Hypervox - Shaun Raven's Cartoon Blog from darkest Essex...

CCGB #132

2012-02-11T12:00:00.000Z

Cold Snap

2012-02-07T12:51:00.002Z

CCGB #131

2012-02-04T12:00:00.000Z

Samuel L. Jackson

2012-02-03T13:39:00.001Z

Clever idea

2012-01-31T10:52:00.003Z

Something that's been mentioned over at the CCGB forums recently is selling original artwork. For someone like me, who works mainly digitially, this is a bit of a nightmare, as I obviously have no original artwork to sell (unless I create it again). The wonderful Steve Bright has come up with a hybrid solution for us digital creatives - for colour cartoons, simply print the colour layer, and then ink over the top of it.

It's so simple, it's brilliant! Why didn't I think of this before...

CCGB #130

2012-01-28T12:00:00.000Z

CCGB #129

2012-01-21T12:00:00.001Z

CCGB #128

2012-01-14T12:00:00.000Z

News, news, news...

2012-01-06T11:05:00.004Z

Firstly, happy new year everyone! I hope you all had a good christmas (mine was pretty good overall) and an enjoyable new year.

Secondly, the news. Exiting things are happening at Raven Towers. As I mentioned previously, I did some commisions just before christmas, and the response was such that I'm in the process of setting up a new website just to deal with the commisions side of my work. I can't say too much at present, as it's still in the planning stages, but hopefully, it'll be up and running before March. keep an eye on this blog, as I'll be announcing it here first.

I've noticed that my cartooning speed in increasing. This is good news, as it means I can produce more, including possibly submitting some more cartoons to Private Eye (I did recently, and got a lovely note from Ian Hislop, no less).

On the hardware side, my tablet now has Manga Studio EX4 (thanks Shelly), which will give me even more cartoon creation options than ever before. I'm also in the process of trying cartoons on canvas, using acrylic paints (more on this when it happens). All in all, January / February is going to be a very exiting time for me, cartooning wise.

My day job however, is making increasing demands on me - oh well, I suppose I'd rather be busy than bored... :)

Pork Chop

2011-12-21T13:50:00.003Z

A paper / ink cartoon this time, at the request of Hans & Ulrike Twardokus, who have been collecting pig-based cartoonists signatures for over 20 years - I hope you like mine... :)

So sorry for the lack of updates recently...

2011-12-20T16:45:00.004Z

...but I've been so busy. Not only has my day job been demanding, but I've finally started to get some cartooning work (thanks Annette), so my input into the CCGB compo has been limited,but there is news on the horizon...

Commission work seems to be popular, and I've had several enquiries lately for cartoons, including some on canvas (something I hadn't thought of), so coming soon will be a new look Hypervox website, complete with portfolio, and online ordering of commissions! I'm looking at offering cartoon and caricature commissions in serveral formats, including A4 framed prints, canvas paintings and so on. I don't know how far this will go, but the ride looks fun...!

2012 looks like it could be a good year for me - let's hope so, eh readers? :)

CCGB #121

2011-11-26T12:00:00.000Z

CCGB #120

2011-11-19T12:00:00.000Z

CCGB #119

2011-11-12T12:00:00.001Z

CCGB #118

2011-11-05T12:00:00.001Z

Tales of Tablets - Part Drei...

2011-10-28T13:30:00.000+01:00

Yup - I'm back with an update!

Thanks to the guys at Speedie Computers, I'm now the proud owner of a Fujitsu Stylistic ST5112 Tablet PC...

Forgive the quaility of the pictures, as my phone is not the best. As you can see, the Fuji comes with a rotating stand (great if you want to do portrait stuff). It's faster than my old TC1100, and has more memory. Not only that, but it's a Dual Core machine....

My beloved OpenCanvas now seems more responsive, making it much more fun to draw. I used to draw my cartoon roughs on paper, scan them in, and then colour on the tablet - now I'm able to do everything on the tablet. It's not perfect - it has sometimes has problems with the digitizer when it comes out of hibernation, but all in all, I'm very happy with it.

