Updated October 1, 2000

Sonia's Journal - Part 2

Day 49 Here's my final for "If Nellie Bly could smile like that, then why can't I?" I outlined the thought bubble with transparent white like all the other bubbles. Does it stand out? -Sonia:-) Mr. Ross' Reply: Sonia, Another great illustration! Good use of color and detail [I especially like the sink counter and the panels on the door]. The thought bubble works fine. Dave

Day 50 I slightly changed the rough pic for "Nellie loved to do her best and help other kids believe..." so that there is more movement. What do you think? -Sonia:-)

Day 51 Here's "Nellie loved to do her best and help other kids believe..." Some parts, like the skin and parts of the rug, came lighter on the scan than on the actual pic. I don't know why. -Sonia:-) Mr. Ross' Reply: Hi Sonia, Nice illustration. Looks like you are having a problem with the ink bleeding in the one girl's hands.  Makes the fingers look "muddy."  If this bothers you, you may be able to fudge the fingers back in with liquid white out.  They sell some in a dispenser with a narrow tube type applicator.  Don't try to fix the bleed on the chair arm. Concentrate on the hand. One line down the length of each finger might do the trick. Then you would have to stain it a flesh color to match the hand. could use narrow tipped permanent marker. If you choose to do this TRY  SEVERAL EXPERIMENTAL FIXES ON SCRAP PAPER FIRST!  This means do several hands the same way that caused the bleed.  Let them dry overnight. Then try the fix. Good luck, Dave

Day 52 Hello:-) Mr. Ross, I'm not sure I really understand what you mean on the last pic I sent. Do you mean the girl in the purple dress, with her hands on the armchair? Her fingers too inky? And I should make the ink less and finger color more? Here's my final for "Nellie's heart was so filled with love, it could never become dry." -Sonia:-) Mr. Ross' Reply: Sonia, Latest illustration looks great.  I love the way you rendered the dress. Great job on the folds and lay of the cloth. Yes, I mean the girl to the left. The ink seems to have bled. More finger color  [but not too wide] would be better. Dave

Day 53 Here is my work-in-progress for "If Nellie had a heart like that, then why can't I?" -Sonia Mr. Ross' Reply: Hi Sonia, I think the copy of the picture you send me is cropped off at the bottom. I can't see the girl's feet.  In any case, the floor has no color and this can make it look like she's floating. I suggest a light color, maybe a pink to pick up the drapes in the background.  Also fill in color on upper left of picture, yellow in dream bubble, light purple under dream bubble to floor, then whatever color you use for the floor. Make sure you wait for paint to dry before painting adjacent areas. For example, the smaller bubbles look muddy. I think the wall color or the outline bled into them.  You might try lightening them up with the white. Dave

Day 54 Here's "Nellie Bly loved to dream new dreams, and try to make them all come true." Nellie's dreaming about herself on a ship writing about her journeys, like she did when she went around the world. -Sonia:-) Mr. Ross' Reply: Hi Sonia, Sorry for the delay in responding. I was on a short vacation to New Orleans. Regarding Nellie Bly loved to dream...background looks a little plain. How 'bout a light color or a faint patterned wallpaper?  Can't be anything too strong however, as the printer may need to place  type on it.  Also, to be consistent, use the white wash around all dream bubbles. Dave

Day 55 On "Nellie loved to dream new dreams... Ms. Rome, now that you mention it, I understand that the ship doesn't look quite right. I meant it to be the point on the front of the ship, not the side, and not a rolling chair, but a fixed one like they have at hair salons. But since that's confusing, I'm going to just redo that thought bubble on another paper and glue it over. That would look all right, Mr. Ross? I'll also add the white-wash around it, and do a light wall paper. On "If Nellie had a heart like that..." Mr. Ross, I had no idea how badly that scan came out, with the loss of color and all. I've re-scanned it and attached it, and this time I think it looks better. The part on the left under the main thought bubble isn't the floor, it's the side wall. About the small thought bubbles being muddy, the ink sorta bled with the paint. I'll go over it again. ...And here's "I think I'll rent an airplane and write across the sky."  I looked at a picture of airplane so I'd be correct. The buildings behind the runway are some terminals, a hangar, control towers, and a parking garage. Can you tell? Bye:-) Mr. Ross' Reply: Hi Sonia, Heart picture looks much better.  You might try a little brush and a tiny amount of bleach [like original Clorox, your Mom will know what I mean]. This should lighten up the dream bubble bled.  As with any new technique TRY IT ON A PIECE OF SCRAP PAPER FIRST OR AN  OLD PAINTING so you will know what to expect. Regarding the airplane. Great rendering of a passenger jet and airport. Unfortunately, the kind of plane used of sky writing is usually an old fashioned looking bi-plane [the kind with 2 wings. You should be able to find a picture on line. Here's one I found in about 30 seconds by doing a keyword search for "biplane". http://www.barnstorming.com/ Dave

