Yo, I love this thread. Please critic one of my older pieces.
[IMG_thumb]http://i.imgur.com/IjHxlPc.jpg[/IMG_thumb]
I've been working on a piece of fanart for The Magical Realms of Tír na nÓg: Escape from Necron 7 – Revenge of Cuchulainn: The Official Game of the Movie – Chapter 2 of the Hoopz Barkley SaGa, using an environment and value for possibly the first time (I normally just sketch figures in a white void).
[IMG]http://i.imgur.com/1TvZk7p.png[/IMG]
Here's the same image without the figures.
[IMG]http://img94.imageshack.us/img94/1830/g9m5.png[/IMG]
I'm having trouble figuring out how to determine light on stairs, in particular the front faces of the steps and the side walls of the stairwell. Should the stair faces get lighter as they approach the floor or the opposite? Or all stay the same value? The main light source is coming from the doorway, but there might be some dim light from electronics on the walls later.
Ha, I forgot that game is being developed.
Anyhow, I have to admit you've picked a pretty hard environment to work with; in terms of using hard backlighting, in a unique angle, in a composition with lots of little details.
Just as a note, when you consider a "closed" basement, there is no light, so the room has to be pitch black; if any light enters the room, you may see the lightsource itself, light being reflected off objects, or visual effects (bloom and volumetric light). But if no light is hitting an area, that area should remain black with the exception of being behind 'visual effects'.
[IMG]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4565878/visual%20critique/Spuzz/2440862-dark-staircase.jpg[/IMG]
Here's my guess for what the top section may look like. You mentioned that you were unsure about the faces of the stairs, but as long as no light is hitting them all of them should remain black. The top part of the stairs are still being lit up though, partially covered by the shadow cast by the figure. The walls and ceiling are reflecting the door light, but since they're not the direct light source they're not as bright as the door (unless the walls are made of mirrors). The reflected light also diminished along the way as a limited source of light has to be distributed along a large area, think of a flashlight placed against a wall.
[IMG]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4565878/visual%20critique/Spuzz/1.jpg[/IMG]
You'd also be right to add in additional lights along the environment, since the back lighting loses a lot of the detail you planned in your outline.
NOTE: although I used the orange as an example I'd advise you against using colors for this piece. Unless you find a perfect reference image, lighting this environment is enough of hassle already as a black and white picture.
Here's another sample I drew up. It's pretty half-assed but I was just hoping to show that with the single light source from the door, the pile of bodies below would look like a mess, the bad kind of mess anyways. So again, it would help to add in more lights to illuminate more detail.
[IMG]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4565878/visual%20critique/Spuzz/2.jpg[/IMG]
I think I know where you're coming from in terms of having exceptions to pitch black areas in dark environments. I personally think of the Penumbra series where your eyes 'adjust to the darkness' when there's no light source, so objects closer to you seem 'lighter'. Doesn't necessarily work like that in real life/photography, but it works in a game design sense. You know, when it comes down to it you don't have to follow a realistic sense of lighting with pitch black tones; I've seen people work with "night vision" like tones that ignore lack of light sources.
Either way, I hope my samples can give you a frame of reference for what the back lighting can look like.
[QUOTE=OutLawed Blade;42204453]Yo, I love this thread. Please critic one of my older pieces.
[IMG_thumb]http://i.imgur.com/IjHxlPc.jpg[/IMG_thumb][/QUOTE]
Hey I appreciate it. So I looked over your piece and I noted a few things:
When I was in digi-photo class, the professor made a big point that a photo should never be overexposed nor underexposed; I'd like to believe that rule goes along with digi painting too. I noticed that your piece has a slight grey tone throughout the canvas, be it a personal touch or an uncalibrated screen I personally find it to be a bit underexposed. I usually work with a crappy laptop screen so I can't always trust my eyes, luckily any version of photoshop has an "auto level"/"auto contrast" feature that automates the process.
[IMG]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4565878/visual%20critique/OutLawed%20Blade/1.jpg[/IMG]
I know the tool doesn't guarantee perfect tones in a piece, but I think it would help to check it out.
Just a small thing about rule of thirds. I imagine compositions change drastically from size ratios to size ratios, but even with wallpaper proportions I think it would work better if the points of visual interests were composed more evenly.
[IMG]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4565878/visual%20critique/OutLawed%20Blade/2.jpg[/IMG]
Also, I believe you used different reference images for the turtle and the boy, and right now it seems like the light directions for each figure are different. If we're following the light direction of the boy, the turtle's head is shaded alright, but the shell is a bit odd. Because of the light lining on the top of the shell, it seems like there's a light source behind the shell or that the turtle's back is extremely narrow and only the top portion is being lit up. Either way I'd suggest distributing more light over the overall shell.