CCGB #116

2011-10-27T16:44:00.004+01:00

This was my original one this week - but went with this...

ccgb #115

2011-10-15T12:00:00.000+01:00

Freddie Mercury

2011-10-11T13:07:00.003+01:00

Got a massive 12 points for this one - WOOT!

ccgb #114

2011-10-08T12:00:00.000+01:00

Tales of Tablets - Part Deux...

2011-10-05T14:09:00.002+01:00

I was hoping by now to have done a few cartoons, and be able to enthuse about the speed, reliability and overall goodness of the Fujitsu tablet...

... but I can't. On the day of the last post, I arrived home to find a power supply, and with mounting exitement , pressed the "ON" button.

Only nothing happened - but it happened suddenly mark you!

I tried absoloutely everything I could think of, but no joy, so I've arranged for it to go back for them to attempt a repair - only it's not been picked up yet. And it's been nearly a week.

I am rapidly losing patience with the company concerned - if it's not collected today, I'm gunning for blood...

Tales of Tablets...

2011-09-29T13:30:00.001+01:00

You've probably noticed that I'm churning out more cartoons these days - that's because I'm using a HP TC1100 Tablet PC as my main creation tool now. The TC1100 gives me a "mobile studio" that I can take wherever I want, whenever I want, and that allows me to draw cartoons faster than I ever have before. Combined with Portalgraphics OpenCanvas software, it's been a major boon, and although I had problems initially, I've now got to the point where I can't imagine using anything else.

That was, until last week, when I was given the opportunity to purchase a Fujitsu Stylistic st5112 Tablet PC. The Fujitsu is (supposedly) faster, more expandable, and possesses a larger physical screen (12", rather than 10.5"), all of which should give me a better working experience. Unfortunately, due to a delivery mix up, the tablet arrived without it's power supply or stylus, so I can't even test it out yet. Hopefully though, these items will arrive in the next few days, and I'll be able to give you guys a full report.

Another interesting thing, is that PortalGraphics has released Mangalobo, their own take on the "create manga professionally" software market that is currently dominated by Manga Studio. Although I have Manga Studio, I've never liked it, and after having a quick play with the Manalobo trial, I'm pleased to report that it looks promising. I'm looking forward to installing the trial on the Fujitsu, so I can write up a full report.

On a personal note, you'll have noticed that for the last few CCGB compos, I've created more than one cartoon, and I've also expressed doubts about the ones I've submitted. I've put this down to the "not believing in myself" or "going for the safe option" school of thought. I've been doing this for nearly three years (at the time of writing), and I know we cartoonists are a deprecating bunch, but I really should trust my own instincts when it comes to which cartoons to use... :)

CCGB #112

2011-09-26T13:30:00.000+01:00

Think this one was better...

Another day at work...

2011-09-19T13:30:00.002+01:00

CCGB #111

2011-09-19T13:30:00.001+01:00

Here's another take on it...

Autumn...

2011-09-14T15:09:00.002+01:00

Not Again - #2

2011-08-25T13:37:00.001+01:00

CCGB #107

2011-08-20T12:00:00.001+01:00

21 Points, and a third place - WOOT!

CCGB #106

2011-08-13T12:00:00.001+01:00

A respectible 13 points, and a fourth place...

Digital Cartooning - Update...

2011-08-12T12:07:00.001+01:00

Anyone who reads this blog regularly (I know some of you do) will remember me whining on about not being able to draw on my Tablet PC. During the last couple of weeks, I've managed to overcome my problems with it, and I thought I'd share my experiences with you...

Firstly, make sure you have the right software that suits YOU. Cartoonists love to compare software with other cartoonists - it's a form of penile waggling (which we all admit too), but it can sometimes cloud the issues. There are lots of art packages out there for the PC, and they all have something to offer, but how you get on with them depends upon several factors...

How computer-literate you are
How powerful your PC is
What sort of finished artwork you want to create

I will not recommend one package over another - that's for the individual to decide, but I will give you a run-down of what I use...

