/beg/ - THE BEGINNER THREAD

[Anonymous No.3299471]

IF YOU ARE A /BEG/INNER IN ART, please use this thread to post pieces for critique or ask for advice. We should not have to make new threads or post in the Drawthread with our fundamental exercises.

Feel free to post even the smallest exercise you have done to show you are still trying, do not give up, make someone proud.

RESIZE YOUR IMAGES TO ~1000 PIXELS:

#1)
>screenshot the image and post that instead

#2)
>change camera capture settings to something smaller

#3)
>send to computer and resize in MSPaint

→ →
There's a new (and cleaner) sticky in town! You can see it at:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1uwaXKU7ev6Tw_or__o8ARpUb6r2rCZYJGqwSFV9AD98/edit#bookmark=id.15jx3pyuimvj

TRY TO BE MORE ACTIVE AND GIVE PEOPLE SOME FEEDBACK - many studies are left unreplied, which is a bit sad and can be quite demotivating for the people that try their best to improve, but are left directionless.

PREVIOUS THREAD: >>3294426

[Anonymous No.3299473]

ESSENTIALS:

>>>/ic/thread/3023643
Links to many art books including as Keys to Drawing (Dodson), Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain (Edwards), Perspective Made Easy (Norling), Color and Light (Gurney), The Vilppu Drawing Manual (Vilppu) and How to Draw (Robertson).

>http://ctrlpaint.com
A website dedicated to understanding the basics and process of digital painting, based in Adobe Photoshop. Library of over 200 free videos.

>http://quickposes.com
Free pose library to practice drawing the human figure (as well as a portrait library). Draw at your own pace or set a timer for quick gesture drawings.

>http://youtube.com/user/ProkoTV
Instructional how-to videos covering mostly portrait and figure drawing from fine artist Stan Prokopenko.

>https://www.youtube.com/user/onairvideo
Croquis Cafe - Timed model poses.

>http://drawabox.com
Controversial yet helpful introductory course on the fundamentals of drawing with a focus on understanding the concept of form and thinking in a 3-dimensional mindset while you draw.

>Your local life drawing class
Life drawing is an indispensable tool in your art career. Do not be intimidated based on your skill level - there will always be someone worse than you and someone better than you. Use this opportunity to meet new artists for learning, critique, and growth.

[Anonymous No.3299487]

any tool in krita that will help me with proportions? something to set measurements etc.

[Anonymous No.3299500]

I don't really understand how to use watercolour brushes.

[Anonymous No.3299502]

Should I just copy from real life until proportions and stuff becomes second nature to me or should I also improvise?

[Anonymous No.3299521]

Still trying to get this right.

not 100% accurate but atleast I think I get the gist of it.

gonna try to make these less messy next time with colored lines.

[Anonymous No.3299522]

>>3299521
oops.

[Anonymous No.3299538]

Can't paint colors and got instructed to start with grayscale images. Turns out that I can't do that either. Should I push the values more or wtf

[Anonymous No.3299540]

been drawing for about a year now, did this altered version of scorpian as reptile (first time using pencil crayons I usually do black and white pencil only)

[Anonymous No.3299551]

>>3299425
SAVE ME!!!

[Anonymous No.3299552]

learning proportions
any thoughts

[Anonymous No.3299554]

Thought I could start doing figure drawing, starting with gesture. Butcher me?

[Anonymous No.3299555]

>>3299552
Stop the cock scratch

[Anonymous No.3299556]

>>3299552
I think it would be wise to learn to draw from the shoulder first

heres prokos vid on it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pMC0Cx3Uk84

ctrl+paint also has a video on it in their irl section.

[Anonymous No.3299558]

>>3299552
why are you scribbling them instead of constructing them?

[Anonymous No.3299559]

>>3299554
ditto

[Anonymous No.3299564]

>>3299554
>>3299559
pretty good, much better than that faggot >>3299551

[Anonymous No.3299619]

repostin

[Anonymous No.3299629]

Is draw a box a meme ? My lines are bad and it seems like the only source to improve that.

[Anonymous No.3299631]

Still learning to paint. This time I thought I would attempt some crazy lighting stuff as a means of getting out of my local color comfort zone. Thoughts?

[Anonymous No.3299632]

>>3299629
Nope. Tried it for a while. It's good to get you started.

[Anonymous No.3299633]

No idea what direction to go in, this is all so awful.

[Anonymous No.3299634]

>>3299629
What do you mean your lines are bad? Can you post an example?

[Anonymous No.3299635]

Need help with water reflection, any tips?

[Anonymous No.3299637]

>>3299635
Water reflection mirrors the the view perfectly, but it's indistinct and the edges are wavy.

[Anonymous No.3299642]

>>3299637
I'm doing the exercises on traditional but I dont have any camera with me right now so I drew a few with my lil intuos. The one at the bottom is from the internet, thats kinda what my trad lines look like.

[Anonymous No.3299643]

Went traditional only for a while and now I'm trying to get back into digital. Added the goblin body as a joke. A-am I gonna make it?

[Anonymous No.3299646]

>>3299642
You get better over time. There's a self-critique section on the site and fucking too many posts with their lesson 1 pages without the full homework on the subreddit, whining about why their lines are bad. You have to vomit a shit ton of awful lines to get something decent.

[Anonymous No.3299649]

>>3299646
So not a meme, okay bud, thanks. Can I do these on digital btw? These felt tip pens arent cheap and the paint isnt infinite.

[Anonymous No.3299654]

>>3299643
The nostril is fucky and the hair on the top of the head looks rushed. It reads pretty well, your values look pretty nice. I'm not a fortune teller, but if you keep working you'll see improvement. Your goblin body also adds a certain air of surreal horror to the image. Good job.

[Anonymous No.3299658]

>>3299649
Eeehhh... Maybe? I've mostly done this shit traditional. It's not unheard of: https://imgur.com/a/FpcK6

I use a Rotring Isograph pen which was $25 and a bottle of ink that was like $8. I would go through a Micron pen a week, and they're maybe $1.25-$3 a pop depending how you buy them (Store/multi-packs/etc.) There's also the ability to just use smooth printer paper. The pen will last for years. It's a large up-front price but I think it's worth it.

There's the whole thing with ink and its permanence so that you don't waste your time undoing your shit.

Either way, just read the directions and go through the lessons, and don't be a bitch like a lot of the people on the reddit and discord. Your shit will look awful, and you improve from your mistakes.

[Anonymous No.3299672]

>>3299658
Okay! Thanks!

[Anonymous No.3299673]

Why am i already failing at basic loomis head construction !?!!?!!?! The ones without features dont even look that bad but I can never get the jaw right even after 10 itterations.
After doing a lot of bodies I suddenly noticed that i suck at heads but now it seems like I suck even more. I just wanna draw some porn

[Anonymous No.3299689]

>>3299673
I want to you draw a box at the same angle as each of those heads. This will give me an idea of your sense of 3d space which doesn't seem that great at the moment, but it's definitely fixable.

One box for each of the heads you posted, each from the same angle as each head.

[Anonymous No.3299707]

2 things:

>1: I'm too scared to finish my painting of Ciri I was doing
>2: I don't know what I'm doing im trying to paint my rope snake (hes a snake made of rope) red but i dunno what im doing

[Anonymous No.3299708]

>>3299635
i really love this painting, looks like concept art or something.

how long have u been painting?? how do you practice?

[Anonymous No.3299709]

Drop some critiques if you can

[Anonymous No.3299710]

I'm slowly feeling my way through this. It's starting to look a little better as I push myself to render.

[Anonymous No.3299790]

>>3299710
>i like it.

Is post-apo junk archer good concept or i should abandon this idea now?

[Anonymous No.3299801]

>>3299707
whenever u are scare or frigten
alway rember
happy day

[Anonymous No.3299807]

>>3299790
In theory yeah, I like the sound of it. If you want some critique I'd say your guy looks a little stiff/flat. You seem to have a decent understanding of anatomy but it lacks form. Check out Burne Hogarth's Dynamic Anatomy to help understand muscles in 3d space. Don't worry man, I was drawing just like this a few months ago.

Also, look for reference in stuff like Fallout and Mad Max for post-apocalyptic stuff. I would study them and try to imagine how they would make a functional bow in that world while airing a little bit on the side of impracticality for style's sake, aka rule of cool. Wish I had more for you but I'm more of a fantasy/future guy. Good luck and keep up the good work!

[Anonymous No.3299811]

>>3299709
Well first of all the left hand is backwards. You have a lack of understanding of both form and anatomy, which is fixable with experience and studying. I would suggest Loomis's Fun With A Pencil as an intro to both 3d forms and basic human anatomy. Just do the exercises slow and steady over the course of the week and you should see improvement.

Does this mean you can't also draw fun stuff? No, you can still draw what you want but practicing what the book tells you will help you get better the more you do it. Post your practice every now and then for pointers.

[Anonymous No.3299830]

Progress until now
I think the head is too big hahaha.
Wip yet, I will leave it for next time because I feel I’m not going anywhere. Like I’m just doing useless strokes.

[Anonymous No.3299831]

>>3299830
I’m really pushing myself on this

[Anonymous No.3299835]

[Anonymous No.3299839]

>>3299835
I'm liking it man. You're right, the head is a bit on the large side and her chin is kinda long. Also the placement of her left leg seems weird but I don't know enough about anatomy (legs specifically) to offer a solution. Keep up the good work.

