I ran into a bit of artists' block the other night, so I was looking for projects to work on when I came across the 100 theme challenge. I can't say as to whether or not I'll continue with the other 99 themes or ever finish such a massive undertaking, but the first item on the list, Introduction, certainly gave me a few ideas to work with. My mind first jumped to the idea of a blank book, something which has just begun to be written. I chose to set this in an older style, the traditional quill and ink style of longhand writing. Traditionally I suppose this would have been done on parchment scrolls instead of the bound book pictured here, but oh well . I just wanted to do a fun drawing of a candle-lit scene.

This was painted entirely in Photoshop, with no reference images or stock to draw from. I have to fit any of my own personal creative work around the time consumed by my actual job, so this image was created over the course of three separate evenings. Total work time was probably right around 6 hours. What I have posted here is a smaller version of the actual file, which was completed at 3000 x 2400 so that I would be able to print it off as an 8"x10". Now that I am truly using Photoshop as a generative program (as opposed to simply editing or retouching my photos) I have been very proud of the work I have been able to produce. I have ordered a 4-hour Gnomon series on digital painting in Photoshop, so I can only hope that with that and a lot more practice, I might be able to bring my work up to a truly professional level.