Taclobanon

Good day, everyone.

I’m sorry I’ve been away.  My last log-in I think was around 2013-2014. The reasons for my absence, unfortunately are deeply personal, and the embarrassing details of it I would rather not share at this time and I’m hoping we can just leave it at that.

I really did not plan on coming back to DeviantArt until I a few more matters settled first, but I owe a number of people some already-paid-for-art that are years overdue, and I think this is a good for me time to re-engage with them and see if it’s not too late patch things up.

I would have liked to say that I will be happy to refund commissioners for the money already paid, but, sadly, because of my present financial circumstances, I am unable to. Instead, please accept my offer to work on those pics instead and therefore help me make it right with everyone. Because I am presently struggling to make ends meet, however, I cannot afford to devote 100% of my time to the artworks all the time, so I would ask for further patience to give me time to finish up everything in my list.

Speaking of which, I do still have the list, which also includes the type of commissions requested, but I no longer have the specific contact info of the individual commissioners. I also can’t access my old e-mail anymore because it had been dormant for a really long time so all the message threads are probably as good as lost.  It took me some time in fact to search my files for information on my DeviantArt password so I could log in back here again.

If I may, I would like to request everyone I owe art to get in touch with me via my new e-mail, which is taclobanon@yahoo.com.  I still have most of the information about the commission and I think I also still have some finished art that have not been submitted yet, but I am also open to working on art based on revised information. I know some of those art are for specific stories or circumstances and if you think they’re already outdated and the resultant art would no longer be of use—as I assume would be the case for most of them—I’ll be happy to hear out what you have in mind.

Here are the commissioners that appear on my list: Shuma-Gorath, Devduck01, Kervala, Kley Sheddan, Jason4012, Exeter42, DragonTea, Egmccann, Gavin Riches, GPSBassist, Maguigan, Matthew Bigham, Matthew Steibling, MegatronResurected, Michael Holloway, Stryker, Wayne Thomason, Dynakor, Solari, Pumpmonger and Lordfoot-in-Mouth. If you are not in the list, please let me know, I might have inadvertently left you out. If I no longer owe you art, please let me know as well. (Edit: list updated based on new information)

I am actually looking forward to hearing from you and though I probably not be able to tackle everything in a short period, I am hoping to finally get everything done and make good with everyone. Besides, the least I can do is to spend a good deal of time with the art so I can deliver something you will be happy with. If I don’t hear from you, though, I will try my best to contact you, though that would probably be over DA since I no longer have a single e-mail address on my existing record.

Lastly and most importantly, please accept my deepest apologies for the inconvenience and for putting you through the fear that I might have run away with your money and not hear from me ever again. I also understand if some or even all of you are pissed at me but please rest assured that had I any choice I would never have disappeared unceremoniously. If you’re curious, though, I am okay given the circumstances, but it will really mean a lot to me if you will all give me a chance to work on all owed artworks so that I can finally erase any debt I have. After I’m done, I’ll probably be gone for some time again, but at least I can do that with clear conscience this time.

Thanks for your time and, for the commissioners, I hope to hear from you soon.

Taclobanon/Jet

Edit: Found the finished but unsubmitted/un-posted pics. There are a few, but I also saw some submitted but un-posted pics. I will be uploading them shortly.

Glad to be finally back to DA after months of absence! Got a lot of stuff that I did while I was away that needs uploading. But, first:

I just went through days of hell!  Almost 2 weeks ago, Tacloban City, my hometown, was decimated by Haiyan.

Most of my people were left with no food, water, shelter and future. There was no power and no communication with the outside world. Government aid, if there was any attempt at it at all at that time, failed to reach us. We were left to tend to ourselves.

Three desperate days later I decided to get out of the city with my wife and 3 kids. Food and water were getting scarcer and the fact that inmates from the local prisons had escaped during the calamity and were running loose wasn't helping warm the spirits. There were also reports of rebels coming down from the mountains, and no police was in sight. There was no other choice. We walked more than 10 kilometers to the airport in the rain, abandoning our home, dragging only the essentials with us. There were dead bodies in the sidewalks, and the places we passed stank of decay, but somehow they were less of a concern to us than simply surviving and getting out of the city.

We spent almost 3 days in the airport (also practically flattened by the storm but still operable) but there were more people there than there were planes to carry everyone. We slept on wet floor on one occasion. We were starving and  dehydrated. I, myself, was weak, and I swear I thought I was close to dying. Fortunately, I stumbled into some kind souls who helped us out along the way and we made it. We didn't get that plane ride out of the city like we intended, but we did eventually manage to hitch a ride on a navy ship to a larger city west of us, Cebu.

