How I Work

Paper

After trying many different papers this is the one that works best for me. It is not cheap but it is worth the price. It has a very nice color tone that allows me to paint with white.

Legion Stonehenge 250 gsm. Manufactured in different tones. My favorite is fawn.

I buy it in a size of 56 x 76 cm and divide it into 4 pieces obtaining 4 papers of 28 x 38 cm.

Sketch and lines

1. Pencil H. For the first lines and soft shadows. You can erase it and leaves no trace.
2. Pencil 6B. For the darkest parts.
3. Mechanical pencil 0.3 2H. For the main drawing once I have a clear sketch.
4. Mechanical pencil 0.3 B. For dark areas and line review.
5. Blending stump. To retouch some shadows and colors.
6. Erasers
7. Sharpener
8. Compass. I usually rely on my eye, but sometimes it helps for some proportions.

Color

9. Mechanical pencil 0.5 Red. For red details and lines.
10. Polychromos Faber-Castell. The best coloring pencils.
11. Watercolor white and pastel. Not all whites work with this paper. These are the two that work best for me.
12. Art Creation watercolors. I use few colors. These two are the most common (Payne’s grey and Scarlet).
13. Brushes
14. Tooth brush. To add splashes.

Bluede Model

I scan the original four times, once for each corner, and compose it using photoshop. I give it a little contrast and nothing else. I don’t want to add much digitally as I prefer to stay true to the original.