*Fetal Grindings* [nudity]| Updated 9/13 (Life drawing)

[funfetus]

So I've been drawing since as early as I can remember, like most of you, and it was the most important thing in my life, like with most of you, until about 7 years ago, when I just completely stopped for some reason. I made a few halft-hearted attempts to get started again, but they always fizzled out after a couple weeks. So now, I think I'm finally on the right track, and motivated as hell. I'm also noticing that I've got a LOT of holes in my knowledge and abilities -- bits of anatomy I just never learned, things I've been faking for years -- and for the first time in I can't remember how long, I'm making a concerted effort to LEARN, instead of just to draw (and digital paint).

Here's a sketchbook. Critique the hell out of me -- I need it.

[funfetus]

These are a couple of things that came out in my sketchbook this week that I particularly liked.

[funfetus]

These are on-the-sly life-drawings from Starbucks. I used to be a LOT better at these, so it's kinda disappointing. That's what I get for quitting, eh? I'll get better. I'm concentrating on learning drapery right now, so that's what I focused on here to some extent. Oh, and the last one is my friends on my patio, who were aware that I was drawing them, so I could take my time.

I'm noticing that, while I've gotten a lot better at keeping my lines, um, economic, when drawing from my head, I'm still REALLY scribbly when I do quick drawings from life. I need to work on that.

[funfetus]

And this is a title screen for a game project I'm working on. Turns out I'm going to have to redraw the guy and the dog (the dog certainly deserves it), but I wanted to put this up because I still kinda like it. The second one is the new sketch for the guy.

[Pawl]

like your stuff mate, you have some talent, good to see that youre drawing again, 7 years is a long time to stop!

nothing to really critique, you know what to do, just keep drawing !

[costas]

hey man... you really got talent... keep it up...

[funfetus]

Thanks, you guys. I didn't really STOP stop, but I only drew once in a while, and never seriously for more than a couple weeks. I filled maybe 2 sketchbooks in 7 years.

Okay, so here's something I did this morning. From reference, which I almost never do, but I guess I should probably do more. I keep seeing people on CA saying to work from life/reference, and save drawing from the imagination for later. Is it later for me? I dunno. I should definitely do more life/reference drawing, though. Anwyay -- I spent maybe 3 hours on this. Probably longer than it should take, but, like I said, I don't do this often.

[TacticallyWacked]

I'm glad you have gotten back into your art and are making a serious attempt at "learning" not just sketching with out a strive for progress. I really enjoy your skecthes of the figure in the chair....they feel nice and loose.

The digi painting from ref. is also quite good! =)

[Saera]

Hey there - great start. :) If you want some critique - you should look at the knee position of the last girl. They're on the same height even though her hips are tilted.

Keep updating and keep drawing! :)

[Evxyza92]

thats good stuff keep it up nice to see you drawing and wanting to get better

[funfetus]

Thanks for the comments, everyone.

Saera -- thanks for the crit. :) Though, at first I thought you were right, but now I'm not so sure. I re-checked the ref, and if anything, the knee of (her) right leg is a bit lower in the ref, due to that leg being more straight, because it's bearing more of her weight. Maybe that's my issue -- I made the right leg look too bent. But thanks again. :)

[funfetus]

Here's a weird dude. This is more of a speedpaint than I usually do, starting with blocks of value, rather than an outline. I'm really not so good at this. Which is why I'm doing it, I guess. I was experimenting with a square brush that follows the pen direction. It's kinda cool how you can almost "extrude" these blocks everywhere. That thing in his hand is stupid, though. I don't know what I was thinking.

[Sheavolution]

Hey funfetus, just checking out who I will support from now on. You told me that i posted quite a lot in a short while.. hehe, seems im not the only one!

These drawings are looking good, I like the digital background of the dog/guy drawing, good choice to redo em it will be worth the time. I also like the girl from ref, do you got the feeling you learned something from it?

I'll be back!

[funfetus]

Thanks, Shea. Yeah, I guess we probably both had a backlog. :) Let's keep it up! As for the woman that I painted from ref -- I don't know if I'd say I learned anything new, at least as far as concepts goes, but it was definitely good practice. It came out better than similar attempts in the past. I think I was more patient than I've been before.

[Clocks]

Hey funfetus! I like the work you have posted up. The female figure is really well done! Also I like the redesign of that hunter-guy, it added a lot of character to him IMO. Is the game post-apocalyptic by any chance? Anyways thats the feeling I got from the picture.

Also good work on those life drawings. I always feel like i should go do that somewhere but I always wuss out because I'm scared they are going to look at me while I'm drawing them haha.

Keep up the good work!

[funfetus]

Thanks, Clocks. Yeah, the game is post-apocalyptic. It's actually a mod for Fallout 2. (You can check out it out here (http://www.fanmadefallout.com) if you want, though there isn't really much to see on the website.) And if you haven't played the Fallout games, oh man, you really have to.

As for sketching people, I've been doing it for years, and I've never once had anyone let on that they noticed. Just don't stare. Glance, draw, glance, draw, etc. But it's important -- you should really do it.

[brunopicinini]

hey buddy, how are you?

I´ve just send a pm to you regarding the SSG #44 ... So, it has not been authorized yet for me to join but i don´t thnik should be a problem.

Dude, you do have some really nice art here.

I specially like post #7 ... that came out great!
That picture from the cover of the game is also good, really tells the history ...
But i dunno, in that one something is missing and I don´t exactly what ... more contrast in the pic maybe? don`t know ... what do you think about it? like, it is good indeed, no question about that, but there is something I think you could do better and I just don´t know what hehe

see ya
best regards and keep drawing

[Loolarge]

Hi Funfetus,

this stuff is really nice! I can only imagine where you would be if you had been drawing during those 7 years :) The photo refd girl looks great! Please keep us updated!

[funfetus]

Thanks, guys!

brunopicinini: Yeah, I think I know what you mean about the game pic. One thing that's wrong is that the composition is kinda lopsided, because the game's menu is going to cover the left side. I couldn't stand looking at it, though, so I added that lopsided sign that will probably get covered up. :) I also think that it's really oversaturated. Since I'm practically redoing the whole thing, I'll try to deal with those issues the second time around.

Loolarge: Yeah, also I think about where I'd be if I hadn't quit, and it makes me crazy. But oh well, no one to blame but myself. I'm here now, and that's what matters. Thanks for the comments!

[funfetus]

Okay, my last couple days' output, or at least what's worth showing. I'm pretty sure no one wants to see a bunch of perspective grids. :)

The first page is a couple of faces from reference. The small ones were too small -- I've learned my lesson. I have a bad habit of drawing things too small. It's hard to learn doing that.

Second is a couple things I drew while watching tv.

3-5 are Bridgman studies -- trying to bone up on the parts of anatomy that I've been able to get away with faking. No longer! There are also a couple of originals on the last feet page...it's painfully obvious which ones they are. :)

[Sheavolution]

Hey man, good to see that you are keep doing these less exciting studies. I have no crits, don't hide the hands like i do tho ;)

Drawing too small sucks, it never happens when im working digitally. It's just something to keep in mind when you are working on a4 paper. I really like your tv sketches, the face has allot character.

Keep it up!
Shea

[funfetus]

Haha! I did hide the hands! Shit!

[funfetus]

Okay, here's an update on that post-apocalyptic game title screen fella. They wanted me to take out the duffelbag (which I really liked :( ), tone down the shoulderpads (probably a good choice, because they were pretty ridiculous) and have him looking at the viewer -- maybe with sunglasses, for a touch of anonymity. I personally don't care for the sunglasses -- a little too ZZ Top for me. Oh well. I'm not sure if I like him looking directly at you, either. Maybe facing forward, but not quite...making eye contact.

[jurffy]

Yo, you definitely have skills, I think if you keep up the pace you'll see improvement fast.

[funfetus]

Okay, bunch of sketches today. Most of them are snipes from Starbucks, and the breakroom at work.
1. A couple of back studies, and some of what I will call "hellraisers".
2 - 7. Breakrooms and Starbuckses.

Also, I either need to learn to draw darker, or learn how to use my scanner better, because I have to make it all ugly dark to be able to see the drawings. Eh.

[kawakaze]

awsome stuff. overall you seem to have a strong hold of your basics, great proportions and its cool to see you push them a little as well. i really like the stylized look you have and i would love to see some more stuff taken beyond sketches. those digital paints are awsome. keep it up!

[TacticallyWacked]

Lots of movement to your starbucks sketches! I find it very hard to get a very accurate sketch from someone who prob isn't standing in the same position for more than a few seconds.

About how much time did you spend on each of them?

[DanielC]

Nice sketches !
Something that might help is always look for variety. Never do the same thing and experiment with what you've already done.
And what I mean by variety is everything: time, medium, effort, style, technique, etc.
I hope it helps, keep it up !

[funfetus]

Thanks, guys!

kawakaze: Thanks a lot. I'll definitely be doing more "finished" stuff in the future, but right now I'm very much in my cocoon, transforming into a beautiful butterfly. :) That means lots of sketches, anatomy studies, blah blah. I should actually be painting that ZZ Top guy pretty soon. In what way do you see my work being stylized? I try to go for pretty straight realism, actually, though I'm sure my comic book roots creep through pretty well.

TacticallyWacked: Yeah, it's definitely hard at first. I took a "figure drawing for animation" class a couple years ago, where we had models doing like 30-second to 3-minute poses, so I got used to getting a pose down fast. It's mostly about throwing down the important gesture lines to capture the pose right away, then getting down what you can while they're still there. The rest you can fill in later, if you want. I probably spent less than a minute on most of those, although that old guy plunked down right in front of me for about 5 minutes. I have a friend who can draw capuchin monkeys while they're swinging around. He's a lot better than me. :)

DanielC: Thanks, that sounds like good advice. I definitely think I should spend more time developing at least some of them in the future, and I'd like to try some other mediums that aren't too much of a hassle to carry around.

[Jazz]

That is some awesome sketching! I envy you because I'm slow and meticulous with even sketches, so it's something I'm trying to work on!

I see something of a "stylized" fashion, like your spin on the expressions and such. But I always liked seeing artists do that, it's totally cool to me! :D I'll be looking forward to more of your colouring!

[Sheavolution]

Hey fetus! Thanks for the great advice, not only to me but you also helped the rest of SSG#44 great with these simple sketches, keep doing those if you see mistakes. Guess it's also good for you to keep you sharp. ;)

I really like your starbuck sketches, these got got character. About the scanner, which one? You could also try out to scan in pages and edit the contrast a bit in photoshop.. that last one works for me with my cannon scanner. Keep it up!

[brunopicinini]

hello again

nice studies from life man ... really like those studies from starbucks and other places (party mom was funny ... I know those types ... ah there is one girl in the top picture who seens to have a nice ass ;) hehe)


those anatomies studies are beatuful, specially that one in the top right ...

about the guy from the game, that is a sketch to someone use as a reference to modelled it or it will be used just as a pic? if it is just like a pic, I believe that if you add some really strong and constrating shadows you can add a really good "mood" to the guy ... well, it depends on whi9ch kind of personality he has ... more of a loner, more of a good guy, etc etc ... that's why I believe you can add something to express if he is more a bad guy, a good guy, a "i don't give a fuck" guy hehe

I will search for some reference for that and will post to you ... right now I don't have none

thats it!
keep up

btw, which game are you working on? so are you alredy "in" the industry? hehe

[funfetus]

Jazz: Thanks very much. I see what you mean about the expressions. I guess my sketches are more stylized than my more careful drawings, but I chalk that up to needing more practice. :) My proportions tend to go off -- mainly just in making the heads too big, so everyone looks like a cartoon.

Shea: Glad to hear I'm helping -- I'll definitely keep doing so. The scanner I just got is a Canon lide25 -- I'd just taken it out of the box when I scanned these pages, so I haven't had time to play with the settings much. I'm about to scan something, so I'll see what I can do. I did adjust the contrast in Photoshop with these. The thing about that is that all the little smudges on the paper get darker too. I may have to just be more precise in the curves.

bruno: Thanks. Yeah, party moms. Gotta love em. :) The girl with the nice ass -- it's the one in the lower left, right? :) As for the guy -- it's just linework that's going to be painted, so I didn't want to muddy it up with any shading. If it were going to stand on its own, I'd definitely do what you suggest. If I can find an old sketchbook, I'll post some stuff from when I was in highschool. I was ALL ABOUT the deep shadows. Anyway, the game isn't really a new game, it's a mod for Fallout 2 (http://www.fanmadefallout.com). We're doing all new intro screens, cut scenes, etc. It's basically a whole new game, using FO2's engine and graphics. But it's totally a fan effort; strictly volunteer -- I'm not in any industry. :)

[Smoke]

I`m like the style, and the fast sketches have good flow.

