Etopia Press Jan Release - Debra Kayn

Latest book release from Etopia Press  is 

Where There's Smoke

by the ever witty

Debra Kayn

It can be bought direct off Etopia and Debra has an exerpt on here site. 

Here's the blurb:

One hot fireman, one bossy Irish Setter…one woman whose dreams are about to come true…

When Amber Bailey inherits her estranged aunt’s old house, she’s sure it’ll be the perfect spot to open her pet daycare business and settle into a life her family will finally approve of. What she doesn’t count on is the cold shoulder she gets from her neighbors whenever she mentions her aunt’s name, or having to get a safety inspection on the old house before she can get a business license. Whoever heard of building inspections for a glorified dog house?

Gregg McKee runs his life the same way he runs the fire department…full speed ahead and damn the torpedoes. He didn’t even mind the angry calls from the neighbors about the crazy animal lady stuck in the tree—pulling her out gave him the perfect excuse to turn on the charm. But when she doesn’t follow through on fixing a code violation he issued, he realizes he might lose her forever. What’s he supposed to do with a woman too stubborn and independent for her own good?

This was much fun to do! Hot firemen? Heck yeah! 

It was fun to incorporate the smoke into the cover since its in the title. 

Fire for me is easier, but so didn't work in this case . 

Anyhow all book addicts go read and download!

Interview and a Contest from Author Steve Emmett

Minions! 

Steve Emmett has interviewed me about cover art, life and creme eggs! 

We talk about his upcoming release Diavolino on Feb4th from Etopia Press

You can read all about it 

HERE

and be in with a chance to win a signed A3 copy of 

Be Bad!

Happy New Year & Beann Sidhe Clann!

Happy new year everyone! Hope your all recovered and well! 

Now!

Beann Sidhe Clann or Banshee Family was yet another slight mistake! 

Kelly Ealy puts these pics up and she is very tolerant of me and my smurfmaking! Especially in this one as the wee girl is her daughter Adrianna.

I've done a few for her now and she knows the score! 

I do love most of her shots, they are like perfect in exposure and her models are always stunning! I never really have to do much to them which is always a bonus.

So I was STRICTLY doing a RETOUCH (see top right hand pic below) 

and added in a blue adj layer to see what would happen. 

* INSERT SMURF MOMENT HERE*

 Yeah - it actually was easy enough to put that well known photo from stock exchange in 

and because I was a lazy cow just blended it into the grass. 

The hardest part was Laura New's dress and getting the tonal gradient right over it. 

REALLY hard and well lets just say messing with upwards on 6 adjustment layers 

at a time is so much fun!

NOT!

Was done over most of October as I was very busy with Annie and Etopia but I think its 4 - 5 hours work and only around 80 or so layers. 

Be bad kiddos in 2011!! 

I'm gonna take over the world with sticky chocolate toffee pudding with lashings of custard! 

muahhhhhhhh!!!

Archangel Raphael

Archangel Raphael

The UPDATED version! 

Now who doesn't love a hawt guy with wings!

Well apart from Straight Guys I can't see anyone else not liking hawt guys with wings!

As most of ye know Archangel Raphael is based on Nalini Singh's character of the same name from the Guild Hunter Series. If you haven't read her work (any of it - pant and drool for A'Consort and Kiss of Snow in 2011 - bloody GAGGING!!! HAWKE!!! mmmm!! FOCUS!) I highly reccommend! 

She even featured it on her blog too!! 

Not telling ya why it's updated - but it had to get CYMK FOGRA27 embedded.....any guesses yet?  

This is my first 100% digital painting! Unfortunatley I never have the time to do another one

*STAMPS FOOT*

I end up doing parts like but nneehhhhhhhhhh!!

I think it's around 8 hours in total with the wings. Those wings! mmmm!!

Wouldn't mind him dusting me with angel dust! muahhhh!!

The download is quite big and should be ok for a desktop!

Right off to have a wee beer! 

Be bad!

Dearg Sorcha

Dearg Dorcha (Red Sonja) happened by accident! 

Elandria put up these new stocks on her dA account and I went

OOOooOOOOooOOOOOOOOO!!! 

Kick ass girl with huge sword! FUCK YEAH I'm IN!

Plus like I am the hugest RED SONJA fan EVER!

This new film with Rose Mc Gowan could be crap though! *sniffs*

As I had been up at Castleroache I decided to use stockies I had myself for the background. 

So extracted poor Lanny and went about making her skin white 

The hardest was that bloody archway shes in! 

Anyway so there ye have it! Average layer count (50ish) average time 3 - 4 hours. 

Foraois Chianaosta

Lets do this properly and move all the work in here! 

I'll be moving the work from the "protfolio" section in here and while not meant as tutorials, I'll describe what they mean and some stuff. Nuthing major ladz! 

I will be going 18+ because people are so SENSITIVE to the F word!

MUAHHH!
Foraois Chianaosta
 

 
 
Foraois Chianaosta was made for a very special person.

They basically have let me live my dream and come January I will be conquering the world!

Now about the piece. 

The general proportion grid is standard Golden section. Perspective is slightly down as I wanted to view "into" water. If you inhale as much as I do re this stuff then yeah - it becomes second nature. 

So I started out with a rough X is the horses and Y is the river, and X is a island and A is the banks and basically it just goes on from there. I always work back to front so all the grids like background trees, mid ground water, back mid ground with stag, mid ground with horses, etc to the front sections.

NAME YOUR LAYER FOLDERS KIDS!

So then came rendering. And stock finding...and rendering....

So got it all basically done and I decided in my fucking wisdom there wasn't enough details. 

*insert massive migraine here*

In comes the robin, snail, extra hut yokes, fish, boat, flowers, more trees.....

*contemplates pressing DELETE* 

I think in all this is easily 20+ hours work with in excess of 170 fucking Layers (clipping masks are YOUR FRIEND!) I did count it - forgot! 

The bloodstock are Prime Irish Flat Racing Stock (Group 1) and I 

have never seen a more beautiful mare and foal. 

And I've seen A LOT! 

The lady that owns them is the loveliest person in the world! She also has the maddest hatter of a dog called Micha! Yup! Micha is with Lucy and the Bloodstock keeping them all in line! 

The fish is for Da, the robin is for Mum, the snail is for taking it handy, 

the stag coz well I'm always horny and the wee village is well just SNAZZY DARLINGS!!!

First Interview!!!

I've done a interview with Creative End Magazine

Ye can read all about it 

HERE

Go read minions!!!

Muahahhhhh!!!