[IMG]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4565878/visual%20critique/OutLawed%20Blade/3.jpg[/IMG]
Lastly, in my personal taste, I find the proportion of the turtle's head to it's shell a bit odd, at least in terms of what I can see uncropped on the canvas. When I think of large tortoises or turtles, I visualize a giant shell with a relatively tiny head, and in your piece the turtle has quite a big head (which are associated with tinier and younger creatures). I get you're trying to depict a fantastical situation already, but because you're using such a realistic rending style the turtle's anatomy seems more uncanny than it is unique, as it doesn't actually exist in a realistic world.
My 'fixed' example is kind of hideous but I hope you take it into consideration.
[IMG]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4565878/visual%20critique/OutLawed%20Blade/4.jpg[/IMG]
Anyhow that what I got from it. And I appreciate ya'll for posting in this thread.
Jesus, I'm just reading these and I'm overwhelmed by the raw amount of informative stuff.
I'm a lot less skilled than these works but I'm still getting a lot of useful stuff out of this.
I don't have anything to post but thanks!
Fantastic advice, Boone. Thank you.
Glad I could help
Would you mind helping me out with this? I sketched it earlier and I have no idea how to go about fixing it. It's supposed to be a Baku, which is some kind of tapir-tiger spirits that eats dreams.
[T]http://i.imgur.com/gXtzHIM.jpg[/T]
this might fall outside your purview, but some thoughts on this would be nice
[img]http://i.cubeupload.com/MPr5tO.png[/img]
I can't redline anything right now, but there's some anatomical issues in the second panel, specifically the left leg. I'd also make it more contrasty, maybe making the chains pitch black (and adding way more), but that's just me growing up with Frank Miller :s
Thanks so much for the tips on my piece! I wouldn't have thought to include lighting on the figure. I might try making it monochromatic (blue) rather than strictly black and white, but I'll experiment.
Np, and I will wish you luck on said experiment.
[QUOTE=kr1f333;42290617]Would you mind helping me out with this? I sketched it earlier and I have no idea how to go about fixing it. It's supposed to be a Baku, which is some kind of tapir-tiger spirits that eats dreams.
[T]http://i.imgur.com/gXtzHIM.jpg[/T][/QUOTE]
Yeah sure. To start off, the first thing I noticed was that your colors were a bit washed out, almost giving it a sort of a watermark quality to it. Of course having an under-saturated attribute probably isn't the most ideal trait for a drawing so I'd suggest working with more saturated/darker tones. But when I did edit it with higher contrast I noticed that it became a bit harder on the eyes, from what I'd like to believe is from disproportions in the brushstrokes and not just my bad taste in colors.
[IMG]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4565878/visual%20critique/kr1f333/1.jpg[/IMG]
It seems that you've feathered/patted down your strokes, and I believe that your drawing would've benefited from having stronger singular strokes (using brushes w/ 100% opacity and pressure sensitivity if possible). Here's a couple examples I drew, second one having a more Japanese ink style if you're looking into that.
[T]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4565878/visual%20critique/kr1f333/2.jpg[/T]
Lastly I wanna mention your rendering of your Baku's body fur; the mane and thicker fur portions are fine, but to me the fur on it's body seems... off. I'm not too familiar with the Baku but right now it's body hair seems like human body hair, like I'm imagining a fat guy's beer belly with a semi coat of whiskers and hair cuz I'm weird like that. Unless you were going for that I'd suggest a different style of fur rendering; here on the second frame I tried a bit of simple hard shading, additionally I tried drawing stokes on the body that gave it more of an 'overlapping layers' of fur rather than singular hairs. And of course if you weren't planning on using ink-like brushstrokes in the first place you could go for painting the fur, which I tried on the third panel on Sai w/ a flat brush and blending properties.
[T]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4565878/visual%20critique/kr1f333/3.jpg[/T]
I know this is a bit late but hey, I hope it's still insightful for future reference.
[QUOTE=Mr. Scorpio;42290970]this might fall outside your purview, but some thoughts on this would be nice
[img]http://i.cubeupload.com/MPr5tO.png[/img][/QUOTE]
Well you'd be right in that I don't read a lot of comics, but here are my thoughts:
I would agree with xalener for the most part, especially on the contrast portion. I didn't spend too much time on this edit but I hope it shows the benefit of using more black in the comic; if done right you wouldn't have to sacrifice any textures/details when adding in black. Here, a darker silhouette like statue gives the figure a more imposing and foreboding tone to it. For the figure in the flames, when darkened, not only gives more visual interest to that frame but also heightens the intensity of the fire behind him. All in all, more contrast to the rendering will help alleviate a certain amount of 'flatness' your comic is carrying right now.
