TODAY'S FEATURED POST

Forge Ahead

Vanessa Lemen

When I start to write these articles here on Muddy Colors, I am often stricken with this strange dichotomy of being vulnerable in the sharing of something meaningful to the world and wondering if anyone even reads these anyway. Sometimes, my anxiety is so strong that I just need to post something that will not allow these feelings to bubble up. These types of articles are usually the ones that become the sharing of a…

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EVERYDAY ORIGINAL

Earth

YESTERDAY’S POST

Image

Research Images Like a Pro

Lauren Panepinto

June 12, 2025 - I just did a spurt of portfolio reviews (it's fresh graduates season!) and a topic seemed to come up more than a few times, and that usually means it's worth a Muddy Colors article. So here we go. I don't want to make this sound like a "the kids don't know X" or "back when I was in school we knew how to Y" kind of thing, but I think some old(er) school knowledge might help a growing problem. A growing problem of using search engines for image research. Since I've been reviewing portfolios and commissioning illustrators (for 20ish years now) I have occasionally had to have a conversation with artists about their image research. Sometimes amusingly referred to as "Google-Fu". The most glaring issue was most often reminding an artist — usually one fresh…

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Muddy Colors is a collective of more than 20 artists, dedicated to providing a free, online resource for aspiring and professional artists alike.

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