Greetings.

In the grand scheme of things who I am is not that important. I have come here to practice and I very much appreciate the opportunity to do so.

It seems continual to me that some place on the Internet someone is asking, "Where do I find the software to help me make my dream map?" After years of watching this site and its members put forth interesting and inspiring projects the conclusion that I've come to is that there is only one answer.

"Pick up the pencil and draw." And so here I am. I hope to learn.

My analog tools are sets of mechanical and straight pencils, coal, and a few inks. I will probably just focus on the straight pencils for a while. My digital tool of choice is G.I.M.P. I'm not a guru, but if you have a question I might be able to help you.

I like the look, style, feel, and mood of hand drawn much more than paints or cartooning. I've had a fascination and affection about maps for a long time, but never felt quite comfortable practicing with it. I also have an interest in scriptography and hand made glyphs. I hope to study some of that here also to give what I make a little more variety.

If I had to place my skill at any point I might say talented amateur. I've accepted money for commissioned art before, but not for map charts. This will be genuinely new territory for me and I plan to start with some thing very small and rude.

Really, I'm not much more than a hobbyist. My primary goal is to practice my hand skills.

I should also probably take a moment and mention the two threads that most led me here.
3D WatchTower by SilenBlade and
HMS Bounty thread by Katto.
They are both three dimensional model projects rather than charts, but the truth is the truth.

Thus concludes Ridgewolf's Introduction.