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Click here for Part 2

So far I’ve recreated an X-Men cover using a pencil in my sketchbook. Then I scanned it in and started recreating the drawing digitally while still getting comfortable with my Wacom Tablet. On the computer, I redrew Cyclops, Storm and Kitty Pryde, and then it was time for Magneto. The original impetus for the recreation.

Originally, I knew that I had to redraw Magneto’s leg.  As I was redrawing his helmet, I realized that the light from Cyclops’ optic beams wouldn’t reflect off of his helmet as I had originally pencilled it.

Once I fixed this problem, I started inking the rest of Magneto.  After inking the hands, I realized that hands don’t look like that.  I have read a lot of comic books over the years, and one thing that always catches my eye is an artist that can draw good, realistic looking hands.  Tom Raney is someone who I have always admired.  Though his art is constantly evolving and getting better, his hands have always been top-notch. Carlos Pacheco, while I haven’t read much of his recent work, he is someone who had a unique, but good approach to drawing hands. 

Anyway, one of the advantages of this project is having the time to take a step back and re-evaluate parts of the drawing.  And Magneto’s hands are one area that really needed work.  In the next illustration, you’ll be able to see the original pencils, then the rough layer of the new hands, and finally the inked hand (without line weight or shading).  This was a good example of drawing how things look, as opposed to how you think they look, makes a drawing much better.

Next time I hope to tackle inking the rest of Magneto’s body, including re-drawing his leg, the inspiration for this whole, long project.