignment compared to my "nephron forest" (my initial sketches are equally uninspired, so I shall spare you, dear reader ;D). Perhaps it was a mistake to try to draw the details of every single little cell (talk about tedious work!) - I'm not too thrilled with the overall result. The perspective also got a bit wonky... Ah well, we shall see where the final pathology illustration takes me!

PS. Happy Turkey Day! :)

Cute, but deadly

2010-10-02T20:00:00.011-04:00

My brain has pretty much been reduced to mush by school. This is the extent of my artistic abilities right now:

untitled

Adobe Photoshop CS4
(These are based on online avatars, designs are not entirely mine)

Now the question is: ~~back to tearing my hair out over layouts on a Saturday night, or go out and check out Nuit Blanche?~~ or stay in and draw more bad anime art?! I think we have a winner... 8D

Polygon modeling in Maya

2010-09-26T18:32:00.007-04:00

It may not be NURBS modeling, but it is still noob modeling lol! We started polygon modeling techniques last Monday and our assignment was to model our hand. I think I enjoy polygon modeling a little bit more - it's more similar to how I worked in Cinema4D. However, I was still excruciatingly slow at making this model!

I modeled this using photo references of my hand. The thumb is supposed to be outstretched but it looks rather long. I wonder if it's a reference photo distortion thing I ended up modeling (or perhaps camera distortion from me taking a screenshot too close to the object in Maya)! To sum up my process, I used polygon primitives + lots of point pushing + extrude for nails + the polygon cut tool excessively + the sculpt tool.

Oh and here's the teapot exercise of the week - this time using a combination of revolve + bridge + extrude on polygons...

Sorry for the bad geometry everywhere. I hope one day I can look back at these and laugh! Oh Maya, when will I be able to tame you? D:

The forest of nephrons

2010-09-24T23:37:00.008-04:00

...or "forest of pee" as some like to call it. For pathology class, we were asked to draw a tissue landscape. I chose to draw kidney tissue and quickly realized I'd be tackling an environment packed with squiggly tubes. After my (genius) classmate made a comment about how the nephron and collecting duct system looks like a tree, I started imagining what it'd be like to look up in a forest of nephrons.

nephron forest
graphite on paper, 11x14"

Process: I am a ridiculously messy artist when I first start. The scribbles in the bottom left were actually my first conceptions of this "forest":

Even when I'm trying to be clean, it still turns out horribly messy. After completing the sketch with blue Col-erase pencil and graphite, I had to scan it and take out the blue channel. I then printed it and traced over it. I need to learn to work more cleanly the first time around (and thus, more efficiently)!

Truthfully, I'm not very happy with the overall result. It seemed like a good idea at the time?! In hindsight, I think it would have been more effective if I showed more depth or used fish-eye/wide-angle distortion to make you feel like you're standing in the middle of the forest, not looking from the outside. I also had some paper issues during rendering and just couldn't get enough contrast in it (I used super smooth paper for graphite rendering, yes I should know better. :P). The lighting was also a challenge - I think I'll make some simple cylinders in Maya or C4D to test out more dramatic lighting. I did scan the lines before shading so perhaps I will try a Photoshop version if I ever have time!

NOOB/ NURBS modeling...

2010-09-19T22:31:00.016-04:00

We started our Autodesk Maya 3D modeling class last Monday. Now, I was mentally prepared for a steep learning curve. But I've done a bit of modeling in Cinema4D before, so I figured, how bad could I be? Well...I was bad. In fact, I was terrible. We were modeling a simple tea pot using NURBS and I just couldn't get things to work. I thought I was doing exactly what the prof was doing, but my Maya just didn't feel like producing the same results... (I later learned this was partially due to reversed normals and partially due to the fact that Maya likes to mess with you)

It was honestly one of the roughest days I've had in a long while. The kind where you feel absolutely useless and pathetic. But hey, you pick yourself up after that, right? (And downing a chocolate bar and a can of Pringles seemed to help lol!). I was secretly hoping for some hidden 3D modeling talent that would come through for me. But looks like I'll just have to work my ass off to get through this course! >:

But anyway, I present to you my very first Maya models. Yes, I know they are incredibly noobish with awkward areas of geometry and horrible materials - but we all have to start somewhere right...?!

In class assignment: The %#$@-ing tea pot:

Homework: Kidneys (modeled on top of an image provided in class) that took way longer than it should've for a normal human being 8D:

Here are a couple of screenshots of working in Maya 2011:

These were mostly done with a combination of pushing/pulling NURBS primitives with a lot of CV curve + extrude + loft + isoparm-ing.

