The Empty Box Place (Don't just sit there...POST!)

[Dissociation]

Hello everyone!

I've finally made my debut into this world and am very excited to progress! I've been lurking here for about two years, and have been in the process of meriting this sketchbook. I finally have my scanner, paper and pencils rockin' and ready to roll! I'll keep it brief, but here's a tad about me.

I'm 16.
Not looking at pursuing art as a profession (maybe on the side), but am good at it.
I have an extreme desire (and plenty of time) to improve!
I have 146 sharpened pencils at my disposal, and new notebooks I'm waitin' to shred!

So, please!
Enjoy!
Comment!
Criticize!
Whatever you wanna call it, feel free to post here =]
I'm aiming to break 20 pages in good time

Laters,
Dissociation

[Dissociation]

The first two are older pieces. I think they're from 2007.
Also, what are the details of adding pictures to the thread? I hope these aren't too big >_>...
Do I have to name a copyright everytime? Do I technically own these?? @_@

[Helltroll]

Anatomy and proportion need work on your older stuff.
I'd like to see some newer and things.

[Dissociation]

Blaargh.
THey're still coming out a bit big -.-
If anyone can offder advice on how to fix that, it'd be GREAT.
So far this super-sized stuff makes my pencilwork look like elephant paintings...

[Dissociation]

I hope this one is small enough.
Is there some sort of preset you can get it to in order to get those pretty, small pictures you guys have?

Also, Helltroll,
I appreciate your post!
I'll have a serious surprise for you as long as you stick around
I'll make you proud.

But again, I need a way to shrink these puppies.
Grrrr'ed,
Dissociation

[Dissociation]

Hey all.
I'm gonna edit the pictures that are already up.
Then I'll put up the new stuff.
I can't stand the sloppiness of the supersized pictures.
So check it out again!
It will be bold!

[Dissociation]

It is time!

I now have the new pictures shrunken and prepped!
CRITIQUE and COMMENT these, as they are from this year!

Presenting:

[Helltroll]

Thanks for checking by my sketchbook!

I'm definitely seeing some improvement!
Work on your faces a bit, and keep going!

[Dissociation]

A nifty lil update!

The majority of this was done about two days ago.
But the last picture I just finished now.
It's a portrait of a friend (not from life).
When I look at it on the computer it doesn't seem to have much of an effect!
It doesn't make me feel anything profoundly -.-

I would like my faces to be more evocative, realistic.
Something about it bothers me.
Find it for me! >

Dissociation

[DaStreets]

Great improvement from your older work. Nice studies too. Keep posting, i like your concepts, comment me back if u want, thanks

[kguthrie]

There is a lot of improvement in the new drawings. I really like the hair on the girl in the last drawing. Keep up the good work.

[Fitzin]

I see some improvement here!

I suggest you work on your porportions, make it more ideal and invent differences; Practice the simple placement. Especially the "Shadow line" or "The bedbug line" The break between the Light and the dark. Where the dark becomes the halftone...

Work on construction, This whould help the smaller details not "Float" on the large form. The large form needs to feel more "solid". Looky Robert beverly Hales drawing lessons of the great masters and his Master class in figure drawing. Observe masterworks and how did the use tone, construction and planes. (Don't be afraid to look at life too lol)

Also... Planes! Look at loomis and that asaro - do some sculpture... Like this >>> http://www.learning-to-see.co.uk/feeling-the-form (This whould also help you with construction and possibly many other things.)

Work on the edges of those planes! Soft vs hard, Really graduate and make those halftones turn with hatching. Use elwells tut's and greg pros paintover for ref.

Make the light sorce clearer, Expierement with it more... Work in different medias.

Let'sa see some progress...

[Dissociation]

*gasp*
It's been too long since I've posted!
The new works i'm posting are just a fraction of what I did this week.
The others aren't finished yet, but I will get to them soon.
I practiced some faces with Loomis, and it's working out pretty well.
Let me know if there's any improvement. I'll do some more with his facial structures and see how it works out.

The (i think) third picture down is my dad's work.
He used more lines in the picture and smudged the shading.

The portrait at the end is still a W.I.P.
I need to reduce the (longitude?) width of the face and adjust the corners of the mouth.
Lemme know what you think!

Until next post, ENJOY!

