Thanqol Learns To Draw!

[Thanqol]

Day 202: Some Things

Today was just kind of mediocre on all fronts. Still time to turn it around, I'm going to try and get some writing in, but we'll see. One of these is part 1 of the line exercises for the Art Upgrade Project.

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Time: ~45 mins
Music: Build That Wall

[Thanqol]

Day 203: War Banner

Paints! And designing a war banner for my Exalted group. This was so relaxing and I'm so glad I did it.

Link because huge filesize.

Time: 2 Hours
Music: Metroid Metal Downed Frigate

[Thanqol]

Day 203b: Fixes

My group had some ideas for how to fix the banner.

Offsite Link

[Thanqol]

Day 204: The Magic of Television

Not great, but done without references, kinda rushed, and surprisingly decent for the time put in.

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Time: 40 mins
Music: Again

[Flickerdart]

Have you given painting a shot yet? Doing meticulous lines is a lot less lively than something with a bit of brushstroke to it.

[Thanqol]

Have you given painting a shot yet? Doing meticulous lines is a lot less lively than something with a bit of brushstroke to it.

A few times, notably days 182 and 203. Painting is super fun.

[Thanqol]

Day 205: Dem Ponies

Okay, I spent way too long on this. It turned from a quick pony piece into a research project/experiment that consumed my entire evening. It didn't work out great, but I learned several frustrating lessons at extended length.

BUT that treasure chest looks frickin' sweet.

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Time: 3 hours
Music: One Trick Pony

[Thanqol]

There's a good chance I won't have internet access for a few days, but don't panic; I'll be drawing every day even if I can't post it here!

[Thanqol]

Day 206: Nice Work

Guess who forgot his art supplies on this trip? Time for crappy HB on printer paper blurry scrawl!

On the plus side, I learned an enormously fantastic amount of stuff about painting. My great uncle was the legendary Constantin Kluge, 'the Poet of Paris', and his pieces are legendary. My grandmother's house is full of them, and just looking at them inspires me.

Honestly, there's no better way to appreciate art than learning how to draw yourself. You can see just how amazing they are, just what tricks they used, rather than just being generically awestruck at the pretty.

Imageshack flipped this, and you can hardly make anything out. Sorry 'bout that, it's slightly better than it looks.

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[Thanqol]

Day 207: Meetings and Partings

Just a simple perspective exercise to keep my hand in, hopefully a bit more visible than yesterdays. I'm never forgetting my art supplies again ><

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[Thanqol]

Day 208: Backlog

Don't look at me like that Midnight. At least it's not a recolour. That's what you wanted, right?

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Time: 2.5 hours
Music: 20% Cooler

[Domochevsky]

Hm, can't quite tell what Arcana that is... if it even is one.
(The card needs to snuggle her flank more, curving with it.)

Not sure what else this is about, but i think you need to add more water drops perling down her side to make it look like she got hit with a waterbomb/bucket/somethingwet.

[fizzybobnewt]

Her legs look very flat - it's a cool effect, but I assume not what you're going for. The bottom of the feet should be more curved downward. Also, she is hovering slightly.

[the_druid_droid]

Day 208: Backlog

Don't look at me like that Midnight. At least it's not a recolour. That's what you wanted, right?

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Time: 2.5 hours
Music: 20% Cooler

Since ponies are one thing I have some experience with, I'll chip in my two bits. The main thing I notice is that Midnight's body is looooong... Generally, ponies are about two-ish heads long - one of those defines the chest and the other defines the rump. There are exceptions of course, and unusual body styles, like Fleur and the alicorns, but the general proportions should hold for the rest of them.

[Thanqol]

Hm, can't quite tell what Arcana that is... if it even is one.
(The card needs to snuggle her flank more, curving with it.)

It's a tiny res version of The Magician. Good point, though, I realised that a bit too late but I'd forgotten my own new rule about lineart layers.

Not sure what else this is about, but i think you need to add more water drops perling down her side to make it look like she got hit with a waterbomb/bucket/somethingwet.

I was quite unsure on the ratio at the time, but I'll remember it for the future.

Her legs look very flat - it's a cool effect, but I assume not what you're going for. The bottom of the feet should be more curved downward. Also, she is hovering slightly.

Yeah, that flatness thing is kinda how they're meant to be drawn but it also looks weird without some shading, I should be trusting my own instincts more.