Tomorrow morning: Maya round two. Polygon modeling.

Making babies!

2010-09-16T20:22:00.017-04:00

School has begun - which means there will be more biomedical communications work on the way (good-bye personal/anime drawing time)!

There was much talk about making fetuses (or feti as some like to call them) and babies this past week... As a warm-up for our medical-legal course, we were asked to choose an image of a full-term fetus from Williams Obstetrics textbook and rotate it by 90 degrees. This "mental gymnastics" exercise proved to be quite challenging and headache-inducing! Our professor wanted us to practice looking at reference images and drawing them from different perspectives - an important skill in medical-legal illustration.

Here are both the original image (left) and my transposition (right):

Fetus!
graphite on paper, 8.5x11"

Process: I began blocking in the major shapes on a photocopy of the original image. I then pulled lines across the page to mark important landmarks. Once all the major landmarks were in place, I eyeballed it from there. The foreshortened legs gave me a ton of trouble (note evidence of excessive erasing at the fetus' left foot...) so I decided to make a crude plasticine model. I also referenced another image from William's Obstetrics for the fetus' back. After I was reasonably happy with the sketch, I traced over it and scanned the lineart into Photoshop to fix more errors (pointed out by a friend I hassled)! My digital rendering looked terrible so I printed it out and shaded it with graphite instead.

There was some debate during critique about how I portrayed the legs. The legs in the original look rather bendy (our perhaps my distorted perception was influenced by my love for Hyung Tae-Kim's illustrations lol) so although incorrect, I decided to keep them bendy in my interpretation as well lol! There are some other issues with my fetus but I think it's time to move on from this assignment and tackle the next ones!

'shrooms

2010-09-06T22:08:00.015-04:00

Sometimes, I just want to sit at home, veg, and grow mushrooms out of my head. The week before the start of school is always such a time for me. In an effort to ~~not be completely unproductive and useless during the week~~ capture my sentiments, I did a few silly doodles:

'SHROOM TAIM 8D
PaintTool SAI 1.01 + texture from CGtextures.com

Despite the roughness and perspective/anatomical errors, I had a lot of fun drawing these - a sensation I haven't experienced in a while. I realized that I had been so focused on creating one-off, refined illustrations that I've forgotten how to draw for fun! D:

My recent ~~rampant manga reading~~ research into storytelling also influenced my perspective on illustration. In particular, Saharu Mizu's works made a great impression on me (watashitachi no shiawase na jikan and My Girl are my favourites). She is such an incredible artist with a talent for capturing subtle expressions and gestures. Allured by her storytelling ability and delicate - seemingly effortless - artwork, I reconsidered my direction. I'm not entirely sure where I'll be going with this, but as always, there will be much experimentation and "art poopage". :)

dumbo octopi!

2010-08-28T02:22:00.007-04:00

Dumbo octopi! What's not to love about these cute sea creatures (i had this video playing over and over in the background)?! This is what i came up with after a friend asked to see a dumbo octopus drawn in my style (and i apologize to marine biologists for the gross inaccuracies. My friend is very much into fashion shoes/boots, so i decided to include that as an element. :)

dumbo octopi!
adobe photoshop CS4 + textures from CGtextures.com

i was trying something new again - more lighting/composition/colour/everything practice needed! Unnngh... But hey! At least it's not another portrait? :)

i said no more portraits, i know...

2010-08-24T23:39:00.010-04:00

This one was for a joint Gaia Online art auction i held with a few of my friends. i did a lot of Gaia commissions back in the day, so i can really appreciate a request for a pretty girl and not a crazy overloaded Gaia avatar, lol! i joined the site back in 2003 when it first launched. It was a great artist community then, but it has become too complicated (evolving items?!) for an old lady like me!

sakura
paintTool SAI 1.01 + adobe photoshop CS4

i will seriously do something different next time around! This isn't really the direction i want my (non-medical) art to take. But i just realized i only have 2 weeks until the start of school, so "something different" may just mean school work! *sigh* D:

another day, another fail D:

2010-08-17T18:05:00.007-04:00

i've been rewatching Samurai Champloo recently, and it is still so damn good (that baseball episode still cracks me up every time lol). i'm a huge fan of Jin, but i definitely did not do him justice here! There was a lot more to this drawing, but...i failed. 8D;;

fail-jin D:
paintTool SAI + textures from CGtextures.com
(slapping textures onto a failed drawing doesn't make it better, i know. lol!)

