Self-Portrait @ChrisBandyJazz

Uploaded April 2023 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago

Painted in Autodesk Sketchbook from February 22 to April 1. I first placed the original photo next to a blank canvas, and then painted for over 27 hours, usually zoomed in past 500% to compare close-ups of the canvas with close-ups of the original. My result was how it looks at 2:15 in the video. I wasn’t happy with this, but I also wasn’t skilled enough to fix it, so I dragged the original behind the canvas and spent three hours toggling back and forth between them and repainting any features that needed fixing. Finally, I dropped the 92 screen recordings into Final Cut and spent about 9 hours editing the video (cropping out the original, removing Sketchbook’s menus, resizing to cancel out all the zoom-ins), often cutting corners since otherwise the editing load would be too large. I am very happy with the result.

•I did not trace onto the original or onto any rulers.
•I did not copy-paste any part of the original into my painting.
•I did not use any optical “tricks” like those discussed in Tim’s Vermeer.
•I used only three tools: pencil, paintbrush, and airbrush (with steady stroke usually on).

Music: Cinematic Universe (Chris Bandy)

This video was released early for my fantastic patrons:

Anonymous
Stephen W.
Itamar L.
Chip W.
Johannes E.
Jonathan K.
Richard B.

My dream is to create music for a living.
Join the community: patreon.com/chrisbandy
Check out my website: tinyurl.com/CJBmusic

Jamal is Beauty (Andy Wasserman transcription)

$Backflip Progression DO THIS AT YOUR OWN RISK — READ DESCRIPTION Finally landed this after over a year of wanting to do it. Landed it on my birthday! WATCH MY TUTORIAL: https://youtu.be/Xa5zgcFRChg The reason it took only 12 tries instead of 60 (like the frontflip did) is because I was using good form, and therefore didnt have to kill myself with effort to get the rotation. Although I learned form from a local trainer back in May 2018, I was not able to get over the fear, even with a foam pit. Even after multiple jumps, I was still not committing every time (which is super dangerous). Plus my abs were pretty weak (I hadnt been working my core), and I almost got a hernia after one jump. Later in the summer, I went back to the gym, but in an entire hour, I only committed three times. It was terrible—most of the time I was just standing with my back to the foam pit, too scared to jump. When I got a trampoline in May 2019, I got over all the fear in less than a week. The twelve attempts you see here are the only times I have ever done it on the ground (up to this point). If you are interested in doing this safely and correctly, stay tuned for the tutorial! ——— After flipping only 2-4 times a day, only 3 days a week, on grass, with good shoes, without landing awkwardly or twisting anything, I suddenly got an ankle sprain and probable fracture, and my ankle has been hurting on and off for over 3 months. I am not going to attempt backflips again, and I personally would not recommend learning this. But if you do, stay safe, use perfect form, and have fun! FORM BASICS 1. Shallow set (dont go all the way down) 2. High jump (as high and straight as you can) 3. Delayed tuck (wait until youre almost at the peak) 4. Hard tuck (tuck tight and fast!) 5. Long tuck (stay tucked as long as possible) PREVENTING INJURY 1. If you have pain, stop immediately. 2. When you land, let your legs bend naturally to reduce the pressure on your joints. Dont stiffen them. Stiffening your legs when you land is like walking up to a brick wall and kicking it as hard as you can. Your body will eventually pay you back by making it painful to do simple things like walking and biking. 3. Dont keep trying if you are landing on your toes or knees on the ground. This hammers your toes, ankles, arches, and knees in a bad way. If you fail twice in a row on the ground, go back to the trampoline until you can over-rotate. Then go to pillows until you can land solidly on them. 4. Every hard impact your body suffers raises the chance that when you get older, youre going to have a lot of pain. Even if its years later. Keep that in mind. Its the same with parkour, football, boxing, and even long-distance running (especially on concrete). Obviously its equally bad to sit in a room all day and miss out on life (and atrophy yourself), so if you can find fun activities that avoid hard impacts (biking, swimming, walking, calisthenics, weight-lifting, dancing, yoga, versions of tai chi, etc.) go for those as much as you can. Thanks to my fantastic patrons: Alan V. Itamar L. Chip W. You guys help me make this happen!!! My dream is to make a living by creating music. You can help me make this happen! If you are willing, here are a couple ways you can support me: •For only a few dollars, you can get early video access, collab opportunities, and other super cool perks on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/chrisbandy •Ive recorded, mixed, mastered, and produced a jazz vocal album: https://chrisbandyjazz.wixsite.com/mysite/music •Ive released an electronic dance album with 12 original compositions: https://music.apple.com/us/album/stranger-in-the-earth/981727571 •I work as a freelance composer, arranger, transcriber, and recording vocalist: https://tinyurl.com/CJBmusic Anything and everything is greatly appreciated. Thank you SO much! -Chris$

Box of Stars Pt. 1 (English Rap Lip-Sync)