It's a trap!

[Saffire Dragon]

Thanks for the comment in my sketchbook I love your winter tree landscapes and you seem to have made a good start on your figure studies I wouldn't worry too much about colour with the figues at this stage, get the basics down first. Once you're confident with drawing figures and faces then try greyscale to work on value and then move onto colour when you're confident with that ( at least that's what I've read from my time lurking around CA and i think it makes sense )

Anyways, keep up the good work and motivation and keep enjoying your art

[Jessibelle]

this is a great start to a sketchbook love to see where it goes... you're doing all the right things needed to improve, which is great. i'd like to see more imagination stuff though, the trick is to balance studies with personal work, because that's where you apply the studies and how you really learn your stuff.
Your oil paintings are gorgeous, I loved looking at them. With your pencils though, it might help if you slowed down, take the time to get the right lines and nice, clean shading - at the moment, they seem slightly rushed.
keep it going, you're doing great! :]

[Satu]

Saffire Dragon: Thank you for your tips! I try my best not to rush too quickly on values and colors and just try to keep enjoying learning basics first! Allthough I know I sometimes get carried away with my drawings and try to do things I absolutely can't do yet, such as values!

Jessibelle: Thank you very much! I try to start uploading some imagination-stuff here too! Haha, I know I get sometimes a little over-exited and hasty with my pencils, you are absolutely right. Allthough most of my pencil works that I post here are quite quick sketches usually, but I will try to start doing some not-so-quick works too!

Here are some figure studies done using http://www.pixelovely.com/tools/gesture.html

I tried to get them show the movement and the rhythm and also practised spherical forms. These were really fun to do (but really hard) and I think I'll keep practising these some more before turning to box-forms! I'll also try to do some from imagination tomorrow.

Also adding some still-lives again as I'm trying to do them now every day.

[Satu]

Here are first some figures from imagination. Trying to apply things I've already learned and trying to get them show the movement.. Don't know how it worked, though, but it was fun! Also made some weird bunny just for fun and some crappy heads from imagination.

Also adding some still-life studies from a skull and drawing made with black marker (so that it would prevent me trying to add values to drawing yet, like I do with pencils :p) Allthough I think I'll be moving soon to value studies too (not in figures though but in general..)

[ezekrialase]

you have a nice start to a sketchbook; I also really like your landscape paintings and loomis studies

[Satu]

Thank you ezekrialase! It is also nice to hear some encouragement!

Well nothing special here (not again), just more studies. Started to built figures by using box forms but it is darned hard. I will now start studying boxes and spheres and perspective more because I suck. Off to drawing-->

[Jessibelle]

the boxes and spheres are giving your figures a lovely sense of volume and weight - it's great that you're concentrating so hard on basic structure, it'll really pay off and it looks like you're already improving from it. they have lots of movement and flow aswell; alot of the time, people get so caught up in structure that they lose that, so kudos on avoiding that problem.
this time my only suggestion is to keep doing what you're doing - more and more and more the black marker drawing is a really good idea, it'll help you think more about the lines you're putting down and that'll carry over to linework and clean-ness in your pencils.
keep it coming!

[carakhan]

You have a chinchilla as your avatar so you're automatically my favorite person I have one as a pet!
Really nice work on your figures, keep at it! 100 of everything, break down the body and study it like crazy!

[Velocity Kendall]

so much study! well done!
can you feel your hand slowly loosening up?

[Satu]

Jessibelle: Thanks again for you kind words! It is really encouraging to hear that there might be some improvement already. I try my best to keep focusing on the basic structure still for awhile before moving to actual anatomy because I think it will later on help me to create characters from imagination.

Arenyth: Aww thanks Studying like a crazy is my goal every day! It is a shame that I have to go to (non-art related) work during days though :/

Velocity Kendall: Thank you! Actually I do feel drawing becoming more and more easy and enjoyable every day. Especially figure drawing! I've actually started to see better the movement of figures and also starting to sense the presense of spheres and cubes aroung me hehe.

Here are some more studies based on Vilppu videos. Im also starting to study some values (not on figures yet though). Annd trying to learn how to draw cubes, spheres, cylinders and pyramids with some models I made from cardboard.

[Satu]

First some studies from ref and then couple from imagination (and it shows, hehe). Gotta practise more more more... Also some skull studies.

[Jansi]

Hi!

The pencils are really getting better and better, just as one scrolls down. You are clearly
keeping at it and practicing, which is great to see. The torsos in post 40 are very
successful, in my opinion. Can't wait to see the next thing you try!

Warmest wishes,

Ana

[Satu]

Hi Jansi! And thank you very much!

Again some figure studies. First ones from ref and two from imagination.
I also started perspective studies this weekend with "Perspective drawing handbook", by Joseph D'Amelio.

