What sketchbook do YOU use?

[Ironspy]

What type of sketchbooks does everyone use? I find especially with the "el coro" technique that ink bleeds through the pages and makes every other page kind of trashy with multi-colored ink blotches all over it. Sometimes those marks are useful in making an interesting ground, sometimes not.

I use a standard canson sketchbook (non ring) and occasionally I use my holbein FO drawing book.

What do you use?

[negativespace]

I've used colored inks and gouache on strathmore sketchbooks and have not had any problems with ink bleeding through, only if I use a sharpie then I have bleed problems. Most of the time I just use ink jet paper to sketch on since you can buy 2500 sheets for under $20. If I sketch out in the field then I use one of those black sketchbooks, I think canson, since they are very sturdy but expensive. You may also want to try buying some colored writing paper to sketch on, then you have a toned background to draw on and not just a white surface.

[Pigeon]

I just use a generic hardbound sketchbook, 8-1/2" by 11." I've narrowed my media down to Derwent Drawing pencils, Derwent Signature pencils, Verithins, and ballpoint pens. Those all lay down smooth, and don't smear or bleed. (although the ballpoint pen can yellow the paper over time).

I usually put a letter-sized piece of copier paper under the page i'm working on to keep the pressure of my pencil from transferring pigment to another page. It can also soak up some bleedthough if you're working with a wetter medium.

[kana]

i use a Cachet Classic hardbound sketchbook and Faber-Castell pencils, Sakura ink pens and Pantone markers.

[Grooveholmes]

Strathmore all the way for me..

Although i do like those really cheap small sketchbooks that are filled with the brown papier.

[Lono]

Strathmore for life foo!

acid free biotch!

peace!

-Lono

[el coro]

i bounce back and forth. i guess the bulk of mine are strathmoore, but i also really like canson...it doesnt really matter that much. i like the hardbound ones. as far as bleeding through, ilke to put a few pieces of paper behind whatever im working on.

[.cfb]

Hey, new here...

...I usually use the cheapest sketchbooks that I can find at the local grocery store. Most of the time that is Bienfang. Ok quality, and about 200 pages, so it's worth it.

For media on it, which works well, I use a mechanical pencil, and occassionally a set (HB, 2b, 4b, 6b) of woodless pencils for shading. Also some blue mechanical pencil lead that I get from the local drafting store.

I rarely use markers, only once actually. I was wondering if anybody new a good set to start with/prefferably cheap as I am an underpaid (Damn fast-food restraunt jobs, and car...Damn them all to hell) teenager.

(PS: Seems lengthy posts aren't the thing around here, I spend most of my internet life over at http://www.ozoneasylum.com, which is a general purpose forum thats main purpose is Photoshop and Philospohy, as well as just a wacky place. Most people there expect lengthy intelligent responces, and I guess I've just become accustomed to that :))



Welp,
:chug:

<edit=stupid mistake>

[el coro]

sorry if my reply wasn't lengthy or intelligent enough. i'm typically too preoccupied making art and working in the production art industry to make intelligent statements, i guess...

[cotron]

i'm just too dumb for long sentences. i like blackbooks. and those brown/earthy/pulpy paper ones are nice too, but mad $$$. duhhhh...gurgle

[.cfb]

I wasn't complaining towards anybody, I just will have to get used to not like, umm, researching out my comments first :), anyways, El Coro, you are like, a God, and one of the best artists that I have seen to date. So are many of the people here.

I was wondering if anybody could reccomend a cheap set of good markers to begin messing around with. Seriously, this may sound pretty bad, but the only type of medium that I have ever used is pencil, pen and ink. Rarely, like, maybe ten times, I've used paint, charcoal, markers, gouche (well, thats paint, but I guess it's kinda diffrent) and oil pastels. I've just never taken the time to develop my (already lacking) skills in these areas. Since the majority of my drawing/sketching time is done during Calculus, Science and History, I don't have much time to experiment with other styles. (Actually, my science teacher got really mad at me last year for bringing a set of oil paints into her room and working on a canvas that I'd taped to the desk after a test. So was the art teacher, cuz I stole them.) HEHEHE.



I'm wondering some other things here too: I finally saved up enough money to take an art class at the colledge, again. The first class that I took there was focusing on negative/postitive space (Ya, the boring stuff) and utilizing it to emphasize emotion, as well as general sketching. I've been working on anatomy, but would like to further myself in that area. Is a figure drawing, or a gesture drawing going to be better (for an intermediate figure drawer) in this area. I was thinking to take gesture drawing first, since it would give you a basis for the figure drawing class, but then I started thinking about figure drawing first, and using that as a basis for figure drawing.


El Coro: Where do you work, I am pretty sure that I've seen your work on the Net before.

I'll try to shorten my posts, if thats what you guys want.

[jester]

I experimented with many different sketchbooks: ceap ones and expensive, with smooth paper and with rough one. Bound and Spiral bound. Large and small. Thick and thin.

I found that I enjoy A4 or A3 sized ones with creamy colored paper with a bit of tooth most. And I HATE ringbound ones. But I never found that it's of importance whether they are Canson, or Strathmore, No name ones by Boesner or Tube or expensive ones from Blueline-Pro, as long as they've got a hard bound cover.

:)

Jester

PS: @.cfb Marker tips seem to depend on where you live and what you can get. No Prismacolor Markers in Germany, but Copic. At least where I live and order...

[el coro]

yo, cfb, i m sorry man, ima just in crunch time right now. so i havent ben able to post as much or as lengthy posts, as that i am always working...i read your post the other day and got a little miffed for no real reason....as far as markers are concerned, try to steer toward anything alcohol based. copic, prismacolor, and tria are all based on the same basic principal..dyes suspended in alcohol. this is advantageous for many reasons, most importantly, alcohol based markers won't fuck up paper like water based will....oh and i work at shaba games. a little developer up in marin county....i/ve worked on a few titles there, mostly extreme sports... a little matt hoffman here, a little tony hawk there....