Results 121 to 150 of 314
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2012-03-27, 06:38 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Jan 2012
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- Stockholm, Sweden
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Re: The Fresh Prince's Daily Draw Challenge
Well, if the moderators actually thought of it as a rules violation they would have called someone on it by now I guess. I'm stupid.
Generally one foot is flat on the ground as the other comes forwards for a slow walk. The faster you're moving the less your feet touch the ground.
The Lackadaisy was the one I was going to suggest. Otherwise my recommendation is to look at cartoons. Cartoon figures have very expressive faces, and a well designed character can tell you a lot about their personality from their default expression and pose.
Your characters all look extremely generic, which is a shame...
...because I know you're capable of excellent design - that Metal Mask dragon is a good example.
That's also why I'm pressing you so hard to try different styles and genres of art; you've got good technical skills but you're using them on a rather unappealing style.
Check Trazoi's drawthread for all my links to and discussion of character design.
In addition, come up with a few visually distinct characters and start drawing them and variations of them. My Alternate Reality sequence of Jaydens was extremely educational; what changes, what stays the same?
You owe it to yourself to broaden your horizons.
EDIT: Do this. Right now. No questions.
Oh No.
I have very real reason not to trust in my ability to draw the same distinct and recognizable face twice as is, let alone twenty times. I would shed blood over that thing were I stupid enough to try. Where you see a suitable first encounter I'm seeing the final boss.
And you throw this on me on a Tuesday no less.
And speaking of Tuesdays, some silly garbage.
Spoiler
The blank faces aren't there to spite you, I am studying facial structure and composition in general here too.Last edited by PrinceAquilaDei; 2012-03-27 at 06:45 PM.
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2012-03-27, 06:56 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2009
Re: The Fresh Prince's Daily Draw Challenge
It's a pretty strong idea in my head but I'm at a bit of a loss how to articulate it. Different styles can communicate different assumptions?
That was hurtful. How exactly is that picture positive proof of my abilities, when all I did was copy and merge two effective designs from better artists?
And I'm not going to ignore this completely, honest.
Hadn't finished that one yet, will do. Thanks.
Infact I probably would draw such pictures if I had any sort of OC's of my own that weren't just halfbaked and incomplete. We'll see, I might surprise you.
No.
Oh No.
I have reason not to trust in my ability to draw the same distinct and recognizable face twice as is, let alone twenty. I would shed blood over that thing were I stupid enough to try. Where you see a suitable first encounter I'm seeing the final boss.
And you throw this on me on a Tuesday no less.
Day 58. My first real foray into silhouettes.
Day 69. I did this after just over a month of owning a tablet. I had never tried anything remotely as ambitious as this before.
Day 135. First real attempt at a complex mechanical device.
Day 182. First ever attempt at paints.
Heck, day 1. "I'm going to open with me trying to do something that's absolutely beyond my reach and go for a lifelike drawing."
Each of those things were way, way beyond my abilities when I did them, and they've got distinct flaws as a result. But, and this is the important bit, the process of attempting the impossible taught me what it's like to try.
Doesn't matter if you do it wrong. Losing is fun. Believe me on this.Last edited by Thanqol; 2012-03-27 at 06:58 PM.
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2012-03-28, 06:23 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Jan 2012
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- Stockholm, Sweden
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Re: The Fresh Prince's Daily Draw Challenge
A fair bit of design is recognising, recombining and applying the right elements. If you want another example of good design, the skeleton in the bathrobe has a solid thematic. Try redesigning, say, Superman. What do you keep and what do you change?
Who is this?
Spoiler
On second thought this is a crappy attempt, the outfit is basically lifted out of other people's pictures. In my quasi-defense, I made use of no reference pictures whatsoever, so the theft is very non-specific.
Do you think I should mess about with this style some more, or maybe colour this one?
Character design is the thing I obsess over the most in my drawing and writing so I'm pretty boned up on the topic if you have questions.
Well clearly the correct response is to draw my characters until you come up with your own.
...
Doesn't matter if you do it wrong. Losing is fun. Believe me on this.
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2012-03-28, 08:17 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2009
Re: The Fresh Prince's Daily Draw Challenge
I don't recognise the character but that probably comes as much down to me being an uncultured berk as much as anything. I'm mainly going off the hairstyle and no-one that immediately comes to mind shares it.
However, it's a successful design because I can immediately tell that the character is
- Athletic
- Upbeat/bouncy
- Perhaps scheming, perhaps teasing?
There's a personality there! That's what we're after. Play with the style some more, I'd say.
This answer is so self evident and obvious it is probably the answer to a number of completely unrelated questions.
You make a compelling case. Tell you what, I'll draw that sometime during the next week, but I'm not promising to upload it here, especially not if it's going to be purely digital (I'll put something else here though, of course).
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2012-03-28, 08:25 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Jan 2012
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- Stockholm, Sweden
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Re: The Fresh Prince's Daily Draw Challenge
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2012-03-28, 08:29 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2009
Re: The Fresh Prince's Daily Draw Challenge
Last edited by Thanqol; 2012-03-28 at 08:29 PM.
