Home 2D Art Showcase & Critiques

How do you know when you're finished?

Hi y'all! http://www.artviktor.com/
My first post here on the 2D side of PolyCount.com. My thoughts about this (my) piece here, the "Big Shadow" guy, are when do you know that you're done? I can jam away on details for hours, but what do you guys feel when you know that "this is enough, now I'm done" with a piece? Pleace fire away with all the feed-back that springs to mind.

Cheers!
/ArtViktor

Zd8LMyD.jpg

Replies

  • .nL
    Offline / Send Message
    .nL polycounter lvl 3
    You're finished when you've reached a comfortable state of imperfection.

    I'm a bit of a utilitarian/minimalist in that respect. My opinion is that you're finished when you've nailed the composition/anatomy, and hinted at just enough detail to let the eye fill in everything else, and no more than that.

    If the image begins to feel too noisy, you've gone too far. If people can't figure out what material X on the character is, you've probably not gone far enough.

    For a character sheet, this level of detail works very well. I can tell what I need to know from the picture, and understand on a basic level what forms and materials each component of the character is made up of. That said, his left arm and leg look a little funky to me.
  • ArtViktor
    Thank you, .nL! Definetly valid feedback. So many talented artists on polucount... I'll make sure to fix the left arm and leg!
  • lotet
    Offline / Send Message
    lotet hero character
    hey there, pretty good work! welcome to polycount!

    I think its very personal when you feel you finished a piece. nL had some very good points thuogh. its really up to you, and its a tallent in itself to see/feel when a piece is done.
  • Leinad
    Offline / Send Message
    Leinad polycounter lvl 11
    Great work, I like the character. One area that I would personally like more refined is the character silhouette in the small body thumbnails. Really nice presentation.

    From my experience there is a constant state of growth with every new project which makes all of the old feel outdated. It's a skill I've been trying to practice, not getting too caught up with making something work if it doesn't is also an important aspect.
  • ArtViktor
    Thanks again, all, for the feedback and sharing your thoughts!

    Here's a newer version of the picture I posted earlier were I've tried to take your feedback into account. I'd be very happy to hear what you think! Anatomy, presentation, values, color, composition, anything really =)

    RX0p7MB.jpg
  • Mark Dygert
    .nL wrote: »
    You're finished when you've reached a comfortable state of imperfection.
    Yep, pretty much this.

    Also, I love the character!
  • dfacto
    Offline / Send Message
    dfacto polycounter lvl 18
    .nL wrote: »
    You're finished when you've reached a comfortable state of imperfection.

    This is the core of it, in my opinion. It's more about erasing imperfections that mar the product than it is about perfecting something that's already acceptable. Look at speedies and you'll see that as long as the imperfections are uniform the piece looks good. But take a piece like yours and any imperfection will stick out because of the higher level of polish, like the fuzziness I see on his arms and groin, for example. You just need to make a consistent pass and not worry about getting it perfect.
  • Jaco
    Offline / Send Message
    Jaco polycounter lvl 17
    Nice work on the hands! I do think the face could be improved, the features feel quite flat and don't really feel like they're sitting on a skeletal structure. Did a quick paintover, hope you don't mind:

    PO_Head.jpg
Sign In or Register to comment.