[funfetus]

Okay, busy weekend, but I got some work done. The first bit is a kind of post-apocalyptic gay dungeon gladiator. :D I did the sketch on my lunch at work, then painted it in Photoshop. The rest are just some of the nicer sketches I did while watching TV with my girlfriend the last few days. I try to always draw when I watch TV now. It makes a rather useless activity marginally useful. :)

[TheGnoll]

hey dude, pretty neat stuff in here, good studies and very nice sketch...seems like you're pretty focused to me...
keep sharing, i'll be back for more!

ciao

[UПiT_22]

Nice book!

[Mr.Delicious]

ouuu very nice digital work on that last one.

[kawakaze]

nice update. i really like your figure studies. you seem to plot them down really acurate and fast considering they are ref from tv. as for the digital, really nice as well. if you polished it off a bit more it would really shine. i think one thing u could focus on is really pushing your definition on the different textures. it looks like you are starting to pretty well but things like smoothening out the metal would help differentiate them aside from color. another thing, i am having hard time believing the figure to be connected w the environment, particularly because of the lighting. if he is going to be lit up so bright in contast w the background, the shadow on the ground would b a lot more intense alogn w some more highlights in the surrounding environment. it looks awsome though, i really like how you have started to lit him up from the reverse side w your reflected light. great stuff.

[mentalSherpa]

the coloring on the gladiator guy is a little to "x-menish", but thats just a matter of taste. All your sketches are pretty solid and i couldnt find anything i could constructively crit, so i went for the absurd!

[Sheavolution]

Hey fetus, great update. I pretty much like all of it, your tv doodles are great :)
On the colored guy i love the detail on his chest. One crit; is it me or is there no thumb on his left hand? Also, i think the palm of his hand is quite big. Overall great picture.. keep it up :)

[brunopicinini]

nice update man!

I specially like the colored piece! that came out really good

and your figurative stuff are looking very very good!! I think you definitely got a very consistent SBs with lots of great stuff ... and you show that in your crits in other peoples SBs ... always a really good constructive criticism

keep it up!

[funfetus]

TheGnoll: THanks! Yeah, I'm focused as hell. Art is all I'm doing these days. :)

Unit_22: Thanks, you too!

Mr. Delicious: Thanks very much. :)

kawakaze: Thanks! I should point out that the TV ones are not actually refed from TV. People stand still long enough to draw them in real life, but not on TV. Those are all out of my head, though sometimes "inspired" by something on TV. I get you about the textures on the digital one, but I did make the metal all chunky on purpose. Maybe it's not reading how I intended. I think you're totally right about the environment, and I guess that's what I get for throwing it in there as an afterthought. I'm not sure if I want to go back to it, or just move on, but I might make those changes.

mentalSherpa: No, he has an albino neck. :) I'm not sure what you mean by "X-menish". Or, maybe I am -- the colors are definitely unnatural, what with the purple and all. And then all the blue in the background... Is it an issue just with my color selection, or is it in the rendering? I do feel like I have a lot of issues with color selection. I'm really not conident in it, which I think is why I cop out and make the background all one color.

Sheavolution: Thanks -- yeah, you're right, the left hand is weird. The thumb is there, but I left it too dark, and the pads of the palm got all fat without me noticing. Thanks for looking out.

brunopicinini: Thanks again, and I'm glad my criticism is helpful. I'll keep it up if you do. :)

[TacticallyWacked]

Nice TV sketches! You must draw fast when watching TV...I find it so difficult to sketch people if I don't have several minutes of a pose.

[purplerose]

Really nice figure studies. Keep them up, they really help. :) Have you tried going to life drawing sessions? They really help you in getting the form better and drawing bigger. :)

[Donovan V]

Your anatomy and figure drawing really are good. Ya know what I like best is the life like feel. Your charictars have plenty of personality. I envy that because I strugle to move mine away from looking cartoonish to more like yours.

Take care,
D

[K.I.D.]

Hi,

Saw your mini-pic in the forum area and thought I'd take a look at your SB. WOW! Nice work. Really professional. I'm really impressed with your ability to communicate volume economically.

Guess I don't have any intelligent crits to make. Your work seems very well thought out...have you thought about experimenting in the opposite direction?? Maybe, do your values/shading first...then line work, instead of line work then detail. Just a suggestion.

Regards,

K.I.D.

[funfetus]

TacticallyWacked - Thanks! The TV sketches aren't actually sketches FROM TV -- just stuff from my imagination that I draw while watching TV. Though, sometimes I'll see a character in a pose, then draw, from imagination, a similar-looking character in that pose. Which is subtly different from drawing it FROM that character. :)

Donovan V - Thanks very much! It's great to hear that, because that's kind of an intangible quality. You can't really get it from a book, just from mileage, I think.

K.I.D. - Thanks -- you're right, I tend to do tight linework first. I've never had much luck with the start-with-blobs-of-color(or-value)-and-work-from-general-to-specific school of art, but I've made efforts from time to time. Anyway, your wish is my command. I did this one here with no linework at all, and I think it came out pretty nicely. It's very unfinished, and it's boring enough that I don't think I'll bother, but it was encouraging. Also, I had some revelations about the planes of the face from John H. Vanderpoel's The Human Figure, and this was really the first time I got to use em, so yay.

[funfetus]

Just some sketches from the last couple days. I don't know if I should even bother posting stuff like this. Anyway. Some studies of head planes, some torsos, and some more torsos. Then some fighters I drew on my lunch at work -- going mainly for gesture. Also, a jumping dude.

[mentalSherpa]

mentalSherpa: No, he has an albino neck. I'm not sure what you mean by "X-menish". Or, maybe I am -- the colors are definitely unnatural, what with the purple and all. And then all the blue in the background... Is it an issue just with my color selection, or is it in the rendering? I do feel like I have a lot of issues with color selection. I'm really not conident in it, which I think is why I cop out and make the background all one color.

ok, the word "xmensih" was retarded, a better crit to give would be that the color is to "local". The purple parts range from dark purple to light purple and the blue parts range from dark blue to light blue, etc.

[Jazz]

Oh, funfetus, it's good that you put up those heads!! ...That's the kind of thing I ALWAYS put up. XD So I don't wanna feel too bad. Hee hee!

That human figure looks so strong and handsome!! I'd say the facial planes totally worked out!! Now, I'm still novice at the REST of the body, but I wonder if his ...is it pelvis? Between his thighs and navel, should be longer? You can let me know either way, so at least I'll have learned something new!

I LOVE the action shots! The kicking definitely looks powerful!

[Sheavolution]

Hey fetus, no crits from me.. just wanted to say that you should keep posting the basic stuff, i enjoy it :)

[funfetus]

mentalSherpa - Yeah, I totally get what you mean. I mentioned somewhere that I'm not confident with my colors -- I guess I've got a long way to go in that department. You're totally right. Now that I look at it, the shadows are basically the same colors as the midtones, which is a no-no. I don't know why I didn't pick up on that before.

JazzW Yeah, he is a sexy man, isn't he? It's making me question myself... :P I think I see what you mean about the pelvis. It's bad proportion. His legs are too long and his torso is too short, but I placed the navel too high, and it kinda fooled me into thinking it was okay. I can see that if I dropped his navel down to where it should be, it would look ALL wrong. Also, the flank pads of the external obliques (those muscle "bumps" on the sides, right above the hipbone) are place too low, and that's throwing it off too. Thanks for lookin' out. :)

Sheavolution -- Thanks, man. Ask and ye shall receive. :)

Here are a few heads I drew today. I realized that I've been drawing a bunch of really blank faces, just working on the anatomy, so I wanted to try to put some expression into these.

[brunopicinini]

hey buddy!
your heads are coming really good! and the bodies too ... but i noticed that your drapery is not at the same level as the heads and figurative stuff (like that guy on post #49, the one kicking in the middle ... did you did that with reference? does the shorts really look like that, because it seens a little bit strange to me)

so maybe you could do some drapery studies ... I bet you would rock big time since you already have a good basis

best regards and let's keep drawing ;)

[funfetus]

Thanks, Bruno. No, you're right, my drapery is definitely lagging behind big time. I think I've mentioned before that I pretty much avoided it as much as I could, and faked it the rest of the time, until the last couple months. I have done a lot of study, but I did puss out on that one you mentioned. But no, no reference on any of the drawings in that post. Really, no reference in most of what's here -- if there is, I'll mention it.

[kawakaze]

nice update. the two on top are really nice. styles wise as i was saying before, i like what you do in that you seem to push the realism aspect of it all to its limits and kind of breakaway into a somewhat cartoonish style. managing this balance is hard for me. but yea your talent shows through, great simplicity in your linework yet it reads very well. keep it up man its great to see where you are taking things.

[Sheavolution]

Heya! Like Kawakaze said, the two on top are great. I dont know, the 2 @ the bottom of the page are more your regular style but I like it when you give em a bit more detail.

You got the same scanner as moi! The Canon is ok, usually I scan @ Color Magazine, 300 dpi..

Oh yeh, we know that you understand the basics of drawing, now go draw some digital cool looking dude. :D

Keep it up mate, you are doing great.

[Jazz]

I really like those expressions, especially the top two!! O_O The bottom ones freak me out!! XD

Ohhh! Some of you guys got Canon scanners?? Awesome!! Same here!

[funfetus]

Thanks, Jazz. The bottom right is supposed to be freaky...the bottom left just came out that way. :) Oh well.

Here's the next stage of what I'm working on for the game. Not much of an update, really -- just drew a dog. Animals are really new to me -- I just want people to let me know if it looks weird.

[kawakaze]

the dog reads clearly as a dog, however i think u could push the extremes of the shoulder area of the front leg making it protrude a litte more so it really shows him bending down.

[funfetus]

Thanks, kawakaze. I will investigate further.

Okay, so I mentioned somewhere that I have problems with eyes in the 3/4 view, and that I was going to do some studies. So here they are. I grabbed a bunch of ref images off flickr and went for it. (By the way, if you need reference for most things, flickr is the place to go.) The bottom two are no ref, just to try to apply what I learned. I feel like I got the problem worked out pretty well, and I also learned a bit about the structure of the eye in general.

[brunopicinini]

congratulations, page 2! hehe

well, your eyes studies rocks ... I book I think si good for eyes is Hogarth ... he has some pretty good tutorials over there

but, maybe you don't need, those 2 wuithout reference came out really good

best regards

[Clocks]

Yeah man real nice eye studies. It seems like it worked cause that unreffed face in the bottom left looks pretty awesome! Also that purple guy on page one turned out real nice, even if the pose was a little effeminate haha.

[Jazz]

Wow, I think the studies are paying off! You got the idea of where the eyes go, how they look. It's hard to draw eyes and faces in those angles. The face turned out so nicely!!

[funfetus]

w00t, page 2!

brunopicinini - Thanks! Yeah, I used to have a Hogarth book that I learned a lot from. I've moved so many times, though, that I don't think I own a single thing that I had more than 5 years ago. :(

clocks - Thanks, man. Yeah, that guy's pose was effeminate, but that was totally the point. He's in the grand tradition of creepily effeminate villian types, like that blonde guy from Escape from New York, or Voldo from Soul Calibur.

JazzW - Thanks! My main issue with the eyes was that I could never get the far eye right in a 3/4 angle, where it's kind of "turning" around the edge of the face. I think I got it pretty well now. I also realize now how thick the eyelid actually is, and I think it makes a big difference in the drawings.

[funfetus]

So I did lips this time. Same drill -- a bunch of ref from flickr, then a couple out of my head to take it for a test drive.

Then, a bunch of breaktime/lunchtime/TV time sketches.

[designboot]

nice sketches dude

[K.I.D.]

Sweet studies. Really professional looking. Are you tracing over the photos, or doing those by eye? If by eye...all I can say is WOW.

Best,

K.I.D.

[funfetus]

designboot - Thanks.

K.I.D. - They're all eyeballed. You can tell by how tweaked some of them look -- check out the third one in the second row, for instance. I didn't worry too much about it, because I was focusing on learning structure. If the angle is a little off, no big deal. But thanks very much!

Okay, so, I was looking at today's Daily Sketch Group topic, which was "SMILING, YELLOW-EYED FEMALE HAS CENTIPEDAL, ORGANI-MECH, BODY". I fired up Photoshop to try out a few mechano-centipedal links, but ended up doing the whole thing. I didn't spend a lot of time on it, and it's nothing fancy, but what the hell.

[mentalSherpa]

nice! flickr really is full of gorgeous reference photos. rock! I think i might just have to jack yer method there! I just spent two hours collecting interesting faces for exactly the same thing, eyes and mouths.

the dsg is solid start. FINISH IT! :)

[Saera]

Very nice eye/mouth studies, keep going. The metal centipede thingy looks very convincing. Agreeing with Sherpa, would like to see it finished. :)

[Jazz]

Wow, those are awesome lips!! You mentioned tweaking them, and I did notice they're different than the originals, but similar. So I'd say you pretty much got that structure down! :D And I can't wait to see that...centipedal mecha woman thing done! Hee hee! She looks happy!

[funfetus]

By popular demand!

I don't know if I'd call this FINISHED finished, but I think it's enough for me. It was hard to kinda pull it together, since I started it without any intention of even making a real picture. It's especially difficult to cobble together an environment under those circumstances, so...take it for what it's worth. They say you can't polish a turd, but you can sure as hell try. :)

[brunopicinini]

nice up bro!
loved your DSG ... I am willing to start doing that too ... it helps with creativity since your are everyday having to come up with something different

those lips looks great, I will definitely steal your idea and do the same kind of study :teeth:
just I noticed it happens the same thing to you: it is hard to make a really nice smile when you try to put the teeths ... even if you copy almost close to reality, they look weird (for instance, the first smile on the 4th row) ... I believe we need to simplify a little bit, maybe not doing the wholem line of the teeth, just suggesting it ... even if you are trying to mimic reality

that dog looks fantastic!
try to create some history for him and try to make a concept on top! it is a nice pose and drawing!

best regards!

ps: btw, It is funny, I am watching cowboy bebop too hehe .. it rocks so much! though I've watched already 1 time, it is so worth seeing it again ..

[Haxxxor]

wow i like your studies .

really good work on them.
the last monster is cool i like the idea and the expression. it looks quite psycho hehe. but imho it is to blury yet maybe you try some hard edged brushes or some costum brushes? i think it would make the painting even more intresting and realistic.

greetings

[kawakaze]

u are a very hard critique to yourself. i think those eyes look really good, the lips are even nicer. your dsg came out really good as well. i really like where u are going with it and would love to see it taken further if u so chose to do so=D as far as any critiques go, i think you are pushing yourself really well and its great to see u attacking all kinds of studies. i would love to see some mroe dynamic camera angles in some of your work, a lot of the stuff u do seems to be directly head on or on the same plane. for instance the last piece would look ridiculously awsome if positioned the viewer under and in front of her/that thing and looking right up at it. no complaints though, great work!

[Jazz]

funfetus, that's great!! She looks so scary!! Not simply happy! She's happy to kill!! @_@ Ha ha!!

You know, I'm thinking that it's toughest to make smiles look like great smiles (without getting too Crest Whitening-ish) when working in greyscale. It gets tricky with the tones! I should practice a toothy smile and see what comes about. But man, it is TOUGH!!

Cowboy Bebop...so cool knowing that a few of us like it!! :D

[Sheavolution]

KA-BLAM! Someone has been busy while i was laying in my bed. :D Hey fetus, how are you? Flickr is an excellent choice for reference photo's, doing that for a while and it's really useful information. Of course I love the reference lips/ eyes.. damn these 3/4 shots are hard to do. You did a good job with em, same for the lips.. practice is paying off. ;) 060307-1.jpg <- I like the dynamic poses on this one, had any ref for these?

Cowboy Bebop was ok, the character EDDDDD makes me wanna check the serie again.. hehe.

[funfetus]

Bruno: Yeah, you're right about the teeth. They all look kinda gangly and gnarly. I think you're right about a bit of simplification. I'm only 2 eps into Cowboy Bebop, but it seems alright. I'll stick with it, because I hear it gets better.

Haxxxor: Thanks very much! You're right, it is a bit blurry, mostly owing to the fact that I didn't spend a whole lot of time on it. I do use hard-edged brushes exclusively, but not a lot of custom brushes yet. I've been meaning to start.

Kawakaze: Thanks, man. You're TOTALLY right about the camera angles. I can imagine that centipede woman looming over us all scary, and it's awesome. Like I said, I never meant to finish this one -- just wanted to do a quick test, and it just kept going. I might've put more thought into the composititon otherwise. But you're right, I think everything I've posted so far has been real flat and plain. I'll try to be more dynamic with my camera angles in the future. (Hmm...what did they call them before there were cameras?)

Jazz: Thanks so much! Yeah, I think she did come out with a nice scary grin. I have to admit, I didn't really try for that intentionally, it just kinda happened. I've been finding that I'm not too good with facial expressions, really, especially when the mouth is heavily involved. I have a book on facial expressions that I have to get around to some time soon. Also, I have to admit that when I said I was gonna watch Cowboy Bebop a while ago, I didn't actually get to it that day. So I sat down this morning and watched the first couple episodes. Not bad. :)

Shea: Thanks, man. I think these studies have been paying off a lot myself. That's my short-term plan: Attack all the stuff that I know gives me trouble. I think I've been decent on eyes and lips facing front and in profile, but that 3/4 view gives me fits. I've got a much better handle on it now. As for the dynamic poses, thanks very much, and no, no reference. If there's one thing I've always been a little ahead of the game on, it's dynamic poses without reference. All my friends used to be jealous back in middle school. :)


Okay, so all I have to show today is a couple of silly spacecraft that I drew on my lunch hour. These are really goofy, because I didn't plan them out at all -- just laid out a perspective grid and started drawing. I pretty much never do this stuff, but I'm starting to feel like it's time to learn. While I've known basic perspective since I was like 12, I never really put it to much use. So, expect a lot more vehicles and environments from me in the near future.

[Jazz]

They remind me of the oooold Sega game, Fantasy Zone! Fun ship, fun shooting! Wheee!! The back parts do look wobbly, but overall that's a good lunchtime sketch!

[Clocks]

Hey man nice DSG painting! The lighting is very dramatic. The one thing I could say is that I'm not sure exactly what the things in the upper left hand corner are.

And those ships do have some nice perspective! The main ship might look better without the torpedo though.

[brunopicinini]

hey buddy!
yeah, keep watching, cowboy bebop is really good! I specially like Spike, but it is amazing how ALL the characters are so cool! I mean, you could almost do one series for each character ... they all have a very strong personality
and the sound track rocks! hehe

yeah perspective is imoportant ... I just bought a book that seens nice, is called "Creative Perspective for Artists and Illustrators" ... some people say is quite hard core with lots of writing ... but is very good!

best regards!

[funfetus]

Jazz: Yeah, the back parts are a bit wobbly. I'm doing it all without a ruler, and my lines get a little crooked sometimes. :) Eh, more practice...

Clocks: Thanks, man. The things in the upper left hand corner on the DSG pic are supposed to be like, caves of some sort. Eh. It's a bad background. That's one of my huge weak points. I'll continue to excuse it by the fact that I didn't actually plan to finish. :) And the ship would probably look better if everything was completely different! It's a really stupid design, but I'm still impressed that I can put something like that into perspective. I've never really attempted much more than glorified cubes, and it's been years since I've done any of it seriously.

Bruno: I checked out that book on Amazon. Let me know how it is -- I might pick it up. I'm not sure if I need a whole book on perspective, but if it's really good...


Okay, so I did some more studies -- drapery this time. Damn, this one was hard. I really don't have the handle on it that I thought I did. Also, a few sketches.

[Blaz]

Heh you are amazing! This SB was a pleasure to look at! Love the style!

Nothing more to say :)

[iceman478]

Your sketches are amazing...very detailed yet not over doing it! Which is awesome....the only thing I kind of thought a let down is your coloring of your sketches ...the sketches are explosive lose...But when u add color you kind of tone down what is so cool about them down.

[Jazz]

Funfetus, I think we ought to make a point of doing some cool background studies...later! XD I'm scared. ;_;

I am SO doing a drapery/folds study! You're doing great with the folds! What gets tought about them, I find, is the detail of them. For precision, you could add as many folds as you need. But just getting the idea of how they gather and pull along the body parts beneath them, that can be challenging in itself! Keep it up though. You might just have that moment where you go "That's it!! ...That's IT?!" Hee hee!

Oh, I love that sketch, bottom left corner of the last picture! The fingers pointing and the tension! Makes the person "MEAN" it! whatever that means. XD

[Sheavolution]

you suck! .......oh wait, wrong thread. Fetus, you are doing great with these flickr ref's. Allot lines are a bit soft though, I think with a few hard lines you'll make it even better.. none the less awesome work. Everything is black/white, is that how you always do your digitals, get the values in and add an extra color layer later.. or? And a last comment.. when are you trying out some custom brushes in? A bit more texture would rock! Shea

[funfetus]

Blaz: Thanks very much, glad you liked it. :)

Iceman478: Thanks for the encouragement. Yeah, painting is a little shaky for me right now. Do you have any suggestions about exactly what I'm doing wrong? I know my colors tend to be a little undersaturated. I'm about to move into some serious color study, as soon as my copy of "Alla Prima: Everything I Know About Painting" arrives.

Jazz: Yeah, folds are intimidating. It took me 27 years to get around to starting to learn 'em. :) You need to learn about the basic types of folds. Here's a link to a thread (http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?t=14739) with some tutorials, and there's also a Bridgman book and a Glenn Vilppu DVD that you might want to look into. Thanks for the comments. :)

Shea: Thanks, Shea. You know, I always work with a hard brush, so I guess I'm probably just feathering my strokes too much. No, I don't generally do my digitals in grayscale then color over them -- in fact, I've never had much luck at all doing that. I can see how it would be useful, but it hasn't worked for me yet. I'm just doing these in grayscale because I'm focusing on form. Something I've been hearing a lot lately is that when you're studying, you shouldn't waste time with other details. If you're just working on form, don't bother with color -- if you're just learning perspective, don't bother with figures -- etc. And yeah, I definitely intend to start experimenting with some custom brushes soon. I just get lazy when it comes to poking around in the interface and stuff. Just wanna draw. :)

Okay, so -- onward and upward. Here are some reeeeeally crappy studies I did off some flikr reference. I let the angles and proportions and whatnot drift a bit, but I think I kept the perspective internally consistent, which is the important part...right? :) Uuuuuugh...I got a long way to go on this stuff.

[yanino]

Very nice! I like your heads! KEEP DRAWING

[funfetus]

Thanks, Yanino. :)

All I have today is a quick painting of some garlic. The lamest still-life ever. But garlic is delicious.

[Jazz]

Oh, that's really nice, funfetus!! O_O The third one seemed to give you a bit of grief! Ha ha! All those lines, they'd totally throw me off! I love the first and second ones, though! The first one has a great concept of the lighting!

[funfetus]

Some sketches focusing on pose and gesture, and a little perspective-y dwelling of some kind. It's really simple, but, you know, baby steps. The last week or so of my analog sketchbook is mostly full of little perspective tests and crappy spaceships and tanks and buildings. I'm gonna pull it all together and make something cool pretty soon, just you watch. :)

[Autumnal Dream]

Wow, really great sketchbook, man! I like your drawings from the photos.

[Jazz]

Ooooh!! I really like those gestures!! They're all reaching out to me somehow! ^_^ I can't wait to see what you come up with!! :D

[Grimwolf]

Good stuff. I especially like the variety of figures in the Starbucks sketches. I agree about the dog's shoulder needing some defining. I look forward to seeing more of your work.

[hedwordup]

i really love your quick life studies they show you have a good eye.

[Sheavolution]

The gestures are once again full of life, the kids from school are not the only ones who are jealous. ;)

[thedestroyer]

Whoa you stuff rulez... I like the coloured one with the gunner and the dog.

thedestroyer

[kawakaze]

great updates... its cool to see you picking at your self about the finer details such as perspective. i can see you harnessing your skills and am eager to see what you will do with them in the near future since you have a strong foot in your foundations. these latest post, i really like the gestures, particularly the guy running in motion. w the drapery post i think in general they are a bit light in value which makes some of them harder to read. i really like the top right and the woman in leather on the couch. gwork!

[funfetus]

So I spent the last 4 days in San Francisco, and, while I had important things to do (lesbian wedding, w00t!), it was a great opportunity to do a TON of sketching. I just carried my little 5"x7" sketchbook (which started off right -- dinosaur with uzis!) everywhere, and drew whenever I had a chance to stand still. My friends were good subjects for gesture drawings, and there's a ton of cool architecture and just some friggin' CHARACTERS up there.

I also spent a lot of time observing light and shadow, and how colors are affected by various circumstances, having just read a pretty in-depth tutorial on light. I saw a lot of things that I already knew from having read about, but that I haven't really observed out in the wild, plus a few things that I didn't really know. It was awesome. Here are some of the notes I took:
*In daylight, shadows take on the color of the sky, usually blue, due to the sky being a huge diffused light source.
*Values on flat planes are much flatter than you think -- unless the light source is very weak, and falls off quickly.
*Atmospheric perspective is noticeable at a nearer distance than you think. Way before things start looking blue, there's a loss of contrast. I think your brain kind of auto-corrects it, but if you line foreground and background objects in your line of sight, you can see the difference.
*In shadows, the direction of ambient, diffused light sources and reflected light must be taken into consideration, because the form is no longer being modeled according to the main light source.

