"Create like a god, command like a king, and work like a slave"

[Syle]

I was ready to the Crimson Daggers live stream this morning, but nothing happened...

So, instead, I did a 1 hour Sargent Study. Very difficult. This is still a WIP, and I plan on fixing/livening up my color palette because I am obviously way off the mark when you put em side by side.

[ezekrialase]

you've got a good sketchbook here, the perspective work and environments are especially interesting. keep it up

[Syle]

Thanks Ezek.

[Syle]

Round 2 with the Lord Dalhounie. My colors are still not warm enough, but I feel like I am treating my own colors relatively well with one another. I'm going to give this Sargent study 1 more round of finessing before I call it quits.

Things I learned from this piece:

1. Bigger brushes earlier on. Save the detail for later.
2. This kind of goes with #1, but.... WORK LARGE TO SMALL. I need to stop getting distracted from the small shit.
3. Being more mindful of edge quality. Even though my drawing may or may not show it, I really got a good sense of edge importance by doing this piece.

Things I didn't learn from this piece (ie, am still having a really hard time with):

1. Color selection. IF I even get the color correctly chosen for a particular element of the painting, it will still take me no fewer than 5 tries or so before I get it. Is this just something that comes with time and experience?

2. Facial anatomy. I spent a good 30 minutes trying to get his face correctly layered in, but I'll be damned if I couldn't get his proportions correct. I'm supposed to study Composition next week, but I think I may dedicate that week to Head/Face anatomy instead.

[Syle]

Sargent study update. There are still too many mistakes and unpolished areas in this to even count, but still, I feel really good about this piece.

Any critiques would be greatly greatly appreciated. I may post this in the WIP/Critique forum to get some feedback on this.

[Syle]

I noticed some wonky stuff in that last post I made, so here is a slightly updated image.

-Fixed the right (his left) eye.
-Adjusted the planes of the top of the nose.
-Adjusted his beard

[nor]

i like the evolution of your drawings! keep up the good work

[Syle]

Thanks nor, much appreciated.

[Syle]

Another Sargent study. This is definitely a WIP. I've got a lot of rendering to do.

[JakehC]

paint as much as you can with the largest brush you can use.

then once you can paint anymore make your brush slightly smaller.

keep doing that and your images will come out more economic.

-cheers.

[Syle]

aryeh: words of wisdom, my friend. thanks for stopping by.

here is an update for the Daily Sketch Group: "Other worldly winter dwarven outpost"

[Syle]

Finished! Big thanks to the folks in Critique/WIP, they helped me out big time.

[Syle]

Okay, updating this one again I saw some things wrong with it still...

also, posting a new one. composition-wise, it's pretty boring, but it was a good color. i wish i would have pushed the cool shadows a bit more; i feel like i held back too much.

[LORD M]

You're doing great, Syle! There's a huge improvement throughout the pages, if you keep it up like this you will go far.

[Syle]

LORD M: thanks for the kind words.

here is a small update of random stuff. got my new easel and french companion, so I am getting into the swing of plein air/oil painting. it's really difficult right now, but i've acquired the Cateura/Leffel and Allrich books to get me eased in. Allrich seems a bit more straight forward (which I like at this point), but I feel that I'll move on to Leffel's guidance once I feel like I've gotten as much as I can from Allrich.

i'll start my own oil painting thread in the Fine Arts subforum to get more feedback there on this medium.

in this update are easel/studio/palette pictures. also, a random imagination drawing, and some Vanderpoel toned paper studies. i'll be doing a lot of these types of studies this week as I will be spending a fair bit of time on anatomy studies.

[Syle]

Some more Vanderpoel studies. I really enjoy this medium/study type.

[Syle]

Sword in the Stone enviro thingy.

[Syle]

I haven't updated in a long while. My band has been really busy tracking and producing our latest album, which will be out later this year, so that has taken up a majority of my free/expendable time.

I picked up a few Moleskine sketchbooks, and I have to say that I really enjoy them. Well constructed, nice paper, and the elastic/binding strap is really convenient. Most of this update consists of sketches made within my new sketchbook, which has really helped me take drawing everywhere with me.

Last week I worked on Vilppu/Bridgeman studying of human head. This week I will be focusing on thumbnailing/perspective/enviro studies.

[Syle]

An enviro drawing that I plan on putting into PS. This started as a small 1"x2" thumbnail from my sketchbook, so I am pleased with how it's turning out. I am going to push this sketch with some grey/black markers to further develop the value structure.

[Xamllew]

You've got some nice work here. I enjoy all the landscape thumbs on the last page. That last landscape is great as well.

[Syle]

Xamllew: thanks for dropping in. much appreciated.

Update: put in some marker values for this latest enviro. parts of it work, others not so much. i got a bit heavy handed with the darker markers in parts.

[Syle]

Update to that pencil enviro sketch; I'm naming this one "The Citadel". Out of any painting that I've ever done, this one I am taking to COMPLETION. I feel really comfortable and inspired with this piece, so I really want to push my rendering on this one to give it all it's worth.

I think the composition could do with a little more "storyline" to it...maybe some characters or cultists or somehting walking up the stairs. But, conveying good perspective, form, and color were my main objectives with this piece, so I am not going to worry too much about the composition.

Any crits would be very much appreciated. I am out of town for 2 days after tonight, so when I get back on Sunday, I will finish this piece off.

I'm not sure which horizontally flipped image works the best. I think it reads the best from the originally drawn way, but that may just be my biased opinion...

[Syle]

More sketchbook doodling. Just putting the pencil to the paper, trying to think too much about it. It's becoming very meditative. Whether I am improving or not is a whole other matter, hahaha....

[Syle]

This is a WIP based on the EoW theme: "Glowing River".

I've still got some rendering to do.

[LastGen]

Nice sketches and doodles, cool environments in your sketchbook. Keep up your work, I like what you're doing!

[Syle]

Some random sketchbook things. I've got about 5 more pages that I will upload later.

[Syle]

A character concept I am working on.

[Syle]

Did a ton more rendering on this guy. I'm calling him "The Phalanx"; some sort of guardian super hero. Don't know what he is guarding yet. He's also some sort of half breed human/serpent (hence the tail snaking out of his cloak).

I'm realizing that almost every lighting situation I put my drawings in, it's always a strong light source, and it's always coming from in front my the subject, so that a strong cast shadow is being thrown back into the viewer....I REALLY need to get away from that. So, on any new digi paintings I do, that will be a big focal point for adjustment.

[Syle]

I think I'm finished with this character concept. ~7 hours in so far.

I may spend a few more hours on polishing it up a bit more, but for the most part, he is done. I can honestly say that this is the most fun I have ever had making art; truly enjoyable.

[Syle]

Sketchbook doodling update.