#i need to take these 2 through bfa still haha

[sheyshen]

The meme thing for Sheyshey and Grimmarrow and if you're in the mood for SWTOR Ocs or writing more, you can throw whoever is your current favorite of that bunch now in.

Oh! I maaay do some others later, But for now here’s my dear NE and BE couple that I don’t think I’ve talked about much here! So thank you for asking about them! And also for reminding me I have squat in screenshots of these two, I will need to do something about that soon…

B A S I C S

full name: Aulara Stormdawn

gender: Female

sexuality: Demi

pronouns: She/Her

O T H E R S

family: All her family is dead, she was raised in the Stormwind Orphanage, so all the kids she grew up with there and the Matron are the closest thing to family she has.

birthplace: Astranaar, Ashenvale. (She wasn’t exactly planned…)

job: Priestess (healer)

phobias: Fire, undead.

guilty pleasures: I don’t think she really has any, she’s not ashamed of anything she enjoys

M O R A L S

morality alignment?: Lawful Good. She’s a goody goody.

sins- lust/greed/gluttony/sloth/pride/envy/wrath

virtues- chastity/charity/diligence/humility/kindness/patience/justice

T H I S - O R - T H A T

introvert/extrovert: Extrovert. She very open and friendly and always looking to meet new people and be out and about.

organized/disorganized: Organized

close minded/open-minded: Open-minded

calm/anxious: Calm

disagreeable/agreeable: Agreeable

cautious/reckless: Cautious

patient/impatient: Patient, healing takes a lot of patience to do.    

outspoken/reserved: Outspoken

leader/follower: Follower, while she talks big, she doesn’t like to be in the spotlight or be in charge.

empathetic/unemphatic: Empathetic

optimistic/pessimistic: Optimistic

traditional/modern: Mix of both. She believes that tradition should be honored, but there’s no reason to do things a new way

hard-working/lazy: Hard-working

R E L A T I O N S H I P S

otp: Married to Kieran. They’re in fluffy love love… I’m kidding they’re married and consider each other their closest friend, but do tend to sass each other when given the chance. Cause they’re friends, duh

ot3: Never really thought of being with anyone other than Kieran, but she wouldn’t be entirely against involving Shandris if she had to pick someone…

brotp: Either Rokar, an old orc warrior she’s friends with, or Koren. (yes. I have a Koren in the story she’s from, they grew up together. He’s the original one, way before I played swtor. He’s also a prot pally)

notp: Any of the other orphans she grew up with, especially Koren.

B A S I C S

full name: Kieran Grimmarrow

gender: Male

sexuality: Bi

pronouns: He/Him

O T H E R S

family: His mother is still alive, Talia. She’s a powerful mage and adventurer. His father was a ranger but went missing during an excursion into the plaguelands. Presumed dead.

birthplace: Silvermoon. (totally original for a blood elf to be born in slivermoon, I know)

job: Hunter (Beastmaster). He wanted to be a hunter like his dad, and a hero too, so he ended up becoming an adventurer to let all of Azeroth know his name.

phobias: Ironically, spiders.

guilty pleasures: He wouldn’t admit it willingly, but he likes flowery teas. Only his wife knows about it.

M O R A L S

morality alignment?: True Neutral

sins- lust/greed/gluttony/sloth/pride/envy/wrath

virtues- chastity/charity/diligence/humility/kindness/patience/justice

T H I S - O R - T H A T

introvert/extrovert: Introvert. He usually prefers to work alone or be alone save his wolves and his wife

organized/disorganized: Organized

close minded/open-minded: Open-minded

calm/anxious: Calm. Need to be calm and steady to shoot an arrow straight

disagreeable/agreeable: Disagreeable.

cautious/reckless: Cautious

patient/impatient: Patient

outspoken/reserved: Outspoken, he tends to speak his mind even when     no one wants to hear it.

leader/follower: Leader

empathetic/unemphatic: Empathetic

optimistic/pessimistic: Realist, he knows when to keep a positive attitude but he also knows when to call it quits

traditional/modern: Modern. Very much wants to break the stubborn     mindset of never improving things for the sake of tradition

hard-working/lazy: Lazy, takes the saying, work smarter not harder to heart.

