TArthurSmith - Sketches & Projects (nudity) UPDATE Friday Jan 13, 2012

[TASmith]

INTRODUCTION:

I'm an artist and educator, currently living in Slovakia, and teaching English language learners. In my free time I draw and paint to keep up my skills and to make a little extra money. I've been meaning to make a sketchbook here for some time, but I didn't have time to re-size images, upload them to photobucket, and then copy the url's here. Now that I can upload directly, it should be easier.

SKILLS & GOALS:

As an artist my main strength is observational drawing and painting. I'm good with color, although I wouldn't yet call myself a professional. I have no real training in photography, digital art, or sculpture. I think I could be a professional if I devoted more time to it. I teach English in two different schools now, and I have a 4 year-old son to take care of. My dream is to teach art full time. I'm considering opening a school/artist residency here in Slovakia, and it would be very helpful if you could answer my poll questions - select all features that interest you.

SKETCHBOOK SUBMISSIONS:

I've selected one finished work that I feel is my best, just to show that I do have some skills. It's an oil pastel of a waterfall in New Hampshire, Arethusa Falls. I've promised myself that I'll only post recent and new sketches, as I have many older ones, but how would that show my progress? You can view any older work at my deviantart account (link in my sig). My recent projects are some anatomy studies (all from photos, unfortunately), some Slovak landscapes to sell, and some portrait commissions I'm struggling with.

CRITIQUE:

Please give me as many detailed critiques as you can, especially on anatomy, but also composition, and anything else you feel important. It's all appreciated.

All the photos are from excellent artists on deviantart, including:

David L. Le Beck (photoscot) http://photoscot.deviantart.com
Francois Benveniste (fb101) http://fb101.deviantart.com
André Brito (ABrito) http://abrito.deviantart.com
Sita Mae Edwards (sitamae) http://sitamae.deviantart.com
Gerhardt http://gerhardt.deviantart.com
Dave Hare (flash750) http://flash750.deviantart.com
Sascha Huettenhain http://saschahuettenhain.deviantart.com
Jose Manchado http://josemanchado.deviantart.com
John Peri http://johnperi.deviantart.com
Peter (mopas) http://mopas.deviantart.com
Marcus J Ranum (mjranum) http://mjranum.deviantart.com
Pascal Renoux http://renoux.deviantart.com
Rich (Samiguy101) http://samiguy101.deviantart.com
mic-ardant http://mic-ardent.deviantart.com
http://eelmikashigaru.deviantart.com
Richard Rasner (uniquenudes) http://uniquenudes.deviantart.com
Markus Weiler (mweiler) http://mweiler.deviantart.com

[TASmith]

Here are some digital works, all drawn in Photoshop with a mouse...

I really need good advice on what software/brushes to find, and also a good tablet for drawing - something that's professinoal quality.

So the first is a WIP of a simple figure sketch, focusing on leather. I drew it as a study for a comic character concept.

It's from a photo by http://lochai.deviantart.com/art/Relaxing-13245301

Next comes a simple landscape which should one day have a dragon in it... The third is a sketch of some friends of mine. I know, it's blurry, but I liked it.
They're both from my own photos ;)

[TASmith]

I just finished this portrait commission. It's a father and daughter in a park, somewhere in Slovakia. It's drawn from a small 4x6 photo given by the client.

[TASmith]

Here are some "speed paintings" I sketched up in photoshop. They're from photos, done with my touchpad. I was messing with brushes.

The photos are by:

http://theflinger.deviantart.com
http://venea.deviantart.com
http://robertmekis.deviantart.com

[TASmith]

Here are some recent arm studies, from photos I took of my wife. Here, I have some elevations of the inside and outside views of the arm, plus a foreshortened perspective.

Each sketch maps the progression of movement of the arm. Note how the shoulder and upper arm twist throughout the process.

[FinalKnight]

First of all, I'd like to say you have amazing 3-dimensional anatomy studies! Keep drawing like that and you'll be able draw from your imagination without any problems at all.

One thing you haven't shown much of are works focused on value. Based on the few drawings you have posted that are rendered, you should definitely try to work on getting those values down correctly. The same with your colours, they could use some improvement, a bit too saturated I think, and they're also suffering from lack of accurate value.

Also, why draw from photos when your wife is willing to pose.

Love the way you are describing form in your drawings, keep it up!

[Novbert]

Totally agree with FinalKnight, those pose drawings and 3d anathomy studies are stunning, but I'd really like to see some finished pieces (like the girl in the latex cloth). And do some face studies as well 'cause that portrait of the father and daughter ... well, those faces could be better (but smiling faces are hard to draw - I know it).
Anyway I also suggest that you shouldn't really play with colors before learning how to refine those values
Keep up the good work, man!

[TASmith]

Thank you both very much! I'm not sure just how I'll be able to keep up drawing with work, but I definately want to. My next step would be to study shoulders and the back. I need to take more photos from her. Then, I need to really start memorizing muscles.

"why draw from photos when your wife is willing to pose."

Lol, she isn't. It took months to convince her to let me do the arms, and she still wouldn't do all the poses - arm bending and folding, then bearing weight. She's impatient.

I need a real model... sigh. Anyway, I think I'll try and sketch for the next few days. Then I have to really start writing grammar exercises for my students so they can pass state exams in March. If they don't, I have to work with them over the summer for the same exam, which would really suck.

You're right, I should try a finished figure. I think I'll really get into that when I understand anatomy better and I'll devote it to a character concept of mine.

[TASmith]

These next sketches are all copies from a book I got on Anatomy. It's actaully a rather frustrating book, being hard to understand and missing crucial sketches. The name of it is Anatomy Drawing School, by Andras Szunyoghy and Gyorgy Feher. It could be better organized as well.. Ah well, I did this to learn more anatomy.

Oh, and one comment on the lightsource suggestions. In all these sketches, I've been deliberately ignoring light, instead trying to emphasize volumes and shapes. At some point, when I start a real character design, I'll get back into shadows as such.

[Carbono]

God, i love the way you render your anatomy. The ribcages looks amazing, with a carved feeling. Really really nice stuff.

Can't wait to see more man, keep it up!

[TASmith]

thanks! I can't wait to figure out anatomy and finally post some good, explanative drawings.

This here is a touch up of that last portrait commission. I worked on the eyes a tad, and made his nose a bit more flattering. I forget what else I did to it.

[hmanafi]

here is my suggestions
when you are studying anatomy,draw very accurately,because you are learning one of the most important sections of figure drawing.
i think it's not necessary to learn muscle/bone names but you have to learn how to put them together,how they interact with each other,etc.it's only my opinion.
and if your wife doesn't pose for you,you can hire a model(if it's possible for you :) ) or draw yourself in front of a mirror.life drawing is one of the best practices to improve very well and quickly

and i think this sketchbook can be helpful for you : MindCandyMan's sketchbook (http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?t=870&page=8&highlight=MindCandyMan)

at all,these are only my suggestions and you can refuse them
good luck and keep it up.

[TASmith]

Here's something I drew based on the help I've been getting here on anatomy. It's a rotation of the arm/shoulder with all the smaller muscles that are normally hidden by the bigger ones. I'm going to do a series of rotations as a way to best understand/display the human anatomy. I'm not an expert at all, on this, so please point out any mistakes you see.

[TASmith]

Okay, so I've been sketching some more. I drew some more anatomy studies, based on books and references off the internet. I've drawn some more studies from photos. And, I've started some life sketches. Yesterday we had some family come over and I drew the whole time. I also started some anatomy studies from looking in a mirror, at the end. The baby's my son, Andrew. The one woman chewing on some klobasa is my wife, Ifa. She was really happy about that one, and would be even happier if she knew I were posting it here. :)

Here it all is:

[TASmith]

more sketches. Some are family members from life, drawn with a pen, or charcoal pencil. Some are anatomy studies, with what I learned gathered from books and the internet. Some are anatomy studies, drawn from KChen, here on DA - definately worth seeing, everyone! And, there's one arm drawing copied from some images Briggs linked me to.

[TASmith]

some more sketches I just got to cropping/leveling.

[TASmith]

I haven't been drawing much lately, but I managed this during a long meeting.

[TASmith]

Here are some more quick sketches. Lately, the only time I've had for artmaking is while giving tests to students. So here they are, trying to pass my tests:

[TASmith]

I continue to post to myself here... These sketches are from my two week trip to the US, March 2008.

[Atastrophea]

Thank you for visiting my sketch book :)

I like your dynamic life drawing style.

~^-^~

[TASmith]

I can't believe all these images fit on one page. I guess that's what happens when no one else comments. For those that have, thanks for the compliments and advice. Let's see, here are some recent thingies...

So I've been working on some dragon concepts. They suck now, but ah well, I'm a total beginner to them. The first couple sketches are from imagination so they suck. there are some studies from Spectrum 14 (if they don't totally suck it's because they're copies). Then there are some sketches based on animal photos I've gathered on my hardrive:

http://kevlewis.deviantart.com and some others.

Then there's some digital stuff - I started a chameleon drake that desperately needs work, and I put together a photo for a website that's in progress.

[TASmith]

Here's that digital chameleon drake

[TASmith]

Here's a photo for a website I'm building. There are two I took seperately, and then the final superimposed image.

[Lotet]

wow thats alot of studies, ur one hardworking dude haha^^
thanks for dropping by at my SB.

[TASmith]

Here's an update.

[TASmith]

Here are some sketches from when I was in the hospital - hernia. I wish I'd done more. My hand's been hurting from drawing recently. It's very frustrating. The cave image is from a painting by cicinimo. The others are all from photos. The woman and child are my wife and son.

photos by:
http://ernieleo.deviantart.com
http://pendragon006.deviantart.com

There was one other but, for the life of me, I can't find who.

[Jabo]

Hey man, great studies, really patient. Your values work very well I think, maybe you need to loosen your linework a little in order to make them look more alive.

[Jacob Kobryn]

I just finished this portrait commission. It's a father and daughter in a park, somewhere in Slovakia.
Dude! Is that Martin Lopez???

http://www.spirit-of-metal.com/membre_groupe/photo/Martin_Lopez-1863_cce4.jpg

[TASmith]

He does have a familiar looking face, doesn't he?

[TASmith]

Here's my latest sketches. Some from a meeting where I didn't understand a bit of the Slovak spoken. Some from some tests I gave my students. It's been my only chance to draw during the week, lately. More tests coming up, too. I need to do more work on weekends, I spend it all either on a website, or looking at superior art on the web. and getting depressed, lately.

[aussiedeza]

You have some real patience mate, if i had one suggestion for you it would be from you first figure sturdies you show a real strength with form construction if you managed to combine that when you are drawing from life it would help you allot with structure rather then just coping the value shape you see try and do a mixture.Keep up the excellent effort mate ill drop by again soon when i am not dead tired and ready to go to sleep.

[TASmith]

Thank you! that's a good point. I finally have a second page!!!

[TASmith]

So I've been looking through my old figure sketches, and I want to improve the poses that I didn't do so well on. Here are a couple sketches for one pic. I can't find who the photographer was... ... found him, Sascha Huettenhain. http://saschahuettenhain.deviantart.com

There's also one pastel I didn't get to finish. I was walking my son, and he got impatient, and wouldn't sleep in the stroller. :P

[TASmith]

Here's another pastel. It's a study from a National Geographic, mostly just for the colors. The photo I took was horrible and I doctored it in photoshop to give some semblence of the original.

