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V-WhiteWolf [2005-02-19 10:04:53 +0000 UTC]

well thanx very much for that lovely long comment! well, i guess his hair looks a lil bit frizzy. its just i kinda inherited my love for sketchy looking piccers from my dad. So a lot of my sketches are made up of quick little strokes. But i guess if it doesn't look so good, i could try your suggestions out *nod, nod* thanx again! lol, yeah Guastave is mah tablet, hes the bomb!

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giadrosich [2005-02-18 03:00:14 +0000 UTC]

Okay, I feel dumb now. Guastave is the name of your tablet, and not the elf...sorry.

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giadrosich [2005-02-18 02:54:48 +0000 UTC]

Okay, let's take a look at Guastave. He's cool, just kinda chillin.' I noticed in your description that he was done using your tablet, so he was generated without paper and pen. That's fine.

He has some strengths, and some weaknesses. Good news first: He's pretty proportionate, in an anime type of style. The colors that you picked are good. I think the blue head band complements the hair, which is done in the pale sky blue (Matches the eyes). I like the movement in the hair, because it gives some flow to what could otherwise be a little static composition.
His features are good, and I like the facial expression. He seems like a pleasent enough chap. And I like the ears, also. Much of your problems can be solved by what I describe below:

Now, to start with, your lines are a little weak. The best way to resolve this is simply to practice. Get some paper and a pencil and yep, practice drawing lines. Be confident. Instead of a sketchy type line, try drawing them with even, fluid motions, from start to finish. Pick any length of line that you want, but lay it down once and don't go back over it.
A very good exercise with your pencil is to: when you first start to make a stroke, don't but that much pressure on the tip, and in the middle of the stroke, bear down a little harder, and as you finish your stroke, lighten up again. This is called an implied line. Practice until your perfect at it. Draw them in rows. Now do a few rows putting pressure on the pencil point at the begining and end of your stroke, lightening up in the middle.

Drawing your line with confidence will give your drawing strenght!!

You might ask" "Why?" Good question. This will help you control your pencil whenever your are drawing, and will give your drawings a little more "life." They actually will not appear as flat. This excercise will also let your drawings move beyond the "sketch" stage and start to look more complete and polished. In practical terms, look at the hair of Guastave. By utilizing a complete stroke, his hair would be cleaner and more arrainged. Try to shape the hair so that it flow. It your drawing, it looks a little frizzed.

One of the main ways to improve is to observe others drawings. Look up an artist on DA that you really like, and whose style closely matches you own. As you look at their work, ask youself some questions. Questions help us to understand areas that we need to work in. The following do not pertain to any work in particular, but will depend on what the drawing contains:

"Why kind of lines did they use to get that effect?"
"Why did they place that object where they did?"
"What type of lighting do they use in the picture, and where does it come from."
"What shapes did they use in their composition."

The second main way to improve your drawing is simply, practice. Draw. Everything. Using magazines, photos, real life, draw, draw, draw. Think about what you are drawing.
You have some nice talent. Now, it just needs to be developed! Keep at it!

End of Art Lesson #1...

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