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2012-03-29, 07:30 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jan 2011
- Location
- Somewhere south of Hell
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Re: The Fresh Prince's Daily Draw Challenge
Indeed. We constantly remind ourself of how ineffective we are as a way of keeping perspective; few things are as bad as feeling like the Bad Ass Protagonist but really you're the Comedy Relief. Fret not! He may look like he beats himself up, but there is a core of utter narcissism wrapped in an alloy of integrity and smarm, and a keen understanding of self worth.
The cyan and yellow in skin is one of those things that looks so beautiful and natural when anypony else but us does it. Which means you are mathematically guaranteed benefit!
This is great stuff, thanks!
Now one wonders if one could well imagine how an animal body would work? To the testing grounds!
But yes, the simplest of breakdowns are often best. Good anatomy images can only be found by already knowing what you're looking for, sadly. And since you have to have a good sketch to know what you're looking for... Took us a good mob to understand how the back works.
Your lack of a thread is outragous, you know we love your stuff.
Thanks by the way, going through here again gave us the inspiration to really crack down on a work we need to do.
Haven't begun drawing DBC's picture yet, going to get right to that now, but I just got finished with the other drawing and had to get it up now because finishing it made me feel so happy and proud.
Spoiler
Also, we like the colors.
Future works are neat... I will have to work on that. How do you manage all the layers? I cannot stand messy layers. I have break downs that my layers aren't as coordinated, planned and neat as the real artists. I can never seem to get the folders or the layering right... Yeah.
After Thanqol's statement I checked the jeans. They really are good! The default view was zoomed out enough I didn't notice. Pity.
Well, we'll give that a try, but...
If the experiment was binary "can this be done" then a no answer can be considered a failure without being in violation of scientific process.
Besides, artists make terrible scientists. Scientists don't have souls. Torally can't wait for this to spark discussion with the Druid Droid :3
Style is as much a symptom as a purpose. The bone structure of your hand, how you hold your arm, nd how strong you are can all affect it because they cause consistent mechanical effects on drawings. Same with mental constructs. Style is not something you want to purposefully develop, per se, but it's not something to be ashamed of! Relax, test your bounds, but don't freak out because you have bounds to test.
And also, of course a very valid criticism. I will take care not to repeat that mistake.
So, It's a Tuesday again, And I made something unoriginal, quick and pretentious.
Spoiler
While Compulsively we wish to point out that the ease of anime chicks can actually segue nicely into making controlled changes for complete understanding of each detail, as opposed to Thanqol's tendency to make a glorious mess, light it all on fire, and decide what to draw based on whether the smoke was scratched or more oily... That is, pick out a single detail, call it a success, Nd ignore the casualties... You're a terrible government Thanqol.
He is rather correct on our understanding of things however.
Looks like the bloke has some pelvic troubles, positioning wise, but otherwise solid.
Ah, bold move, that. Actually writing 'vista goes here'? We usually get too lazy, and avoid backgrounds "so you can focus on the characters" or other such drivel. Haha.
>>;
Hm. Something about your work seems to make anatomy sketches look so much funner than they are when I do them. Your poses are fun-looking. Dynamic; a lot of them aren't sustainable here, and so look like they are in motion.
EDIT: Wow this thread is turning lonely. Is this because I don't comment enough on your threads or just because you all think I'm an obtuse jerk?
Luckily, we bit the bullet
So anyway, I saw what I could get down in a set time, namely forty minutes, and now I'm here to inflict the terror on you all.
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2012-03-29, 07:36 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2009
Re: The Fresh Prince's Daily Draw Challenge
This is the most apt summary I've heard about my approach to learning to draw.
But my glorious messes have become steadily more glorious as time has gone on! The damage is done but the lesson is irreversible.
And yes, this approach would make a terrible government. But give me five years with Sim City before making me mayor and I'd be the best administrator of all time!
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2012-03-29, 09:08 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Jan 2012
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- Stockholm, Sweden
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Re: The Fresh Prince's Daily Draw Challenge
SiuiS Megapost? It's like Christmas in here! 8D
Should have thunked of that, but it's easily corrected if I return to it.
You are a Bro among Bros Siuis, never think anything else.
But yes, the simplest of breakdowns are often best. Good anatomy images can only be found by already knowing what you're looking for, sadly. And since you have to have a good sketch to know what you're looking for... Took us a good mob to understand how the back works.
Couldn't commit, sadly. My schedule got all off-kilter! I was pushed off the the side of the brain while he did... Random stuff. Indulgence in devotion of time. It payed off in renewed focus and understanding, but we are now behind
Thanks by the way, going through here again gave us the inspiration to really crack down on a work we need to do.
What is the inspiration here? There is a hint of recurrence. You touch on this subject a lot; space, spires, vast uninhabitable landscapes under harsh suns. Deserts, obelisks and men amongst them, alien to each other. It's fascinating.
Also, we like the colors.
Originally I actually drew a blue sky with a yellow sunburst, but then I started listening to this and there was basically no other way to go about it.
