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| Drawing Tips And Critique?; For people in general not just me | |
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| Topic Started: Mar 26 2016, 05:43 PM (1,210 Views) | |
| TAXESbutNano | Mar 26 2016, 05:43 PM Post #1 |
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I'm going back to basics.
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Hi guys, Nano here! I had an idea- Perhaps we could have a topic for giving out tips and recieving critique? I mean, I've improved a load since my original drawings, and I'd still like to improve further. My drawing tips- -For shading, I use criss-crossing pencil lines. I draw them parallel or perpendicular to the shape of the object. For the darker bits, continue the perpendicular lines from less curved, lighter parts of the object into that shaded bit. -For textures, put the bulk of it towards the edge of the object- it makes the flat bits look flatter. My stuff I'd like critique to be based on- Simple Scene Complex Scene Simple Standalone Complex Standalone I think this format might work. I'll try to provide critique, but I'm rather low on the spec-artist food chain. ![]() (Edit: Links sorted out, dunno what happened there...) Edited by TAXESbutNano, Mar 26 2016, 05:45 PM.
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| Monster | Mar 26 2016, 06:52 PM Post #2 |
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Space Oddity
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This could be a helpful thread, if people remember to stay civil and accept crits graciously ; ) I like that you are drawing scenes and backgrounds. Good to see people dive right in there with full scenes. A tip I have for drawing scenes and landscapes is to try to draw some from life to learn perspective and how to position things realistically. This is good as practice, or you can use the sketches to start something a bit more fanciful. Also you get a good level of detail in without cluttering your drawings, which is a nice to see. Second tip which applies to anyone ( and isn't just directed at you, Nano) is to draw real, extant animals. From life or good taxidermy is best, but a range of good photos to supplement this is good too! I also spend a fair bit of time drawing animals from TV clips. It helps you to understand how a real animal fits together and moves (this is why a range of photos is important, one does not show you these things properly). This of course can be applied to finished/future drawings of the animals but you can also use the knowledge you gain to construct fantasy and reconstructed animals too. : ) |
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Flashlights, nightmares, sudden explosions. 'active' {tumblr} {Veles} {10 Million Years of Rain] Commissions: Open. | |
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| whachamacallit2 | Mar 26 2016, 07:04 PM Post #3 |
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Guy who yells at squirrels
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I like your pieces Nano! I would argue that the biggest thing that you may want to work on is perspective; For example, your BacillusSaurus looks a bit flat, although very well designed. The issue might just be some shading, but it would like help to look at random animals is 3/4 positions and see where you can fix things. I too would like to post on this; it would definitely be helpful! |
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Click for shameless self plug! Spoiler: click to toggle Get you one at http://whachamacallit1.deviantart.com/ Learn the life, history, and fate of the tidally locked planet Asteria at: http://s1.zetaboards.com/Conceptual_Evolution/topic/5725927/1 | |
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| Steampunk FireFinch | Mar 26 2016, 07:21 PM Post #4 |
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Shitposter
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When a Mass Artist Extinction Event occurs, we will fill ALL THE NICHES. MUAHAHAHAHAHA! And we will rule the Spec Artist Food Chain, MUAHAHAHHA!!! |
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| malicious-monkey | Mar 26 2016, 07:43 PM Post #5 |
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Spec Ops
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Here's some general pointers.![]() Think in terms of 3D shapes, not lines. In an animal, these will be skeletal structure and muscle groups. Learn these by observing real animals, even if your subjects are alien. Remember that invertebrates work differently. If you're working with inverts, plants, or aliens, observe and sketch a wide variety of lifeforms. Tangent lines are when subjects touch each other without overlapping. This confuses the eye. Avoid creating tangents between subjects or between a subject and the edge of the page. ![]() Notice how carefully I avoided creating tangent lines in this picture. ![]() Dark foreground. Light or dark subject. Contrasting background/midground. Make sure the subject is clearly visible. Sky. Present to give a sense of open space. Absent for a claustrophobic scene. Replace sky with mountains that fill the page for a grand feeling. ![]() Here's an example with a dark foreground, dark and light subjects, and a midground gradient to contrast both subjects. Note the mountains where the sky would normally be visible. ![]() It's okay for elements to go flying off the page! It creates a sense of continuity and implies that a greater world exists outside of the picture. ![]() Not all of the mossy cetus can be seen in this picture. The scene feels more intimate (and intimidating) as a result. Edited by malicious-monkey, Mar 26 2016, 07:58 PM.
