so i have been working on this for a while and it is in my sketchbook in earlier forms . anyway i'm trying to finish the grey scale before i attempt to colour it. anything that stands out to need work please share :)
also if you have any advice on colouring and layers and the such i'd love to here it.
It's pretty nicely done, overall. I'd tend to go back in and soften up some of the hard edges and blend between your tones a bit more throughout. For example, the cleft in the chin seems pretty sharp and extreme for a child's face. When I want to add color to a black and white image, I usually begin by placing a layer set to "color" above all the other layers, then block in flat color for the skin, background, etc. Then, I begin adding additional layers set to multiply, overlay and soft light to add additional lights and darks and adjust the colors to bring warm and cool areas based on what I'm painting. For example, the skin over the forehead is closest to the bone beneath, so I'll often tend to make that area a little more yellow, as opposed to more fleshy areas like the cheeks where the blood vessels beneath the skin generally cause me to add more pinks and reds into those areas. It's mostly intuitive for me, but when I get to a stage where I feel the colors are making sense, I usually add one more layer above the others set to normal and do any touch-ups I think are necessary, sampling off the colors I've already established on the layers below. Hope this makes sense. Mark Hammermeister http://www.markdraws.com http://markdraws.blogspot.com http://www.twitter.com/markdraws
Hey there Wild, this looks very nice. The shirt looks great. ... Only thing that stands out to me right now is the highlight you have on his right jawline. Appears to be a bit too bright and is a little distracting. (pulling my attention) Other then that, you might want to look at his chin. Not sure just what it is, maybe the shadowing variants? But it's making it appear too sharp, or small? (if that makes any sense?) ... I dunno, it just doesn't seem quite right? Sorry can't be of more help, hopefully someone else will see what I am speaking of, and be able to explain it better. :) My SketchbookMy Gallery
I think it looks great, but there are a few things... I agree with Mark that maybe the cleft in the chin could be reduced, but what catches my eye is the sharp triangle of light betwwen nose and lips. I think I'd try somewhat rounder edges there. Also it made me look at his nose and it's a little hard to tell at this size but the thin line of light around one nostril gives the impression that the nostrils are done at another angle than the rest of the nose (and face). And while I don't agree with Dave that the chin is too small - it looks OK for a kid - I think maybe the shadow beneath the mouth is a bit dark and abrupt - usually you get a small strip of lighted skin beneath the red of the lip, before the shadow starts, if that makes sense... So basically maybe a bit softer transitions/edges here as well.
When it comes to colouring just... *points to Mark*
I think this will be absolutely stunning when finished :)
Yeah, that was just bad wording on my part, Charlotte. I couldn't think how to say it better to make sense. But Mark mentioned it in his post as well, (the cleft in the chin seems pretty sharp) which apparently was about the same time I was posting. I don't think the chin itself is too small as a whole, but the area around the cleft (the word I couldn't recall) appears to be pinched too much, making it appear too small or sharp. I was thinking it was due to not having any softer transitions around it, as you suggested above. My SketchbookMy Gallery
markdraws: - thank you :) i see what you mean about the chin and some of the transitions. thanks for the colouring advice also, i'll try that and if i get stuck i can always ask for more help XD
digital dave:- thanks^^ glad the shirt is working. i think i have to work on the transitions on the whole jaw and chin area a bit by what people of said. and hey you cant always put an finger on the exact problem at times but if 3 people are going the chin the chin, you must fix the chin then well chances are theres a problem with the chin XD i'm just happy that from last time i posted this in my sketch thread i got some feedback about the eyes and since you guys havent mentioned them i'm hoping that means they have been fixed XD
voulspa:- thanks. hope it lives up to your expectations :) the nose has been bothering me for a while but i havent been able to figure out why. so i'll go and fix that. i'll go back in and work on some of the shadow transitions. i think i tend to be quite hard with my shadows and i tend to go heavy on the black at times... but i'd rather go full out and bring them down then be too scared of putting them in personally. i shall revisit these suggestions and check that triangular light on the ref. transitions seam to be a re occuring theme here :)
:) Yeah I wish I was better with values - I tend to use too light darks... BUt I'm better than I was as a kid: my drawings back then ranged from white to maybe "3H" lol
www.charlotteahlgren.com IFX Gallery Elfwood Gallery
i think everyone wishes they where better with values. its why values was one of my new years resolutions last year (and infact the only one i really worked on) i mean there so important. when i first started drawing i did mid tones only if i'm honest there was a lack of lights and a lack of darks ad it was a smudgy mess. cringe worthy stuff XD
When all that's left to do is make a few tweaks, it shows how well you know your subject- so, well done.
My own observations (as much as they are worth) are that the addition of an elongated highlight on his right (our left) eye is making this eye wider than the left. I think you have done a lovely job on the texturing of the skin and I am a fan of the almost sculptural way that you have used the grey scale. The hard edges are stylised and interesting.
With a piece such as this I think it is important to keep your rendering method consistent. Take another look at this piece and see if you think it has been. I personally feel that there are different methods used on the chest and shoulders, and the various parts of his face, especially his right cheek and forehead. It isn't much, but little alterations like that unify a piece of work.
A brilliant portrait. I'm excited about seeing more!
thanks dom :) just a note on your "for as much as there worth" comment don't put yourself down like that. advice is advice and while not everyone may agree with it it still advice and your observations are valid.
humm rendering methords. i think its partially the very flat style i start out with and reminats been left over from this. i plan my shadowpattens and highlight pattens first and i think some of those flat parts are still visible on the face in the darks especially. this hopefully should be fixed with the blending people seam to want. i may also go in and put some of those blacks into the shoulder and neck earea because for the most part there missing from this area. i also think that when i added some texture with a diffrent brush to the one i painted the thing with unlike the face where i went back in and painted parts again to strengthen there form i didnt do this with the chest and one of the shoulder areas so maybe this needs addressing as these areas do look alot more soft then the rest of the painting. i'll see what i can do to fix it :) also i'll look into that eye because it definatly looks longer then the otherone.
Haggis, you're a gentleman and a scholar! Thanks for the kind feedback. Now that I look a little closer at your piece I think that the only thing that needs to be looked at - in terms of rendering - is the of shadow on the left hand side of the boy's face. I notice that the shadow there is very much darker that anywhere else, even on his right shoulder where the same shadow is being cast. Either darken the shoulder, or (and this is the better option) lighten the depth of the shadow on his face and it will unify the whole piece. That is what I think anyway. So see what you reckon!
why do i want the forum to burst into song and sing "shes a lady"?
Domtopia:
You would have thought that in my 31 years of life I would have worked out the difference by now!! :)
My aplogies Haggis!!
Thanks guys!
no worries dom, i've been called a beautiful boy before so hey i'm used to it. that said i was a baby at the time and we all look pretty much the same at that point XD. thanks for the second glance. i had a feeling it was that dark patch spoiling the unity ^^
on another note my mum is awesome. she bought me Andrew Loomis' figure drawing for all its worth for Easter as well as the conventional Easter egg.
Domtopia:
