≤ AikidoAl's Sketchbook (Look ma! No reference! updated 11/29) ≥

[ASVogel]

My relaunch of a Sketchbook thread.

Blank space here for future thread icon use.Attachment 287795

[Hyver]

ok i'm ready.. let's see some pictures then

[ASVogel]

ok i'm ready.. let's see some pictures then

*grin*

I'm suprised someone posted something in the minute it took to upload from my intro!

[Eradus]

Her left eye (our right) doesn't seem to be lined up with the perspective of her head. Nice design, I like it. Also her chest part looks a bit flat. Keep posting..!

[Trip]

Hey thanks for the crit! I love the quick skecthes, the perspective on the feet are off though. Bot so much onthe back one but on the front one.
Cheers

[ASVogel]

I've been away a while, but it's been productive. Below is a sketch dump of my return to the academic bandwagon...life drawing. I've got regular drawing sessions with my model once every other week. I did start out the first session with the traditional gesture drawings...I'll spare you those. Those were in pencil. These were done with oil pastels. I'm not sure if my choice of using color will raise eyebrows or not. I use color to get into a mood, with a light for the initial groundwork and a dark for forming contour lines. I have noticed in the progression that I tended to not overwork the latter as much as I did in the beginning. I avoided use of charcoal or chalk pastels due to the fact I probably already have black lung from college.

My problems that I'm attacking in drawing have always after getting a good overall gesture down, I then start miscalculating proportions in an area. Also, due to inexperience, clothing has in particular given me problems as I need to see (in person) how it wraps around the form. These are shown in chronological order. Out of these, I would like to develop the figure with the cane (I really like that gesture) into a future painting.

[ASVogel]

After a week of doing 15-20 minute sittings/studies, I treated myself to doing a portrait of the model. I'm pleased with the likeness, but I fell apart on that right eye. It's slightly higher, and for some reason I left it white-rimmed at the top.

[ASVogel]

I asked my model before this sitting to confound me with as many textures, patterns, wrinkles, and drapery as possible. So she whipped up this wonderful number complete with bunny (they were the full bunny...made to look like real rabbits) slippers, striped leggings, kilt, and teddy bear.

This is definately going to be a character concept painting!

My only crits is the features on the face are slightly off of the skull. And the bunny slippers look too real. So they look like very confused live rabbits.

[ASVogel]

I'm designing a mascot for my future website. It's a velociraptor, which will be wearing tech armour. However, at the moment the sketch is focused on getting the general shape/anatomy of the raptor before I take it to Wacom.

[Vermis]

Great life sketches. I like your use of colour, too. Maybe a little too bright at times, but eye-catching.

Before I say anything about the velociraptor: what kind of style are you going for? I hope you don't take it the wrong way if I assume you're going for cartoony and stylised, and you're... not.

[ASVogel]

Vermis: Thanks for your feedback. On the velociraptor, the intended final look is realistic, but humorous. You're right though...I admit I did go rather cartoony while roughing out the shapes. Upon reading your feedback I went back and looked up more reference (mostly skeletons) and refined/de-cartooned it. Let me know what you think.

[Vermis]

Realistic, but humorous. That's a tricky one to interpret. I'd like to comment anyway, but disregard if I misunderstand the style you're going for (especially since you've already used skeletal references). And I'm still not entirely comfortable doling out blunt criticism, so bear with me.

So, being blunt, in body shape the raptor here looks more like something from Toho than an actual dinosaur. With Velociraptor, you need to think ground-running (toothy, clawed, long-tailed) bird - to use Bob Bakker's description of T. rex: 'roadrunner from hell'. Long, thin, horizontal. There are a couple of skeletal restorations here, among all the other stuff, that illustrate that nicely.
Some specific points. The upper skull is slightly too chunky, the eye too far back, and while the jaw seems properly thin, it's maybe a little too downswept and the mouth corner too low. It gives an impression of a pterosaur head, if you've seen any skulls of those. The neck is also chunky, too straight, and almost seems to just from the spine at right angles. The shoulders and chest uncomfortably remind me of Jurassic Park, which - regardless of any other faults or merits - probably isn't the first reference you should check out. And whatever else, get rid of the humanoid shoulders. I have a hatred of them in real/imaginary creatures sparked by Larry Elmore's dragons. Also, don't have the hands sticking out so straight and stiff, with palms downward. It adds to the rubber suit effect and from the front, makes it look like it's saying "Guess which hand it's in. Huh? Huh?"
Besides slimming down, the legs could use shorter thighs, and longer shins and 'feet' (or cannons, to use an equine term). The tail shouldn't be a thick, waggly, crocodile-like affair, but a long, thin, stiff rod. Finally, some plumage wouldn't go amiss.

