I begin by blocking in a loose sketch, sometimes pencil, sometimes digital. At this stage I want to create a loose composition, knowing that it may need to be changed prior to proceeding.

In this step I begin blocking out tonal and overall color scheme. In some cases I create a surface texture (such as canvas) in order to replicate a more traditional technique. This texture may influence the brush work as the painting progresses, providing a unified look to the final artwork.

In this third stage, just prior to finishing up the piece, I start laying in the lighting, a loose background color, allowing the warm underpainting to pop through the cool colors. This piece is just a quick, loose study to illustrate the above process.