[Anonymous No.3299849]

>>3299487
ur eyes

[Anonymous No.3299855]

first time trying to build a scene observing pictures of myself i took for it. can you tell what the story is here?

[Anonymous No.3299856]

>>3299839
I’m learning a lot by doing this. Thanks for the feedback,
I’m gonna fix them next time. I just need references.

[Anonymous No.3299858]

what does everyone think of my art

[Anonymous No.3299861]

>>3299858
What is it?

[Anonymous No.3299865]

>>3299861
what do you think of my art

[Anonymous No.3299869]

>>3299865
What is it?

[Anonymous No.3299872]

>>3299869
its a human

[Anonymous No.3299876]

>>3299865
It's a doodle. It doesn't really have anything going for it that captures interest or attention.

Look man, if you want to actually get better, post something that accurately displays your knowledge of the fundamentals so that I can make a proper assessment and assist you.

[Anonymous No.3299879]

>>3299876
its like an emotion. im feeling something and i felt like portraying it in the form of a human. i worked on this for a long time and want honest feedback.

[Anonymous No.3299884]

>>3299487
there's a fuckton of useful guides and rulers but you should learn actual measurements and proportions with your eyes.

[Anonymous No.3299885]

4 Feb 2018 - Day 5

11 gestures, referenced @ 90 secs + some asses

Today was a particularly lackluster day for gestures. I saw no good improvements, but I did end up discovering things to work on, including butts and legs. I'll be looking more into landmarks tomorrow. I feel it will benefit me greatly.

I decided to look further into legs/hip connections to take a break. All of my figures tend to have a bizarre connection there where I could never get the obiques to look right and everything looked frumpy. I ended up have a "breakthrough in butt technology" after studying how fat forms along the thighs, and how other artists solve the issue of attaching.

[Anonymous No.3299887]

>>3299879
Okay, honestly you have failed on all accounts. What you've drawn does not look human in any sense of the word nor does it clearly portray any clear emotion or meaning. Additionally, /beg/ is for people that want to learn. /beg/ is for people that accept criticism so that they can improve. If you're just here to talk about your bad fake art and insist it's great, please don't stay long.

Read Loomis's Fun With a Pencil and post your attempts at the exercises. Show me you care, and I'll respond in kind. If not, fuck off.

[Anonymous No.3299890]

>>3299885
Looks really good man. Keep it up. Also, remember that the better you get, the harder it will be for you to see noticeable improvement. Sorry I can't offer any real critique, I'm still working out the kinks of basic anatomy myself.

[Anonymous No.3299892]

>>3299885
You're breaking your lines too often.
For example in the figure in top center you could capture back of the head, torso and leg in one continuous line.
Line economy is one of the most important things in gesture drawing exercise.

You should also try varying line weight for clarity.
Lines that are closer or define figure's silhouette should be thicker than the rest.

[Anonymous No.3299905]

>>3299654
The nostril does look fucky now that I look at it. Thanks for the encouragement anon!

[Anonymous No.3299908]

>>3299890

Thanks man. We're all gonna make it, dude.

>>3299892

I greatly appreciate the tips. I'll definitely try focusing on less lines tomorrow.

Also for the line weight variance, I tend to solely use a hard round brush with little size pressure sensitivity. Should I look into using a pen brush?

I will say one of the biggest things I am struggling on is overlapping lines when certain parts of the body would otherwise be occluded. Should I consider omitting lines of parts that would otherwise be behind something? I feel when I have these lines, it breaks flow entirely but I tend to draw through a lot while constructing and I'm not sure if I should be doing that.

[Anonymous No.3299927]

>>3299471
Posting my weeb shit. Feedback? Red lines?

[Anonymous No.3299930]

>>3299927
>weeb shit
>>3296746

[Anonymous No.3299932]

>>3299908
>I tend to solely use a hard round brush with little size pressure sensitivity. Should I look into using a pen brush?
I usually change brush size using shortcut because I can only draw smooth lines in certain pressure range. But try different ways and see which one works best for you.
>Should I consider omitting lines of parts that would otherwise be behind something?
Drawing through makes it easier for you to preserve correct form and proportions so I would recommend drawing all the lines that define the figure even if they shouldn't be visible. Don't forget to draw them more lightly to not make your drawing too cluttered.

[Anonymous No.3299945]

>>3299807
thanks dude, gotta check this book.

[Anonymous No.3299951]

>>3299927
I'm going to pass over the anatomy/fundamentals spiel because this is alternative, but if you really want to work on that, study figure drawing. Don't listen to that other guy, /beg/ is for anyone that wants to improve.

The main issue isn't even the anatomy, though it is stiff. When I look at this, my eye only goes to the tiny mermaid's really dark fin. There's no contrast so everything I'm SUPPOSED to pay attention to takes a back seat to that tiny dark fin because its the only readable object due to how different it is to everything else. Marco Bucci explains this concept in his video "Visual Language - 10 Minutes To Better Painting - Episode 2", I don't know the rules on links in /ic/ so just google that.

[Anonymous No.3299952]

>>3299708
Thank you. Only around a year or so. To practice I tend to just watch videos on YouTube and see how other artists draw, and try and copy them basically,.

[Anonymous No.3299953]

How exactly do I start practicing anatomy? Do I just copy Hampton's illustrations?

[Anonymous No.3299954]

>>3299953
Well, it depends on your current skill level. Could you post something that exhibits your current anatomy skill? Perhaps some figures?

[Anonymous No.3299960]

>>3299954
Second one is the gesture drawing I did just a couple minutes ago. I'm not even sure if it's correct.

[Anonymous No.3299972]

>>3299960
Okay, so from what I can see, you'll need to start with the book "Fun With A Pencil" by Loomis. Your sense of 3d form is nonexistent but with practice and doing the exercises, you'll catch on quick enough. Your gestures aren't terrible, significantly better than your figures, but that's partially because it's a lot easier to make a stick man appear 3d than it is an object with actual volume.

The book I mentioned above will help you learn basic 3d forms as well as entry level anatomy. TAKE YOUR TIME and do the exercises multiple times over the course of this week and you'll see improvements. Post your progress here for tips and pointers as you go. Good luck and keep going!

[Anonymous No.3299983]

>>3299972
So in doing Fun With A Pencil, do I just pretty much copy everything until I get it? Sorry, brainlet here.

[Anonymous No.3299987]

>>3299972
>>3299983
Oh and, should I finish the book first before moving on to other books?

[Anonymous No.3299996]

I downloaded Krita and made this.

I havent drawn anything since I was in the second grade, looks like I'm picking up where I left off. Is starting off on Krita bad and should I just pick up a pencil and paper instead?

[Anonymous No.3299998]

>>3299987
It really all depends on how quickly you start to understand 3d shapes. You don't just copy the images. Well, I suppose you can for a start, but then after you understand the exercise, you should start trying to do them without looking at the book's examples.

See, you're essentially teaching your brain to think in a new and different way. And brains are finicky, sometimes things quickly stick and sometimes they don't. You'll get to a point when you can draw simple 3d objects from multiple angles without really having to think about it too hard. That's the main goal right now. The lessons in the book are basically just there to give you a way to practice those 3d thinking skills and have fun with it, hence "Fun" With A Pencil. Also, don't think so far ahead. Right now, finishing the book is the least of your worries, just try to absorb the lessons as best you can and post your progress as you go.

[Anonymous No.3300000]

>>3299987
Also, drawing goofy little heads by the book will most likely get boring after awhile. During your non-book practice time, draw some stuff for fun, whatever you want. But try to incorporate your knowledge of 3d forms into the drawing. Try to visualize it while putting it down on paper. I know it's a little weird sounding but as you work with simple 3d objects, your brain will start incorporating that knowledge into your work. But that will take days, weeks, months, who knows, it all depends on how you're wired and how much you practice. Good luck and get reading/drawing.

[Anonymous No.3300006]

>>3299996
It is preferable to start with pencil and paper. If you're an absolute beginner, start with "Fun With A Pencil". I recommend this book so much I'm starting to sound like a broken record. I started with that book and I still use the fundamentals it teaches, although they've taken a more subconscious role.

[Anonymous No.3300011]

>>3300006
Thanks anon, as you can tell by my great drawing I'm an absolute beginner.
I wanted to draw something like pic related eventually so I dont think I'll be a big fan of digital, but it just seemed really accessible

[Anonymous No.3300014]

>>3300006
>Fun With A Pencil
Oh sweet just found the PDF online for free, any other recommendations anon?

[Anonymous No.3300019]

>>3300014
Wait, are you >>3300011 this person? If not, I'd have to know what your skill level is to offer any real recommendations.

As far as anatomy and fundamentals go, Loomis covers a lot in multiple books, there was a dropbox or something at one point, might be in the OP or the sticky but I'm not sure. I've found that once you understand the basics of Loomis and 3d forms, the natural progression is Dynamic Anatomy by Burne Hogarth. It's a bit of a leap from one to the other so be sure to do a lot of practice with what you learn from Loomis before moving on up. You don't want to bog yourself down with knowledge you can't use until you understand the fundamentals that knowledge is built upon.

Once you get that stuff down to a comfortable level (keep in mind you'll always be improving your fundamentals), you'll have to do your own research to find out how to pursue the style of art you want. I'm focusing on learning to paint semi-traditionally so I watch BORODANTE and Marco Bucci on youtube to improve that skill.

[Anonymous No.3300025]

>>3300011
Oh yeah, if you like stuff like that, Loomis is the way to go right now.

