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Trick or Treat!
  • Comments: 33
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Trick or Treat!
(by Tobias, Dec 3, 2005)
Ack, I guess that goes to show that I can spend over two months on a single drawing ^^; Now it's December already, and we'll Christmas pretty soon, and there I am, finishing a drawing that just screams "Happy Halloween" instead of "Merry Christmas" ^^; Not that I drew all the time of these two months, just every now and then, I added a little here and there, sometimes not touching it for a week while school and classes get a hold of me, and well .. time adds up, I guess ^^;

None of us here in the picture actually celebrate Halloween, be it Austria, or Australia, you wouldn't really find too many roaming around asking for tricks or treats, so for me it was actually the first time I really celebrated Halloween (and handed out candy ;P ). Though, who knows, give it a little time and Halloween might just slowly find its way to our countries as well - at least pumpkins you can already see popping up here and there ;3
Anyhow, this drawing is part of a Halloween picture, but mainly thought as a drawing for a very sweet and cheerful friend, and that's Kazzi. Not only having amazingly cute drawings and characters, Kazzi's also really fun to read from and write to, having an imaginative and vivid writing style. Add to this that she just radiates sunshine and sincerity, this drawing is most definitely long overdue - and that's surely not only because Halloween's loooong over ^^
Seriously, there are soo many people with huge egos and all their little problems and weirdness-es, people who scream attention and "uniqueness" - you see so many of them, it's a pleasure to get to know someone who isn't at all like that: talented in many ways, yet modest and simply happy with life, people like Kazzi are a true rarity, and I'm very happy and honoured that I may call her my friend ^-^

About the picture itself - these are Tobias, Kazzi and Tai in Halloween outfit (pretty much), hopping from door to door in this winter-y place, hoping for a sack full of treats and hopefully not too many tricks (and still having a long way to go) ^^ I tried to stick to the markings and such this time, with a few minor changes; Kazzi usually doesn't have spooky black bat-wings, a treble clef around her neck (I hope she'll forgive me ^^; ), and Tobias usually doesn't run around with witch hat and spider, but that's about it >3 For Halloween they just fit better, and I can always say they disguised X3

Anyhow, hope you like it ^-^ The actual drawing is about twice as big, I thought sizing it down to half of the original would be a good compromise between details and size (fine details such as the 'T' with the necklace around Tai's neck are easier to see in the full size).
Comments?
Trick or Treat! - Comments
Kazzi-kins
[Homepage]
Dec 3, 2005 
Eeeeeeee, that's just so adorable!!! I'm in love with the little Tai, he just looks so cute sitting there on Kazzi's head - He does that all the time too, clambering around your shoulders and head and everywhere - he'll be in that bag of sweets soon, just you watch!! ;P I actually held him up to the screen to show him his picture, but he seemed more interested in getting his teeth into my lollypop. ^^;

I love all the detail you've put into this, it looks truly amazing!! Especially the background, the little cabins with all the icicles, and the snow on the trees is all so precise, it's wonderfull!! (I recognise it too - that was the one you enlarged and uploaded here. ^^) And I love that lantern, I wish I could just take it out and hang in in my room - the way you've made the flame reflect against the shapes of the glass is splendid. :D Kazzi and Tobias both look very cute as well, and don't worry - I'm sure she forgives you for substituting her trebel clef for a spooky note. ^^ After all, it suits more for trick-or-treating, and it's just for one night. And for all we know she could still be wearing her trebel clef underneath her costume. :P Teehe, by the look of that bag, Tobias and Kazzi seem to have got a goooooooood haul of candy too, lets just hope they don't eat it all at once or we'll have some VERY hyperactive creatures running rampage around the streets in their costimes. xD

Well done, 'tis all very adorable and precious, even if they are supposed to be being spooky!! (But then again, they can look both spooky and adorable if they want to. ;P) It's wonderful, if I was on DeviantART I'd be +fav-ing it without fail!! :D
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Kazzi-kins
[Homepage]
Dec 3, 2005 
(Oh, and I love how you made the moon look green - just adds that halloween-y touch!! ;P)
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Bungie95
Dec 4, 2005 
Well, it kinda looks like a combination of both holidays, since it has costumes AND snow! ;P Gee, I wonder if such towns like that bother to participate in Halloween because the entire place looks like a frozen graveyard as displayed by your picture. But then again, what do I know since I've neve actually been in a place with real snow. XD

