[kbell]

I'm partial to Gwen. I like both. But I really think you should practice jaws and lips first. It would not be a bad idea to just draw them from the influencers. A study than do the whole face.

[debeguiled]

(01-29-2019 11:47 PM)The Catalyst Wrote:  

So it's been a while but it's finished/nearly-finished. I was so frustrated with how I was off on the face/jaw proportions/look so I redid it many times but finally I got it to a point where I made do. As I started to complete it it started coming together, I was scared the end product wouldn't look like her at all. In particular I'm off on the eyes, nose and lips- for some reason although in the photo she looks "vacantly playful"- in my drawing she looks a bit mad. There's probably room for improvement but I don't feel like redoing all over again especially when there's a "disconnect" as to how I feel I can actually draw it better.

I might do some finishing touches before I move on. If there's anything glaringly missing I'd appreciate it if you let me know, ha.

Edit: looking at the computer, the jaw and eyes are way off. I wonder why I can't see this on paper?

You are improving a lot. As Michelangelo said: "Do not waste time, and draw."

You are getting frustrated with yourself for not being perfect.

Even after you get really good, you will find that no artist ever ends up capturing on paper what he sees in his imagination.

You do your best and move on to the next picture.

[The Catalyst]

(01-30-2019 11:08 AM)kbell Wrote:  

I'm partial to Gwen. I like both. But I really think you should practice jaws and lips first. It would not be a bad idea to just draw them from the influencers. A study than do the whole face.

What do you mean by influencers?

[kbell]

Thots. Nicer term.

[The Catalyst]

Any tips on how to stop your pencil lead from breaking, particularly when walking around and carrying your stuff in your bag? I currently draw at home, was considering taking my book and pencils with me but my pencil lead already breaks enough as is.

[kbell]

https://www.jacksonsart.com/blog/2015/10...t-for-you/

Probably one with a loop to hold the pencil and some space between where the lead and the end of the case. Lead holder and mechanical pencils are also fantastic for traveling. Even better if you can bring a utility knife and sand paper to quickly sharpen the lead if it does break. Knife sharpened regular pencils are more tricky and I haven't found a great method for it yet. There are pencil tip guards but they might break the lead too. Thick bore pencils probably wouldn't break.

[The Catalyst]

I tried just doing a rough outline of Gwen, in this picture.





It actually seems faint enough my phone didn't pick up much in this light, but I guess I'm happy with that, it's better than my previous times where I was tempted to really draw things with definition.

I like the idea of drawing the loft?. Seems really cozy and comfortable. I was thinking it might've been a campervan but it seems too big and the seats and roof don't fit with my idea of a campervan.

[kbell]

@catalyst
That's a beautiful yet difficult image to draw. You will have to contend with a background and clothing. Hopefully its a large sheet of a paper!

I'm calling this done. Its rough and not a 100% but I like the feel of it. I think maybe i will attempt a full nude woman. I'm think a playboy bunny from the 50s or 60s. With a natural smile rather than the angry look thots often have.

[The Catalyst]

(02-06-2019 09:37 PM)The Catalyst Wrote:  



I like the idea of drawing the loft?. Seems really cozy and comfortable. I was thinking it might've been a campervan but it seems too big and the seats and roof don't fit with my idea of a campervan.

So after many hours of work and countless more of procrastinating/deferring/putting it off, I finally got it pretty much done. Probably as happy with it as I can be.

I regret choosing a photo with such a small face, it was a nightmare to draw accurately at all. I honestly believe I did the best I could, I'd probably need to be a lot better to draw the face accurately. I was also pretty off with the hair, dirty blonde hair is difficult especially with brown backgrounds.

The rug/couch details I was not a fan of either. To a lesser extent the ceiling too. But I was in too deep to give up and I wanted the scene as a whole to come together. I probably was too focused on the scene, and I might not have drawn the atmosphere well, but I was really drawn to the scene when I started. I did a bunch of measuring of the computer screen and paper to ensure it all came together, the proportions would've been horrifically off otherwise.

Shading was difficult, especially when there was blues and oranges and you didn't know how to shade them relative to the other colors.