Things I would study (not now, way later) if I were you would be architecture, perspective, and maybe graphic design. Look for art that you like and would like to take influence from. Remember to draw for fun as well when you aren't doing the book exercises.

[Anonymous No.3300027]

>>3299998
>>3300000
Thanks a bunch.
To tell you the truth, I've been drawing for around 2 months, and I've done some quarter-decent stuff, but I suddenly felt frustrated because I wasn't getting anywhere. I wanted to practice Loomis but I couldn't understand what I was supposed to do, so thanks a whole lot for this. I'll do my best.

[Anonymous No.3300028]

>>3300025
Yeah that was me, thanks a lot for the recommendations anon. Have a comfy day

[Anonymous No.3300163]

>>3299522
is that supposed to be a shadow? wtf?

[Anonymous No.3300166]

>>3300163
nvm i get it now, but its pretty confusing

[Anonymous No.3300187]

>psychiatrist has put me on a schedule to draw more so i can stop hating it and myself so much
>haven't drawn frequently in like 8 years and all of my prior muscle memory is gone so i'm back to being shit at it
Looks like I'm starting over as a beginner. I hope this isn't overly painful.

[Anonymous No.3300192]

>>3300000
consider yourself checked

[Anonymous No.3300235]

this just dont make sense 2 me.
gonna read Perspective made easy, cuz everytime I realize more how I'm a perspective noob.

>>3300000
geez anon, no need to show off.

[Anonymous No.3300250]

does it matter how i hold a pencil ?

[Anonymous No.3300278]

>>3300250
Firmly grasp it in your hand. But seriously, there's no right way. It's whatever way you hold the pencil when you write. If that ends up being uncomfortable, I suggest looking up better ways but honestly, the normal way is usually fine.

[Anonymous No.3300284]

I need some hint of how to shade face properly

[Anonymous No.3300307]

>>3300284
No offense, but shading isn't your main problem, the face is fucked six ways to sunday. I'm gonna go ahead and assume you didn't do that on purpose. Do some life drawing, study actual human faces (or at least pictures). You have a relative grasp of 3d forms but not quite enough for me to recommend any books. On the bright side, the colors you chose are alright.

[Anonymous No.3300314]

>>3299858
minimalistic

[Anonymous No.3300351]

>>3300307
Thanks for the reply! This was my first attempt at digital painting and before that I had never taken drawing seriously. No doubt I have much to learn about everything.

What do you think about this one?

[Anonymous No.3300359]

>>3300284
You need to memorize the basic proportions first. Break faces down into thirds - bottom of chin to bottom of nose - bottom of nose to brow - brow to hairline

[Anonymous No.3300363]

>>3299885

5 Feb 2018 - Day 6

7 gestures, imagination @120 secs

I feel I made signifact progress. After watching through a lot of Vilppu's gestures sessions last night, it occurred to me that he does, in fact, omit occluded parts of the figure. So I went into today with 3 goals in mind:

1. Only draw the flow of the parts visible and pertinent to actually capturing the gesture.
2. Ensure every line has place and purpose, per >>3299892 (I'll work on line weight another day) and ensure lines are clean.
3. Do not be afraid to draw the head second when the need arises, especially when a foreground object will be taking focus.

I still feel my proportions can get janky, but in most of these, I feel they all read significantly better than my previous exercises. Crits appreciated. I honestly can't wait to start applying some of this stuff to actual pieces.

[Anonymous No.3300367]

>>3300363

Just to add: did these on my lunch. I wish I had more time, but my schedule is so damn tight. I'll likely do a few more digitally when I get home from my second job ~10 or so hours from now.

[Anonymous No.3300445]

>>3299689
my boxes aren't even conform damnit

[Anonymous No.3300476]

>>3299951
Thank you for the feedback!

[Anonymous No.3300477]

>>3300351
Your color choices are surprisingly pleasing to the eye. The funny thing about this is that it's bad in such a way that if you were a famous artist, people would swear up and down that you made those mistakes consciously and with purpose. It's by far the weirdest and most appealing bad drawing I've seen here.

If you're looking to improve, I'd say that you need to study basic 3d forms. Fun With A Pencil by Loomis is the best place to start from absolute zero (and theres a free pdf somewhere on the internet). It'll give you exercises to get your brain thinking in 3d. Don't think that this means you can't still draw stuff like what you posted though, part of learning is applying what you study to the stuff you draw for fun. Good luck and don't forget to post your progress as you go.

[Anonymous No.3300486]

And here I worried nothing'll get done today due laziness or wearyness.

[Anonymous No.3300488]

>>3300445
That's about what I expected. You have a foothold in your 3d knowledge. Enough to get the ball rolling at least. I want you to keep practicing making boxes, cubes, spheres, and any other basic 3d shapes. Also, try drawing simple real life objects. There's a lesson at Ctrl-Paint where you draw your phone laying on a flat surface at different angles. Draw 20 phones and post.

Also, if you find yourself struggling with a certain thing, practice as much as you can and then get a good night's sleep. Sometimes your brain needs time to figure stuff out internally.

[Anonymous No.3300491]

>>3300486
Your values could use some more contrast, but only slightly. You're doing good man, keep it up. A real test of your values would be doing the background crowd as well.

[Anonymous No.3300499]

>>3300359
Thanks for the tip! I'll try this later.

>>3300477

hahaha thank you! That was a very strange compliment, I'm glad I'm good at being bad (?)

I'll look for this book and train more. I'll keep you updated :)

[Anonymous No.3300507]

Is 18 to late to start professionally?
I draw from time to time, but i'm nowhere near the skill required for a proper portfolio.

[Anonymous No.3300509]

>>3300507
show us ur stuff, dawg. Otherwise we cant know.

[Anonymous No.3300512]

Am I doing this right?

[Anonymous No.3300514]

>>3300507
Uh, no? Why would it be

[Anonymous No.3300515]

>>3300512
no fuck u lol

[Anonymous No.3300516]

>>3300512
Uh, no? Why would it be

[Anonymous No.3300517]

>>3300488
Thank you, really didn't expect that level of support on ic. What a pleasure. I'll do these exercise in addition to the head constructions. Thanks again

[Anonymous No.3300518]

>>3300486
Uh, no? Why would it be

[Anonymous No.3300519]

>>3300509
I don't have anything saved to show.

>>3300512
What exercise is that?

[Anonymous No.3300522]

>>3300515
>>3300514
Hidden.

>>3300519
First lesson on drawabox.

[Anonymous No.3300523]

>>3300522
Uh, no? Why would it be

[Anonymous No.3300531]

So here is the first digital painting I've ever finished
Where should my effort go from now on?

[Anonymous No.3300532]

>>3300519
sinix started way past 18, so I guess its never yo late. Unless u have no talent.

[Anonymous No.3300535]

>>3300507
Unless you've recently been diagnosed with a terminal illness, it's not too late. In fact, I started taking art seriously at 18 myself.

If you're starting from zero, the most important thing is to be patient and give your brain time to learn things. If you rush through the beginner shit, you'll end up crippling yourself in more advanced lessons and having to backtrack. Start with Fun With A Pencil by Loomis. It's what I recommend all day one beginners so that they can learn how to think in 3d. Also remember to draw for fun as often as possible.

[Anonymous No.3300542]

>>3300531
Oh hey Araki, finally came back to work on your fundamentals? Jokes aside, before I go into critiquing and pointing you in a direction, I'd like to know if you tried to copy this from an actual jojo image? I'm trying to figure out if the proportions are bad because you still need to work on drawing what you see or if they're bad because you have a fundamental misunderstanding on how humans are shaped. On the bright side, the colors are appealing and very jojo.

I'd like to see an original drawing if you have one. Can you draw a human from scratch? Give it a go and post it. Don't use references, I want to see what you know by heart.

[Anonymous No.3300562]

I think I did okay today. First time trying shading which makes a difference. Also I'm too inpatient for hair, something I need to spend more time practicing.

[Anonymous No.3300564]

>>3300562
Forgot my drawing

[Anonymous No.3300567]

>>3299551
I'VE BECOME SO NUMB!!!

[Anonymous No.3300574]

>>3300518
Got to force myself to draw every now and then before I notice myself abstain from drawing altogether for something of a russian year or two.

[Anonymous No.3300576]

>>3300567
Ah, it looks fine. Try to think about the energy of the pose. Think of where the most force is being applied to, whether it be the weight of their feet resisting the ground or the power behind the axe reeling back before a heavy swing. Specifically in the case of holding something like a sword or what have you, think of that object as an extension of their body, rather than a thing being placed there for the sake of it. For things like gesture, I've heard that studying animation can help as well, if you're interested.

[Anonymous No.3300577]

>be 19
>been doodling for ~4 years now
>still inconsistent and awful as fuck
>want to improve my art so i can have a side hobby that i'm good at
I'll try to read some of these guides and improve. Pic related is a few pictures I doodled from mid 2015 up to last month. All but two of them are what I guess would be considered traced, I copied them from pictures online without adding or changing anything

Should I figure out what I want my style to be like before getting into this? I have a few ideas but I'm not sure when I should decide on what I want to do

[Anonymous No.3300580]

>>3300564
Looks pretty good but I see signs of symbol drawing. Can you draw the same head turned to the left? This can be a very difficult task for some people so don't feel bummed out if it looks bad.