First of all, the snow! Man, it looks pretty darn realistic! Its freezing qualities must be really...freezing because of those ice cold flower fossils you placed on your picture! Those small stalactites above you look pretty sharp; so watch your head! (I wonder that the purple ornament is for?) ^^ Don't forget that small spider sneaking up behind you too! Or is it part of the costume? (Well, I've never seen a spider included with a hat, so uh...the bunny will protect you guys ;P )

The cabins looks might fine, too. I like the nice amount of snow gathered on top of the house behind Kazzi. And it looks as if the mailbox has the face of a jack-o-lantern if you look closely! Maybe it's just me. The neighbors must be getting into the holiday spirit, as they built their own snowman a few pixels tall hidden left of your hand/paw.

It's not that common to see you in a costume, but it's pretty cute to see you and Kazz in them; I see her wings got their own as well. :) WHat's really cool is that you used a skull and scythe to imitate Kazzi's original necklace. Very creative, and great work!
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Tobias
[Homepage]
Dec 4, 2005 
Thank you ^-^ Hehe, actually having a place all covered with snow isn't really graveyard-like at all when it happens to you - you can have snowball fights, build castles and little igloos, and inside you'd have it all cozy and warm. When it's snowing outside, that's just the perfect weather to draw, or to sit by the fireplace and play games, really ^-^ (oh, and don't worry abnout these little stalactites, they're all small and fragile, so they wouldn't hurt them ;3 )

Yush, that spider came with the hat - it's just the perfect spooky addition to it, no? X3 You'd just have to be extra-careful so you won't lose it somewhere ^-^ That mailbox is actually a jack-o-latern, but well spotted - and good idea ^-^ Just that with a mailbox, the candle inside would burn the letters the mailman shoved into it's mouth X3 Aaaand well done spotting the snow man too, it's a little easier to see in the full-sized drawing, but even there it's very tiny, soooo .. kudos for that ;P

Anyhow, thanks for your nice comment, it's muchly appreciated ^-^
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Bungie95
[Homepage]
Jan 11, 2006 
Indeed, the spider actually would be a great spooky addition because some of those plastic things look VERY convincing if you let your guard down!

I don't know if this counts as sppoky, but I do remember coming home one night and I saw what appeared to be a frog standing on the stairs. I was very confused, thinking, "What the heck is a frog doing HERE? They don't live in these areas..." It sure looked real though. I proceeded to grab a stick XD and slowly approached it and began to poke it when I found out it was just a plastic toy from the neighbors. -_-; Hey, it fooled my dad too!

I came upon your environment picture in your scraps section, and I could definitely notice some things that were almost impossible to spot in your deviation, like the snowman's eyes and carrot nose. X3 And the light shining on the snow and nearby tree. It really shows your effort in your drawings, because the scenery really benefits from the richness in detail. What was this pic's original resolution?
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Josie
[Homepage]
Dec 4, 2005 
Aww, this picture is adorable. Your style seems to be getting more and more detailed as time goes by, heh (which in my eyes, is a good thing...I like pictures with small subtlties) :)

Ahh, the snow...reminds me of the way I use openCanvas for watercolour/painting, as I don't have a tablet to use, stippling about with a mouse is my usual way of colouring...of course, it turns out more blotchy than painty though, heheh. I'm impressed with the intricacies of detail on the latern...very nice!

Overall, a wonderfully pretty picture...and hey, about the halloween note...at least it includes an xmassy theme of snow, eh? ;)

P.S Tobias certainly looks more bubbly with big white eyes, hahah...
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Tobias
[Homepage]
Dec 18, 2005 
Thanks ^-^ I do try not to make them too detailed though, since at times one can also overload pictures with details, you know what I mean? It should still have a main motive to look at, and not being too confusing with itsy bitsy details ;P
Aww, no tablet? You could try getting one though, they're fun to draw with. Especially if you look for smaller or used ones, they're not too pricey, at least not more pricey than a 96 set of prismacolor pencils (I think they have Derwents in the UK, right? Those are a little cheaper, so you'd need to imagine a 150-set of them ) X3 You can get a Wacom tablet - which are kind of the best tablets you can get - used for around 28 pounds, at least from what I quickly checked right now.
Hehe, and you're right about the Christmassy note with the snow, I actually thought that too ^-^ Thanks for your comment <3
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rhyfe2002
[Homepage]
Dec 19, 2005 
Oh man, 28?? *faints* XO Gotta get someone over there to get one for me for Xmas or something... XD
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Tobias
[Homepage]
Dec 20, 2005 
Yup yup ^-^ Even though I'd say, add another £ 15 and go for the larger 6x8" tablet, which is a really convenient size in my opinion - the next one would be too large, and the 4x5" is a little too small - 6x8" is just perfect ^-^

