Equestria Daily

Quite a few of you have requested I throw an interview Mirrordsea's way, and for good reason. He's one of the most prolific artists out there! Tons of his pieces have taken over the Drawfriend posts over the years, with yet another super unique style.

So, how did he get where he is today in pony drawing? What skills does he wish to share with everyone? Head on down below the break to get to know him better, and check out a mini gallery of some of his best pieces!

The interview!

Q:) How did you stumble upon My Little Pony? What was your "origin" story if you will?

In 2013 I kept seeing them everywhere, but I never knew who those characters were. I was very intrigued by their design, so I often kept thinking about them. None of my friends were talking about those characters and it really felt like something out of my reach. Those characters were always smiling and it was making me smile, too! So, one day I finally decided to find out about them more and that was it! After that I kept watching more and more content about them. I loved the idea behind the show and I was able to relate to them

But as it were in the very beginning, I was more interested in characters themselves. So in order to somehow show my appreciation, I decided to join in a social network mlp community in as moderator and started uploading newest pictures daily. I've met many nice people there and it just felt so nice! All this really made me appreciate this fandom more than anything else that was before. Nowadays it doesn't really feel the same, but it's mostly always like this. There's also still lots of kind and caring people here, so it keeps my level of happiness very high!

Q:) What is the process you usually go through when drawing something new? What tools and programs do you use?

It's not always easy to come up with something fast, so often I just go though my anime art folder and trying to get any inspiration for my new artwork. But the best kind of inspiration for me is definitely music inspiration. It helps me visualize my future picture much clearer and also kind of gives another dimension to it.

After picturing new artwork in my mind, it all becomes very easy and fun. I'm just trying to match canvas with what I see in my mind (and occasionally trying new things in Photoshop).

At the moment I only use Photoshop for drawing, but I also want to learn CSP

Q:) Do you draw professionally? Or is this a side thing to another career or job?

I don't draw professionally and I don't think I will, but who knows! Maybe someday it will be possible for me too

Q: ) Who is your favorite pony and favorite princess? And if it's different, who is your favorite pony to draw?

In 2013 it was one and only Rainbow Dash. I can't let myself choose only one now, so Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy! I still like RD and other ponies a lot, but even the process of drawing Pinkie and Flutters is so much fun!

As for princesses, Luna is much more special for me than others, but I still can't choose only one. I like them all!

Q:) What kind of challenges do you usually run into when drawing a character or subject for the first time? Has there ever been an image concept that completely stumped you?

It's probably bird's eye city landscapes. I had to drop it a few times and draw something easier instead. Maybe I could bring myself to do it if it was for work or something, but I can't do it for myself yet

Sometimes I also keep running into new perspective problems, but it's rare and not impossible to fix, so it's not that big of a problem for now. I keep practicing to make these kind of problems go away, so hopefully they will disappear in the future!

Q:) Your style almost has a sort of watercolor feel to it. How did you go about establishing the way you draw? What brushes do you usually use?

Almost always I draw on top of highlight colors, so that's probably why it has that kind of feel to it. But it was only intended in 2017, when I used a lots of water color textures and was a very big fan of watercolor style art

I try to only use default brushes with just a few tweaks so I could easily go and draw anywhere else and still keep my style of drawing. For me, the most useful brushes are Airbrush and Round brush with 50% roundness in Photoshop. That 50% brush is especially useful, because this way you can use vertical and horizontal form all at once! After getting used to it, it's a very nice brush to draw with

Q:) Socks, sweaters, silly hats, swimwear, full body armor, ponies have worn it all. What is your favorite accessory to draw ponies in?

Even though I like everything, I enjoy drawing armor and socks the most! I don't draw them much, but I definitely love drawing them!

I can also turn drawing armor into practice, so that's a plus too! I was always fascinated by how artists like Yakovlev-vad draw armor, so I'm very inspired to draw more of it sometime in the future

I could draw it right now, sure, but if I'll just draw it without any inspiration/solid idea, it won't be fun and I will probably just ruin it. I don't want to disappoint everyone and myself, so I just keep waiting for a better time to draw it. I actually have a lot more things to draw, but I still can't find the right time and inspiration for all of it

Q:) What do you like most about Friendship is Magic? What keeps you drawing so many awesome ponies?

I like everything about it! I draw a lot M6 pictures because I really like what their elements stand for. I've entered the world of mlp because of characters, but I think I'm still here only because of the whole meaning of FiM. Being kind, friendly to everyone is what I really appreciate. There's a lot of people who can take advantage of you, so it's not always easy to be like this in our world. But when I see people who really are like this, it makes me feel very happy

Q:) Do you have any tips for newbie artists looking to improve?

Draw everyday! You might think it's too difficult, but this is what can really help you to improve. I heard this advice from non-pony artist and it helped me a lot!

It's hard to draw everyday and improve in other places, but our fandom is one of those really great ones where people can and will support you with very positive feedback! Judging from my experience, drawing everyday won't go to waste

Q:) Why do you think My little Pony Generation 4 has been so successful? What keeps you here involved in the community?

These pony designs are too good to be unnoticed! It's simple, yet so lovable and perfect! It's easy to see why it clicked with everyone so well. This generation really deserves all the love and recognition that it has and I'm happy to be a part of it!

And as this is the final question, I want to thank EqD for inviting me here! It's not easy for me to elaborate on things in english, but I tried my best :)

Thank you so much!

Spotlight Gallery!

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Bay Breeze by mirroredsea