So, here's the work. The first few are actually lunchtime stuff at work, but the rest is all from SF. I left out most of the architecture sketches, because they were really ugly, shaky sketches that I drew in the car, mostly for my own reference.

[mentalSherpa]

hey man, the last round of updates is looks great! Did you go to the wharf in sf? I noticed a sea lion on one of those pages :) Can't really find much to crit except that maybe you need to start working on a finished piece or two. Maybe you could try multi figure drawings also. As in two or more figures directly interacting together, something along those lines. Either way, everything is coming along nicely!

[Jazz]

Oooh!! It's a wealth of eye candy for me!! I want to go to SF!! O_O There's a LIZARD there!! I mean, there are all kinds of expressive faces that you've shown, but WOW!! Even the lizard is lively!! :D

Your notes are well taken!! I knew of the first because of a tutorial linked from CA! O_O Hey, could you show an example of your last note? I can't quite grasp it yet!

[Clocks]

wow man i love the characters! especially the last one, great line work! I like how you are experimenting with different facial features to make all your characters unique.

Crits... well i can't honestly think of much at the moment. Well the one thing i would say is that in that in the bottom left corner of this (http://conceptart.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=156085&stc=1&d=1182281041), on the woman's face, it would probably look better if there were darker values in there. I would also love to see some more rendered concepts from you, any plans on taking that last character to the next level?

[Sheavolution]

What the others said Fetus, give us a few finished works. ;)
Looks like you had great fun in SF..
No big crits, maybe 1-2 of em could use longer legs and about the last one... I think his pants should tighter around the body. Overall great sketches FF, keep it up :)

[TheDonut]

Damn, this is fantastic stuff - pretty inspirational :) no crits from me

[kawakaze]

awsomeness. love the minor details, the ripples in the pants read really well on that last guy. very nice set of face studies as well. your portraits and people have been looking very nice for a while, its good to see you stepping out of that and doing the monsters and ids stuff like the rest of this forum although u dont seem as comfortable drawing them? the little dinosaur w the guns is badass though, perhaps checkout carlos huante if ur in need of inspiration.

[Loolarge]

Loveley sketches man! Seriously. I wish i could draw faces like these:)

[brunopicinini]

hey buddy
long time no see ;)
so finally I am back to the game hehe

now I can have again a normal life =D

nice updates you have ... that event on SF must have been great! hope you have had a nice time

I don't really have a crit, I just would like to see that dinossaur with guns with some more development and maybe some colors? =))

so, the book is quite good but it got tons of text haha .. but it is a good book ... the good thing is all the time using other artists's reference to describe some process and goes further, when is ok to break the rules

I like it =D

best

[funfetus]

MentalSherpa: No, didn't go to the wharf this time. Been there, though. There actually isn't a sea lion -- you may be seeing my fat guy with his legs melded together. :) Don't worry, I'll get to some finished pieces eventually...I'm still working on a lot of fundamental weak areas right now.

Jazz: Thanks so much. You should definitely check out SF if you get a chance -- it's a good place. I live in LA, and it makes me ashamed. I'll put an example of my last note in with my updates. I hope it makes sense, it's pretty crap. :)

Clocks: Thanks, man. I really liked the last character, as well. I don't think I'll take it any further than this, though -- it's kind of a little too silly to bother. It's probably the best comic-style rendering I've ever done, though.

Shea: Patience, my friend. Patience. When I emerge from my cocoon, my butterfly wings will be more beautiful than you can imagine. Hahaha, no. But I really want to get all my issues sorted out before I start more ambitious things.

The Donut, Loolarge: Thanks, guys, I appreciate it.

Kawakaze: Thanks very much, man. Yeah, I had a lot of time in SF where I didn't have any particular studies or anything to be doing, so I just drew some crazy shit. What is it that seems uncomfortable about them to you? It's true, though, I don't do that kind of stuff very often -- never really have, even when I was drawing much more casually. 99% of what I've always drawn has just been people. Usually bald, naked people. :)

Bruno: Thanks, man. I had a good time. The dinosaur will probably get more attention, because how could it not. I've gotta scan it at a higher res anyway, because my girlfriend wants it for a desktop background. I picked up the perspective book from Amazon -- I've got it right here next to me. I've glanced through it, but I've got a couple other books I wanna finish reading first.

Speaking of which -- I have a really small update today, because I've been doing a lot more reading than drawing lately. I got my copy of Alla Prima: Everything I Know About Painting by Richard Schmid, and I've mostly just been reading that when I have spare time. It was really highly recommended, but I'm not sure how I feel about it yet. It's very much focused on oil painting from life, so I'm not sure how much help it'll be for digital painting from imagination. The chapter on edges was really good, though. I'll finish it up and try to grok it a bit more before passing judgment. The pictures sure are pretty.

Most of these are heads that I did after doing some studies of the planes of the head. I was going to post those, but I was doing them in Painter, and my laptop just frigging SHUT OFF without warning before I'd saved. It's done that a couple times lately. I need a new computer. Anyway, I feel like I've got a much more complete understanding of the head's planes now.

[funfetus]

Here's a quick dealie I did from the New Media Coloring Book. Focusing mainly on getting a good "color harmory". Color has always been a big mystery to me. Schmid's book talks about how the color and temperature of your light source mixes with all the local colors, and creates color harmony. Mixing every color in your painting with one single color is "an exaggerated effect" that "illustrator's have exploited for generations", according to the book. So, I picked a garish light pink, and went for it. :) It does seem to lend a certain cohesion. This particular color scheme also somehow reminds me of the Gen 13 comics from the 90s.

[Jazz]

I'm curious if the robot is mad about your laptop shutting off! Hee hee!! Cool robot, though!

And your heads are good! It's awesome that you comprehend the planes more! I have to work on heads. :P I've neglected them. XD The facial features...they don't seem to stand out as much! Is it because you're focusing more on the planes? Maybe it's just me today. :P My eyes are playing tricks on me. :(

Yaaaay, example!! O_O I see what you mean about the light source! Very true, too! Of course! The primary light source is probably reflecting light onto a surface below, which then become the light source casting those shadows. Maybe??

The colour harmony study is good!! It's tricky figuring out what the surface colour will look like when certain coloured light falls on it. o_o

[Sheavolution]

Hey man, i'm afraid I have no crits..except that the colored piece could be a bit darker but it's an early stage and it has been a few days so it probably is by now :)

[funfetus]

JazzW -- Thanks, Jazz. I think you're right about the heads lacking expressiveness -- probably because I was overly concerned about structure. It's all learning, though, so it's good. I'll put it all together eventually. :) As for the example -- yes, it may be an example of reflected light, or something else entirely. I made it a bit exaggerated for easy understanding, but in reality (in sunlight, at least) the parts in shade tend to be much more diffused, without strong shadows. The deep shadows are only in cracks and holes and whatnot that light can't seep into. Open shade outdoors is lit by the sky, which is sending light out in all directions, and bouncing it off of everything. And my color harmony study looks pretty dreadful to me now that I look at it again. :)

Shea -- Nope, it looks exactly the same. :) That was pretty much just a quick experiment -- I'm not gonna put days of work into coloring someone else's lines. Just an exercise in color selection. It actually came out kinda ridiculous now that I look back at it, but I guess I learned how NOT to do it. :)

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Okay, so, I haven't been incredibly productive lately. I've spent a lot of time reading art books and not so much doing art. Which I don't think is necessarily a bad thing -- I need that knowledge -- but I should probably learn to balance it out better. I also took a couple days where I just didn't draw. I wasn't feeling burnt out, necessarily, but like I need to just chill a bit and do whatever. But in the last couple days I've drawn a lot, and I feel like I've turned a corner. Leveled up, if you will, as we're all nerds here. :) I had an epiphany. I (maybe not anyone else, but definitely me) need to use perspective grids and boxes and whatnot when I draw figures, and especially heads. I've never bothered much with perspective on non-architectural subjects, but I think the sense of space that it gives me is hugely helpful. I have to credit Mike Mattesi's Force: Dynamic Life Drawing for Animators book for this one. I feel like my drawings are instantly better.

So anyway, here we have a couple of pages of lunch-hour sketches. Then, I got dragged to a birthday party at the bar. I'm not a bar person, so I made the best of it with my sketchbook. Then some gestures, some TV-time drawing (at the bottom of that page you can see the epiphany), a few pages of perspective-boxed heads, some figures, and a super-pissed dude.

[Liam Harvey]

cool stuff there my fellow fetus.

[funfetus]

Thanks, fellow fetus.

Okay, here's a quick speedie I did today. I've actually done very few of these, and I want to get in the habit of it. Reference is on the right. I kinda started winging it on some of the buildings and whatnot. Colors are all eyeballed. Some of them aren't quite right, but I'm getting better. I wish I had more to show, but I've been in "experimental scribbles" mode for the last few days.

[silvestri99]

Great batch of reference work and studies! It's a great idea for brushing up on anatomy...so good I'll follow suit myself. I'm used to using Getty images and hadn't thouight of flicker before. anyways, keep up the great work..it's very inspirational!

[funfetus]

Thanks very much, silvestri99. I'm glad I could help in some way.

Okay, here's another speedy. I made a couple custom brushes (and wasted a lot of time playing around with Painter's brush engine) for the flowers and the clouds. It's interesting how much detail you can suggest with just a few strokes way off in the background. Gotta love the aerial perspective. I also let the actual proportions get away from me a bit again. Bad habit. At least it's hard to tell on lanscapes. :)

[silvestri99]

I like the progression on the man and dog piece, and it looks like you have some good positioning for them. It will be interesting to see what you do with the environment they are sitting in. Good work on your life drawing as well..you have a good knack for capturing poses that look natural.

[kawakaze]

always a pleasure to come back and see what your doing here. perhaps i chose the wrongs words before when speaking of your monsters etc. i find it hard sometimes give valuable critique to your work, from the few montsers u have put in, they feel like they dont have that loose quality which reads so well in your figure studies. if this is an issue and people are what you are familiar too, draw your monsters in the same respect and just deviate from the normal a little while using the same structural formula. muscle/bone strucutre in particular.

w your last two digitals i think they are great overall, to be nit picky about it they feel like they lack the polish of the darkest shadow values. anyway good work as always. keep it up.

[Jazz]

Sorry I haven't been saying much on your SB, funfetus! :( I'll have to explain myself in a while. But since I'm here, I can say NICE studies! Expressions are great. Your faces get to me in a good way!

Love those figure studies, especially one girl with thick legs! I see what you mean about gestures and movements. I still can't just do it like I used to. :(

As for the landscapes, they're great practice! Lots of work you put into them! I think something that you might want to add is more saturation for some of the colours. Yours are looking less bright, but all you might need to add are some rich orange, and orange-yellow hues to brighten up the atmosphere in the first pic, and the flowers in the second pic, respectively. :D Great work, nonetheless! You're getting really good with the landscapes!

[Clocks]

nice environment studies! They are a little blurred, and not spot on accurate, but for quickies they are well done. I like your head studies too, they are full of emotion.

The one thing I notice as I look through is that a lot of you heads tend to look similar to each other. You might want to experiment with different facial features to make you people more diverse.

[brunopicinini]

hey buddy
those studies looks great

you seen are getting better and better with the wacom ... hope I have the same improvement as soon as I get mine =D

one thing I've noticed, it might be just an impression, but I think you don'T usually draw hands with the same details as the rest of the body ... For ex, that guy screaming with the head exploding, his thumbs seens a little bit off, specially the one from the left hand ... nothing big, but comparing to the rest of the body is a little below the level

but ntohing to worry

keep drawing :)
best

[D@niel]

Nice figure work, Great flow and volume!!

My SB http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?t=100235

[Niva.]

Excellent work on this one: http://conceptart.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=163647&stc=1&d=1183569137

I like it better than the real thing :)

[Chiko]

You have some great sketches here! Awesome work. No reason you should have stopped! post more :P

What I do think could use some work is your colors. Maybe do some exercises with color theory. Or maybe it's just my personal taste. heh anyways keep it up! Love the gestures especially.

[funfetus]

Silvestri99 -- Thanks very much.

Kawakaze -- Thanks for the advice. I think my big problem with drawing monsters is that I just don't do it often. I have the opposite problem of most artists -- I'm too much fundamentals, not enough just going crazy. :)

Jazz -- Thanks for the encouragement, Jazz. You know, the colors in my paintings look pretty much dead on to me. I guess my perception skills need work. :) Seriously, I know that's an issue for me, and I'm working hard on it.