(by the way, right now PCMall is selling a few, for example ^^ You need to be careful with the customs or such though, I think it only pays off if you get them from the US, customs can be really evil at times ^^; )
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rhyfe2002
[Homepage]
Dec 20, 2005 
Hehe, it's a bit too late for that ^^; I've got a Graphire3 already... for, like, SGD$128 ;__;
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Tobias
[Homepage]
Dec 20, 2005 
Aww ^^; But then again, the Graphire3 is an excellent tablet (I have just the same), soo you should be happy that you have it, no? ^-^
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Phiyrr
[Homepage]
Dec 6, 2005 
Oh, yaya, as usual, it has that awesome-ness in it. The trees in the background are ecspecailly realistic, and with not that much pumpkings, it could almost pass as a winter picture. The green, slightly-deforemed moon adds a touch of creepines, really Halloween style. And Toby and Kazzi just look like they're ready to dig into some candy. ;D

There’s a snowbunny in the snow pile behind them? Am I right? Okay, sorry, I'm done now, Toby, it's just that I think you got you're picture of a snowbunny. <3

Heheh, it kind of looks like an old German or Austrian village in the background, and all covered in snow, it really look beautiful. ;3

And with the snow, the picture could not only celebrate Halloween, but the Beginning of Winter, no? I mean, Halloween is just on the brink of Winter, right? ^-^

Well, anyways, Happy Belated Halloween and Beginning of Winter! ;P
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Tobias
[Homepage]
Dec 8, 2005 
Hehe, thanks ^-^ Believe it or not, it was actually snowing already for Halloween, even though the snow thew again a few days later. Though, now it's really cold, and I have the feeling that the snow we have here right now is not going anywhere anytime soon X3 But yush, I thought it might give at least a little Christmassy mood because of the snow and all that ^-^ Hehe, true, buuut that's not an actual snowbunny but just the drawing of a snowbunny .. am I making sense? But who knows, maybe with a little luck I might just see one here? Though chances are a little higher in Austria since I'd say they avoid crowded places ^^

Happy (very) belated Halloween to you too, and happy beginning of winter - I wish it were a little warmer though already (we had -19°F tonight) ;P
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Lolly
[Homepage]
Dec 7, 2005 
I LOVE the detail in this! I like how you'll dot the page for snow (verrrry nice touch!) and it's very colorful, even for a night picture! I love the ridges in the mountains, it makes them look so realistic! and that lamp! WHOa! I love the little cute white plants down there. It gives the picture an edge of mysticness to it. ^_^

I love the two ...er THREE chracters here. They're lineless, giving it a realistic edge as well, yet they still look very comical. OHHH! I love Kazzies necklace! very cleveer! Since she's likes music, and it's a halloweenish theme, SO it's a DEATH NOTE. That's very clever of you! The backgrond just amazes me beyond belief here! Two months on this? It was defiantly worth it! I wish I had that patience...then again, I kind of do the same thing, adding bit by bit to pictures. OHOH! I see the little white rabbit! And I like the little spider hanging off of Tobys hat. Very cute, and nice attention to detail!

