face looks off

[gfxtwin]

I'm starting to hit a wall. Her face looks out of proportion or distorted.

[arenhaus]

You are making some very typical mistakes, like painting before you made a solid drawing, taking shortcuts instead of working at an even pace (I am talking about the copy-pasted earring), and forgetting to track the structure around the facial features.

I'd suggest you to do some "wireframe" drawings of the same picture. Make sure you know where the centerline is, where the planes of the face are, how the perspective affects them, whether you are tracking the proportions, where the bone and muscle features are, etc. 90% of your problems stem simply from guessing where you should have calculated.

Once you start tracking the structures, instead of just making color marks, you should be able to see where your painting fails.

[EZpaint]

I am going to agree with arenas here, it seems you put time into the rendering - but it is important that you align the features correctly before you dive into all the small details.
I did a rough line over to help demonstrate how using guidelines can help keep all your features aligned.
The best thing about guidlines is that you build them up from basic shapes, which helps you "see" the perspective as you render.
However, it is still wise to flip your work often as sometimes features can still become misaligned in the rendering process. Please feel free to use the lineover if you find it helpful.

[gfxtwin]

Ok, I tried to do the following: Make her face more proportionate, make her look more feminine and also younger, give her hair a chic look. Yes, the hair looks miserable right now but I'm going to render that after I know her face is finished.

Question: Where would you expect to find this image? Pretend the hair is finished and looks appropriately ribbony and shiny. A book cover maybe? A deviantart portfolio? Videogame concept art? Based on the visual style, lighting and emotion (or lack thereof) of the image, what in your opinion would be an appropriate use for it? Keep in mind that I have thick skin when it comes to critique and this is a personal work and I didn't have any intention in mind other than to draw a good looking younger woman as far as this particular piece is concerned...

[krysjez]

Question: Where would you expect to find this image? Pretend the hair is finished and looks appropriately ribbony and shiny. A book cover maybe? A deviantart portfolio? Videogame concept art? Based on the visual style, lighting and emotion (or lack thereof) of the image, what in your opinion would be an appropriate use for it? Keep in mind that I have thick skin when it comes to critique and this is a personal work and I didn't have any intention in mind other than to draw a good looking younger woman as far as this particular piece is concerned...

I'd expect to find this hmm...in a sb, or dA I suppose. If it were polished up a bit more and some errors fixed book cover?

Anyway, now draw 50 more good looking younger women, some from observation, some from imagination! it's always fun to draw ladies.

I also get the feeling that you want to continue pushing on this piece, but really I think starting afresh with a new drawing + what VK said will leave you with a much stronger picture of a pretty young lady (that you can bring back here for crit if you like).

[Giacomo]

Question: Where would you expect to find this image? A book cover maybe? A deviantart portfolio? Videogame concept art? Based on the visual style, lighting and emotion (or lack thereof) of the image, what in your opinion would be an appropriate use for it?

I'd recommend you try thinking about it from the other direction...that is, decide to do a cover illustration for a book you like (for example) and then create said illustration. What you have here is a fairly competent picture of a young woman who looks vaguely like she should be a character in some work of medieval fantasy--but there's not much else to say about it. Start with a concept next time.

[Velocity Kendall]

its a study for your sketchbook, now do more using what youve learned.

[gfxtwin]

I promise I'm not being defensive, but is this not salvageable ? What about the latest version is unconvincing/needs work (aside from the hair and the need for a bit more rendering)

[sone_one]

What about the latest version is unconvincing/needs work (aside from the hair and the need for a bit more rendering)

her eyes (which are just iconised atm), the lack of castshadows and the overall mushy edge treatment.

youre doing good though, its almost there. keep pushing.

[gfxtwin]

update:

[Velocity Kendall]

i think its rather good.
sort of reminds me of the GTA loading screen pics, which i love: