Hey guys, so I haven't done any real drawing for almost two years, since I was learning the basics of every other aspect of game dev. Time to brush up on concept art!
My eye goes straight to the lady in the lower right (now lower left) corner if you can't find a reference for it pose it out yourself and take a photo to use as reference.
From what I can tell her (my) left eye (on the most recent image) wraps around the face too much and is too close to the ear and too large. The tip of the eyebrow should not be touching the hairline, and the corner of the eye also should not be touching the hairline.
Here is a nice ref for different views and angles:
Otherwise looks really intereseting! Just check your anatomy especially on the people closest to the viewer (that take up the most space in the drawing) I hope this helps!
Yeah, I'm adding a lot of faces, poses, and perspectives, because that's what I find hardest to do. I want this to be a grueling practice piece, and something I can use for my portfolio.
Kind of frustrated... I spent the last 12 hours or so working on the angel's face, and yet it still looks off. I'm thinking there's something inherently wrong. Maybe I should just sculpt it in Zbrush.
Well, the problem seems to be that you aren't able to do a 3/4th face properly. Her mouth is far more in profile than her eyes.
I think you'd be best off doing a bit of a 'structure' pass so to speak: Try to figure out each shape as a pseudo-3d shape, because a lot of your silhouettes are weak, like for example the creature in the distance seems very lumpy right now(and I can't seem to draw a proper skeleton for him), and both faces are awkward. Having a strong silhouette is half the work once you start shading it.
see if you can get someone to hold a tennisracket or broom behind their back and make a picture... then compare that to the soldier on the right. Rapiers aren't very heavy, especially a well balanced one, but it's still a bit heavier than a tennis racket or boomstick and that soldier wouldn't be able to hold it like that.
Also, separate your fore/mid/background with some simple filters or color difference. The composition isn't actually that complex, it's just unreadable because everything's the same tone.
Edit: also why are these people chopping with a rapier? I mean, divine forces and all that, but rapiers aren't really chopping weapons.
Edit2: Yes, those are rapiers, long swords are wider. Not by much, but they are definitely wider.
Yeah, I think I'm going to start over from scratch. I have a feeling I didn't set the base proportions properly in the beginning.
They aren't rapiers, but longswords; rapiers would be longer by a foot, and have a rapier hilt. The blades appear thin, because of perspective. They weigh the same, if not often a bit more, than a longsword, which is about 3-4lbs max. Nothing is being chopped with them ( they aren't getting the chance), however the decapitated head flying by would suggest otherwise... messy composition, haven't added the monster with the giant cleaver yet
Also, a funny story with my D&D group. I play a drow paladin with warlock levels... Anyway, at one point we were fighting a bugbear boss. I mistakenly said that I "decapitate him with a divine smite." The GM was like, "Oh, rapiers aren't actually chopping weapons, but I'll allow it since he's nearly dead, and you're smiting."
And yeah, rapiers are definitely not primarily cutting weapons; although most have cut and draw functions at the end of the blade. Some don't even have sharpened edges at all, others feature a tri-bladed cross section, almost like a T-bar for building construction. Really wonky to look at, but rigid as all hell.
ugh, what a valuable lesson. "Never stop drawing". I was about to start over, but I remembered the sole purpose of this concept piece was for me to practice perspective; hence all the arrows, people, and body parts flying about.
Female faces are also not my forte. I have more experience with hard surfaces and 3d modeling.
I think it's getting better, although there's still a lot of work to be done.
Oh and Wolthera, this is the skeleton of the big bad dude. I agree with you, it's not very well defined at all, but it is there. Yeah, he has really long limbs, but that's by design
I think I'll take a break from the angel's face and work on this next.
Ok, so I'm starting over from scratch. I couldn't stand looking at my reproduction circa 2007 teenager WoW fan art anymore ( and even most of that is better than the drivel I expunged from my imagination).
This time I'm actually going to concentrate on form and function from the get-go, instead of being lazy, and scribbling with utter futility.
So here's what I'm going to do.
I'm going to draw a mech sitting by a bonfire, with a knight sitting on top, drinking a mug of ale with his thumbs up and winking, while his horse single-handedly fights off acrobatic ninja-squirrels wielding laser guns and lightsabers.
This is reaaally messy, I have no idea whats going on, and it feels like there are at least 3-4 different styles going on at the same time. also the female face in the forground is really distracting I would really try to redo this from scratch If i where you, and do some thumbnails before you jump into the final illustrations, to make sure you have a clear read and an actual composition.
Replies
I really just work on whatever I feel like working on at the moment, and I don't want to be too attached to perfect lines and details just yet.
Thanks for the tips Rav3!
From what I can tell her (my) left eye (on the most recent image) wraps around the face too much and is too close to the ear and too large. The tip of the eyebrow should not be touching the hairline, and the corner of the eye also should not be touching the hairline.
Here is a nice ref for different views and angles:
Otherwise looks really intereseting! Just check your anatomy
Yeah, I'm adding a lot of faces, poses, and perspectives, because that's what I find hardest to do. I want this to be a grueling practice piece, and something I can use for my portfolio.
[ame]
I think you'd be best off doing a bit of a 'structure' pass so to speak: Try to figure out each shape as a pseudo-3d shape, because a lot of your silhouettes are weak, like for example the creature in the distance seems very lumpy right now(and I can't seem to draw a proper skeleton for him), and both faces are awkward. Having a strong silhouette is half the work once you start shading it.
see if you can get someone to hold a tennisracket or broom behind their back and make a picture... then compare that to the soldier on the right. Rapiers aren't very heavy, especially a well balanced one, but it's still a bit heavier than a tennis racket or boomstick and that soldier wouldn't be able to hold it like that.
Also, separate your fore/mid/background with some simple filters or color difference. The composition isn't actually that complex, it's just unreadable because everything's the same tone.
Edit: also why are these people chopping with a rapier? I mean, divine forces and all that, but rapiers aren't really chopping weapons.
Edit2: Yes, those are rapiers, long swords are wider. Not by much, but they are definitely wider.
They aren't rapiers, but longswords; rapiers would be longer by a foot, and have a rapier hilt. The blades appear thin, because of perspective. They weigh the same, if not often a bit more, than a longsword, which is about 3-4lbs max. Nothing is being chopped with them ( they aren't getting the chance), however the decapitated head flying by would suggest otherwise... messy composition, haven't added the monster with the giant cleaver yet
Also, a funny story with my D&D group. I play a drow paladin with warlock levels... Anyway, at one point we were fighting a bugbear boss. I mistakenly said that I "decapitate him with a divine smite." The GM was like, "Oh, rapiers aren't actually chopping weapons, but I'll allow it since he's nearly dead, and you're smiting."
And yeah, rapiers are definitely not primarily cutting weapons; although most have cut and draw functions at the end of the blade. Some don't even have sharpened edges at all, others feature a tri-bladed cross section, almost like a T-bar for building construction. Really wonky to look at, but rigid as all hell.
Edit: found the problem!
Female faces are also not my forte. I have more experience with hard surfaces and 3d modeling.
I think it's getting better, although there's still a lot of work to be done.
I think I'll take a break from the angel's face and work on this next.
This time I'm actually going to concentrate on form and function from the get-go, instead of being lazy, and scribbling with utter futility.
So here's what I'm going to do.
I'm going to draw a mech sitting by a bonfire, with a knight sitting on top, drinking a mug of ale with his thumbs up and winking, while his horse single-handedly fights off acrobatic ninja-squirrels wielding laser guns and lightsabers.
AND I'M GOING TO MAKE IT LOOK COOL.
The mech and additional tactical squirrels are en route! Entaro Adun!