Clocks -- Thanks for the advice on the heads. You're right, I do tend to draw the same type of heads. I've been trying to mix it up since I read your post, but I slip back into the familiar groove a lot. If you look at my older sketchbooks, they're like 90% heads, and I guess I've put a lot more effort into just making them look right than into giving them variety and character.

Bruno -- Thanks. You know, I was actually pretty proud of the hands on that one. I thought they came out well, considering I don't often draw hands that large and finished. I guess that's the problem, though, huh? :) I'll do some studies and bring em up to par.

D@niel and N1va -- Thanks guys.

Chiko -- Okay, quit twisting my arm, I'm posting! You're absolutely right about my colors. I know color is a big weakness of mine, and I'm doing a lot of studying right now to fix that up. I've always felt like I was kinda groping in the dark on color, but I'm learning some sound color theory now.


So, the update: I haven't updated in a while, because I haven't felt like I've had much that was worth showing. I've really just been reading a lot of books, and doing a lot of experiments. My sketchbook is mainly bits of drapery and little perspective tests lately. I will post a few scraps that I think are worth looking at, though. We'll start off with some sketches from the lines at Six Flags. Then a rat-wolf monster (speaking of rats, one of my pet rats just died this weekend -- R.I.P, Guy.) I'll probably color this guy eventually. Then some random stuff -- heads and drapery bits. Also, bunch of cubes I drew from a die. In my perspective studies, I've come to find that there's no way to accurately measure out a cube in perspective (unless you do an extremely tedious "projection"), so you've got to just draw tons of them to get a feel for it. Do these look like good cubes?

[Jason Rainville]

It's people like you that make me feel so lazy :P

Great studies, you're really tearing into this stuff. I second the motion that your landscapes are really coming along, and your faces have a great amount of form in them. Man I need to get back to faces....

Cheerio :D

[killermachine]

i'm lil surprised no one has rated your SB..it fluctuates between 3 n 4 right now..i'l change my vote soon :D real good work

[Sheavolution]

This thread seems to be working for me now so i'll take my chance to reply here instead of writing the pm again :D Good work Fetus, you knew you can draw faces and dynamic people but the rat is something else man. He's looking really cool and i'm looking forward to the colored version :D (gogogogoog, do it! :D )

[Clocks]

Hey! I was starting to wonder where you went. Nice update, I like the studies, and the rat especially. Lots of character in your heads. Keep em coming!

[funfetus]

Rhineville -- Thanks, man. If I can make just ONE kid feel lazy and get back to faces, the it's all worth it. :)

Killermachine -- Thanks! Vote Fetus!

Shea -- Thanks a lot, Shea. I think the thread is working now because they lowered the number of posts per page, presumably lightening the load on the servers. Yeah, I'll probably tighten up the ratwolf and maybe add some other elements, and then paint it up.

Clocks -- Yeah, our whole sketchgroup is slacking. :) I'm trying to get back on posting regularly. Thanks for the encouragement.

-----------------------

So, I've been doing a lot of study on values and value/color relationships. To that end, I made this little "palette" deal. I've been learning about using a limited number of values, and not "overmodelling" forms. So, I picked out a range of 9 values (I've seen people advocate as few a 5, but I can't get my head around that), 1 being white and 9 being black. Then I tried to match a bunch of hues to these values. Seeing the true value of a color is hard for me, but I think I'm getting the hang of it.

Observations:
Every hue has its own "true" value, regardless of what the color picker says. :) A 50% value, 100% saturation yellow is lighter than a 3 on my value scale, while a 50%/100% violet is about a 6. These hues are also brightest (most saturated) at the 50% point, which, as I said, may REALLY be lighter or darker than a 50% gray. I think this is analogous to how lightening or darkening paint takes away brightness.

---

Also, I made a little speedpaint, trying to stick with a small set of values. I think I was actually using 7 values on this one. Looking at it now, I didn't use nearly enough hue variation, but I think the values are decent.

[crazylegs]

great sketches! I would love to see some of your old work.

[ped454]

i absolutely love your stuff. your faces are very consistant which shows that you can draw the same thing at different angles (i've got a hard time doing that atm)...i also dig the studies you've done...in fact i started doing the same thing cause of you. great collection so far

[funfetus]

Crazylegs -- Oh man, you asked for it: Check out http://funfetus.com/art. Actually, looking back at that stuff, it makes me feel pretty good about where I am now. Thanks for looking. :)

ped454 Thanks a lot, man. I've been doing some study on the planes of the head lately, and I think it's paying off. Once you really understand how it's built in 3 dimensions, you really can draw it from any angle. That underneath angle is STILL hard, though. Glad you like the study concept -- run with it. :)

Okay -- here's a sketch I did mostly on my lunch break at work. Maybe I'll paint it, maybe not. I say that a lot, and tend not to get around to it. His foot is cut off because I didn't plan to do a whole figure. I think the perspective's a little wonky on account of that also. Oh well.

By the way, I finally poked around in my scanner software enough to figure out that just TURNING OFF ALL THE DAMN OPTIONS makes it scan BEAUTIFULLY. Expect much better quality from here on out. :)

[funfetus]

I'm painting up that last one. I'm gonna be busy all day, so I figured I'd stop and show my work. I'm not sure how far I want to take it, but it's still got a long way that it could go. The foreground definitely needs a lot more work to feel dimensional, and the whole thing could use a lot of tightening. Still, I think this method of organizing values I've been using is helping it read well, and it's helping my confidence a lot. I don't feel like I'm guessing as much. It's almost a paint-by-numbers.

[brunopicinini]

hey buddy!

nice to see you keeping your SB updated all the time!

I've just checked your old blog, damn, you improved a lot man! that's the good part of keeping the ol stuff, so when you feel you are not improving at all, just take a look in some old work and you will se that you did improve

i really like all your studies, one can see that they are really paying off!
I was about to tell somehting about that leg of the guy ons mountains, but then I saw that on the colored version you've changed it ... it looks way better!

about the color stuff, can you post a link or something where you got all that information? or is from a lot of websites? I suck pretty bad at colors hehe, so I was a little bit confused about what you said.


best,
Bruno

[walnut]

On that last pic, the guy could use a bit more torso perhaps? And the hand grabbing the rock, there's something, i'm not sure, it could be too small. But it reads strangely. Oh yeah, and where's his ear?

Nice pencils btw. It always inspires to see other people learning and advancing.

[Clocks]

I like the angle you chose on that character, its very dynamic! And you're right the values are looking good.

Something looks a bit off in his skin tone. Specifically I think it is a bit too red. I'm not quite sure but I think adding more hues would help.

I'm still struggling with skin tones myself, they are very hard! But you seem to be getting there quickly, keep it up!

[jedininjaman]

Wow that is a beautiful sketchbook, one of the few I read first to last post...

nice work, I really like how you shade along the planes of your figures, that helps so much w/ texture and form and other stuff, i hope you dont mind that i copy that method in my next sketch>:D

I posting here b/c u posted in mine, and i snt u a private msg too, so i guess there is a lot of jedininjaman goin on for u...
but keep it up and enjoy the stars they are well earned! oh and i am now subcribed:rendered: looking forward to following this...

crit sometime in my book again, I'd appreciate it!
-Taylor

[Hazart]

Great studies. Inspirational! Keep it going :)

[funfetus]

Bruno -- Thanks a lot, man, I appreciate it.

Walnut -- Thanks for the heads up. You're definitely right about the torso, if I understand you. I noticed that his waist was a lot thicker in my pencil drawing, and it looks a lot better. I think I screwed it up when I moved his leg. I'm not sure if I'm going to continue on this one, but if I do, I'll take your advice into consideration.

Clocks -- Thanks, man. Yeah, the skin is a bit too red. If I continue, I'll fix it. I had already planned to go back in and work in some hue variation, because everything's pretty monochromatic presently.

Jedininjaman -- Thanks very much, man. If you think this is good, you should check out some of the pro and 5-star sketchbooks. You'll cry tears of joy and jealous rage. :) Feel free to "copy" any techniques you want. I didn't make any of this stuff up -- I'm standing on the shoulders of giants like everyone else.

Hazart -- Thanks, man, glad you enjoyed it.

------------------------

Okay, update: Mostly just some random sketches.

Also: A) I used to write down my dreams when I woke up so that I'd remember them better. I pretty much stopped when I got back into art, and I've wanted to start again, and B) I was watching a Bobby Chiu video on youtube where he was talking about getting into a routine where you draw for a half hour or so as soon as you wake up. So, I decided to kill two birds with one stone, and draw my dreams for a half hour as soon as I wake up. I started drawing last night's dream, which involved eating stolen ice cream bars, and I got so frustrated at the crappy hand that I kept drawing, that I switched over to doing Bridgman hand studies.

The last one is just a lunchtime/breaktime drawing.

[Pedro Cardoso]

fetus man... i just loved ALL your sketches!!! woah!
congratulations man!
and uh... if you have some time would mind taking a look at mines?
later!

[crazylegs]

Hey I checked out the site with the old stuff, great work! I especially liked the zipperhead and the crouching figure that you use as your avatar. keep up the good work!

[brunopicinini]

hey buddy

man, I can see improvement in every post!! I am jealous :( hehe

hahaha liked the idea of waking up and drawing, 2 things though
can u pass me the links where you saw those videos? (can be by PM)
and, I believe you work as well right? for me is really hard to wake up and draw since I start working pretty early and I use the morning time to hum, wake up basically, read my email and rss feeds

I've seen you've took a look at vilppu doing all those beans ... keep with it! those exercises seens simple at the essence, but man, they are so good!! you'll be using later, I'll promise

nice bridgman

yeah, your grasp with clothes it is a lot better from before, are those from ref or from imagination?

I really really liked the last one ... cool character with cool pet ... the character really have a good feel, it almost seens that this guy really exists hehe

keep up the good work!
best
Bruno

[Hazart]

Thx for commenting my sb. Your last pic is awesome. Especially that sworddude. Great handstudies as well.

[TheGnoll]

nice nice nice stuff man, diggin' the sketches, nice and varied subjects ;)

cool practices with color too, damn, i should start doing some too...

keep sharing!
ciao

[funfetus]

Pedro Cardoso -- Thanks for looking, glad you enjoyed it.

Crazylegs -- Thanks, man. Some of that old work is pretty embarassing, but I still like the ones you mentioned. The technique is a little blah, but I think they have a good mood.

Bruno -- Yeah, I work, but I have a kind of unusual situation. I work nights, and I usually go to sleep a couple hours after I get home. That means I usually have 4 or 5 hours between getting up and going to work. What Bobby Chiu was talking about, though (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=935nSBMMKYk, if you want to hear it from him instead of me. :) ) was just toughing it out and getting up earlier.

The clothes are all from imagination, with a couple exceptions -- you can probably spot which ones those are.

Thanks for saying that about the character and pet -- I feel like actually designing characters is a big weak point of mine, because I haven't really spent much time on it. I usually just draw kinda generic, nobody figures, but I'm trying to get out of that habit by trying to give every figure I draw a personality and a bit of a story.

Hazart -- Thanks a lot, man, I appreciate it.

TheGnoll -- Thanks very much. Yeah, do some color! That's what I told you on your SB! :)

------------------------------------

Okay, so I picked up a little mirror last night so I can do some self-portraits. I haven't done one in years -- since I was punk kid with a nose ring and black nail polish.:nohope: It took longer than it should have, and it's not a great likeness, but whattayagonna do. The next one'll be better.

[voxelfog]

SP looks good. Shadows under the chin and lips seem a little muddy, but looks great otherwise.

Your pencils are great too. Especially these too. Really like the hands.
http://www.conceptart.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=174064&stc=1&d=1185291824
http://www.conceptart.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=174066&stc=1&d=1185291840

[Cavendish]

That gas mask dude rocks! . )

[Jazz]

Heeeeyo, funfetus!! I haven't been around for so long! So I MUST say something to you guys!! :(

Man, your progress is just amazing!! I love the pencil work and the clothing! The folds look so improved! Excellent work!!

Your self-portrait is truly well done! You look cute! ;) I love the colours you used, and how you added what appears to be stubble...whiskers...whatever it's called around your mouth! I love the shape of the ear, but the colouring I'm curious about. The light appears orange/yellow/red without any hint of blue for the rest of the face. So did your ear in fact look that pinky colour when you were doing the portrait? It's been a while since I'd got to study light and colour, but I want to make sure I'm also on the right track. :)

[Sirio_Brozzi]

Fetusman! Dropping by to say hello. Really like the colors on the recent SP, some little quibbles, but pretty good for a first shot(about 96% better than my feeble attempt) :p I liked your approach to studies for cloth, and different materials. Only thing I'll say is that when doing photo studies for things such as environments, the color always gets warped somehow, mainly it gets dulled out, so remember to compensate a little bit. Nice SB. Keep it up! :D (and that page 1 fallout-y dude looks awesome..and his dog).