I think I might've gone on longer than I intended. Sorry about that.

[ASVogel]

Vermis,

Thanks for your indepth crit on the anatomy. Feel free to be blunt, since all it can do is improve the piece.

Here is where I think I went wrong: I had problems finding a reference of a raptor from the front and had problems interpreting what it looked like from the references I did have. So I went out to purchase a raptor figure (I'm rather fond of the Papo line of toys...I know they aren't scientifically 100% accurate, but I needed the proportions.) Unfortunately, I couldn't find one so I purchased a T-Rex which I thought I could use just as a base reference and reshape the anatomy to be a raptor. I think that's where the Toho butt comes from.

So basically I had a T-Rex figure and skeletal references from the web of raptors. Also Jurassic Park, mostly because I prefer the heads of their more Deinonychus-inspired raptors. This goes back to my "humorous realism" in that I'm looking to create a "raptor-ish" creature that is not necessarily 100% raptor but has some additional traits (such as the more Deinoychus-like head) to give the expression I want. The shoulders, yeah. I had trouble visualizing them, so accidentally defaulted to human. (dammit)

I'll definitely use your crits in while I readjust the proportion, and thanks for the link you provided of reference materials. Also, if you can recommend any good books for reference, I would love to add them to my library. References online tend to be posed rather dramatically.

Oh, and plumage! That is on my list of additions. I was going to add that after I nailed down the form. Something "tribal" looking along the lines of this guy: http://www.maikelnai.es/wp-content/u...lociraptor.jpg

[ASVogel]

New figure studies from my latest live model session. This time, I worked from the Wacom. The first one was done with Painter using the chalk brush, but I wasn't happy with the immediate results. Later pieces were done in Photoshop in the default brushset.

The first few are one minute gesture drawings, then I expanded to five, ten, and fifteen minutes. The last piece was done with the model sitting on the floor with a scarf made into a noose. Both the model and I rather liked the composition when it's rotated.

[ASVogel]

Sketches, one inspired by last week's CHOW.

[ASVogel]

Illustration piece I'm working on. I had started out in color, and switched to black and white to work on the lighting. The piece is Cinderella running from the ball after the Prince has slain her dance partner of the evening. Note to self: I need to add the glass slipper.

[zephyri]

Hey, thanks for dropping by my thread, just returning the favour! I really like the start you'd made with the guys with the canes at the top, I think best thing for you to do with those is rather than struggle with trying to imagine it is draw from reference, then after a couple of refed drawings, you should find it easier. I know Jade Macalla has some cane poses, since I used a couple myself a while back.
I like how the cinderella piece is starting out too. I'd be tempted to extend the canvas on the right certainly, so you're not cropping cinderella, and maybe move the prince and the dead dancer more into the middle, to close up that gap you have there, which is detracting attention from the figures. But the lighting is looking good so far and the emotion on Cindy's face is great! A different take on the story, that's for sure!

[ASVogel]

Thanks for the crits Zephyri, especially on the Cinderella piece. I'll tweak it and see what comes out. I've gotten good feedback on the "cane" sketches, and will revisit that with my model for more extended sessions.

[ASVogel]

I got my model back after a hiatus caused by both of our schedules. These are photos taken off the easel, hence the heavy grayscale. I adjusted via Photoshop, but if these don't work I can try retaking them in more natural lighting.

Anyhow, I switched to conte'. The suit pose is a continuation off of an earlier gesture drawing seen in this thread. It got a bit heavy handed, as I got too intent on the clothing. The dress pose I did two weeks later, and I'm pleased with it as it was one of those drawings that practically drew itself. Much lighter hand! The pose is intended to be reference for a future painting of Bastet. Her arms are leaning on chairs, the painting will have them resting on either statues or lions.

[zelda_geek]

Hey, thanks for commenting in my SB. Just continue to draw a lot, and update as often as you can. I'm sure you'll improve a lot.

[ASVogel]

I had the pleasure of contributing artwork for the back cover for the CD release of Voices for Tolerance, which is produced for Voices For, a non-profit organization of artists, performers and other members of the anime industry. Profits from sales go to specific charities. This one goes to the Southern Poverty Law Center (www.splcetner.org) and ActionAid International USA (http://www.actionaidusa.org/).

It's very hard to sit down and draw tolerance right away without some thought. I went with two laughing "magical" girls who are ethnically generic and gave them multicolored hair one going black to red to blonde and the other vice-versa. Oddly enough, the cover artist went with something similiar but more on the magical spin. Pictured is the raw artwork. I hope to have a copy of the finished /w lettering piece soon.