Day 56 I apparently never did a rough pic for "People came from miles around to see brave Nellie Bly." So here's the rough one I just made.  I researched to find that cars had just been invented around Nellie's time, but most people rode in horse drawn carriages. In the city with the buildings, that is a large statue of Nellie. It'll look more like a statue when I color it in gray to look like metal. What do you think? -Sonia:-) Mr. Ross' Reply: Hi Sonia, Good rough, here's a suggestion:  To make the illustration more "personal," how 'bout drawing the closest wagon larger and show a couple of kids in the back smiling and pointing to Nellie's statue? Don't be afraid to make the wagon and  kids really large almost filling the bottom center of the illustration, maybe with the statue looming between them.  This exaggerated perspective or foreshortening will make the statue seem even bigger. [Hint, try this on tracing paper first to get the size and location right, then transfer to the paper you will paint on.] Dave

Day 57 Sonia's email to Ms. Rome, with Ms. Rome's Reply: Sonia: Hi Ms. Rome:) There are a lot of things I need to ask you about. First of all, about:  "I think I'll rent an airplane and write across the sky," I've  forwarded you Mr. Ross' reply to it where he suggests drawing a  biplane for sky-writing. Ms. Rome:      This was my suggestion too. :)  I don't think the kind of plane      you drew is used for sky-writing. Sonia: I wanted to ask you about this because I don't know if kids could identify with that kind of a plane as they would with a passenger jet. If you want me to re-do it, I will. Ms. Rome:      Yes, I think they will, and if they don't, well, they'll learn      something new! ;) Sonia: And about the most recent rough illustration, you say the statue is too big. I won't make a smaller one, because then it would barely be visible. I could make a road sign, like you said (I don't know if they had billboards then), but I also had another idea I wanted to ask you about: I could leave Nellie  the same size, but instead of making it a statue, make it one of those large balloons like they have at float parades and stuff. Tell me what you think. Oh, and I also plan on making the wagon bigger as Mr. Ross suggested. Ms. Rome:      I like Mr. Ross' suggestion about making the wagon bigger (meaning      it is actually near the statue, and we are close to the wagon from      the audience's point of view.)  I am not sure what he meant by      making the "statue appear even larger" though.  Maybe you can ask      him to clarify what he means? :)      Your idea of the balloon sounds interesting, but the problem is      that many kids seem to be confused with the real story about      Nellie and the book/movie "Around the World in 80 Days."  Nellie      Bly never went up in a hot air balloon, but many kids think she      did... :)  So I think adding a balloon might confuse kids more,      see what I mean?      The sign would be a good idea, if you can't seem to make the      statue work.  Perhaps it could be a huge "poster" hanging from the      side of a building that the wagon is passing near?  Or a sign on      the side of another wagon? (In the old days, they used to have      traveling shows that went around in wagons from city to      city...this might be historically accurate.)      Of course, these are just some of my initial reactions and      thoughts.  I'd love to hear what you think, and see what we can      come up with. :)      Thanks again for your hard work!  You are doing a fantastic job,      Sonia! :)      Hugs,      Ms. Rome

Day 58 Hi Ms. Rome, Having the modern dreamer in the airplane seems like a good idea, but it would be unrealistic if she was actually flying it herself. If more movement is the goal, I think movement from the modern dreamer will have more impact than movement of the plane. An idea for her movement could be her running to the plane, but tell me any more ideas you think of. I actually don't think that this is a picture that needs much movement, because it begins with "I think", which is starting out on a passive foot. But if you think it does, that's fine, and I'll also ask Mr. Ross what he thinks. When Mr. Ross said the statue would appear larger, I'm pretty sure he meant it would because the fore-shortening, when making the wagon bigger, would make statue seem further away, because it would look relatively larger from its distance from the wagon. Does that make sense? Okay, we can scratch the balloon idea, I don't really know the 'around the world in 80 days' story, so I never considered kids getting confused. I like the road sign idea better that a poster on the building, because I think a poster would be too small. After I add the road sign and enlarge the wagon, I'll send the revised rough draft. I'm pretty sure I've covered it all now. I'll e-mail Mr. Ross about the revisions and ideas as well. Thanks for your help! -Sonia:-)