R E L A T I O N S H I P S

otp: Married to Aulara. As stated above, they’re really close, they weren’t always but they gradually went from unwanted allies to friends to lovers, and he wouldn’t have it any other way.

ot3: He’s not really into sharing his partner with anyone, but if he had to pick anyone maybe Sen, an orc hunter friend of his, or Khadgar. There’s just something about him that he can’t help but like.

brotp: His wolf (who I named Theron) and his cat Loki. They’re his closest friends next to his wife.

notp: Anyone who is undead. Theyhonestly creep him out, and while he values them as allies, he just can’thandle being around them personally

btw. if it was your goal to make me want to work on that fic I have going about them, it’s working…

[seyumei]

Post Grad Plans!

Yes I did graduate! I got a BFA in Animation with emphasis on the preproduction side. (like storyboarding/character design/ect) I originally went for 3d art and animation, but gave it up after I realized I hated it haha. But now that I dont need to worry about schoolwork and deadlines anymore, I'm just trying to settle down and think of what to do next with my life. xD But here are some plans I kinda laid out for myself:

During Summer:

FanAlley in 2 weeks!

My first "mini con" of sorts. xD I'm still trying to prepare prints and other things I plan to sell for that since its coming up soon. I really need to get my prints done a week in advance since we're using an online printing service and I have to edit a lot of my prints since they're the wrong sizes. (im new at this, dont judge me lol)

CLEAR OUT THAT TO-DO LIST!

For those of you who are still waiting on art for me, I'm so sorry! This last semester was my busiest ever, but I thought I'd have SOME free time to work on commissions during the semester, but I just didnt have that luxury. I'll be getting through things asap!

Going to a Pixar Summer Program in late July!

Not an internship like I hoped hah. |D But I got accepted to go to this special storyboarding program hosted by Pixar in the summer at an art college up north.  I have some other pals from school that got in too so should be a cool experience! Its kinda similar to the Nickelodeon program I had last summer, but its a 3 week program, so a bit longer than before. I'll probably take a mini hiatus during that time.

Revive Patreon again?

Honestly, I haven't looked at Patreon since I went on hiatus xD (didn't want to look at my depleting pledges, it'd make me depressed haha. Heres a link to it tho: X feel free to point out to me how badly its doing xD) But at this point, I feel like its only worth reviving if enough people are interested in it. That or I might just have to edit the tiers so that it doesnt end up being so much work for me haha. It has helped me a lot when I was struggling tho, so thats why i dont want to completely drop it as I know it comes in handy for artists in the long run. So I dunno, 'll try to decide before June!

After Summer:

Keep freelancing until I can find something better/more stable

Pretty much haha. My goal is to get a part time gig at a studio somewhere or just something related to art. (i prefer part time since I still want time to work on my own things, but if i get offered a full time gig, I'll take whatever I can get at this point xD) Lately I've been only taking on freelance jobs as they usually pay better than normal commissions, but as for taking commissions publicly again, I may only do those only sparingly or just only take small commissions, as I don't want it to take up so much of my time that I could be working on my own art. My dream job is still to live off my own art and creations, but I'm still eons away from that |D so I'll just be doing these things on the side.

Try to get involved in the art community more

I've noticed I've been doing a terrible job at making friends in the art community and just making art friends online in general |D Thanks to my severe social anxiety, I'm always so terrified that I'll seem annoying and bothersome to people that I dont really approach anyone. Thus making me feel really alone and depressed when I'm online. It also doesnt help that my activity online these past months have been very limited, which I feel made a lot of people uninterested in my art and leave me. OTL

But I've slowly been trying to combat that by signing up for more cons (hoping to make more art friends), taking on more opportunities and I've even thought of joining art books and other collaborations online too. Its been helping, but I'm still kind of at a somber state of where I am right now and I hope to revive what I've lost over the years.

Do more original art!

I'm honestly at my happiest when I'm drawing stuff I want to draw. I also want to be known for drawing my own ideas, not someone elses. I don't want to be known as that artist that draws 'insert fandoms here' or 'does furry commissions'. I want to be known for my own stories and characters. Thats not to say that I wont draw fanart or commissions from time to time, but ultimately thats what I hope for. So yeah, more story moments and dumb comics to come!

Yeah, I think thats it for my rambling haha.

[marywoodartdept]

Back in 2012 when Valerie Shimonis graduated from Marywood University with her BFA Design degree in Photography, little did she know that in a few short years she’d be starting her own business as a professional Personal Brand Photographer. What is a personal brand photographer? Read more below discover what it means as you learn about Valerie’s successful career in photography.