Perhaps i'll revisit this one day once i've improved on my life drawing/anatomy/etc skills... >:

i feel like i've been heading the wrong way with my artwork recently. i'm going to try to do something different. So if i draw another half-assed portrait, smack me. 8D;;

a "mature" s-...

2010-08-15T23:57:00.008-04:00

This is a "hot girl" drawing for a friend (we use a bartering system of sorts! lol). In response to a challenge issued by a couple of my friends, i tried to make her a little more mature than the females i usually draw. Yes, i've been putting my vacation time to very good use.

untitled
paintTool SAI 1.01

lighting + composition = confusion!

2010-08-07T20:34:00.007-04:00

i decided to step outside of my comfort zone a little bit! i wanted to explore lighting and composition - things i am rather unfamiliar with... i also tried doing something a little more narrative. i'm entering the 3D animation stream this coming Fall and will be producing a cellular/molecular film, so a bit of practice was in order (though with the wrong subject matter haha!).

untitled
paintTool SAI 1.01 + adobe photoshop Cs4

There are some things i wanted to fix, but i think it's time to move on!

Guilty pleasure 8D

2010-08-07T13:01:00.006-04:00

i'll admit it. i still watch Katekyo Hitman Reborn. 8D;;
A quick 1 hour doodle to pass the time while my internet was down last night (yes, i am an internet junkie):

hibariiii 8D
adobe photoshop CS4

Say no to shark fin soup II

2010-07-26T21:26:00.018-04:00

Shark fin soup is a very popular dish in Chinese cuisine and is a standard item on banquet menus. However, my sister and i have been boycotting this delicacy for several years now because shark finning is a cruel and unsustainable practice. So for my sister's wedding, i designed this card to explain why shark fin soup was absent from the menu and to educate wedding attendees about shark finning. Although a realistic, gory depiction would likely have been more effective in deterring people from consuming the dish, i decided to keep the design cute and pleasant - this was a wedding afterall!

This is the much reworked final version of the illustration i started a year ago...

say no to shark fin soup!
adobe photoshop CS4 + paintTool SAI 1.01
background textures from CGtextures.com

We printed 250 of these suckers (10pt coated, 4x6"), but i forgot to get one for myself...! D:

Here is one of my cards in action! :)

For more information on shark finning, please visit www.sharkwater.com

ANIMU!

2010-07-21T00:11:00.008-04:00

i finally finished reworking my illustrations for the AMI salon! i will be posting my final versions later on. But for now, what better way to celebrate than to draw some ANIMU? 8D

i was so excited to CG my aisu lines from the previous post, but uh, i totally failed somehow. So i transformed it into something a little different and became rather apathetic towards the end...

glance
paintTool SAI 1.01 + adobe photoshop CS4

aisu doodle frenzy!

2010-07-09T17:12:00.013-04:00

i guess it's official, my old character aisu lives! i'm planning on working this one up in colour, but if i had a penny for every unfinished drawing sitting on my hard drive...

linger

Photoshop CS4

And here are a couple of doodles i did on the plane. These are kind of sad to look at though, they look super similar to my drawings from years ago, complete with bad anatomy! /hasn't improved! ;A;

untitled

watercolour + sakura microns on paper

untitled
(leaky) ballpoint pen on paper

Lately i just want to draw in anime-style! i'm having a hard time motivating myself to finish my surgical piece but the deadline is much sooner than i'd like to think... D:

Jamaica doodlings

2010-07-08T17:48:00.011-04:00

i just got back from Montego Bay, Jamaica for my sister's destination wedding and had an awesome time! It was incredibly hot and humid there, but it appears that Toronto is just as hot right now!

Anyway, here are some of the drawings i did there while enjoying some Red Stripe! First up, a dead fish (of course!). My dad, who was apparently the first man to go fishing at this resort, caught this fish along the shore (whoever can tell me what species this is gets a cookie! i actually forgot to draw its whiskers - likely a detail important to its identification...). i thought of Bidloo as i added in the flies...

unidentified dead fish

watercolour on paper

i had a number of ballpoint pen sketches of other striped fish, mussels, and sea urchins along the coast, but i accidentally got sunblock on them...