[Satu]

Something different for a change.. Couple of speedpaintings made with Photoshop (both 1 hour). The references are from here and here

I've also done some figure studies but I think I'll be posting them here later on. Anyways, happy weekend to everyone, Im off to celebrate my birthday tomorrow and be posting again after the weekend

[Satu]

Some figure studies again.. Also some studies using mannikin and couple of drawings from life. Also adding 1 hour speedpainting. The ref is taken from here .

I'll be doing some more perspective studies today and tomorrow, and also starting to do more studies with the skeleton.

[Satu]

It's a fish! Well don't have anything else to say about this But it felt kind of good to take a break from hard studying and do something from imagination for a change, just for the fun.

[Satu]

Here is first Alla Prima painting I made today outside, because it was such a beautiful day. Also some perspective and mannikin studies. The values I added on that one mannikin drawing really suck.. I should really really study them more more more. Could someone recommend me a good book about values? I mean not just on figures but in general..

[Satu]

Right and here are the images..

[Ville_S]

You really are improving fast! Doing all those studies is really showing. Good job!

Few pointers for speedpainting. Use big brush to plot major areas of color. I know it's tempting to jump into those details and whack them with small brush but the result looks scribble and with opacity and flow in the works the color looks dirty and will be completely different from the color you intended. Also to avoid dirty color try not to use opacity/flow stuff and instead in initial phase use full flow and opacity.

Oh and one last thing. In your latter speedpaint (stairs with flowers etc.) you seem to have used pure white in the harsh light areas. This is a common mistake but if you eyedrop the color from the photo it's not actually pure white but very light yellow.

Again great job with the studies! keep it up!

[Satu]

Thank you for your encouraging words, Ville! And thank you for really good advices about speedpaintings! I will follow these tips in my next speedpainting.

Here are two terrible value studies. One with my cardboard cube, cylinder and pyramid with nature's light (coming from window), and other one with mannikin and flashlight. Been drawing so little these few days, aargh. Could someone just tell me to stop slacking?

[Satu]

Speedpainting with ref, 30min-1 hour (and I see now that the colors in the background forest are nothing like the ref :/ Also some studies made during watching Vilppu's videos and some quick 30-90 sec sketches from posemaniacs.

[Satu]

More booring updates again. Some 30 sec drawings from posemaniacs, couple of figure drawings from head and two drawings from mannikin.

[jorvaa]

Oooh, excellent figure and gesture studies. I'm such a scaredy-cat when it comes to figure studies.

[Satu]

Thank you jorvaa! Figure studies have always felt kind of scary and challenging to me too, but I have found Posemaniacs and Gesture Drawing tool very helpful for that!
Doing quick gesture drawings is actually really fun and not scary at all!

Well here are again some 30sec drawings from posemaniacs. Also tried negative space drawing, which was quite interesting but also surprisingly hard. Then I also made couple of figures from imagination and tried to do negative space drawings of them too.

[Saara_]

Your lines have improved a lot! Also, great work on the figures with dramatic perspective. They're damn hard to do but those look amazing

[etneid]

I would love to see more pencil drawings and sketches of people with at much value and detail as the cat and dog (akita/shepard mix?) on your first post. The cat's eyes are really beautifully rendered.

Nice gesture and posing sketches here though - I'll enjoy keeping an eye out for more from you!

[Riox]

Hey, you have amazing studies. Your drive is brillient, personally I have to do stuff from imagination or I'll go crazy. Hats off to you or sticking at the studies. I particulary like your digital photo studies, you can see improvement with each one, keep it coming!

[Satu]

Saara: Kiitos paljon! I think these negative space drawings are doing good to my lines!

etneid: Thank you very much! I know I should do more detailed and time-consuming drawings, but somehow it is just really hard to start them, don't know why. Maybe because the time spent drawing is so short after working days? But I will start doing more detailed drawings very soon.. Maybe not faces yet because my anatomy sucks still. But something else, maybe still lives or bones!

Riox: Thank you, glad you like my studies! I will try to keep em coming as often as possible!

Well here are some more studies, something weird from imagination and a terrible speedpainting (took 2hours and it still sucks, darn). Why is it always so that I can see the faults when I've decided to stop painting. Will I really get better in these by doing them, will I will I?

The speedpainting is a screenshot from Von Hertzen Brothers' music video "Angel's Eyes". Beautiful song and a really good band, you should listen if you haven't yet: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azfL3IsdWi4

Oh and I was thinking of starting the anatomy studies next week with Bridgman's book and my skeleton.

[Satu]

1. Some flowers I did for mother's day card (it's been a long since I've used water colors, but they felt kind of good..).
2-3. Some stuff from imagination.
4. Some studies from life.
5. Men watching ice hockey.

[Mag-Neo]

---nuge numbers of great studies.... GOOD LUCK......