PortalGraphics OpenCanvas 5 (for pencilling, inking & colouring)
Xara Xtreme / Photo Graphic Designer (for layouts / HTML pages)
GIMP (image manipulation)

I chose these programs because:

They are all cheap / free
They work well on older hardware, so they don't interrupt the creative flow...
They produce great results.

Secondly, try to make your computer work flow as similar as possible to your traditional. Choose software that helps you work the way you want, rather than force you work in a way that is uncomfortable.

Thirdly, choose an input method you can work with. I used to use wacom desk-based tablets on a standard computer, but I always felt "disconnected" when drawing. I now use a Tablet PC (a pc version of an IPad, with a pen), so now, I'm drawing on the screen, which eliminates this problem.

CCGB #103

2011-07-23T12:00:00.000+01:00

Lan Party Night...

2011-07-22T08:30:00.001+01:00

Years ago, I spent WAY too much time playing the best (IMHO) multiplayer game for the PC ever - Unreal Tournament. Myself and young Chrissy Boy would spend out lunch hours regailing to the sound of sniper rifles, redeamer explosions and "Multi kill...Ultra Kill... MOOONSTER KIIILLLL!". As we used the Unreal4Ever mods too, I was always the little red teddy character - MR. Ted.

Anyway, last week, my lovely wife announced that she was going out on Thursday night. The plan was formulated in my mind - why not have a lan party? My boys are around 18-20, so I had players that would be interested. I planned on 4 players, which meant I had to have 4 computers. Luckily, my middle son has a working laptop, I have a netbook, which meant I had to find 2 more. I just happen to have 2 laptops, but both are quite old, and I have no windows licenses for them. But I do have PCLinuxOS, and Unreal has a linux binary available, so 2 quick installs later, and I had 4 machines (in the end, I could have had 6 players, but I was limited by the number of mice I had).

Come Thursday night, and it was matter of 15 minutes to plug in the laptops, connect them to the wireless network, and setup the players (including one of the boy's mates). We began at 7.30 p.m.....

... and finished sometime after 10.00! MR. Ted was once again on fire, showing the young whipper-snappers a thing or two (although they did start getting their own back towards the end). I haven't had so much fun in years, and it seems that everyone enjoyed it. In fact, there's even talk of a rematch...

My thanks to Thomas, Daniel & Sam for a great evening - love you guys! Also a big thanks to PCLinuxOS, because it wouldn't have been possible without it!

ccgb #102

2011-07-16T12:00:00.000+01:00

ccgb #100

2011-07-14T13:30:00.002+01:00

ccgb #99

2011-07-14T13:30:00.001+01:00

ccgb #98

2011-07-14T13:30:00.000+01:00

CCGB #97

2011-06-06T13:40:00.002+01:00

This is a re-worked version of my entry for this weeks cartoon, as I didn't like my original colouring. This is done with Promarkers...

CCGB #96

2011-05-27T13:30:00.000+01:00

CCGB #95 - "FLIGHT"

2011-05-26T13:30:00.001+01:00

A hard theme to do this week, but I'm happy with the result, as it raised a few chuckles. This is also the first real piece where I used my latest purchase - McNiven & Cameron Waverly nibs. These are vintage nibs with a lovely upturned nib, making them very smooth to draw with. anyway they can't be that bad - Quentin Blake uses them!

CCGB #94

2011-05-20T13:30:00.000+01:00

ccgb #93

2011-05-06T13:37:00.002+01:00

Dip Pens...

2011-05-05T13:02:00.006+01:00

It's funny how things change. When I first started this blog over 3 years ago, I was cartooning with a dip pen - to be precise, a leonardt dp250 nib in a Manuscript holder. I loved the lines I got, but hated the mess, and the inconvenience. Since then, I've tried technical pens, fine liners, brush markers - you name it, I've probably tried it, and during that time, I've never been really happy with my work.

Recently, I've been using Letraset Promarkers for some of my colouring, and they can be fussy about what inks can be used with them. As an experiment, I tried japanese sumi-e ink and my dip pen... and I was astounded at the result! Since then, I've been using dip pens more and more in my work, to the point where I've started to order new equipment. My favourite combination at present is a Leonardt DPGEN nib (sort of like a Deleter Manga "G" nib), speedball holder and tesco premium printer paper (it's very smooth), with FW acrylic or Sumi-e ink.

The MOST frustrating thing...

2011-04-26T14:09:00.003+01:00

I cannot draw on a computer.

I've tried using wacom tablets, tablet PCs, IPads....

It's so frustrating. This week I bought some extra memory for my HP Tablet PC, hoping that I could use it to create a good cartoon - I gave up after 3 failed attempts, because I couldn't get it. It didn't feel right, and I couldn't get my co-ordination. Not sure if it's the computer failing to keep up, or just me.

What's even more annoying is that it doesn't mean I can't create art using my computer - I can. I can take a cartoon I've created, scan it, convert it to vector if required and color it. A lot of the cartoons on this blog have been created the same way. I just can't draw - it feels wrong.

If I get the chance, I'm going to try and create the cartoon the old fashioned way tonight, and see if I feel better...

ccgb #91

2011-04-21T13:30:00.002+01:00

ccgb #90

2011-04-16T12:00:00.000+01:00

CCGB #87

2011-03-24T16:36:00.002Z

For parents everywhere...

2011-03-16T13:31:00.001Z

See - it happens to the best of us!

CCGB #85

2011-03-16T13:30:00.000Z

I've been doing this for nearly three years now...

2011-03-07T13:31:00.000Z

The title of his entry really says it all - I've been actively cartooning for nearly three years. Looking back through this blog has been an interesting experience. I've recently had a lot of self belief problems regarding my cartooning (you know the sort of thing - am I getting any better, any funnier...) to the point where I almost gave up, but looking through my own little archive here, just proves to me how much I have progressed. Next week, I'm starting a proper cartooning course, to help me with the problems I think my work is showing, but at least now, I know I'm not wasting my time.

CCGB #84

2011-03-07T13:30:00.000Z

CCGB Caricature - Amy Winehouse

2011-02-28T13:35:00.000Z

ccgb #83

2011-02-26T12:00:00.000Z

2011-02-23T13:30:00.000Z

A couple of quick cartoon tests using a new pen - Edding 3.5 Calligraphy Pen (as used by Peter Crocker - webcartoonist on youtube). Interesting, because it's a hard squared-off felt tip, you can get thick and thin lines by varying the angle of the pen whilst drawing. Not only that, but the ink isn't bad either (semi waterproof / quick drying), and the pen is quite cheap...

All in all, not bad - I think I'll use it to do this week's CCGB compo...

ccgb #82

2011-02-18T14:04:00.002Z

Animation Project

2011-02-14T13:30:00.000Z

Something I've been thinking about for a long time is an animation project. Well, it's took me a while, but I've started work on it today. The pipeline (I've decided) will be Inkscape Artwork -> Synfig animation -> Blender video compositing, with music by Orion Pro / Experimental Scene pro Audio (if I want to stay completely open source). The first thing is to get my characters right - I have three main characters in "Duke Lukem" - Luke (a small boy), Cat (a cat - funny that...) and Mum (or "Mom" if you're from the colonies). This is going to be a Duke Nukem spoof - could be interesting...

ccgb #81

2011-02-11T14:53:00.001Z

CCGB #80

2011-02-04T12:16:00.003Z

The latest entry...

Caricature - Pete Postlethwaite

2011-02-01T13:41:00.002Z

CCGB #79

2011-02-01T11:17:00.006Z

Here's my entry for CCGB #79. It's a quick entry, because my first one I wasn't sure about. The theme as VENTRILOQUISTS, and once I'd completed my original entry, I wasn;t sure it really fitted. here is my original for posterity...

Which one do you prefer?

Come GET some! The Duke is BACK!

