What are some of your favorite drawing tools (pens, pencils, markers, drawing tablet, all of the above)?

When I’m in the studio, I typically draw with 2B pencils, but any old pencil will do for doodling. I sometimes draw with a non-photo blue pencil when I’m really trying to work something out in a study. If I’m inking on paper, I prefer nibs to brushes, though I’m trying to transition to brushes by working with brush pens. I find the Pentel Pocket Brush Pen particularly fun to use. But lately I really only ink my comics on paper—most of the inking I do is done in Flash MX with an Intuos drawing tablet. People familiar with my work already know I’m a large proponent of using Flash as an inking and drawing tool. I grew accustomed to it through animation; it really creates a fantastic brush-like line once you get the hang of it. I’ve actually written a few tutorials on my blog, Drip!.

If you have a wide collection, how do you decide on which to use on a particular drawing, project, or day?

When it comes to comics, I always prefer working on paper with a dip pen. I really enjoy working with ink, and it’s much easier to lay out a comic on bristol board than it is on a computer screen. Plus I like to work big, normally at 14x17—a screen can feel so tiny. I ink with an assortment of vintage nibs, the Subway Stub being my favorite. But when I’m working on an illustration or just doodling around, my instinct is to hop on the computer and draw in Flash. It’s the quickest way for me to draw something that looks sharp and professional—so, speed and ease-of-use are deciding factors. I’ve mentioned this elsewhere, but in my opinion Flash MX (note, not MX2004) is the best version of the app for drawing and inking. They (being Macromedia/Adobe) screwed something up along the way.

If you prefer pens, is there any particular brand, color, or type of ink you like best?

I haven’t tried too many inks, but Higgins Black India Ink seems to do the trick.

How do you like your color? Watercolor? Acrylics? Oil? Colored pencils? Markers?

I haven’t used gouache or acrylics in awhile. I do most of my coloring in Flash or Photoshop. On a tip from friend and fellow cartoonist Sherm Cohen, I’ve been playing around with a fabulous digital painting app called ArtRage. It’s basically an easy-to-use stripped down version of Painter, offering up only a dozen tools. I couldn’t recommend it more, and its cheap. So, ArtRage for texture and Flash/Photoshop for laying in flat colors.

Is there any particular type of notebook or drawing pad you prefer? Or does any scrap of decent-sized paper work in a pinch?

Any kind will do—I keep a few sketchbooks at a time. One for jotting down ideas and working rough in pencil, and one that I do cleaner inked studies and doodles in. I’ve tried Moleskines, but they are a bit small and I normally feel inclined to dirty them up. I just got a new sketchbook that I’m breaking in. I keep a stack of 11x17 copier paper nearby for drawing because its fun to sketch big and loose.

Do you ever do any kind of post-processing (like adding color in Photoshop or similar tool) to your drawings?

When I begin on paper, my drawings always end up in Photoshop for coloring. I spend time tiling and cleaning up my scans, and I correct the few marks that need editing in my inks. I don’t use white-out as much for corrections anymore, as it can be done just as easily in post on the computer.

Have you ever tried a new pen (or paper, etc) from reading about it, or seeing the results in another artist’s work?

Yes, I’ve picked up tips from an assortment of blogs and on Twitter—a recent tool being the Pentel Pocket Brush Pen. I just inked a comic with it. I’m looking to get my hands on a G nib, and Meg Hunt recently reviewed a Akashiya bamboo barrel brush pen. I love trying new tools, especially when it comes to working with ink. I was recently disappointed by my first chance to try a Cintiq. I like my Intuous, but something about the Cintiq really irks me. Maybe it’s because they are so expensive, but I found it really distracting to have my hand in the way as I drew on the computer screen. Not to mention the gap because of the glass. There is something profoundly predictable and intuitive about working on paper that the Cintiq attempts to mimic (and fails at, in my opinion). We’ll see—I’ll might come around eventually.

Do you have anything you use out of the ordinary for making your art?

Not really. Though, I stumbled upon a box containing my father-in-law’s writing pen from grade school (a dip pen). Drawing with it was what first turned me on to inking with pen nibs, and I seek out vintage nibs because of it.

If you create purely-digital art, what are the software programs you use? Is one used more than another?

Again, Flash MX, Photoshop, and ArtRage. But Flash is open most of the time.

If you work both digitally and non-digitally, which do you find yourself doing more? Is there a reason you would prefer one of the other? Is it because of the tools available in either space?

I work digitally when I want to get something done quickly and if I know I’ll be making edits along the way—traditionally when the piece requires a certain amount of care. Comics, in particular demand a traditional touch, and I like to have the original piece to hold in my hands when I’m done. I’ve worked digitally for so long that I find myself wanting to do more on paper.

I asked about post-processing on a computer, but do you think the computer is a helpful tool for making art? Whether it’’s looking for inspiration online, or using it to build a weblog to promote yourself and your art, do you think a computer is necessary, helpful, or a distraction (or all of the above)?

I find it extremely useful—I’d be kidding myself if I didn’t say so. But in addition to the tools I use (like Flash), the online community of artists is an endless source of inspiration and the Internet provides a wonderful way to connect with like minds. You need to know when and how to tune it out, but it’s here for good…and I think for the better.

Thanks Bob!

You can find Bob Flynn online at his portfolio website www.jinxthemonkey.com, his weblog Drip!, Twitter (@bobjinx), Flickr (bobjinx), and contributing to the group weblog, Creative Juices.

