WIP - need help with anatomy

[Captain Dando]

Hi everyone, I'm currently trying to learn constructive anatomy, to get out of the habit of drawing humans in the same poses, angles etc. one of the things I want to improve on is drawing the entire human form.
I started this picture tonight and would like some constructive criticism. are the proportions correct? is there a part of the anatomy that stands out as wrong?

[Mr. Corlan]

Kudos to you for trying to study this stuff, it is very important, but yeah, there are a lot of mistakes. The single biggest problem I see is that the rib cage is too short. If you look at a skeleton, you will see there is very little space between the bottom of the rib cage and the top of the pelvis - feel it on yourself. You will need to move his pelvis up as well.

Here are a bunch of anatomy diagrams I did a few years ago in school, they made a huge difference for me, maybe some of it is useful to you. http://conceptart.org/forums/showthr...79#post3273279 (post #141)

It will also help to memorize all your proportions in head-lengths, so you can just measure with a scrap of paper and be sure they are correct. Here are the ones I use (when I do things properly ):

[Stoat]

A nude figure, viewed from below, drawn from imagination? Whff! That's a hard one.

I progressed fastest when I spent time copying my betters -- particularly, for me, Bridgman. He really helped me think about logical ways to chunk up the human body.

[Captain Dando]

Mr.Corlan, thank you for your critique, and your sketches are very useful indeed!
I've changed the figure so that his thorax is longer, and his pelvis slightly higher, though I'm not sure if it is enough. I've also done a bit of linework on top for some perspective. I've set the reworked sketch next to the lineart. what do you think?

Stoat, it's funny you say that, I just ordered a book by george bridgman, which is what I've been using to learn about all of this. it's as good as people say it is

[lpetkov]

Yes - by all means, copy a lot of anatomy sketches. Old masters, Bridgman, Loomis,Glenn Vilppu, etc.

I found myself completely enlightened after I copied (as accurately as I could) every single sketch in Bridgman's Complete Guide to Drawing from Life

[Stoat]

We're in good company. Frazetta got started copying Bridgman cover to cover, too.

[Captain Dando]

Thanks guys, I will continue to use bridgman as a guide. I really love the way that he not only explains the anatomy to you, but also tells you how you can use it.

On a side note, how do you come up with poses? My models are always in such stiff positions and I'd like to change that. Do you usually start with a stick man? That's how I used to do it before reading bridgman but I find it's very hard to picture the final composition using them alone.

[Stoat]

Well, you're working digital, so you can be a complete wild man (um, or woman). You don't have to worry about overworking paper and you can do things, evaluate them and throw them away fast.

I usually start with a big 100% black square brush and block in some big shapes. Head, torso, gesture. Composition. Just really, really fast get a silhouette going. Then refine it by chipping away at the outline with an eraser. Or grabbing chunks with the lasso and moving it around. When I can see the shape inside, I make the black layer pale, put a drawing layer on top, and start to find the fine details. Or paint right into it.

Or I can do something with thinner scribbly lines (which is closer to what I used to do on paper) -- really scribbly and messy, trying to find volumes and shapes and proportions.

Sometimes I do a bunch of little thumbnails with not much more than a few gestural lines.

The point is to keep it loose and play with the idea for a while and not worry how it looks in the early stages. I throw it all away and start again more often than not. None of this time is wasted.

[arenhaus]

Overall, the block-in is all right. Watch the collarbone area, though; collarbones are S-shaped, and you've made them rather straight leading to a dubious placement of the far shoulder. I'd also rework the visible hand and wrist. Pay attention to the rotation of the forearm. Rework the lower edge of the rib cage; what you worked out as the edge here is really an incidental muscle pattern on a living figure. and the ribs go quite differently.

It can help if you figure out the muscles after this stage. You'll see where your form works and where it does not have a good supporting structure.

[Captain Dando]

Hi arenhaus, I've made a few changes like you recommended. This is how he looks at the moment. sorry about the late reply, as I haven't been able to draw for a while

[self-epidemic]

His legs are, somewhat out of proportion, or at least it feels that way. Its also very angular, and the cloth doesn't have that feel, so it all looks very flat, very rigid and very confusing to the eye.

[Captain Dando]

Thanks epidemic, I've changed the legs a bit, though I'm not sure I've solved the problem of proportions.

[Captain Dando]

On a side note, thank you to everyone for your help, I didn't expect to get so much useful advice from this