scribbles 'n things (traditional & digital)

[Harmageddon]

Back to the drawing board I said, and back to the drawing board it is.
I've been scribbling posemaniacs, done some work on the painting of a bust of Ceasar and I've just completed a few sketches reffed from beautiful women at domai.

Quite happy with the women, ceasar needs work, posemaniacs (1min sketches) are still too slow.

.. argh, still 6 paintings in various stages of completion in my room that I should finish.. and already I want to make other paintings. Utter chaos!
My feels as though my creative drive is way ahead of my discipline, I should work on that. Is that a common problem btw?

Secondly, does anyone have any view on what I should do next?
I mean, I've got a plan to get better but multiple perspectives always clarify things, so if you have any suggestions, I'm glad to hear them!

[dan liimatta]

Productive times for you - I like it, and esp. the last 3 studies of yours.

[Harmageddon]

@dan liimatta, thanks man! *feels motivated to do more*
I figured I should get more productive if I ever want to get better.
Some sketchbooks here are amazing, the speed at which people progress!
But if they can do it, I could at least give it my best shot, right?

PS: holy crap just checked your sb, you've not exactly been slacking either, have you? Very nice!

...on to the work:
some more posemaniacs (1min each), some movie stills from LotR and anatomy studies. I should prolly study Hogarth too.
...back to the drawing board!

[dan liimatta]

That's the spirit, work! slave away ~

and yes I've been active as of late

[Harmageddon]

@ dan liimatta: thanks man! Your comments alone motivate me to do more! *feels inspired*

I haven't been as productive as I would have liked, so I'll push myself harder this time. I did manage to make some sketches, also did some more posemaniacs but couldn't be bothered to photograph them.
I still find capturing the correct human proportions very difficult, so I shall keep on workin on that. More soon! I have to make up for this meagre update.
For now: some sketches of nude women, and an update on ceasar.

[Harmageddon]

Sketched some more today - happy with some, not too happy with others.
Some posemaniacs, some screencaps from LotR (the 2Towers), a woman and some environment scribbles.

Busy with several paintings also, I'll put them up as soon as they are done! Back to the drawing board I say!

[Harmageddon]

Took pictures of a couple of older sketches (rouhly 1/2 a year old) and grouped them together, so more can fit on a page! I'm practicing human anatomy at the moment, while also working on several paintings that I should really finish quite soon.

For now, some sketches of creatures and stuff, work on a painting of LotR that I made about a year ago and dug up yesterday to finish it up. And practice painting metal and painting in general. And some charcoal sketch of Robbie.
Anyway, thanks for taking a look!
.. back to the drawing board it is!

[Harmageddon]

Some more scribbles from today..

posemaniacs (30sec this time) - tried a different approach 2nd time around, with looser lines; I kind of like that one better.
some beauty from metart/femjoy I think, a sketch of an apache (lol) - I never actually draw machines so this one sucks but also it's good practice !
...and a weird horror kind of dude (finally, conceptart!) - I just felt like drawing that.
Thanks for watching, you lurkers keep me motivated

PS: my sketches are not as sharp as I'd like them to show up on the site. . . my scanner broke down a while ago.
I now have one o'those smart phones with a camera, I thought it'd make decent pictures, but I dunno.
They seem to lose some punch, or sharpness. Ah well, that's the drawback of working analog I guess..

[carakhan]

cool stuff here, if I had to say one thing it would be to invest in some darker pencils and put that extra layer of value in there. Everything goes to that middle grey, when you're drawing from your reference really try to see how dark a shadow gets and try to match it.
Also it looks like you might be using your finger to smudge in value, don't do that Learn to blend with your pencil.

[Harmageddon]

@ carakhan: thanks for your advice, I see what you mean.
Yeah, I do occasionally smudge with my finger, especially in the last couple of days of sketches; I'll stop it - for you.
Seriously, you're right, I've never really done hatching - don't know why.
But I do want to improve all of my drawing skills, so there we go!
Thanks again!

some posemaniacs, hatching studies (characterdesigns is awesome ! - stole that idea from your sb too) trying some hatching on the alien dude and an update on the demon (from several posts back)
more stuff later tonight! gotta get this thing into full gear! RAWR!

