Animal Illustration

As an Illustrator working for Jack Nightingale Artworks I was called upon to execute many different styles for projects. A big account was San Diego Zoo. BTW all the illustrations in this post are copyrighted by Jack Nightingale Artworks. I just drew them and got paid. I show them here on my blog for purposes of review and education only.

Indian Elephant by M Francis McCarthy

The style for this guy was taken from a image I saw of a elephant on the web. I simplified the color scheme and drew an Indian elephant in a quick line and shaded in Photoshop. What I liked about this illio was how it looked good on any color. Never got bought but looks like a winner to me still.

In my Early days at Jack Nightingale Artworks I had lots of time to really detail my illustrations but as each successive year passed less and less time was available. I feel that this was true for any art department in the early to mid 2000's. 

You can still get great results in less time if you keep your eye on the prize and have the right attitude. I know from first hand experience that spending hours on a piece of artwork will not guarantee a great work of art.

Indian Elephant by M Francis McCarthy

Ok, the Zoo was going to have a special Indian elephant exhibit and they needed a good image for a design. This image was definitely in consideration but not selected for the final design. Pity cause I really like the effect I got on this gal. This is a strong combination of photo shop and hand drawing. One day I would love to teach a class in this type of illustration.

Wolf by M Francis McCarthy

I've seen this wolf illustrated by others, the reference is available online. This is a pretty detailed brush and pen drawing that's been scanned into Photoshop and then colored. I always tried get a certain look in the eyes of the animals I illustrated and I really enjoyed the work for many years.