[T]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4565878/visual%20critique/Mr.%20Scorpio/1.jpg[/T]
I noticed you've picked a pretty hard frame panel to work with, being extra wide and extra short. It seems that you're working with one maybe two 'figures' for each frame too and it leaves a lot of room for empty space. I'd suggest filling that space somehow, and if not from more landscape props and pieces, a more dynamic angle on the characters could easily make the composition of the piece more interesting. Here's my jab at it, examples of low perspectives looking up.
[T]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4565878/visual%20critique/Mr.%20Scorpio/2.jpg[/T]
On a last note I wanna mention that the anatomy of your burning guy is a bit contorted. Not contorted in the sense that he's wincing and shielding himself from pain, which he should be doing, but that the form of his body is moving in too many direction, contorting the 'flow' of his form. Figures don't have to look like posing supermodels, but I think it's best if figures follow a readable 'flow' of sorts, it's just better for the composition as a whole. If you can I'd suggest looking into working with 'flow lines' (not sure what to call em) when outlining a drawing.
[IMG]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4565878/visual%20critique/Mr.%20Scorpio/3.jpg[/IMG]
Again, I'm not much of a comic guy, but I hope it helps.
[IMG]http://puu.sh/4Fws4.png[/IMG]
I believe, the content of your work reaches outside of my jurisdiction...
OP you are amazing, can you please red line this? The anatomy has been bugging me quite a lot. Any coloring tips are also greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.
(sorry about the lewdness, I was trying to imitate a certain artist).
Edit:
linked the image instead.
[NSFW] [url]http://i.imgur.com/MPhJ1YO.jpg?2[/url]
[QUOTE=Boone_Sedford;42454197]I believe, the content of your work reaches outside of my jurisdiction...[/QUOTE]
Aww. I was curious to see what you'd say.
Well if you're up to it, I'd suggest increasing the dosh content in proportion to Enfield in your piece. It'd be in better service to KF.
[T]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4565878/vc%20pg2/Revolver%20Osha/1.jpg[/T]
[QUOTE=I-AM-SANIC;42454408]OP you are amazing, can you please red line this? The anatomy has been bugging me quite a lot. Any coloring tips are also greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.
(sorry about the lewdness, I was trying to imitate a certain artist).
[IMG]http://i.imgur.com/MPhJ1YO.jpg?2[/IMG][/QUOTE]
As far as things are going the piece is perfectly acceptable as it is in style and color, I'd say I love it too if it didn't prevent me from checking this thread out in public (jk). But if you need notes in the anatomy I took a look into it.
Here's my general redline skeleton of the piece; unless you were really looking for a very flaunty and unorthodox pose, I don't think the guy should be strutting out his abdomen like that, especially if he's 'laying down and relaxing.' Right now he seems to be really pushing back his right hip and has a pretty '2D'/flat abdomen, so I'd keep an eye on that.
[T]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4565878/vc%20pg2/I-AM-SANIC/1.jpg[/T]
Here on the second panel I did some minor edits based on my observations. I also found this neeto 3D model viewer that you could check out for future reference (NSFW) [url]http://www.posemaniacs.com/tools/handviewer/[/url]
On the last panel I litereally just traced the abdomen details of the model and onto your drawing, probably not suppose to look that ripped but it might help for reference.
[T]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4565878/vc%20pg2/I-AM-SANIC/2.jpg[/T]
Hope it helps
Right so I started a Computer Games (Art & Animation) course.
I have a B in Advanced Higher Art yet I can't draw perspective outside of simple geometric forms ( I also have a B in Advanced Higher Graphics/Technical Drawing)
How do I go about learning how to draw natural forms with perspective?
One of our ongoing tasks is to design a character, yet all I've got is rubbishly drawn front and side views.
Learning how to draw the head, am I using the right technique?
[t]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/34938612/Untitled-3.jpg[/t]
I know my drawing skills are bad but that's why I'm practicing - on photoshop: I don't want to waste my paper :/
[editline]9th October 2013[/editline]
Also, any other essentials you guys think I should be practicing a lot?
I tried to not go to over board on the dosh
[IMG]http://puu.sh/4M69Q.png[/IMG]
Like some of the other posters here, I am trying to improve my drawing skills, which are lacking in a load of different sections. So in the hope that you (or possibly others) will be able to give me good general advice, I'll drop a few of my latest experiments.
[t]http://i.imgur.com/3f1quNB.jpg[/t]
[t]http://i.imgur.com/jC9sKp4.jpg[/t]
[t]http://i.imgur.com/78GHoPv.jpg[/t] (sorry for lined paper in this one.)