2011-01-24T09:27:00.002Z

Yup- the event that long time Duke Nukem fan have been waiting for is nearly here. On May 6th, 2011, Duke Nukem Forever is finally due for release...

http://www.dukenukem.com/#?trailer

The only reason for me to upgrade my desktop has finally arrived :)

ccgb #78

2011-01-19T17:01:00.003Z

Hypervox Redesign...

2011-01-12T15:05:00.002Z

Just managed to finish my holding page for Hypervox (my old home page). I'm using this site as the jumping off point for all my projects - if you want to see what I'm doing, have a peek...

CCGB #77

2011-01-11T13:14:00.003Z

Computers for the Over 40's

2011-01-10T16:03:00.002Z

Just created a new blog for those of us who are in the prime of life, and know the joys(sic) of owning a computer - have a look at http://computersfortheover40s.blogspot.com/, and let me know if you like it...

CCGB #76

2011-01-07T13:09:00.003Z

Ground control to Major Tom....

2011-01-06T14:01:00.003Z

Quick cartoon I did over the Christmas period, and yes, I WAS listening to Bowie at the time...

Happy New Year!

Annual Chores #1...

2010-12-21T16:55:00.001Z

Cleaning my tea cup at work - 5 minutes of scrubbing, scraping and general mayhem, and my Muppets mug is ready for the new year...!

Xmas Card 2010

2010-12-17T10:15:00.000Z

Merry Christmas everyone!

CCGB #73

2010-12-17T10:02:00.005Z

This scored 10 points! Thanks all. Interesting bit of disection from Noel Ford...

"Believe it or not, yours was the first idea that came to me but I rejected it on these grounds: (...) I realised that, for the gag to work properly, there would have to be come logical reason for the inappropriate logo to have been used in the first place. Bren's cheese wedges making up the radiation symbol and my use of the initials, CC, for instance. The idea of the Nazis having a Mickey Mouse logo is funny but illogical since there is no obvious reason why that symbol relates to the Nazis."

Something to remember methinks...

CCGB #72

2010-12-09T13:36:00.004Z

CCGB #71

2010-12-03T13:30:00.004Z

A good cartoon, but not good enough to score any points this week! Actually, the competition was so fierce this week, not one bad gag in the lot. It was an honor to lose to Rich Skipworth's suprememe effort "Snowman". If you want to find out more, pop over to the CCGB competition #71 and take a look...

CCGB #70 - WOO-HOO!

2010-11-26T10:27:00.005Z

Would you believe it - this cartoon managed a massive 25 points in the CCGB Caption competition #70 "Now THAT's just showing off", and a 3rd place spot on the podium! It's my highest scoring cartoon to date, and just goes to show that all my hard work has payed off. My thanks to all those who voted - now it's on to the next one!

Please place your husband in the Nagging Area!

2010-11-19T13:40:00.004Z

Interesting story behind this one. Every week, the winner of the CCGB Competition gives a new caption for the next competition, and on week 67, the veritable Dave C (dc1) won. After talking to him afterwards, he said that one of the captions he had thought of and dismissed was "please remove the item from the bagging area", a phrase which, if you use the UKs favourite supermarket's self service checkout, you'll know all too well. Dave dismissed the caption, as he thought it was too difficult - I agreed, but in the back of my mind, I wondered if you could do something similar - thsi is the result. Cheers Dave!

CCGB #69

2010-11-18T13:14:00.003Z

Here is my entry for CCGB #69

2010-11-16T13:51:00.003Z

Quick cartoon, drawn using a Kuretake Twin Graphic, and coloured in OpenCanvas.

CCGB #68

2010-11-10T15:20:00.008Z

Latest entry for CCGB Compo #68 - "That's not mine." Drawn with the failthful Flair before being GIMPed and ArtRaged.
This scored 3 points - on to the next one!

Guy Fawkes - Mission Impossible...

2010-11-05T15:11:00.002Z

I just love this one. Coloured version will come later on - oh yeeaahhh...

