Hellboy and Captain Jack (Update: December 9th, 2008)

[Jeff Lafferty]

Been changing direction a bit and doing some sketch cards. Feedback is welcome.
Jeff

[Ericus]

Jeff these look incredible, man! Really diggin em, I hope you definitely do more of these, what are the dimensions of these two?

[Matt Dixon]

I like 'em. Your admiration of Struzan is certainly showing in these, and that's no bad thing.

Maybe pop in some darker tones to punch up the focal areas a bit?

[bjoern3000]

what are the dimensions of these two?

2 1/2" x 3 1/2 "

[sony]

hey i saw your name under hellboy's image and was thinking him nude LOL any way great work!!!

[Jeff Lafferty]

Thanks Eric, they are 2 1/2” x 3 1/2” inches Thanks Matt, yeah I’m a Drew fan. Thanks for dropping by bjoern3000. Thanks Sony 'LOL'

Jeff

[J.Koch]

Very cool, man. Especially being that small. If I were to get nitpicky, I'd say that above Jack's right eye (left in our view) looks a little off. I can't tell if it's a little too puffy there or if the definition would be tightened if the eyebrow was a little darker. Great stuff, though.

[psychtaygar]

What kind of materials did you use for these and your other nude drawings? It's pencil, right? What brand?

They look good by the way, very nice. I like your style.

[Jeff Lafferty]

Thank you for your comment koch, and to answer your question Psych , I usually use golden acrylic paints and Derwent or prismacolor color pencils.
Jeff

[vibhas_virwani]

dude , can u show some more stuff ?? i really like those

[IndieWise]

I really like your technique, but I think you are selling yourself short by doing them from stills from movies...not to mention the blatant copyright violation since you are selling them.

I'm not sure if these two particular were from stills, but they are definitely the likeness of those characters as portrayed by those actors as opposed to your own take on them.

I don't mean to come down on you, but I just see this too often where people are not aware of the risk they are taking by selling someone elses intellectual property or likeness without consent.

[Jeff Lafferty]

O.K. Vibhas heres a Frodo and Sam I did. IndieWise Sorry you don't like them.
Jeff

[TheDirtSyndicate]

heh, its cute that you thought IndieWise was saying that he "didn't like them"

maybe you should re-read his post and actually try to absorb some smarts from it

he didn't say he didn't like them.
that came from YOU, not him, and i think that is shitty and just plain rude putting words into other peoples mouths, not to mention being so dismissive of the actual point he was trying to make, AND condescending by "thanking" the fucking post.

not cool.

[Borilius]

Awesome... simply awesome. I'm a long time Struzan's fan - but even with the same technique, your works stay original. 5+

[Jeff Lafferty]

Thanks Borillius your comments are always appreciated.

Jeff

[Jeff Lafferty]

This post has bugged me for a month so I went and dug it up. The first time I let what TheDirtySyndicate said pass. I hate getting into an arguments here, but it just irritated me for weeks on end! "absorb some smarts" that such an a-hole way of saying something. Calling me rude and condescending? What a bunch of baloney

I realize that Hellboy and Jack Sparrow are copyrighted material and that I have no rights to it (not that I don't see a Batman piece on this site like every other day and nobody else seems to get accused of copyright infringement) I'm not a moron.

But who has right to the work I created? I painted it, but I don't own it and have no right to sell it? Well I disagree with that. This is my art, my self-expression. I created it that makes it mine.

How can anyone say you cannot paint this or draw that! What about artist like Warhol? or about a thousand other pop artist painting movie stars? Their works are illegal?

I understand copyright law, I'm not selling bootleg videos of Pirates of the Caribbean. I'm selling a piece of art that I painted. If there's a law that says I can't do that then I disagree with that law.

IndieWise If I offended you earlier then I apologize, I didn't mean to skim over your comment so lightly
Dirtysyndicate I fully intended to offend you with my comments. I would like to formally thank you for your insults and if you dont like being thanked then "tough"

By the way here's my new work

[P-WAF]

heh, its cute that you thought IndieWise was saying that he "didn't like them"

maybe you should re-read his post and actually try to absorb some smarts from it

he didn't say he didn't like them.
that came from YOU, not him, and i think that is shitty and just plain rude putting words into other peoples mouths, not to mention being so dismissive of the actual point he was trying to make, AND condescending by "thanking" the fucking post.

not cool.

I thought it was funny.

And Jeff? Whoah, whoah, whoah bud. Those pieces aren't yours till the orphan works bill passes. Just wait a few months and you can sell all the unlicensed art you want.

