Alien: Lt. Ellen Ripley

I've never been a follower of the Alien franchise. I've seen a few of the films, yeah, but not a hardcore fan. So when a client recently commissioned me for a pencils-only illustration of Ellen Ripley, admittedly I was a little nervous. However, the professional part of me kicked in and I set to work on delivering the first pencils-only commission I've gotten in a long time. Etched on 9 x 12" Canson 98 lb paper with mechanical pencil and Staedtler 2H and H leads is the titular heroine letting loose with a flame thrower to an opponent out of camera. This was a test for me on how much I could get out of a black-and-white sketch, and the secret was in how deep the shadows had to be. With photo reference for both the body and the likeness of Sigourney Weaver, I just added on more shade and created depth with thicker lines. The flame thrower, however, was a different challenge because of its unique design. I had to google a shot of a signed prop replica and replace the prop the cosplayer photo had with the real mccoy. I'm extremely pleased with the results and am thankful I chose a less-is-more approach to this.