So I guess that it was very much inspired by the Green sun from Homestuck, and I guess there are some 40k Necron influences there too.
And on those recurring elements, my father made quite similar observations a couple of weeks ago. I can't really nail it down right now, but exploration, the impersonal and the alien are all big things for me. Maybe I'll dedicate a month to fantastical land or city-scapes like Thanqol did with dragons sometime in the future.
Future works are neat... I will have to work on that. How do you manage all the layers? I cannot stand messy layers. I have break downs that my layers aren't as coordinated, planned and neat as the real artists. I can never seem to get the folders or the layering right... Yeah.
After Thanqol's statement I checked the jeans. They really are good! The default view was zoomed out enough I didn't notice. Pity.
Style is as much a symptom as a purpose. The bone structure of your hand, how you hold your arm, nd how strong you are can all affect it because they cause consistent mechanical effects on drawings. Same with mental constructs. Style is not something you want to purposefully develop, per se, but it's not something to be ashamed of! Relax, test your bounds, but don't freak out because you have bounds to test.
Ooh, neat. Saved!
While Compulsively we wish to point out that the ease of anime chicks can actually segue nicely into making controlled changes for complete understanding of each detail, as opposed to Thanqol's tendency to make a glorious mess, light it all on fire, and decide what to draw based on whether the smoke was scratched or more oily... That is, pick out a single detail, call it a success, Nd ignore the casualties... You're a terrible government Thanqol.
He is rather correct on our understanding of things however.
Looks like the bloke has some pelvic troubles, positioning wise, but otherwise solid.
Ah, bold move, that. Actually writing 'vista goes here'? We usually get too lazy, and avoid backgrounds "so you can focus on the characters" or other such drivel. Haha.
>>;
I think backgrounds are easy, relatively speaking, and it feels good to make a full colour picture every now and then.
Hm. Something about your work seems to make anatomy sketches look so much funner than they are when I do them. Your poses are fun-looking. Dynamic; a lot of them aren't sustainable here, and so look like they are in motion.
We ended up spending a good three days at a time dedicated to one thing and nothing else, in between a monthlong obsession with mass effect 3. We rolled with it, S it was engaging on mental levels other games don't touch; we feel we have learned enough to make it worthwhile. Yet we dropped off the face of Equestria for a while there, didn't we? Sorry. Almost didn't make it here this morning even, out of some strange sense of almost-shame.
Luckily, we bit the bullet
These are all really good for 'speed' sketches. We shall have to put this to the test...
Okay guys, I have to gush a little about comics you don't read now.
SoHomestuckfinallyupdatedagaintodayandTerezitalked withVriska'sancestorwhoisamazingandsweetandnamedAr aneaandwegottoseeanothergodtieroutfitandsheistheSy lphofLightFGSFDS
Aranea, The Sylph of Light.
Spoiler
I'm definitely going to colour this one later.
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2012-03-30, 04:25 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jan 2011
- Location
- Somewhere south of Hell
- Gender
Re: The Fresh Prince's Daily Draw Challenge
Aye. There were a couple times I started in on stuff I wasn't 100% about in Thanqol's thread, and the real artists all called me on it. So I've slowed down on advice that isn't obviously anecdotal.
The problem is that artistic ability often takes the form of heuristic algorithms. Heuristic is a word I've thrown around a lot, but the jist is that art is something we grok, and the best we can do is encode it into metaphors and stories, tell the story; hope they get the story; hope they can follow the ciphers backwards; hope the other person can make sense of the experiential framework.
Understandably, it makes actually telling you stuff really hard. Although there is a certain cameraderie in knowing what the other guy is going through when they say "it's... Like... Okay, so imagine a forest, but it's actually a zoomed in dust molecule, but badly cel-shaded like a video game and... Like, ok, if that had a face. Y'know?" no, I don't know, but I've tried explaining some weird **** I my own in the day, and I feel for you.
Both feet can't be that way unless he's bunny hopping down the street. TINY HANDS.
How goes the brony-ness, Prince?
There's a lot of good colouring and shading here, but I'm dubious about
A) Coloured lines for edges. I'm not even convinced it works for ponies.
B) Faces. You really need to try some new expressions that aren't kinda blank stares.
I'm somewhat psycho, in that if I look at things I can see thin black outlines. Its probably an artefact of my bad vision, but I've seen outlines on almost everything since I was a wee lad. So it's easier for me to deal with; only an improper juxtaposition looks bad. A deep outline, and a face that's rendered through pure shading won't work, just as random black lines for detail won't work on an otherwise all-paint piece.
I have a sort of romance with traditional art though. I feel it has value because of its history. so Thanqol and I differ on whether things require outlines; they don't require them they are defined by them. Silly thanqol.
Lower your standards! You're here to learn, not to win our respect. Respect is a by-product of successful learning; don't worry about embarrassment.
It's the book or something, it looks like a skirt panel. And the 'Barbie toe' of the right leg, which according to Top Model or something, makes feet look more feminine.
Walk Cycles, How do they even work.
