The alarm screams at 6am forcing me to rip the warm sheets from my body and creak out of bed.  I slapped the alarm clock like a bad puppy and  zombie-walked down the hall to my office.  I punch the power button on my computer, pull the light switch , and  head downstairs for a much needed pot of coffee.  After a quick bite to eat and a filling of the coffee mug, I head upstairs to begin my day.  A day that will include cartoon pigs, balloon fonts, and photos of BBQ cookers…all in the comfort of my own home.  I am a freelance cartoonist.

 

I began my professional career as a cartoonist in October of 2004 after 10 years of teaching school and working as a youth director.  For those 10 years I was drawing on the side (at night, on lunch breaks, early in the morning before my regular job) and longed for the day when I could work in my pajamas.  Patience and perseverance paid off and I soon (if you can call 10 years ‘soon’) I was working out of a small office at home.  Now, I spend most of my day, a good twelve hours, in front of my computer drawing pigs with cowboy hats, chickens with sweat dripping down their beak, and bulls with overalls on.  It may not sound like much but it’s living.

 

Now, BBQ logos are not the only thing I do.  I also do cartoon maps, caricatures, book illustrations and designs for T-shirts.  BBQ logos make up about a third of my work.  Since I began in 2004, I’ve created roughly just under 1000 BBQ logos.  A number that grows every year. 

 

One question that almost everyone asks when I’m creating a cartoon logo is “How do you do that!?”  Honestly, I’ve never really thought about that question because drawing just comes naturally to me.  I can sit down and sketch out a pig, or cow, or any other cartoon character in a matter of minutes.  I’ve been drawing since I was in middle school so it’s a very natural process to me.  The next question that comes along is “How do you do it so fast?” Again, I just do it!  I know what steps to take to create a character, I know my computer program and equipment and I know (for the most part) what will look good and what won’t before I finish the logo.  I have been very blessed by God to have such a  fun and entertaining talent for people.

 

Most people ask what steps I take in creating a cartoon logo.  The first step is just gathering information.  What is the name of the team or group?  What ideas do the clients have that they want to see in the logo (probably 90-95% of all clients have an idea of what they want before talking to me)?  What can I add to make the logo look better?  The more information I have, the better.

 

Second, comes the rough pencil sketch.  This is the “getting the idea on paper” stage.  There is nothing set in stone with this step.  This is just to make sure my ideas and the clients ideas are “on the same page”, if you will. (excuse the pun)  We may go through several revisions (basically, me erasing and redrawing) until the main image of the logo is agreed upon.

 

Third, comes the inking and coloring stage.  Here I simply take the sketch, scan it into my computer and hand trace it using a digital graphics tablet.  This is a small tablet that acts like a computer mouse, except that it’s a pen.  Once I have a ‘blackline’ drawing of the sketch, I take it through a few other programs to turn it into a form where I can drop colors into it.  Then, I add the color, any shading, special effects and text to it.  Then I save it as a small JPG so the client can preview it.  Again, we may go through several revisions on colors, text placement, font and any other detail that will make the final logo complete.

 

Lastly, comes the finalizing of the logo.  Once the logo is agreed upon, I will save the image into several different formats that will cover any kind of printing the client needs to do.  It’s fairly simple process due to the fact that I’ve done it almost a thousand times!

 

I love my work and  I love meeting new people.  I’ve done logos for people in Australia, Canada, Russia, Germany, England, India, and almost every state in the US.  And it’s all done from the safety of a 10x12 office space.  Amazing!  I’m thankful to God for my talent and for all the interesting people I’ve met over the years.  Thanks to all who have used my service and I look forward to serving  more of you!