[TASmith]

Another update. There a sketch of some students - I had to stop because some were whispering answers.

I drew one sketch of Andrew, trying to emphasize form over light. Then, there's a couple sketches of a friend's newborn, Palko. We visited them last Thursday. I got to see some really beautiful countryside on the way. There's a great lake for painting after the Tatras - Lymna or something.

Anywho, there's also an atrocious screw up of a leopard from a Nat Geographic - I've decided next time I'm going to wait on the black till the very last step. Should've known but I thought I could scratch around it. Scratching's actually pretty limited with these oil pastels, at least on Bristol Paper. I may try some regular sketch paper. It's not as oil resistant and it wrinkles easily, but the surface holds the pastel so much better. This is only added to give a true show of my "progress" as I go along. It's the complete works as it were.

I'm working on a portrait that looks so bad right now I don't want to post it.

[Mr-Joe]

Hi, I think this one is a pretty good sketch: http://www.conceptart.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=354059&stc=1&d=1208953283

I like it because it seems to have a sense of space, It looks like you were thinking about the direction of your lines, and it also looks like you were paying attention to the values, darkness and lightness of large areas of space and not getting caught up with detail. Good job on that one.


I have a suggestion; Try using less lines, When you are doing contour drawings of figures and shapes. For example, when you do studies from life and studies for anatomy, use just 1 carefully thought out line instead of quick sketchy lines, Try holding the pencil above the paper and move it back and forth where you are going to draw the line without touching the paper, when you are sure that is where you want the line, then make the mark with just 1 smooth line. I think it will help improve your hand eye coordination, and your drawings will look much cleaner. I think that it will take some time to get used to, but after practice you will get quicker at it.

Joe.

[TASmith]

Ok, here's a little sketch of a kitchen, and a couple pastels I worked on last night. The portrait is a commission. I know, it looks way too dark and vampiric. I was just concerned with the features and proportions. Next, I want to go back and add some appelles palette colors to bring it to life a bit.

The photo for the pastel of the tatras is by http://eugi3.deviantart.com and I'm glad I finally drew something in pastel I can be proud of again. It's on plain sketch paper, and I think you can see the difference in quality, how well it holds the pastel.

[TASmith]

here's an update on the portrait

[TASmith]

Another update. Some portrait studies, and an update on the pastel. also a WIP snake playing guitar. I came up with the idea while playing some old Guns N Roses in the car. I thought, man that song Novembe Rain would be great with a CG graphics toad on the piano and who would play guitar? Well, following a swamp theme, how about a snake? I looked up google for some guitar/hat ref's and lo and behold, what do I see? It's already been done. Ah well, I'm going for a different syle. Goes to show how hard it is to be original these days.

the dward and kobold are crap I did just to show a relative who didn't know the difference in English. Apparently it's the same thing in Slovak?

The sketch of the student in class passed a crucial test in that the student actually wanted to keep it - always a good sign. The pencil portraits are of friends and students. All gifts.

[TASmith]

Saturday sketches.

[TASmith]

two new sketches. One is a double portrait of my mother in law and her sister, done yesterday. The other is the window in my office at school.

[TASmith]

Here are some recent sketches. I've been practicing portraits lately. These are all from Lasse Damgaard, a great photographer I found on deviantart. The two seated figures are colleagues figuring grades for students. The last is a sketch of a window from today.

http://nullermanden.deviantart.com/

[TASmith]

Here are a couple more sketches - students taking a test, and a collegue surfing the net.

[TASmith]

Hmm, I keep forgetting, I updated that portrait. Here's the latest

[TASmith]

some more sketches... I intend to finish up the window in class today. I know the portraits aren't good - no one will sit still for me these days.

[TASmith]

worked on the window a tad. Latest portraits.

[TASmith]

Another update that no one will see or respond to. :[

My students taking tests. Some window studies. Portraits from photos, and one of my son sleeping.

elderly pic: Lasse Damgaard http://nullermanden.deviantart.com

asian model: oops, I have no idea. I'll look it up.

sunny model: mic-ardant http://mic-ardant.deviantart.com

[TASmith]

Here's a little panorama I did of the high tatras mountains in Poprad. unedited so far. I'll fix it up maybe tonight...

[TASmith]

Ok, here are two from last night. The old man's by Lasse Damgaard, and the woman's by Perry Gallagher. links in a bit.

[Quigleyer]

You, sir, are doing a very nice job in your studies. That's a lot of drawing, and a LOT of studies. Don't stop doing that... your bodies are becoming better and better.

I think it would be in your best interest to really check out the main features that make up the head. I realized that I spent so much time on bodies at one point as well, while I neglected my study of portraiture... so I've got no room to talk here, and have been trying to make up for it ever since.

Really nice effort and good sketchbook. If I knew how to rate it you'd be getting stars from me.

[TASmith]

actual stars??? OH MAN, LOOK UP AT THE TOP!!! :))))))))))))

there's a thingy that says "rate thread" click on the lil white arrow. As pathetic as it sounds this has been my dream for awhile. Not that I deserve even four, but still three would be nice..... sigh, I'm pathetic. but thank you very much all the same.

On the head structure advice - I agree completely. My father in law's building a garage and I'll get the second floor/attic as a studio. I haven't told anyone yet, but I plan to get a plastic model skeleton as soon as it's done for some serious study. I'll order it, hopefully sometime this summer. Expect updates here tomorrow if it's sunny enough for photos.

[elenaM]

Well, here I am again to tell you what is probably embarassing to say or to hear, but under no circumstances a person (art school or not) that introduces himself as an artist and then produces a sketchbook like this and that's all, folks can be an authority on portraiture.I knew your sketches and your two websites. I see that you could use more help than you probably would admit and the only thing to do is to draw.I mean to really draw. There is only one portrait( the one in pastel)that can count for a finished piece of an artist.You should see the art of 13 or 17 years old on the sites I visit. Their portraits. They just work everyday a few hours and produce.Two pages sketchebook for two years work! you must be kidding!I appreciate the time you have been spending on couching me on pastel work and just thought that you enjoy couching. But, Man you mean to teach me now whatever you yourself cannot do: portraiture.I don't consider myself an artist and I know I will never be one yet i worked like a dog doing portraits all April, almost two portraits a day.And I don't think I can tell others what's wrong with their work, with the precision you do, without being accomplished myself.I just made a short comment on your values to your three portraits you posting on a poll and you didn't like my intrusion and even sort of being rude.(that I didn't read what you said before posting my comment). My comment was clear. You have no dark values.All your sketches are sketchy and you don't present a serious work for the reviewer but just a quick sketch. That is not a portrait.I want to thank you for the time and effort of reviewing my pastels and really appreciate your time, but you need to help yourself before helping others. You really need to work hard, you need discipline in your work and pure and simple practice which translates into years and years of work, especially when it comes to portraiture.And stop calling yourself an artist. You are not there yet, Arthur.I thought you looked into my threads already and saw my portraits on this website. I started drawing faces in January and I didn't stop ever since.Just take a look at the indian chief I have in my thread and before saying what's wrong with it tell me honestly if you could have done it better.And this was possible because I received support from old artists on many sites who really know how to encourage beginners.When you yourself are a beginner in human study of faces I just wonder how can you think of helping others.When you are never satisfied with what others do with their work(people you couch on drawing) how can you be satisfied with this sketchbook?!I told you it's embarrassing this truth but you wanted me to see your sketchbook again.And i did.Do you know how many hours people spend on a portrait? up 24 hours or more to render photograph quality portraits. In the drawing challenge i hosted last week people spend up to 5 hours on a bowl of apricots in colored pencils.Are you up to that kind of work and sacrifice? ask yourself this before calling yourself an artist.I am doing this moment of sincerity because I want to help you in return and see you motivated to work hard. And that is not possible by avoiding the truth. The truth in art is work, not talk.

[TASmith]

This isn't two years old. I think I started this in February? Hmm, I think I'ma report you for this little comment.

For any other posters curious about this argument, here're the threads in question that led to it:

http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?t=128617 - the thread that made elena angry enough to vent here.

http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?t=128535 the thread where she didn't read my message - note I never complained about her critique of the work, I even thanked her for it, just that she hadn't read one thing - no one in the post really read first and I was making more of a general, and I thought, lighthearted comment. Seems it was misconstrued.

http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?t=125482 the thread where I coached elena for the last month or so.

http://conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?t=121136 - Elena's portraits for you to see and compare.

[TASmith]

here are some sketches from the weekend. We had guests over, making for some very quick 30 second pics, and a couple longer studies. Oh yeah, there's also an oil pastel of the local church that's really off. The sun died about ten minutes into this so I had to just remember what it was like as best as possible, and the values of the tree are totally off. I plan to come back when it's sunny again.

[elenaM]

Take a look at this 17 year-old Italian girl's portraits (http://www.drawspace.com/forums/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=user&user=104997&op=view_album&album=4423). She is self taught but works everyday spending a few hours on a portrait. She has already an impressive portfolio but she is modest and considers herself a beginner.Notice the values in her portraits, from light to dark all those medium values displayed.Then look at your sketches and admit the fact that you have a long way to reach that control of your pencil on a portrait.I wish you could apply all the knowledge that you already have about drawing.Be more serious about the work you put into a portrait. You don't need advice or feedback you need to work hard, be your own critic and do it again and again until it comes out right.I am looking forward for that portrait of your son or your wife from a photograph that can show the work and the effort you invested in doing it.Practicing with photos is a good start since you have no time barrier.You also may wish to have a log of your progress in which you put down the amount of time spent on portraits in a month and see your evolution.Right now you are in a stage of giving the general feel of a person in your drawing. You need to aim at the vibracy of the real person in a portrait. You need life in it.Hope this helps.

[TASmith]

Thanks for the link of that girl's work, I enjoyed looking at it. But please refrain from posting here again. You're crazy and I don't want to deal with it. I've already reported you.

[elenaM]

Thanks for the link of that girl's work, I enjoyed looking at it. But please refrain from posting here again. You're crazy and I don't want to deal with it. I've already reported you.

You reported me for what? For telling you to work hard or for the fact I am "crazy", an insult on your part, BTW.Because this is how you respond on criticism. Insulting?!
The forum is for all to enter their impression, advice, comments on sketchbooks or other threads you post. Do yourself a favor, be honest with you at this stage of your drawings skills as you are with others. Spend more time working hard, before you "help" others.
I am glad you liked Flavia's work. As you could see she draws everyday.Try to do that instead of wasting your time in browsing CA.Be productive, be a man.Take critiscism from here and put some ambition into your work.Sometimes it hurts before it heals.Have peace!And remember, you remain my favorite coach on :yayca:

[ArtZealot]

My most honest critique of everything in general here is to perhaps try moving away from pencils and do more painting, digital or traditional. I notice a lot of people are saying to "loosen up!" and i remember several years ago having a similar problem with pencils.