Dissociation

----EDIT----

In the first picture (with poses on it), I got these form Posemaniacs. I spent less than five minute son each little muscle frame.
For the next picture, these were the 30 second quick-draws. They were fun, but I would like to touch them up.
On the LAST picture, well...it didn't merit my sketchbook at first, so I ripped it out. But then it came along really nicely! I'd say "lesson learned", eh?
Anyway, I'm headin for more posing studies and anatomy. But I do have some interesting works on the side . PREPARE!

[corza334]

Heya, good to see another 16 y/o
Your works good, Keep up the anatomy study - do some more portraits too.

[Adrian Wilkins]

year killing it mate! don't forget your anatomy studies!! we need to see tonnnns of them!! hehe
but your illustrative mind is quite good already
this is leading inot the right direction... bookmarked

expect to see me again

[Dissociation]

A wittle update.

LOOK ABOVE.
I added some studies to the pages I posted above. (too much empty space, they had)
Read the edit for what they are

ALSO.
BELOW.
These are tonight's work. (about an hour)
I started with some studies (i think I'm getting hte human body down pat.) up top. I drew the bodies at the bottom (with the heads...) from my head.
I'm quite proud of them...except for techno-ninja's feet. They are apparently mechanical
I'm probably going to edit hte face on the left. She has a nice wig, though.
beyond that, it's just a bunch of hubbub.
I will post more tomorrow!

Dissociation

[Dissociation]

Here are two new little sketches.
They're actually a bit old.
I started them toward the beginning of the book, but never finished them.
I decided to go back and touch them up a little bit, but I'm done for now. I'd say they're still W.I.Ps.
I'm not sure how to finish them, actually, and I'm not sure I really want to >_>
Either way, enjoy them!

Dissociation

[SamC]

Hey dude, you're doing an awesome workload at the moment :|. Try using single lines rather than lots and lots where one would suffice. It feels odd at first but as your confidence grows you'll have really impressive lines. Be patient, keep working and let time do it's bit

[Dissociation]

Hey all!

I meant to come back with tons of beautiful sketches of beautiful ladies to show. It was great fun to imagine and sketch the idea in my mind...
But they came out ugly as (any four letter word). I've decided that, before drawing women, I will study the female body like I have studied the male. i won't be showing the pictures I attempted, because I don't want to neuter any viewers.

so while I don't have a chunky dump to show you, I do have some a-very nice-a peekshures a-for you tah witness. One's a study of Bruce Lee with some inspiration from Pan's Labyrinth. But hte second is a gorgeous piece of heaven (or hell) that I did on impulse.

Come to spot it, I prefer drawing the way I did the newest guy! I think I'll get back to my roots of purely imaginative art more often.
Also, there are some grand new things I want to try (a buddy of mine suggested I use my personality when I draw art. Long discussion I'm willing to go into. Very thoughtful.), so be sure to check back and see how it came out!

Cheers,
Dissociation

[Dissociation]

This may seem like a very simple concept...but how can I refine my shading? I have been looking around and I think I could use some work (then again, when can you not?)

Since I've never taken any sort of art class...I would like to learn the basics ^_^'
What's "shadow line" or "bedbug line"?? How can I work on keeping my values constant with just a no.2 pencil?

[Mohzart]

I see a lot of improvement. Keep it up man I particularly liked the sketch of the man and woman swimming with the Turtle. It caught my eye Its awesome hahahaha

Keep on drawing and aim High.

[staticpen]

Hey. I don't know what a shadow line or bedbug line is. Where did you hear those terms?
You'll get more consistent with your values over time. It's just developing a dexterous hand, and relaxing. You never want to hold your pencil really tightly. Also, slow down. Drawing slowly and carefully often takes less time in the end because you don't restate as many lines or get out the eraser as often.
As far as shading, it's a big conversation, but here are some basics... You've got your form shadows, core shadows, cast shadows and reflected light. I hope you don't mind, but it'll be easier to illustrate this stuff with a picture so I've grabbed one off google:



Form shadows gradually turn a form, and have soft edges, as seen on the side of the egg. Core shadows are the darkest part of a form shadow, at the border between the shadow and light source. These also have soft edges. Cast shadows are made when something is blocking light from hitting an object, as can be seen by the shadow on the ground. Cast shadows have sharp edges. Reflected light can be seen at the bottom of the egg, where light is bouncing off the ground onto the shell.

Good luck, mate.

[Dissociation]

Haha! This feels like victory!!
I am back! After a lot of schoolwork and studying, I FINALLY have time to draw again! Computer trouble, teacher trouble...yadda yadda ...

Anyway! I have more arts for you!

