- another sketchbook -

[Ludic]

Yeah, i feel like his eyes should be a bit lower down.

I'd love to see some more of your delicious pencils

[bpic]

bing - yeah lol. I need major color work. Ill get there!
Ludic - some coming up I swear! School is killing me lately lol so I just havent had time to scan. I got a few pages though to post.

here is something unfinished from class. Need to tweak a few things and finish up the black and white and then try some overlay technique..... I prolly wont be able to post for a few days.. Got so much crap coming up.

[dan liimatta]

"Any tips??????"

bpic

Bling is right about the overlay or just some soft tones to shift it around a bit - but you can also just add in some nice colour shifts to pop the colours you have.

Did a quick paintover - just trying to add some colours.

You also might consider more reflections and colour bleed (green on the metal ring and red from the lights - but also some skin tones on the metal and the reverse etc.




EDIT: I also like the upper arm and the back legs of the latest creature.

[Ludic]

Good paintover dan, couldn't agree more.

So, what kind of school is it you go to? sounds interesting if you get those kinds of assignments.

[bpic]

dan liimatta - WOW thanks so much man that was really helpful. I love the crits I keep getting here.. they point so much out. I tried to apply some of that on my latest creature, but Im not so sure I can get it to that level lol. Thank you a million times!

Ludic - Thanks for your critiques as well, you always seem to have some awesome feedback. I go to Rocky Mountain College of Art and Design. They could be worse but to be honest I learn more from you people on conceptart.org.... And I waste a lot of time doing shit like learning about humanities and biology and etc when I could be improving as an artist. Oh well though. Graduate in eight more weeks and I will be able to obsess every single day.

Got some pencils coming tonight but for now I have to finish some stuff for classes. Here is the creature, not sure what else to do to it.. I feel somewhat happy about it but at the same time it took forever and its not good enough for what I want it to look like. Guess I got more work to do! I was looking at making a rat version of Pinky from doom.. but *spit* on the screen.

Thanks guys

[dan liimatta]

You are using more light than the one I painted over - and more play as such - and I think the highlighted area and the lower leg - and back directly above (on the image, not on the creature) the rim/shoulder also works.

But I think the volumes are weird to the left on the shoulder, the chest and the mouth and neck - nothing flows into each other - and it's a bit like you have a michelline man beast as you got rings/tubes running over the body - all round.

I'd look at having the shapes work more together than they do now.

did a quick paintover for fun - hope you don't mind - changed some designs out of personal choice - kind of liked the more sleek fur you had - but I'd consider making it more shiny if you wanted to keep that.



Also the shape thing is perhaps just me being silly - and it's in part about taste etc. just annoyed me a bit with the piece - now I just added a bit of random shape change - so dunno if it was for the best - the crease just to the left of the shoulder could be considered weird - as the strange ribs/tendons just below that on the chest to arm section and so on - just take anything you like from it and disregard anything you don't want or that you believe I fucked up. (And I really question what I did with the head).

[bpic]

Hey Dan

I dont mind at all that your doing this for me I seriously feel so greatful and privelaged! Its flattering that you find it worth it. Do you mind if I make some of these changes your suggesting? I dont want to feel like I am copying you, and Im not going to sell the piece or anything. It is important for me to make the changes though so I can think them through.. though I don't think I will be able to get it to that level lol.

Let me know! I dont want to offend. Thank you so much man.

[dan liimatta]

oh no problem at all - use what you want from it

[bpic]

So I didnt have a lot of time to make changes, because I have five character designs due on next week and have to finish at least one today, but HOLY CRAP that helped.

Some things I learned from it:

- repetition is cool, but repetition with some variation is where its at (design principles).

- welding shapes together (as James Gurney talks about.. buy his book) is a good way to create some unity. (design principles)

- color, like value must be carefully controlled. Not each form can have the full range of color because smaller forms are subordinate to larger forms and larger forms have the full range. For example if my range is like a cool dark red to a warm pink then smaller forms can only be parts of that range, according to their surrounding local value. (color)

- Also learned the power of greys and broken color (even though I don't think I achieved it well). Cool greys the same value as the warm pinks help create more glow and help compliment the more intense colors. (color)

Im probably just talking out of my ass and I doubt I will remember all of this, but Ill definately try. I also definately will ask myself if my designs have all the principles from now on.

I liked the bone structure you added and tried to incorporate that, also my rat looked bald so I tried to fix that and I definately tried to mimick your range of color (which is beautiful) and tried to mimic how you welded some shapes together. I left the head a bit darker because it was getting lost against the blue background for me (im on pc). I love form the most out of any element of art, but sometimes I get too carried away and I too tight.

Thanks again Dan hope I can return the favor I learned a lot.

Edit: Might actually try to fix a few things lol.. brb

[Aveh]

Damn dude, your pencils are crisssppp. I like that lol.
This your last semester?

I was going to mention something about getting some more hue shifts in that latest
piece but I think dan handled it much better than I could have.

Btw, You need to get a messenger or something so we can chop it up

[S3CTR4]

Slickness

[Danny_K]

awesome sketchbook! your pencils are way ahead of your color work, more practice is all I can say

[bpic]

Heya all, just came on to post some pencils before I look back at them and they disgust me too much.

Danny_K - thank you! Yeah I know I need major color work. Workin' on it!

S3CTR4 - thanks man!

Aveh - yeah I can set up something, what do you use?

I gotta stop by and see the work you guys have been posting its been awhile. For tonight I have to do at least two character designs though lol... going to be a long night.