[Anonymous No.3300583]

>>3300577
Style will develop naturally. Do not focus on trying to develop your style at all. Study fundamentals, do drawing exercises, draw many types of things, and don't forget to still draw a lot of stuff that's fun and makes you happy

[Anonymous No.3300588]

>>3300577
The opposite, chisel fundamentals.
You'll get a feel for your artstyle as you have fun and mess around with studies, you'll see that in particular as you experiment with different body proprtions for example.
Challange yourself and avoid your comfort zone per say.
Atta'! Tackle the world, it's all yours for the taking.

[Anonymous No.3300596]

>>3300577
First of all, looking at a picture and copying it is not tracing if you aren't explicitly drawing on top of it. Second, do yourself a favor and just completely forget the term "art style". It is essential to learn how to draw traditionally before delving into stylization. See the old "learn the rules before breaking them" mantra.

Let's start with something simple. Draw this image without flipping it right side up. Do not flip your copy right side up either. Just draw the lines as accurately as you possibly can. It will likely end up looking like a hot pile of ass, most of them do on the first attempt. Just make sure not to flip the picture or your copy until you are finished.

[Anonymous No.3300608]

>>3300583
I've only drawn humanoid things afaik, excluding GLaDOS. Should I draw nature, animals, etc even if I don't plan on drawing them that often?
>>3300596
I'll try that and post results when I'm finished

[Anonymous No.3300610]

Trying to get my head around simplifying forms.

[Anonymous No.3300615]

>>3300608
Yes, you should experiment with drawing all kinds of things. They'll all help you get better at drawing what you want to draw and you might discover new things you like to draw anyways. Besides, you'll probably want to learn how to draw backgrounds eventually anyways. So many people don't do it and regret it later when all their pictures are just characters floating in a space of nothingness with nothing to do.

You can totally focus on drawing people more though.

[Anonymous No.3300625]

>>3299500
Overlap with other colors to shade. Black is your friend.

[Anonymous No.3300632]

>>3300610
Looking good, remember that "simplifying" forms is breaking them down into more basic 3d shapes that are easier to understand. You kind look like you're caught in between trying to simplify the form and trying to make a gesture. The two go hand in hand but I think it's distracting you from seeing THROUGH the forms. Also, don't mess with the face forms right now. Try to get the body down before working those intricate face details.

If seeing through the form is difficult for you, don't be afraid to trace over the subject, kinda like redlining but instead you're teaching yourself how it's supposed to look. Most importantly, TAKE YOUR TIME. Just because it's supposed to be a "simplification" doesn't mean sketch and scribble as quickly as possible. Show some respect to those simple 3d forms and you'll be force to think about them harder.

[Anonymous No.3300655]

Just started on this right here. I never really read books, I’ve just been drawing for all my life. It’s a good emotional outlet, but I feel like my lack of skill is holding me back from really letting it all out in a way that’d give it justice. What do you think so far?

[Anonymous No.3300662]

>>3300655
Looks alright. You have a pretty good understanding of 3d forms but your lack of anatomical knowledge holds you back. Dynamic Anatomy by Burne Hogarth would be the natural progression for you to push yourself further. That book will teach you how to break down the muscles and whatnot into more basic shapes that are easier to draw from multiple complicated angles. Also good job on drawing for so long, you're one of the lucky ones that don't have to start from zero which means you can skip a lot of the entry level Loomis shit.

[Anonymous No.3300663]

>>3300662
Thank you. Hopefully I can get the muscles looking just right. I thought that starting from the shape and placement of the ribcage would help me out with this one

[Anonymous No.3300668]

>tfw i see forms everywhere i see
Holy shit it's like a super power

[Anonymous No.3300683]

>>3300668
Congrats man, push it even further. Try drawing more complex 3d forms, even better, try IMAGINING more complex forms. You can only get stronger from this point on. Keep up the good work.

[Anonymous No.3300686]

>>3300668
Just wait till you start seeing value. It's fucking annoying.

[Anonymous No.3300688]

>>3300663
Yes, you had the right idea, sometimes it's hard to fully follow through with more complex objects. I would also suggest studying basic perspective while you study anatomy and such. It helps you visualize the foreshortening of the more complex 3d forms.

[Anonymous No.3300701]

How would you describe this expression?

I really like it, but I can't find the word for it. I want to google for it for more references.

[Anonymous No.3300716]

>>3300701
A few words that come to mind might be stern, contemplative, bored. It's one of those expressions that are a little hard to pin down because they are mostly contextual.

Like, lets say for instance the kid is looking at a group of people being social and happy. Well in that case it looks like he has a distaste for social interaction.

Or perhaps he just heard someone say something retarded. Well now he's looking at them in disappointment, or possibly boredom. In reality it's a blank facial expression with eyes looking off in a direction focused on something off-screen. Not much you can get from that.

[Anonymous No.3300734]

Is it any good

[Anonymous No.3300737]

>>3300701
presumptuous child done with 'adults' shit

literally the context from the show

[Anonymous No.3300741]

>>3300737
what show

[Anonymous No.3300767]

Just some coloring + shading experimentation, how'd I do?

[Anonymous No.3300769]

>>3300767
Install those updates

[Anonymous No.3300770]

>>3300769
In due time...

[Anonymous No.3300791]

>>3300734
For your first painting ever? Yeah sure. If you want to push yourself to improve, Fun With A Pencil by Loomis is where to start. Don't worry about painting fancy pictures or anything right now. Post questions you have and progress you make as you go.

[Anonymous No.3300797]

I recreated a Bob Ross painting in mspaint. How did I do?

[Anonymous No.3300799]

>>3300767
If we are speaking fundamentally, your picture is extremely flat and rife with symbol drawing, though I'll excuse some of that because you were obviously going for a cartoony thing.

If you want to work on your fundamentals, Loomis Fun With A Pencil is the way to go.

[Anonymous No.3300802]

>>3300797
Actually quite well. Some of the tree colors are a bit hard to look at but yeah, you did good. Keep it up.

[Anonymous No.3300813]

>>3300799
Would it make a difference if I said I was working with animation or at least trying to? I'm not going for realism as I am going for believability. I do like Andrew Loomis though but I dont necessarily like drawing that level of detail.

[Anonymous No.3300822]

posting a few studies
1/3

[Anonymous No.3300823]

>>3300822
2/3

[Anonymous No.3300825]

>>3300823
critiques would be nice

[Anonymous No.3300830]

>>3299858
i know this

[Anonymous No.3300842]

>>3300822
>>3300823
>>3300825
i recognise those eyebrows

[Anonymous No.3300845]

>did 1st exercise in keys to drawing
>assumed just drawing my shoes with my feet crossed wasn't hard
>it was actually hard
What should an absolute beginner be doing to complement Keys to Drawing and the line/ellipses warm-ups?

[Anonymous No.3300870]

>>3300813
It fully depends on what kind of animation you are trying to pursue. If you're just trying to go for newgrounds tier then do whatever you want. But if you're trying to do professional work then you'll need to build on the fundamentals like drawing 3d forms, learning gesture, and color theory to name a few. If anything, the concepts taught in Fun With A Pencil are the most important of the traditional art books. It teaches how to simplify forms so that you can draw them consistently from multiple angles.

But again, I guess that depends on what you're trying to do with your animation. What kind of animation are you wanting to make? Whats your dream goal?

[Anonymous No.3300871]

>>3300845
Ca you post the feet picture? I need to know where you're at skill-wise so I can properly assist you.

[Anonymous No.3300889]

>>3300871

Hi Kyle

[Anonymous No.3300895]

>>3300889
I'm sorry, I don't know who that is? Is it an /ic/ meme?

[Anonymous No.3300923]

>>3300825
Everything looks good. I'd say you should definitely move on to working in color. Your skin tones need work but I'm currently working on that myself so there isn't much I can tell you. I suppose it looks kinda pale in places that might need a little more blood.

Do you have any original work?

[Anonymous No.3300924]

>>3300870
Well, It appears I'll be needing Loomis after all. I guess that's why they call it professional work. Say, this might be a weird question but, is there any potential in my style so far?

[Anonymous No.3300933]

>>3300924
Your style is going to evolve a lot as you get better so don't worry about that

[Anonymous No.3300935]

>>3300825
Start watching istebrak's "critique hour" videos on YouTube. Watch in any order, doesn't matter.

[Anonymous No.3300938]

>>3300871
And that attempt within itself was using up the whole 30 minutes. Feels really hard because I get overwhelmed with what I should draw or do first.

[Anonymous No.3300944]

>>3300924
Normally I tell people to completely forget about "art style" while learning the basics. It just gets in the way. Your style will develop as you go. Look for the animation threads as well, they might have a more streamlined method for learning what you want to learn. This thread is for the basic art fundamentals and improving on them but the animation threads are for learning animation. They may have a different path to follow. Additionally, do some research and watch some youtube videos.

I'm not telling you to get lost or anything, I'm saying you'll want to get a second opinion from people that actively study what you want to pursue. I'm not the pinnacle of art critique and teaching, I'm an anon just trying to steer people in the right direction. I don't want you to waste your time learning realism if that's not necessary for your career path. Good luck and post any fundamental exercises you do here if you end up reading the book.

[Anonymous No.3300945]

>>3300938
Try a few feet tutorials, learn how to break them down into basic shapes (including some different angles) . Then try the exercise again but draw all your basic shapes first, then add the details.

[Anonymous No.3300965]

>>3300938
Nice shoes. First thing I'll say is when you're drawing from life or reference, don't worry about shading anything until after you've got 90% of the lines down. I'd also like to say you're surprisingly good at drawing what you see for you skill level.

