Mordian Officer (character in oil)

[Phil Moss]

Hi all,
I posted this along with some other crap in a dump in the FF section when i joined a while back, and as its not FF quality it got whisped away, so I thought, as I'm doing other character pieces atm I'd repost it - unfortunately I only have this version, as opposed to the image of the original (nothing altered except the white around the figure taken out in photoshop).

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This is finished, but I'd still like any comments and critique - for me, I know the legs are off and the figure is a bit bare, there should have been more 'stuff' on it, like pouches, holsters etc

Cheers all, phil.

edit: oh, it's not me btw, even though the head is my avatar... im not bald!

[masque]

Phil, mind if i do a paintover? much words saved that way.

[Phil Moss]

be my guest ;) I should probably do one myself, there are some glaring errors I can see, but I'm not a whizz with the pc and i dont have a fancy graphics pen :) - I suppose that means I've learnt something if I can see what's wrong with it

[masque]

sorry for the delay. dinner (no excuse i know ;) )

anyway, i see two major fundamental probs, aside from any considerations of rendering or detailing -- balance and proportion:

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gridding your pic shows a lot, using a one-head unit for height comparisons. your figure measures almost exactly 7 heads high, a bit short for modern standards but well within the range and possibly ideal for this guy's time period. for comparison, i've traced his basic forms out and re-proportioned them at approx 7.5 and 8 heads, at left of yours. note, though, that i've used the same torso as yours for the 7.5-head figure -- but for better proportion, the lower body should be longer than what you used. in the 8-head, i've reproportioned all from the neck down, based on the more pleasing 7.5-head proportions. these are very modern "male model" proportions.

looking to the right of your figure, the trace i made clearly shows that the weight distribution through the spine falls well to the rear of the heel -- he's a bit tipsy. at far right, i've straightened this out and the figure looks a lot more stable. note also that in this rework, i've shortened the torso and lengthened the legs without changing the height. he's still a short guy, but the adjusted proportions make the figure more pleasing, and the new balance makes him seem much more the model of a modern major general :teeth:

[BlackBeret]

Yea I agree with what masque said. Another quick little measurment you can do is the top of the head to the groin is about the same length as the legs.

[Phil Moss]

masque - thanks for taking the time to do that for me, it's opened my eyes alot more - Ithink I was focussing alot more on how the figure looked (i.e. rendering etc) and not actually sorting out the basics.
Although I'll most likely not revisit this piece (though it's tempting, if only t rework the legs) I'll be sure to keep in mind what you've said.

The root of the problem comes from a dependance on direct reference i was going through when i did this - the torso taken from a photograph that I took myself, which didnt include the legs and wasn't very photogenic for a single figure

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And as you can see from this WIP shot, it started out as two figures, which I then removed. The problem also arises from the fact that I stand at head height with the main figure, and so am looking down on his lower body, yet in the final image, this just makes him look even shorter!! Any advice as to how to tackle these problems? I really should have done an early proportion check, or even posed a seperate figure for reference.

As far as the costume is concerned, I adapted it to fit the GW Mordian theme using various bits of reference.

Proportions aside, is there anything to say about rendering and technique?

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Close up of just the torso, as we know the legs are off. I tried to be alot more free here, going for the 'pixelated' look as my lecturer calls it with the paints. I admit to hardening off the face to make the chap look a bit more grim, as he doesn't look very menacing :S! Any comments?

[masque]

seeing the close-up, there's a few things that are pretty visible you might consider doing differently, and some you need to change for sure. i like the treatment of the face, neck, collar, and hat in terms of strokes and planes definition. the many color patches and hue and temperature variations in the skin tones work well imo. the strokes are very crisp as well. the features are a bit misaligned but not quite enough to look distorted. the guy doesn't look menacing but he does look very military, and i see a potential for menace, which may be even more effective?

but from just under the collar, things get less defined. the strokes lose their crispness, become broader. i think if you'd carried some of the stroke-texture treatment of the face into the fabric of the uniform, and into the detailing, it would help unify the image and give you a chance to define more planes in the garments. as it is, things look a bit flat. the medals & braid have this kind of treatment and work well.

the other aspect that tends to flatten things is the drawing of some of the uniform detailing. the epaulets in particular don't seem to rest on the shoulder properly, their perspective not matching the anatomy underlaying everything. the curve of the braid going from chest to arm has similar probs, the arc it makes seeming too flat and not really following the underlying curve of the torso. these issues really flatten the image to my eye.

i've done another p/o to illustrate:
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the epaulet profile has been flattened at the top to have it seem more like it's perched on those broad military shoulders, and the arc of the braid deepened, with a little shift in the curve as it meets the arm. subtle, but i've learned recently that subtlety can have a great deal of impact.

i also did a gonzo paint-stroke change on the chest above the medals, to try and show how a different painting approach might better work with the face and collar, a bit crude, but perhaps you can seem my point. i also tossed in a few warmer strokes to tie it better to the face. i increased the detail level on the epaulet with strokes of a size simliar to the other adornments, also for unity of treatment.

lastly, i shifted the apparent curve of the spine just a bit to relieve the lean and try and turn it into a "ramrod straight" stance. again, subtlety rules!

as far as using photo refs, i guess it's much like using literary references -- "read and regurgitate" is rarely as effective as "read, comprehend, respond," if you catch my meaning. everything you draw and paint should be filtered through your artist's awareness, especially photo refs, which can sometimes be misleadingly accurate.

[Phil Moss]

Thanks again masque! Again I think the problem is referencing, the rope I posed on someone, and it is more or less accurate - but accuracy doesnt always look good! Infact, in this case it looks worse :S As for the epaulet, that was just a bad job, I was trying too hard to mould it round the shoulder, rather than just painting an epaulet how it would naturally look.
Again, I struggled with the rendering of the jacket as I had not direct reference (just fudging out the collar line didnt work) - the lesson learnt I think is to look at the painting itself, rather than try to copy reference and to work out the fundamentals in proportion and pose before putting down any paint.

Thanks alot for your help!

[afterthought]

by looking at it next to the ref, the chest is too high? or the medals are placed too high. also the feet as mentioned above. the guy definately feels off balance.
also if you draw a centerline down the face, ur lips are off.
also the angle of the shoulder thingy on the uniform feels off. if you look at the ref it should follow that angle of the arm.

[wizbane]

It seems like the problem with the posture could be the result of the horizon line being off on the ref photo. If you look at the right side shrub line and the left side building, you can see that the horizon is slanted slightly, which if you did not take this into account, could be the source of your problems.

As far as the brushwork goes, I think your doing a great job introducing varied tones in the flesh, but the arm, particularily on the forearm, seems a bit faked, and could use some blending in.