It looks to me like you are trying to paint with a pencil. You are blocking in shapes and paying attention to the whole composition which is good, but when tackling such a big composition on anything larger than a thumbnail sized drawing, it can be difficult to get the whole thing to read right. Remember a pencil tip only really covers the size of a period ---> . and using that to render out a huge image is like trying to kill an elephant by stabbing it to death with a toothpick.

To get to my point, i'd reccomend doing more painting. It seems you have a painters mind or that part of your brain is dying to get it's hands on a paintbrush. The couple digital sketches in here you've posted are some of your best work, i think more of that could really prove some great results.

[biglu]

Take a look at this 17 year-old Italian girl's portraits (http://www.drawspace.com/forums/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=user&user=104997&op=view_album&album=4423). She is self taught but works everyday spending a few hours on a portrait. She has already an impressive portfolio but she is modest and considers herself a beginner.Notice the values in her portraits, from light to dark all those medium values displayed.Then look at your sketches and admit the fact that you have a long way to reach that control of your pencil on a portrait.I wish you could apply all the knowledge that you already have about drawing.Be more serious about the work you put into a portrait.



Sorry I gotta squeeze 10¢ in there. In all fairness, that 17 year-old Italian girl is not that much of a prodigy. She appears to have assisted herself by using a grid system ... while TASmith has done all of his stuff freehand.

When you consider that working off a grid means not having to worry about the figure's anatomy or measuring & nailing proportion, etc. ,

.. then those two styles of drawing are really not that comparable.

[TASmith]

Thank you both. I figured it was an image projection trace or something like that. I just want to add, these photo sketches aren't meant to be finished artworks. I would never take someone else's image, copy it, and call it mine, put it in a gallery, or sell it. These are just anatomy studies. I want to learn different kinds of wrinkles and details.

"It seems you have a painters mind or that part of your brain is dying to get it's hands on a paintbrush."

Art Zealot, you know me very well. I'm dying to paint again. I haven't touched a brush since last summer. This summer I've been invited to attend an artist's symposium in town. It lasts 9 days and I'll have a studio and canvas to paint all day. I intend to use it as much as possible. Until then, every free moment I'm taking care of my son so my wife can get some work done. Plus I need to give final grades by Friday.

This last winter I've been teaching at three different schools, about 50 hours a week. I hope that now they're finishing I can spend some time painting again.

[TASmith]

Alright, let's see. There's a final classroom sketch. I updated one of those elderly portraits. I drew some people in the street yesterday, and a few sketches of Spisska, the town where I live. I'm preparing for some more ambitious works about the town and people, so be ready for some painting soon. Also I started some thumbnails of Slovak folk dancers, drawn from some home movies I made recently. Expect to see paintings of them too. I have an idea to put about a thousand of them dancing all up and down the town in some comical fashion, although right now I'm way too stiff to accomplish it. I need to do enough studies in every medium to loosen up.

A couple people suggested drawing larger, simpler lines and ditching the pencil, so I went with a sharpie... (I know the feet suck, they were hidden from view so I just guessed them)

[TASmith]

here's a color study from a photographer named nate zeman: http://nzeman.deviantart.com

[Peter Coene]

It looks to me like you are facing a lot of the same issues as Elena in terms of relying on photos. Your anatomical studies are a step in the right direction, regaurdless of a few awkward spots here and there in the female poses.

I think that right now the thing you need to work on most is applying the anatomical stuff that you are doing in your figure drawings to your other work. There is no point in studying/practicing with something unless you actually apply it in your other work.

Remember also that sketches don't have to be prescious little things; scribble if you have to, show your underlines and where you had to adjust/make changes. Stop trying to render everything. Structural lines can even be found in the studies Michealangelo did for the sistene chapel, so I think its safe to assume that they are an acceptable approach to a better sketch.

[TASmith]

Thanks Peter, very much. I think part of the problem is I did those figure studies so long ago I've pretty much lost what I learned. I should do more. I'm also not quite sure how to apply it when I'm sketching from life. If I can keep some energy I'll try more figures from life, and I'll try and go simpler with a sharpie rather than rendering everything. Hmm maybe I'll try sketching some of those Sargent figures I found earlier.

So... updates. I worked on that church pastel, but it's still too muddy for me. I also did a few family sketches which are atrocious, but I promised myself when I started this thread I'd post Everything I've done, so... Then there are some sketches of Spisska, my town, that I did today since it was sunny. Again, all crits are welcome.

Peter - what would suggest for me to improve further with anatomy? I mean besides reading Bridgeman and doing life studies.

[TASmith]

I almost forgot this sketch I drew of our conference room at school. Did it while waiting for class books to arrive from other teachers, to write final grades.

I also drew a couple student portraits that weren't so bad, but I gave em away.

[TASmith]

Let's see, I added to one portrait that I thought looked flat. Again that work's from a photo by Lasse Damgaard at http://nullermanden.deviantart.com/

There are a couple pastel color studies. The rocky beach is by Maciej Duczynski at http://lonelywolf2.deviantart.com/

The boat is by I.ngmar at http://wingmar.deviantart.com/
This one's a rough approximation of the original. Is there any reason why viridian doesn't exist in photoshop 7? Or do I not know what I'm doing?

Then there are a couple nude sketches from other photos, and more Slovak dancers from my home videos. One of the nude photos is by Katarzyna Rzeszowska at http://ameliaphotography.deviantart.com/ The other one, I don't know - name wasn't saved right.

[TASmith]

Finally finished up this one. It's still rough, but I think I'd have to start over to get it right. There's a ton more I still have to clean up in photoshop. I'll post it later tonight.

[TASmith]

So now that classes are over and all the grades have been submitted, there's not much to do in school anymore. I took the opportunity to finish that sketch above, and do a couple studies. There's the window again, and a tape dispenser with a plastic bag. I was originally going to go into detail with the bag, but the scotch tape somehow caught my attention. Maybe I'll go into the bag tomorrow.

There are also a couple portrait studies of family, from life. I decided to focus more on form and bringing out the volumes in the eyes, especially since I got a crit on that recently, but somehow I think they look worse for it - especially the older man.

Then there's a ton more dancer studies. I'll do more after I post this.

Crits always appreciated!

[Lake]

Looking at some of your heads, I see that you're leaving quite a bit of the paper showing through. This would be ok if the rest of your shading were more subtle, but as it is you have a lot of dark darks and a lot of light lights very disjointed. It's splitting up your forms and we lose the impression of three-dimensionality.

Am I making sense? I'm tired :( zzzz

[TASmith]

Actually you're making a ton of sense. Hmmm I'll try a portrait with darker mid tones. Maybe if I can get a colleague to sit still today.

[TASmith]

Okay, so I had another day with nothing to do, so I drew a pastel of the office window, and during a meeting, a portrait of one of my colleagues. I followed Lake's advice of darker midtones and less pure white.

I know it sounds like a lame copout, but the photos of these aren't nearly as good as the originals. Especially for my pencil work, I had to really change the levels for them, which tends to overemphasize the fibers of the paper, making them look all grainy, etc.

[TASmith]

So I've started some oil sketches. I'm going to touch them up and then add some colors. I've been going to the national park here for some studies. Today a bunch of kids showed up, so I drew some portraits.

[TASmith]

today's work. This is a portrait of a coworker's father who recently died. From a photo, but I made him smile. So far as my finished, rendering skills, this is about as far as I can go. The three things I wrote and stuck on the wall before doing this:

1. forms, not lines
2. eyes are spheres in cylinders
3. midtones, no blotchy white areas

[TASmith]

Here's an oil sketch of my town, Spisska Nova Ves. It's a WIP.

[TASmith]

Here's one of summer Street, where tons of moms and kids hang out. I want to do a large work of this one. I'll probably do a study with a pallet knife next for it. I also need some more references of people there.

[TASmith]

a couple more oil sketches. More on the way.

[~Faust~]

Hey I think your oil-scetches are very beautiful, I especially like the portraits in #72, good and expressive colors overall.

With your drawings, however I miss some of the love and patience you put into your brushstrokes. Maybe you fathom it not so much or see it as an exercise you can not avoid but with your developed observational and constructional skills I would expect a _lot_ more from you. maybe youare seeing drawing too much like painting, sure the principles are somewhat the same, you have values and midtones and all that. But you don't have color which is what you are relying on for the most part when you are painting. You could do a monochromatic painting and you'd see that relying on value alone does make a difference in recognition of the subject. The value-relationships are crucial to drawing, especially when rendering. Mindcandymanonce gave the tip to consciously limit yourvalues just to 2 lighttones, 3 Midtones and 2 shadowtones, if youcan, do even less, you can achieve beauty just wth 2 values and things willstill be recognizable.

Apart from that, your pencil-strokes are flattening the form. this becomes especially aparent in your portraits where this messes up the cheek and the forehead in a lot of cases. Try to defne around the form, not through it. You are not just applying tone here, with each stroke you are adding information for the viewer and you should be careful not to contradict yourself.
I'd suggest copying some masterdrawings while seeing how value-relationships are to be approached. I think you should be as careful with your darkest darks as well as your lightest highlights, especially in pencil where you often just can use the dark tones to make the image "pop"

I hope not to sound to much like a wise-ass here. Anyway, I was just curious about your work and wanted to stop by your scetchbook.

Cheers :)

[TASmith]

Cool! thanks for the advice. I'm curious to know, which drawings you think are most or least successful. It'd give me a clearer understanding of the crit.

[~Faust~]

Alrright, some examples :)

http://www.conceptart.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=397164&stc=1&d=1214251998
The hatching on the drawpery is making the image very flat, those long lines really do not cover the form. I agree on simplifying your lines as much as possible, like using big brushstrokes for economy, but you shouldn't cut out too much.

http://www.conceptart.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=397172&stc=1&d=1214252443
Actually, all of those are quite succesfull, I think it's because you're not dealing with too much crosshatching here and when drawing contours, your lines automatically follow the form.

http://www.conceptart.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=397593&stc=1&d=1214308330
In this, the problem get most aparent, though. the structure of the head is wonked in the first place (Well, here you see what you should do anatomy for, you have to be able to conduct it in observation, too. Learn the cranium)
But the hatching is making it worse, look at the forehead, this vertical direction and the straightness of the lines imply more a flat concrete wall then a curved organic surface.

http://www.conceptart.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=399479&stc=1&d=1214481795
I really hate to spoil it, but although this guy is sound in structure, your rendering is making things bad again. The folds and wrinkles (mainly on his forehead, the mouth is fine) look like they are painted on top of the skin and not like 3D-gaps in the surface. To know such specific things like wrinkles you should train to draw wrinkles, really.

As a great reference you could look at Kemp Remillard's (Strak-tron) drawings, his hatching is amazingly clear and a great ressource tolearn from, like in this example: http://www.kempart.com/works/Daniport2.jpg
He may not be an old european master, but on the plus side, he's still alive and you can ask him if you have a specific question. Here's his scetchbook: http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?t=35191

[TASmith]

Thank you very much Faust, Kemp's sketches are fantastic. I see what you mean. It's a bit disappointing that my latest portraits have all these problems, but ah well. I've still got a ways to go. I'm gonna do some painting now and hopefully have an update soon.

[TASmith]

alright it's a bit out of order. Here's a sketch from Friday during our last school meeting, and another oil sketch from town.

[Jason Rainville]

Hey TASmith :D

Cool stuff in here, but I have to say that my favorite stuff is actually back at the beginning, the anatomy studies. I don't quite know what happened from then to now, but it seems your line quality has gone down a bit, instead of being relatively smooth and steady now it's much more scratchy and less accurate. If I were to work on something, I think it would be concentrating on line quality and accuracy.

Though maybe you're trying something that's going over my head. Just thought I'd throw it out there.

Anyways keep up the cool work :)

[Black Spot]

Can I have 76 (the palette knife landscape) to hang on my wall? And 67, how do you have the patience to do all that netting? I’m enjoying this SB.

[TASmith]

Hey Jason, alot of people have been saying the same thing. I've been at a loss for line quality for some time now. I need to go back and do some more nudes, as well as study more of those slovak dancers for some paintings. I think it mostly has to do with the media. With pencil, I try to lightly layer values kinda smudging/fudging up the line quality, whereas with pen I'm somehow think in terms of clearer hatching. I quit the pen because it was hurting my wrist, but I may need to go back to it. Right now, though, I'm trying to get used to painting again. It's been sooo long, and I'm about to enter a serious artist's exhibition so I need to loosen up, gain some confidence with paint, and have some real, solid, finished, polished works to show - I'll be making a first impression with professional artists from the area and I want this to be a stepping stone towards getting jobs/commissions, etc.

Black Spot - thank you very much! The netting took time - couple weeks. I'd come in between classes, and just scribble out tons of squares. Sad thing is it didn't really turn out how I wanted. I fudged up the highlights and such. I should've taken a picture and drawn from that - but ah well, It was still fun. That paintings is still in its first process stage, but if you still like it when it's done I'd be verrrrrrry delighted to sell it to you! :) I've done another five in the same style tonight. I'll post photos tomorrow. I want to do at least another five, but I'm running out of space to put them.

I still don't have an actual studio space. :( All my painting is being done in my in-law's spare pantry/room.

If I don't paint everyday, my table gets overrun with preserved fruit and cakes.

[TASmith]

So I touched up the river in that one palette knife sketch, and I started another five. Let's hope I can keep going and pick up the pace.

[TASmith]

some more dancers and other sketches. Man I can't believe it's already July. Time's running out.

[TASmith]

some more...

[TASmith]

today's painting updates. I started a larger palette knife forest, and so far it's lackluster. It's blank at the bottom - I have no easel so I have to hold each painting in my lap while I go. I think tomorrow's assignment is to make an easel somehow. I'll have to see what wood, etc, I can buy or find.

Lately I've been making really crappy greens - any suggestions for bright, high lighted leaf colors would be great. Suggest a paint name and I'll look for it.

I'm also going to get a larger sketch pad to start some dancer composition pieces.

[TASmith]

Okay, so I've been critqued lately about my portraits, and that I don't A) know the structure, and B) I'm not showing the structural lines.

I was at a loss as to what lines I should look for until I found Naomi Baker's sketchbook. Her portraits are stellar, and chock full of lines that bely structure. So I drew a few studies from her work, and then went on to try and draw my son in the same style. Then there are a couple thumbnail ideas for a portrait of him, dancing in Slovak dress.

Here's a link to the page on Naomi's sketchbook that I drew from: http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?t=85180&page=21

[TASmith]

it's been awhile but here are some painting updates, plus some other sketches...

[TASmith]

I made a pastel sketch of that last painting to help me with details, etc.

[TASmith]

Here's an update on the oil version of the above sketch...

[ditchman]

i like the brush marks/textures on that last one.

[TASmith]

Thanks! This other one is going much muich slower, and I'm not happy with it at all. Suggestions always welcome...

[a_a]

beautiful colors.. I wish I could do those... ;)

[TASmith]

Today's work. This one's from life. It's the church in town (Spisska Nova Ves).

[TASmith]

Ok, so some painting updates and a new painting! I'm starting my work of my son, Andrew as a Slovak dancer. I'm embarrassed to show the drawings, as they're horrendous - they're from memory. But I said I'd show everything I do... I finally got my wife to hold him for some good reference photos, for the final work. I'm hoping to get this one presentable in time for the show. The portrait's done with Appelles pallette.

[TASmith]

updates...

[TASmith]

I did a ton of work today but I couldn't take good photos because it's rainy out. Here are some sketches from about a week ago - the last is from Yesterday. from life.

[TASmith]

another update...

[TASmith]

last painting updates for awhile. On Tuesday I'm taking the family to America to stay with my parents for a few weeks. I'll have internet there so I'll try to post some sketches there.

[Wasker]

That's some really expressionistic paintings you got there! I like your sense of colour but my eyes keep bobbing around all over the place, you should try to organize your values and patterns more.

[TASmith]

Thanks for the advice. I kinda like bobbing my eyes around, but it's something to think about.

I haven't done much since this symposium ended. I've been on baby duty with my family on Cape Cod. Here are a couple quick sketches. The one of the church and trees is horrible - I chose some really cheap brand of oil pastels that's more wax than oil. Every time I tried to layer a color it all just peeled off. Anywho, I got some craypas which are a tad better. The crappy figure sketches are from imagination. The better ones are from life.

[Nele Ooms]

Nice anatomy sketches!! Truely awesome!
I like your digital works too but maybe you can create a stronger image by using less bright colours. But I love it :) , keep it up.

[TASmith]

thanks! I really need to get back to those figure studies. I intend to this year, as I'll be teaching art again. I want to go over the figure in detail. Anywho, I've been sketching a tad while visiting relatives here, back in Slovakia. Here they are - all from life, I know some are terrible. I blame the beer and that they keep moving! Ah well. There's also a pastel of the backyard (I haven't color managed it yet, so it's a rough equivalent).

[TASmith]

This morning's work. I promised a coworker a flower painting for her mom. I picked some flowers from my in-law's garden, and in returned said I'd paint her one too. So I painted both of these simultaneously. I like the idea of doing the same painting twice, and I should do it more often.

1. you have one "practice" painting, and then the second one which should show all the good marks, and none of the bad, in theory.

2. it saves paint.

3. you have more work to sell :)

These aren't done, it's just a first stage. Try and guess which one is the first!

[TASmith]

sketches of family

[TASmith]

more of the same

[TASmith]

and now some from yesterday I tried with a charcoal pencil... plus some things from school (I'm back at work, even though there are no students or things for me to do)...

[TASmith]

bunch of studies for my education, and a few from life.

here's the ref for the screaming girl: http://shace.deviantart.com/art/You-make-me-wanna-scream-58026591

Here's the ref for the bearded man wearing a hat: http://nullermanden.deviantart.com/

The marvel style head is a study of a work by vritra, here on CA

The profile portrait with all the crosshatching is a study of a work by cicinimo, from his sketchbook on CA.

The geometric head is a study of someone else on Ca, but I forget who. If anyone could tell me, that would be great.

The are a couple sketches of a water bottle - one with left hand, and one with my right (I'm left handed, but my wrist's been killing me lately).

[TASmith]

I forgot this one. After studying cicinimo's rendering, I figured better try it from life, so I drew a coworker sitting at his computer.

I just noticed I got stars! Thanks all, whoever gave 'em! Who knows, with time this thread may develop a bit more and have some really great works??

[TASmith]

"Most people you talk to will say they don't believe in ghosts. When you find someone who does, he'll most likely tell you about some message from their ma or pa, from beyond the grave - something from their family history. Folks like to believe that - that a ghost is just a person that goes through walls - that a spirit stays the same after it's stuck six feet underground. They don't consider what all else we stick down there. The ground is where we put all the things you'd rather forget. Anything that's old or broken, any crimes hidden. Poisons. Reality is, the soul of a man can spoil and rot just like anything else, and that's usually what happens - pretty quick too. In fact, and you've probably already guessed this, most spirits start to spoil long before they die. It doesn't have to be a bad person. It could be the sweetest old lady you ever met, if she don't know where to go once she passes. Once you see a cemetery as just another kind of landfill, my whole line of business begins to make alot more sense. I'm Vance McGraw, and I got a story to tell. It's most likely not for you or anyone you know. But if you're like me... maybe it'll help."

- just kinda came to me while taking a leak. It'll probably come to nothing, but ah well, I figured better jot it down before it's lost. I keep starting ideas for stories I can never flesh out.

[TASmith]

"The resting of a spirit, I call it that, is a test of will. You probably won't see it and you can't fight with your fists, so you gotta use your mind. You may feel some sign it's coming, almost like a touch. A spirit feels its way around till it can sense someone. If you're not like me, it'll probably not sense you and pass you right by. Spirits are still connected to this world, but only just barely. That's how you get that touch, as a chill or a gust of wind, or maybe a fast moving shadow. I remember one time the sky turned bright red just before sundown, and this tree started blowing leaves like crazy and that triggered it, the screaming I mean. At least that's they way with me. I met a man who didn't hear screaming. I told the guy, hey you're lucky, at least your ears don't hurt after and you can think clearly while its goin on. He said he'd rather hear 'em than see 'em. I said the opposite and he wouldn't believe me.

The screaming's loud, and it's right in your ear, and it'll make your hair stand on end. Usually it's pretty foul too, cursing and screaming, and only part of it'll still be in English, or any living tongue. What you got to remember is it don't mean nothing. He's just confused mostly, and poisoned, if he's been interred too long. It'll give you a jolt, but you can't lose your nerve, because he'll keep on screamin in your ear anyway, and there ain't no leavin 'em once they found you. No, the only answer is to scream on back - in your mind, you hear. You don't want anyone thinkin you're crazy! You got to just think of them and who they are and what their name is, and if you try and yell it long enough it'll come to you, and then get them to calm down long enough to tell 'em to go on over. Be with God. Get them thinkin that and they won't pay any attention to the trap. I'll get to that part later. Oh, one more thing, spirits ain't always sittin confused in their coffin homes callin for help. Some of them are bad, real bad."

[TASmith]

Partially based on this morning's trip:

"So we went to a zoo one morning, around 11, on a sunny day around the end of August. We were only planning to stay a bit before lunch, but it was something for our son to do, since he was cranky at home. He's only a year and a half, and they have a great playground there. We got there all right, and found a spot to park, although it was crowded. The first half of the stay was perfectly normal.

I stopped for a minute to make a video of a bear that was sniffing as far as it could press its snout out from the bars. My wife is well known for her impatience, and I figured, if they walked off another fifty feet to see something else, that's fine. I can look up and find them. I've done it many times already. The bear was sniffing at the scraggly bit of grass which clung to a clump of dirt just outside the bars. His own concrete box had none, only an old tire, the remains of a tree, and a puddle in one corner. He reached out a claw and deftly scratched up some grass which it labored up over the concrete into the bar where he could taste it again, possibly remembering sweeter times elsewhere. He did this for a bit before retracting his nose and continued his pacing along the short perimeter, all while another bear sat and stared, either sympathetic or apathetic. It's hard to tell with animals.