As you can see, I've been trying various little changes, different shapes and heads, different things, a few poses, etc, trying not to limit myself to a single comfort zone. However I still have some issues with connecting the whole shapes, posing stuff ...well basically a lot.
[sp]OP, you're amazing, and this thread brought me quite a lot of help already. Thanks![/sp]
[QUOTE=Boone_Sedford;42465491]
Here on the second panel I did some minor edits based on my observations. I also found this neeto 3D model viewer that you could check out for future reference (NSFW) [url]http://www.posemaniacs.com/tools/handviewer/[/url]
Hope it helps[/QUOTE]
Thank you for all the effort, I really appreciate all your comments and redlines. I'll tweak it now.
And that reference link is awesome too. Bookmarked.
I was actually pretty glad I could help out on an illustration that was beyond my own rendering/coloring abilities, ha.
[QUOTE=Wickerman123;42466523]Right so I started a Computer Games (Art & Animation) course.
I have a B in Advanced Higher Art yet I can't draw perspective outside of simple geometric forms ( I also have a B in Advanced Higher Graphics/Technical Drawing)
How do I go about learning how to draw natural forms with perspective?
One of our ongoing tasks is to design a character, yet all I've got is rubbishly drawn front and side views.
Learning how to draw the head, am I using the right technique?
[t]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/34938612/Untitled-3.jpg[/t]
I know my drawing skills are bad but that's why I'm practicing - on photoshop: I don't want to waste my paper :/
[editline]9th October 2013[/editline]
Also, any other essentials you guys think I should be practicing a lot?[/QUOTE]
I think you're being too strict with the way that you conceptualize heads (i.e. w/ strong lines and corners). I know it sounds a bit airy, but whenever I'm working with 'natural forms' I tend to work more with my intuition than follow some sort of formula, so I'm gonna try to not give you a formula but maybe some directions you can look into.
Note: of course there are still some rules you have to follow when drawing a face (ears should be as tall as distance between eyes & bottom of nose, lips shouldn't be wider than distance between center of both eyes, etc.) But those rules shouldn't restrict you to the shape and sizes and volumes of the human face, so try going crazy.
[T]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4565878/vc%20pg2/Wickerman123/4.jpg[/T]
#1 - From the side, understand that a face doesn't have to be flat: from the eyebrows, to the nose, to the lips, and to the chin, there should be a wavelength of curves and corners that follow the face from the forehead to the chin. Even after that, consider the "general protrusion' a person's face can have, be it coming from the middle, bottom, or top of the face.
[T]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4565878/vc%20pg2/Wickerman123/1.jpg[/T]
#2 - Again, a human head can take many shapes and forms: This is a caricature artist's way of conceptualizing, but consider using organic shapes when outlining a face. Features, expressions, and hair are up to your discretion.
[T]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4565878/vc%20pg2/Wickerman123/2.jpg[/T]
#3 - Consider drawing a character from an emotion: it doesn't necessarily create well thought out characters but I think it's good practice and good reference.
[T]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4565878/vc%20pg2/Wickerman123/3.jpg[/T]
Overall, I don't think using perspective formulas and lines are the best way in drawing unique characters, unless you were going for a realistic technical portrait, in which case that would've made sense... But anyhow, that's what I have to say in the conceptualization part of faces. I'd also suggest looking an Andrew Loomis tutorial on faces; take a look past pg 13 on:
[url]http://www.scribd.com/doc/501782/Andrew-Loomis-Drawing-the-Head-and-Hands[/url]
It's pretty interesting stuff. And good luck.
[QUOTE=Revolver Osha;42472031]I tried to not go to over board on the dosh
[IMG]http://puu.sh/4M69Q.png[/IMG][/QUOTE]
Hey man, I'm not saying you shouldn't post in this thread, but your practically impromptu rendering style isn't something that can be critiqued much. I'd (and probably other posters) would be happy to help you if you explore illustration in a more practical/technical matter. Feel free to post more in terms of anatomy and composition, rather than an abstract concept.
[QUOTE=JohnnyOnFlame;42473384]Like some of the other posters here, I am trying to improve my drawing skills, which are lacking in a load of different sections. So in the hope that you (or possibly others) will be able to give me good general advice, I'll drop a few of my latest experiments.
[t]http://i.imgur.com/78GHoPv.jpg[/t] (sorry for lined paper in this one.)
As you can see, I've been trying various little changes, different shapes and heads, different things, a few poses, etc, trying not to limit myself to a single comfort zone. However I still have some issues with connecting the whole shapes, posing stuff ...well basically a lot.