What are your favorite drawing tools (pens, pencils, markers, drawing tablet)?

I like mechanical pencils so I don’t have to sharpen them. I like to use coloured Col-Erase pencils for roughs, too, so I don’t have to do any erasing before scanning.

For inking I prefer dip-pens, and my favourite nibs are the Hunt 108 and the Nikko G-Nib. I’ve played with brushes, but never really took them over nibs, but I do like the Pentel pocket brush pen for sketching.

Tablet-wise I use a Wacom Cintiq.

If you have a wide collection, how do you decide on which to use on a particular drawing, project, or day?

I generally use whichever is right for a given project. Generally, most of what I do involves pen-and-ink drawings and Photoshop, so I don’t vary too much.

If you prefer pens, is there any particular brand, color, or type of ink you like best?

See above.

How do you like your color? Watercolour? Acrylics? Oil? Markers? Colored pencils?

Almost all my colour work is done digitally. I can’t visualize colours well enough to do them right the first time, and I’m too impatient to do colour studies beforehand, so I like working digitally and being able to alter colours on the fly. I work with dozens of layers and masks which gives me the freedom to experiment in changing the hue and saturation of my colours.

Is there any particular type of notebook or drawing pad you prefer? Or does any scrap of decent-sized paper work in a pinch?

Anything will do in a pinch, and there’s a certain freedom that comes with using cheap paper since I’m less afraid to make mistakes, and oftentimes the mistakes are what make something great. Expensive sketchbooks can be intimidating, but I do like to use the cheapish generic black hardcover sketchbooks. Their quality seems to vary, and I’ve found it difficult to find ones with paper that can take ink without bleeding. But when I do, they’re the perfect book for me — I like the size, and they’re generally durable enough to toss in a backpack and go.

I like Moleskine notebooks, but I find them too precious for everyday sketching. But I do use the squared graph-paper Moleskines for planning-out and thumbnailing comics since it’s quick and easy to throw down grids of various dimensions.

Do you ever do any kind of post-processing (like adding color in Photoshop or similar tool) to your drawings?

Practically all of my colour work is done in Photoshop, so it’s not post-processing so much as it is, well, processing. Using the computer is a standard element of my workflow, and many of my illustrations are created from start to finish on the computer without ever having touched a pencil or piece of paper.

But, I do use Photoshop to clean up and edit pen-and-ink drawings. It’s often quicker and more accurate to fix things on the computer than to pull out the white ink to paint corrections.

Have you ever tried a new pen (or paper, etc) from reading about it, or seeing the results in another artist’s work?

On occasion, but generally I just like to scour an art store for things I’ve never used before and try them out. Recently I’ve been aching to try out these Ackerman refillable brush and dip-pens on the recommendation of Michael Cho. Twitter is a great place to network with other artists to talk shop, which is where I first read about these pens.

Do you have anything you use out of the ordinary for making your art?

I don’t have anything particularly unusual, but my favourite art tool is my drafting table from the 1960s that I’ve had since I was a teenager.

When creating your digital art, what are the software programs you use? Is one used more than another?

I use Photoshop primarily, but Illustrator is indispensable as well for creating geometric shapes and technical drawings. Illustrator is also far more forgiving when playing around with type. Photoshop’s type tools are still rather limiting; I prefer being able to pull words and letters apart, convert them to objects, and be able to have fine control over everything.

I have also been playing around with Manga Studio, which I’m discovering has a unique approach to its drawing tools. It’s the first digital drawing program I’ve used where the pen tool feels like and behaves like a dip-pen or a brush. It’s still a bit sterile compared to using the real thing, but it seems to have been created with the cartoonist in mind.

Do you approach making art on the computer differently than you do with pen, inks, paper, and paint?

Absolutely. Working digitally allows me to better think in terms of shapes and colours. Working with flat colours on various layers makes the process of building an image a lot more like two-dimensional sculpting sometimes because I can add or take away mass from the shapes I’m working with. Drawing with traditional tools makes it too easy for me to rely on linework to define everything, and forget about the geometry and design of an image.

Since you work both digitally and non-digitally, which do you find yourself doing more? Is there a reason you would prefer one of the other? Is it because of the tools available in either space? Or perhaps because the client work you do?

I find I do most personal work with traditional tools, because it’s a far more intimate experience, and I am not worried about meeting deadlines. With client work, any way for me to economize my time I will, and working on the Cintiq really cuts down on time spent drawing, erasing, inking, scanning, printing, etc.

I asked about post-processing on a computer, but do you think the computer is a helpful tool for making art? Whether it’s looking for inspiration online, or using it to build a weblog to promote yourself and your art, do you think a computer is necessary, helpful, or a distraction (or all of the above)?

Obviously I find the computer to be a helpful tool for making art, but its greatest uses are just what you mention — accessing an endless vault of inspiration and reference material, and being able to market myself and keep in contact with clients.

It can also be a distraction. The Internet is an incredible timesuck, which is dangerous when working on the computer, so I find it helpful to disconnect from the Internet every day for a few hours to concentrate on doing work.

Thanks John!

John Martz can be found online at his portfolio and his weblog robotjohnny.com. John is also quite active on Twitter (@robotjohnny) and Flickr (robotjohnny).

And if you’re not familiar with John’s fantastic comic/cartoon artist and illustrator resource Drawn!, then it’s time you update your bookmarks and feed reader!