[topiKal]

I really love your loose sketches. I really love the way that you render fabrics and folds in clothing (something I really need to practice myself). The improvement in this SB is phenomenal. Keep at it!

[funfetus]

Voxelfog -- Thanks, man. Yeah, you're right, the shadows on the chin area are a bit crap. I actually have no idea why I used gray instead of the blue/violet I'd been using for the rest of the shadow size. Eh. Say it with me: "I'll do better next time."

Cavendish -- Yeah, he rocks hard. Thanks for noticing.

Jazz -- Good to see you around, Jazz! Thanks for the comments. Yeah, I've been working really hard on drapery, and I think it's really starting to click now. As for the self-portrait, thanks for the compliments, and about the ear -- I just tried to paint it the color I was seeing it. I'm not sure if I got it quite right. I think ears (at least on white people) tend to be more red than the rest of the face, except maybe the nose. But I think the reason they were so red in mine is that the lamp I was using was really close to my head, and the light may have been showing through my ear a little. :)

Sirio_Brozzi -- Thanks for the compliments, and for the advice -- I'll try to keep it in mind in the future. So, what are your quibbles? Come on, man, I want criticism. CRITISIZZUMMMMM!!!!

topikal -- Drapery is something that I really just faked (if I drew it at all) my whole life, until a few months ago when I decided to just buckle down and learn it. Glad to know it's paying off. Thanks for looking!

-------------------

Okay, here's just some sketches from the past couple days. A crap-ton more Bridgman hands (these are what I've been doing when I wake up the last few days), then random lunchtime and TV time sketches. Most are from imagination, a couple are from life. Nothing fancy.

[SantaClaus]

hi funfetus

nice line work and studies. Just keep doing what you are doing... There is a good improvement in your work. You have a real nice SB goin!

[Sheavolution]

Heya!

What do you mean with "faking" anyways? Did you just didnt do it or what?
Good hand studies, looking good.. most of em are a bit.. villain-ish :) Dont got over the top with the bones though. You dont hear me complain, you doing a great job these days.. so many studies and learning and everyone can see it. :)

[crazylegs]

Great SB! Love the hand studies. Good Characters also. Keep it coming.

[ped454]

I quite like the way your clothing folds...how many people have said that!!!!

But no really. love the faces and studies...nothing more to say really

[ForScience]

I love your figures. You can tell that you draw a lot from life. Like everybody else, I really love the way you draw cloth on the figure.

[Loolarge]

Cool stuff. I too can see the clicking drapery coming :)

[funfetus]

Shea -- By "faking it", I mean I just kinda scribbled in some lines that I thought looked right -- I didn't make an effort to understand the different types of folds, how they radiate from tension points, etc. And I didn't really draw them as 3D objects, just lines. Eh. The hands are just copies from a Bridgman book, so if they're villainish, blame him. :) (I suppose it's possible that I'm subconsciously turning up the evil a little bit.)

SantaClaus, crazylegs, Ped454, ForScience, Loolarge -- Thanks very much to all of you, I appreciate it.


-----

'Nother self portrait. I think this one is generally better overall. The likeness is definitely better. The one issue I had is that the lighting setup I chose totally flattened out the planes around my nose and cheek. I tried to hint at form with hue/saturation changes, while keeping the value relatively constant. And I'm not sure the mouth is quite right -- Sargent said "A portrait is a likeness with something wrong about the mouth", and that guy knew what he was talking about. :)

[SantaClaus]

Hi

this last self portrait is nice. I think it has gotten better form the last as well. I think you did a good job defining the planes of the face. It probably wouldnt hurt to do that a bit more like on his nose. the real saturated orange seems a bit out of place by your cheek area. The highlight on the cheek bone seems to me to be closer to true color. I find now a days that a true skin tone seem to be a variant of a desaturated red-violet. Very nice overall. the angle it is done in makes it a very interesting portrait to look at. If my crits don't apply or you were going for something I didn't know about just ignore me cause its real good stuff. :)

[jedininjaman]

wow that looks pretty good!
The only think that looks a little funky is his right nostril, but I dont know that could just be me. I like the style of shading though even though it is a little flat...

Good work
Oh ,by the way I updated my SB a few times since you last checked and I would love to hear what you think so stop by sometime

Keep it up, and I look forward to hearing from you :)

[kovah]

thanks for stopping by my sketchbook. You have some awesome studies in here, i love the hand ones especially. Can't wait to see more XD

[brunopicinini]

hey buddy

nice work at the portrait ... how long took you to do that one?

your drawings from bridgman are beautiful
one thing only, I think you could go for more finished pieces hehe ... of course we all still have a lot to learn, but I believe that you would be able to pull of some nice pics with that wacom of yours

try joining more the skethces of the week and stuff ... the ones you did before came out great!

best
Bruno

[funfetus]

santaClaus -- Thanks for looking. You may well be right about the saturated orange on the cheek/nose. Now that I look at it again, it looks a little weird. I was doing my best to define the planes will sticking close to what I saw. Maybe it's time for some artistic license there? :)

jedininjaman -- The right nostril is just my broken-ass nose. :) Yeah, parts of this one are definitely flat. IDBNT <--- I'll do better next time.

kovah -- Thanks a lot, I appreciate it.

Bruno -- Oh man, this one took about 3 hours. Way longer than it should have, but parts of it, especially the lips, just drove me crazy for long periods. Hmm...now that I think of it, some of that 3 hours was on an aborted earlier version from a different angle, that I gave up on after my computer blue-screened twice in a row before I could even save (turned out to be a funky Wacom driver). As for doing more finished pieces -- I'm getting there. I still feel like there are some major holes in my game that I want to sort out before I go on to any "portfolio pieces" or anything of that sort. I'm getting closer, though. I might do a few of those Daily Sketch Group deals or whatever when I get a little time, though.

---------

Just a couple sketches I did at work, and at Starbucks. They actually just opened up a new Starbucks that's a little less out of my way on my way home from work. I stopped in to draw the morning crowd as usual, but it turns out that, since this one has a drive-through, no one actually goes in. Oh well. I guess it's yet more out-of-the-way-ness for my life gesture drawing.

[CinemaSawmills]

Thanks for your comments in my sketchbook! Your painting is superb and something I aspire to! I hope you won't mind me hanging around to try and learn something!

[funfetus]

CinemaSawmills -- Thanks very much! Not only do I not mind if you hang around, I practically demand it!

--------------------------

So here's a few things I've drawn the past few days. I've been doing a lot of perspective-y experiments, so that's nothing to show, but these are what I hope is worth looking at:
Someone said (I think it was in my sketchbook, but...maybe not) to draw characters interacting with each other, so I put on some MMA videos, and paused and drew gestures at a few points. Two figures grappling is about as interacting as I can imagine (well...perhaps one step removed...), so I figure it's good practice. It's harder than I thought it would be. The next page is a couple of standard MMA situations from imagination -- again, quite hard, as evidenced by my sketchy lines and frequent erasing. Then, my girlfriend and I have been watching this reality show called "Fight Girls", about a bunch of badass female muay thai fighters, so I drew a badass female muay thai fighter. (I know the proportion is off and her left foot is a little wonky -- I need more work on those things.)The last one is just something that developed in my head during a conversation with a friend, and it creeped me the hell out. I think I'd like to explore this theme further.

[_andreas_]

hooray for the guts wagon!
your sb is inspiring, the amount of work and diversity is really nice.
i like the self portraits and your studies the most.. id love to see some more experiments with styles.. you kinda seem to go into the mh.. how to say it.. big heads/arms graffiti direction. does this interested you or am i off by a gazillion percent?

[Sleepy_Head]

Your studies of hands, eyes and mouths are really great. Love the line quality and shading.

I like the ideas behind some of the drawings, especially the gut harvester and the guy with the back of his head blown out. Sweet.

S

[AmontilladoAg]

Great drawz, man 8)

O that you could impart to me a smidge of your digi-painting skillz... 'bout makes me cry those tears of, what was it? jealousy and rage? :P Your SPs kill me... *sigh*

Keep up the awesome work :teeth:

[funfetus]

_andreas_ -- Thanks for the comments. Big head/arms graffiti direction? Man, I hope not! Which pics are you seeing that on? It's definitely not intentional. I know I have some proportion issues sometimes.

Sleepy Head -- Appreciate it, especially the comment about liking the ideas, since I've never really thought of imagination as one of my strong points.

AmontilladoAg -- Thanks very much! Don't worry, you'll receive your own tribute of jealousy/rage tears in time. It's the circle of life. :) Thanks for the compliments on the SP's -- I'll be doing more soon. I feel like I learn a lot from them.

-------------

So, a few bits from the last week or so. Some random sketches, a horrible beast I saw in a dream and drew when I woke up, some studies (shoulder girdle and pelvis), and, after seeing Aaron Coberly's limited palette paintings (http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?t=99774), I wanted to give it a shot -- the drawing is actually pretty crap, but I was amazed at what I was able to get by mixing only 3 colors plus white.

[Evxyza92]

I dunno , man That imaganition , plus with your strong fundementals, really , I mean really , shows some skill, :)

[funfetus]

Evxyza92 -- Thanks, man, I appreciate that.

-------

So, nothing but self-portraits today. A bunch of sketches -- some of them decent likenesses, some not so much -- and a paint, which I'm really pleased with. I used the same only-3-colors technique that I demonstrated above. Never touched the color picker once I had my 3 colors. My hypothesis is that you can't help but have decent color harmony that way.

[Jazz]

Man!! You progress in leaps and bounds, funfetus! I'm so amazed by the different "characters" and all the poses! Great work with interacting between two people in one of your pages! Oh yes, and the painting's really paying off for you! I keep seeing it looking smoother, always standing out, too!

Ha!! You remind me to do a self-portrait again soon! XD AND...I didn't say it in my SB (forgot! XD ), but you're totally welcome about Cowboy Bebop! Awesome series! I haven't seen Evangelion, so let me know how that one turns out!

[_andreas_]

very very nice selfportraits!
your colorwork and the things you do from life are getting somewhere shiny and awesome!

the big head / arms things could be something of style.. some of the drawings on the first pages had that vibe.
i thought that those could be a sign of going-into-the-graffiti-side-of-things.
if your like "wtf?" now, forget me mentioning it! =)

[voxelfog]

That last SP looks sweet!
You did a great job on the values and colors, but something about the eye looks a little strange to me.... like it's facing the camera a little too much maybe?

Inspiring stuff, all around, tho. :)

[funfetus]

_andreas_ -- Thanks, man. Yeah, I feel like I'm figuring out some stuff with color now, and it's helping a lot.

Jazz -- Thanks very much. Funny how that works -- you keep doing it, and it gets better. :)

voxelfog -- Thanks for the encouragement. About the eye, I'm not sure -- I know that I made my brow and the bridge of my nose project too far forward, and I didn't notice until I'd called it done. That might be making it look weird. I think the eye's a bit too big, too.

-------

Okay, so life has gotten a bit crazy for me in the past couple weeks. I had to move out of my apartment on short notice, and I'm currently staying at my girlfriend's until we're moved into our new place (which should be complete this week -- whew). I've been really busy with moving, and I haven't had a lot of time to draw -- I feel like I've lost a step since I'm not drawing daily. I'm trying to squeeze in time whenever I can, though. I don't have my Wacoms with me either, so it's all pencil. I've got a lot of pages of scribbles and experiments, but not a lot worth showing for how long it's been. I've been focusing a bit on character design, and on clean linework, because I'm tempted to draw a comic.

[_andreas_]

uh
i really like the stuff!
the environments, the characters.. you SHOULD make a comic!
your lines are clean and you seem to very capable to choose interesting camera angles and actions.

i´m impressed.
show more!

also:
i hope moving in goes well, the focus on the pencil work is nothing bad!

[ped454]

I think I'm going to give that lifedrawing/morning-staring-at-people-walking-by thing a try. It seems to have done you a world of good and kept you in shape. Loving the limited palette paintings. Are those done in Painter or PS? it seems like painter to me.

Anyways. My fav. since the last post is the chick in the post above. The one with the funky hair. Till next time. lats. respeeeect

[Chiko]

I love the recent batch of character sketchs! Really nice poses and lines. You have a great sense of weight and motion.

I love the girl walking down the side walk! great view, I need so much work to get more dynamic shots like that....

[spudstudios]

love those last sketches. very strong!