Since ponies are one thing I have some experience with, I'll chip in my two bits. The main thing I notice is that Midnight's body is looooong... Generally, ponies are about two-ish heads long - one of those defines the chest and the other defines the rump. There are exceptions of course, and unusual body styles, like Fleur and the alicorns, but the general proportions should hold for the rest of them.

Urgh, believe me, I know about this one. I derped the sketch layer, spent half an hour trying to underp the sketch layer and shorten the body, every iteration of that looked wrong and after way too long trying to fix it I decided to go off model on the grounds that it worked better than the alternative.

[the_druid_droid]

Urgh, believe me, I know about this one. I derped the sketch layer, spent half an hour trying to underp the sketch layer and shorten the body, every iteration of that looked wrong and after way too long trying to fix it I decided to go off model on the grounds that it worked better than the alternative.

I know that feel...I had the same problem with a Fluttershy sketch I was doing. I finally just called it and left her as a long-pony. I'm still not sure what causes that particular proportion issue during sketching, but it's an insidious thing!

[Thanqol]

I know that feel...I had the same problem with a Fluttershy sketch I was doing. I finally just called it and left her as a long-pony. I'm still not sure what causes that particular proportion issue during sketching, but it's an insidious thing!

It's the same thing with misproportioning people; the mind thinks the eyes are more important so we draw them bigger than they should be. With ponies, it's hard to remember just how small they are.

Day 209: Instinctive

Trusting my instincts really paid off; this really worked as a picture. I applied all my own rules, remembered my own resolutions and learning experiences, and did my own take on the picture and it really paid off. I still don't entirely like the colour scheme but when you're given commissions, what can you do?

Source Description:

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Name: Sandy Shores
Race: Unicorn
Special Talent: Sand-sculpting/Sandy working. Sand-based spells come easy to him, and his specialty is hardening sand and sculpting it. ("I just remind the sand it used to be a rock, and there you go.") His cutie mark is a calm shoreline, think a flat wave washing up on a beach. If that's too complicated, a sandcastle could work too.
Coat Color: Pale Blue
Mane Color: Sandy-tan, with darker flecks strewn about. Gives it a sorta grainy appearance. Tail can be the same, or just normal tan is cool too.
Eye Color: Haven't thought that deeply about it. Your choice.
Other Notable descriptions: He's a bit on the short side.

Background: He's a southern, Appleousan-type pony who went away for his degree in beach maintenance, seeing how it was the best job he could find that'd let him work with sand a lot. His accent is all but gone, but he still tends towards the phrases of his hometown.

Personality: Sandy is a hopelessly lost straight man pony amid a world of comical marshmellow ponies. This tends to leave him overreacting over first impressions of a situation. That said, he is rather competent under such stress.

When he's not flipping out over a perceived crisis, he's a stalwart friend who makes a point of always keeping his word, and is rather personable. He loathes arguments, and avoids them at all costs, which usually means stepping down and letting somepony else get their way.



I hope that's not too eclectic. It's a short evalutation of my main RP pony done at 4 in the morning, but I'm trying my best.

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Time: 1.5 Hours
Music: Becoming Popular

[Thanqol]

Day 210: Birds Are Weird

Hm, this was interesting one. For one thing, I learned that those really vague blurry colours of pigeons are hard to do. I messed around with some different colouring techniques, particularly with a background that was later discarded. I tried a whole bunch of things, including but not limited to a unique composition, a complete different approach at those darn finicky wings, and some different takes at detail work. Overall the picture works but I'm feeling I haven't quite got visualisation and composition down. I think I'll put the ponies aside for the next few days and work on structuring some body types and shapes, see where that takes me.

Hard crunch. Exercises. The gritty technical stuff.

Description Given:

Ok. Here's an OC that's been trotting around in my head for a bit.

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Name: Silver Dove
Race: Pegasus
Special Talent: Joinery, cabinet making, and carpentry. All in wood.
Coat: silver grey.
Mane/tail: Teal green with stripes or something of grey-violet.
Eyes: Orange.
So in colours he basically looks like a pigeon. And yes, he's heard all the jokes.
Cutie Mark: A dovetail joint.
Build: Big and tall. More heavy-lift than speed, and his strength was earned in hard work rather than (as he sees it) flapping around in the sky for fun.

Manehatten born pegasus, so he's never quite fit in with his surroundings (except the pigeons). Wings can be pretty useful in an earth pony city though, and he started working in construction even before he got his cutie mark for woodworking. He prefers the finer cabinetry work, but construction was always a good way to earn the bits that his family never had many of.

