Journey of an ABSOLUTE Rookie: My Bold Attempt

**gandalf** · January 29th, 2004, 11:34 PM

i'm both brand new to art, and this wonderful forum. I nearly decided not to pursue a degree in art, feeling uncapable of becoming an artist for many reasons.

My mind changed upon viewing MindCandyMan's thread:

Journey of an Absolute Rookie

This thread is a daring attempt to recreate the awesome journey of an absolute rookie. I tend to be a spuratic(sp?) person and as such, I am a little worried that i won't follow through. My hope is that this thread will help motivate me to pursue and practice. I'll post as often as possible, and as of now i plan to check daily; however if time escapes me, i'll be sure to post every other day!

P.S. I don't currently have or use a digital painting program, so all of my material will be sketchs/drawings.

**pandawhipped** · January 30th, 2004, 12:38 AM

always good to have another progress thread! Welcome aboard

Start drawing and post some work for us to see!!!

**gandalf** · January 30th, 2004, 12:32 PM

well, today i tried to scan some of my work, but unfortunatly my scanner scans the pics far too light. Unless anyone knows how i might fix this, my only thought is to draw darker.

I'll try to get something up today!! :o

P.S. I think my drawing lightly may be linked to lack of confidence. I feel like when i draw darkly it becomes less "artistic".

**gandalf** · January 30th, 2004, 12:46 PM

This is a free hand sketch to basically practice pencil use..

(it's the only one i currently have that is dark enough! lol)

this is my first real hand sketch..

this is my first real still life..

Critiques appreciated!

**amphex** · January 30th, 2004, 01:20 PM

yah...nope. its a no show.
find a host that works.
If your scans are too light, boost the contrast either on your scanner, or in any digital image editing program.

**sic1** · January 30th, 2004, 01:47 PM

Originally posted by amphex
If your scans are too light, boost the contrast either on your scanner, or in any digital image editing program.

Yeah, in many cases they can be easily adjusted by the software that came with the scanner. I have mine set to adjust the contrast/brightness each time I scan in a page. I set it up for an average (so nothing is too dark, but nothing is too light) after checking out a few of my pages, and trying to match the real-life version. If all else fails, and you have photoshop, you could use the levels feature in photoshop (if you have it). I'd advise doing it manually (once), and recording a batch script to help process your images, as they can be quite tedious done individually.

On another note, don't force yourself to draw overboard, you may get discouraged too quickly. Make it a point to get yourself in a routine of drawing, say 30 minutes a night/day and work from there. As your interest grows, you'll want to draw more

That leads me to another thing: don't get discouraged and stop. As you can see from many pages MindCandyMan has display, he's riddled the pages with comments "crap" , or "poop." I do the same, and draw lines through pages

I must say, it gets frustrating at times, but it is quite fun!

**gandalf** · January 30th, 2004, 01:51 PM

sic 1- thanks man. i really enjoy drawing, so until i really feel like it's a chore i'm going to draw, draw, draw.

also, feel free to post ideas of things to practice; i'll check it out, draw it, and upload!

:cool:

**Skank** · January 30th, 2004, 07:14 PM

good to see you posting
try out www.photobucket.com
they free web hosting and its really easy to use.

**gandalf** · January 31st, 2004, 11:43 AM

skank- thanks for the hosting site! i checked it out, and am now using it.

i've also found the decent settings for my scans and can scan my work much more easily.

this first one is a copy of Sargent's "Madame X"; this was an excercise from "Drawing on the right side of the brain"..

this next is one i drew right after, basically practicing profile proportions. I realize now, seeing it online, that the chin is a little too large; and maybe the upper lip sticks out too far.

More to come soon! Also, feel free to let me know what i can do to improve.

**Ivan** · January 31st, 2004, 10:16 PM

Looking really good man! I couldn't have drawn that yet. Looking forward to seing more of your stuff.

