Everyone dreams. Whether it is daydreaming, or actual dreaming, everyone envisions other places, other times, and other people. They dream what it would be like to be someone else, somewhere else, doing things that they would like to do that are either not possible for them at the time, or impossible because it would be fictitious, like riding down castle stairs on a shield while shooting arrows a
t an army of orcs. Although I cannot make your dreams -literally- come true, I can certainly try to do the next best thing: to help bring your imagination to your eyes. Although I enjoy doing sci-fi and fantasy art, (Not to mention those are my main writing genres,) I am always looking for a challenge, to better myself. I have dipped into most genres, as I will continue to show as I post my artwork and commissions. What Dreams are Made Of:
The programs that I use are mainly DAZ Studio and GIMP 2. DAZ Studio is a 3D program - not 3D such as in cinema, but as in using the three dimensions in a program to make art out of planes and polygons. Industrial Light and Magic, Pixar, Dreamworks, etc all use similar programs to do their animations and CGI effects, such as the effects in Star Wars, Toy Story, and the Kung-Fu Panda movies. DAZ Studio itself is free, but the many applications within the program that I use cost and can take a while to learn. (It is fantastic to learn though.) GIMP 2 is an open source alternative to Photoshop and I use it mostly for postwork - correcting mistakes that show through after making the picture in DAZ Studio - but I also use it to color my 2D pictures. Genres:
Genres are the groups, the kinds of stories, artwork, songs, etc, that have the same type of qualities. You probably will not find a western shoot-out in Middle Earth, nor will you find Frankenstein's monster walking around in the middle of a Historical Documentary. The general genres are:
Fantasy
Science Fiction
Mystery
Horror
Historical Fiction/Non Fiction
Poetry
There is also Erotica - which is an all-surpassing genre - but I will not be doing any of that because of my personal standards. The other genres, however, are certainly up for grabs. (I would like to see who commissions me for a picture of poetry!)
Commissioning:
Those who question why would they want a commission from me - or any other artist, for that matter - should ask the following:
Do I have a story that I would like to have illustrated? Do I have a character in my mind I want to see, and not just with my mind's eye? Do I need a reference - in terms of people or indoor/small outdoor scenes - for my own artwork that I can ask for at any angle I wish? For day/night shadowing? Proportions? Do I need a present for a loved one who has told me a daydream or character they have? Do I just need to get some artwork to fill up that boring space on my wall or page? These questions (and maybe more) are ones that people have asked, that companies have asked and commissioned people to do for them. A shout out to Sergio Cariello, who is commissioned by Marvel and DC numerous times for his artwork. He has a marvelous talent of which I hope to achieve in my art. Those who wish to contact me for a commission may do so via my business email [email protected] and we will there discuss a price. I sometimes give out artwork out of my own free will - which some of my patrons will eagerly agree - but commissions themselves are not free. I generally price on how much time on average it takes me to do said commissions. I typically do two types of commissions: Clone and Character:
Clone: This entails having your likeness "cloned" into a DAZ character. I might miss a few wrinkles or maybe make your forehead a little high, but I will gladly send you updates for you to look over and change what you wish. I will ask for pictures of you to go by. My previous patrons will tell you that their likenesses were more exact if they provided me with front and side pictures of themselves with their arms stretched out to the sides and with moderate lighting. You can wear any clothing you want - modesty is in your personal preference, but please, I beg of you, don't dress like you live in the Arctic! Character: This entails you giving me a description of what you want your character to look like. This will include gender, ethnic, race - I'm very fond of cat people - clothing, hairstyle, specifications of body shape and color, and anything else that you think of. (The more organized the information the better!)
Prices:
Static (Angle, expression, posed mildly, generally doing nothing. Usually Portrait.) Plain Clothes, no props (Unspecified Genre):
- Plain Color Background: $10
- Scene Background: $15
- Extra person: $10 each, this includes plain clothing
Specified Clothing/Genre (I will accept special poses here, such as leaning on a scene in the object, sitting at an object, etc.):
- Plain Color Background: $20
- Plain Background and Posed: $25
- Scene Background: $30
- Scene Background and Posed: $35
- Prop: Depends on how complex. Action (This also includes genre, expression, posed dynamically. No animation, but they are doing something! Usually Wallpaper. Complexity of the scene will also affect the price.)
- One person scene: $40-50
- Extra person: $10 each
- Props: Depends on how complex
Everything I produce, either personal or commission, is automatically copywritten by the Creative Commons. That being said, I will watermark whatever I post here, and there are other ways of watermarking than just putting "Stanford Imaginatrix" in the corner, or pasting it everywhere on the picture. I know that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but I ask you to get my permission first before using my artwork! In conclusion, I thank all of you for considering my work. I look forward to the many challenges ahead and the many ideas that I will be able to make come alive in the eyes of their beholders.
~ Anthony J.