That was the short of it. What my family and I went through, and the stories shared between friends and relatives, I can probably write a good-sized book about it. But right now it's time to think of another type of survival: economic.

I am glad the whole family made it, and I wish my story ends there, but the reality is that we now we have to start life anew and from scratch.

Right now, I need to raise funds for a new computer and to help defray expenses while away from home. The computer I will use to draw commissions.That's the only livelihood option I have left for now. In some way, I finally got my wish, I guess.

I am therefore offering B/W sketches (sample below) for $12 each for the time being.

Just wanted to let you know I temporarily placed artworks older than 2 years (and a few more recent ones) in storage. That includes my personal favorites as well. I know it's such a pain to find a faved or group/journal-featured deviation marked as 'in storage' but please bear with me for a while as it will be temporary. It's part of my effort to clean up my gallery and keep content consistent. A lot of the pics will find their way back for public viewing eventually, but others will be in storage for good. Sometimes, we just have to move on, right?

On a more serious note, my sympathies goes to the victims of the Boston Marathon bombing, and their families. I hope who ever is or are responsible for the deed will eventually be brought to justice.

Meantime, stay strong, America!


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Previous journal 4/16/13:

Taclobanon-Plus ('mature' gallery)This is with regard the recent survey on separating adult content from my main gallery. Thanks for those who responded, especially those who left comments. They're a big help!
So I've decided to maintain a separate gallery for the adult contents and keep this one as my main account featuring traditional superhero/fantasy and sci-fi-themed pieces:
:icontaclobanon-plus:
It's actually a 2-year old account which I haven't had the opportunity to put into good use til today. It's quiet there for now, but I have an inkling it'll change soon! I have already uploaded a few pics and future mature content will go there directly. So basically those will be deviations that require me to click 'mature content' during submission, as well as bondage and other fetish content. My judgment call on the latter, as some pics with those elements might still find its way here, especially if they're subservient to the actual storytelling.
I will eventually move a lot of the mature stuff from here to there, but

This is with regard the recent survey on separating adult content from my main gallery. Thanks for those who responded, especially those who left comments. They're a big help!

So I've decided to maintain a separate gallery for the adult contents and keep this one as my main account featuring traditional superhero/fantasy and sci-fi-themed pieces:



It's actually a 2-year old account which I haven't had the opportunity to put into good use til today. It's quiet there for now, but I have an inkling it'll change soon! I have already uploaded a few pics and future mature content will go there directly. So basically those will be deviations that require me to click 'mature content' during submission, as well as bondage and other fetish content. My judgment call on the latter, as some pics with those elements might still find its way here, especially if they're subservient to the actual storytelling.

I will eventually move a lot of the mature stuff from here to there, but that's going to be a serious undertaking so that'll be in the course of many weeks. Meantime, I'll keep the old ones here in a special folder.

For those who've watched my account for the mature content, I really appreciate the support. At the same time, sorry for the inconvenience for having to move them to another gallery when a lot of them are probably already in your favorite folders. If you choose to un-watch this account, I understand, but if you're also interested in my more 'mainstream' work, I would love it if you keep watching this account as well.

Now to upload some pics...

UPDATE 13 March 2013:  I mentioned in my previous update that I wanted to adopt the cell-shaded style I use for my simple pinups taclobanon.deviantart.com/gall… for full-blown pics. Originally intended as an option to a rendering style for my standard commissions, at this point I'm offering it initially and for a very limited period at $25* apiece ($10 per additional characters, 4 characters maximum). I'm still working on a bunch of stuff  so slots will be limited to just 4 pics. Turnaround time is about a month.

If you're interested, drop me a note or e-mail me at jetamago@gmail.com with details of your request. Upfront payment only please.

Thanks and have a nice day!

PS: offer applies to new orders only.

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UPDATE 06 March 2013: Just a heads up (or two):

1.  Art style. As I've intimated to some people, the simple pinups I've been doing is just a preview of change of direction than I'm planning to take art-wise. As soon as I'm comfortable with the cell-shaded style, I hope to adopt it for my full standard pics as well.  But, no, I'm not getting rid of the regular full-shaded style immediately. In fact, and there would be a point when I'll be doing both styles side-by-side, giving the option to clients to choose which one they prefer, but eventually I will have to let feedback dictate which one I'll stick to.