As far as figuring out what to draw first, just picking a spot and putting a line down can get the ball rolling, even if it's not the right angle it can serve as something to work off of. I want to recommend you the free videos on Ctrl-Paint. There's a whole section on learning traditional drawing that covers similar exercises. Do you have an idea for what kind of art you'd like to pursue? That will be important after you've gotten your feet wet.

[Anonymous No.3300982]

https://imgur.com/a/cQZTD
I can't take it. I can't fucking improve my drawing skills at all, even after so many years of trying, i still suck. I can't do this shit anymore, i give up.
You'll see me in the news tomorrow

[Anonymous No.3300996]

>>3300982
Fun With A Pencil by Loomis, stick to the lessons and you'll make noticable improvements within a month.

Also cool it with the lewds you horny bastard. If you be more patient with learning you'll be drawing 100% quality pony titties by the end of this year. But you absolutely have to stick to the lessons and take all legitimate criticism. From what I've seen you've just been trying to do the same thing a thousand times and expecting different results. Learning requires drawing boring shit so that the fun shit looks better. Let's not go postal over a few lost years, improvement involves both learning from your mistakes and getting over them.

[Anonymous No.3300999]

>>3300965
>Do you have an idea for what kind of art you'd like to pursue?
I want to mostly drawing portraits and people for the most part. Pretty sure that's very vague. Here's a collage of images to try and explain what kind of art I'm aiming to draw.

[Anonymous No.3301000]

>>3300982
>You'll see me in the news tomorrow
Oi i thought you already died

[Anonymous No.3301009]

>>3300999
Good news, you're already on the right track. The first step to learning to draw is to, well, learn how to learn how to draw. That's why you do exercises like drawing your shoes or copying pictures at first. You're training your brain to see what is in front of you more accurately so that you can actually gain something from the more artsy studies/exercises. Like I said before, check out the Ctrl-Paint website for more visual drawing lessons. When you've gotten a better grasp on visual drawing, take a bit of a breather and try drawing from imagination for a while and pay attention to the things you struggle to draw from imagination. Post your progress as you go. But most importantly be patient and take your time with any and all exercises you do, even the ones that seem boring or pointless.

[Anonymous No.3301015]

Apparently it's pretty common for people painting or drawing on an upright surface to use an overhand grip, especially since you can make a larger variety of pencil marks this way.

Are there any benefits to learning to do this with a tablet?
It might prevent the arcing nature of the arm from getting in the way of drawing circles, straight lines, etc., but my arm gets tired whenever I try it.
All the old masters must have had arms of steel if they held paintbrushes up in the air for hours.

(Since I'm starting to take drawing seriously, I want to optimize the "how to hold your drawing implement" bit without assuming the "paper" has to be flat on the table. I may just have to go with the boring slightly-raised drawing board approach, though...unless someone found out a secret way to drawing that prevents posture issues, carpal tunnel, and boosts your life expectancy to age 100.
I'm guessing all I can hope for is moderate benefits.)

[Anonymous No.3301024]

>>3301015
Start lifting.

[Anonymous No.3301026]

>>3301015
Here's the thing about stuff like that. It's a non-issue. Holding your pen or brush in a way that is most optimal isn't going to suddenly make a bad artist into a good artist. Don't worry about what old masters and ancient wizards did with their brushes because that wasn't the important part. Nobody is going to look at your art and say "Can you believe this guy stood up while he made this?"

Just draw in whatever position you find most comfortable because you'll be in that position a lot and for long periods of time. Relax... And if your neck starts hurting, take a break. The most important thing is actually drawing and not getting caught up in what is essentially artistic semantics. Also post some drawings whenever you can, there's always people here willing to help, even if it can be kinda slow.

[Anonymous No.3301043]

>>3301026
Thanks. I'll go with the standard tripod/writing grip and drawing-board tilt, then, though maybe I'll experiment with overhand grip again if my wrist gets sore.

You see a lot that's made of the correct way to hold a pencil if you Google it, but I bet using an easil to prop your drawing surface up is more for keeping your paper level with your subject, and tablets have another dynamic entirely...I guess.

[Anonymous No.3301045]

>>3299471
DO NOT MAKE A NEW THREAD UNTIL WE REACH BUMP LIMIT.

The bump limit has been raised. We should reach the new limit to prevent old threads from resurfacing

[Anonymous No.3301056]

Some from I drew trying to study Edges.
I tried to make it so there weren't many hard edges but I think I failed. The only intentionally hard edge was for the eyes.
Any critique is very appreciated.

[Anonymous No.3301059]

Help... I'm a complete brainlet, so I really don't know what I'm supposed to do with Fun With a Pencil. It just seems simple, and then goes advanced, is it really supposed to be like that? I'm on the expression part now, just seems really overwhelming.

[Anonymous No.3301060]

>>3301043
A lot of artists struggle to use tablets at first because they are weirdly unlike drawing on paper. You get used to the more you use it, like with any tool. No matter the tool or how you use it, your knowledge of the fundamentals will be apparent.

[Anonymous No.3301061]

>>3301059
Post what you've done so far, you may be moving too fast.

[Anonymous No.3301067]

>>3301009
Thank you for the Ctrl-Paint recommendation and advice.

[Anonymous No.3301069]

>>3301061
Agh, I probably am.
Any tips?
I always feel like I never have time so I always try to hurry up.
Or maybe because it's boring, I don't know.

[Anonymous No.3301073]

>>3301056
Yes, you did fail but probably not for the reason you think. When I first looked at the image, I had absolutely no clue what I was seeing. Even from the thumbnail it looks like it could be a lumpy rock. What this means is that your image has basically no readability. The reason for this is because it is almost completely lacking in contrast which is the most important thing about black and white drawings. This is also why a line drawing has more readability than an image like yours because the dark lines directly contrast the empty white paper. If you have a laptop, look at your picture and tilt the screen back so that it appears darker, you'll notice it's a much clearer image.

Essentially, your darks need to be way darker in comparison to your lights. The way to make softer edges is to make smooth transitions from very dark to very light (this of course varies depending on the context of what you are smoothing). On the bright side, it isn't a poorly drawn frog. Keep working, you are doing good. Just keep those darker values in mind and really pay attention to the contrast between light and dark on objects.

[Anonymous No.3301074]

>>3301056
I like this, but I think you would benefit from taking more time on the space around the frog. It looks kind of scribbly right now. Also, it might just be the camera, but I'd like to see you push values more, and I think you can do that without sacrificing whatever kind of edge you're trying to make. the darkest spot I see when I squint is above the frog in blank space, and that's what draws my eye.

[Anonymous No.3301078]

>>3301073
>>3301074
Yea the lighting in my room is pretty bad so its going to be pretty rough posting until I get a scanner.
>>3301074
Yea youre right I got really lazy with the background it was supposed to be just flat black
>>3301073
I tried to compress my lights and darks tightly but I went too overboard. I'll keep that in mind.
Heres another one I did compressing the darks

[Anonymous No.3301079]

>>3301069
Believe me, I've been there. I'm only just now getting over that same time-anxious feeling. And yes, it's probably one of the most mundane exercises masquerading as fun. People in the 30s didn't really understand what "fun" was, it was still a new concept. One way to spice it up is draw one specific head and then trying to draw the same head at different angles. It also seems like you're drawing really really small. Don't treat them like doodles, try to show each head a bit of care and respect. Really think about how to place the features so that it really looks like a face. If you're having a lot of trouble, sleep on it and give it another go the next day. You're essentially learning the art alphabet right now. Which isn't that fun, but once you learn it, you'll be able to make art words, and then later art sentences. You see where I'm going with this. Keep going and try to think of ways to really challenge yourself with the exercises.

[Anonymous No.3301080]

>>3301079
Thank you so much.
To be honest, I don't post on /beg/ much because I fear the crabs.
But you just made my day. I'm going to work really hard from now on. The problem was I didn't know how to, but now I know.

I tried redrawing a Shinji still to try to do something more fun.

[Anonymous No.3301081]

>>3301045
What is it now?

[Anonymous No.3301087]

>>3301078
Now that is much better. I could tell what the image was just from the thumbnail. That means you had enough contrast to make the image pop. Your values could still use more contrast and your lack of knowledge on how cloth works is apparent, mainly in the lower half of the image. If you want to fix that, just do some clothing/wrinkle studies. In fact, you're at the point where studies will be a sizable portion of what you do to get better. Draw from life and be sure to make a conscious effort to get the most accurate values for whatever you're drawing. Learning to accurately distinguish values is required to move on to color. Various art youtubers have covered this concept, I would suggest doing some research. Keep posting progress, you're doing good.

[Anonymous No.3301095]

>>3301087
I did that one before my first fabric study though the fabric study really kicked my ass.
I'd post it but I went really light so I dont think my phone could accurately snap it.
Do you have any recommendations for scanners or anything of the sort?

[Anonymous No.3301098]

>>3301080
Yeah, crabs are one of the reasons I started trying to help out around here. Negative feedback IS important for learning from mistakes but those guys can eat a dick.

Your Shinji looks pretty good for your skill level, you made the values (the blacks, whites, and greys) contrast well enough to make the image easily readable, even from the thumbnail. That's a concept that a lot of people can struggle with early on.

Also, it is extremely important to draw stuff for fun/from imagination in between the boring exercises. Over time you'll notice the concepts you learn in the exercises will start playing a part in the things you draw for fun, sometimes on a subconscious level. Keep at it, you are on the right track.