He has some of Applejack's stubborn belief in hard work and paying his own way, but his artistic side comes through in his quality work when he can afford the raw materials or get a commission. Can be quick to anger, especially when somepony questions his talent because of his race.

He recently moved to Ponyville to try and set up on his own. He'd heard there's a frequent demand for building work out there.

Finished Piece:

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Time: 2 hours
Music: A Jolly Cold Christmas

[Tectonic Robot]

...You take requests??? Is this a thing?

Also, yes, your art is cool.

[Thanqol]

...You take requests??? Is this a thing?

Also, yes, your art is cool.

Heck yeah I take requests. I'll cheerfully draw whatever people suggest. Not always well, but I'll do it.

Also, thanks

[Thanqol]

Day 211: Sleep Is For The Weak

Ahahaaha totally worth it.

Interior designing: Needs more research.

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EDIT: I have discovered that exhaustion makes me more good at writing and less good at drawing.

Time: 1 hour
Music: Downfall

[Tectonic Robot]

Ok, well, I have like, erm, 5 OCs that I'd like you to draw, if that's alright? Should I just send you a PM, or something?

[Lix Lorn]

You said come here to bug you with requests?
Filly Lixie. Specifically, Filly Faithful, who is the pony in her avatar. As a filly she is presumably hatless...

For bonus points, hiding under a computer desk and bluuushing

I would be sooo happy!

[TheAmishPirate]

It's the same thing with misproportioning people; the mind thinks the eyes are more important so we draw them bigger than they should be. With ponies, it's hard to remember just how small they are.

Day 209: Instinctive

Trusting my instincts really paid off; this really worked as a picture. I applied all my own rules, remembered my own resolutions and learning experiences, and did my own take on the picture and it really paid off. I still don't entirely like the colour scheme but when you're given commissions, what can you do?

Source Description:

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Time: 1.5 Hours
Music: Becoming Popular

I said this over in the main ponythread, but I love how this turned out. You captured his general non-amusement perfectly with his stance and facial expression.

That being said, seeing it drawn like this...I find myself agreeing with you on the color choice. It worked better in my head than it did in reality, or maybe "pale blue" was too vague a descriptor, or maybe this is my general lack of color sense shining through. I'm curious: If you had to keep the mane and tail the same, what colors would you choose?

[the_druid_droid]

As promised, have a pony to draw!

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Name: Cloudy Skies
Race: Pegasus Pony
Colors: (Thanqol's choice)
Cutie Mark: (Again, artist's interpretation)
Special Talent: Toughness
Description: Cloudy is something of an unusual pony; his defining feature is that he's surprisingly resilient, even by marshmallow pony standards. This is fortunate, because he usually finds himself in the thick of things, working for the Weather Bureau as a storm specialist, either dissipating inclement weather before it can wreak havoc, or redirecting it to locations scheduled for a rough patch. Of course, really serious weather is fairly infrequent, so to keep busy, he usually has to travel over a fair bit of Equestria on storm patrol.

The long hours and wide range of his job have made Cloudy a strong endurance flier, although his speed leaves something to be desired, and he only has a small cloud house, since he's away so often. On a personal level, the pegasus is almost the epitome of Fortitude, strongly believing that it's better for him to risk getting hurt than to let others come to harm. He tends to apply this to emotional as well as physical issues though, which can make him seem stubborn or a bit overbearing, but he's the pony you want by your side in a pinch, since once he's put hoof to a job, it's guaranteed he'll see it through.

[Thanqol]

Ok, well, I have like, erm, 5 OCs that I'd like you to draw, if that's alright? Should I just send you a PM, or something?

No, just post 'em here. My PM inbox is nearly full, after all. I'll get to 'em eventually.

You said come here to bug you with requests?
Filly Lixie. Specifically, Filly Faithful, who is the pony in her avatar. As a filly she is presumably hatless...

For bonus points, hiding under a computer desk and bluuushing

I would be sooo happy!

Shall do.

I said this over in the main ponythread, but I love how this turned out. You captured his general non-amusement perfectly with his stance and facial expression.

That being said, seeing it drawn like this...I find myself agreeing with you on the color choice. It worked better in my head than it did in reality, or maybe "pale blue" was too vague a descriptor, or maybe this is my general lack of color sense shining through. I'm curious: If you had to keep the mane and tail the same, what colors would you choose?

The colour I ended up using was actually a teal colour, which looked better than the Rainbow-Dash Blue I started with but still not good.

If I had my own choice of colour, it would be something more muted and dusty. I'm actually seeing a dappled grey, perhaps tan with dark red spots. Something dusty and crumbly.