[brunopicinini]

master funfetus!
finally I am back, sorry for the absence

so, I hope the moving is gettng along, I know how boring it can be ...

I really like your characters, they are becoming more and more "live", with a lot of expression on them I would say ...
yeah, a comic book would be a good idea ... I believe you would benefit a lot from it

best
Bruno

[funfetus]

_andreas_ -- Thanks very much -- I'm still thinking a lot about doing a comic, but I have no specific ideas -- we'll see what happens.

ped454 -- Yeah, life-drawing helps a ton, even if it's just quick sketches. Thanks for the encouragement. Yeah, those paintings are Painter -- most of what I'm doing nowadays is. The chick with the funky hair is one of my favorites too. My misspent youth has left me with soft spot for girls with mohawks. :)

Chiko, spudstudios -- Thanks, appreciate it.

brunopicinini -- Thanks very much -- the move is complete, now it's just getting the place set up how we want it. It's coming along nicely. Thanks for the comments about the characters and expressions -- I agree. I think I'm getting comfortable enough just drawing them that I can start to infuse more life into them now. I've also been reading about character design, so maybe that's helping.

--------------------

So here's a bunch of random crap from the past couple weeks. I haven't even touched color, and only one of these is digital -- an "inked" guy that I did in Manga Studio. Not a bad program, for what it is. I'm focusing a lot more on getting my linework nailed down, in case I end up doing a comic. And if not, it can't hurt to have a variety of styles that I can work in. Been doing some facial features studies with a mirror. Learned a lot. Also -- I've been doing a lot of my giant-page-of-scribbleses lately, so I decided to throw a few in, because I wouldn't have much to show otherwise.

[alesoun]

Love the caricature faces on the bottom right! You're developing a very distinctive style....

[funfetus]

Thanks, Alesoun, I appreciate it.

---
I've been stuck on comic-style linework lately, plus struggling with character designs that I can draw consistently, and those aren't worth showing. Gotta get back to some color work soon, I've probably slipped a lot. Eh.

[Virum]

Love your stuff man - the "real" stuff is solid anatomy wise, and your stylizations show that you understand the rules and so you bend them well with great success.

I like your landscapes too - I doubt I'd' have the patience for that.

[Sirio_Brozzi]

Really dug that last sp you did man, nice job with the colors. Really starting to see a style emerge here. :) That inked backpacker especially, really clean work. As a crit, sometimes you're drawing the feet on females a tad too small. Keep up the great work dude(and the stars!)

[BranFlakes]

While you're def anatomy-versed and your studies are great, i absolutly love your comic-style linework. i personally think the last few updates are tight

[agelaos]

hey man, you definitely improved alot and quickly from the first post. Really like those sp's and you're developing quite a nice style. My only crit is to keep drawing, and studying, I don't see anything quite off at the moment. Keep it up.

And thanks for commenting in my book, I really appreciate your crit, I totally didn't see how bad some of my proportions were, until you said something. I am definitely spending alot more of my time in that category. Thanks again man.

[Chief]

Woooooaw, really love your work!! The inked guy up there is stellar.

Oh and thanks for the crit :)

[funfetus]

Thanks for the comments, everyone, and SirioBrozzi -- you're totally right about the feet. Maybe it's a subconscious thing.

-----


I give up on this one. I feel like I can't paint anymore. I promise not to take several weeks away from color under any circumstances again.

[agelaos]

hmm, its a little muddy in some spots, could use a bit more contrast, feels a bit plain at the moment. come up with a mood you want, like if its a depressing one, obviously more darker areas, maybe a more dramatic lighting scene. And probably might add a little more light on that cigarette burn. Keep it up man, keep goinnn.

[merl1n]

very nice pencilworks and overall cool sb! :)

[_andreas_]

great updates, especially the painting in the last one!
the color palette is interesting and its a nice touch to give her a red bracelet

she does have a different vibe than in the line art.. but i don't think its a bad thing.

anyways, ill work harder to catch up! thx for putting fire under my ass

[jedininjaman]

whoa man I love the new line work you have some great concepts and your lines are so clean too great work and keep it up
-jedininja

[LotusFleur]

Hey Funfetus! You've got nice work in here!

I like the movement that your Starbucks sketches have.
I think that your persistence in studying things is very important and also the fact that you 're so organized in your studies.

By observing your works I get the feeling that I like your sketches better than the colored versions.
I don't know why that is... maybe they lose some of their clarity. Then again it might be just me... :)

Keep up the good work, I'll come again!

[funfetus]

aelaos -- Yeah, you're right. I probably should've pushed it a lot further, and not enough contrast tends to be an issue with me. I just got frustrated, but I might go back to it later. Thanks for the comments.

Merl1n and jedininjaman -- Thanks, guys.

_andreas -- Thanks a lot. The different vibe is probably due to the fact that I changed her face a lot -- her expression is less smug now. :) I actually kinda liked it better in the sketch, now that I look at it. So yeah, catch up! I've got some more fire for your ass right here!

LotusFleur -- Thanks very much! I agree with you about the sketches vs. color. It's probably just because I'm not that good at painting yet. :)


==================

Today I have some sketches of some fightiness. I was reading something where this guy was saying not to just draw figures standing in the air -- put them into an environment, make them interact. Make them hug, or wrestle, or kiss, and see how much you really don't know. So I decided to make an effort to always have any figure I draw doing SOMETHING. Today, I went with fighting. After the first one (coincidentally, the only one where there's no body contact ;) ), it's just quick sketches -- or rather, loose sketches, because they actually weren't that quick. I feel like most of them came out alright, but it took a surprisingly long time to get to those points -- lots of erasing and redrawing, trying to get the figures to interlock just right. It's definitely hard, but I think I'm getting the hang of it, and I'll definitely be doing more.

[agelaos]

"not to just draw figures standing in the air" haha, I do that way too much. Thanks for sharing the knowledge, gotta start doing these myself. You're using reference pictures right? Looking good. You're definitely on the right track, keep it up.

[Sirio_Brozzi]

Dude, nice, nice sketches. I really like the second sheet, very dynamic and well done(that body slam one especially, nice work). And btw, that last painting wasn't so bad, don't be so harsh on yourself! Keep up the good work dude.

[IvkeBG]

Hey man, you've got a great style developing. You've also made a lot of progress since your first posts. I really like your linework and variety of characters. Keep up the good work!

[funfetus]

agelaos -- Thanks, man. Yeah, do it! I neglect putting figures into environments/situations too much myself. I'm already noticing that it's making me draw poses I don't normally draw, and it's hard, but I'm learning. As for this last batch of fighty pictures, no, I didn't use any reference. I think that would actually kinda defeat the point of this exercise. The goal is to work out the relationships in space. I chose martial arts (mostly grappling and kickboxing) because I've done some training, so the positions are pretty familiar to me. It helps if you can kinda "feel" it while you're drawing.

Sirio_brozzi -- Thanks, man. I've always felt that dynamic gestures are one of my strong points, but adding interaction with a second figure adds a whole new layer of challenge. This was fun, I feel like I learned something, and it makes for more interesting pictures to look at, so I'll definitely be doing more soon.

IvkeBG -- Thanks, I appreciate it. :)

============

Today, in accordance with my new "no guys just standing in the air" rule, I drew some silliness. That ringmaster guy kinda sucks, now that I look at it again. His torso is too short. Eh. Not much else to say.

[MsMaverick]

OoOoh, ripping flesh, nice! Haha, no, that's really well done; I totally believe that dude's getting cut in half. I also like the anatomy of the guy doing the slicing, the way you did his torso you can really see his muscles working. That's a problem I have sometimes; the muscles are always kind of static, they way they'd look just any old time. =/ Nice work, though, your fight sketches are inspiring!

[funfetus]

MsMaverick -- Thanks! I drew it after listening to a podcast review Ninja Scroll. If you've ever seen Ninja Scroll, you know all about the dudes getting cut in half.

==============================

Just a self-portrait. I decided to switch back to Photoshop for my main app. Painter has some great points, but its interface just holds me back from things that are so simple to do in Photoshop. Coming back to PS felt like coming home from a long trip and seeing all my family and friends. I think it does tend to make me work differently, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. It's actually more straightforward -- less getting caught up in all the brush options. Also -- I always come out looking like a dick in my self-portraits. Anyway.

[_andreas_]

hehehe
GET MORE SLEEP!

you sure look like you could use it!
it still feels kinda weird to see your line art and then a painting.
these seem to come from two different people.
the line art is always very focused and strict, the paintings look loose and fun.

great updates, keep them coming!

[MsMaverick]

Lol, that's what I was about to say! Get some shut eye, man. That portrait looks good, though, bold and broad strokes that say you know what you're doing. You look angry, haha. =d

[funfetus]

Thanks, you guys, but I just look like that, really. :) _andreas_ -- that's an interesting observation. I've definitely become a lot tighter with my linework lately, because I've been contemplating doing a comic. As for the painting, though, I tend to like a painterly look, rather than something really polished. It's also easier. :) MsMaverick -- Thanks. But if you saw what was under all those broad strokes, you might change your mind. :) Seriously, painting from life is actually pretty easy. The main thing is picking the right colors. After that, it's just copying the shapes. I guess the hard part is in the seeing.

============

Today, some more fighty sketches, a few heads, focusing a bit on facial expressions (No more guys standing in the air, no more blank stares -- that's the plan, anyway.), and a landscape speedie. I actually got really caught up in making custom brushes, so it took me way longer than I expected. Started from reference, but wung it toward the end there. It's (obviously, I hope) a lake and a forest, but I couldn't quite make that peninsula on the left side there look like it wasn't floating in the air. Oh well.

[House Hatke]

Hey, i'm really impressed by the fighting sketches. Good stuff, man.

[MattVogt]

Your consistent fetal grindings are amazing man! Looks like you got painting back under control ha. I enjoy your varied of work. Excellent people study topped with creative character pieces and strong compositions makes for good viewing. Not much to crit - could try adding more contour lines in studies.

Keep up the enthusiasm
Matt

[agelaos]

hey funfetus, That last sp is looking good man, do you usually do these from photos, or like using a mirror?

The landscape scene is looking pretty good so far. I think a few crits for it would be to add a water line where those trees are in the back, which seem to be in the water. Basically a thin white line where the trees end, so they don't look like they're part of the water, I think you can add a water line to anything thats in the water, so it doesn't merge together. I watch alot of Bob Ross : D.
Personally I think alot of environments in photoshop should be done with custom brushes, just because its alot easier, It'll be so damn hard to create a bush or a tree with just a round brush, it probably just wouldn't look right. you just have to find, or make the right kind of brushes. The best bet is to experiment, see what works and what doesn't.

Keep it up bro!

[Keenir]

Today, some more fighty sketches, a few heads, focusing a bit on facial expressions (No more guys standing in the air, no more blank stares -- that's the plan, anyway.), and a landscape speedie. I actually got really caught up in making custom brushes, so it took me way longer than I expected. Started from reference, but wung it toward the end there. It's (obviously, I hope) a lake and a forest, but I couldn't quite make that peninsula on the left side there look like it wasn't floating in the air. Oh well.


actually, to my eyes, it looks like the edge of a dam (ie built by beavers).

very nice; looks like there aren't any mosquitos out there.

[AmontilladoAg]

Yer werk is cool :) I wish I had helpful crits to give ya...

but I'm too busy cheering and waving my "Yay funfetus" flag in the air :bounce:

One suggestion -- smiling SP! :teeth:

Cheers :D

[BobbyDash]

Dude, I love the way you do your faces. The style that is. Also, your motion/fight sketches are awesome. KUTGW.

[Jazz]

Heeey, funfetus!! :D :D I REALLY appreciate the push you gave on my SB! It's great to know someone's still checking in on me! ^_^

I'm loving your fight stuff!! The movement is more than just "there", which is awesome! On post 201, that slicing creeps me out, but then it MUST be effective if it does that! XD I love how the slicing guy's shoulders are strong and tense like that!

Very nice paintings!! To have that patience for a portrait or scene is totally impressive! When you paint your portrait in Photoshop, do you have a mirror nearby? Or do you use some other method to get your likeness??

As for the pretty forest and water, very neat brushes you used! I wonder if the water's image is even a pinch darker than the real trees and stuff, because as you have it, the water's reflection is just perfectly clear, so in some places it looks like the trees just keep going! I have no idea about that stuff yet, but is that how it would look anyway?

Anyhoo...hee hee!! Can't wait to see what else you come up with in regards to the fighting and the comic! I wanted to make comics, but I'm discouraged at the moment. :(

[jedininjaman]

Nice action in those pics, and you have a nice feel in your environment and your self portrait is pretty hardcore, keep it up bro your work is a pleasure to see:)
jedininja

[Camara]

What a great SB!!!I really love your pencils and your studies!!!!

