Normal service has resumed !!

It takes about 4 weeks to 'pick up the slack' after a period away - so full production is back to normal. Sadly I didn't get an entry into this years Stanley awards - disappointed with that - had two 'pearlers' roughed out, knowing my luck they'll be forgotten personalities by this time next year !

Live show work is going well - 7 gigs in the last month and a good list of bookings up to Christmas.

Bills to pay etc etc ...........................

Southern Rock Lobster !

Better put something in !!
Doing a few commissions - had call for including illustrations of couple of Crayfish / Southern Rock Lobster - totally different beastie from the Northern Hemisphere Lobster  - no big claws and tastes better too !!

Glad to be home !!

Finally home, after what seemed a lot longer than six weeks away in the UK, attending to all the business of Dad's  death. Despite not getting any caricature work done whilst away and a huge backlog of jobs sitting here - great to be home ! Thanks for all the kind messages, phone calls and emails - you're a magic mob.

Some observations -

The levels of unhelpful bureaucracy in the UK makes Australia almost utopia like by comparison.

Lawyers are robbing bastards on all continents.

The A380 is one hell of an aircraft - makes the London - Singapore haul nearly bearable.

I was there for the English summer - July 13th this year !

English pork sausages are bloody wonderful.

I'm no fashion icon BUT the English must be the world's worst dressers for warm (?) weather - socks with sandals is one of the better looking features. Do they have full length mirrors ?

English pubs are the best in the world.

I unintentionally lost weight over there so I think I've stumbled on a world beating diet for the male community - the Pork Pie and Kronenbourg beer diet.

Hopefully I'll get back to posting some artwork soon ..... stay tuned.

Sad times ........

My apologies for the hiatus in the Blog, I'm currently in the UK as my father passed away a couple of weeks ago. He had been ill for some time so it was sort of expected but nonetheless his sudden decline came as a shock. I'll be over here for some time arranging for my mother's care.
I've an armful of commissions to fill up any quiet moments.

River cruise ....

Did a five hour river cruise on the good ship Crystal Swan last week. A corporate function in which I managed to draw all the passengers bar one - took his photo and promised to send it through.

A good speed painting exercise in PS - 35 minutes.

I must get quicker on the live stuff - though I did join them all for a really nice sit down lunch - that's my excuse anyway !

Happy Birthday Nola !!

Personalize funny videos and birthday eCards at JibJab!

I never know what to get her ............... !!!

You've gotta sell 'em !!!

When I first started this business back in early 2007 I had a really minimalist web site with few samples. The inquiries I got were simply emailed the price and a few other details. Business didn't exactly boom !

I gleaned a few bits of business and marketing advice from fellow caricaturists - membership of ISCA proved invaluable for this - and gradually kept updating and upgrading my website. It's not anywhere as good as I'd like it to be, but the plans are in place for a really 'serious' one to be in place early next year.

That is once I've fathomed out RapidWeaver, to date I've used iWeb but it has limitations and Apple haven't updated it for some time.

Once I've received an inquiry, whether by email or the 'fill in a form' on the website, I endeavour to get back to the inquirer within 24 hours. I email them a comprehensive personal letter outlining my services and pricing and what I require them to supply - I have a mass of templates stored in TextEdit for this covering every type of request or scenario I've ever received. If I see the need I'll phone them as well.

I also attach a 'recent samples' sheet for them to check out. I can't, and don't, keep updating the artwork on my website that, at best, is an annual process. I do however keep a large .psd file with all my recent favourites, this is in constant update, and is sent as a .jpg along with, if necessary a larger image of a theme they're interested in. 

I spend a lot of time quoting but it is worthwhile. I keep statistics when I started I was receiving commissions on less than 10% of the quotes - it's now over 50%. Usually more work than I can handle and in fact I've always got a month to 6 weeks full capacity work scheduled in and, as of now,  jobs booked up to April 2012.  People like the personal touch. 

'They will come' doesn't work.

  

Weddings are a very important part of my business and as such I treat them as a separate caricature type.

Here is the current sample sheet for quoting on these.

It's like a bonus !

It's always nice to get messages like this ............ from the family of the gorgeous 50 year old in the collage below.
It's always good to hear - I often look at the the copies and think 'I wonder how that was received ?'

Three more ..