[sp]OP, you're amazing, and this thread brought me quite a lot of help already. Thanks![/sp][/QUOTE]
Thanks man I appreciate it.
Anyhow, I'm gonna go out on a limb, and say that I think you should concentrate on the 'what', 'why', and 'how' you're drawing. Lemme explain, the sketches you have right now aren't bad, they work perfectly fine as the sketches/concepts that they are. But because you mentioned "issues with connecting the whole shapes, posing stuff ...well basically a lot," that makes me believe you're having trouble defining a solid direction for yours drawing before you even start on it. Another reason I'm saying this is because for a while, I suffered through a broad boring period where I wasn't drawing anything seriously, just light sketches for a long time; after all that I think it would've helped if I had been more aware to what I should've been focusing on.
Theses are the traits that I've noticed in illustrating over the years, i.e. the stuff I should've been focusing on.
Technical attributes: (things that make your drawings look 'right')
-light
-anatomy
-perspective (if you're working with unorthodox angles and/or large spaces)
Conceptual attributes: (things that make your drawings look cool)
-composition
-rendering style
-context
If you can have these attributes written up/thought of beforehand, I think that would eliminate the 'diluted' vibe I'm getting from your sketches (where they only work as sketches in a concept sheet rather than work as individual illustrations). Here are a couple examples of utilizing the technical and conceptual attributes to your advantage:
Deciding what I'd want the piece to be:
[T]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4565878/vc%20pg2/JohnnyOnFlame/1.jpg[/T]
Final conceptualization and rendering process:
[T]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4565878/vc%20pg2/JohnnyOnFlame/2.jpg[/T]
Trying to make the head work more in a solid portrait context than a light sketch context.
[T]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4565878/vc%20pg2/JohnnyOnFlame/3.jpg[/T]
Anyhow, I'm not saying it's bad to do light sketches, but I think it's wasteful to utilize your imagination and intuition on something you don't plan on fully defining. If you want to routinely flex your art muscles but also in having it be worth while to your skills, I'd suggesting doing gesture drawings in your free time:
[url]http://artists.pixelovely.com/practice-tools/figure-drawing/[/url]
[url]http://www.posemaniacs.com/thirtysecond[/url]
After practicing your technical skills, at the point that you're willing to spend 3 to 4+ hours on an actual illustration, you'll be ready to explore your conceptual skills.
Hope this helps, oh and feel free to post any [I]specific[/I] WIPS you make along the way, all this general advice is making feel guilty for pretending to be an art teacher.
[IMG]http://th00.deviantart.net/fs70/PRE/i/2013/256/d/f/portrait_of_laura_by_oscar3231-d6m5jge.jpg[/IMG]
Hey could you redline this? I made it for a friend to give to a girl on her birthday a while ago but it turned out she wasn't too happy with it. Thanks in advance :)
Yeah sure. So uh, correct me if I'm wrong, but what I think happened was that you used a FB/yearbook as a reference for the portrait, and that may have been a problem onto itself. Those photos have a tendency to look very broad and 'generic' in terms of lighting and form, so you could've been missing out on a lot of subtle details on your friend's of a friend's face. Admittedly I'm at a bit of a disadvantage because I won't have the reference photo but nonetheless, there are still mostly universal things to consider when drawing a facial portrait.
In your case, I believe your drawing needs to look a bit more natural, right now the figure looks a bit uncanny due to flat anatomy and inconsistent rendering.
Also some few other stuff I noticed along the way:
[T]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4565878/vc%20pg2/Oscario/1.jpg[/T]
Here I tried to define more natural lips and shading (working with a soft/airbrush helps). Again I have no idea who she looks like, but right now her lips seems to be 'stuck' onto an otherwise flat surface for a mouth; I though more gradual transitions between the lips and the area of the mouth would really help alleviate the uncanny feel.
[T]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4565878/vc%20pg2/Oscario/2.jpg[/T]
For color I'd just suggest adding in more red tones around the face; here I just pulled a random Google image with mostly un-photoshoped details, and just copied the palette onto a 'colors' layer. Also, especially in a colorless background, consider toning down the saturation of your palette so strong colors won't have to fight/compete with a strong white background.
[T]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4565878/vc%20pg2/Oscario/3.jpg[/T]
Anyhow, if you're planning to re-work it then good luck, otherwise I hope my advice is good reference.
This thread is very helpful, I don't want it to sink...so I'll bump with the tweaked image with OP's advice.
Thanks again OP you art god.
NSFW [URL="http://i.imgur.com/YMn4xw5.jpg"]http://i.imgur.com/YMn4xw5.jpg[/URL]
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