begginer- graphite drawing of a girl

[toshiami]

i took figure drawing and didn't think that i learned anything then my sister told me about how tone= shading and this is what came of it. and i was wanting some points on how to make it better because it isn't a good as i want it to be
http://img522.imageshack.us/img522/9514/larafarie7lf.jpg

i also have this one it's from a photo taken by joyce tenneson
http://img89.imageshack.us/img89/5451/profile11ye.jpg


i just finished this one and i used this funny looking thing a majiger that my sis told me to use
http://img101.imageshack.us/img101/8051/kyten1mb.jpg


i'm not qhite finished with this one.....i don't know how to do the shirt or anytype or fabric.

http://img205.imageshack.us/img205/155/ryan4ge.jpg

ook this is the picture that i'm working from

http://img50.imageshack.us/img50/1071/767609579l5zs.jpg

this is what came ou of it...oh and i fixed the neck

http://img62.imageshack.us/img62/8336/ryan34om.jpg

[Threshold]

I'm kind of impressed, not as much by the picture as by you taking an abstract explanation of tone and shading and turned it into a finished product. I mean, at least that's how your post reads. The tone isn't quite even in some places, but I'm not going to rip on you for that; just suffice to say that the blending looks done with a fingertip instead of say, a tortillon or something (which would be preferable)

[toshiami]

i used my fingers with the whole entire thing and whats a tortillon.?

[Merge]

A tortillion is a tightly rolled piece of paper that is rolled to a point. It is handy to blend with when shading. I have heard very mixed reviews on using tortillions versus fingers. Personally I use whatever is on hand. Your faces are well done, you have a good start. On the first pic your the figure is nice the nose seems a little big, the second one could use more shading I think, and the third is nice except that it the shading is inconsistent (blotchy). But keep it up and you will improve greatly.

ciao,
merge

[toshiami]

thanks the third one was a black and white photo and they used a flash whiched made the shading really hard to see. and i did use a tortillion on the third i just had no idea of what was my sister just told me to use it and so i did. i need to add some more scin tone on the second. and the nose dose look a lil big on the first one

[disconnected]

hey.

good stuff btw.

mebbe its just me, but i wouldnt go back and edit the ones you've allready done - i'd start more and work on them instead. The more drawings you do, the more practice... :) anyway, itll be good in a month/6 months/ a year to look back on these and see the progress.

have fun :)

[toshiami]

oook that what i'll do.....plus i already sprayed then with hair spray heh i kinda remembered that lil fact when the eraser wouldn't work

[galspanic]

All of them could use a more deliberate use of value. The shading, as it is, is really more for the sake of description and not to create compositional elements. In other words, the compositions are an off shoot of the value. With this in mind, think about how you could bring more space into the subject matter. Broader range of greys and the elimination of contour lines would help a lot. Overall though, not too bad. Of course my comments are for future drawings and not necessarily for these. Call them done, and move on.

[Julius Lyon]

Try working from life and using a direct light sorce on the side of the face. If you're going to use graphite I'd say go with a 4B or 6B to get a full range of values (right now you're using three or four shades of grey, try and get everything from black to white). Focus on defining blocks of value and smudge a lot less, instead work with your mark to make it more expressive and dramatic. Also: the whites of the eyes are never straight white.

[toshiami]

i've been using a mechanical pencil but i'll start using a 4b i know my sis has one so i'll bum it off her heh i'm learning more here then the whole semester i spent in figure drawing! thank alot for the help....um i really have a hard time drawing fabric is there a trick to it?

[Myxomatosis]

Honestly, if you want fabric, your best bet might actually be looking at some painters. Sargent, for one, has an incredible grasp on it. There's really no "trick" per se, just do your best to draw what you see. Drawing from life tends to help with something like this; it becomes much easier to define raised and lowered planes when what you're looking at is three dimensional. Watch your eyes, too - generally speaking, they're either too large and cartoony or, like Julius said, the whites are showing. Cheers

-Atticus Wolfwood

[toshiami]

k....i think the eys are a lil big....i've been trying really hard to stay away fron the cartoony look or anything that looks like anime....but i've been having a hard time on jugdeing how big or small the eyes should be. and the shading needs to be darker......k time to do more work! thanks so much for all the help!