Character Portrait WIP

[littlejohn]

Here's a sketch and a value study for a character portrait I'm working on. I know I need some ref for the clasped hands, but any C&C would be much appreciated; especially tips on painting armor and backgrounds. Thanks in advance!

http://www.davidhendee.com/images/mara_sketch.jpg http://www.davidhendee.com/images/mara1.jpg

[JoshuaTheJames]

i think it looks really good right now...

in my opinion i would like to see a detailed face then have the detail trail down the middel and then fade off as it reaches the outter edges of her!

cool stuff,
-Joshua

[killing.people]

i am not sure what the second study was for: but i figured i would jump in and sound stupid nyway, i have the time.
i think the sketch looks better that the study, better arm guard i think, i like the curve .&. the dark hair on the dark grey/gray(?) backgorund .&. the hips on the next are higher and make the character look like a nanny .. i am just being critical, i dont know if it is constructive .. i figured an opinion spill/firt impression would help in the process. (?)

-killing

[littlejohn]

Maybe I am losing something from the sketches. Thanks a lot for the comments. Next step:

http://www.davidhendee.com/images/mara2.jpg

[Fipse]

I think in comparison to the sketches you´re losing atmosphere. I like the pencil work most seemed to me a likely sombre atmosphere - the last one ist for my personal taste to "coloured". I´d try to reduce the background to more tonal work. Am I making sense?

But it´s nice work anyway :)

[littlejohn]

Thanks, Fipse. Great comment about the hue/saturation contrast.

I'm going to take another stab at it in a few days. I did a big 18x24 in. sketch last night. Something I haven't ever done with a digital painting. Here's a quick coloring:


http://www.davidhendee.com/images/mara_sketch2.jpg

[Oblio]

Maybe the club looks too... “cocky”
She doesn't have the face of a beast - club fighter - She's more like an elegant, agile one... I think.
Keep it up – I wanna see more!

Oblio

[azjohnl]

i kinda like that 2nd one, i think a darker background works really well on her.

[Snowfly]

constructive thread.. here i come to ruin the moment.

I think she's a hottie.. 3rd pic.. very cool character, can't wait to see her fully developed. :) she's cool enough as she is!

[Fipse]

Hope I´m not a PITA on this but there seems to be a minor flaw (if I interpret the sketches correctly ;)) In this sketches it seems that her thorax and abdomen armour are made of one piece. if this is so she won´t be able to move much (or it´s maybe a felxible fantasy-metal-alloy :)

I´d change it around the waist to mail or some other form of articulation, maybe like a 16th century curassier or a 15th century riveted articulation or even simplier divide the armour. Sorry if I´m too anal on this but I´ve been armouring for some years and the medieval ages are quite a hobby to me.

Otherwise I hope too see more of her :)

[NoonThirty]

This seems like a very strong work in progress to me. We'd all love to see it finished, so stick with it!

I especially like the close-up portrait. I think the large disc behind her that mirrors the medallions on her armor is a good way to go. It looks great, and I think it'll help the piece overall not to have too many colors but to be well shaded/toned (nice tone study up top).

One suggestion: the places where the image is cut off at the edges is disorienting, because there are forms there that seem to share the edge lines (the shoulders at the sides and the breasts at the bottom). If you want a good composition, really keep an eye out for this. It's always bad news.

Consider cropping it so it's a more traditional bust (that is, head and neck and a little chest area, but no shoulders, no breasts). Or better yet, since that might cut into those great medallions, think about adding some canvas so that her shoulders don't share lines with the picture's edges. I'd add some at the bottom, too, cut it off a few inches below the breasts.

Hope this helps. Great work!


Noon:30

[littlejohn]

Thanks for the feedback. I really appreciate the encouragement.

Fipse: Wow; impressive. Do you know of any good arms and armor references (besides you ;))?

[Fipse]

Hi littlejohn,

a good source for specific times and military costumes all over the world are the books of the british Osprey-publishing http://www.ospreypublishing.com/ They´ve got books about nearly every military subject, even going in the "warrior" series into the details of one specific group (e.g. Roman Legionary, Viking Hersir, Norman Knight etc.) and normally work with good illustrators like Gerry Embleton or Angus McBride. But with about 15 Euro - about the same in Dollar - they aren´t really cheap if you want a general survey.