Day 59     Here's my revised rough for 'miles around'. Mr. Ross, Ms.Rome said not to  have a statue, so I had the kid pointing to the sign instead. What do you think?  -Sonia:-)  Mr. Ross' Reply: Hi Sonia, Most of the drawing looks fine. However, since the only movement is the boy pointing at the sign, that should be the largest part of the illustration. Almost everything else is background.  I'd like to see the window of that carriage fill most of the foreground so you can see detail on the boy and girl. [In other words, double its size].While its OK to show just the back of the parents driving, the girl looks too uninvolved. We should see how excited she is as well. Maybe turn her so we can see her look at sign. Maybe  even have him standing up with his head above the top of the carriage and have her leaning out of window. In other words, more movement. The other thing you need is some accurate detail on the wagons.  When an illustrator wants to draw something they are not familiar with they use "resource material"  These can be models, photographs or drawings of whatever the object is.  Remember how I showed you the biplane?  Here are 3 links to wagon pictures. http://www.miltoncarriageworks.com/ http://www.remingtoncentre.com/ http://www.ruralheritage.com/plans/index.htm I found them by simply doing a keyword search. I used "horse drawn wagon"  and got dozens of sites in seconds. Do you know how to do a key word search? Once you have several photos, use tracing paper to sketch and then perfect your drawings of wagons. Vary the size and angle you see them.  Some should be large so they will appear close. Others will be smaller and further away. You can use the same sketch several times by varying size and detail, then flipping it over so it can be used on both sides of the center of the page. Do you know how to transfer a sketch onto your watercolor paper? Good luck, Dave

Day 60   I've sent a file of some pictures of wagons I found on the Internet doing a keyword search. There were so many kinds, and I didn't know which I should use. There are 5 pictures of 3 different wagons here, and I'd like your opinion on which would work best. I also found several pictures of biplanes from different angles and will practice drawing them and the wagons before I begin those two finals. -Sonia:-) Sonia's wagon ideas... Mr. Ross' Reply: Hi Sonia, Top right has the best angle to draw from.  Use that view for wagons on the left and right of center. Top and bottom left are good but the same type wagon. See if you can draw one from the 3/4 angle shown on top right. Use your imagination and add things like suitcases, trunks and packages. Vary the look of the open wagon by adding tops and sides. Just like cars, wagons came all styles.  Pay attention to how high the body of the wagon is off the ground and where the wheels overlap the body of the wagon. You'll do just fine. Incidentally, the lower middle is a hearse. Dave

Day 61   I practiced drawing biplanes from all sorts of angles and think I've gotten okay at it now. Those things are really hard to draw! I've sent the best one I've drawn so far. I thought I could trace this one for the biplane on the 2nd to last page, where "If Nellie Bly could do it..." is written by the plane, which is flying away from the letters. What do think about that? I'm still not totally sure about what to draw for "I think I'll rent an airplane....", there are a lot of possibilities for that one. Once I get your reply, Ms. Rome, that might help deciding. That's all for now:-) -Sonia Mr. Ross' Reply: Hi Sonia, Drawing of biplane is getting there.  Use tracing paper to redraw this.  I would simplify the plane in several ways.  1. First eliminate the marks on the outside edges of each wing. These "read"  as cracks in the wings.  2. Then draw the "W" shaped struts on either side of the body with a much thinner line. When you paint this you could use a thin grey or dark blue line.  On real planes these were wire or very thin metal struts.  3. Eliminate the wires which run from the "W" back to the body of the plane.  While they may be seen in a photograph, they would not be visible to someone on the ground watch the plane fly.  4. The propeller motion looks good as do the left and rear tire.  5. The left front tire looks 3 dimensional because of the pattern of light and dark,  right front tire should be similar.  6. After you clean up and simplify the plane you should be able to draw a pilot.  These pilots wore a brown leather helmet with goggles. Some wore a white  scarf that flew behind them when they were in the air. You don't need much  detail to show these things just shapes of color. Dave

Day 62 Here's my rough pic for the 2nd to last page, "If Nellie Bly could do it...." in the clouds. I traced the biplane I sent before, and made the changes  Mr. Ross suggested. What do you think? -Sonia Mr. Ross' Reply: Hi Sonia, Biplane looks a lot better. However, you still a problem with the wheels. Rear wheel is ok. Front two now look almost sideways.  Look at your original drawing.  The patterns of light and dark in a painting are very important to how the viewer "sees" the perspective or depth in the illustration.  In this drawing, the light strip on the forward edge of the left front wheel helps make it look 3 dimensional.  When the light strip is on the back like in the most recent sketch, the tire's perspective is off.  The way the wheel brackets are drawn doesn't help either.  Here is a tip. Draw the bracket that holds the left tire overlapping the wheel.  By making a light strip on the forward edge of objects in this illustration you  help make them look 3D. See the sketch I've attached. Dave

Day 63 Here's the final for "If Nellie Bly could do it....."  Mr. Ross, I couldn't open the kind of file you sent me. I can only open  bmps, jpgs, and gifs. But I understand what you mean. Actually, I had  just forgotten the direction the wheels were supposed to be facing and  drew them sideways on purpose, thinking that to be right. But the plane  couldn't land that way, so now I've fixed it as you mentioned.  I didn't finish coloring in the front wheels, because I want your opinion of  how they look now, Mr. Ross. I've also been practicing drawing wagons,  and will revise the rough for that next. -Sonia:-)