Might add some finishing touches, if any of y'all have any good ideas on what I'm horribly missing.

(Mildly off topic) Still am wondering whether it's a campervan or a loft. The windows don't really give me any clues and I'm wondering why the windows look so weird. Like the left windows seem as if outside is really bright, and the right window makes it seem the outside is dark. Also is mainly blue but has orange and grey bits. I am wondering if the right window is a picture frame, or the left windows are actually lights or something.

[kbell]

Your improving, I especially like the background. Your proportions are decent too. Yep full body shots are very difficult to get facial details, you need to work very large to get any sort of details. Much larger than 8x11, probably 14x17 or 18x24 inches drawing pads. You would probably need a standing easel for those too. I use the latter two sizes in figure drawing class.

If you have access try figuring out how to screenshot the instagram pic, than removing all color from it to see the shades. The right window is a painting. The back is the only visible light source, the window.

[Malone]

(03-11-2019 12:29 AM)The Catalyst Wrote:  

(Mildly off topic) Still am wondering whether it's a campervan or a loft. The windows don't really give me any clues and I'm wondering why the windows look so weird. Like the left windows seem as if outside is really bright, and the right window makes it seem the outside is dark. Also is mainly blue but has orange and grey bits. I am wondering if the right window is a picture frame, or the left windows are actually lights or something.

Really? That's obviously a van. The thing on the right is a picture frame with various photos in it. Those windows behind her are the rear door windows.

[The Catalyst]

(03-24-2019 01:15 PM)kbell Wrote:  

Your improving, I especially like the background. Your proportions are decent too. Yep full body shots are very difficult to get facial details, you need to work very large to get any sort of details. Much larger than 8x11, probably 14x17 or 18x24 inches drawing pads. You would probably need a standing easel for those too. I use the latter two sizes in figure drawing class.

If you have access try figuring out how to screenshot the instagram pic, than removing all color from it to see the shades. The right window is a painting. The back is the only visible light source, the window.

(03-24-2019 01:27 PM)Malone Wrote:  

Really? That's obviously a van. The thing on the right is a picture frame with various photos in it. Those windows behind her are the rear door windows.

Thanks for the comments guys.

Yeah I knew from many years ago you could make color photos black and white but for some reason it didn't occur to me to do it in this instance. Seems ridiculously obvious in hindsight.

The easel/large paper is a great suggestion. I will highly consider doing that sometime. As of right now my A4 sketchbook is just really convenient for me so I'll try to work around that. But I am in love with/passionate about the idea of doing full body shots and doing them justice. Might sound kooky but I really do think facial features, and the legs, the whole body, depending on the situation, the whole environment/setting are just all beautiful and worth depicting.

I have seen another pic with the caption it was from surfing, so I looked up campervan interiors and it looked pretty similar. Honestly what threw me off was the couch didn't seem like a typical car interior, and the fact that to me the picture and picture frame looked so much like a window. I wonder if that's shows how good that picture is or how bad my ability to tell windows from pictures is.

Seeing it as a picture frame does make everything else make total sense though.

Edit: I am looking into gesture/figure drawing. It doesn't look as fun as what I'm doing right now but I can definitely see that it's super helpful for improving. I'll keep this in mind if I start hitting plateaus.

[kbell]

But consider practicing features individually, and proportion studies. Once you get good at them at individual level, your artwork will improve faster than just doing big scenes like this. For A4 your kind of limited to head shots, to head and shoulders for decent detailing.

Gesture drawing is fun since its so fast. We are are talking 30 second to 5 minute poses. You only have time to get movement lines! Its much harder than drawing from pictures, since the person moves. You do get slow poses. The longest I've done is 20 minutes. There are 3 hour poses but I'm not ready yet. The model and you get breaks I believe every 25 minutes. My back probably can't take it until I figure proper posture for figure sketches.

Not super detailed but I find if I crop out a lot of the body on the longer pictures I get more decent drawings. It helps prevent you from drawing stiff poses when you do normal work, and you have to use shoulder to draw smooth enough. It will translate to smoother lines. Line quality is everything later on.