Hello all, newbie here.
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Hi, my name is Jonathan Price, known elsewhere on the interwebs as Dualmask. I'm a 38 year old self taught artist and writer from Philadelphia, PA who is trying to figure out a path for my future as an artist. I came here because though I'm a fairly competent artist in some ways, I'm no pro and I've had enough of not knowing how to build a career as any kind of professional illustrator. I've been getting unspeakably cheap commission work from individuals for years but never enough to help me escape my day job, and I want to learn more, to improve my craft and learn business sense. For examples of the kind of art I do (largely in the comic/pinup genre), feel free to peruse http://dualmask.deviantart.com and my personal site, http://jonathanpriceart.net.
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Welcome Jonathan
I look forward to seeing your work -
Welcome Jonathan:) We could be brothers...lol...I'm in the exact same boat 38 years old been trying to figure out a path to being a full time illustrator myself....this is a great place to start my friend I hope you are taking advantage of the SVS classes some of the stuff taught in there I've heard nowhere else and it is a huge help. Looking forward to seeing you around the forums and seeing your progress.
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Welcome Jonathan! We have a great community here and are really glad you decided to join us! : )
I took a look at your website and you are in a great place to get a lot out of our school. You have a great drawing ability and now we need to foster it and add the refinement to it that can give it a really "pro" look.
One thing that I would like to suggest right off the bat. Go to your website and delete ALL the blog posts. It's totally ok to have doubts about your self, your work, your life, but sharing that stuff on your professional website is a big no-no. Think of it like an advertising commercial, have you ever heard a company say "our products aren't that great, but maybe you might buy it - but only if you can't find something better". Of course not. Project confidence and share your work and process. Share what you love about it all (even if you have to convince yourself sometimes). Above all else, stay positive on your blog.
Now, that doesn't mean you can't share the real feelings of insecurity and doubt here. We all have those feelings and it's nice to see that others do too. So, take some time and look around here and find some videos that look good to you. Do the work we suggest in them and watch yourself get drastically better in a short amount of time. Good luck and stay strong! : )
-Lee
SVS Faculty Instructor
www.leewhiteillustration.com -
Will Terry's podcast these are always good and full of some great info as well. I like to listen to them during my day job as it slowly devours my soul.....
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@Lee-White said:
Welcome Jonathan! We have a great community here and are really glad you decided to join us! : )
I took a look at your website and you are in a great place to get a lot out of our school. You have a great drawing ability and now we need to foster it and add the refinement to it that can give it a really "pro" look.
One thing that I would like to suggest right off the bat. Go to your website and delete ALL the blog posts. It's totally ok to have doubts about your self, your work, your life, but sharing that stuff on your professional website is a big no-no. Think of it like an advertising commercial, have you ever heard a company say "our products aren't that great, but maybe you might buy it - but only if you can't find something better". Of course not. Project confidence and share your work and process. Share what you love about it all (even if you have to convince yourself sometimes). Above all else, stay positive on your blog.
Now, that doesn't mean you can't share the real feelings of insecurity and doubt here. We all have those feelings and it's nice to see that others do too. So, take some time and look around here and find some videos that look good to you. Do the work we suggest in them and watch yourself get drastically better in a short amount of time. Good luck and stay strong! : )
-Lee
Thanks for the warm welcome everyone!
I wanted to highlight this because I purchased and started viewing the "How To Make Money in Illustration" course and it has already opened my eyes to so much I didn't think about, such as how to project a client-based mindset as opposed to a self centered one (I changed the text on my site's About page just today for that reason). And the tip about getting rid of the blog posts...spot on. I have to stop broadcasting doubt--first day here and I already got one life-changing piece of advice...
I was going to buy a course here and there, but now I'm seriously considering a subscription. I'm going to participate a lot in this forum. Thanks again!
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Another recommendation, get the subscription. It is such a better value in terms of cost vs. benefit. If you look around online, there is NOTHING even close to that price point that offers so much information and options. We have a MASSIVE amount of new videos coming in the next few months too. At that low subscription price, there is no way you will regret it.
SVS Faculty Instructor
www.leewhiteillustration.com -
Welcome and I agree with @Lee-White on the subscription, I have had it over half a year and learned so much! SO worth it. Also taking part in the 3rd Thursday contests have been great to push me as well. Looking forward to seeing more of your work.
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Welcome, it is an awesome community!