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"My recommendation would be to just draw things now and draw good things later." - Nanotyranus Ilion: an illustrated tour of a tidally locked planet Spoiler: click to toggle malicious-monkey.deviantart.com sunriseonilion.wordpress.com supermalmoworld.tumblr.com Redbubble - Ilion art prints and more Commissions are OPEN | |
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| Steampunk FireFinch | Mar 26 2016, 08:06 PM Post #6 |
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Shitposter
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Good Monkey! Now here is a Monkey Treat. Don't take that seriously, but I found this nice and very helpful. Edited by Steampunk FireFinch, Mar 26 2016, 08:07 PM.
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| Myxini | Mar 27 2016, 06:16 AM Post #7 |
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Vermiform
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I'm going to try and post some doodles here to see what people think, but seeing as I'm being used as a dog bed today, my ability to get access to paper that won't get chewed is somewhat limited. In response to Nano's work: - I like the terror of the deep drawing, and like the perspective you've used for it. - I agree with the comments on perspective needing development. It isn't too much of an issue in the standalones and the marine scene, but it definitely shows in the complex scenes. - One thing I would recommend (this goes mainly for the complex scenes and for your simple standalone) would be to look at online images of animals in similar poses and see how their limbs are arranged. In the simple standalone, the limbs look rather stiff. Another alternative would be to get some modeling clay or plasticine or something 3D, put it under a similar pose and lighting to what you're trying to draw, and use that as a rough reference. The plasticine thing is something I really want to do, as I've never been able to get the hang of correct shading. I'm not sure what it is, but my brain just doesn't seem to understand where it should go, even though I get logically how shading should be done. |
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An Announcement | Nerites: the descent of life | Buttmunchers (retired) | Antaeus (retired) | Dante (group project; inactive) | | Fakedex V1 | Lobster Pot | Gross People | | |
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| malicious-monkey | Mar 27 2016, 10:26 AM Post #8 |
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Spec Ops
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One of my favorite artists, Jordan Walker, employs this technique often. http://jordankwalker.tumblr.com/post/134168508944/ive-spent-some-time-drawing-since-this-last-post http://jordankwalker.tumblr.com/post/134070242414/here-is-a-mushy-fish-and-giant-quasi-bilateral |
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"My recommendation would be to just draw things now and draw good things later." - Nanotyranus Ilion: an illustrated tour of a tidally locked planet Spoiler: click to toggle malicious-monkey.deviantart.com sunriseonilion.wordpress.com supermalmoworld.tumblr.com Redbubble - Ilion art prints and more Commissions are OPEN | |
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| Myxini | Mar 27 2016, 12:05 PM Post #9 |
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Vermiform
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So I tried to do some drawings for a project today but ended up not being very productive or impressed with the results, so instead here are some drawings I've done in the past. If people wish to give comments, I'll receive them happily. Does anyone have any tips for drawing humans and clothing? Or know where I could get access to good 3D references for these things? -Some kind of robot crab thing -Creatures 1 and Creatures 2 -Collage of doodles- a lot of my drawing comes from doodles in diaries and workbooks, hence the lack of attention or time put into them. -Clown demon -Plant Pokémon-esque things -Natevoratora- these ones were done purely on my iPad, using Sketchbook and my fingers. |
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An Announcement | Nerites: the descent of life | Buttmunchers (retired) | Antaeus (retired) | Dante (group project; inactive) | | Fakedex V1 | Lobster Pot | Gross People | | |
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| whachamacallit2 | Mar 27 2016, 09:13 PM Post #10 |
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Guy who yells at squirrels