[Thanqol]

You said come here to bug you with requests?
Filly Lixie. Specifically, Filly Faithful, who is the pony in her avatar. As a filly she is presumably hatless...

For bonus points, hiding under a computer desk and bluuushing

I would be sooo happy!

Day 211a: Diabetus

At the beginning of drawing this piece, Thanqol began shouting out loud, "Highlights! Highlights are a thing that must be learned!"

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[Tectonic Robot]

Er, I'll just describe my OCs then? If that's alright?

Candle Keeper:

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Candle Keeper is my first successful OC. He looks basically like this:

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He was originally kind of a jerk, but he's reformed now. Nowadays he just likes hanging out in the IRC and stuff. He has one article of clothing he's always wearing; a poorly defined coat-robe thing. I always imagined it with sleeves and a hood, but I could never totally visualize it. His CM is a candle.

Raggedy:

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Basically what Raz says here:

Raggedy, pre-love? He's the epitome of that beggar you see on the way to work, hasn't washed himself in weeks, has a smell that is more commonly associated with skunks and garbage heaps, might be some color under all the dirt, probably wears a tattered hat that might have had a shape at some point before it got thrown away.

And then he started his slow love-powered transformation into Blueblood, discovering that he was actually dark gold under the accumulated years' worth of dirt, realizing that slouching and scraping took away from his actual height, and generally coming to actually look like an earnest member of Ponyville.
You're right. There have been so many hugs, we need to choose just one. I'd suggest a picture of Raggedy proposing, but he was wearing a harem outfit made for Ragette at the time...

Y'know what? We need that picture anyway.

So, er, yeah. With an almost white-yellow mane!

Tectonic:

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Tectonic is a steel gray lighter grey maned cyborg pony who isn't actually a cyborg. He has all the classic cyborg bits; robot claw, jetpack, eye thingie- but none of them are actually part of him. He's totally a lightweight.

And that's it!

Reposted here for great justice!

And nice Filly Faith, by the way!

[Thanqol]

Day 221b: Alternate Reality #7: Panopticon Ministry

Jayden Mavel burned down a subway station. It was haunted with a psychopathic evil ghost, so it had to be done. But you don't burn down public transport infrastructure in the United States of America without drawing the attention of the Alphabet Agencies. Jayden got wiretapped and her internet was monitored. Out of general anger at being spied on, she began spying on the government. She listened in on a phone conversation between the FBI and Homeland Security. And, being a massive troll, she manipulated the conversation so both sides wound up shouting at each other. She maintained a campaign of low-level trolling against them ever since, doing things like changing all their car radio's pretunes to the local elevator music channel, ordering chainsaws and hockey masks off the internet, and playing incredibly annoying music to those trying to listen in on her.

But, in another life, this attracted the attention of the Eye. Here were several great agencies, hunters and spies, being spied on in turn. The circle was delicious, fascinating, and the Eye saw potential in Jayden Mavel.

It also saw Pride. Jayden would never bow knee to the Eye. She would never willingly serve the Exarchs. That was fine. The Eye didn't need her to know that she served. So it began a game, working through agents, sowing seeds and clues amidst the speech of the intelligence agents who were monitoring Jayden. Jayden became fascinated, becoming convinced she had located an immense conspiracy. As she delved deeper into spying on the government, the Eye left gifts in her path - powerful rotes, fascinating arcane lore, solutions to even the most impossible and terrible problems, such as the Pattern. As Jayden delved deeper, the Eye began to change the direction of the rabbit warren it was building.

Now it was those who were ostensibly on Jayden's side who were part of the conspiracy. First, other Pentacle mages - Jayden discovered 'evidence' that they were Seers and cut her ties with them. Then, her friends - security holes, she had to leave them behind. Soon, it was Jayden, alone, in her secret communications hub, monitoring and spying on every mage in the city. She discovered new friends, others who understood just how deep the conspiracy went, and she spied on them too, just in case.

She doesn't know it, and perhaps never will, but Jayden Mavel now stood as a high ranking Seer of the Throne, receiving personal visions and messages from the Eye, encoded within her paranoid spying. So blinded by her pride, by her own determination to unravel this mystery and inability to accept the idea that she could be taking the wrong path all along, Jayden is the perfect servant, and the Eye's favourite mortal.

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[Lix Lorn]

Day 211a: Diabetus

At the beginning of drawing this piece, Thanqol began shouting out loud, "Highlights! Highlights are a thing that must be learned!"

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Adorable! ^_^