I have been drawing since I could hold a pencil. As a child I filled notebooks with characters and scenes from stories I invented. As an adult I digitised that obsession — learning Procreate, Adobe Illustrator, and Photoshop through a combination of tutorials, practice, and relentless experimentation. I never attended a formal design school. Everything I know came from doing it, failing, studying why, and doing it again.
When I built my OnlineBestJobs.ph profile, I made the portfolio the centrepiece. I did not try to explain my skills in paragraphs — I uploaded twenty of my strongest pieces and let the work speak. My specialties were character design, brand mascots, illustrated brand identities, and editorial illustration. Within three weeks I had my first international brief: a Canadian children's app studio that needed an illustrator for a new character set. The project ran for three months and produced work I am still proud of.
That studio released the app and credited me in the launch post, which generated four direct enquiries from other studios and brands. I now illustrate consistently for six clients — toy companies, publishing imprints, brand consultancies, and one children's book author in the UK who has become a long-term collaborator. My income has grown steadily each year and I recently opened a small studio space where I work with natural light and professional equipment. From a self-taught kid with notebooks full of drawings to a professional illustrator with international clients — that is a journey I am grateful for every single day.