He'd just gone to the one corner I couldn't properly see and I pressed the stop on my camera, looking around for the wife and child. They weren't around. I wasn't wearing my glasses so I took another look, peering for familiar colors or forms, straining my ears. They must be over by the monkeys, I thought, so I went up to that series of cages and turned the corner. Nope. Well, maybe they've gone down a bit to see the donkeys... no.

At this point, I realized they'd gone farther away then what's normal, and I didn't want to run away just yet. I've learned long ago when you're separated, you go back to the place you last met and wait. I went back to the bears but instead observed the pathways back and forth. I waited around ten minutes. They must have gone on farther and expect me to catch up. I went down the donkey path to the end where they have all the kangaroos and camels. Nothing. Going to the playground. Not there. Not back by the bears...

At this point I studied the map I had and formed a strategy to look through every section of this small, oblong zoo and leave no place for them to hide. I went to one end and quickly walked through to the other, backtracking often to cover every exhibiti entry and exit. It took another twenty minutes or so. Somehow, amazingly I didn't see them! I went back and did it again.

I wanted to go out and check the car - I was the only one with keys afterall, but once you exit, you have to pay again to reenter. I knew there was only one thing to do. Go to the zoo headquarters and ask them to call for my wife on the loudspeakers. Somehow when you explain these situations to the goofy people who work in headquarters, you always have to do it twice. At first, it's like they don't understand English, then they don't know what you want, then they don't trust you. When I got the leery eyed elderly woman to put out the message, I waited on the bench outside. I waited a good fifteen minutes, while the message was repeated. After a half an hour, I went around again, and then went back to the car, sitting there expectantly in the sun, the child seat still there unoccupied.

It was such a beautiful day, and cool, and breezy. You don't expect this kind of thing to happen on a day like this. It's surreal. A zoo's such an innocent place. There's ice cream and toys, and kids playing everywhere, and of course all the animals. In the end I waited by the car all day. I figured, it's their only way home, they have to come back some time. I mean there'd been no sign this would happen, we hadn't been fighting or anything.

Towards dusk, the zoo closed, and I talked with the zoo staff if they'd seen anything. Someone called a policeman who took a report, and my home phone. I went home feeling stranger and stranger, and sat all night by the phone. That was a month ago. I didn't mourn then because I didn't know to. It still seems so unreal. I don't think I'll really mourn till the snow starts."

Thank god I really found them, but what the hell was my wife thinking???

[TASmith]

Okay, I've got a couple more studies from nullermanden, an awesome photographer: http://nullermanden.deviantart.com/

You may notice the second has a really bad study of a Wes Burt head, plus a failed attempt to treat the older man in the same way, above left.

After that, it's all family from life, plus some slovak dancers from life. We went to a folk festival yesterday in Harihoviez (however you spell it). I've been basing my eyes off of nullermanden's photos. You'll notice a difference between sitters who sit still (at the end) and those that don't. Also, the reaaallly awesome looking guy in my AV is a self portrait. From memory!!!

[TASmith]

This one I wanted to separate from the others. It's about the first head I've drawn from imagination in a long time. The features are off a bit, but for now I like it.

[pencilgeek]

lol my finger hurts from looking at your sketch book, man you draw a lot lol...great pencil line work.

[MM Howard]

So many sketches....

I've got to say, my favorites in your sketchbook is definitely your landscape paintings. The style is beautiful and they are full of life. The would look great in anyone's living room.

Your pencil are great too. You're improving at your anatomy. Personally, I think you should start using charcoal a lot more to help you with your midtones. Great sketchbook and keep posting.

[TASmith]

Here are a couple birthday presents for my sister-in-law, plus one quick sketch of a cousin's boyfriend at a pub.

[TASmith]

Ok, I got a bunch more crappy drawings to post, but I couldn't find the will to photoshop them up yet, so here are some much nicer shots from my vacation on Cape Cod this past August. I just went through 'em. I think I'm getting better at photography - more of my shots are keepers, at least to me. I know the last one has an over exposed sky. Ah well, I like the brilliance of the light in it. Oh, there's also one really blurry shot I thought looked kinda like a painting, so I put it in. Meh, I know crappy art, ah well...

[TASmith]

Here are those crappy sketches. Starting out with some heads from life, people moving around a picnic table, followed by charcoal sketches at a cafe. Then a study of a sketch by EM Gist, followed by some other faces where I'm trying to use the same forms/process - all with images by nullermanden (see link previously posted in this SB). Then there are a couple better portraits of my wife and son when they were sitting watching TV. The last is a sketch from a photo with me using my right hand. I'm not sure about the photographer, I'll look it up - someone from Deviantart.

[Monkeydominator]

Wow, I love these! They're very lively, and you have such an expressive line!
I hope I too can make drawings and sketches from life like this. :)

Give us more!

[TASmith]

Okay, so last weekend we went to a friend's house, and they gave me a photo of their daughter to draw from. So it's just a copy but I think it turned out well. But the only photo I could take of it was a crappy one. So here's the photo unedited, and then what I tried to do to it in photoshop. Then here are some other sketches of family, from life, oh and one wine glass.

[TASmith]

Okay, so these are maybe a little better than usual. All from photos - family photos except the pretty woman. She's from a photo by photoport over on DA. That guy finds some of the most absolute beautiful women I've ever seen. Anywho, I think I'm starting to get the hang of my charcoal pencils. We'll see. I need to do another ten of these. Of course with Andrew awake now, there's no chance of drawing...

[TASmith]

Ok, here are some more sketches from photos. It's frustrating, each face is out of proportion and somehow I can't quite see it all right. Maybe it's from having the computer and sketchpad on my lap too close to me, and also just that I can't erase with these pencils (the smudging looks like crap so I'm trying to avoid it). The pastels are from my photos on page 4 of this SB. they're all a bit half hearted. The paper I'm using doesn't really accept them that well.

I feel even worse because I'm complaining about the tools/etc when I know the fault's mine. :P

[TASmith]

After failing with the charcoal, I figured why not try oil pastel - it's so much easier to fix a mistake, especially proportions.

[Psypomp]

Hey! First time looking at your SB...
I really admire the work you've done here-- the portraits at the top of this page, especially.
Your pastel portrait is beautiful. You've really captured the essence of the subject, the warm skin tone seems to be elevated by her beauty. I am impressed because oil pastels always take such a long time for me. Good work!

[TASmith]

Thanks. I forget who it was on this forum who said, if anything was captured, it was done by the photographer. I like this one, but not the background. I kinda screwed that up. These days I'm not afraid to screw something up as I experiment, which I figure should help me in the long run.

My main advice with oil pastel is, work really fast, layer tons of colors, put a little of each color everywhere, but don't spend too much time on one color, especially, learn how to lay on a color lightly, and build up a sense of form/mass to it.

Oh, I figure this latest one looks too saturated for some. I did go heavy into orange and red, but in real life I think it works okay. Depending on your monitor settings, it may be too much.

[ditchman]

The pastel piece is very nice, but I think her eyes look a bit flat/2D. Maybe some highlights would help?

[TASmith]

I agree about the eyes. I went back into it, but it looks pretty much the same, so I figure, why post it. It's been a bit since I posted. My mother-in-law threw out the rechargable batteries for my camera so I just bought some more...

just some studies. Some are family from life (some of the best) The rest are photos I found off Met-Art, Hegre-Art, etc. and there's one reaaallly bad concept sketch of a 4-eyed woman, from imagination. Well it's a first try.

Oh, and the oil pastel is unfinished.

[kamal_anjelo]

Oh, the low liight portrait with multiple eyes is so creepy...well drawn...apart from that few portraits have proportional issues you will have watchout for.especially the eye sockets, and the distance between eys, and checkout the placement of ears also.its a bit tricky in the othr angles.keep working...

[TASmith]

thanks, although I always thought that was the easy part, at least for me. I can see the magic third eye, and the lines from nose to ear. It's the sweeping surfaces of cheeks and foreheads that I can't seem to quite get in line. For example, take these next crappy sketches... They're all from life, except the little pond/forest from imagination...

[TASmith]

Some life studies/cartoons and some studies from photos. The really good looking guy with the scruffy hair is me - from memory! How about that? The cartoon of my son on our dog is also from memory, except I used one pic of the dog's head for reference. The caricature of the young lady came after she said the realistic sketch looked too fat.

the tiger studies are from pics by http://skybreeze.deviantart.com

the nudes are from a bunch of people and I don't know all the names. I know one of them is by http://mopas.deviantart.com

check page 1 for more reference sources.

Now... to grade essays...

[Clochette]

Hi Tasmith!
Nice pencils you have here! I prefer when you use darker pencil, the values and lines are better.
Be careful to the placement of the face features, sometimes is really wrong. Keep going!

[TASmith]

Yeah, my sense of proportion seems to only kick in once I see a problem with a sketch. Then I'm pretty good at correcting. Here's another study. I've decided to follow art zealot's advice of sketching on xerox to save money. I mean, these are only for practice anyway.

[TASmith]

a couple more sketches. The bottles are from life. I also found some extra sketches from last summer of some slovak dancers, so I figured I'd add them here, to make it complete. That makes 100 dancer sketches in all.

[michaeljared]

thanks for checking out the thread, i appreciate it. Nice pencil work, I enjoy the softness you portray in your drawings.

http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?p=1652567#post1652567

[TASmith]

Ok, I've done some editing and such. Here are a bunch of photos I took recently of Slovak Paradise, the national park here. These will be inspiration for my next paintings, when I get a chance to paint again. Any suggestions welcome.

[TASmith]

9954...

Okay so I wanted to post these all at once but CA and my connection were having issues... I just spent the last hour or so typing up a lesson for my students tomorrow (Before that I was with my son, since school let out). Just to give you all a taste of the mindnumbing job I have, here's the exercise I just wrote. I try to make them funny to help students pay attention - the books we use don't have nearly enough of these basic exercises... ... this is what's keeping me from drawing... now to correct essays

Pre Int Chap 9 Exercise – Clauses, Hot Verbs, If or When
Choose the correct verb tense

1. If they (catch/will catch) the thief, he (does/will do) time.

2. If I (do/will do) my hair today, (will you/you will) take Johnnie to soccer practice?

3. If we (go/will go) all out on this party, we (won’t/don’t) have any money left.

4. If I (get/will get) the job, I (be/will be) on the air for a radio station.

5. If Peter (asks/will ask) to copy my test, I (will/won’t) go along with it.

6. If my students (fail/will fail), my hair (will goes/will go) grey.

7. If my students (don’t/won’t) stop talking, I (go/will go) mad.

8. If you (don’t/won’t) drink the milk, it (goes/will go) bad.

9. If the treasury (don’t/doesn’t) give $700 billion, the bank (goes/will go) bankrupt.

10. If my students (do/don’t) stop talking, I (went/will go) ballistic.

11. If I (can/will be able to) find my wallet, I (go/will go) get lunch.

12. If I (join/will join) the school trip, I (get/will get) the chance to meet the President.

13. When I (have/will have) my English class, I (get/will get) the feeling Mr. Smith is sad, because no one is listening.