Anyway, my next painting was not so morbid! Here is my mom relaxing on the beach. :)

by the seaside
watercolour + sakura microns on paper

At the Toronto Pearson airport, i started drawing people around me like a real creeper during the long wait at customs...

noob-ish character studies @ airport
ballpoint pen on paper <-- dang, my new RSVP pens are no good, totally leaky!

i also drew some anime stuff during the flight that is pretty much unrelated to Jamaica, so i will post those later! Ah, i miss being spoiled silly at the resort already... D:

fish scarf

2010-06-29T01:57:00.010-04:00

After the blinding neon-coloured drawing of poor aisu, i decided to make things right... She is really a more subdued person who prefers not to stand out too much.

fish scarf
paintTool SAI 1.01

i decided to use the Brush tool in SAI today - it was a bit hard to control but i like the blobby, blendy effect (density: 70; color blending: 35; opacity mix: 30; persistence: 60). It's nice working in SAI again, been using Photoshop waaay too much for my biomedical illustrations!

i tried my best not to colour-barf, but i think i went a bit too desaturated/not enough contrast on this. My retinas were probably still reeling from that last neon pink image lol! i also couldn't get that scarf right; it doesn't have the right volume and looks starched (probably should've looked at a reference :'D). Ah well, much to improve on, as always!

poser

2010-06-28T18:49:00.010-04:00

i decided it was time for another non-medical doodle! i ended up bastardizing my own character, aisu, and making her into something she's really not. 8D;;; i feel really bad, so i'll try to make it up to her with another drawing...

poser!

paintTool SAI 1.01

pseudo-update... 8D

2010-06-25T15:35:00.005-04:00

Hello all! Here is ~~my sad excuse~~ the reason for my lack of updates recently:

i've been working on a number of different things, but i'm at the point where nothing has really come together yet. i'll be off to Jamaica soon though, and will be bringing art supplies with me!
And you know it's time for more ~~catgirls in vinyl~~ personal drawings when you start seeing talking faces in incised aortas...

neko-chan~

2010-06-13T21:58:00.007-04:00

So this is totally what i'm not supposed to be doing. B-but... it was a quick doodle (~2 hr)! Her anatomy is wonky but i started feeling guilty (and my friend kept yelling at me to get to work)...

cat in vinyl...
adobe photoshop CS4 + aintTool SAI 1.01

My friend's reaction upon seeing this: shiny vinyl huh? >_> you have been inside too long

...Yes, yes i have been. i am currently in the process of reworking my surgical and immunology pieces for the Association of Medical Illustrators meeting in July. It's been tough bringing myself to reopen those files i worked to death on during the school year, especially now that it's finally summer. But i've got to do what needs to be done!

old habits die hard...

2010-05-29T23:37:00.009-04:00

i shall not name where this is from! /shame...

i haven't attempted to seriously draw anime-styled stuff in a while. Well, as serious as i could be on a horrible, narrow strip of paper (i.e. the bottom tear-off part of a credit card bill) lol! i intended to use brighter, neon colours but that all went to crap about 30% into the drawing. More colour-barfing! 8D;;

But this was fun to do! i need to get back to drawing more personal stuff!

shame!
graphite + adobe photoshop CS4
texture abuse from CGtextures.com

Fish! process part 3/3

2010-05-25T19:27:00.018-04:00

After finishing sketching in part 1 and modelling in part 2...

Step 6: Putting the scene together
Here's what my final scene looked like before rendering:

i used a Free Form Deformer (FFD) to bend the fish body and fins (i couldn't get good results with the Bend Deformer) and added a Stick Texture Tag so the texture matches up with the deformed body.

i added random ice chunks by first modelling a single ice chunk, putting it into an Emitter, applying Current State to Object, and manually tweaking the positions of the ice chunks.

Here are a few of the scenes i tested out. With the help of my professor, i settled on a strong red light in the back to bring out the effects of Subsurface Scattering at the fins. My professor also advised be to add a cool light on one side and a softer, warm light to offset the cold one. A weak environment fog and depth of field were also used to soften the background elements a bit:

Step 6: Final image
In Photoshop, i tweaked the contrast and added a glow to the proteins. I also did the mock journal cover layout in Photoshop (yes, i probably should've used Illustrator, i know :P)
Only AFP was rendered separately and brought into Photoshop because using C4D's depth of field killed the (not very attractive anyway) glow.

Here is the final product!

Will be doing process posts for my surgical and neuro illustrations soon!

Fish! process part 1/3

2010-05-25T19:16:00.017-04:00

Hello! Sorry I've been a bit MIA this month - been bogged down with ~~watching too many kdramas~~ school work and other unplanned things! Anyway, here is something i've been meaning to put up - a break down of how i created my mock journal cover.

Disclaimer: Since i'm very much a novice at 3D, i created this more for myself and it's not intended to be a how-to or anything lol! i felt the need to document how i did some things before i forgot! ;)

Project objectives: To create a mock journal/science magazine cover about antifreeze proteins found in Atlantic Herring.
Target audience: General public

Step 1: Find an interesting protein
Unable to let go of my fishy past, i looked up proteins found in fish species in the Protein Data Bank. i settled on an antifreeze protein in Atlantic herring.