[carakhan]

Really nice! Yea character designs is great especially if you want to learn value, nice deep shadows. Now the next time you do the studies start scrutinizing every little change in value. I recognize the one with the man and the woman bending down, and his muscles change form much more than in your pic Its a great start and if I didn't know the pic I think it would look great, but you'll learn so much more if you spend twice the time on your drawing to really see all the detail.

Love your gestures, and the painting is coming along nicely! Watch your knight doesn't get too blue, unless that's your intent then go for it It would actually be cool to see a classic knight get paint splattered on him as he's headed to battle!

[Harmageddon]

@ carakhan - thanks again for your kind critique and you're right, I was a little impatient about the hatching thing and kind of rushed it. But I will certainly try harder next time. It makes for good practice I think.

About the demon/knight piece, I kind of screwed it all up from the start, by not thinking it through and just going with whatever I felt like at the time. So the light and shadows are virtually absent (and the shadow I did put behind the knight is the wrong side, compared to the shadow on the wall LOL)
I kind of like the colours though, so I might fiddle and tweak it a little more. I actually like the idea of the knight being painted, although that was not the idea; just playing around with colours really.

update on two paintings; of a tiger and a deer. Both nearly there.
The tiger was already @ an expo, unfinished and all. Really need to finish it.

[Harmageddon]

Finally, another update!

It's been a while, and I haven't done as much as I would like, but there it is. I really would like to get into the illustration business, working for fantasy games, wizards, magic, whatnot. I've got a long way to go still.
I should probably build a portfolio with finished stuff, but I'm not too confident of my skills yet. So now I'm mostly sketching and doing studies.

These sketches are all from the past week.
Mostly fantasy critters, sketches, from the heart. No reffed stuff.
Butterfly painting is reffed, some WIPs. Lizard and wolf sketches also reffed.
(studies)
Other paintings are on their way.

Any advice, comments, crits are welcome.
Thanks for watching.

[Harmageddon]

Small update; stuff from yesterday.

I do find it hard to keep production levels high - usually, I disappoint my own goals. Of course, I could set lesser goals so I can actually achieve them, but then I feel I'm not pushing myself hard enough.
Do any of you run into similar problems? If so, has anyone found a solution?
Not that your solution will work for me, but I find that it always helps to gain multiple perspectives on an issue.
Anyway, on to the scribbles.

A dragon (*yeah*), some creatures for D&D prolly, and an old lizardman.
Comments and crits welcome. Thanks for watching.

[Harmageddon]

Hey guys, it's a bit slow lately, but I have been sketching creatures.
So here they are - I know anatomy is somewhat wonky here and there, still trying to work on that. I hope to update more often, too.
Anyway, thanks for watching. And feel free to comment

[Harmageddon]

Been sketching creatures from a fantasy roleplaying game (dungeons & dragons) for practice. Also I've been practicing from Hogarth, I figured maybe put that up later. Or not.
I should really get back to painting, but sketching with a pencil is fun!

[Harmageddon]

small update - 2 more creature sketches:
a bulette and a bodak/zombie kind of thing.

[Windmaker]

Damn, that's a lot of work you're posting... Now I feel like a lazy bum...
Thanks for the kick in the butt! Also, cool drawings as well! I especially love your creature and animal work!
And the paintings are great as well! I always admire people who can paint traditionally. So, you have my admiration, good sir!

[Harmageddon]

Windmaker: thanks man! That means a lot, coming from you. *Bows for Windmaker* I hope to be able to do what you do someday soon.


I've not been as productive as I would have liked, but hey, real life has other interesting things to indulge myself in. Anyway, I have been sketching some more.

Joined the COW challenge, mariana trench beatst, then drew nothing for 2days. Hope to finish the beast today though.