14. When I (do/will do) these exercises, I (get/will get) the idea of what’s right and wrong. But then I forget.

15. Every time Michal (tells/will tell) a joke, he (whispers/will whisper) and I can’t hear, so I don’t get it.

16. Everytime we (do/will do) these exercises, I (zone out/will zone out) and get bored.

17. If you (make fun/will make fun) of Peter, he (gets/will get) very angry.

18. If you (send/will send) me your email, I (get/will get) in touch with you later.

19. If we (behave/do behave) like adults, we (get/will get) along with each other.

20. If I (try/tries) to cheat, I (don’t/won’t) get away with it.

21. When I (go/will go) to Bar Zio, I always (get/will get) down on the dance floor.

22. When I (go/will go) to Bar Zio tonight, I (get/will get) down on the dance floor.

23. If I (can’t/won’t) get over this cold, I (won’t/will) go skiing in Levoča this weekend.

24. If I (go/will go) to Slovak Paradise this weekend, I (take/will take) some photos.

25. If Russia (tries/will try) to invade Slovakia, we (take/will take) no prisoners.

[TASmith]

Okay, so this is just one of a whole new set of photos, but it's good enough I feel like posting. And I know this is supposed to be a sketchbook, but honestly, here's my reference, and I don't feel like making some new thread in the photo mob. When it's here, you can tell me which would make for the best painting.

[TASmith]

a couple sketches...

[Leo Ki]

Wow, the load of anatomy studies on page 1 is near orgasmic!
What I enjoy most in your sketchbook though is your pastel and
oil works. The first Slovak Paradise struck my optical nerve!
(EDIT: actually I was thinking of Slovak Paradise 4,
but the 1 was a great optical strike too!)
And now you'll hate me for saying that the first stage of it
impressed me most. It's less figurative but more vibrant.

There's a lot to say about the amount of work in your thread,
so I'll watch your updates and make more thorough comments
when my brains have made their subconscious grinding.

[TASmith]

Thanks for all the compliments. Yeah, I know on that first painting, it was getting worse and worse. When I made it, I knew it was my first ever, so I'd try and learn as much as I could, and consider it a throw-away piece. It was the only one I scratched into the first round. I figure, if I just keep going long enough, it can look done. So far as I'm concerned, none of the paintings I started last summer are really finished. The hardest part for me were the rivers. I couldn't get the glazing to look right with Liquin. Meh. Maybe I need to order some Galkyd afterall.

No new work now, I have to write 5 tests this weekend AND correct essays and quizzes. Someone shoot me.

Last night I finally had that art opening! Here are a couple pictures of me with my work.

[Maridius]

Your painting has really improved since your sketchbook's page one! I recognized your finished gallery painting from the roughed in painting (page 3 I think?)--the one with the birches. Keep working on the portraits and dance drawings. I think the dances are among my favorites and I'd love to see them animated.

[TASmith]

Animated, you know that would make a really fun project. Maybe at some point. I don't have the set up for it anymore, though...

Can you get FramThief for windows?

[Maridius]

I've never heard of FramThief but I use an older copy of Paint Shop Pro for any gifs I create. PSP 8 had Animation Shop installed and the later ones--after Corel took over the software--omitted it. You can probably pick up 8 real cheap! When I upgraded to X, I kept 8 around just for Animation Shop. Just an idea in case you don't want to go with Flash.

[TASmith]

More sketches, students taking tests, etc. There's one of my son with four arms. The joke was, it's not enough for him to just eat a pretzel stick - he has to hold one in each hand. If he had four arms, he'd have a pretzel in each one.

[Leo Ki]

Hehe, the four arm kid is really that! XD
Oddly, I didn't imagine a black frame to your paintings.
I'd have expected something more woody, rustic.
The first class room sketch caught my eye, it has a
kind of solidity in it, can't explain in words...

[TASmith]

I'm a dork. It looks better in real life. :D

[TASmith]

a few more scribbles. Portraits are from life. The crazy naked girl with the polearm is a character idea for a story I'm developing... and it's very slow going. I used a couple references for it.

Leo Ki - I also thought the black frames were a bit strange for those paintings, but ah well. It's in a museum, that's what counts. :)

Maridius - I enjoy the dancers alot. I'm going to start some paintings on them sometime... when I have time and energy, etc. I started one of Andrew as a dancer, that I still need to finish.

[Clochette]

Hi TASmith! Thanks for sharing the beautiful photos of your country! :)
Your sketches are nice, this one (http://www.conceptart.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=508728&stc=1&d=1225712559) shows a real improvement! Keep it up!

[TASmith]

quick sketches during a meeting. The first pear sketch could've been better, but they turned the lights on before I could fix all the values. I had just outlined the values, so I was able to guess them, kinda. I convinced one coworker to sit still for a decent portrait, but of course I gave it, so no pic... :(

[TASmith]

Here's a bit of inspiration I've gotten from my students lately. I hearby copyright this, so no stealing:

Martin was a poor student. Learning didn’t come easy, and he had no interest in it. He hated math and history especially, because of the way his teachers carried on about its importance and his own intellectual lacking. Martin hated all his teachers, and he hated most of his fellow students, too, when they were smarter and rolled their eyes at his poor answers and marks. At an early age, he had decided he would never try in school, would never like any subject, and would exit at the soonest possible opportunity.

This attitude held until mid October, 2nd period, on a grey Tuesday morning, as his class labored through a lesson on Nature Science. Martin, book in hand, gazed at nothing and was thinking even less, when he happened to notice out of the corner of his eye, the student next to him carefully and quickly writing on a little piece of paper. He turned to her and she eyed him icily, pulling her paper out of sight. He feigned disinterest and then watched with growing amusement as the girl pulled out the paper again and resumed writing what turned out to be the complete multiplication table for the number 8. Next period was math and they would have a test on that number. Martin looked to his right, and saw another girl doing the exact same thing. Eyeing the room carefully, he noted at least six students in all that were preparing to cheat for this next test.

Martin had an epiphany. He felt cheating was contemptible, but then again so were his subjects. He could care less about grades or learning, but what mattered to him was the constant, awful lecturing of his math teacher, Mr. Whermright. So, as long as that was the only problem, why not cheat and get the old bat to shut up and give him a rest? At recess Martin copied the multiplication table from another boy, and during math class he discovered something new about himself. Cheating was enormously exciting! It brought him to a level of awareness he’d never known before. Every intake of breath, every step of Mr. Whermright across the room, each sniff and movement of the classmates around him, it was all fascinating and incredibly clear as he pulled out his cheat sheet and tried his best to decipher it. The paper was wrinkly and smeared by his hands, and it was while trying to read one of these blurry equations, midway through the class, that the shadow of Whermright passed over him, his stern and wrinkled face gazing down in judgement. Martin failed that test, received a detention, and a phone call from his principal to his parents who were also angry, but did nothing beyond show their usual level of contempt and dissatisfaction.

Everyone from the principal down to the students in his class told him it doesn’t pay to cheat, and Martin would always reply, “I know!” But, he knew better. Cheating was a craft he would have to learn and master, if he ever wanted to get through school and outsmart his horrid, awful teachers. And learn he did! First he made a list of all the things he would have to cheat on to get through school – states and capitals, the periodic table of the elements, dates of historical events, the names of famous authors. Next he had to devise where to place this information. Written very small, these lists could fit on small bits of paper, and fortunately, Martin had very keen eyes for reading. But, where to hide these papers and avoid suspicion? He could keep them cupped in one hand, or between his fingers. He could write on the palm of his hand, or on his forearm, above the wrist. He could paste his papers on the inside collar of his jacket.

With time, he guided this craft according to the fundamental rule that information should be placed in such a way so as to avoid any unnatural movement – anything that would catch attention. A simple scratch of the nose, or twist of the neck was all he would allow. Next, he realized that the way he sat at his desk could greatly help or hinder his chances, and he studied all the possible ways he could cheat in every position. Next he learned to observe his teachers and their movements without appearing to do so, relying on peripheral vision. In order to succeed, Martin would have to keep his eyes on his paper and the teacher at all times to avoid getting caught, and this was even more difficult now that every teacher suspected him.

Martin decided it was best to wait awhile, till his one act had been forgotten. He would start slow, raising his grades in small increments, taking great care with those who suspected him most. Mr. Whermwood was the worst, as he was quick to relate Martin’s deeds to all his future math teachers, and it wasn’t until 11th grade that a new teacher was sufficiently convinced that Martin was indeed a star pupil, despite the old middle school professor’s ranting. At this point, every teacher considered Martin their star student, and no one, not a single living soul suspected the slight off-color markings in the weave of the window curtain by his desk at math, the trick table top with sliding panels in science class, the graffiti-ed desk whose curses and rock bands were actually anagrams, or the hand tailored clothing he wore containing enough secret compartments to house an entire encyclopedia. At this point, each cheat sheet was written in a different foreign tongue, appearing to the untrained eye as a friendly letter to send abroad. Also, Martin found as he evolved his craft that he needed to view these bits of data less and less, as the work involved in making them made them harder to forget.

The effect of this behavior was immediate and beautiful. Everyone loved Martin, from the teachers and administration, to the adoring girls, and his own two parents who awarded him with a beautiful new car, a huge stereo, and his own credit card. They even wept, holding him tight as they apologized ever doubting him, admitting at first they had thought he was a failure. Martin bottled his revulsion and reciprocated his thanks, assuring them of their good parenting, and headed off to college. He still had no interest in learning, but it was expected of him, it would give him time to plan his future, and (most important) would provide the perfect setting to continue training his craft. By the time Martin graduated three years later, choosing history due to its reliance on facts, he had amassed enough cheating material to write his own book, which would reach the bestseller list for its depth of insight, analysis, and conclusions.

Martin built a huge reputation for himself, married, had children, later divorced, and left with a great sum of money to live on a sandy beach somewhere in the Virgin Islands, as snug and comfortable as the turtles he would sometimes see sunning themselves nearby. Through it all he never told anyone his greatest secret – that’s what kept him upbeat, knowing something others didn’t. Not that cheating was the secret to his success, or even that people will give you whatever you want when they think you’re a great man. No, Martin’s greatest secret was that for all his pretensions, knowledge, and awards, he'd never learned a goddamned thing. It was beautiful. All he did was smile and nod, and people all treated him like a genius. Martin sat in his chair, sipped at his water, gazed at nothing in particular and thought nothing at all.

[TASmith]

a couple new sketches. Some from life. Then there's one study of a portrait by aztecfirefly, here on CA. Then a ton of sketches from photos I did this morning. I got up around 4:30 and drew till Andrew woke up.

[TASmith]

Yay! I can copy photos! All found off the net. You see what a difference a day or two can make for me when I actually have some time?

[TASmith]

A few more while Andrew's eating, and during his nap.

[TASmith]

I'm getting a bit tired, but so long as I'm improving, I ought to keep pushing myself. I hope these help me with my work from life.

[TASmith]

two more. One was before checking the latest advice on the crit forum. The other is a Loomis study from a link in the crit

[TASmith]

Here's one today between jobs. I drew in a line from eyebows to her ear. Does it make her seem less flat?

[Clochette]

I like this one (http://www.conceptart.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=521961&stc=1&d=1227036097)! :^^:
Keep on those portraits! :)

[TASmith]

here are a couple life sketches from a meeting last Wednesday. Then, one photo study from this morning before school.

[Black Spot]

When you use less hatching on the faces, it works tons better. Think Matisse; sometimes less is more.