I love that moon too! (actually..I love everything in this picture... X3) I see you've added craters and what not to it, giving it a realistic feel to it. Very very nice. The only thing I'd say is that the shape of the moon bugs me...but it's kind of hard to make circles in OC's, unless you have the premade circle tool. That ooooor it's like.. a 3/4 moon? :3 I DUNNO> XD Anyways, I'd say there's too many stars too, but I don't think that's a critique. It's nice how the sky isn't just one block of color, but a rainbow of blues in itself. Keep up the awome work Toby!
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Tobias
[Homepage]
Dec 7, 2005 
Whoa, you sure love a lot about this picture ^-^; But anyhow, thanks a lot for your comment - actually the moon I made a little more detailed because that's what you mainly critiqued in the last few pictures, sooo - here you go, a nice moon with shadows and craters ^-^ It's actually supposed to be a 3/4 moon and not a full moon, but I agree, that's a little hard to see, and it looks a little squashed if you see it as a full moon X3 The many stars were actually on purpose - I want to make a puzzle out of it, so I wanted to make sure there's enough detail in the sky so you can tell the pieces apart (which was a problem I had with previous puzzles, where some pieces just looked completely alike, and you could only try and see whether they fit).
And yush, I can imagine your drawings take you a long time too .. I usually don't work longer than a few hours every other day or so, which is why it quickly adds up and takes me a long time to complete, from pencil (I actually have the whole picture as a lightly-shaded pencil drawing) to the computer coloured picture ^-^
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Satoshi
Dec 18, 2005 
I feel really cheap for not having the time to leave you a full, detailed comment on this, but darn, takes my freakin' breath away.
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Tobias
[Homepage]
Dec 18, 2005 
Hehe, dooon't worry ^-^ I'm glad you like the drawing, and thanks for your comment too ;3
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Shadou Kitsune
Dec 18, 2005 
I did not notice the witches hat on Toby ^^; this new LCD monitor kind of blends it in with the sky coloring (but it is good that you had mentioned it or I would have never noticed it. Though I just realized that it can be suggested by looking a little lower rather than looking exactly above Toby).
All overall, this is a very great picture. It kind of fits both holidays (Halloween as the primary target and Christmas as well for the wintery surroundings). I especially like the spider hanging from Toby's hat (I think it is hanging for the hat) and the bunny in the background as well ^^. Toby, Kazzi, and Tai look absolutely marvelous. You had really done a great job on everything; the splendid textures, the very pretty backgound... it's hard to focus on all the great details ^^;
Wonderful job Toby!
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Tobias
[Homepage]
Dec 20, 2005 
Oh yush, I know what you mean, my LCD monitor does kind of the same - it made everything a little darker than it was, thus the colours I picked on another drawing were always a little too bright, making the picture look weird to everyone but me ^^; I know it was the fault of my LCD monitor, since I used a printing service to print out the drawing, and sure enough, it came out really bright (the brown was almost orange), so I had to redo a good portion of the picture ^^; That's also why I did the poll about the calibration image a while ago on devArt, to see what screens other people have.
Since my LCD kind of didn't allow me to make the picture brighter, I ended up on a CRT monitor again, and it works just fine (id est, the drawings look just the same on the prints as they do for on the screen).
If you want to check how pictures on your screen actually look printed out, try going to ezprints here, they send you a set of calibration images for free (no postage, nothing), so you can compare them with what you see on your monitor ^^

Hehe, I didn't make it too obvious that the spider is hanging from Tobias' hat, did I? ^^; Very glad to hear you like the drawing through, and thanks for your nice comment and feedback, it's much appreciated!
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Killy the fox
Dec 18, 2005 
I'll keep it simple this time. I love the moon! o.o I know the entire piece is great, but the moon, sky and candle in a glass captures my attention a lot more then the rest of the peace. Probably because i'm the kind of person who always looks up at the sky and points out nice clouds or cool effects in the sky most don't even notice which goes the same with the night ^^

I bet that if you removed yourself and your friend out of there you'd have an awesome holiday background hehe :)

I bet that after using all the white to blue hue your eyes are twirling :3
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Tobias
[Homepage]
Dec 19, 2005 
Yush yush, you're right, I didn't think of that ^-^ Though, to me it'd probably feel waaay too empty then, for me, holidays mainly means hanging around and thinking of people who mean a lot to me, so with Kazzi, Tai and me out of the picture, I'd feel like something were missing X3
Thanks for your nice comment, in any case, it's much appreciated (and yush, I agree, it's really curious to see what forms the clouds come up with .. plus it shows you're having heaps of imagination too, which is a good thing as well .. it keeps you creative and open to those little things many people just pass in the rush of the day ;3 ) ^^

Take care <3
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SupaKat
Dec 18, 2005 
That looks amazing!!! WOW! You did an amazing job with the colouring. The background looks wonderful, especially the mountains, and the sky is so beautiful..it makes me wanna join you guys X3
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Tobias
[Homepage]
Dec 19, 2005 
Oh, you sure can, there's plenty of room for a mimic-kitty too ;3 Together we'd scare everyone right out of their pants and get a huuuge bag full of candy for us to nourish on for weeks to come, you'll see ^-^

