C L E V E R - T I T L E : Wip, 29/11

[Nivec]

Hello everyone, my name is Kevin Kihlander, but I go under the nic Nivec (That's Kevin spelled backwards with a C ).
I'm 15 years old and I live in Sweden.
I started this sketchbook so I could improve, so please help me do so by giving me C&C.
-N

Anyway, here's a preview of what will come, a quick sketch I made tonight using ink and brush with some water on it:

[Zynic]

Took you long enough your bum
Keep updating, it's looking good so far! ^^

[Nivec]

Thanks man, and I will hopefully today

[Renier van der West]

Cool stuff. 15 is a good age to start taking drawing seriously and a sketchbook will really help with that. A good idea would be do as many anatomy studies as you can and post it here.
Keep em coming!

[Nivec]

Thanks! I got a huge book on anatomy for christmas and well, I will use it a lot
Anyways, here's a wip that started by merging two images:

-N

[Razorb]

cool ... nice present!! i got nothing of any use for x mas heh anyways.. last pic is kinda strange with the style n all kinda cool tho ! i think u need to post moooooooooreee just dump ya sketches anyyything ehehehe

[Nivec]

Haha, thanks
Yeah, now that I see it with fresh eyes it looks weird, however I will try to fix that

:EDIT:

A quick sketch I did tonight using Photoshop CS2:

-N

[Nivec]

Just watched Vyle's dvd, and guys I tell you it freakin' rocks!
Anyways, here are some sketches done using his brushes:

[Dile_]

Hi cerez!

Wow, that dvd really changed you, i dont have much to judge on, but the improvement looks pretty nice

~Dile

edit' lol spelling sucked...

[designboot]

Last works are very nice but still it's not a briliant piece of art, anyway ... good start

[Nivec]

Dile: Thanks m8 It did, I will make some custom brushes and work on my composition skills a bit more.
designboot: Thanks! I know they're not great, it's not really me either.

[Nivec]

Okay, time to revive this old sucker by posting to new speed paintings


-Nivec

[Nivec]

Damn, my computer fucked up so I posted things twice >.<
Anyways, comment on the new speedies, then I will post more

[Zynic]

Hey there man! It's nice to see that we're both "reactivating" our sketchbooks at the same time Let's try to keep it up, eh?

Nice speedies! Very stylish
Nice colourscheme in the second one too, but it confuses me a bit
I get that the white/blue area is a snowy mountain, but what are they looking at? ^^

Keep it up!
( ps, jag l&#228;gger till en l&#228;nk till din SB i min sig, s&#229; kan vi promota varandra lite ;P )

[Nivec]

Thanks man, and yes, let's

They're looking at a huge cloud, I just put the characters and the birds there for scale. I was just experimenting with a new technique that I really like (those "stylish" edges) The colour sheme I'm using, is just basic complementory colours. Something I thought would be fun using since I usually get so boring results with colours. Therefore I used "two" instead of "one"

I will!
(Jag ska v&#228;l ta och g&#246;ra samma sak )

EDIT:

[RandAlThor]

Watched that dvd also, very inspirational! one thing I would say bout your work is it seems a little 'procedural' if you get my meaning, when using custom brushes you really want to emulate the chaos and the randomness that appears naturally in ... nature..lol.... play with the spacing jitter, angle jitter and any other jitters you can find, lol. keep up the good work and dont let this sb slip behind again.... ;-)

[Nivec]

Thanks for the crits However, right now I'm just trying to limit myself to basic brushes before playing with more complex ones. I will probably do some studies aswell, from reference and my anatomy book. It's time to start practicing
Oh, and I won't let it fall behind, however I probably won't have an update in abput two weeks, but when I get back I will give you a big update (hopefully)

[Jabo]

Hey Nivec,

thought I'd drop you a line. Nice to see you're using selections to put some sharp edges in your work. Although I have to admit that the piece from 28th December last year with the watercolor appearance is my favourite so far. I have some pointers for you, hope you don't mind.

First of all, try not to see the selections as areas you can just fill to get good results. The brush strokes are what makes it look good, not the selections. You should use them only to define the outer borders of your planes. Make big, interfered selections as you did already, but don't fill all of it with your brush. Instead, take the highest (brightest) edge of the object you're painting, start there with high pressure and pull into the object, decreasing pressure. Also, don't use colors that are to different from the base color.

Next thing is the way you select. I found out some time ago that it's a lot better to use linear forms rather than elliptical ones. I always press ALT and click from point to point. I only use SHIFT (+ Selction) for the ground, pulling flat, horizontal selections which get higher as soon as they get closer to the viewpoint. Next thing is I invert the selection (SHIFT+CTRL+I) and use a darker color to add depth. Then I start the actual painting over the sharp selections.

I hope this helps you.

About your paintings: You should really start with a basic concept in mind and add a complementary color early in the process, to avoid monotony in the palette. Always keep in mind that the shaded areas of an object should be of opposite saturation and of complementary color to the ones lit directly (simplified) and that the saturation gets higher in crowded areas because of bouncelight. Lately I frequently change the HSV sliders when I paint, thus adding more difference and variety to the palette. Also avoid shading with black. It's a no-go! It makes your colors look bland and dirty.

Considering your age (wow, I just now noticed it), it's pretty natural to have idols and to like what they do, but if you want to improve, keep shifting your points of interest and thematic likings. Then again, I understand why you like Vyle's stuff, he's an awesome artist

And thanks for stopping by!

[Nivec]

Wow, thanks for the C & C, I really needed that, and I will be sure to take your advices to hear every time I paint
Oh, and I will try to do more of that ink and water thingy

[Nivec]

Sorry for not posting in a while, I've been busy with school.
Anyway, here's a quick sketch I did today just to test a brush I made:

[Nivec]

[Nivec]

The sketch of today.

[Nivec]

[Nivec]

Testing out some brushes I've been making lately:

If anyone has any tips on colouring b & w please share them with me

[Zynic]

Your stuff is looking great mate =D
I envy the vividness in all the environments =)

I would like to see something with a bit more thought behind it, some environments that fill a purpose.
A bootcamp, an evil fortress, a sea which has swallowed a lot of lost ships etc?
I think that that would be a good exercise =)

[gunnarsson]

you seem to like white birds mister! an animal lover, i like that. (jk?) anywho, i thought i would not really like the stuff after the first post, especially seeing as you chose the skull as an avatar. i think the torso and head there is alot better, you have beautiful lines in those, nice inking. i would like to see more like that, some lifestudies and that bit. ok, back to the not thinking i would like this thing, as it turned out, i actually enjoyed your paintings. there are alot of things that need much work, but you have a good grip on color in your latest. the abstract/flat shapes have some qualities, especially the second one in post 12, post 22 and 23. I think that is something to continue on, to build on. but yes, i would love to see some anatomy and life drawings. keep updating!

[The Curehead]

hey love the environments man.
I would however like to see some pencil work,your inks in the first post were awesome.

[Nivec]

Zynic: Thanks man, that's something I really have to work on
gunnarsson: Hehe, yes I do. I will try to do more pencils and studies and stuff like that.
The Curehead. Thanks man, I will

Another brush test, a bit messy but meh...

Messing around with m@'s brushes again:

And finally, a 3CH image, "A shiny eyed alien bombs a man with a trenchcoat at the top of a mountain."

[Nivec]

A brush test and an old sketch:

[Nivec]

Here's two tributes to Vyle for sharing his techniques Thanks man!