Space or arrow keys. GUYS! Double digits!!! I actually drew 10 things! You'll notice black paper is a strong theme. I went to get a new sketchbook and I wound up with four new sketchbooks: -Plain old white paper -Tan paper -Gray paper -Black paper I feel like my art is maturing. I feel like some of these are actually art and not just copying down reference photos.
1. A realistic version of Shiro from Voltron -It's meh. I'm not experienced with converting cartoons to realism, and this is like the first thing I ever drew on tonal paper, so it could have been worse, I guess. 2. A Fauvist profile. -I've loved Fauvism for a while and I've always wanted to try it, so I finally did and I'm happy with how it turned out, although I'm not sure if it really qualifies as Fauvism. 3. An artsy shadowy high contrast face. -Okay, I'm proud of this one. -It was supposed to be a girl, but it doesn't look very feminine, and I was gonna try to go the complete other way and make it totally masculine, but I finally decided that I dig the androgynous vibes. 4. A bubble! -From SuperRaeDizzle's tutorial on YouTube. 5. MORE BUBBLES! 6. A lobster. -Meh 7. Christian Slater -Okay, so I was really missing my Christian Slater portrait that I lost forever ago, so I was like, "I'll do a new one!" And somehow it turned out worse even though I'm definitely a better artist now than I was then. -I got too lazy to do the shirt, so I just left artfully blank. 8. A face -Look! More artsy shadows! 9. A boot! -The first thing I drew on black paper. -Bad picture. There's a weird shine on the paper, so it looks lighter/more washed out than it is. 10. Okay! This is a treat. Take a moment. Stop. Savor it. I drew this two years ago, and I was really proud of it. I recently came across it and was struck by how much better I am now--technically, at least. I decided to redraw the same image, so press space... 11. Hayley Williams Better, huh? If you're interested, here's a play-by-play of what makes this version so much better--better, of course, through the lens of realism: First of all, basic shapes. In the first one, I was paying more attention to what I thought she should look like than what she actually looks like. In the second, I really drew what I was seeing. I also gained a rudimentary understanding of human proportions in the two years between the two drawings. Next, coloring/shading. In the first one, there is absolutely no blending (e.g., the jagged "shadow" under her neck and the rectangular highlight in her hair), whereas the second one is totally blended so it looks like skin, not just colored pencil scratchings. The first one is also totally lacking color variation. I probably just went in with the peach, tan, and brown colored pencils, with some red for the cheeks. However, if you actually look at the reference photo, she has quite a yellow skin tone, specifically around her eyes and chin. Generally speaking, most shadows on skin have a reddish tone, and blues and purples almost always work to create a deep shadow. The final thing is that in the second one there are deeper, more gradual shadows instead of just random dark lines, like in the first one. Now on to fine details. In the first one, I made the sketch much darker than I should have, and as a result, it's still visible in the final product, which detracts from the realism. The eyelashes on the first one aren't realistically placed at all. They just stick out straight in random directions. Her earrings are just flatly colored dots in the first one, while in the second one they have highlights and shadows, just like the rest of the picture. Her hair in the first one is just scribbled on, which not only is not aesthetically pleasing, it also messes up the realism. Your hair doesn't grow up and down at the same time. Finally, commitment. I remember drawing the first one, and it took me about twenty minutes. The second one probably took 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Obviously, there's nothing wrong with the first one if that's similar to where you're at with your art, or if that's your style. I'm only pointing out differences that make the second drawing more realistic because realism is generally the style that I shoot for. I also did this to show how much you can improve in 2 years. So. Be inspired.