**gandalf** · February 1st, 2004, 12:14 PM

ivan- thank you very much for the encouragement! it's very helpful, although i don't think it's that good

but maybe my own criticism will push me! i'm enjoying it; feel free to post your stuff here too! or we could also give each other things to practice and then share-and-compare!

well, this post is a long one. i began to draw and didn't stop last night! i'm actually proud of some of this stuff, for the first time! i'm still having trouble SEEING my future ability, but if i push through, hopefully it will emerge.

this first is a practice of proportion from Loomis..

this next is from a photo reference online..

this next is some crosshatching practice. I have NO CLUE how to crosshatch.. if anyone knows where i could find this info it would help tremendously!

my second hand drawing..

random stuff..

well, until tomorrow folks! let me know whatcha think! i need criticism because i feel like i don't know what i'm doing wrong, thus can't fix it!! :p

**AnarchyAo2** · February 1st, 2004, 12:56 PM

Very good! I like those portrait drawings, very nice. The first one would have to be my favorite. The details in the contour are very impressive. Its very good that your learning shading and trying different methods. I don't think your gonna be a rookie for long. Just keep practicing, and reading--and posting for our sake

**gandalf** · February 1st, 2004, 12:59 PM

AnarchyAo2- Wow man! thanks! i'm going to do some head studies tonight, i'll have lots of them to post tomorrow. lol. :cool:

**Ivan** · February 1st, 2004, 07:04 PM

Wow, I can't believe how good your photo reference picture and the second handrawing is, really nice work man. You're my main inspiration for the moment, seeing how good you get fast. I'm going to strive to produce some better stuff.

Good idea about the practice thing, we'll have to figure something out

**gandalf** · February 1st, 2004, 08:49 PM

Ivan- Definately!! I don't know about you, but your encouragement is helping me out incredibly. It's very reassuring to hear honest critiques when you feel uncertain about your work! Well, i'll try to think of something productive we can do!

:cool: :chug:

**gandalf** · February 2nd, 2004, 10:56 AM

well everyone, last night i didn't draw as much as i should have. last night was the super bowl, and i also played a lot of halo!

I got some practice in on heads using Loomis' online book.

here are some skulls, my real problem i found was the mandible(jawbone) and the shape of the eye socket. I can't seem to nail it!

here are some heads without facial features, i think i'm better with these..

Well! Let me know!! :cool:

**Ivan** · February 2nd, 2004, 05:48 PM

Looks good to me

**gandalf** · February 2nd, 2004, 07:12 PM

Everyone, bear witness to my first self portrait..

Let me know what i can do to improve. It's really crappy, and the version you all see here looks much better than it really does on paper.. :/

**Skank** · February 2nd, 2004, 07:30 PM

hey man! lookin good!
couple pointers:
in your studies, try to really nail downt he correct proportions first, everything else (form, detail) will fall in much easier after that. the last page of blank head studies is a good start, your strongest one being the top left 3/4 view, you kept proportion and form consistant.
the skull profile is also good proportion wise, but the nose is indented a bit too much, like the poor fellow for his nose smashed in.
your 2 female profile studies are a good start too, the nose on the second is turned up a bit too much, as are her nostrels. for the most part, those arent on a vertical angle (there are exceptions of course.)

i did a small drawover of your figure study, hope you dont mind. its pretty crude, but its the best i could do at work with my crappy mouse and paint program.
your proportions for the most part were pretty good, but the on the legs, the thighs a bit too long and the poor chap's calves and shins were terribly short!

also take note that the human body doesnt have sharp angles, and it has curves and smooth edges.

hope it helped a bit

**Skank** · February 2nd, 2004, 07:33 PM

ahh! just saw your SP!
i must say, for somone who has never really drawn, its quite good, you have good proportion, and you forms arent distorted. AND you didnt make the mistake of outlining your nose with solid lines!!! VERY good!! i think the only thing you can now try to work on, is making it it seem more solid, right now, even with the shading, it looks flat, try to add depth by varying the tones in your shading.,

keep up the good work!

**gandalf** · February 2nd, 2004, 08:13 PM

skank- thank you very much for your help; now, not only do i know what to fix, but i have something to practice!! i appreciate your honesty and educated advice. i'll work on these things. :cool:

:chug:

**-The Swift-** · February 5th, 2004, 11:09 AM

hey gandalf, those loomi heads are looking good, the SP is good too, i think the sahding is a little dark on that one though, you could do with bringing more tones into it, the sahpe and features are really good though!

keep at it

**gandalf** · February 7th, 2004, 02:42 PM

Hello again all. It's been a while... I haven't forgotten the dream though! ...only neglected. lol.

Aside from this stuff below, I've been working on gestural drawings and such. Most were just too light to scan due to using an HB pencil. Here are a few things i've done lately:

This is my attempt at inking a sketch..

I'm having trouble with noses and lips; haven't tried ears!