As the body gears up into a run, you'll get several postures. The running man style is upright, controlling breathing, similar superficially to an accelerated walking animation. In truth it's closer to high-speed moon walking, shooting the boy forward by rolling the rear foot. A sprint is more leaned forward, the feet contacting at the balls of the feet only, which splay to displace energy, grip the terrain, and kick off. Efficiency drops off pretty quickly at this point, as the body suffers more trauma and exerts more energy for a disproportionate boost in speed - usually. Adrenaline or other strong impetus can make the leaning forward run into a full body motion, generating trememndous force outward (and thus, remarkable speed). Tears you up though, as a run with murderous intent is full body.
Fun fact: to build muscle, run. To burn fat, power walk for a couple hours. Differences in metabolic action priorities.
B) Faces? Expressions? My Comfort zone is somewhere on a different continent and probably ravaged by Mongol hordes. Yes, I will give this the attention it deserves, sooner rather than later, although odds are you might not see the initial results.
Are there any resources or tutorials on the subject that you found useful? I can probably start with that tutorial made by the artist of Lackadaisy, I think he knows what he was talking about.
Faces are discernible by fatty deposits, muscular structures, and bony protrusions. On a lot of your heads, there is no variation below the nasal bone. Same chin, same jawline, same cheeks, same head shape. This is where generic anime girls come in handy!
Spoiler
Sadly, the constraints o the canvas screwed with my head, and Faithful came out about 30% proportionally bigger, though they were intended to be wide by side. C'est la vie.
Pictured are Metal Mask and Faithful Song. the heart-shaped face enhances Faith's specific attributes, and gives a coy sense of head tilt. Mask uses the plain-Jane oval, with straight on features, because withot her mask she presents as naked/incomplete. Midnight would have a round head with pointy chin; Phoe has a longer oval face with a svelte thinness, and twinkling eyes. Starry has elfin features. Istana has strong bone structure and a sharp, aquiline(?) nose, like an Arabian horselord. Naiholi had wide cheekbones, and a dainty nose. Þrenoiðia has a beautiful face if you ignore her unfortunately masculine jaw.
The head can be altered on the outside into a desired shape, then just let the features swim around inside to find nice, symmetrical places to settle.
On the boy end, we have the character Raz, who came out looking too old, and hardened, due to the prominent bone structure.
Spoiler
The lackadaisy tutorial summarizes and clarifies everything I've ever seen on races, ever. The only thing it doesn't touch on, I learned from old comics, and coloring books of all places; minimize detail while maintaining distinctiveness. A well designed character can be seen in the background as a jawline, a smile, and three penstrokes to make the hair, and you'll know who they are. The major fun I've had is in making a mouth with lips, and that little dimple bit right under the nose (whatever that's called). A page and a half of lips, smiling, snarling, pouting. Fun times.
Suppose I'll have to handle it with other folks, try it out.
I believe it has to do with the nondescript skull shape. We are seeing that across gender and age groups, all your characters have the same bone structure in relative length, width and such. It makes all your people's look the same as each other, which sort of diminishes the value of any character.
That was hurtful. How exactly is that picture positive proof of my abilities, when all I did was copy and merge two effective designs from better artists?
Thanqol enjoys the metal shift of coloring my work, because it frees him from constraints of composition and positioning. It's just color within the lines, mostly. Zen. Relaxing. And in no way has my being the line artist diminished the value of his work. So too, does your using components that are already there diminish what you've accomplished.
No.
Oh No.
I have very real reason not to trust in my ability to draw the same distinct and recognizable face twice as is, let alone twenty times. I would shed blood over that thing were I stupid enough to try. Where you see a suitable first encounter I'm seeing the final boss.
And you throw this on me on a Tuesday no less.
And speaking of Tuesdays, some silly garbage.
Spoiler
The blank faces aren't there to spite you, I am studying facial structure and composition in general here too.
And you are an artist. Which means you're a masochist. Which means you're going to do this, eventually. We all know the pride of having more skill later wont really overcome that nagging shame of turning down the challenge, but the relief from getting this damn face thing out of the way now will exceed the pain of seeing how "bad" you do by a wide margin.
Come on, mate! Into the breach! Semper Fi.
I've got it. The backgrounds and such tend to take precedence, and your characters often feel like they are an addition to the piece, as opposed to the focus. That may be because of your layering method. Hm.
Character design is the thing I obsess over the most in my drawing and writing so I'm pretty boned up on the topic if you have questions.
Well clearly the correct response is to draw my characters until you come up with your own.
Let me grab some examples of things that I was 100% sure were final boss encounters that I would be completely unable to do at all:
Day 58. My first real foray into silhouettes.
Day 69. I did this after just over a month of owning a tablet. I had never tried anything remotely as ambitious as this before.
Day 135. First real attempt at a complex mechanical device.
Day 182. First ever attempt at paints.
Heck, day 1. "I'm going to open with me trying to do something that's absolutely beyond my reach and go for a lifelike drawing."
