THE POOR MAN'S ARTIST!
You actually care? Uh...I mean...

Well I'm 26 years old, and I obviously love to draw! 

I started out drawing comic book characters when I was about 15. Before that, I was all about the Disney cartoons. Primarily because it got the chicks in junior high. They stopped caring much about that in high school though, and I was tired of drawing Mickey and the gang  so I went through all types of phases...portraits, landscapes, charcoal, pretty much anything that you can imagine. Then one day my friend who collected comics got me to go into a comic book store after  school one day. He showed me for the first time an X-men comic, which  at the time was drawn by a certain artist named Jim Lee. I had never seen such cool looking art before. It wasn't cartoon like, nor was it lifelike. But either way, I thought that it was something that I could definitely get into. The rest is history really, as I've been drawing comics ever since.

My biggest influences are Jim Lee, Humberto Ramos, J. Scott Campbell, Joe Madureira, and Art Adams. They all have such different styles, but are easily some of the best artists in the biz. I know a lot of hardcore comic fans out there consider these guys "main-stream" and thus, not cool, but I love their artwork. And if you don't like any of the artists I just mentioned, then you won't like my artwork, because I've  learned almost everything I know about drawing comics from studying their stuff. I never was able to afford art school, so I learned what I know from seeing other's art, and reading books about anatomy,  portrait drawing, perspective, the works. Oh and an awesome little book called "How to draw comics, the Marvel Way". Any aspiring comic artists has to  pick up this book if you haven't already. Even today when I look in it while cleaning out the closet, I'm still amazed at the artwork in it.

I'm available for projects (pin-ups, character designs, etc.) but as of right now, I'm not taking on any more comic paneling offers unless it is on a pay-per-page basis. I've had many "share of the profits" offers, but with the way start-up companies vanish without a trace, I'm limiting myself to projects in which I get paid as I work. And because I don't want to find myself in a bind should (I hope) find myself being offered a job from an actual publisher, I'm not accepting any contractural deals at this time. Plus with all the time I spend at my full-time job *sigh*, I probably couldn't handle it anyway, haha.

Well, that's about it! I hope you enjoy the pictures I have on the site! There's tons more on the way. Drop me a line to tell me what you like, what you don't, and any requests that you may have. Sada Te!

Torrance
WHO I AM...
...AND THE ART TOOLS I USE
LEAD

I use a lead holder mechanical pencil and I vary between 3h and 5h lead depending on the paper I'm using. I've found that I can get the best point using these pencils and they don't feel squarish like regular mechanical pencils do. Make sure you pick up a lead pointer (thanks to B. Dille for setting me straight on the correct name) to sharpen your lead, otherwise you'll have to bust out the old whittle!

PAPER

Whatever works for you! I use everything from typing paper to 3ply bristol board (when I really want it to have a nice finish, or for comic sequentials). I personally like a bristol sheet with a smooth finish the best myself. But that get's expensive so...pass the xerox paper!