Step 2: Sketching
Here are some quick sketches i did. i envisioned this dynamic illustration with a fish breaking out of ice. Looking back, i think my illustration would have had more impact with a whole school of herring.

ballpoint pen + col-erase pencils

Step 3: Final sketch
This was my final sketch from the planning stage. In hindsight i really shouldn't have worked this up so much, in order to encourage more feedback and changes at this point! i got really carried away because well, i like fish. :) Comparing my sketch and my final model, i was sad to realize how many drawing errors exist in this sketch haha...

Adobe Photoshop CS4

So that pretty much concludes the planning stage. Part 2, modelling...

Fish! process part 2/3

2010-05-25T19:16:00.016-04:00

Continuing from the final sketch...

Steps 4 & 5: Modelling & texturing
To get a more accurate structure for the fish, I used some illustrations as references to build off of.

Click to see my attempts at modelling the fish and ice...

After completing the fish model, i tried to use BodyPaint to texture the fish, but i wasn't able to achieve very good results. Since the fish structure is pretty simple, i just painted a texture in Photoshop without bothering with UV mapping. The image was added to the color channel and projected flat onto the fish model. A bump map was also created for the fish scales.

Lastly, the protein structure data from the Protein Data Bank was opened up in Chimera. I chose to go with a ribbon representation in the end (the surface representation was too reminiscent of fish eggs according to my classmates). I then brought the protein model into C4D and applied a simple material.

That wraps up modelling! Now to build the scene...

augusta

2010-04-20T22:22:00.009-04:00

In 1.5 hours, i will be embarking on an 18-hour bus ride to Augusta, Georgia to visit the medical illustrators at the Medical College of Georgia. i am super excited to meet one of my favourite medical illustrators, Mr. Bill Andrews! :)
Anyway, i was getting extremely restless waiting so here is a super quick (1 hour) barf doodle!

augusta
adobe photoshop CS4

The style seems a bit off to me, but it's my first anime CG in a very, very long time. :)
There were originally cherokee roses, the state flower of Georgia, but they disappeared after i colour-barfed on the drawing. 8D;;;

Will be posting my final neuro and surgical illustrations soon! i better get going lest i miss the bus...

portfolio website!

2010-04-15T15:52:00.006-04:00

i officially have a website now! Please visit by clicking the following link:
Joyce Hui | Biomedical Communicator

The main focus of my website is the artwork, so my goal was to keep the site clean and professional looking. I also wanted to make browsing and viewing my artwork as easy as possible. So i decided on a simple navigation system that is hopefully intuitive.

Here is the original layouts i submitted for approval:

website layout
adobe photoshop CS4

i already have some new ideas for how the gallery is set up, i will work to implement them in the summer!

a message to myself

2010-04-10T02:00:00.010-04:00

(First post that doesn't have an image attached to it, oh noes!)
i was cleaning up some old files and found a random text file named "revelation"... Curious, i opened it up and found a message to myself from October 2006 - a diary entry of sorts.

"i've always considered the Biomedical Communications graduate degree at the University of Toronto, and i think now, i really want to do this. i think it's the best compromise i can make between biology and art, both of which i do love.

To be honest, i'm really scared because compared to students who've attended Sheridan or OCAD or other art schools, i'm lacking in a lot of areas of art. And i haven't done anything but anime for the past 3 years now...;__; And this program only takes [16] people! So yeah, i'm feeling pretty [bleeping] scared right now. But i guess that's what life's about, it's about challenging yourself - you can't give up just like that. So i'm going to work towards this, and hopefully when i get there i won't be disillusioned.

Don't forget this promise you've made to yourself. You're going to do this shit."

And somehow, i totally forgot i wrote this and ended up questioning my path for the next 2 years. i finally decided to apply for Biomedical Communications at the end of 2008 and here i am today! i still get excited every time i sit back and reflect on the fact that i get to draw fascinating things for my graduate degree. :)

tissue studies

2010-04-09T21:42:00.006-04:00

Here are some tissue studies i did for surgical class back in January. i've just been too lazy to scan them, but was finally forced to when i realized i had to hand in my sketchbook for marking! i drew these mostly from surgical photos, but also a couple from illustrations. The goal was to study and understand the visual characteristics of different types of tissues relevant to surgical illustration. i decided to mess around with different materials for this assignment. i really need to work on my pen & ink skills - i can never get as much line variation as i'd like...

