Newbie Question.

[JUK]

Hi all, this is my first post here and I have a question.

My question is: How can I improve my ability to judge proportion's?

I know of Sight-Size but it feel's way too tedious.

At the moment I visually compare my measurement's, but my judgement's can be wildy innacurate.

Will good old fashioned practice do the trick or is there some other method's/exercise's I can try?

[arttorney]

I think practice is at the core of this, to be sure. If you are working from a photo ref then you can try using a grid system like the old timers would use for their murals on the ceiling, etc.

They would make a study sketch and then basically draw a grid (like graph paper) on top of it using chalk. They would make a similar grid of lines on the place they were getting ready to paint, and then it became easier to put everything in its proper place.

If you don't want to draw lines on your photo ref then photocopy a piece of graph paper onto some clear overhead transparency medium you can get down at the business store. With that you can place a clear sheet of "graph paper" over your photo ref and pin it in place with paper clips. Draw the same set of graph lines on your new support using a medium that you can either cover with the paint, or erase later (say after your ink has dried). Now you should be able to tell where everything goes.

For working from life, practice makes perfect.