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I've been practicing drawing ladies over the years and steadily improving. Since your human art tends to be pretty stylized, I don't think any edits are really necessary, but I would recommend trying a range of positions for people. When it comes to faces, I've decided to go with a slightly stylized scene because it's slightly more workable. Generally though, I think the less detail, the better a person will look. For example, compare these two pieces: Spoiler: click to toggle In this, you'll notice that the only piece that doesn't look weird is the one that I kept the eyelids vague and only did definition where flesh would be tightened; hence why I think the upper image looks the best. I put too many details on the rest though, so they looked mediocre. Obviously looking at pictures can help with drawinf people in various positions, but that's sort of a given. |
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Click for shameless self plug! Spoiler: click to toggle Get you one at http://whachamacallit1.deviantart.com/ Learn the life, history, and fate of the tidally locked planet Asteria at: http://s1.zetaboards.com/Conceptual_Evolution/topic/5725927/1 | |
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| Myxini | Mar 28 2016, 02:11 AM Post #11 |
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Vermiform
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I'm trying to avoid over stylized humans- the only reason I do them that way is because I can't draw them in the style that I'd like (realistic/semi-realistic, at least in terms of proportions). |
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An Announcement | Nerites: the descent of life | Buttmunchers (retired) | Antaeus (retired) | Dante (group project; inactive) | | Fakedex V1 | Lobster Pot | Gross People | | |
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| bloom_boi | Mar 28 2016, 10:30 AM Post #12 |
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What The?
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Just keep drawing with references until it sticks. Doenst sound like much advice but thats basically the only way Ive learned to draw. Not many secrets, just constant practice until you are familiar with proportions and structure and you can draw the human body by heart. |
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"You shall perish, whatever you do! If you are taken with arms in your hands, death! If you beg for mercy, death! Whichever way you turn, right, left, back, forward, up, down, death! You are not merely outside the law, you are outside humanity. Neither age nor sex shall save you and yours. You shall die, but first you shall taste the agony of your wife, your sister, your sons and daughters, even those in the cradle! Before your eyes the wounded man shall be taken out of the ambulance and hacked with bayonets or knocked down with the butt end of a rifle. He shall be dragged living by his broken leg or bleeding arm and flung like a suffering, groaning bundle of refuse into the gutter. Death! Death! Death!" | |
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| TAXESbutNano | Mar 31 2016, 10:17 AM Post #13 |
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I'm going back to basics.
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I've been doing a couple of drawings of birds in pencil, attempting to turn them into archeopterygids once they're done, and then scrapping them because the tail doesn't look right. However, I do think it's improved my eye shapes. I'll probably try turn a monitor lizard into a tuatara or something next. |
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| bloom_boi | Mar 31 2016, 03:55 PM Post #14 |
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What The?
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This is of interest |
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"You shall perish, whatever you do! If you are taken with arms in your hands, death! If you beg for mercy, death! Whichever way you turn, right, left, back, forward, up, down, death! You are not merely outside the law, you are outside humanity. Neither age nor sex shall save you and yours. You shall die, but first you shall taste the agony of your wife, your sister, your sons and daughters, even those in the cradle! Before your eyes the wounded man shall be taken out of the ambulance and hacked with bayonets or knocked down with the butt end of a rifle. He shall be dragged living by his broken leg or bleeding arm and flung like a suffering, groaning bundle of refuse into the gutter. Death! Death! Death!" | |
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| TAXESbutNano | Aug 12 2016, 10:55 AM Post #15 |
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I'm going back to basics.
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Anyone got any tips on how to colour animals? I seem to be not very good at it. |
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