Keep posting,please!!

[Sirio_Brozzi]

Haha! Man you update quick :3
http://www.conceptart.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=204326&stc=1&d=1190132759
That sketch is kickass, nice and dynamic dude. The last sp turned out pretty good, perhaps you could push the color a little bit(you look tired too, get some sleep) :P . That landscape study is interesting too, some nice reflection work you got there, as for the peninsula problem...I would guess that its because it doesnt look like the water and land mass don't look like they're interacting. Wouldn't there be some ripples near the shore? I can't tell as I don't know what your ref. must have been like. Keep up the good stuff!

[TheGnoll]

for some very weird reason i didn't remember you were THIS good man.
Excellent work ;)

keep sharing, i'll b back for more soon :)

ciao

[funfetus]

agelaos -- Thanks, man. I do all these self-portraits in a mirror. I definitely prefer to work from life (I think a mirror counts as life) as opposed to photos whenever possible. As for the water line, yeah, I think you're right. I don't really remember if there was a visible one in the ref photo, but I really didn't do a good job of delineating the "real" part from the reflection, either way.

AmontilladoAg -- I'm not sure I can smile for that long, but I'll give it a shot. :)

JazzW -- Thanks. :) Yeah, you're right, I didn't darken the reflection in the water. I made a lot of mistakes on that piece...but that's how you learn, right? Like I mentioned up there, I use a mirror. You've done a few drawings in a mirror, right? It's really handy. Better than photos generally, I think, except you can only draw in poses where you can see the mirror. :)

Everyone else -- thanks for the comments. You guys give me a little extra push to get my shit updated. :)

=======

Today: Feet studies (mostly from reference, because your own feet are hard to draw, but a few from life -- I discovered that the foot is really just a huge, misshapen hand!), a dude, and some gestures.

[Sirio_Brozzi]

Great studies as usual mate. Really dig that 4th sheet, you have a knack for solid, dynamic sketches. Foot studies are turning out good too so far. Only crit is that the second drawing of the scraggly dude, with such an aggressive face, I'd imagine him carrying something other than a cigar :3 ..maybe some pointy things.

[funfetus]

SirioBrozzi -- Maybe he's about to stick that cigar in your EYE! Heh, thanks for the comments, man.

===

Speedy from reference. (Abandoned insane asylum!) Tons of custom brushes on this...they're fun. :) This sort of stuff is really pretty new to me -- I never paid much attention to environments before. I think the main issue with this one is that I started getting crazy before I'd clearly defined the planes and light sources. The colors are a little muddy too. Eh.

[MeTaL-Mike]

Man. your stuff is fucking amazing man. great studies. i love the studies that you did of the lips, eyes and clothes. think i'll try that too. seems like a good exercise for value and color studies. awesome man.

[MsMaverick]

Whoo, I'm liking your environments! The one on the previous page has some problems around the edges, but I really like the way you did the water and some of the foliage. This one of the abandoned insane asylum is much more effective; your lighting especially is really strong. And those feet are great! As good as any foot page I've seen =P

[agelaos]

That last one is very nice man. Thought it was a photo at first, thats how good it is.
Lovin those gesture drawings you're doing, keep it up man.

[Flesheater]

I really like your lineart! It looks very good.

[funfetus]

Metal Mike -- Thanks a lot. Yeah, I think it is a good exercise, you should definitely try it out. Any studies are good studies, I think.

MsMaverick -- Yeah, I'm getting used to doing environments, I guess. The water on that last one gave me a lot of trouble. This one was more straightforward. I tried to do some buildings today and totally failed, though. :(

Agelaos -- Thanks, man, that's a great compliment. My girlfriend said the same thing. I think the floor came out really well, and that tricks you into thinking the rest is better. :)

Flesheater -- Thanks a lot, man.

======

So, I've been working on this again. Some of you might remember it from the first page. It still has a ways to go, but I just wanted to show it, since I've been spending a lot of time on it, and maybe solicit some advice. Something about the dude's skin doesn't look right -- I can't quite peg it. I think it's rendered a bit tighter and smoother than I intended, but I'm not sure if that's it. I think the color's just wrong. I'm also putting off really painting the dog's fur -- it scares me. :bashful:

[agelaos]

sweeeeet man. I like it so far, But I think the figures look a bit like they're floating at the moment, I'd say you need to add a stronger shadow on the ground. Im not exactly sure if this will fix it, but might be worth a try. Especially the mans feet, they don't really appear to be planted on the ground.

Good stuff man. Keep it up!

[Alexandr Pascenko]

can´t remember i´ve been here before , but now i´m gonna remember this sketchbook , cuz the last sketches looks very promising!

esp. liking this one http://conceptart.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=207721&stc=1&d=1190655149

keep it going!

[Sirio_Brozzi]

Envo. turned out great fetus, as for the new piece, the dude just needs more variety in the skin hues. :0 Dig the post apocalyptik theme. Ciao amigo. :o3

[AnthonyFoti]

fantastic cigar dude, great expression.

[funfetus]

Agelaos -- You're definitely right about the shadows. I know there's some serious work I need to do around the feet. I still have the man and the dog on a separate layer, just kinda floating there. I usually work with everything one one layer -- it just feels more natural for me -- but I'm not sure if I'm done doing major adjustments on the background. I think the angle of the feet may need tweaking, too.

Goblinshark -- Thanks so much, I'm a big fan of your work. I appreciate the comment.

Sirio_Brozzi -- Thanks, man. You're definitely right -- I used the same colors all over. That's pathetic. :) I still feel like I don't have a good handle on painting skin. Time for some studies.

AnthonyFoti -- Thanks a lot, man.

====

Bunch of sketches -- some gestures from imagination, some from life, some random stuff, and a bunch of studies of the hips and pelvis. I always have trouble with that, especially on women -- the width of the hips throws me off for some reason.

[designboot]

Great linearts - guy with cigaro is the best!

[iman121]

Wowww great amazing

[agelaos]

Good work man, I can see you're understanding the human figure more and more. Can't wait to check this sketchbook out once you're on page 20 or so, will be interesting to see how you develop.

[funfetus]

designboot -- Thanks a lot, man. Yeah, I'm pretty proud of that one -- though his left eye is bothering me now...

iman121 -- Thanks very much. :)

agelaos -- Thanks, man. I'm really trying. That's the difference between the last 6 months or so, and, really, the rest of my life. I'm really STUDYING, rather than just drawing. It makes such a huge difference.


====

So I did this speedpaint of a mountain range (from ref), mostly with this palette-knifey brush I made. Then I started playing around with it in a new document, just painting a rock, trying out some techniques, and it turned into this ice dragon thing. The wings suck, but I like the head. As a result of the dragon, I kinda copped out on the mountains, but I'll post em anyway.

On a side note: Some of these custom brushes almost feels like cheating. :) This palette knife (just a squeezed circle brush set to "initial direction", really) makes defining angular planes and pointy bits so easy it's ridiculous. Now that I'm using Photoshop again I'm really getting into custom brushes, and, damn. That's where it's at. Just so you know.

[Sirio_Brozzi]

Oi Fetus, nice updates man :P Good stuff! Studies are great as usual, I just happened to catch one thing.
http://conceptart.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=208749&stc=1&d=1190827335 <---This one here, the girl on the top left, nice pose! Only thing is that the point where her inner leg and buttcheek meet, the leg melts into the 'gina area :O Theres a little indentation where those two meet! Look at this nice butt.
http://www.buildingbodies.ca/exercise-pictures/cute-butt.jpg <---see? I'm a butt expert.

The paintings are kickass dude, palette brushes rock. that mountain speedy turned out damn good, nice strokes, colors, solid little study. Keep messing around, its pretty tight stuff, cant wait to see what else you crank out dude. Ciao!

[sageguy]

I've only looked at the first and last of your pages...I have dial-up internet right now...but you may want to do some creature studies in all of the great studies you do. Go to the zoo and draw there for a day or somethin'. The dog in the picture loks like he's in mid downward jump. the ears don't look perked as much as the look like gravity and wind are fighting each other. However, I must say you are a better artist than I at the moment. You have solid work with your own style. I like it.

[S!R]

Fetus- Thanks for the recent comment on my SB, I have very much taken your advice to heart about doing studies on proportions, anatomy, etc.. thank you.

Btw you have alot of cool stuff. I like this one alot, dunno if its my fave but i like it alot...
http://www.conceptart.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=140935&stc=1&d=1179610269

Cheers.

[funfetus]

Sirio_Brozzi -- Thanks a lot, man. You're totally right about the buttcheek. See, that's why we have to study these things. The thing you're talking about is quite evident in all the studies in that post, but I did those after. :/

Sageguy -- Thanks for the comments. Yeah, I do need to do more animal/creature studies. I've been to the zoo to draw a couple times. My girlfriend and I actually had an annual membership last year and we went all the time, but I wasn't really drawing at the time. I've been meaning to start going again pretty soon. Thanks for the crits on the dog -- I'll take them into consideration when I finish him up. He's supposed to be sniffing the ground, but eh...if it doesn't look right, it doesn't look right.

S!R -- Thanks! I'm glad you feel that my crit helped. Of course, doing studies on anatomy and proportion is good for everyone. :)

===============

Some of you might recognize this from an earlier post. Just something to practice painting on. Focused on getting a variety of colors in the skintones. I'm pleased with how it came out. I used a new (to me) technique, which I'll probably expound on when I've got it down.

I think my understanding of light and shadow, and modeling with values is coming along, too. I had some epiphanies recently, which I will also expound upon when I've got them better sorted out. :)

[pagedown]

Thank you for the critique in my SB.
Your sketches are really dynamic and full with movement.
Karate one in post 341 is just amazing.

I would love to see more speedies!

[jedininjaman]

Cool work I really like your snow covered mountain w/ the helicopter
It has great perspective and depth to it cool work
also nice job on all of the anatomy stuff, and the fighting guys have nice crisp strong line too great job and keep it up, updated by the way so ya check it out
-jedininja

[JesArt]

Man you are amazing, just see your development throughtout this sketch book is amazing. Maybe I should start one, it could help. How do you draw those life drawings so fast.

[JesArt]

I just dont have a scanner

[CouchPotato]

Heya funfetus, thanks for leaving a note in my sketchbook! I think you got really great stuff here, I spent a couple of hours yesterday just looking through your stuff lol. I wish my figures have the same kind of life and grace that you have haha. Hopefully, that will come to me someday.

Thanks for your really kind note again! And keep up the good work!

[Blaz]

Oooh nice updates.
Great progress from last time I was here...

...hmm looking at your SB just put me in drawing mood! yay! :D

[armetage]

nice studies! and great updates!
Seems like you are getting better and better which is really fun to se :)

[_andreas_]

oh boy, ive been gone for 2 weeks and you turn into something else in the mean time!
great updates, love the environment and the last creature.

something that came to my mind:
the fallout guy with the dog looks really pasted into the scene.
they both don't have to seem weight/ the proper placement.
some foreground element or a shadow could help.

[funfetus]

Thanks very much, everyone, I appreciate it.

_andreas_ -- You're totally right about the fallout pic. I still haven't gotten to integrating them into the scene the right way. I definitely plan to do some stronger shadows, and kinda dig them into the dirt a bit. I'm not sure if the perspective is correct, either. I may need to "sculpt" the ground plane a bit.

======

Here are a couple of comic-style deals. I've decided I want to pursue drawing comics, at least for the time being. Develop my line style, really learn to ink (at least digitally) and do some pages. Maybe get some work. I think it's doable in the near future, and it beats working the night shift at Target. :)

edit: I just realized that the guy's traps look like they're way out of proportion and crazy. I intended it to look like the suit was stretching from the base of the skull down to the shoulders...for some reason... But it looks like it's the muscle, and looks weird. So, don't crit me on that, I already know. :)

[MattVogt]

Yo!

So that's where you get these crazy ideas - target night shift? ahahha

Ya man, your progress is astounding. I agree your gun slinger does has some massive trapezes. Plus the 90 deg bend of his left elbow seems awfully flat. Probably started drawing what you thought instead of what your mind saw... nothing a little contour/foreshortening practice can fix. Also, the machine gun looks tit... but I feel it's somewhat out of perspective. It has a twist comparing the height line at the front to the height line by the handle.

Your other dude's pricessless. Excellent work on redrawing his head from multiple angles. That's a good skill to own!

Take care man,
Matt

[Koto]

Your line work is amazing really does make me want to go and sketch. Love the studies of people grappling, they looks so weighty. Great variety in faces too! can't wait to see more :)!

[Tommoy]

Great work, both your pencilstudies and more finished pieces are amazing. Hope you could join the DSG more often.

Cheers.