[Anonymous No.3301103]

Total beginner here, just decided to start with this hobby that I've always had an interest on.

Watched some clips on some fundamentals and drew these.

Looking through book recommendations I've found drawing on the right side of the brain to be the one that sparked my interest the most. Been thinking about buying it and going through the exercises. Should i jump into it or is it too soon?

[Anonymous No.3301111]

Am I doing anatomy?

[Anonymous No.3301112]

>>3301095
Unfortunately no, I don't use a scanner. Back when I was learning traditional I would just try to stage the images with some soft but bright light. I have one of those cheap bending pixar desk lamps and I taped a piece of printer paper over the extremely bright bulb to diffuse some of the light (a technique I learned from a cinematography video).

But nowadays, I reached a point where I can usually self-critique sketchbook studies so I mostly only post digital WIPs where I'm trying to figure out stuff like color and painting in general. I'm this guy >>3299710

But yeah, as far as traditional goes, if you don't have the money for some fancy scanner, jerry-rig yourself something like one of these and be sure to turn the flash off on your phone.

[Anonymous No.3301113]

>>3301111
not even close

at least read keys to drawing so you can measure actual proportions correctly from references

if you can't do that, you can't hope to do it from imagination

[Anonymous No.3301117]

>>3301103
First of all, don't buy it. There's a free pdf somewhere on the internet because I've downloaded it before. Also the author insists on having you buy unnecessary tools or buying the special version of her book that has an "official tool kit" included.

If the image you posted is something you drew, you will not need to put that much money or effort into moving forward. You have a surprisingly good understanding of basic 3d forms for a beginner. But don't let that go to your head or it'll stunt your progress.

Before I can recommend anything to you, is there a specific kind of art you are most interested in making?

[Anonymous No.3301120]

>>3301111
You show real promise in some of these figures. I especially like the one on the right. However, I don't think you fully understand the 3d forms or the actual muscle groups of the body. I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt and recommend Burne Hogarth's Dynamic Anatomy. He breaks down the incredibly complex muscles and bone structure of human anatomy into more simple, but still pretty complex 3d shapes.

If this proves too difficult for you, then you'll have to look to Loomis. His lessons are less detailed but more accessible to beginners because of it. Additionally, look for figure drawing websites and try to draw the people there (you'll have to get used to looking at nude models though).

[Anonymous No.3301121]

>>3301117
Should I still begin with drawing on the right side or should I go for another one?

For know i'd say drawing from reference, like portraits or landscapes. Nothing too fancy. In the future, probably fanart.

Here's another drawing i did following a tutorial on creating distance. I'm having a lot of fun actually, should have picked this up years ago.

[Anonymous No.3301123]

Not even sure who to practice humans, where do I start and what do I need to think about?

[Anonymous No.3301127]

>>3301113
>>3301120
Thank you for the critique! I'll certainly look into them

[Anonymous No.3301136]

>>3301121
Honestly, that book is for beginners that need to unlearn a lot of bad habits. What you need to do is focus on life drawing. Specifically look for simple objects in and around the house or wherever you draw. Then work your way up to more complex things. Based on what I've seen, you have a basic understand of value. I want you to really pay attention to the differing lights and darks of whatever objects you decide to draw. This is the part where you first get introduced to the concept of rendering detail. Start consciously looking for the different values in objects even when you aren't drawing. If you're feeling bold, try drawing some people, not necessarily from life. There's websites dedicated to figure drawing that you might be interested in checking out.

Also be sure to draw from imagination, that's the best way to tell where you skills are weakest. Basically any time you feel like you aren't drawing something very well, study it and see what you are missing.

[Anonymous No.3301138]

>>3301123
There are websites dedicated to figure drawing. If you're comfortable with seeing occasional nudity. Your picture shows very little understanding of the human anatomy. So you need to really pay attention to the shapes of each limb and muscle.

Although it might be a little too advanced for you at the moment, I suggest you give Burne Hogarth's Dynamic Anatomy a try. It can get a bit complex though so try to really take your time and even consider looking to more beginner friendly books like Loomis. Learning to draw people properly is a big hurdle so don't feel bad if you have to start with something a little more simple.

[Anonymous No.3301205]

>>3299887
What about art attracts you pretentious cunts? I don't get it.

[Anonymous No.3301215]

>picked up drawing again after several years, used to do it for fun from when i was a kid to mid teen but stopped in high school
>reading Loomis 'cause i didn't know where else to start
>dude has me drawing ugly old men
Is there anything similar to this with anime girls, bishounen etc? If I start drawing full-time again, I want to be drawing stuff I like.

[Anonymous No.3301229]

>>3301215
use the concepts loomis is teaching you to draw anime babes

[Anonymous No.3301235]

>>3301215
Stop complaining an do the exercises you wuss

[Anonymous No.3301236]

Let me know what you think :). And I love all the art I've seen on here, a lot of very talented artists here.

[Anonymous No.3301285]

Quicky I drew during class.

advise on what to fix now I have time?

[Anonymous No.3301306]

>>3301285
How long have you been drawing and what did you use to make that?

I think it's very good but I'm also retarded at art

[Anonymous No.3301310]

>>3301306
Tnx dawg.
Been drawing seriously and posting on /beg/ since august last year.

I used procreate on the ipad to draw it.

[Anonymous No.3301340]

I'm trying to get into digital sketching. Hopefully I can get more done today.

[Anonymous No.3301369]

OwO

[Anonymous No.3301417]

>>3301205
Assuming you aren't the poster of the image I was criticizing, the guy was insisting that his doodle was amazing because he put "emotion" in it and spent a lot of time working on it. First of all that's a lie and second, it completely ignores my request for a drawing that shows his knowledge of the fundamentals. I've been trying to help around here more but if someone doesn't want to listen and learn, there is nothing I can do. Additionally, it was quite obvious he was just trying to shitpost. I try not to encourage this behavior because there's plenty of people that come here with the full intention of actually learning something. Sorry if you think that's pretentious but I don't have the patience to deal with people that don't have any intention on learning.

[Anonymous No.3301419]

>>3301417
I didn't get that from his post at all but I do apologize for insulting you like that. I see your intentions are good.

[Anonymous No.3301423]

>>3301215
See there's where you're messing up. You have to learn how to draw real people before moving on to anime because the fundamentals you learn from doing so will make your anime look professional and not like a 4th grade deviantart reject. I know this path works from personal experience.

First is learning how to comprehend basic 3d forms, then you move up to real people slowly but surely. Then after you've gotten drawing real people down to a science, you start looking more towards how to stylize your art, making it more YOU (that's the anime part).

Of course, you can draw for fun in between the exercises. But you must make a conscious effort to take the concept you learn during the exercises and apply them to cute anime girls. I can't really explain that much better. A lot of art taking the pieces of what you know and using them in creative ways to make your art look better.

Think about it, how can you use a method of drawing silly heads with spheres and adding a nose, mouth, chin, eyes, ears, and hair based on where the divider lines on the sphere are located to make cute anime girls? All it takes is a little creative thinking. You can do it.

[Anonymous No.3301426]

>>3301236
It's good for someone at your skill level. But if you're looking to improve, I'd like to start you with this>>3300596 exercise. Just reread that comment for the full instructions.

The first step to getting good is learning something called "visual drawing" where you learn to draw what you see more accurately. Be sure to post your copy when you're done.

[Anonymous No.3301436]

>>3301285
Looks like you only have a general idea of human anatomy. Well enough to make cartoony/alt style humans but not quite enough to really sell it.

Dynamic Anatomy by Burne Hogarth and a whooole bunch of figure drawing/studies is the way to go. You're at a point where you will benefit the most from pursuing your own studies and learning to look for the answers on your own. Look at your work objectively, compare it to better art with a similar subject and see what you need to improve (it helps to have crippling depression and/or low self esteem so that your flaws are more apparent but this is not mandatory).

On the bright side, it is a very appealing drawing to look at. Very interesting subject and color choices. Your shading isn't bad, but it will improve when you start learning the forms better. Keep up the good work, you got this.

[Anonymous No.3301439]

>>3301340
Very nice. Have you worked a lot in traditional?

[Anonymous No.3301452]

>>3301369
Dear god man, control yourself you libidinous bastard!

But seriously if you want some advice, I'd say Fun With A Pencil but skip the silly cartoon head bits and try to focus on the more realistic human anatomy bits. Additionally, google figure drawing sites so that you can learn how to more accurately draw humans. Learning to draw real people will make drawing lewd cartoons 1000x easier and better. Post progress here for more advice and critique.

[Anonymous No.3301472]

>>3300235
the kind people on yhe Sycra forum explained why all my boxes looked so super distorted(VP to close to eachother), so tried it yet again.

>>3301436
Tnx anon, I'm actually about to get How to Draw since I still feel pretty beg.

Is this Dynamic Anatomy book comprehensible for anons that havent really read anything else(execpt about perspective)?

also been working on the depression for months now, its coming along nicely!

[Anonymous No.3301488]

>>3300011
STAIRWAY TO THE STARS

[Anonymous No.3301499]

>>3301472
From personal experience, Dynamic Anatomy can be a hurdle. Based on your skill level, I'd say you'll struggle with it at first but then start to catch on with practice. The good thing about art is that even when you make mistakes, you still take something from it that will make the next attempt a little better.