[NickyBeats]

damn dude. those pencils first off, are friggin awesome. you have such a nice delicate touch with your work, you can tell that you really put alot of effort into it. and this newest digital creature came out awesome!

[Bing!]

Hey bpic! digging the latest sketchbook stuff! do u use a mechanical pencil?

[Ludic]

Aaah, awesome! Love the mech- stuff, really nice rendering of the forms

[dan liimatta]

Love your pencils - did before the last update as well - but damn these are nice (I don't do pencils often, and never as well )

& In the end your shading with pen seems to be just what it should - like on the arm/chest in the 2nd piece in the last post.

I like the thumbnails in the 4th piece - the mechanical, cloth and skin representation in pen in general - and the mecha design in the 5th piece.

& James Gurney is awesome - really like his blog and books.

& I think you really improved the head on the cyborg bear from either of our versions.

[raminafshari]

very good pencil drawings .

[Aveh]

I got whatever, just let me know.

[bpic]

Aveh - alrighty will do. Hopefully I can work at home this week lol, rather than hanging out at school for the software.

raminafshari - thank you thank you.

dan liimatta - thank you! that means a lot coming from you, you have some pretty sick stuff. Do you work? Just curious.

Ludic - thank you!

Bing! - thank you so much, yeah just use a mech pencil, boring.

NickyBeats - thank you man! yeah I prolly put more than I should in sometimes.. and less other times.

just wanted to post the rat thing, since I updated it for class after critique. Hopefully will post some more soon. I have been lurking around lol just too busy to post. (three 12 hour days at school in a row).

[Ludic]

I like the latest one, think you pulled off the hairy texture quite nicely. But i think his entire ribcage is bent a little oddly, I know it's a monster and all but it still looks a tad off. The highlights look great in it!

By the way, do you mind if i put your sketchbook in my signature?

Keep up the good work!

[MarcSampson]

really nice style and rendering. but try sth different from time to time. the robo shape is getting a bit repetitive..

[bpic]

Ludic - your right! The perspective is off.... AGAIN... damnit! From now on I am putting in perspective lines everytime to check myself.. I never check. Getting tired of making the same mistakes. Yeah you can add me in your signature, ill add you as well. We visit eachother lots so that'd be cool.

MarcSampson - your right man, its true. I feel like I keep getting too influenced by artists around here, time to build the library more I think.

In fact, I will be taking a break from posting for a bit. Just finished four characters and watched a video by Daniel Chavez and noticed all the shit I need to work on so instantly the four characters made me sick (even though the are the best I have done). So I dont know, I need a break I think. Ill keep visiting you all, but I need some time to figure my shit out for now. Probably just a few days or a week or so. SIGH. Yeah not sure what else to say. Is it bad to feel like this? I mean I wont quit working but I dont know.

See you all soon in your threads!!!!!

Thank you guys for critiques, you have given me direction and plenty work on and I love it!

edit: you know what else.. more and more I am noticing my ego. Its making life harder for me. Well I think I should bury the thing forever. I feel so privileged to have so many talented people to take the time to visit and comment and critique.. and looking back I feel like I tried to convince myself I didn't need help. I see lately how much I really need.

[Ludic]

No worries man, everyone needs a break every now and then.
Just make sure to come back more pumped than ever .

[Aveh]

Yeah I been trying to take a break from posting and just make stuff and study. I know the feeling. Its just a nonstop struggle dude, even the people who make it look easy deal with it.

That was my revalation after talking to a few artists I look up to. Can't fix everything, so just pick something that is pissing you off or frustrating you the most currently and fix it, then move on down the list.

goodluck with the grind

[dan liimatta]

Currently I'm not no - I did work for a bit over 2 years before I took a break due to at the time unknown causes - turned out to be Borrelia (it caused my 12-16 hours of work per day to spiral out of control stress wise as I couldn't sleep during nights and always felt sick).

So been working myself back into it for some time - and am going to start applying for work again soon (hopefully this week, maybe the week after as I got 3 potential places currently).

& the piece turned out well

[bpic]

hey all, been gone a bit but been busy. Decided I should come back and get my ass kicked some more with some of your amazing critiques.

Aveh- I didn't respond but I did read your post and it made me feel a lot better thank you! I took your advice too and I have been trying to pick things that are bugging me and just have been focusing on those things. Sometimes time with yourself and with no other artist input seems helpful (not as often, but sometimes).

Ludic - Been checking in on ya now and then but HELLO anyway.



dan liimatta - wow. Since I have been gone awhile did you find anything work wise? Actually never mind Ill ask some questions in your thread since I bet you have a lot of awesome art and tutorials up.

I mostly took time away from CA because I felt that you all gave me a lot to work on and I felt like I needed to focus on those things (a) and (b) because there are so many awesome artists on here that I sometimes start to get influenced too much by them. So sorry I have been a recluse

Tomorrow Ill take a huge pencil dump all over this thread since they have been piling up but in the mean time here is a character design/illustration that was supposed to be for chow but since I didn't see it till like two days ago I didn't finish on time... oh well that why they make sketchbooks. aannnnnnd I need to change my avatar.. ew. Alright ill shut up, see ya.

[Ludic]

Dude, that is so awesome.. I just wanna throw up.

I don't actually have anything to critique, but you should definitely continue with this.

Take care

[bpic]

Thanks man lol. I will definately continue with the piece. I have this war theme going lately and I kinda like it. Ill probably roll with it.

heres some pencils. Im all over the place with these. I cant decide if I like an hb lead or a 2b lead or if I like a thin or think paper. Im in like three sketchbooks right now lol.

[MBK]

Awesome work man! Your pencil work is freaking great.