Valerie Shimonis

Graduation Year/Major: Class of 2012, BFA Design, Photograph with a minor in Art History

Marywood Clubs/Activities: Delta Epsilon Sigma

Current Occupation: Owner/Photographer at Photography by Valerie Shimonis LLC, where I’ve worked for the past 8 months.

What was your favorite part about studying art at Marywood? I loved the variety of arts and courses that I was able to discover and learn Marywood, as a liberal arts college, kind of requires a great deal from it’s students, and that is definitely a good thing. In having to study other fields and getting immersed in other topics, it made me appreciative of so much and so many people. I still reflect on all those “random” classes today and how they actually became relevant to things in my life as a whole. I think everyone should be pushed to learn new skills they would have never even considered themselves.

How did your art education at Marywood help your career? Learning from the basics and fundamentals in art helped me to easier grasp more complex ideas and techniques. If I had not had the foundation I learned from Marywood, it definitely would have been harder to comprehend the whys and hows of many new ideas I was introduced to after graduating and in my field. In the BFA Photography program, students are taught from books and analogue first. Learning from these areas initially made going digital and understanding digital SO much easier. Beyond that, it made me more receptive to other people’s ideas, and not just other artists. Looking at things from various perspectives is invaluable.

Did your career path match your vision of a career path? What’s different? Yes and No. I’ll be honest, I didn’t want to own my own business back in the day. I wanted to be a documentary photographer in the way that photojournalists work for and with popular publications (i.e National Geographic, Time, etc.). So that is the No. How is it a Yes? I am still doing documentary work, just in my own way and on my own terms. With Personal Branding Photography, the niche I specialize in, I am still documenting the lives of people and their true emotions and being, but in a commercial manner. I am still able to capture essence, (and I don’t have to leave my family behind to do so!). It’s been super fulfilling so far, and I can’t wait to keep going!

What is your favorite thing about your job? With my specialty, I get to photograph all “genres” of photography, if you will. I am not JUST a portrait, family, commercial, or product photographer. Under Personal Branding I tell stories through images. And all those stories mentioned above come into play. Oh you’re a Mommy Blogger who want to connect with your audience? Great, let’s do a family session with the kiddos. A Cake decorator? Perfect, I will get you in your element creating your masterpieces and extend the story with some product photos! You’re a musician who needs promo images for a tour? Let’s rock out a portrait session and get some event photography of a concert in too! I get to do it all without compromising and, again, on my own terms. Who wouldn’t love that??

What is your favorite software program for design and why? I use Adobe Bridge for management and to correct in ACR (Adobe Camera Raw). I make all my other fine edits in Photoshop. (Typical photographer, haha) These are the only 2 programs I need to get my final products. As a side note, I absolutely love Illustrator, but for what I need to do currently, it doesn’t play a part in my workflow.

Anything else you’d like to share? My business is new, but I have been doing portrait and wedding work for ten years now, since right before I became a Marywood undergrad. It has taken me that long to find my true path. So my message for people is: “Don’t give up. Don’t stop chasing your dream and looking for what you are meant to be doing.” I feel so much pride in what I am doing now and how I am now able to help other entrepreneurs and business owners on their own journeys.

Any advice for current art students at Marywood? Appreciate your instructors. Be open-minded, but also be practical. Take business classes—accounting, bookkeeping, marketing, public speaking, all of the above. Finally, do not underestimate the power of relationship building (aka the anxiety-inducing word…Networking!).

Here are some examples of Valerie’s Professional Branding photography. Thank you so much for sharing your success with our blog, Valerie!

Follow Valerie online: www.valerieshimonis.com www.scrantonphotog.com facebook.com/scrantonphotog instagram.com/scrantonphotog facebook.com/photographybyvalerieshimonis

Featured images: All images courtesy of Valerie Shimonis

  Are you interested in studying photography?

Undergraduate Program: Marywood’s photography program for undergraduates combines fine art training with commercial applications to prepare you for a career in photography. Our program emphasizes technical skills, from traditional gelatin silver and chromogenic processes to digital imaging and alternative processes. LEARN MORE

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Alumni Story: Valerie Shimonis Back in 2012 when Valerie Shimonis graduated from Marywood University with her BFA Design degree in Photography, little did she know that in a few short years she'd be starting her own business as a professional Personal Brand Photographer.