Your understanding of perspective alone will make the lessons in Dynamic Anatomy much easier. The book forces you to push your understand of 3d with more complex forms than what you're used to. I suggest drawing a lot of figures based only on imagination and what you learn from the book. Try to incorporate dynamic poses (and maybe some strong foreshortening) to really push yourself.

[Anonymous No.3301599]

Some exercises
I notice how I’m lacking on some foreshortening poses.
I don’t if is experience or I’m missing more wrapping lines.

[Anonymous No.3301606]

>>3301499
gonna give it a try after perspective and how to draw, sadly cant find pdf :(

really apreceate the feedback anon, bless you!

[Anonymous No.3301607]

Started drawing a week or two ago. Working my way through Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain. Still struggling to get the angles right, even using the techniques in the book. It messed up a few parts of my hand, like the THIQness of my thumb. I usually can't tell an angle is messed up until I've put down a few more lines to compare it to. Am I just spatially challenged, or is this something that's normal and goes away with practice?

[Anonymous No.3301613]

>>3301599
Looking good man. I suggest going balls to the wall over the top with foreshortening. Stuff like that can shock your brain and kinda knock something loose in there. Even if you have to erase a hundred times or break into more stylized drawing. Do something crazy like someone's knee pointing straight at the viewer while their body is drastically further away. Play around with close up limbs and hands. In general try to think of really awkward poses that obscure parts of the body because something is so close up. Wrapping lines can help guide you when doing this but sometimes you might just have to wing it.

Also freshing up on visual measuring can sometimes help.

[Anonymous No.3301618]

>>3301607
It is absolutely completely normal to struggle with seeing that stuff for the first time. On the bright side, you're off to a surprisingly good start. In addition to that book, I suggest checking out the free videos at Ctrl-Paint. Specifically the traditional drawing section. There's a lot of exercises that can help you improve seeing the proper angles and whatnot. Keep up the good work and you'll notice an improvement in no time. Remember to keep posting as you go.

[Anonymous No.3301622]

>>3301606
Unfortunately, I don't have it on this computer. I'll put it in a drop box this weekend along with some other stuff people might find useful and link it. Just keep a look out for that somewhere between Thursday and Saturday. Unless of course somebody else finds the pdf before then.

[Anonymous No.3301624]

>>3301618
Thanks! I hadn't heard of Ctrl-Paint before, I'll definitely check it out. It seems to cover most of the same topics as Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain, so I'll check that out afterwards for more exercises.

[Anonymous No.3301642]

>>3301613
I will have that in mind.
I will take a look at hyper angle

[Anonymous No.3301653]

How do I become less retarded?

[Anonymous No.3301655]

>>3301653
Just lurk in here for awhile, read other suggestions given to people and try to make a mental note of the terms used by people that look like they know what they're talking about. Google stuff you don't understand and start becoming comfortable with the idea of being retarded. Because only once you understand you know nothing, can you begin to understand everything.

[Anonymous No.3301656]

>>3301653

you cannot escape the traditional way hahahahaha

[Anonymous No.3301673]

>>3301439
Thanks. About 50-50 between traditional and digital lately. I've been sketching for about two years now.

[Anonymous No.3301696]

>>3301673
Well keep up the good work. I'm not sure where you're at on your fundamentals but if you haven't yet moved on to working with color, I'd say you're definitely ready to do so.

[Anonymous No.3301726]

Where to start with repairs?

[Anonymous No.3301790]

>>3300567
I CAN'T FEEL YOU THERE!!

[Anonymous No.3301796]

Gestures and etc. Need to get back into studying.

Am I at least moving in the right direction, I have no idea.

[Anonymous No.3301821]

>>3301726
Well, first of all, her thighs are clipping through the chair like a bethesda character. Second and most importantly you seem to be struggling with body proportions. The legs are 31 flavors of fucked up proportionally from the hip placement, thigh thiccness, her giant calves, and especially her tiny baby feet. Her abdomen is too long for her arms and dear god...shes got no hands!

Anyway, this is because of an underlying lack of proportional studying, I usually recommend Loomis or Hogarth who both cover the concept pretty well (it's the 7-8 heads tall thing). More life drawing while keeping proportion and perspective in mind will also be of great benefit. Otherwise you're pretty good. That is a very cute anime girl and for the most part, you have a good grasp on perspective.

[Anonymous No.3301834]

>>3301790
I'm seeing improvement, the sense of energy and weight is becoming more apparent. Keep pushing but also try to exaggerate a little more.

I especially like the dude on the top right and the girl on the bottom right laying down.

[Anonymous No.3301841]

>>3301796
Your gestures need to be more...gestural, though I understand that can be kinda difficult to do on digital. Your figures are pretty on point, you'll always be practicing those though. I want to practice more exaggerated poses and play with foreshortening way way more. You seem comfortable enough with anatomy and proportion that you should now be trying to push that knowledge with more complex scenes and positions. Keep up the good work and post progress.

[Anonymous No.3301908]

Saw a meme and wanted to draw it "my way", sorry if the lighting is too bad.

It was difficult in some level because i couldn't find anything in this angle and in this pose, so i had to improvise. Still, i would like to improve the shadowing and give it volume...

[Anonymous No.3301911]

>>3301908
Good news, there's definitely some understanding here. Bad news, his head is disconnect from the rest of his body and has been glued to his shoulder. If you can find a pdf, read Dynamic Anatomy by Burne Hogarth.

Keep working and post progress. Remember to do figure studies as well.

[Anonymous No.3301914]

looking for some feedback on this

[Anonymous No.3301915]

>>3301911
Yeah his back should be lower or at least his neck should be somewhere, like, i get what you're saying.

Thanks for the feedback! I will!

[Anonymous No.3301918]

>>3301914
It's good but... there's not enough shadows and lights so it's quite difficult to understand the pose.

Like in the neck, depending of where the light comes from it should be darker then.

But i like it, it's just that. Keep painting!

[Anonymous No.3301922]

how do i deal with being a beginner and seeing my awful cringeworthy garbage right in front of me?

how do i stop getting mad for being bad. when can i get decent please answer

[Anonymous No.3301924]

>>3301922
practice using constructive thoughts instead of thinking your work is going to be shit the first couple of months/years

you think athletes started talking shit about themselves because they couldn't run a marathon after their second week of training?

[Anonymous No.3301934]

So I started drawing again after years so I'm just following a bunch of guides. Was recommended Figure Drawing by Hampton and have been grinding figure drawing and already feel like there's improvement, but I've got a question.

It has a "this is where you should be before moving on" on some gesture, and while I'm not at that point I feel like stuff past it could really help in terms of understanding the relationships bewteen body parts in the gestures. Is it practical to try and understand different elements together, or will it hurt me down the line?

[Anonymous No.3301954]

>>3301934
You're overthinking it. You can always go back and reinforce areas that you are not comfortable with.

[Anonymous No.3301958]

Is drawing in your head a meme?

[Anonymous No.3301976]

>>3301958
Sounds like a meme to me

[Anonymous No.3301978]

>>3301934
Art is a wonderfully convoluted skill that sometimes requires your to play entire sections by ear and hope it sounds good. I fully advise you to hop around the lessons when you feel yourself stagnating and try to absorb as much knowledge as possible. But be sure to REMEMBER what you were having trouble with before and try to learn it sooner rather than later or you may end up with an underlying flaw in your technique that will require you to backtrack and unlearn. Good luck, keep working!

[dumb No.3301983]

So in figure drawing its okay to be inaccurate?

[Anonymous No.3301991]

>>3301983
Inaccurate in terms of what exactly?

[dumb No.3301998]

>>3301991
Proportions? idk what I'm doing besides following the flow of the CSI lines. Am I supposed to just draw what I see in reference photos at this point?

[Anonymous No.3301999]

I think only when it resembles reality in a relatable way (if that makes any sense)

[Anonymous No.3302004]

>>3301998

>>3301999
To piggy back off what this goy said. It's nice to be proportionate, but pushing/pulling baby bits can make stuff look better.

In the picture you posted it seems like you're focusing on gesture, which isn't /necessarily/ about proportion.

When you use the word "inaccurate" it has a connotation of it being wrong. If it looks wrong to you, then work on fixing it (goes without saying, eh?)

[Anonymous No.3302010]

>>3301922
I'm gonna be completely honest with you, there's a fair chance you won't ever stop being mad at your failures. The trick is to let that feeling of discontent fuel your drive to improve. It's the difference between thinking "Goddammit I'm shit, I'll give it another go after I take a break" and "Goddammit I'm shit, my parents were right, I'm gonna go to medical school".

To mitigate your negativity, start focusing on the little improvements. You're essentially learning the art alphabet. Once you get the art letters down, you'll be able to form art words, then sentences, paragraphs and so on. Just take a break and try again after a while.

[Anonymous No.3302015]

>>3301983
Try to capture the flow of the pose. There's always some kind of energy in a pose. Try to imagine the gravity of the figure. Imagine where the bulk of the force in their pose is.

It's not as much "inaccurate" as it is suggestive of an idea. That's why it's called a gesture.

[Anonymous No.3302046]

>>3301622
Tnx dawg, ur a saint :)

[Anonymous No.3302051]

>>3300825
>>3300823
>>3300822
use a bigger brush this will help make it look less city.
also look into the term: Brush Economy.

[Anonymous No.3302052]

>>3302051
excuse me
>*stroke economy.