Day 64 Here's my second revised "miles around" wagon rough draft. I haven't put in the kids looking and pointing yet, because I wanted your opinion of the wagons first. The center and right wagons will have kids looking and pointing out of them. I think it'll look better if I move the sign to where I've drawn the arrow, that way the kids can be looking back, so you can see their faces. What do you think? -Sonia:-) Day 64 (Part 2) Here's my work-in-progress for the final illustration for 'miles around'.  -Sonia:-)  Mr. Ross' Reply: Sonia, Magnificent drawings of the wagons! This it technically one of the most challenging illustrations you've done so far. Many complicated elements. Small correction on horses to right.  Left horse looks like it is rearing up because both front feet appear in air.  When horses walk legs on same side move together and are in opposite position to other side at the end of each stride. Solution:  draw one more front leg going forward. The far side leg will appear to belong to the right horse. Actually you won't have to draw the  whole leg, just make a line parallel to back edge of upper section of left  horse's leg, show hoof just below left knee about where edge of sign is now. When you move sign back, have it overlap part of the left wagon's rear wheel. This will help create the illusion of depth. Also have roads get a little bit narrower as they move closer to city. Sketch kids on tracing paper first to get size and pose right. Center wagon kids should be much larger than parents. You could make rear gate on center wagon so you won't  have to draw legs and feet, but have their heads at least as high on the page as parents. Possibly frame parents between two kids.  In left wagon have one kid leaning out window, other kid's head could be seen peeking over top edge, as if he were standing up, he could be waving at kids in center wagon. Dave

Day 65 Here's a biplane I've sketched that I think could work for the 'rent an airplane' picture. The modern dreamer could be running towards the plane, looking up at it, and pointing to it in the sky. That way there's more movement. The airport could be in the background like it was before. Your thoughts? -Sonia Mr. Ross' Reply: Hi Sonia, I think that idea will work. Try a sketch of this.  Keep the horizon low on the page [like 2" from bottom].  Make the modern dreamer large in foreground.  You can try several different ways of showing her:  1.  Easiest is to show her on left side of page from torso up- cutting her off  at the bottom of page. With one arm outstretched toward plane upper right  corner. 2. Or you might try drawing her foreshortened [making her feet large and head small, her closest foot larger and lowest on page] Again, I would have motion move from lower left to upper right to reinforce the feeling of looking up. Her hand could be almost reaching for the plane. Overall the plane looks great. Good perspective! Some minor points on the plane. Make the front landing gear slightly wider [draw the wheels further apart] and center the rear wheel. I'd eliminate the wires running from the "w" shaped wing brace to the body of the plane. While they are a part of the original plane they are unnecessary to the "look." Dave

Day 66 Here's my 'rent an airplane' rough draft. I foreshortened the dreamer, can you tell? And, is the size of the airport okay, or is it too big? Anything else? -Sonia:-) Mr. Ross' Reply: Hi Sonia, One of the things I have enjoyed the most from my experience mentoring you is watching you grow as an artist.  This sketch shows me tremendous improvement over where you were a year ago.  The figure of the modern dreamer looks great, as does the plane.  A terrific job of foreshortening and the illusion of looking up. This may be your most dramatic illustration yet! My only concern is the airport buildings. By making them fill the lower half of the page, it makes them more important than need to be in this illustration. I would "shrink" them down to less than half their size. Keep them low on the horizon, like they were much further away. [I would have them on a line below the dreamer's  left arm.] I do like having the tower below the plane, like it too is pointing toward the plane, just make it smaller.  The upper 3/4 of the page should be sky. Make sure you paint the sky in the same way you did the last page. Dave PS: You may want to turn the dreamer's head slightly so we can see a hint of a profile looking up. All you need is just a little cheek, nose & chin peeking out from the right hand edge of her hair [you might have to use the first hair line in from the right as the edge to make the proportions  work]. This would make the drawing more personal. Try this on a bit of  tracing paper first.

Day 67 Hi, I revised the 'rent an airplane' rough, adding the slight face and resizing the airport. Is it ready to be colored now? -Sonia:-)

Day 68 Hi! How's this for "I think I'll rent an airplane, and write across the sky..."?  The scan looks off, but the entire sky is actually blue, and all the grass  is green. The whole plane is in the picture too, it's just that the scanner  window isn't large enough to pick it up. I lowered the horizon. -Sonia

Day 69 Here's my rough for: "Nellie helped the homeless children who were living in the street."  It's set in a back alley. How's it look? -Sonia:-)

Day 70 Here's my final for "People came from miles around to see brave Nellie Bly," and also for the last page,  "THEN SO-CAN-I!!!" I eliminated the skyscrapers, Ms. Rome, by gluing a paper over the sky and painting on that. What do you think? -Sonia:-)

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