Each of those things were way, way beyond my abilities when I did them, and they've got distinct flaws as a result. But, and this is the important bit, the process of attempting the impossible taught me what it's like to try.
Doesn't matter if you do it wrong. Losing is fun. Believe me on this.
Everything I've ever wanted to know about digital at. In avian form. "hey thanq, how'd you do that?" "dunno. Kinda sneezed, and there it was."
[QUOTE=Thanqol;12976454]This is the most apt summary I've heard about my approach to learning to draw.
But my glorious messes have become steadily more glorious as time has gone on! The damage is done but the lesson is irreversible.[quote]
This is true. I cannot easily stomach the intermediate failure though. That's what kicked me off drawing for a couple years. I need to produce something of minimum quality, as part of my character. Really need to reverse that...
And yes, this approach would make a terrible government. But give me five years with Sim City before making me mayor and I'd be the best administrator of all time!
Happy to deliver.
Google image searches on human anatomy universally yield a lot of squicky results, but I have a few good paper resources on hand.
Oddly, as I get older, shock-value increases because my relative framework is more able to tell my brain what that is actually like >_<
I don't think this should discourage you really, it's not like everyone maintaining threads around here updates daily.
Though with O:Faust it may be a good while before I have actual resources on line with 300.
Okay, why is the only one who recognizes the transcendental beauty of this piece the man with the three inch across screen?
Originally I actually drew a blue sky with a yellow sunburst, but then I started listening to this and there was basically no other way to go about it.
So I guess that it was very much inspired by the Green sun from Homestuck, and I guess there are some 40k Necron influences there too.
And on those recurring elements, my father made quite similar observations a couple of weeks ago. I can't really nail it down right now, but exploration, the impersonal and the alien are all big things for me. Maybe I'll dedicate a month to fantastical land or city-scapes like Thanqol did with dragons sometime in the future.
How do you draw with layers? Flat colours on the first one with shadows and highlights on different ones? I go from the far back of the picture to the front, first layer is the sky, second is the horizon line or whatever constitutes the background and so forth. I don't really plan it out very thoroughly, as you can always sneak new layers between the ones you already have if you want or need to.
But mostly, it's a psychological thing. I cannot know how many layers I will need until I'm done. I cannot make the picture until the layers are in place. It's a terrible system, and one I'll have to just learn how to let go of.
How do you make jeans not look good anyway? They are universally amazing.
It's difficult for me to put this into words... Complete dynamic and interesting pictures are hard, they require more work on perspective, composition, planning, you name it. When all I have to think about is the shape of a man or woman in a vacuum, experimenting with it is much freer.
That explains it. I don't really have any truly powerful gaming hardware so these things generally pass me by.
I need to redecorate.
Very personal though. It evoked everything good abou military living while neatly excisin the bad as superfluous and part of human failing. I find it very personally empowering.
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2012-03-30, 08:51 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jan 2012
- Location
- Stockholm, Sweden
- Gender
Re: The Fresh Prince's Daily Draw Challenge
Maybe I should rename the thread the Nightly Draw Challenge.
Yeah, I hear you.
Not necessarily. He could be trotting!
How goes the brony-ness, Prince?
Interesting.
I'm somewhat psycho, in that if I look at things I can see thin black outlines. Its probably an artefact of my bad vision, but I've seen outlines on almost everything since I was a wee lad. So it's easier for me to deal with; only an improper juxtaposition looks bad. A deep outline, and a face that's rendered through pure shading won't work, just as random black lines for detail won't work on an otherwise all-paint piece.
I have a sort of romance with traditional art though. I feel it has value because of its history. so Thanqol and I differ on whether things require outlines; they don't require them they are defined by them. Silly thanqol.
If at all possible Prince, do this. It is the best possible advice. My inability to listen makes my life hell.
It's the book or something, it looks like a skirt panel. And the 'Barbie toe' of the right leg, which according to Top Model or something, makes feet look more feminine.
Walking is best achieved heel-to-toe of one foot, followed by same with the other. Walking is defined by always having one foot on the ground. A jog, while slower than a power walk, is differentiated by the bouncing. Your body goes into partial free fall, and you require more energy and different muscles to pull it off.
As the body gears up into a run, you'll get several postures. The running man style is upright, controlling breathing, similar superficially to an accelerated walking animation. In truth it's closer to high-speed moon walking, shooting the boy forward by rolling the rear foot. A sprint is more leaned forward, the feet contacting at the balls of the feet only, which splay to displace energy, grip the terrain, and kick off. Efficiency drops off pretty quickly at this point, as the body suffers more trauma and exerts more energy for a disproportionate boost in speed - usually. Adrenaline or other strong impetus can make the leaning forward run into a full body motion, generating trememndous force outward (and thus, remarkable speed). Tears you up though, as a run with murderous intent is full body.
Fun fact: to build muscle, run. To burn fat, power walk for a couple hours. Differences in metabolic action priorities.
Tackle anything that makes you uncomfortable. If it still makes you uncomfortable afterward, Stradle it's chest and punch it repeatedly until it submits. Uh, metaphorically.