[Anonymous No.3302073]

>>3300363
>>3300367

6 Feb 2018 - Day 7

9 gestures, referenced @ 90 secs

I feel I'm making big strides now. I decided to experiment with a fountain pen brush. I focused even less on copying the model exactly and more on finding flow within individual muscle masses as well as overall balance. In many ways, it's starting to feel much more natural. I also tried to focus more on spacial relationships since I'm trying to not to waste lines by drawing things that will never be seen. I saw drastic improvement towards the end of my session.

I'm starting to find holes holes in my anatomy knowledge though. One thing is for certain: I should seriously focus on how backs work especially the muscles around the scapulae.

[Anonymous No.3302080]

>>3302073

Made an end-of-week side-by-side

[Anonymous No.3302087]

Value study I did.

[Anonymous No.3302088]

Value study I did.

[Anonymous No.3302100]

>>3302080
You're improving really quickly! Your gestures have so much more flow and expression.

Keep up the good work man.

[Anonymous No.3302102]

>>3302088
Looking good mate!

[Anonymous No.3302123]

>>3299633
You're thinking of the body too much in parts, so every little bit is over emphasized. It's a bit like symbol drawing. Instead of drawing what you see, you draw what you think should be there.

You should draw more from life or at least from reference. Also go back to basic form studies. When you do figure drawing, look at the body as a whole, not in fragments that you're piecing together. Then break it down into its most simple shapes like cubes, cylinders, etc. Simplify how the light affects each major area. And once you're comfortable with that, start giving it anatomical form.

[Anonymous No.3302124]

>>3302088
stop using low opacity brushes.

[Anonymous No.3302129]

>>3301056
I don't think you should be worrying about edges yet. I don't think you even understand what they are. You really need to go back to basic form & light studies. Go draw some fruit under proper lighting.

[Anonymous No.3302135]

So, I haven't really picked up a pencil to draw in over a decade. I used to be decent at dilating things I had come across that I wanted to draw. (Usually taking the form of multiple pieces of printer paper in order to even do it.)
I'm wanting to get back to drawing again and I gave a it shot, tried a couple things on other sights that were literally a bunch of scribbles, connecting lines, hatching, etc. I likely jumped too fast to doing a figure but good lord I hated every step of it. So, thanks to this board, I found Loomis. I figured this should give me a good enough start because I feel I need to start back at the very ... very beginning. Unfortunately I have a real struggle of being able to perceive any sort of distance. (i.e. I literally can not put my hands a foot apart without being way off, or see how long a quarter of mile is without being grossly incorrect)
Here's what I would like to ask: Is the best way to grind the lessons that are being done in Loomis to do each step for about 15-20 minutes a day for a week? Should I invest more time on a daily basis? Extend the lessons out to grind it in to my thick skull to overcome any stupidity? Should it be ok to shorten it instead of week to something sooner? Sadly, it's all traditional, as much as I'd prefer to be digital, but alas, the capability escapes me.

Thanks for the help!

[Anonymous No.3302141]

>>3302135
Don't make it so hard my dude. Don't over think things. Keep them simple. You're assuming things about drawing that aren't actually problems you have to address.

Just draw a lot and those issues will work themselves out. Start basic and easy, with simple shapes. Learn about form and light. Try to draw simple-shaped objects around you.

Loomis isn't actually great for beginners imo. It relies a lot on dexterity with a pencil that most beginners just don't have yet. So start with more simple things to draw like a box or like a fruit.

[Anonymous No.3302148]

>>3301790
Your figures lack weight. Always plant the feet and pay attention to the counter balance between the shoulder and hips, as well as the center of gravity. Think of how the major parts of the body stack and balance like blocks.

[Anonymous No.3302243]

Question - has anybody read Peak by K. Anders Ericsson? Does anybody know of any drawing course (preferably video) that goes from completely untrained level that applies the techniques of deliberate practice (small focused lessons, quick feedback etc)?

[Anonymous No.3302248]

Does anyone have tips on how to enjoy drawing again? I used to, and would be able to draw most things just from memory. I'm going back to basics after letting years of rust build up and I'm just not having fun. I don't know whose advice to go with either-- people are recommending Loomis, others are recommending other stuff. I only seem to have fun when I'm succeeding, so I'm wondering I should just try a different hobby because trying to start from scratch with this is awful since I'm getting nowhere. I know practise makes perfect, but how can I ENJOY practising so it isn't a chore?

[Anonymous No.3302249]

>>3302248
Maybe try drugs? I've heard people have a reprogramming experiences after DMT or mushrooms and can start enjoying life again.
Just read up on it and don't over do it - once per year should be plenty enough.

[Anonymous No.3302251]

>>3302243
Ive read and listened to it. Figure out what you want to do e.g draw faces then youtube tutorials on smaller pieces like how to draw an eye.

[Anonymous No.3302256]

crit please

[Anonymous No.3302259]

>>3302249
7 years an agoraphobic, drugs are off the menu for me.

[Anonymous No.3302266]

>>3302251
I hoped that someone already create a course which was well rounded. The biggest problem is devising practice routines that you consistently build on skills that you already have and are constantly pushing yourself. I'm starting out so managing both will be hard and I was hoping I could be partially spoon-fed by a good curriculum

[Anonymous No.3302270]

>>3302248
Sounds like you might just be too perfectionistic. I personally got over that by doing more exercise, switching to pen only for all sketches & studies, and drawing new or silly things

[Anonymous No.3302276]

>>3302259
Well ok. Boredom isn't always a bad thing and being ridiculously good at something takes a lot of pain. It's just a given in anything.
If you think you're "burned out" of drawing then maybe try CBT (cognitive behavioral programming).
Maybe the problem is that you're just being a slave-driver for yourself. Why did you want to start drawing in the first place? Most people have time dedicated to practice but they also do something fun and explore - maybe dump the practice for a bit and just have fun with it. Draw some plants or insects, or people or comics or big tiddied bitches with swords - whatever you think is cool - and pay no mind to how good it comes out - only how good it feels.
Only then when you start to feel the need to practice (boy those tiddies would look better if I nailed down anatomy) start practicing

[Anonymous No.3302287]

>>3302270
I am a huge perfectionist, and hard on my myself. Thanks, Anon.

>>3302276
This is wonderful advice. I've had some CBT, but it was centered around my depression and other issues. I'm gonna draw some fun, different stuff that I enjoy. Then look at those errors, and work on where I messed up. I'm really not connecting with Loomis, so this seems like a good path to take.

[Anonymous No.3302348]

>>3302266
You probably have to pay money for that. I torrented some Udemy courses. Just google freetutorials udemy see if there is snything you're interested in.

[Anonymous No.3302356]

>>3302348
I'm fine with paid as long as it's what I really need. Will look at udemy, thanks

[Anonymous No.3302428]

Intuos Draw, Huoin 1060 Pro or a XP-PEN Star03? I'm assuming it'd be better to have a tablet with a bigger drawing space but I'm not sure.

[Anonymous No.3302429]

>>3300741
FLCL

[Anonymous No.3302479]

>>3302428
i use this
https://www.huiontablet.com/huion-wh1409.html

it's great and I'll probably use it forever.

[Anonymous No.3302481]

I really want to get into drawing strange, weirdly shaped creatures, sort of inspired by stuff like all tomorrows. I've tried to get down the fundies so far, but I don't have much practical drawing experience.

The first two are references off of close up pictures of earthworms found on google, the other are microscopic creatures found from that same search that looked cool. Just sort of posting this wondering if there might be some help people can give me on how to properly practice, or if it really is just drawing this over and over until I can make it look better.

To make these drawings a bit more intense I put myself on a 5 minute timer to study the image and try to get it down on paper. I heard that's good for when you're trying to learn. Which is why they're very unfinished.

[Anonymous No.3302483]

>>3302481
for personal studies, give yourself however long you need. for academic drawing and stuff like gestures and figures, speed is a requirement. the important thing that drawing fast teaching you is to making the right marks at the beginning right where you want them so that you can add details correctly.

[Anonymous No.3302499]

disappointed in this

[Anonymous No.3302502]

[Anonymous No.3302534]

I'm just starting to work with color, should I try to do the "limited palette" thing, or just try to paint as I see it until I get a better handle on what I'm doing?

[Anonymous No.3302536]

i cant do faces

[Anonymous No.3302552]

>>3302499
What exactly is going on with the hair color? The lack of shine from the top leads me to believe the light that is supposed to be hitting it is being blocked by something out of frame. At the same time it looks like the intention was for it to be different colors. On the bright side, your colors are very appealing.

[Anonymous No.3302555]

>>3302536
A valiant effort regardless. I think you'll benefit greatly from changing your face references to black and white before trying to copy them.

It will help you identify the values better. Moving on to color is a leap in and of itself.

[Anonymous No.3302606]

>>3302602
>>3302602
>>3302602

>>3302602
>>3302602
>>3302602

>>3302602
>>3302602
>>3302602

[Anonymous No.3302876]

>>3302287
Sounds like a good plan! You may want to try Loomis or something similar down the road but by then it'll work better for you.

[Anonymous No.3304025]

>>3302552
The light's getting cut off, yes.

[Anonymous No.3304773]

I'm taking printmaking one in college. I'm not exactly a beginner in art in general, but this whole printmaking biz is definitely new to me. Carving the linoleum is hard as shit, but it's been fun so far. (The project was to take an image that's mostly black and white, edit it and carve that out. I kinda made it harder for myself by photoshopping several together and then not zooming in...) anybody have advice on how to keep a steadier grip while Carving? And how to avoid accidentally stabbing myself when it slips?