[TASmith]

I see what you're saying, and the same is true for most comic artists also. But, right now I'm not going for style, and it's not so important to me how the finished sketch looks as what I've learned from it - currently in terms of light and shadow playing over facial forms. I'm using sharpies now because they're fast and cleaner than charcoal. Once I get a proper studio I may switch to charcoal, and once I start a real project I'll worry more about style and final pieces. Right now I'm hand training.

I know the hatching isn't very clean right now either. I'm trying to focus on Kev's crit that each line should create a different texture - skin like skin, hair like hair, etc. I think I'm slowly getting better.

In this next bunch, the girl with glasses is from life.

[TASmith]

yay, I drew.

[TASmith]

a couple costume sketches, based on some other guy's work. :P Not sure the name, probably someone on this site, but I've changed around the costume in each one. Faces/poses from imagination. I'm finally trying to be creative.

[TASmith]

another photo study and a study from a comic page by Alex Nino, one of my favorites. As long as I'm using hatching, I may as well see how the professionals do it.

[Φ]

hey there! love #153, the story! It´s leaving me thinking…great post!
also great studys! they are getting better and better!!
keep it up!

[Clochette]

Take care to the proportions in your ortho view of characters.
Keep it up!

[Monkeydominator]

Your improvement is awesome! Really inspiring to see your hard works, keep it up! :D

[TASmith]

bigfootrooper - thanks. I left that story with a riddle. Have you figured it out?

Clochette, my proportions are going to suck for a long time :( When I'm teaching art, I can justify buying a model skeleton, and then you're going to see some real improvement.

Monkeydominator - thanks, but I think Faust has a point in the work going downhill a bit rather than up. Ah well...

Here's a sketch while giving students a test. I had fun with the design of it.

[Gabriel-B]

Hey TASmith, Good collection of work you've got. If you want to improve on the figures I would strongly suggest Pose Maniacs (http://www.posemaniacs.com/) as regular practice, I personally find it very helpful. Good luck!

[TASmith]

Thanks for the link, Gabriel. I should draw more figures - it's something I'm planning on studying in depth once I get my own studio... (should be about a year from now). Here are some more sketches. The two girls are my students at school. This was after a test. I've done a bunch more, but I always give 'em away. For these, I try the less-is-more, caligraphic hair approach. There are also a couple fun sketches of students taking more tests.

[Fraz]

I love the simplistic approach to all of these. It would be nice to see a more finished piece though!
Anyway, keep up the dedication, and have fun. Try some different mediums, that might make it more fun.

[TASmith]

Here's another classroom sketch, and some family sketches from a party on Saturday. Also, at the end, I've got some plans for the house my wife and I want to build starting this spring! If all goes well, we should be living in it by this time next year!

[TASmith]

another test, another sketch. :)

[TASmith]

the girls are from photos. The man's from life. The photo I just took.

[TASmith]

a couple sketches from life, and a couple lame attempts at a face from a photo.

[Clochette]

You should try silkscreen! :) Your way of drawing would fit very well I guess!

[TASmith]

I'd love to silkscreen some shirts someday. I figure, I'll get a kit when Andrew's older, for him, and when I have a studio. So today I drew my nose in a mirror. I should do a series of these.

[Monkeydominator]

The nose looks absolutely marvelous! How close to the mirror did you sit? Just asking, since I'm going to start studying noses and eyes myself. 83

[TASmith]

I stood in an uncomfortable position about 2-3 feet away, with my head tilted up.

[TASmith]

drawn from a mirror.

[TASmith]

Now that it's december I've got a ton of work to do, grading papers, etc. but I'm trying to sketch when I can. I've done alot of portraits and given them away. I managed a photo of one, but it's not the best. :P

Also, here's a photo I took during work - it's the view from our window. Pretty nice, huh?

[TASmith]

I'm dedicating the next couple weeks to making art instead of just looking. I bought a ton of canvases and I plan to paint something good! I've started on those forest scenes I posted earlier, and I'm also starting a self portrait, which right now looks exactly like shit... Ah well. It's a limited palette: Burnt Umbar, Ultramarine, and Titanium White. Let's hope it looks better by the end of this vacation!

[TASmith]

Morning sketches.

[TASmith]

two sketches from last night. From life.

[TASmith]

2 more from last night.

[TASmith]

More studies. :)

[Black Spot]

The 4th one is best. 2 and 3 have serious problems with their noses. Sometimes even fewer lines can be better.

When are we going to see some more landscapes?

[TASmith]

Well, I've started two, but my mother in law and I are competing for workspace at the moment, I for painting, and she for baking space. So once Christmas is over, hopefully, I can move her things out and get back into it. I've started three paintings, and hope to have four large works finished by the end of break. I'll take photos when they're dry - It's hard to take them outside for a decent photo when there's snow out. It might take awhile for decent images here on the net.

[TASmith]

Ok, a couple updates. Some family sketches, a couple studies from photos. I'm going back through my best images and redoing them to build a portfolio for jobs. I want to get a new job teaching art next fall, and I have next to no portfolio to show anyone. So I'm starting over. The female portraits are from kindgirls. I'll try and find the photographers' names later, if possible.

I've also decided to no long post everything I do. I'm only going to post what I'm proud of for 2009 to see if I can't get another star in this sketchbook. That's my resolution for the year. That and get a new job. And, if I'm really adventerous, to submit an artwork to Spectrum!

Oh yeah, the girl with no eye - that's on purpose. She's an inferi :P

[saa]

Hey man, good effort.

I think your use of such a soft pencil for the portraits is getting in the way a bit. You have fingerprints all over your sheets and you're not able to make delicate gradiations. Do some simple value studies. For correct value relationships keep in mind that the darkest spot in the lit areas should still be lighter than the lightest spots in the shadow areas.

I like the people sitting, it has a nice feeling to it. Just keep practicing, happy new year!

[TASmith]

I forgot this one.

[TASmith]

from life.

[TASmith]

another photo study - drawing too small, with the face out of proportion, yet again...

[SoufMeng]

TASmith, you need to save the darkest darks you can get with your pencil for the darkest parts of the photo.
In real life and in any photograph you might shoot, you have to see how values are arranged, their relationships and try to reproduce that with paints.
To a certain extent it doesnt really matter if your darks arent as dark as in your subject, what does matter is that they are at the same spot.
Could you please show me or link me to the photo you used for this last one?

[TASmith]

Sure, but take into account the photo (that I took of my drawing) isn't all that accurate. The hair's alot darker in real life. I think a lot of my work will seem nicer when I can afford a decent scanner. Another thing is the materials I'm using. It's impossible to erase/lighten the charcoal pencil I'm using without smearing horribly or tearing/warping the xerox paper I draw on. I know, I should use proper drawing materials, but they're hard to get out here in Slovakia, and I have no proper place to put them or even work. Pretty much every drawing I've done this past year is a throw-away practice exercise.

[SoufMeng]

Ok, first off since your working without colors maybe you should turn your image into black & white, so youll only have the values left.
I took it into ps and scribbled a few things on it, for the third one i just threw a filter on to simplify things.
In every image you see there is a scale of values and reproducing that hierarchy with your medium is critical to make forms read well.
So when you look at your subject try to find the bottom and the topmost values of that scale, why? To save the darkest darks of your pencil and the white of the paper for those extreme values.
Dont care about details at the beggining.

551332

I hope this is making sense for you.
If yes, what about trying to draw this photo again and uploading it?

Oh also you shouldnt complain to me or to anyone about your tools, thats your problem! :P

[TASmith]

You're right, I know. I do have some vine charcoal. Maybe if Andrew gets to sleep tonight I'll try and take it out. It's much easier to erase, because there's no wax binder, as with the pencils. Then I can forget details at the beginning.

1. Thank you very much for taking this time to help me. I have a great deal of respect for you and your work.
2. Your filtered image does look a ton better than my sketch. How'd you do that? I know nothing about filters in photoshop.
3. What about using B&W to express color - usually reds show up darker in B&W, so I wanted to show the warmth of her cheek... I'll just assume it wasn't working.

[SoufMeng]

You're welcome.

About filters, im not sure cause my P'shop is in french but i think you should go to fiter>artistic>cutout and then adjust options as you please.
But hey, look at how Loomis (http://farm1.static.flickr.com/202/491242518_ae65fae922_b.jpg) did great without no filter!

3. In fact using black and white to express color is what we do all the time with pencils, for instance if that woman was blonde youd have to use a brighter value for the hair.
I know you know this artist, Joao Paulo Alvares Ruas (http://img13.nnm.ru/imagez/gallery/8/7/7/6/1/877616f987554897e6dedc2e53d29985_full.jpg), he does what you said, with the nose slightly darker than the rest but not against the overall value hierarchy.
Your right, too many beginers overlook hue variation of human skin but in term of priority it stands behind value hierarchy.
Now just do it work with the same image over again, but work smart.

[TASmith]

You know, since that image I already did was "done" I figured, why not mess with it, with an erasor and see what happens. It actually worked pretty well. Sure it smears the charcoal, changing the texture, but I was able to make it work for most of the skin, and not only that. I learned that you're exactly right, about darks being too dark - and I learned why I've been doing it.

Basically, I start drawing light, and draw darker to correct mistakes. Meaning, if an area's wrong, but already dark, I just keep going darker and darker till the proportions are better. Hence, too dark areas. The erasor works well for those places, so I'm going to use it from now on. I'll post results when I can get a good shot of it (day light with no shadows, etc.)

S.M. - THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!

[SoufMeng]

Meaning, if an area's wrong, but already dark, I just keep going darker and darker till the proportions are better. Hence, too dark areas.

Wow thats bad too much correction is never promising!

Bookmark Nathan Fowkes blog (http://nathanfowkes.blogspot.com/) its a pure treat. But more importantly his demonstrations (http://bp1.blogger.com/_pbZw476tEsE/Rz0E0G9udoI/AAAAAAAAAgA/tLq4Ro0DW2w/s1600-h/mark-value_page.jpg) are outstanding.
Im posting this to say that you need accuracy and rigor at all stages of your workflow: during the first steps try to block in with very light lines of charcoal that will either be kept if they're spot on or swept away with a kneaded rubber.
You know like concept car designers (http://www.diseno-art.com/images/fiat-adventure-concept-car-sketch.jpg) do it, lightly, quickly but accurately.
Only then you can start to render with tone, up to the point where lines hardly show anymore.

Hmm sorry for turning this thread into a chat, i might post again when you upload something.

edit: Just out of curiosity, you have Pshop but do you own a tablet too?

[Evxyza92]

I like the portrait. Especially how you're breaking it down.

[TASmith]

Evxyz - remember, that's S.M. who made the diagram.

Okay, so I went over that one sketch with an erasor to lighten the dark areas, and I'm reposting that. I also had started another sketch of the same model, different photo, and I went heavy into the erasor for that, so hopefully it looks better - I also got better photos of each because it was sunny out, with a dry patch in an otherwise snowy yard. So no flash on these.

I also did a larger portrait last night wtih vine charcoal. I figured, since I'm putting so much effort into something, why not choose a family photo - someone I actually care about. So this is my son Andrew. Vine charcoal on drawing paper. 18" x 24"

Also, while the light was good, I brought out the canvas's I've started. These are just stage one, folks.

