The Comic Book Collection by Kernie

[bazzah]

There always has to be one. As already said, he does this for a hobby and you should respect that he uploads his work out of the kindness of his heart. Making demands will only put Kernie off uploading his work for you and other fans, so I suggest that you are a little less rude about it.

[Darksaber]

[Kernie]

Not that anyone is entitled to an explanation for my absence, but I suppose I should provide an update.

I am not retired from this hobby, but I also don't know when or if I will be returning.

Yes, I moved in August. It's our dream home and there were a number of projects I wanted to complete to make it our own. I think three months is a reasonable "settling in" period. Kudos to anyone who can do it faster while working full time.

I also teach during the school year. This year, I am revising my current curriculum while creating a brand new course from scratch without an official textbook. This takes a lot of time, along with grading and working with my students. In addition, I have other video and graphic design projects that fall on my plate, taking even more time away from cover-making.

In addition to career and family (two things which will always come before hobbies), the process of making these covers has become more difficult.

First, the sheer amount of comic-based content released each year has increased drastically since I started this collection. In 2016 alone, Deadpool, Batman v Superman, Civil War, X-Men: Apocalypse, Suicide Squad, and Dr. Strange were released theatrically. On television, Arrow, Flash, Supergirl, Legends of Tomorrow, Gotham, Agents of SHIELD, Daredevil, Luke Cake, The Walking Dead, Fear the Walking Dead, Preacher, Outcast, Dark Matter, Powers, and probably others were broadcast or streamed. In animation, DC releases a number of direct-to-DVD content each year, from its DC Universe line to its kid-friendly fare like Lego Batman, Batman Unlimited, and DC Superhero Girls. Marvel has quite a few animated properties on television as well. And this is all not including older titles that I would still like to make covers for, like animated Dennis the Menace, the Dick Tracy film serials, and the Peanuts cartoons.

Second, when MovieGrafix shut down, I lost an incredible resource for high-resolution artwork. Nobody could possibly replace Jpeg and the amount of help he was able to provide me in creating this collection (along with the other members of MG). Other members have offered suggestions and support, but Jpeg's access and generosity to share what he had access to was unparalleled. I am not upset that he has stopped running MovieGrafix, but it certainly took a toll on my workflow. Without textless and sometimes even layered resources, it means that I have to do a lot more masking and cloning to make press materials suitable for my template. So not only has it become more time-consuming to make each cover, but the amount of titles to make covers for has increased.

Third, as Bazzah already said, repeated requests from members who feel entitled to my work are extremely off-putting. AbsoluteMagnitude, we already explained to you back in March that I do not get paid to do this (see your own Post #2818). If you forget, you can always re-read the thread. I understand subscribers must pay for access, but you could also get free access by contributing something of your own. The subscription fee goes towards server costs and allows members to download anything that is shared in the HiRes gallery, it does not entitle anyone to make demands of specific designers. There are not many other members of the site who have contributed the amount of covers that I have. I feel I have already provided a sufficient amount of materials and every so often, I might deserve a break from it.

If I do decide to share more covers and my return is met with comments along the lines of, "Where've you been?!? We've been waiting for months, we need covers for X, Y, and Z!" then it will be a reminder of why I might not want to bother with this hobby anymore. Covers are not a "need," they are a "want." Hopefully we all have more going on in our lives than the piece of paper inside of our Amaray cases.

Thanks to those who have been supportive followers of my work. I appreciate your patience and I apologize for the lack of updates recently.

I hope to return eventually, but don't know when that might be.

All the best,

- Kernie

[bazzah]

Kernie, you really do not need to explain yourself. At all. Ever. And please don't ever let the ignorance of the minority overshadow the respect of the majority. Keep doing what you are doing, when you want to do it. The last thing you want is to not enjoy the hobby anymore.

[sauron]

Good to hear from you Kernie There's no need to apologise for any of this, of course family, your career and real life come first.

Ignore the people who are not appreciative of your work, the amount you have contributed to this site and how long it takes to create the masterpieces you make.

Take your time and when you're ready, we will welcome your return.

[Darksaber]

There's no point repeating everything Bazzah and Sauron have wrote, I'll just say good luck with your family and career it's been a blast mate

[JollyRoger]

Yes! I hope you are doing fine, spending time with your family in between your teaching and working!

[Arkflip]

QUOTE (JollyRoger @ Nov 7 2016, 09:36 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Yes! I hope you are doing fine, spending time with your family in between your teaching and working!

You're alive?

[Bunny Dojo]

✔ "Kernie moves into his dream home"

✔ "Kernie enjoys an ambitious work life"

☐ "Kernie finishes cover for Saved by the Bell: The College Years"



(It's great to hear that you're doing well! Whether you're coming to post a new cover or not, a long list of people are happy to see you any time you visit this site.)

[Kernie]

Thank you to everyone for your supportive comments and understanding. I'm lucky to have such a great group of people who value the time and effort that goes into making these covers, and who understand that sometimes a break from the routine is needed to recharge.

While we're on the subject of the new house, I thought I'd take this opportunity to show off my DVD/Blu-ray Library.

My wife and I decided we had little use for a traditional "sitting room." We really liked the room, had nice furniture to put in it, and liked that we could close it off with French doors so that the dog couldn't tear apart the leather sofas. But we knew we'd never use it, as we'd spend most of our time in the typical "family room" right around the corner, with a fireplace, TV, etc. Here was the room after we first moved in...
[attachment=34914:001.jpg]

We met with a local cabinet maker to turn this room into a home library, for my movies and her books. He designed and built permanent, custom shelving to span wall to wall and floor to ceiling. Shelves are made of oak and are adjustable down to the inch, so we can move each shelf around depending on the height of the book, DVD, or Blu-ray. Several weeks later, it still smells like lacquer... I love it.
[attachment=34915:003.jpg]

Then I added my DVD's and Blu-rays to the shelves. My wife has since added her books on the second shelf from the right, so we each have room to expand a bit. I just didn't take a more recent photo.
[attachment=34916:004.jpg]

A closer look at the DVD/BD collection...
[attachment=34917:008.jpg]

My prized Clue: Luxury Edition game board...
[attachment=34918:012.jpg]

And finally a panoramic view of the whole room, taken from the French door entrance...
[attachment=34919:014.jpg]

I don't mean to brag, but I'm super-thrilled to finally have my collection on display in the way that I always wanted to see it. In the old house, I just had some cheap DVD racks that I built myself. They were nothing special, but did their job for their time. It's awesome to have this new set up. I just wonder how long it will take me until I fill the remaining shelves!