cut skin & subcutaneous fat
graphite + prisma markers + sakura microns on paper

skeletal muscle (cut and uncut)
graphite + prisma markers + sakura microns on paper

bone (cut & uncut)
graphite + prisma markers + sakura microns on paper

tendon & cartilage
graphite + prisma markers + sakura microns on paper

blood vessels (arteries & veins)
graphite + prisma markers + sakura microns on paper

(And yes, i worked waaay too hard on this considering it was only worth 4%...lol!)

i need to make a few changes to my final render for surgical and neuro classes, but will be posting them soon. My website is also almost done! i can see the light...

ice ice, baby

2010-03-31T16:20:00.006-04:00

Here is a work in progress for my mock journal cover! i swear our 3D professor is magical! He clicks a couple things in like 2 seconds, and suddenly your render becomes beautiful! (And special thanks to Jurie, Bea, and Diego for helping with my retarded titles! 8D)

mock SciAm cover
Cinema4D + layout in Photoshop CS4 (i should've done it in AI, i know...)

i'm mostly done, but there is some funky geometry in the fish model i still haven't been able to tweak out. The scale texture (bump map) got a bit strange after adding subsurface scattering and i need to repaint some parts of the fish texture map. And i added the nastiest, last-minute "glow" to my molecules in Photoshop, so need to fix that as well... i need to play around with the lighting some more as well...Also, i think i will try to get a more dynamic feel with some actions lines...not sure yet!

Wow, now that i typed out everything i still have to do, i actually have a lot to fix...

surgical sequential illustration

2010-03-31T16:13:00.005-04:00

It's the end of the month, so it's time for another (small) image dump! School has been keeping me excessively busy and sleep-deprived, but i really should try to update as i go...

Anyway, here is the final surgical sequence i have been working on. It's been through maaaaany revisions, but there will be more changes, i'm sure (aka getting feedback from professor tomorrow morning...). The surgical illustration course has been a painful one thus far because of the importance of tiny details (e.g. sutures with thickness = bane of my existence). But at the same time, i feel like it somewhat suits my obsessive nature lol!

Aortic valve replacement
graphite on paper, each 11x14" + labels in Adobe Illustrator CS4

i am currently working on a layout that combines a couple of these steps, and i'll be producing a full greyscale tonal render of this soon (translation: it's due next week...)

neuro illustration

2010-03-13T02:46:00.007-05:00

Here is the final coloured sketch for the textbook illustration component of my neuroanatomy course - now to vector this in Illustrator and do a final render in Photoshop...!

sympathetic control of blood flow in capillary beds
graphite + Photoshop CS4

snip snip!

2010-03-01T21:37:00.010-05:00

Here is my first full-fledged 3D model (that's actually somewhat presentable)! This was done in Cinema4D as a reference for surgical illustration class. There are still some glitchy areas i haven't figured out how to fix yet... i find HyperNURBs rather difficult to manipulate. D:

surgical scissors
Cinema4D

open heart surgery

2010-02-28T01:09:00.004-05:00

This is one of many sketches i've been doing for our surgical illustration course. There are abundant errors, so i'm still working on it! And i'm rather haphazard when it comes to pen & ink... Also working on that!

aortic valve replacement (surgical field)
sakura microns on tracing paper, 11x14"

Okay i think i'm done art-dumping - i panicked when i realized it was the end of February and that i haven't been updating... xD;;;

cute warning!

2010-02-28T00:43:00.005-05:00

i needed to draw something that was disgustingly cute! Don't ask me what these are for hahaha. 8D;;;

udon
SAI 1.01

i finally bought a Sakura Micron brush pen and i did this doodle with it. :)

ruru doodle
sakura micron brush pen + blue col-erase pencil on paper

Aside from school work, i seem to oscillate between monochromatic portraits of girls and chibi drawings...

february life drawing

2010-02-27T23:42:00.005-05:00

School has been keeping me busy, i shall post some sketches from class tomorrow!
i haven't been drawing well in open life drawing this past month, but i figured i'd post a couple images...

charcoal on newsprint, 18x24"

i wasn't doing well with charcoal, so i swapped materials with my friend! i saw someone else add CG to their life drawing, and i wanted to give it a shot...

graphite on paper + Photoshop CS4, 8.5x11"

i think i'm just too tired lately to concentrate well during life drawing! Must keep practicing! ;-;

fish!