Ive also started modifying the bulette/landshark sketch from a few posts back.
Painting/drawing digitally is a whole new realm, so it still is rather intimidating. But also very cool. I'm learning with every stroke of the pen, it seems.
Hopefully, I'll pick up the tricks and tools pretty quick. We'll see.

I have set myself on drawing the enitre book of Hogarth, cover to cover, for studies. That'll take a while, but it will hopefully assist in understanding human anatomy, as that is still a rather weak spot.
I should probably do more environments too, but I can't do everything at once - so that will have to wait a month or two.

Any comments/crits are welcome.
Thanks for looking.

[Harmageddon]

Well, my foray into digital painting is fun - yet also frustrating at times.
I feel like I'm learning to draw all over again - yet way faster than before.

I've set myself the task to draw 5 pages of Hogarth's book every day
(save sunday, because as a creator, I like to rest
So far, I almost made it. Now at page 46.
I hope to have drawn the entire book by the end of next month.

Painting is slower than I wish, and drawing, well, also.
But here it is: an update nonetheless!
Some posemaniacs, sketches from Spartacus (great series!)
sketches for COW challenge: demon whisperer and a photoshop
attempt at an orc. Supposed to be eye-gouger, for Chow but started way too late.

[Harmageddon]

Figured I might as well post some of these Hogarth studies.
I try and make 5 a day of these; hopefully it will help me progress drawing humans from imagination better.
I will not post them all because there's a pile of them already, and I think it's far more interesting for visitors to my SB to see all kinds of things going on.

I realized I not only suck at drawing humans, but also that my understanding of light and color is, well, kind of, absent. So I will try and conquer that mountain in the coming weeks.
Updates might be somewhat slow, as I should also get very busy painting for an expo soon - I'll post some progress on the paintings when there is some. Peace.

[carakhan]

Leaps and bounds man! New stuff is looking great. Just remember to not confine yourself to the hogarth styling, study many different masters -loomis, bridgeman, so that you don't end up drawing in one style.
Watch proportion, negative space and measuring - some of the legs where they meet the hips is very skinny.

And I know you're probably itching to dive into light and color, but perhaps start with value studies. It looks like you only use one pencil for most of your drawings. Try using a couple different levels (I prefer all B's, 2, 6, 9). Just when you think it looks pretty good, you put another level of value in there and kapow! It starts really coming together.

[SMILEFACE]

i REALLY DIG ALL YER DRAGONS AN ANIMAL CREATURES AN AWESOME STUDIES XD

[Harmageddon]

carakhan: thanks! Really? Great! Then it seems to be working
I know I should study other stuff besides Hogarth on anatomy as well.
I am actually doing 30 posemaniacs a day, and well, since there's only so much I can do at once,
I decided to plow through Hogarth first. Now on page 50 something.
At 5 pages a day, I'll be done with that one in about a month from now.
Then, I'll turn to Loomis, Bridgeman, I don't know yet.
Thanks on reminding me I should experiment with different pencils too!
I'll get to that in the coming week.
SMILEFACE: thanks man! I hope they get more awesome soon!

Did another 5 Hogarth pages and some posemaniacs.
This is turning into my current recipe to improve on human anatomy.
Which I can then use to make awesome stuff later!
But I figured those are too boring to post.
So instead; some other sketches I made today, and update on a painting.

[carakhan]

Heh yea the only reason I point it out to anyone I see studying one particular figure master is because when I was in school people went around talking about Hogarth like there was no other expert on the subject, and then they all started rendering in his style in all their work as if that was the only way to draw a person.
And pose maniacs is good for gestures or quick studies, but they aren't really anatomically correct, just simple 3d figures.
I like the new warrior dude with the ax, the values in there are starting to look cool! For the guy next to him (same guy?) think about what would make him more dynamic. If he was swinging a huge ax, he would need to compensate by having a wider stance. His legs are really stiff.
keep it up dude

[dierat]

Really like the Hogarth studies; it looks like it's really helping you to think about the figure as a complex form made up of simpler 3-dimensional shapes. It's nice to see that you're putting so much time into your posemaniacs studies, but I don't think those are really helping you in this particular area. It looks like you're pretty much just copying the outlines of the shapes that you see without really thinking about how the figure exists in space. Think about arms and legs as cylinders and the pelvis as a box or jar, and so on. Use wrapping lines that follow the surface of the form to help you image the volume and mass of what you're drawing. That will really help you when drawing the figure to different angles and perspectives from imagination. And when you're done with Hogarth, I suggest you try out Figure Drawing Design and Invention.