Faces are discernible by fatty deposits, muscular structures, and bony protrusions. On a lot of your heads, there is no variation below the nasal bone. Same chin, same jawline, same cheeks, same head shape. This is where generic anime girls come in handy!
Spoiler
Sadly, the constraints o the canvas screwed with my head, and Faithful came out about 30% proportionally bigger, though they were intended to be wide by side. C'est la vie.
Pictured are Metal Mask and Faithful Song. the heart-shaped face enhances Faith's specific attributes, and gives a coy sense of head tilt. Mask uses the plain-Jane oval, with straight on features, because withot her mask she presents as naked/incomplete. Midnight would have a round head with pointy chin; Phoe has a longer oval face with a svelte thinness, and twinkling eyes. Starry has elfin features. Istana has strong bone structure and a sharp, aquiline(?) nose, like an Arabian horselord. Naiholi had wide cheekbones, and a dainty nose. Þrenoiðia has a beautiful face if you ignore her unfortunately masculine jaw.
The head can be altered on the outside into a desired shape, then just let the features swim around inside to find nice, symmetrical places to settle.
On the boy end, we have the character Raz, who came out looking too old, and hardened, due to the prominent bone structure.
Spoiler
The lackadaisy tutorial summarizes and clarifies everything I've ever seen on races, ever. The only thing it doesn't touch on, I learned from old comics, and coloring books of all places; minimize detail while maintaining distinctiveness. A well designed character can be seen in the background as a jawline, a smile, and three penstrokes to make the hair, and you'll know who they are. The major fun I've had is in making a mouth with lips, and that little dimple bit right under the nose (whatever that's called). A page and a half of lips, smiling, snarling, pouting. Fun times.
I believe it has to do with the nondescript skull shape. We are seeing that across gender and age groups, all your characters have the same bone structure in relative length, width and such. It makes all your people's look the same as each other, which sort of diminishes the value of any character.
All art is just lines and pigment really. It doesn't matter if you 'copied' something else, you still did a good job of copying it. You have the technical skill to pul off stuff, and make it look elegant. You chose how to combine the dragon, how to cope it and line it, how to compose it, and I can still see it vividly in my head. It was masterful. And it was mastery you pulled off, not something you bought cheaply. That dragon is a testament to what can be done with focus.
Thanqol enjoys the metal shift of coloring my work, because it frees him from constraints of composition and positioning. It's just color within the lines, mostly. Zen. Relaxing. And in no way has my being the line artist diminished the value of his work. So too, does your using components that are already there diminish what you've accomplished.
This is where I saw the jawbone lacking, by the way
And you are an artist. Which means you're a masochist. Which means you're going to do this, eventually. We all know the pride of having more skill later wont really overcome that nagging shame of turning down the challenge, but the relief from getting this damn face thing out of the way now will exceed the pain of seeing how "bad" you do by a wide margin.
Come on, mate! Into the breach! Semper Fi.
I've got it. The backgrounds and such tend to take precedence, and your characters often feel like they are an addition to the piece, as opposed to the focus. That may be because of your layering method. Hm.
Huh. Never thought of that. I used to watch the surgery channel though, so unless I have to actually deal with texture, I can handle a lot of stuff.
Oddly, as I get older, shock-value increases because my relative framework is more able to tell my brain what that is actually like >_<
I have a desktop sitting in my living room, still boxed because we have to rearrange the living room. I'm a couple hundred away from a good tablet, a nice program, and trying to catch up to this glorious bastard we've been talking to.
Though with O:Faust it may be a good while before I have actual resources on line with 300.
That would work well, but I think your best bet is to focus on doing things backwards; think of a scene, draw the characters, and then build the background around them. I think it will really help your composition, make the characters pop.
I draw character-focused pictures. Skeletons/outlines on the bottom, master outline on top so I can see what I'm doing, various colors and textures and different limbs and clothing and such on layers between. Folders everywhere.
But mostly, it's a psychological thing. I cannot know how many layers I will need until I'm done. I cannot make the picture until the layers are in place. It's a terrible system, and one I'll have to just learn how to let go of.
Moose knuckle.
I see. That jives well. I suppose I will have to divorce the guy from the my assumed background. I may be able to put that together myself though.
I can't even say its your loss. But the passive imagery along with the story and my own ruminations made a lot of serendipitous moments pop out at me. I was walking, just turning my camera around this lounge on the ship, looking at all the small details. The tidiness impressed me. And it all clicked. A mans mind is reflected in and a reflection of the place he calls his own.
I need to redecorate.
Very personal though. It evoked everything good abou military living while neatly excisin the bad as superfluous and part of human failing. I find it very personally empowering.
Man, Star Control 2 is a great game. It's half a year year older than me and it still holds up.
Started on and didn't get finished with the commodore's belated birthday picture, just going to show how far along I've got.
SpoilerSpoiler
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2012-03-31, 08:23 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: The Fresh Prince's Daily Draw Challenge
Wait, this wasn't a birthday present this was a thank you gift I owed him for murdering me.
SpoilerLast edited by PrinceAquilaDei; 2012-03-31 at 08:24 PM.
