Why Patrick uses Pencils...

Okay, I have been sort-of promising myself, and strongly hinting here, that I would post a bit more artwork or maps. Well, I thought I would show everyone why I use pencils for most things. I am trying to "graduate" to inking things but so far I have only really been using ink for maps. This doesn't mean I haven't been playing around with drawings in ink.
Now, I have been using the beginner's trick of sketching broad outlines in blue pencil, you can either erase the pencil later or eliminate the blue after scanning. Some of the pencil sketches I posted here or on the GU site actually started out with some blue too. I am leaving the blue pencil in for these scans so you can see my progression. First, I am working on "Zinia" who is the owner of a spa (a real spa, not a brothel) and who isn't afraid to use her ample cleavage to distract customers. Well, I wanted to have her robed with her hands in her pockets (I am not very good at drawing hands). Here is how I started:


Now, she doesn't look great, but let's face it, these are just the outlines and you won't see them in the final scan unless I let you. Now, if I fill this out with pencils I can use different levels of pencils for the shading, but with ink you have to do it with textures or patterns. Just not a strong point with me. Well, I start inking and get a little frustrated when it doesn't look exactly like I want it to. With pencil I can erase a bit and change a few things around, lighten places I got darker than I wanted, darken others, etc. Once the ink is down, well, it is down. I leave the blue pencil (and regular pencil) in for this scan:


Okay, let's see if blogger uploaded those pictures where I tried to put them ;).
I will probably play with this drawing a bit more, maybe add some pencil shading to the ink that is down. With a few adjustments it might be usable, but it certainly isn't the quality I would like.
The artwork side of things is a learning experience for me and I am enjoying it (so far).