End of the month; I must admit - for some odd reason. I'm still exhausted & I'm not quite sure why.
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I will break down my thoughts from the overall & going into a little bit of San Diego Comic Con 2013 near the end.
Overall July:
I honestly can't complain - minus the warm weather & the minor setbacks, its been fun. From Anime Expo to San Diego Comic Con, I got to hang out with friends & family which I apparently have been long overdue in doing such. Near the end, as I had mentioned, my faulty video driver gave out right during the summer yet again but thankfully with some help / company & just basically making sure things were set by the time all my company had left. I got my laptop up back & running. From this point on, I gotta sort files & make sure everything is there before I run a full backup. I've been cautious but still, it still makes me feel a lil unnerved that my laptop is possibly seeing its twilight years.
I've been running small tests for feedback & play on livestream, checking my settings on sai & I still have yet to check Manga Studio 4 & Photoshop to see if the settings are fine along with my current tablet settings. So it'll take a couple of more days before I get back to my commissions & requests, please be patient.
Lastly - I still would like to humbly thank all the viewer support, hitting 20k on deviantART. I hope to continue working on artwork. Some other thoughts; after going through Anime Expo & San Diego Comic Con - I'd like to sincerely give some thoughts getting into artist alley 5-10yrs down the line. If anyone who has been at artist alley in a convention - I'd like to pick your brain privately, yes, I know there's the instructions on how to go about it, but I would like to hear your personal experience of what you guys had to go through.
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Now, for San Diego Comic Con 2013:
First; I simply won't break it down into days or discuss all the ongoing things in detail. If you had been following San Diego Comic Con 2013, there's plenty of ads & vids uploaded. I will discuss the general experience & how much it has changed.
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Personally; seeing San Diego Comic Con 2013 was a larger turn about.
Think about it...this is, like many prior convention scenes is the convention that started from a small modest hotel has grown into such a large event that has fully extended out into Downtown San Diego. Least to say, the sight has been awe inspiring.
Yes yes, I do know that they've been doing this for the past couple of years or so - but looking back the past couple of years, its just grown so much. You're coming from a convention event that solely was kept in a hotel or convention & now there are offsite events & other places you can go to that doesn't necessarily require a badge. As I had covered earlier; there were plenty of offsite events you can go to that did not necessarily require a badge. Hopefully people who have went, at least checked out what was going on around Downtown San Diego during the Comic Con event.
I tho, did have a badge & was fortunate to check out the scene within San Diego Comic Con 2013 convention center. The attendance by no means hasn't dwindled & reading over tweets & other people commenting; it is a event that is quite difficult to get into. What have I learned? People regardless of how many years they go or newcomers, they are never really prepared. Before I continue on that thought ...
Hopefully - folks are aware that discussions for a 3rd expansion to the San Diego Convention Center is there. It hasn't been fully cleared due to legalities & red tape but like many a speculation ... I think it is an inevitable. The 3rd expansion from rumors will extend back & be 3 stories built. So possibilities for even more panels & exhibition floor space ... oh did I mention a possibility maybe even more tickets sold? Afterall, the main reason why ticket sales are always capped is due to the fire marshal. So there are some things to look into within the next 3-5yrs possibly. Please don't take this as legit information but all speculation with all the information that is currently out there.
As for the preparedness of folks coming to San Diego Comic Con never seems to amaze or astound me. Within my group, I've had 3 little events that only further my case.
1. Eating a sandwich & a person within the area watching you eat & looking really hungry.
2. A girl trying to use her cute charms to get a snack when she saw there were snacks in the bag.
3. A professional guest, 1 bystander walking by & a security guard either applauding or asking for a bite a cake.
Oh I could list more, such as other people who have mildly complain about the prices of food within the convention ...
Whether this is a choice or not by folks who opt to be hungry or complain about expensive food prices just furthers my case of people's lack of being prepared. The folks who do complain about their experiences I imagine fall within that category too. I'm not quite sure but either way, I overall can't complain my experience this year, I was prepared, fed & enjoying my time.
In the future; nearing the convention scene again - perhaps another extensive how to guide to survive comic con will be made, if I have some cooperative people who'd be up for it.
Lastly, after my wandering around & managing to catch panels & check out the exhibition floor, I guess after my observations for this year, I wish there would perhaps be one minor change - the arrangement of autograph signings to be moved somewhere other than the exhibition floor. Granted it is a crowded floor already but when people start to cram around to take a pic of their celebrity gets a lil cumbersome.
Other than that; I do look forward to San Diego Comic Con 2014. A special thanks to all the volunteers who worked hard to make 2013 go as smooth as it can for this year.