Here's three more recent commissions minus all the paraphernalia people love to have strewn around the victims - I always reckon they look better on their own. There again - they're paying !!

A golfers 60th Birthday, a retiring ophthalmologist (eye doctor - I'm just showing off !) and a glamorous 50th Birthday caricature.

Happy victim ....

This is a recent caricature I did of West Australia Vice President of the ACA (Australian Cartoonist Assoc) Mick Horne - he loved it.
I tried really hard to caricature him but, bugger me, it's a portrait  !

Some new jobs ...........

The Blog's not abandoned !
Been busy of late - here's a few samples including a couple of graphics for print and websites. Digital delivery in .png format.
The guy top right is a commissioned caricature of Stephen Hill of the Fremantle Dockers an up and coming young star of Australian Rules Football.
Currently I have a bundle of commissions that'll take me through to early July.
Luvely chubbly !!!

More rural work ...

The farm theme has continued for a farmers 60th birthday commission - apologies to Murray Ball for borrowing the 'Dog' from my favourite cartoon strip Footrot Flats - I've got all the books but I rarely check the cartoons since it's retirement - a classic !

Rodeo 50th Birthday !

This is the central part of a collage of 10 family members for a former rodeo riders 50th birthday.
One of those jobs that became bigger than Ben Hur, like every family collage I've ever done - sigh !

perthcaricatures.com.au

Yesterday saw the launch of a new Caricature website in Perth - Perth Caricatures. It is an alliance between Perth's three best caricaturists ( .. we're biased !) to drive more business particularly for 'Live' work. Yours truly, Jeremy and Mick have worked together a lot at gigs and previously advertised, and quoted, against each other. By pooling our resources and sharing Adwords costs this looks like being a mutually harmonious arrangement.

Within an hour of launch the first job - a four hour gig - came in. We now have an arm wrestling competition to see who takes it !

The website is HERE

..another ACA compatriot

Here's another fellow ACA member - West Australia Vice President Mick Horne - sketched it out around Christmas time and finally got around to painting it.
He knew the Navy career would come back to haunt him - everyone loves a sailor !

Poms - salt of the Earth !!

One of those jobs I really enjoyed doing. It was a 'go for it' commission but I think the socks and sandals really carried off the style statement !

I will point out that I now wear Australian flag socks with my sandals.

Fellow ACA member ...

This is a caricature of fellow ACA member Peter McAdam who hails from Sydney, NSW.

He asked me to do one whilst at the Stanley's in Melbourne last year - even offered money - careful what you wish for !

Had fun with the chin(s) - I know all about those problems.

Pattern stamp tool

One of those really tedious jobs in Photoshop, and certainly painting traditionally, is repetitive patterns like wire fences, brick walls, paving etc. In a current commission I've got to paint a soccer goalkeeper in goal.

Up close the net is going to be prominent and painting it by hand to look good would take forever.

In comes the Pattern Stamp Tool, paint or use a photo, of a small section of the net ensuring it is symetrical (all the ends join up when put together !) - warp and a grid help this. Select the finished area, ensuring background is turned off, then go to 'define pattern' under the edit menu. Voila your goal net 'brush' is loaded grab the Pattern Stamp tool and you can paint yards of net. 

The warp tool can introduce sag or a bulge of the ball hitting the net - make a gap or two, couple of knots and the client goes ' that must have taken you hours to paint !' 

Here's a .png file of the net I made up just open, select and define pattern and save time if by remote possibility you have the same type of soccer commission.

GOAL NET PATTERN LINK

A few more ...

Here's a few more commissions - one UK bound !

Did a live gig for Perth City Council in Murray St Mall last night and have a 40th Birthday function tonight. A 4 hour corporate show in the CBD on Thursday and - would you believe - a baby shower next Sunday - Nola's already planning spending it all another cruise !!

Facebook - been there done that !!

After four years on Facebook I registered for account deletion on 6th February - we'll do it in 14 days says the message - note the date above. Don't want to let you go do they ?

A lot of people love it - my kids certainly do - and some caricaturists claim they get work from it and use it to keep in touch with their customers. I'll miss checking out Caricaturama 3000 - someone please put it on a Blog. Most of the time though it seemed like being on a long haul flight full of small kids.

Grumpy 'ol Tel has spoken ......................................