[TheDirtSyndicate]

sorry. i dont mean to offend anyone.
im just speaking my mind.

i think part of the reason i was kind of rude was because of this subconscious dislike i have for you.
dont get me wrong, i dont even know you, im not even consciously doing it, its just that... well...
i've strived my entire life to create something original. to be unique with my art, whether it be illustration, photography, graphic design, motion graphics, collage, poetry, the music i write, etc.
its all 100% original. shit that i've created from my own imagination.
and i push myself every fucking day to continue that tradition.
in fact, my job requires me to.
every day i have to come up with something new and exciting, fresh, unique, otherwise i wont be able to find work.

in other words, i see you as the guy who plays at the dive bar down the street every wednesday doing great covers of popular 80's songs.
where im the guy writing the songs that you'll be playing in the dive bar 10 years from now.
so yeah, maybe there's a little subconscious resentment there.
because yes, what you do unfortunately DOES have a place in this world. there isn't anything wrong with it. you CAN make money doing what you're doing.
but i dont have to respect it.

[TheDirtSyndicate]

i realize my message wasn't clear when i re-read my last post:

in a nutshell:
i'd like to see you apply your rendering skills towards something original.
do you have any self portraits? done by looking in a mirror and not a photo?
do you have any characters of your own? stories you'd like to tell?
if so, TELL THEM! create a world! populate it with characters! design that world, design those characters! design the cars they drive! the clothes they wear! the abnormal growths they might have on their faces!
there are unlimited depths that can be explored, but you choose to reproduce things that aren't yours....
if you applied your awesome rendering skills to some life drawing, i swear that shit would end up in a fucking art gallery.

i dont want to see you waste your talent.

[Aphotic Phoenix]

Okay, the thing about fan art like this is...unless someone lives under a rock they're unlikely to confuse the fact that you didn't create the characters you're depicting in your art...but that doesn't mean that it's necessarily legal.

By the logic you put forth...what if you designed an original character, and then I rendered it in 3D as my own "art" to use in a video game, from which I made profit and gave you none? You can try to argue that it's different, but it's not... it's just the roles reversed.

*Edit* And by the way...with the cover band analogy, they do in fact have to pay royalties, it's just not widely enforced because it's difficult to do so.

[Professor Wagstaff]

wow! this thread makes an for an interesting read, i give it 5 stars just for that!

I for one like your work Jeff. Your perfectly entitled to paint these and they look pretty good. Many a time i've watched a film and felt inspired to paint something based on it (though admittedly i wouldn't try selling it).

Like TheDirtSyndicate says, would be great to see you apply your skills to other subjects. His words may be a bit on the harsh side , but i think he does have some valuable points to make.... up to you how you take it i guess.

At the end of the day, do the art that makes you happy

[Jeff Lafferty]

i realize my message wasn't clear when i re-read my last post:

in a nutshell:
i'd like to see you apply your rendering skills towards something original.
do you have any self portraits? done by looking in a mirror and not a photo?
do you have any characters of your own? stories you'd like to tell?
if so, TELL THEM! create a world! populate it with characters! design that world, design those characters! design the cars they drive! the clothes they wear! the abnormal growths they might have on their faces!
there are unlimited depths that can be explored, but you choose to reproduce things that aren't yours....
if you applied your awesome rendering skills to some life drawing, i swear that shit would end up in a fucking art gallery.

i dont want to see you waste your talent.

Who cares!!

[Jeff Lafferty]

I think there is value in painting realistically, whether or not its from a photo. There is value in what I do.

[Professor Wagstaff]

absolutely, this is an artists community website, therefore all art of all forms is appreciated. I wouldn't take what TheDirtSyndicate says too much to heart buddy.

[Eric Lofgren]

.

By the logic you put forth...what if you designed an original character, and then I rendered it in 3D as my own "art" to use in a video game, from which I made profit and gave you none? You can try to argue that it's different, but it's not... it's just the roles reversed.

That analogy doesn't work, as I see it. What you're referring to is mass marketting someone else's IP as your own. Where Jeff is taking a mass marketted IP and making a one-off from it. And maybe selling it to a (I'm assuming) private customer. Two different birds altogether, no?

Whatever the case, Jeff, your work is great. I love the style. It is quite Struzany, but still your own at the the same time.

[Eric Lofgren]

if you applied your awesome rendering skills to some life drawing

He does. Jeff has some great life drawing threads still kicking around here. His avatar is part of one, for instance.