I mean, how could they possibly resist covering us with candy? ;3
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bluest87
Dec 18, 2005 
I like the mouse on the head! This picture is so cute!
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Tobias
[Homepage]
Dec 19, 2005 
Hehe, thanks ^-^ Tai was actually who I drew last, but I'm glad I added him ^^
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rhyfe2002
Dec 19, 2005 
Oh, damn. This is just so bloody awesome. XO

So, where shall I start? Hmm, I like the way that there's like no lineart in the pic. Always tried to remove them in my own but never really succeeded ;_; I think the characters could have done with a wee bit more shading (especially on your own wittle ickle seal, shame on you XD) but they look real fine, nonetheless.

Tell me you spent loads on time on the background. TELL ME!!! T____T Because it looks like you did, and I'd be mighty disappointed if you didn't >_>; The details are just fantastic, from the icy flowers in the foreground, the houses, trees, moon, the rabbit (yeah I saw that, do I see a pumpkin too...?), the star-spangled sky, gosh, everything! *__* Well.. I WAS wondering why the lamp has ice on top of it, it's a naked flame for goodness sakes XD (below is okay since hot air travels upwards, but above the flame is a no-no XD) But, geez, who cares about this stuff? Geeks like me I guess XP;

Well, if only this was on DA, I'd have faved it.

....wait, it is!!! *rushes off*
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Tobias
[Homepage]
Dec 20, 2005 
Thank you ^-^ Actually I did have lineart for the drawing, I couldn't do without it. I usually draw with pencil first and scan it, then colour on a separate layer aaand at some point I'd just make the layer with the lines lighter and lighter, and adding more contrast and shadows to the picture, so it's not all just a big blob of colour X3
Oh, and yes, I can assure you I spent loads of time on the background, pretty much as much as I spent on the characters ^^ It was fun though, especially figuring out what the shadows on the moon should look like, or how the icicles on the house should be ^^ Te-heh, you're totally right about the ice on the lamp, I thought about that too, it should be all thawed actually, buuut then I figured it would look more Christmassy and festive with a little ice and snow everywhere, even though it's not really realistic (but it shows you're having pleeeenty thoughts and paying attention when looking at drawings, which is something nice to know, not many do that ^-^ )
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Nishi
[Homepage]
Dec 30, 2005 
Aww, a first Halloween! That's wonderful, so very fun! :3 Even though it seems pretty dead around here, I'm glad that you got a whiff of it before it's too late. (: And you two actually went for dark, fitting costumes that match the night's theme (A bat and a witch..er, warlock? No one ever does anything cool like that anymore! :( ) I didn't even notice your witch hat until I lightened it up a bit, once again, last to realize that you both were prepared for the occassion. X3 Fun fun!

I'm sure I may pay too much attention to the same areas, picture after picture, but the moon really caught my attention this time... not because it's bright or because of it's color... but because of how it turned out. It looks like the rest of this you did digitally, but that one moon, right there, it looks like you used fresh, traditional paints to produce it. And I even got to see it's full shape once lightened, the shading's just a bit tricky on the eyes, and I like that. X3

Hum... something someone probably hasn't mentioned... well, that may be hard to do, so I'll just go on about another thing I liked! The different look here! A bit less complexity for the characters, perhaps more focus on the background... It's a very nice change. :) (Maybe if I try using this sort as a reference I'll have more luck with my attempts at drawing him!)

And I'm sure as the others have told you, all the little itty-bitty specks and pieces of detail for the mountain, every little icicle, every glimpse of light on the cold, harded pearls on the necklace... every little star in the sky can catch my attention. :3 Beautiful work, you constantly keep it up to standard!
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Foxangel
Apr 19, 2006 
awwwww thats really cute!!!
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Techno-1010
Jun 16, 2006 
Nice One!
Like your Style!
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Tobias
[Homepage]
Jul 30, 2006 
Thank you ^-^
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Shawn J
Sep 28, 2006 
Wow, the snow turned out beautifully. It looks really cool, and by that I mean freezing. Brings some good memories of playing in the snow late night with my brother.
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tahlia
[Homepage]
Mar 22, 2007 
its is addorable and i love all the hard work u have put into this drawing love it
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