If you don´t mind bout german texts I would recommend "Historische Waffen und Rüstungen" (Historical arms and armour) of Fred and Liliane Funcken.
http://www.amazon.de/exec/obidos/ASIN/3572013089/qid=1033115488/sr=2-2/ref=sr_2_3_2/028-3544926-2882158
It´s really cheap (12,71 Euro) and great value for the price. I don´t know if there are problems getting german books in the U.S. - vice versa it isn´t at all if you´re ordering by amazon.

I don´t recommend it for a historic perfectionist but it´s got ca. 150 colour plates with arms and armour from medieval to Renaissance times in good illustations. For a Fantasy artist it´s a really good work (I bought it for this reason years ago ;-). You haven´t got to mind about the german texts (1 page per plate) - in fact they aren´t really worth to translate ;)

Hope this could help you - if you need detailed information there must be my E-Mail-address around.

Fipse

[texturez]

I liked the monochrome shot- well for concept purpose anyway- She is elegant- she deserves a nice blade that accomodates her very unique armour- Brad

[danbucknam]

coming along well, what medium are you using? how do you feel about digital medium?:confused:

[littlejohn]

Thanks for the replies. I should have some more work done soon; I had some other obligations.

Fipse: Thanks a lot for the reference. I'll have to get ahold of at least the Funcken book. I'm lucky to have a resource like you available here on the forum.

danbucknam: I was taking a break a bit from the digital stuff; trying to get some of the technique I've developed through life drawing into my fantasy pieces. But I love working digital. I think the best thing about it are communities like this one.

[littlejohn]

Here's the current state of things. I'd like to work another day on this; so if anyone has any suggestions, I'd appreciate it. I think I like it conceptually, but overall I'm not sure of the overall effect.

FYI: She's a paladin of a sun god. Thanks again for everyone's feedback.

http://www.davidhendee.com/images/mara9h.jpg

[daarken]

i like it a lot. i think maybe her arms are a little thin and small though. also, since she is looking down, her lips would be wrapping around her face more and not so much of a straight on view. very nice palette and technique!

[killing.people]

littlejohn:
her forearms look a little small, as daarken has stated. i really like the newest of the chicks. her hair color works for a sun palladin, and she is cuter. :) i find her morning star decromentative, which could make sense - being that she looks to be indoors praying - but sense she is suited in armor, it looks funny. i like the design of the morning but i dont think it would do much to armor, i think it needs some weight to make her look dangerous, her face will be a wonderful contrast to this, being that she looks sweet and gentle. it is a tough contrast to balance, i think.
you dont want people to roll their eyes at the concept. it is a peave of mine - when casting chooses a supermodle for the badass beauty that happens to know kungfu and can dismantle any handgun blindfolded, i have to roll my eyes when her arms alone would snap at the force of her punches thrown - implied by the bad guys flying throw windows and the packing sound of the muscular baddie. then again you dont want her as nasty as she should look from fighting demons and other dead evil baddies or whatever.

-killing.people

[foster]

Hey littlejohn,

Both darken and killing are correct in their observations, as correct as one can get in a subjective forum.

The mouth is something i have always found difficult. It is incredibly complex in the way it changes planes and directions, and doing so on a different arc than the rest of the face. Sometimes you need to throw out how you know to draw the mouth and trust to your perspective teachings. In this case visualize the smaller cylinder of the muzzle and wrap the lips around it. But in doing this in this perspective you start tell yourself, she is smiling, look the corners are turning up. This is where you need to step beyond the perception and give it time to work with the rest of the face and the correct perspectives there. In conjunction with these other cues we know that it is not a smile but the mouth in perspective. The problem for us as the artist is that we are too close and mistakenly are seeing the face and it's construction in bits in pieces, not as a whole.

Other things to watch for are the overlapping of the lip planes. The upper lip as seen from above will seem to thin as the plane angles in and will begin to disappear. The opposite will happen in the reverse (but a little differently as the mouth has a gentle step back formation to it) when looking up at the face.

All this is to say look closer, trust in your observations.

By the way the painting on this is wonderful. I like the color palette and brushwork. Be careful that you do not have too similar of mark though out the painting, as that will get monotonous.

One more thing, vary the shape of her arm shields. Right now they are too straight. This flattens the area and they function to send us too easily off the painting.

Jon

[littlejohn]

daarken, killing.people and foster: Thanks for all your help. Your comments seem so obvious now and I think that's because they were so on and so clearly stated. So I went back to the drawing board.

Here's my latest (final?) attempt. I like it better overall. There's still some funky things, but I learned a lot doing it and especially from the crits I got here. Thanks, again. I really appreciate it.

http://www.davidhendee.com/images/mara.jpg