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2012-03-31, 08:43 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: The Fresh Prince's Daily Draw Challenge
Oooooooooh, how did I miss this? *Saves, notes*
When this came up the first time, I tried it with Mask the original, non female hooded critter, to show as much emotion as I could without eyebrows or eyeshadow differentiation. I gave up after two masks because I couldn't get the design to sit proper.
Suppose I'll have to handle it with other folks, try it out.
Thanqol enjoys the metal shift of coloring my work, because it frees him from constraints of composition and positioning. It's just color within the lines, mostly. Zen. Relaxing. And in no way has my being the line artist diminished the value of his work. So too, does your using components that are already there diminish what you've accomplished.
Alright. Time to draw all the Jayden.
Damn your eyes and may the devil swallow you sideways and clench his bowels while you're in transit! That blasted dove!
Everything I've ever wanted to know about digital at. In avian form. "hey thanq, how'd you do that?" "dunno. Kinda sneezed, and there it was."
Marvellous.
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2012-04-01, 04:59 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: The Fresh Prince's Daily Draw Challenge
0u0
If you never want to take that picture seriously again, just pretend that he is singing "What's up" like He-man.
So I did this thing, and it probably isn't the last we see of these three either. I'm going to see where i can take this design, see where simplifying it even further takes me. You may notice I made a token effort not to sameface quite as hard as usual.
Spoiler
I'm just going to warn you all in advance, I may possibly go crazier and start a webcomic like thing this summer/winter (International audiences, ho!).
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2012-04-01, 07:34 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: The Fresh Prince's Daily Draw Challenge
He'd do it too.
I don't know what that face is.
So I did this thing, and it probably isn't the last we see of these three either. I'm going to see where i can take this design, see where simplifying it even further takes me. You may notice I made a token effort not to sameface quite as hard as usual.
Spoiler
I'm just going to warn you all in advance, I may possibly go crazier and start a webcomic like thing this summer/winter (International audiences, ho!).
They're meant to be placed halfway down the leg, but an eyeballing of those proportions suggests Rainbow's hips should be about where the hand on her hip is. Stylisation has - oh drat, I can't link you to my examples because the site's down for April Fools. Rules to go by for realistic pictures are legs are half the length of the body and knees are at the halfway point of the legs.
Also, Rainbow's hair looks weirdly curly. Other than that, it's working out, looking forwards to seeing it progress.Last edited by Thanqol; 2012-04-01 at 07:46 PM.
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2012-04-02, 04:56 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: The Fresh Prince's Daily Draw Challenge
Pardon the injoke. It's a ghost in a robot trying to smile.
Ah, I realise where the dissonance is coming from. They're all lacking knees! Knees suck and are hard in general
They're meant to be placed halfway down the leg, but an eyeballing of those proportions suggests Rainbow's hips should be about where the hand on her hip is. Stylisation has - oh drat, I can't link you to my examples because the site's down for April Fools. Rules to go by for realistic pictures are legs are half the length of the body and knees are at the halfway point of the legs.
Also, Rainbow's hair looks weirdly curly. Other than that, it's working out, looking forwards to seeing it progress.
So I started doodling on Diego Havoc's picture, which proved a little harder than I had thought. It will probably be done by Wednesday.
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2012-04-02, 07:45 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: The Fresh Prince's Daily Draw Challenge
Homestuuuuuuck
I persume you would think it prudent to pay lip service to what knees actually look like no matter how much I simplify it. More experimentation is necessary.
Style 1: Justice League
Since this is an animation style, it's necessarily simplified and slick, and since it's a superhero style it makes everyone quite muscular. The knee is the narrowest point of the leg in this style.
Style 2: Dresden Codak
This is one of my favourite fight scenes ever. Note that in the distant shots the knees aren't marked and the legs just narrow as they go towards the feet; this is a standard for chibi/minimalist shots. In the closer shots they're still relatively small and thus the knee only needs minimal detail; barely a bump in some shots. There's a lot more leeway for people with loose pants.
Can't find a good shot of my other example yet, I'll get back to you.
This is shameful though, As I meant to keep the leg length correct (if not even exaggerated in Dash's case). Is the site up now, what's it called?
I need to stare at Dash's mane some more, obviously.
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2012-04-03, 05:20 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: The Fresh Prince's Daily Draw Challenge
Now I'm curious, you've already admitted to listening to the music in your drawthread, what do you think of Homestuck?
(And I might as well warn you, there might be a lot of Homestuck fanwork in the near future here.)
Yeah, I'll grab some examples -
Style 1: Justice League
Since this is an animation style, it's necessarily simplified and slick, and since it's a superhero style it makes everyone quite muscular. The knee is the narrowest point of the leg in this style.
Style 2: Dresden Codak
This is one of my favourite fight scenes ever. Note that in the distant shots the knees aren't marked and the legs just narrow as they go towards the feet; this is a standard for chibi/minimalist shots. In the closer shots they're still relatively small and thus the knee only needs minimal detail; barely a bump in some shots. There's a lot more leeway for people with loose pants.
