Pouncing Tabby

I finally bite the bullet and got myself a new iMac desktop the other day, having decided that while my MacBook is awesome, the small screen limits what I can do artistically. I also finally upgraded to Adobe Creative Suite CS4 (having still been using CS2) and I learned that Illustrator is MUCH easier to use than it had been previously. This is my first real test using the iMac with its wonderfully large screen, and also my first attempt to color a drawing in Illustrator. (I'm lousy, I know.)

The drawing itself was all done on computer, no scans that I traced like I've done in the past. I made multiple layers to add the color I wanted, so while it's not as fast as I would like, overall I enjoy having more control. I also love that Illustrator automatically smooths lines since, lets face it, it's not as easy drawing on a tablet as it is to draw in a sketch book.

All in all, I really like how the cat turned out. His coloring is based loosely on an orange tabby we had forever ago (I still miss you, Purrcy) combined with the color scheme for my other cat (also dearly departed, the dreaded Pufferoonski), with a dash of stray orange tabby kitten than wandered into my apartment the other day. I hope he finds a good home...

If people wonder about the pose, originally I drew him resting, but then it looked like he wanted to pounce instead, so I changed what his rear legs and tail were doing.