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Post by kanshu on Oct 12, 2004 6:22:36 GMT -5
Amen on the hands thing. And amen on the 'curve' discussion. Those things are a really unfair disadvantage.
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Post by KarotsaMused on Oct 13, 2004 17:21:54 GMT -5
Heh, one of the main reasons I take to drawing guys ><; I have a wide variety of friends, from the "It's okay, hon, you're just a really late bloomer" types to the girls who have to wear back braces. For (freehand) artwork purposes, I settle on fashion model types...which basically means really femmy guys But therein lies the wonder of the internet and Google image search. Curves are definitely a blessing and a curse, but I also think it's fun that they're considered attractive and we *don't have to work for them* ... if anything, accentuate your rear end and eat a few more Twinkies And yeah, hands = scary. My friend Aaron has to draw FIFTY realistic hands for his animation class...within a week. Now -that- is a headache on a stick. Much as I love the teacher, I'm glad I'm not stuck doing that as well
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Post by Salmastryon on Oct 13, 2004 17:48:19 GMT -5
I also dislike shoulders for some reason and shoes. It is real funny I find it easier to draw someone barefoot or with sandals on then to draw shoes.
I haven't tried the internet for model references, but I've taken to keeping the huge JC Penny catalogs Mom gets. They are great for getting different body positions and clothes types.
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Post by KarotsaMused on Oct 13, 2004 23:47:07 GMT -5
I can *never* get shoulders to look level or proportionate if I'm freehanding. Oh, dear, no. I sketch most often in profile so I only have to do *one* shoulder. Shoes!! Oh, dear, don't get me started on SHOES. >< My best shoes are either Converse high tops or Doc Marten-style kick-yo-booty type boots... but regular sneakers and sandals (much respect to Sal for being able to draw sandals) are far beyond me. Gimme a good set of toes any day. Yeah, for my art class I have to have a pretty extensive picture file with images of people, shiny things, animals, nature, ad nauseam, but it's a) at least 5 pounds by now b) at school and c) mostly filled with anatomy study when it comes to people. JCPenny catalogues, huh? Sounds good for simple study. I find that a lot of really good stances and expressions (not to mention some of the wittiest advertisements) are found in the humble Newsweek. I always pillage that magazine for more stuff for my file ;D But seriously, the internet is tops for specific poses and stuff. I once found a really dynamic picture of Siouxie (Siouxie and the Banshees) for a study of hands...and I love the picture so much I'm going to reuse it for something else later...as soon as I decide what it is. I'm also in complete love with ballet dancers, just because their bodies have clean lines and they're always in very interesting poses. But that's me being lazy.
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Post by kanshu on Oct 14, 2004 4:50:23 GMT -5
For Saiyuki, I found the manga & TV-series guides very helpful. They have plenty of drawings for the heads, hands, clothing and other details of the characters. Still, even the best book can't make up for practice...
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Post by Salmastryon on Oct 14, 2004 6:48:50 GMT -5
I guess I should bite the bullet and start practicing drawing hands.
I have been trying to draw full figures lately. I used to only draw busts.
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Post by KarotsaMused on Oct 14, 2004 19:27:46 GMT -5
Opti: Amen, amen! Practicing perfectly makes perfect, but crappy practice will do you good just the same The art for the Saiyuki anime and stuff, character breakdown and proportion, is good if you want to emulate the style, that's for sure. I realized that after a while and am now trying to reassert my own style over everything I've copied, and bad habits are hard to unlearn But I'm getting there My art teacher will have to provide me with a new sketchbook at the semester, that's for sure. (Funny circumstances, those. I'm taking two AP Studios, and in each class I paid the fee for all the supplies. Basically, I'm entitled to two pencil sets, four erasers, two portfolios, and two sketchbooks...I use the extra money to make good on Snid's really expensive French Canson paper for some of my more detailed dry projects (Paint + Canson = mush) and I steal his acrylic, too... But I could still make good on that second sketchbook next semester and I'll probably need it!! Mine's already way fuller than everyone else's... Hey, white paper always on hand.) Sal - Yeah, Full-figure is a killer. I love 'dynamic' poses because foreshortening and perspective means I can be slightly out of proportion and nobody will know. Bwahahaha. Heh. I'm having a hell of a time getting a simple pose for Effy down, though...even though I've done about a bijillion facial studies for her.
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Post by kanshu on Oct 21, 2004 5:18:42 GMT -5
Ohh.. paper and art supplies! There's so much wonderful stuff out there just waiting to be used.
*sigh*
I use plain, normal printer paper (DIN A4-size), and I'm proud owner of a set of 2H, HB, 2B and 8B pencils. I also ned to mention my two, faithfull rubbers (actually, it's three now, after one decided to do a mitosis), and an ink ballpen (for Saiyuki: Refile inking). I thought about getting better or different materials, but considering that I'm not very skilled or talented, and have absoltutely no idea of any techniques outside of plain doodles, it's a waste of time.