CCGB #67 - Dalek

2010-11-05T13:47:00.004Z

My latest entry for CCGB Compo #67 - (Un)intelligent Design. This was done using my new favourite pen, the Papermate Flair. I don't care that it's not waterproof, I don't care that the ink is non-archival and will fade - I just love drawing with it. It's such an instinctive pen, and if Randy Glasbergen can use one, then so can I...

This received 6 points - my highest score yet!

Guess who's running the CCGB competitions?

2010-11-05T11:22:00.003Z

Yup, it's me. After a wonderful run by Steve Bright (Brighty) and Helen King (Scotty), yours truly will be taking over the running of the Cartoonists Club Of Great Britain weekly/monthly competitions. I've mentioned these competitions before in these hallowed pages, but just as a reminder, the CCGB runs two competitions where cartoonists and caricaturists compete to be the best - the prize is... the adoration of your fellow artists - nothing more, and nothing less. It's all just a bit of harmless fun, that frequently produces some great gags, brilliant artwork, and some very heated debates! If you're interested pop over to the CCGB and have a look...

Come get some... Klingon!

2010-10-22T21:36:00.002+01:00

Just a quickie today...

CCGB #64

2010-10-18T15:32:00.002+01:00

Sorry about the lack of posts...

2010-10-14T13:17:00.001+01:00

Sorry everyone - been dealing with a family berievement, so not many posts this week. Hopefully some more updates will come later, thanks for your patience..l

Hey, I made it!

2010-10-01T09:21:00.002+01:00

Yup - my cartoon made the xaraxone cartoon gallery! Please take the time to look at the fab cartoons posted by some very talented cartoonists at the XaraXone Cartoon Show 2010!

Interesting fact - Star Wars

2010-09-17T16:12:00.002+01:00

Number of times I have seen the movies...

Star Wars - too many to count!
Empire Strikes Back - Oodles
Return of the Jedi - Oodles

Phantom Menace - 1
Attack of the Clones - 1
Revenge of the Sith - 1

Draw your own conclusions... :)

Xara Xone submission

2010-09-17T11:45:00.002+01:00

Just submitted "Keys to my heart" to the Xara Xone Cartoon Show - I wonder if they'll take it?

How times change...

2010-09-10T14:41:00.005+01:00

Something that troubles me, is how times have changed computing-wise. The computer and I first met at school, when I tried to master that wonderful little beast, the BBC Micro. Oh, how I struggled with it, loading programs via tape, playing games that cost a small fortune, and realising that I'd never be able to afford one (£400 back in the early eighties...)

Fast forward 3 years to my first job... as a Computer Operator. I used to work on an ICL Mainframe called an ME29, the first machine I used that had 256k of memory (2 years later, my Amstrad PCW 256 surpased that). That wonderful mainframe started by turning a key...

Fast forward to 1986 - my first exposure to PCs - the Amstrad PC 8086 - I remember thinking that these were out of my price range, but loved the idea of a hard disk. In 1989, portable computing arrived with my Cambridge zx81, a lovely little laptop word processor with a rubber keyboard (Amstrad eventually took them over and released the machine under another name), but the real highlight was seeing IBM PS/2 PCs - I drooled over their lovely looks, and fantastic power (at the time) - it wasn't going to be long before PCs would rule my life.

Not soon after, I was introduced to the Atari ST520FM - and my love of computers for home use was secure. I played hundreds of hours of games, produced fanzines, programmed, trawled BBSs - in fact, I did everything I do today, on a machine that had 1MB of memory, and a floppy drive - I loved it! I upgraded it, cherished it, bought it presents - my wife said I spent more time with the Atari than I did with her (she was jealous I tell you)!

In 1994, I was given the chance to move to IT/PC Support, and I jumped at the chance. From that point on, I was a PC man. I always built my own to my own spec (a trend I only recently distanced myself from), and I learned the very deepest darkest secrets of their psyche. Not only DOS, but Windows fell before me, in all it's worst incarnations.

Today, I use a 3GHz PC PC at work, a Samsung net book for general surfing at home, and a HP TC1100 Tablet PC for my artwork, and I recently contemplated purchasing a one terabyte hard drive because they were so cheap - things have certainly changed in the last 30 years!

