I've had a love-hate relationship with anime for a while now. Growing up, I scorned anything and everything but Pokemon. My brothers and I liked it because our cousins (super cool cousins) liked it, because their friends liked it, because their friends liked it . . . you get the drill. Ash was my first crush ever. (And now the hero of my WIP is named Ash. My Mom says that's funny--I say it's a coincidence I did not intend to happen.)

( More anime-related rambling )

Have an awesome day, everyone!

1. Comment on this post with I VOLUNTEER!
2. I will give you a letter.
3. Think of 5 fictional characters and post their names and your comments on these characters in your IJ/LJ/DW.

rhoda_rants gave me the letter G, so here we go!

First off, HOW IN THE WORLD AM I SUPPOSED TO PICK JUST FIVE CHARACTERS?! Arg. This is going to be tough.

1. GANDALF.



Also known as Mithrandir or Olorin. (I love saying Mithrandir aloud.) On the one hand, he's sensible and straightforward; on the other, he's elusive and mysterious. Oh, and also extremely powerful. Not every wizard can battle with a Balrog of Morgoth and live to remember it--much less come back as an ever more powerful Maia than before. Not everybody could refuse to take The One Ring when it was offered, either. I think what I like best about Gandalf is, for all his high knowledge and all his renown among Elves, Men, and wizards, he can still be completely at ease discussing the true meaning behind good morning with a Hobbit.

( Rest beneath the cut . . . )

- 132 Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Icons
- 4 Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Banners

Preview:

( Here are the rest . . . )

- 53 Final Fantasy Advent Children Icons
- 04 Final Fantasy Advent Children Banners

Preview:

( Here are the rest . . . )

This is so beautiful, I think I'm going to cry . . .

- 1 Sam/Quorra (Tron: Legacy) Wallpaper
- 1 Cloud/Tifa (FFVII) Wallpaper
- 1 Dramione (HP) Wallpaper

Made for Challenge 36 over at landofart. I wish I could have submitted over 3 pairings. It was really hard leaving out Zack/Aerith, Obidala, Morgan/Garcia, Darcy/Lizzy, Brandon/Marianne, Raoul/Christine, and especially Legolas/Arwen. XD


1.
1280x800

( Here are the rest . . . )

- 65 Final Fantasy VII Icons (Vincent, Kadaj, Tifa, Cloud, Sephiroth, Angeal, Zack)
- 07 Final Fantasy VII Banners (Sephiroth, Cloud, Tifa, Zack, Aerith)

First off, here's an icon requested by rhoda_rants. Awesome enough?


Preview:


( I am your living legacy. . . )

-19 Nuala (Hellboy II) Icons
-1 Nuala (Hellboy II) Banner
-10 Genesis Rhapsodos (Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core) Icons
-1 Genesis Rhapsodos (Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core) Banner
-1 Genesis Rhapsodos (Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core) Wallpaper
-12 Reno (Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core) Icons
-1 Reno (Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core) Banner

Preview:



( Here are the rest . . . )

Program: Paint Shop Pro X2 Ultimate.
Difficulty: Intermediate?
Translatable: Unknown.
Techniques Used: Negative Space, Mask Layer, Channel Mixer, Hue/Saturation/Lightness, Luminance (Legacy).

From this:


To this:


rhoda_rants asked me how I achieved the background of this icon featuring Genesis Rhapsodos, so I thought I'd make a tutorial on it! Just be forewarned: it's very long and detailed, probably a little too overwhelming for beginners, though I've included a lot of extra explanation with beginners in mind. For those of you in a hurry, the essentials are in bold, so you can skip the rest. :)

( On to the tutorial . . .  )