[Monkeydominator]

Wow, it's amazing how much you've improved. I love how confident your lines are now!
Can't wait to see the finished paintings, so keep it up!

[Black Spot]

That's why I like scribbling to hone into the darks. Big improvement on the faces and you posted some landscapes to keep me happy.

[Bill]

Don't know what kindgirls is, but are those some pornstars up there? Nice! Good thread man, keep it goin and good luck with your aspirations for '09! PS, yeah that view with the clouds and mountains is pretty nice.

[TASmith]

"are those some pornstars up there?"

.....:(

Some are and some aren't, but I only use photos of models posing, alone. For light and shadow playing on form, they're great, professional photos, and for a free website, you take what you can get. I found it off the references section on this site.

[Bill]

Well the good news is you're capturing some likeness. The Bad news is I look at too much Porn... :O Happy New Year!!

[TASmith]

a glass.

[TASmith]

a color study from photo by Päivi Valkonen- http://closer-to-heaven.deviantart.com/

If you notice the pen lines underneath - I'm sketching over old, failed figure studies, to save paper.

[Leo Ki]

I'm happy you're kicking colors again!!! Happy new year!
I'm glad SM could point out so clearly the problem with values, I was aware of it but unable to figure how to discover the cause.
There's already some improvement showing as you now erase when needed.
Keep it up!!!

[TASmith]

Thanks, Leo, and everyone. Here's another value study.

[Sorknes]

Happy New Year :)

Wow, the change in just the last charcoals is great! Keep working on it. And I really love the blues you used in the colour study.

[woodbert]

Nice progress with the value study. I'd like to see more value in the eyes, there can be so much detail to experiment with there. Also, I'd say her neck is a little too stretched.

If you want to PM me with your e-mail address I'll send you a sample of one of the units I do.

[TASmith]

Thanks everyone for the support. Woodbert, thanks for the lesson plans! I'll talk more once I get a chance to read them. So this last week, my family and I went to visit friends in another town. So I didn't get to do nearly the painting I wanted. Ah well. It was a good trip.

Just tonight, I went back to doing a few studies. I went back into an old charcoal sketch that didn't look good, using the erasor. I'll post it as soon as I can get decent lighting. With these sharpie studies, I figure I can get away with using my flash at night. But with the charcoal pics it ruins the values.

Anyway, here are the studies. I'd like to do more work, but school's starting again, and I have lots still to grade...

The first portraits from a photo by...Natasha Schon. The second, I'm not sure of.

The first nude I don't know either, but the second's by Frank Picollo

[Bill]

That last value study looks good. Maybe the hairs a bit unfinished but I don't know if you were worried about that as much. I'd say it's a little more elegant than some others I've seen. Hope all's well for you. Good luck getting that studio together.

[TASmith]

Here's that touch up I was talking about. Thanks Bill. I'm trying to improve. :)

[Bill]

You are improving man. This stuff is hard, and takes time. A short crit on the piece above, your darkest dark is the area running behind the neck from below the ear. That deep dark, and resulting contrast is like a magnet for the eye. I think you know the theory already, I'm just pointing it out here.

On the structural side, it can be really, really hard to keep a figure from being crosseyed, as I'd say that she is a bit here. Someone else will probably have a system with guidelines or something. For me it's always just been time. Her mouth and nose aren't perfect but for what it's worth I would say you're making progress. She has a little more sense of life than some others. Good highlight on her right cheek (our left). Just a thought but toneing the negative space behind her might get that to pop a little more. That's a style choice though.

[TASmith]

you're right on all points. Thanks alot man!

[Bill]

TA,

I'm getting some work done tonight and using a small device that might (or might not) be of use to you. Since back in classical times, I think, art students would put their portraits up to a mirror. It's amazing how much 'skew'can become apparent when you do this.
A shortcut to get a similiar effect is to draw on tracing paper. This allows you to get the mirror image by by flipping over the paper. Also, you can draw a mark on one side that, when working on the other side, won't erase. It's a good way to help yourself keep facial proportions in check. You probably already knew about this but if you haven't actually tried it maybe it'd be worth a try.

Just a thought.

[TASmith]

No, it's a great idea, I hadn't thought of. I noticed that mostly when I posted that self portrait, how skewed it was. I'll look for some tracing paper around here if I can. It should help. Thanks!

[TASmith]

It's been awhile. Andrew's been sick, and I've had a lot of work. Here's a little sketch I just did. photo by: http://sitamae.deviantart.com/art/Corbin-53810260

[Black Spot]

His body - I like. Not too sure about the arms as his muscles are in the wrong places, but he's sure pretty.

[greekCopter]

i like your portaits

[Mischeviouslittleelf]

Neat studies here man, not a lot to say on them, but keep working and improving^^

-E

[TASmith]

a little update. I worked on the arms some, hope it's better. Also realized I made one thigh to thin, and the other too light.

[~Faust~]

Hmmm the last studies seem to me as if you are afraid of sharp edges. You would do yourself a favor if you used a hard brush here first I think. The way it is now, the whole figure is very fuzzy and hard to read. Espescially his arms and his right knee. There's much going on edge-wise and value-wise, but since everything is bleeding into each other, I have no clue what you want to depict.

Other than that, I think your markers are coming along very well! This here for example is I think by far the tightest example of yours: http://www.conceptart.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=562792&stc=1&d=1231768464
For some reason you managed not to warp things here :) which still is a problem wih your portraits, especially your pencils.
Thankfully I never had major problems with proportions when drawing from ref, but there seem to be a lot of artists that don't have te eyes for the right measure, not only here, but at my academy as well. The biggest problem with those people is, that they are extremey serious abot their art, having dwelved into art-history and wanting to apply all kinds of nifty theory on composition and other things. Artists that have been doing their business for years but lack the proper foundation. They have lost the humility to work on that. I constantly try to get a classmate of mine to stop thinking about design, values, making lines like Schiele or prud'hon and start to just measure, making landmarks and stupididly train the sense of porportion first, but to no avail. She always tries to bash it with high-pitched theories and thinking ahead 4 to 5 steps without spending the neccessary amount of time in her measuring and proportion-studies.

I think that's your problem as well. You're experimenting with hatching, different mediums, color-theory, composition and whatnot. But the most important thing right now is to learn how to depict what you see and correct yourself constantly. If you see something's wrong, stop and make it right first or start over. Don't overwork a dead drawing, a lot of your pencil-renders lack proportions pretty bad, yet you spend a huge ammount of time in rendering them out instead of starting anew.

Anyways, I hope I didn't come over too offensive, but it's something that bothers me everytime I stop by here, you experiment a lot and you have an open and sofisticated mind, your art can be so interesting and delightful, yet you don't work on your fundamentals and that makes you stagnate.

Exercises to do that would be to make bargue-copies I think. If you don't like that, you can make literal copies of bridgman, copy the whole constructive anatomy of him and be as literal as possible.

Damn I sound like an ass-hat :( Only want to help, hope you know that :)

[Clochette]

Nice improvement on the figures Arthur! The last update is better. Agreed that there is too much blur though, a strong edge somewhere would help to focus! :)

[TASmith]

Thanks Faust and Clochette. I see what you mean, and I've tried to sharpen up some of those edges. Here's the latest, and probably last effort. I went into this with really soft brushes, and I want to try a new approach, only hard edges to start. We'll see if I can do it.

[~Faust~]

Edges != outlines. It's basically all the fuzzyness within the figure that makes it confusing. Also, the shadow on his leg look very strange now. I think this picture is pretty much unsafable :). Why don't you start another one and begin with a hard brush from the beginning? The PS-tuts from Bumskee still very much apply.

[TASmith]

one step ahead of you on the hard brush study, but it looks much worse. Min Yum has tutorials? Where?

oh yeah, photo by: http://apolaroid.deviantart.com/art/Man-White-Knight-36551405

[~Faust~]

Min Yum has tutorials? Where?

http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?t=47859

and

http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?t=107217

Great tuts and even better since there's all kinds of people posting their efforts in those threads :)

[TASmith]

Okay, so let me just ask. If the first step is blocking in shapes like this, then what's Min's second step? I know it's blending, but how does he do it, through lowering opacity or flow? Opacity?

[~Faust~]

Okay, so let me just ask. If the first step is blocking in shapes like this, then what's Min's second step? I know it's blending, but how does he do it, through lowering opacity or flow? Opacity?

It's really nothing else than this:

574117

When you can do this with a hard brush, and without pressure-sensitivity, you can proceed to experiment with setting opacity to Pressure-Sen, use soft-edges, custom-brushes, add a third color inbetween (Very important for skin-tones, for example) and on and on and on. It's basically the hard and soul in most digital painting styles. There's also the smudge-tool you can use, but it's tricky. I'd start with this first :)

[TASmith]

Thank you very much man. Here's a bit of softening with lowered opacity.

[TASmith]

i forget which artist drew those incredible bears, but I got inspired.

[TASmith]

alright, so again these are crappy photos, and rough equivalents to the originals. It's been snowing all week, so I took the pics indoors. Everything's off a bit - proportions, colors, values. The originals are better, if only slightly! :P

The charcoal figure photo's by: http://uniquenudes.deviantart.com/art/Seeking-guidance-65110753

The pastel figure photo's by: http://scottchurch.deviantart.com/art/longboard-girl-26805679

The winterlandscape photo's by: http://karil.deviantart.com

The ocean is from my own photo of Newcomb Hollow Beach on Cape Cod

[TASmith]

a couple sketches. The classroom I drew yesterday. The face is from imagination. I meant to show it with the previous batch.

[Tofa]

ah really like the last sketch.
this ones coming along great, are you still working with a mouse? http://conceptart.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=579614&stc=1&d=1233397249

[TASmith]

yeah, I haven't splurged on digital yet. I love digital paintings but it's more for commercial art, and that's not my thing. It is fun to try, and now when I have no proper set up for real painting, it's something to play with... It's also worth knowing as a teacher. But I'm really just sitting on my hands waiting till I build a house with studio. Thanks for the compliment!

[TASmith]

another sketch. Photo from: http://andre-j.deviantart.com/art/shadows-and-reflections-97071546

[TASmith]

getting back into things.

[Monkeydominator]

Great work, I especially like the last ones with colour! Keep on working hard! ;)

[TASmith]

I adjusted his cheeks, and started a forest scene. colors in the photos are only rough equivalents to the originals. crits appreciated.

[TASmith]

So I'm starting again with different facial expressions. That and I tried a couple times at a cartoon concept, inspired from Clochette's brotherhood painting, and I saw some guy on a bike with a hockeystick go by. You'd think it's so simple, but thinking up proportions on a bike and rider is tough! I need to practice so much more...

the scream references is from http://shace.deviantart.com

[TASmith]

a recent project, still not finished. colors here are a rough approximate to the original (crappy camera). From one of my own photos.

[TASmith]

sketch of Spaztastic.

[TASmith]

I worked on this some more. I feel it's finished, but crits are especially welcome.

[TASmith]

another quick color study. I really need to start studying costumes and poses again. From a photo by Nate Zeman.