New Music...

2010-08-25T13:38:00.002+01:00

I'll admit it - I'm stuck in the Seventies & Eighties. My main musical influences all stem from around that era, and I've found little since then, to contradict my opinion that modern music is awful. I hold the opinion that music has stagnated since the end of the Eighties, and is now a homoginized product of the music companies who are looking at the "next big thing" to replace "the last big thing" - a never ending stream of the same old acts, that look alike, and sound alike - and that "alike" has not changed for the last decade. Look at any music channel - it's not about new music any more, it's about money and fleeting fame. Just look at X-Factor or the Disney Channel... (shudder)

I was having a conversation with my sons about this on Sunday. My youngest son is a fabulous rock guitarist, and he was trying to find something to listen to on the sky music channels.

"This is ridiculous!" he cried. I asked him what the problem was.

"The channels - they're all the same! The music is all the same!"

My oldest son (a bassist) agreed, which lead a long discussion, and some amazing revelations. Apart from one or two modern groups, they've started listening to, and appreciating, music from the Seventies and Eighties. I was gobsmacked!

"Why?" I said.

"Because none of the bands sound the same - it's all new and fresh!" So saying, they sat and watched a Thin Lizzy concert, and whilst they laughed at the clothes and poor video quality, one thing was agreed on.

Thin Lizzy rocked,

I kid you not. This actually happened. Now to get them hooked on Ultravox.. :)

The Unoffical Guide To Enjoying Your Works Bar-B-Que

2010-08-10T16:14:00.006+01:00

For those who know me, you'll know that all this actually happens! It's worse than blood sports at times... however, we wouldn't swap them for anything. Colour version coming later on tonight.

Spiders

2010-07-06T11:44:00.003+01:00

I make no bones about it - I hate spiders, always have, always will. But lately, my spider-phobia has been getting better, even to the point where when I pick my wife up from work, I talk to them (there are some really big ones where she works...)

Anyhow, Sunday night, we were having a family discussion. We often have these, where we all sit down (if somewhat forced) and talk about what's bothering us. They usually start out a bit heated, and then die down into a useful, and sometimes funny conversation. Sunday night was really hot (as a family, we don't deal well with heat, and one of the points made was that the heat had made us all extra argumentative), so my youngest son when to make a cuppa.

"MUUUMM! DAAAAAD!"

We rushed into the kitchen, thinking he'd burned himself.

"There's a spider in the kettle!"

Sure enough, inside the kettle, lay one of the biggest domestic spiders I had ever seen - legs and all. It took several attempts to remove it, after flushing didn't work (it was stuck to the side), extraction with a knife (still stuck) and shaking, it was removed with a wooden spoon.

"That was really stuck in there, wasn't it?" said my lovely wife.

That's when it hit us. We'd been drinking tea/coffee all day - how long had that spider been in there? How long had we'd been drinking boiled spider?

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHH!

Needless to say, we check every time we boil the kettle now... :)

Tablet PC - first impressions...

2010-06-21T16:40:00.004+01:00

Well, I've finally managed to get around to using the tablet pc (sorry for the poor quality, had to use my phone's camera)...

It's a HP TC1100 tablet pc (with the keyboard removed) running XP Tablet Edition, and ArtRage Studio...

I'm surprised by how quickly I managed to get something reasonable out of it. The pressure sensitivity is fine for me (although OpenCanvas doesn't detect it - boohoo), and there is still a very slight feeling of disconnection, caused by the thickness of the glass screen (the pen appears to be gliding above the paper by 2mm), but apart from that, it's great!

Anyhow, I'll be using the tablet on the strip soon (see if you can tell when). That reminds me, time to put the kettle on...

Playing...

2010-06-18T14:58:00.002+01:00

The tablet has arrived, and I'm currently playing with it - expect to see some work completed with it after the weekend!

Waiting...

2010-06-15T14:05:00.002+01:00

Today, excitement was at fever pitch. At 7:15 this morning, my door bell rang...