2010-02-21T01:52:00.008-05:00

i apologize for the lack of updates - i've been doing a lot of sketches for class lately, but nothing really post-worthy/too lazy to scan! This image was supposed to be a sketch as well, but i got really carried away because hey, i really like drawing fish (and according to some, i have some sort of fish complex...). i will attempt to model this in Cinema4D very soon... D:

Atlantic herring (Clupea harengus)
SAI 1.01 + Photoshop CS4

i started using SAI again, and boy does it blend nicely! But i ended up bringing the image into Photoshop for the finer details.

be my valentine!

2010-02-08T17:32:00.007-05:00

Happy (early) Valentine's Day!

My colleagues and i are really excited about the upcoming tri-campus exchange at Georgia and the annual AMI meeting in Portland. However, these trips are going to be insaaaanely expensive (especially the AMI meeting) so we're hoping to raise some funds by selling Valentine's Day cards on campus!

Be my valentine!
Adobe Photoshop CS4, 3x5"

i will be posting a compilation of everyone's designs once we get them all in. Look forward to it! :)

cardiac surgery!

2010-01-29T16:57:00.006-05:00

These past two weeks, our class has been observing and sketching in the O.R. @ TGH and TWH for our surgical illustration course. Initially, i was worried about things like getting in the surgeon's way, touching something blue (my greatest fear), or feeling queasy. However, this all changed when we got there! My colleague and i observed an incredible cardiovascular surgeon who made us feel welcome. i think his enthusiasm was contagious - i ended up falling in love with cardiac procedures and went back for more! :'D
(i also fell in love with scrubs... they are so comfy...)

We really appreciated his kindness, so i painted this card for him:

cardiac surgery love
watercolour + col-erase pencil on watercolour paper

(Unfortunately, i only had crappy student-grade watercolour paper, so it didn't absorb the colours well. It also got wrinkly and refused to scan properly. So i'm a little disappointed with the results. ;-; )

haze

2010-01-27T22:18:00.008-05:00

We made a brush to mimic airbrushes today in Photoshop class. i'm not a fan of super smooth blends, but thought i'd mess around with the brush anyway! Really not sure how i feel about the results...

haze
Photoshop CS4 + texture from CGtextures.com

Actually, i plan on going back to PaintTool SAI for CGing instead of using Photoshop for personal work... b-but my hands are so used to Adobe shortcuts now. ;-;

life drawing, finally!

2010-01-16T01:15:00.004-05:00

i haven't attended open life drawing sessions since the beginning of last term, so i was pretty damn rusty today. D: But it felt really good being back there! Geoff and i intend to make these a weekly thing (which was also the plan last term, and that obviously failed...)!

15 min each
charcoal on newsprint, 18x24"

i plan on working on my line sensitivity/quality and of course, anatomy (aka time to tighten up a tad, though charcoal is amazingly fun). Speaking of anatomy, i couldn't stop thinking of all the proper anatomical terms while i was drawing. "Wow, look at that prominent rectus femoris muscle!" AGH!!!

flash portrait

2010-01-13T23:00:00.008-05:00

Here's a quick self-portrait, done in Adobe Flash as a class assignment using the Brush tool. i find the line weight a tad too sensitive in Flash...

self-portrait
Adobe Flash CS4

Also made some ugly things in Cinema4D this week - will upload some 3D stuff when i get decent at it (which will probably be a while...)!

We also started our Photoshop classes today - and found out that we will have to work with imported Illustrator vectors. Oh Illustrator, how you continue to haunt me...

gradient mesh: never again...

2010-01-09T19:29:00.008-05:00

T cell migration and development in the thymus
Illustration based on research by Dr. Zuniga-Pflucker at the University of Toronto and Sunnybrook Research Institute
[Adobe Illustrator CS4]

i finally finished the Illustrator version of my immunology sketch from a while ago. i spent a good chunk of my winter holiday on it, but i wouldn't have been able to complete it if we didn't get an extension!

As painful as this project was, it really forced me to sit down and come to terms with Illustrator. i found that working on Illustrator requires a lot of thinking - there was more problem solving and trouble-shooting involved than any other drawing program i've used. i will probably never use gradient mesh like this ever again, considering it was really inefficient and colour changes were pretty much impossible once the mesh was down (besides redoing it). But i will admit there are aspects of this program i do like, and i can definitely see the value of vector vs. raster artwork.