But first:
@staticpen: I've been working on holding the pencil looser, even when doing detailed work. I'm still working on the shadow details. I have a feeling my shading could use some helps -.- Do you know any good methods to practice fine-tuning this? The pictures look great on paper, but hwen I post them my shading work looks funkaay.

@Mohzart: haha! My friend gave me the idea for the mermaid swimming below. Otherwise it would've been just the guy and turtle. Glad you like it, I'll let my friend know!

@SamC: I've been working on this! I hope you can tell . I think more time will be great.

@Hygami: Hey! You have no idea how honored I am by your post! Thank you =] I've done more anatomy, and have much smaller studies on smaller paper (probably won't get posted), but I hope you can see the improvements on my bodies later.

@corza334: Oh no! portraits...I've been avoiding faces lately. I just fill em in with little simple stuff Okay, you got me. That'll be my next area of study. 100 faces exercise? Yeeaahhh that sounds good and fun =]

Oh yes, the last two pictures are special.
The one that says "preview" is....well...a WIP!
And the other is a portion of anotherp age that I decided to paint.
But I don't have a digital pad...I'd really like one T_T
I did that with the mouse and a LOT of clicking. I've like to spend more time on it, but I wanna see how it rolls over =]

Thanks a ton, all!!

Dissociation

[Zweit]

Hey dude, nice sketchbook here and some neat thumbnails in that last post.

If I can offer some painting advice, I'd say avoid using the Magic Wand tool whenever possible, especially on pencil sketches. Also, you seem to draw extremities like hands abnormally small. Just be aware of it next time you're drawing humanoids.

Cheers.

[Janos]

Getting better and better. I love Pan!

[Taven]

EDIT: Whooops, posted a reply in the wrong sketchbook. That's what I get for looking at too many threads. I feel silly, but never fear, you'll be getting a critique for YOU, soon.

Alright, here's what's just for you! I'm starting with post 4 in the thread. The monster looks really cool, I like the textures in it. The mouse-thing above it's tail is a bit odd. Is that a secondary tail? I think it would be interesting to see another post with that creature further along. I'm amazed at your patience and persistance with all the studies, first the arms, and then the legs and feet. Looking at it makes me tired! I think you have a really good grasp on your creatures, they're a pleasure to look at.

Your people porportions, in some of your sketches seem a little off, I think you're making the torso too long in proportion to shoulder with, etc. I'm amazed at the variety of poses and the incredible variety of interesting outfits! Did you use references for the outfits, or are they all from the imagination? At around post 16, your torsos get better proportioned, although the guy that is swinging the sword has his pose off, it looks irregular and funny, I think a combination of his swinging arm and his head direction which are a bit off. In post 23, the eyes of the face in the middle are too large and too far apart, in my opinion. Previous to that, though, I loved the Pan sketch, as well as the muscular man torso, which was really defeating the eariler propotional issues.

...Annnnd, I'm too lazy to post more. I really would like to see some continuations of sketches, and taking a peice and making it into a final work. I think that your ideas and sketches when you aren't just doing studies are creative and interesting, and I (as I've said) absolutely love your creatures. Keep up the good work!

[Dissociation]

Whoa! It's been a lil bit since I've posted because our internet went Doooowwwwnnn. We have it back now, and I also has new works to show! I finished another art book. I figure I'll go through them both now. Be sure to reinforce the anatomy and whatnot. I'm proud of my progress! I'm starting to understand the actual contours and mechanizations behind what I draw now! It feels great, and I know what I need to study more of now.

I gotta get better faces! That's the last part of the body I'm unstudied in. I also gotta work on female anatomy next. All the women I've tried to draw looked like trannies and have been removed from the sketchbook .
Oh yes! And i'd like to make more finished pieces. This sketchbook is getting full, so I think I can devote the next one to all of these goals.

So comment on the new sketchbook beautification!
Critique! Yell! Shout! Laugh! All of it =]

BE EPIC!

[jNeumann]

Man, that was awesome.
To watch you improve so much in such a short amount of time, and in only one page; wow. Great work, work on facial proportions just a bit more and you'll have em down. Also, not everyone weighs 80 pounds and has rock hard abs, maybe you could practice a little more on regular, everyday people. : D
Keep at it!

[Danny_K]

nice progress! I like the variations of designs you have of all the creatures and armors and stuff, you should consider to do this as you're profession in the future you will rock, and earn good bucks!

[Jamie Romoser]

Awsome first page for your sketchbook
keep it up man and you will go far