2. Price Adjustment. The second point would be about my price schedule. I've noticed that I have been spending more and more time on a single standard piece than I usually do. Comparing my new output with the old, it's become apparent why: new stuff just have more details, more refined lines and are, generally, better drawn. In any good day I could do up to 2 standard pics, but these days I can barely finish one. Hope it's a good thing, though, as I always try to give people their money's worth given my price range. Given that, and also for economic reasons (raising 3 kids is taking its toll financially), I intend to increase commission prices by April 1. I'm thinking $35 (minimum) for standard pics to start with, then graduate it up $40 towards the middle of 2013.  Orders received/taken from hereon until March 31 will still be based on the current price schedule, but on a new one starting April 1. Hope it's fine with you guys!

Thanks for reading and enjoy the day!

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UPDATE!!!! [27 Jan 2013]  Anyone remember the simple pinups I used to do in one of my old alternative accounts? Well, I've been itching to do a few more of those things. I tried reviving it a while back in this  gallery but it I couldn't seem to get into the style at that time and so it didn't quite work out the way I wanted it. Lately, though I've been watching a few random episodes of anime on cable and it occurred to me that if I give it another go I might be able to make the style work and, eventually, even adopt for full illustrations.

Meantime, I'm thinking of offering it again initially at my old price. So if anyone's interested, I can do it for $15* each. Single character and simple pose on flat or white background only. I have a few such  pinups in my gallery but this is the style and general look I have in mind (from my inactive BragaDoom account):



Note that I won't be doing any rough drafts for this type of commissions (though minor corrections are okay) so please provide clear description and visual references. Limited slots, around 5-7, depending on how many orders I get for my standard pics. Upfront payment via paypal only please.

For inquiries about this type or my standard commission, drop me a note or e-mail me at jetamago@gmail.com.

Thanks!

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[Edit: original post 27 Jan 2013]

I've done almost 3 batches of commissions since I my last update so a new entry is overdue! Most of the finished pics are already posted in my gallery. Others, though, will remain un-uploaded for now for different reasons (clients' request, pics with content which I feel are too explicit for DA , etc).

As to my current queue, I only have 3-4 pics to finish, and hopefully within the week, so for those who inquired, yes, I'm still open! Estimated turnaround time for the new batch will be 2-4 weeks.

My current offering will be still be standard commissions (details below) priced at $30*. As usual that price is minimum and can increase depending on the number of additional characters and other details required. For $30 however, you will get the best art I can give for the money you pay for:



Commission details:

• Price: $30* (add $10* per additional character, vehicle or pet. Small silhouettes of persons, body parts, weapons, those little airplanes in the background, and other similar objects are not subject to additional fees)
• Max number of characters: 4 (including main). Please note that I'm drawing on an A4-sized canvass so the more characters there are on a page, the less detailed most of them are likely going to be.
• Background? Yes, but nothing too complex.
• Rough Draft Before Final? Yes.
• Payment Mode: Upfront via Paypal (jetamago@gmail.com) or other money transfer methods

I regularly do superhero/adventure pics, but as you can probably glean from my submissions I'm also open to doing sexy and fun fetish pics, though nothing too explicit or sexual. Kissing/passionate scenes and tasteful nudity are okay, though .

As with the previous batches, number of slots is still limited to 10. Much more manageable that way.

For those wondering why I no longer post the list of commissions, well, it takes some effort to maintain and, since I only spend a few minutes in DA every time I go online, it's likely it'll just quickly become out-dated anyway.



The usual notes:

My standard commissions are for personal, non-commercial use only. You may post them in your blog, galleries, message boards, or make prints of them, but you may not use them for any commercial purpose, such as in sites requiring paid membership to view the artworks, book illustrations, prints for sale, and other uses for direct or indirect profit. If you plan to use the artworks for commercial purposes, please let me know expressly in advance so that we can draw up a binding agreement and, of course, agree on a commensurate per piece or bulk rate.

I also reserve my right to post the artworks in my personal sites, including my gallery, unless an artwork is covered by a non-disclosure agreement. I can, however, agree to temporarily hold off posting off artwork for certain reasons, like, for example, it is included in a story you are posting in your DA site and my posting of the art prematurely will spoil the story for others. Just let me know in advance, and I'll be happy to oblige.

Again, please e-mail me at jetamago@gmail.com for commissions. I can answer notes here in DA but I find e-mail best since I check it more often than my gallery, and organization-wise, the conversation thread feature of most e-mail services makes it easier for me to keep track of commission orders and descriptions. You should get a reply from me within 24 hours.

* All prices in USD