Oh and here is my illustration in Outline Mode, as my colleagues seemed to get a kick out of it. :D

Now that first term is officially over...
Digital tools we'll be using this term: Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Flash, Cinema4D
i am excited :)!

chillin'

2009-12-31T17:14:00.008-05:00

Here is a Secret Santa painting for my dear ex-canmate from university. :)
i meant to paint her something serious, but it didn't turn out - hope she likes this anyway!
Whenever i think of Mauritius, huge turtles always come to mind...

chillin'
watercolour + water-soluble crayons on paper 8x10"

If i don't manage to squeeze in a quick doodle before the end of 2009, Happy New Year!
New year's resolution: make time for non-school art!

happy holidays! :)

2009-12-23T15:21:00.008-05:00

i was supposed to do more gradient mesh today but...well...er... 8D;;;
Anyway...here's a quick doodle with a bunch of Christmas clichés thrown together. :)
But i think i've lost sight of where i was trying to go with my art before entering Biomedical Communications, so i somehow reverted to big-eyed anime style... noooo!

holly
Photoshop CS2

Death by gradient mesh...

2009-12-23T02:06:00.006-05:00

i have yet to do any personal art! Studying for our anatomy exam pretty much consumed my life towards the end of term. Now it's Adobe Illustrator... i am basically doing a pure Illustrator version of this Photoshop rendition i posted back in November.

As i have no posts for December, i figured i'd better throw in a work in progress (aka i'm not slacking off on art, i swear!)
There is still tons to be done and refined! :(

i have no idea why i'm gradient meshing the entire thing...
And yes, i like my palettes messy. :)

T cell migration

2009-11-30T17:17:00.011-05:00

i noticed i only have one blog post for November, so i am here to throw in some school work before the month ends!

We've been working with immunology researchers and developing illustrations based on their research. After many iterations, i've completed the Photoshop sketch. i am currently working on an Illustrator version (which will be the final product). i've never used Adobe Illustrator before so it's been a real uphill battle. It's been especially difficult because i tend to shy away from clean, crisp, and smooth rendering/lines when i work. Deadline is on Dec. 11, so we'll see how it goes! D:

T cell migration
pencil + photoshop CS2

QDDR mascot '09

2009-11-18T17:19:00.012-05:00

i really felt like drawing something non-medical/science related sooo here is my latest rendition of the Queen's DDR club mascot! i went for a more anime-ish style, as i thought it'd suit the club. i've been really abusing the purple/yellow colour palette lately... will try a new scheme next time. O: And yes, i love bendy legs that make no sense!! 8D;;;

stay cool!
Photoshop CS2

Older versions (i really need to change up the poses lol!):

i should really do a non-chibi personal drawing next time around. i also have a number of illustrations done for school, will post them eventually... Now to stop procrastinating and get studying...

happy hallowe'en!

2009-10-31T01:31:00.006-04:00

Seeing as i've never carved a pumpkin before, i decided to give this Hallowe'en tradition a shot this year. Feeling ambitious, i doodled out some designs. One of the RAs, with his highly impressive carving skills and willingness to carve essentially whatever i drew, brought my vision to life!

(So technically i still have never carved a pumpkin, though i did contribute to the pumpkin gutting... Whatever - after anatomy, pumpkin gutting by hand is not disgusting at all, lol!)

Here's the final product:

Some progress shots:

There are actually two sides to our pumpkin, but i failed to get a photo of the other side with a candle inside. :( The devil kitty would've looked better without the gaping holes in the back from the other side, but we only had access to one pumpkin. xD;;;

'Twas a fun night of non-studying...!

carbon dust!

2009-10-18T22:08:00.009-04:00

So i finally officially completed my first drawing assignment of the year (with the rest seriously piling up...)! Here is the final rendered illustration, originally a sketch and CG - please excuse the small size and watermark, as this stuff is for my future career (unlike my other random art xD):

dissection of lung hilus
carbon dust + labelling in Adobe Illustrator CS4

This illustration was done in carbon dust, a medium that is apparently not really used outside of medical illustration (i couldn't find any good online image galleries of Max Brodel or Dorothy Chubb's works D: ). i found it to be pretty similar to graphite powder, so i'm tempted to use it for my personal illustrations now that i have the materials... we shall see!

i don't really like how the scan turned out, so here's a WIP photo:

And for those who are curious, here are some of the tools involved in a carbon dust drawing:

(Can you tell i was procrastinating?! i swear i was practicing my layout/design skills for school! However, i did this in Photoshop CS2 instead of Indesign, which is like a major faux-pas in design?! lol)

strummin' a tune

2009-10-14T17:45:00.008-04:00

Here's another birthday card! This one's for my dad. :)
i tried to emulate my mom's birthday card so that they'll match when i print them out, but this one's a bit messier as i was shorter on time lol!

strummin' a tune
Photoshop CS2

The next post should be full of medical illustration goodness... That is, if i ever get my assignments done properly...