[ASVogel]

Late January of this year, I was approached to do a webcomic for Digital Applejuice, a Macintosh-centric news and information website for creatives. The result was The Tao of I.T. Al--the adventures of Sensei Al, a 6' 4" martial arts trained (aikido) armadillo who runs an internet cafe for Generic University.

Over the months, the workflow has been changed and refined. Originally I had drawn traditionally and inked and painted it digitally. Now I work entirely digitally using Painter for pencils and Illustrator for inking and coloring. I use a mock repro-blue in my sketches to help aid me during inking as the color difference helps me stay true to my current working layer. Some backgrounds are hand drawn, but I primarily rely on a growing library of scratch-made resources made in Illustrator. I have more on my workflow on my Livejournal.

It's a weekly webcomic, and I do a months worth of work for a batch. As I speed up, the drawings get more and more sophisticated and I'm able to put more into each comic. And I've gotten really really good at drawing a giant armadillo in a gi and hakama.

I hope you enjoy this batch created for October. Critiques and comment welcome.

[ASVogel]

Back to figure study. I used a black and white photo reference.

[ASVogel]

I had a sketch born out of my drawing sessions for an idea of Bast, dressed to the nines in modern clothing, with two recently liberated big cats on a lead in each arm. In the background was doing to be a zoo. And while my model definitely has a human head here, it would be felinized in the painting.

However, this got pushed back in terms of the project pile. However, after meeting the Shifflet Brothers at Comic-Con I got the itch to sculpt. So I resurrected the idea into the form of a sculpt. Here be tons of pics from this point.

The wire armature is key. In the past I had a tendency to pack too much filler (aluminum foil usually) into the armature which lead to really bulky looking sculpts. So I kept it as trim as possible.

The Shifflets recommended the rather amusingly named Super Sculpey Firm, which unlike the Super Sculpey I was used to using, was much easier to work with and is grey instead of the wierd pink orange color that looks oh-so-not-professional.

The final pics are more roughing out, and the start of the dress.

And voila, in two hours I have a more than decent start to a sculpture.

[Someone Else]

Hey, thanks for dropping by and commenting on my sketch book the otherday. I thought that i would return the favour. It's a bit difficult to comment because im not really sure what direction you are looking to take with you work. But i'll say what i felt as I was looking at the pieces...

In your earlier posts, I felt that the lines lacked control and were perhaps a little too heavy in places. Although, it seems that in your later posts that you have gotten much better at controlling them, and using different weights of line in various places.

I liked the cinderella piece, I think that is by far your strongest drawing [well my personal favorite].

One thing that I noticed though, is that while you are drawing the figure, often times it seems that you have neglected the environments. There is a picture in particular of your model standing with their foot raised and rested upon an object..but you never drew the object. Therfore, it looks as though your figure is floating in the air.

I think that problem also occurs, but not as severly, in the drawing that you are basing your sclupture on. A few choice lines would help to solve this, and would suggest that your figure is not just floating in space. I hope this makes sense?

I'll be very interested to see how this sculpture that you are making turns out. Keep it up.

[ASVogel]

Concept sketch I'm working on in Pixelmator on a character. The history is on the WIP thread, but including here as I will be using this (when finished) as a base to work on her costuming.

[ASVogel]

The Cinderella piece with Zephyri's crits in use...not to mention quite a bit of color tweaking and figure correction. Still WIP.

[ASVogel]

I had a breakthrough lately, thanks to an article by Marta Dahlig in Imagine FX. I've got a history on this piece in the WIP so you can see the leap: http://www.conceptart.org/forums/sho...20#post2182820

[ASVogel]

Came back from Reverie in Dallas on Tuesday. Spent most of the time taking in workshops, the art demos, and chatting with folks. I actually had a hard time focusing on sketching and taking advantage of the models there. But I did manage to pull off a few things.

Day one at the hotel bar where we eventually all turned up (shocker...artists at a bar?) I caught a few CA'ers likenesses. Day two a group of us went to the aquarium and snapped up photos and sketches. Then throughout the convention I did studies when I thought I had it together.

Lesson learned at the convention...LIFESTUDY LIFESTUDY LIFESTUDY.

To those new to my sketchbook, I know it is all over the board. But now I going to concentrate on the human figure and taking a back to basics approach. And a CHOW now and then.

[CecelyV]

I'm very impressed with your productivity, and the way you finish your pieces. I'm still working on that myself, but I think since Reverie I've had some breakthroughs there ^_^
Your sketches here show a confidence and bravery that I've learned can be very elusive--congratulations, and keep drawing!

I'm subscribed, so I'll keep checking back ^_^
Happy drawing!