Anatomy of a Page – 03

ANATOMY OF A PAGE shows my process from sketch to final page. Again, with the first issue of HEROINES, I skipped the sketch and went straight to rough pencil. Though I wouldn’t necessarily recommend doing it that way. 

Here we have the introduction of Jones. This one is interesting, because I made several changes after coloring. 

Originally, I had Jones entering from the bathroom, as though she was already over when Raven drops in unannounced. But that’s not very clear in the dialog, so I decided to change the background, simplifying the situation.

More noticeably, I hated Raven’s pose in panel 2. The “leaping at you” pose is a staple of superhero art, and I’d flubbed it. So I redesigned it and dropped in the new version in Photoshop. I feel the extra effort was worth it. Being a perfectionist is a great way to never finish a project. But some flaws just need fixing. 

Jones comes off as big in this page, but it took a little time with her to really capture a sense that she’s gigantic. As the series goes on, she gets subtly bigger and broader. I’m not a very consistent artist. But I find that letting characters evolve can be rewarding.