"Parcel for you - sign 'ere!"

With trembling hands, I placed my mark on the postman's electronic tablet (me soon, I thought). Muttering my thank-yous, I closed the door. In my hands I now held a box, about the size of 3 reams of paper, but very light. Brown parcel tape enclosed what was obviously a shoe box - the sender had wanted the contents to remain safe. I whispered a "thank you" to the postal gods, for the safe arrival of the item. Carefully, I placed the box on the dining table, and proceeded to cut the tape separating the two halves of the box. My hands shook with excitement - not long, not long - as I removed the lid of the box. The contents were obscured, safely enclosed in thick bubble wrap, which I carefully removed, to reveal the wonderment inside...

... an Epilator.

Oh Globbitts!

Yep - wrong parcel - now I've got to go through all this again ... :)

Technology Update

2010-06-14T12:09:00.004+01:00

As mentioned on my web comic, my lovely wife has decreed that I can have a bit of a splurge, and a lovely tablet pc should be (hopefully) winging it's way to me with utmost speed.
Why a tablet pc? Simply put, although I use a graphics tablet, I just can't get the hand/eye co-ordination right. I need to draw on a computer, the way I can on a piece of paper, and with that in mind, I had three options:

1. A Cintiq (too bloody expensive - unless your name is noel ford :)
2. A iPad (too expensive again)
2. A tablet pc (just about in my price range)

I can't wait... :)

Request Work

2010-06-02T14:40:00.007+01:00

A very good friend of mine, Chris, recently contacted me, asking if I could come up with a cartoon for his blog. In short, the company he was working for was being screwed by a certain ISP, to the point where my friend, a very competent network admin, could not administer his own network, whilst having to pay the ISP a substantial amount of money for the privilege. He wanted a cartoon that showed the rip-off value of what he was experiencing. He also wanted a cartoon for the banner of the blog, showing the sheer futility of his job...

I sympathize entirely of course, having been in similar situations myself. Hopefully mate, I've done you proud, and I promise, I'll get round to colouring them as soon as poss. Chris's blog can be found here, and will make very entertaining reading - once he gets round to writing it ;)

Starfleet

2010-05-26T17:05:00.004+01:00

Bet you didn't know Melville & Frankie were Star Trek fans- did you? Mind you, TOS only... :)

Its..ALIVE - is ALIVE!!

2010-05-24T14:49:00.004+01:00

Yup - the webcomic is finally available - you can find the site at http://hypervox.co.uk/itsalive - you may notice that the next few posts are known to you - let's just say that you've had a sneak preview... :)

Hypervox Site Redesign - under way!

2010-05-19T16:47:00.003+01:00

Yup - my old Hypervox site is currently under reconstruction, in preparation for it's re-incarnation as IT'S...ALIVE! Have a look if you wish - but don't annoy Frankie...

It's Alive! 5 & 6

2010-05-18T13:39:00.005+01:00

Technical Notes: Inked using Zig Graphic Brush Marker (similar to a Tombow ABT) and a stinky big black McKie Marker. Lettered & corrected using ArtRage, other adjustments using GIMP. Yes, I know I forgot to do the background tone - my fault, lost time fiddling with ArtRage. Personal Note: Drop the table line down...

I think I'll do 12 initial strips, and provided I'm happy with the progression, I'll start building a buffer for web release.

Things to remember when creating a cartoon strip - 2

2010-05-17T13:37:00.001+01:00

Hand lettering is quicker than computer lettering - although it may not look better to start with... :)

Its..ALIVE!!

2010-05-14T13:47:00.004+01:00

Yup - that's the official title of the comic. Above you'll find parts 3&4, and I've tried a couple of new things here which worked / didn't work.

Panel borders were drawn freehand - didn;t work, too messy to look at!
Lettering done in Xara - much better, but I think I might have to change the main font
The process of drawing/scanning/converting was too long. I might consider for the next two drawing them in Xara.

Let me know what you think people - as I said before, this is a work in progress.