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Post by KarotsaMused on Oct 21, 2004 19:42:10 GMT -5
Woo! I must now express my love for the 9B pencil. It's -so- much fun. Now for Karot's adventures in Art: I used charcoal this week for the second time in my life. I hated it the first time, (doing a strawberry, of all things) but now, in a still life of a skeleton (human) and ram's skull (heeh, we have quite a prop room at the high school...) charcoal is my savior. I -LOVE- the stuff. Charcoal and white chalk ... woo! If you haven't played with it, I seriously suggest you do - I messed around on a test sheet and found out that the *most* fun you can have is when you make shiny hair. ;D I also learned about fluorescent tempera paint. In hot pink. ;D Monochromatic compositions never had it so good! Opti: never, EVER say that about yourself. You have your own skills, talents, and style, and the worst thing an artist can do is compare him/herself to someone else. And that definitely means Minekura (knowing you've done quite a bit of art for that fandom) because her style is one of the hardest to pin down that I've come across. but if you want to save that extra hundred dollars that would have gone to a nice set of watercolors for a good dinner out (or two...), I'm not complaining at all. Art supplies are *expensive*!!
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Post by kanshu on Oct 22, 2004 1:28:20 GMT -5
Ohhh... charcoal. I remember trying that once. The effect was interesting. The picture turned out great, I mean, it was finally one that had real contrasts and all. We won't talk about the motive here. Thank heavens, my mom had a washing machine. Hard to believe, but this year, my creative juices seem to finally flow again as they used to... what, six or seven years ago? Karots, I can't help but be realistic. Yes, I know I have my own skills and talents, but as far as art is concerened, they sure won't end me up in the museums, or selling manga or something. Don't get me wron, I thoroughly enjoy doodling, and make you guys smile with what I doodle. I love my Sanzo-'slaves' piccies, despite the fact that hey have anatomical errors in them. Still, when I look at it realistic, I don't have much talent, and skill - my 'artwork' will always remain doodlings. I would not even dare to compare myself to mangakas, or other artists like you guys here who do art. But I'm not sad about it. The doodlings serve a purpose, and that they do good, no matter the quality. ;D
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Post by Salmastryon on Oct 22, 2004 8:47:16 GMT -5
OptiMoose: your definition of doodles and mine differ. For me a doodle is something I do in the sides of a notebook. What you do I consider art. On mediums: I've never really explored different weight pencils. For my pencil drawings I use a .7mm pentel mechanical pencil. I also have another mechanical pencil that is .9mm that is suppose to be for film. I use it to draw guidelines on the more difficult pencil stuff. My "doodles" are all in pen of various types. When I ink something for coloring I use a Micron 005 and Micron 02. I also picted up a Pigma brush to play with but haven't had many opportunities. Those are all sakura pens which I splurged on to spoil myself one day. As for Charcoal, I haven't played around with that much. The pictures for my new website though are all done in charcoal pencil. I wanted the dark contrast that it brings. The only thing I really dislike about charcoal is that it doesn't erase. The only other medium I've ever played with is colored pencils. Which I haven't touch in forever. For some reason when I draw in color pencils it looks like some one 5 or 10 years young drew it. Ya know all this talk about art has reknewed my desire to actually take some classes.
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Post by KarotsaMused on Oct 22, 2004 18:11:48 GMT -5
On doodlings vs art - I totally agree with Salma And have you *seen* some of the stuff in museums today? Not to knock Pollack but...;D let's play the relative talent game. Being in three art classes definitely exposes me to multiple media, but the ones I've really got a handle on right now are tempera paints, acrylics, charcoal, scratchboard, 9B-2H sketch pencils (including F and HB) ... and the wonderful, milky, gorgeous Prisma Colored Pencils. Sal - if you haven't used them, you must get a hand on them. Your colored pencil drawings will not look childish at -all-... They take a lot of time to work with, but you can blend them like paint and they come in the most vibrant, wonderful colors. That said, they're about a dollar each, and are extremely soft and prone to breaking if you're not careful I personally just love drawing with them, because you can get a range of shade and tint that you really can't with even some graphite. My art teacher has a gigantoid bin of the least-used Prismas that he gathers from old sets every year...so I use those. Apple Green and Tuscan Red are the most often abandoned, and my sketchbook has a lot of offerings in those colors That said, I must sob. First and second period (I have art third and fifth) messed with our still life (we have a substitute who is, by nature, a flake...we've had her before, and yet Snid thinks she's okay ) and so about six of the advanced artists, myself included, spent half the period of valuable work time trying to get the still life back into the position it was in before. We couldn't do it, and could only get it into relatively the same spot. It was -extremely- frustrating, especially knowing the substitute did *nothing* about it.
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Post by Salmastryon on Oct 22, 2004 18:59:33 GMT -5
Oh... that is soo... irritating. Want me to run over and bit them?
*grins showing lots of sharp teeth*
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Post by KarotsaMused on Oct 22, 2004 23:16:13 GMT -5
*giggle* just the mental image of Effy (as an Effy Effigy) latching on to someone's leg for moving a skeleton has greatly improved my mood
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Post by Blood_Debt on Oct 26, 2004 0:08:04 GMT -5
x.x... actually, entering this thread is a little intimidating... My personal best is stick men, but I draw every day. *mumblegrumble* And I make no preperations, I just grab the nearest pencil and sketch...
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