Can't find a good shot of my other example yet, I'll get back to you.
Wait, no, art, will study.
Yeah, you got the length right, but if you misplace the visual halfway point then it'll look just as weird.
Always seen her having a consistency like this
You know what day it is, I only got this done.
Spoiler
Do you think this is an improvement on the previous ones?
These next couple of days I'll be distracted with birthday gifts, but I'll be back on this again by the weekend.
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2012-04-03, 06:29 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: The Fresh Prince's Daily Draw Challenge
I'm maybe 65 pages in after everyone yelled at me about it forever. The introduction is dull and impenetrable and about some guy with a ridiculous inventory system and apparently it transforms into some kind of time travelling story about demons later.
I'm not hooked yet, but it's open in a tab so I'll get around to it eventually. Music's all right; Cascade made it onto my mp3 player, but it's kind of repetitive. A situational listen.
(And I might as well warn you, there might be a lot of Homestuck fanwork in the near future here.)
Huh, if anything the Dominic snarkers were understating how hardcore transhumanist that comic was(/distracted).
Wait, no, art, will study.
But the art is amazing, sometimes the humour is deep and excellent, and the character design is masterful.
Do you think this is an improvement on the previous ones?
These next couple of days I'll be distracted with birthday gifts, but I'll be back on this again by the weekend.
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2012-04-04, 04:26 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: The Fresh Prince's Daily Draw Challenge
Yeah, that all sounds about right. It's really cool of you to stick with it, way too many just fold over and quit before they've read fifteen pages. Do tell me if it grows on you later.
As long as you keep away from MS paint.
Oh, it's bananas transhumanist. Dresden Codak is most analogous to French Auvant Guarde cinema - deep, intellectual, incomprehensible, beautiful and sporadically updating.
But the art is amazing, sometimes the humour is deep and excellent, and the character design is masterful.
I'd say so, though my art brain part is not the most switched on this morning.
I'm sorry, there are some technical difficulties over here, somewhere between brain and hand. This is all just a momentary lull of annoyance and sleep deprivation, it'll let up on Friday or Saturday, promise.
Ponies on Tandem bikes is a much trickier motive than I gave it credit for, and today's attempt was kind of shameful, really.
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2012-04-05, 04:08 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: The Fresh Prince's Daily Draw Challenge
The knee is a metal benchmark as much as physical. Somehow, drawing a figure while keeping in mind where the knee is will make the picture look right, even if it is identical to a picture without that knowledge kept in mind. Kind of like how 3/4 time and 8/12 time are the same in music but not.
Or something. Ask Vbob.
Considering it.
I'm sorry, there are some technical difficulties over here, somewhere between brain and hand. This is all just a momentary lull of annoyance and sleep deprivation, it'll let up on Friday or Saturday, promise.
Ponies on Tandem bikes is a much trickier motive than I gave it credit for, and today's attempt was kind of shameful, really.
Try drawing the ponies in the right position, and then putting a bike under them. Attacking from a different angle might be the ticket.
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2012-04-05, 06:49 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: The Fresh Prince's Daily Draw Challenge
One must know the rules before one can break them and fear is the mindkiller.
Incidentally I've had my father try to explain how that music thing works a couple of times already to no avail. Which is even more funny because he is a bassist.
Considering it.
I don't mean to gush, but I genuinely think it is one of the best coming of age stories ever written, but boy does it take it's sweet time getting there.
Maybe we should be talking of something I'm not a total junkie fanboy of before I embarrass myself more than usual.
Know that feel. Why are harems so hardto draw?!
Try drawing the ponies in the right position, and then putting a bike under them. Attacking from a different angle might be the ticket.
Speaking of.
Spoiler
Colour tomorrow.
EDIT: the largest fault I can see is the relative head size, but that will probably not be all that hard to fix.Last edited by PrinceAquilaDei; 2012-04-05 at 06:56 PM.
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2012-04-06, 09:13 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: The Fresh Prince's Daily Draw Challenge
Making this was fun.
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2012-04-07, 08:22 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: The Fresh Prince's Daily Draw Challenge
And now for something completely different!
Sorry this is late.
Drawings just wouldn't come this evening, until this mysterious ship entered my mind.
SpoilerSpoiler
Back to whatever I was supposed to be doing tomorrow!Last edited by PrinceAquilaDei; 2012-04-07 at 08:23 PM.
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2012-04-07, 08:26 PM (ISO 8601)
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2012-04-07, 08:34 PM (ISO 8601)
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2012-04-07, 08:38 PM (ISO 8601)
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2012-04-07, 08:44 PM (ISO 8601)
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2012-04-07, 08:46 PM (ISO 8601)
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2012-04-08, 08:33 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: The Fresh Prince's Daily Draw Challenge
If there was any 'ship in, well, anything, I cared enough about you'd probably have gotten a picture like this in response.
A brief detour within last week's subject, and some more Homestuck fanart.
Spoiler
Obviously I should perfect the depressed, vacant look and the angry scowl so I can make a career in videogame art design.