Taking requests (please be gentle)

[Xieveral]

Alright, here's the deal. I suck at drawing. To improve, I need to practice instead of tossing the sketchbook in a dark corner and having a sobbing fit. This is where you guys come in...

If you don't mind volunteering your characters, I would be willing to draw them. I'm not confident in coloring yet (baby steps...) so plain old pencil for now.

I don't ask anything in return other than feedback on what you liked and what you think I could stand to improve.

[blackjak]

Cool! Didn't know you drew. Feel free to practice on any of mine (like you need permission or anything) . 

[Xieveral]

Cool! Didn't know you drew. Feel free to practice on any of mine (like you need permission or anything) . 

\O/ whoo! My first victim!!!

[Leandro]

What do you need as reference for the character? Costume file, or lots of screenshots?

[Xieveral]

What do you need as reference for the character? Costume file, or lots of screenshots?

Whatever you want to provide.

I should probably put up my email... (oops, its already there)

[Xieveral]

For Blackjak:

I decided to try drawing Moonsun.

Not great, but its a start I think I'll give him another try later



By the way, do you have any screenies of Gosuto? Curious about her since she used the same face as Hyakki (which was a rare sight)

[Leandro]

I actually don't see your email in there (it's probably hidden to other users) so I'll just link to a download for my character's costume.

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/37952257/Doctor%20Leo%20Formal.costume
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/37952257/Doctor%20Leo%20Blue.costume
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/37952257/Doctor%20Leo%20Red.costume

Whichever you prefer is fine.

[Xieveral]

I am technologically challenged... would I save those in notepad as .costume, kind of like demos?

[Leandro]

I am technologically challenged... would I save those in notepad as .costume, kind of like demos?

Just right-click the links and select Save Link As, that will save them with the correct extension.

[blackjak]

Looking good! I figured you would do him first. Fits your other work. Feel free to go crazy with him. I patterned him after Korean pop/media star T.O.P. (before turning Japanese) so hair is a changable thing with him. I will get a pic of Gosuto, but she is covered up (assassin scarf thing) I  should have her demon form as well.

[Shadeknight]

http://i.imgur.com/OiU3K.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/ImFjr.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/Zm0IM.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/QxE9o.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/YIdUn.jpg

Here are some ref shots of my main, Shadeknight.
<3

[blackjak]

Here is Gosuto:

And the only one I have of her in "Oni" form:

[Zekiran]

You totally do not suck at drawing.


I have been uploading a series of (mostly alphabetical) my characters, on my lethe-gray account, which I've just started watching you on. So feel free to select whoever, I always love seeing things of my characters!

[Xieveral]

I think if I keep doing a drawing a day at the very least, I can see improvement. Thank you very much for giving me the opportunity, guys! 

Here's Doctor Leo for Leandro

[Leandro]

Can you upload it to imgur.com ? Photobucket is not letting me save it.

Criticism! (note, I'm blunt on my criticism, don't take it too harshly)

There's something really wrong with the neck. The left shoulder (character POV) doesn't seem to be connected to the neck at all, and the head sits too much to the right side.

The facial expression is good, though I find the left eye (again, character POV) to be a little weird, it seems too big.

Take a look at this site for more natural-looking ways the head and neck connect to the shoulders: http://thevirtualinstructor.com/facialproportions.html

[Xieveral]

Can you upload it to imgur.com ? Photobucket is not letting me save it.

Criticism! (note, I'm blunt on my criticism, don't take it too harshly)

There's something really wrong with the neck. The left shoulder (character POV) doesn't seem to be connected to the neck at all, and the head sits too much to the right side.

The facial expression is good, though I find the left eye (again, character POV) to be a little weird, it seems too big.

Take a look at this site for more natural-looking ways the head and neck connect to the shoulders: http://thevirtualinstructor.com/facialproportions.html

Here you go. http://imgur.com/PzOXO

I really appreciate the criticism. Its exactly the kind of thing I want to hear.

I do have a hard time with proportion and perspective. I know what I should be doing and how it should look but the information gets scrambled at some point between my brain and the pencil.

I over think everything: "the guidelines are crooked..." "that circle isn't round enough" "did I place them right?," "that eye looks too big, now its too small, too big, too small..." "omgdoyouevenanatomyhowdidyoupasskindergartenartclass?" *several crumpled pages later...* "Screw it, I'm going to bed..." (and that's the mindset I've had so far on these attempts but even if I'm embarrassed by them, I should post them and get feedback otherwise how will I ever improve?)

How do you get over something like that?

[Leandro]

Thanks for uploading to imgur. Now I can look at it in high rez and comment a little more.

The hair seems like you were trying to center the split in the head, but that you drew it based on the absolute position of the face, rather than where it would naturally go if you draw a line from the chin through the nose. I'll post an image so you can see what I mean:



Because of this, the forehead looks crooked; the right side (character POV) is smaller than the left. The rest of the face is actually pretty good, it's just that the hair doesn't seem to be "attached" to the head properly. It looks more like a wig that was put on off-center.

I'll see if I can get an artist friend to comment here, I'm no good at drawing and they might be able to give you some pointers.

[Xieveral]

So, I tried changing some things. The old shoulders looked super weird, yeah?



Improvement but the actual shoulders (as opposed to the area between neck and shoulder) still seem off to me and the head needs a little more height maybe?

[Aggelakis]

Shoulders should be a little wider - around three heads wide - one of the "rules of three" in art.

[Leandro]

So, I tried changing some things. The old shoulders looked super weird, yeah?

Improvement but the actual shoulders (as opposed to the area between neck and shoulder) still seem off to me and the head needs a little more height maybe?

Great improvement on the pose, and the red outlines promise a good correction of the forehead. The right  side of the neck (character POV) feels too big, at a first glance I thought it had a cowboy-style napkin around the neck. But still, great improvement from the first!