[Harmageddon]

@carakhan: thanks. I understand, I really have somewhat of a personal style already although that might change around completely.
I figured since I've neglected drawing humans for so long, I should just do a speed course
and get as much information on the human figure in my head in as little a time as possible.
And since I don't feel like drawing bones and muscles all the time, Hogarth seemed a quick and easy beginning for starters.
Although I've learned it is not THAT easy.
Yeah, the legs of the axe swinging guy are stiff - it's actually reffed from pictures I found at mjranum DEVIANT gallery
I'll keep it up, girl! You too, huh?

@dierat: thanks! I'm glad you like my Hogarth copies.
Hogarth is excellent study material, indeed!
Yeah the posemaniacs are for now just outlines, trying to quickly copy the form, without thinking too much about what's going on.
Although I do feel that doing Hogarth studies simultaneously makes me look at posemaniacs differently.
In a good way, I think.
And you're right, I should probably use wrapping lines to get a feel for 3D shapes in space.
It just feels too much like work instead of play.
Then again, I try to playfully work my ass of as I really want to get better at drawing, and soon, painting humans, without reference.

@both of you: Thanks for taking the time to write in my SB.
I'm sorry for my late reply. I have this personal rule not to post in my own SB without adding at least one picture,
and meanwhile I've been busy breaking out a wall in my house, which results in large dustclouds, no painting and little sketching.
Maybe I should reconsider my rule of no picture, no post.

But here's a little study/sketch of birds (how fitting ) I made yesterday.

[dan liimatta]

I like the birds & wolves studies and the first 4 creatures/characters of #67
& the fact that you haven't been slacking at all - wasn't too long ago since I visited and you have done a lot since.

One thing though - several of your sketches are very nice, but still very rough - and you can do good lines as seen in



& wouldn't it be nice to take some of your best to their full conclusion at least in the way of line?

I think it would be rewarding for you both progress wise and motivational.

[Harmageddon]

@dan liimatta: thanks man. Your visits are much appreciated.
It feels as though I'm slacking, but maybe it isn't that bad. I don't know.
Seems there's always so much more I could have done...anyway.
You are absolutely spot on with your advice.
I'll take it to heart and finish off (at least linework wise) some sketches in the coming days. I'll let you know if it works motivation wise.

oh and a sketch from today - practicing horses.

[Satu]

Really nice updates here! I've been actually visiting here every time you update something but haven't got really that much time to comment on other people's beautiful sketchbooks. Will try to pull myself together on that!

Anyways you have produced some really good studies! You're anatomy is already starting to look better and better and it is really good that you are starting to do more experimenting with the values and adding the more darker values on your drawings also like in this one. It is also good that you are doing posemaniac studies but I agree with dierat that you should try to see the actual figure and its form and movement more when doing these studies. Try to really feel the movement and empathize to it. Glen Vilppu video's and book have been a great help for me on that! It would be really good if you could get your hands on some of his videos. He makes things really easy to understand and his humour makes them also really fun to watch! It would be also cool to see more still-life studies from you. I have done them pretty much myself lately and I already feel that they have somewhat improved my values and overall perception.

Don't think too much about other people's progress and if someone is making a quicker improvement than you. Also don't take too many projects at a same time that you don't get overly stressed! You have already made nice improvements since page 1 and I see a really good talent in you! Everyone makes their own journey and improve on their own speed. We cannot know what the future has to offer us but the most important thing is that you just enjoy the journey and that you do what you love to do. Or these are the things that I have learned while lurking here Just keep practising and you do keep better with every pencil stroke you make. Don't get discouraged!