Sequential Experiment update and artists

Charles Adlard (http://www.charlieadlard.com/)

Charles Adlard is a British comic book artist who's sequential work has inspired me. Most of his subject matter involves horror and science fiction.  My sequential experiment is inspired mostly by his work in 'The Walking Dead' comics, created by Robert Kirkman. My subject matter is a bit different but I love the style The Walking Dead comics are drawn in.

The Walking Dead. Issue 1 Days Gone Bye. Page 3.

 The panel layout is quite simple . It does vary throughout the comic but remains fairly simple.

The comic is in this grey tone with a black outline. I think this makes it look quite professional.

I used a similar style with my short sequential piece. Not as complete or professional looking but I tried a similar grey tone with black outline and really like the result. My short sequential piece is wordless, so I had to rely more on body language and facial expressions to carry a narrative.

The different shades of grey give it more texture and a good 3D quality. I feel that it is a good technique for the seriousness of the subject matter.

There is no text on this page. Obviously there is no-one talking but there is no internal monologue either. I think this is good for this opening scene as it highlight the silence and mystery of the situation.


Below are some examples of my sequential work where I experimented with a similar style. I like the simpleness of the style yet it adds a lot of texture.

This is the Photoshop version of one of my pages of my sequential experiment.

I do really like this style, for the way it makes the drawings look but also for the subject matter. It lets the reader use their imagination based on their own understanding of the situation. It is also not too busy or colourful, meaning it has a serious tone but still looks interesting.

Matt Madden

Matt Madden is a US comic book writer and artist. He is best known for his colouring work in original comics. I bought one of his books '99 Ways to Tell A Story'.  It is a book that tells the same short story, (a man getting up, walking to the fridge and his flat mate asking what the time is) 99 times. Some of it is a bit silly, but it was useful to see the various ways of telling a story and the difference it makes before considering creating my own short story.

Below are a couple of pages from his book which demonstrate examples of style;

Monologue

Retrograde - (Motion that is moving in the opposite direction of something else)

References

'99 Ways To Tell A Story Excersises in style' 6 July 2006 - Matt Madden
'The Walking Dead Vol. 1: Days Gone Bye' Author Robert Kirkman. Illustrator Charlie Adlard
Charlie Adlards Website
http://www.charlieadlard.com/