Lesson 5: Reboot

[vrt]

Hey guys,

It's been a while since the Art Class has done any lessons, but we're back! Kamietsu is going to take pepokish' place as a teacher, so no more making fun of him (while he's looking). The Art Class is open to all, but remember, it's meant for progression and criticism, not purely praise. It can be pretty harsh, but don't let that discourage you - we really do want to help you get better!

Lesson 5: Assignment:

We're gonna take it a bit easy on you guys for this first one: We'll let you pick any card idea in the Armory or Forge, and create a piece for that. I'd strongly suggest making multiple quick sketches and posting them here for critique, so that Kami and myself can give you advice on it before you work your butt off on something that's fundamentally flawed. Of course, we hope to see progress shots throughout the entire process as well, so that we can help steer and teach. It's what we're trying to do here, after all! On a side note, here's a quick reminder of the rules.

The focus of this lesson will be concept development: How well can you express what your piece is about? This lesson will run until the Art Class gets to see some more activity.

[Kamietsu]

Now for a couple tips and hints to get you started on your way to some nicer pieces of art.

• Make sure you use the resources at your disposal. All of the previous lessons done in this art class are present in this section. Feel free to go back through them and pick up some tips and pointers there.
• Concept sketches do not have to be detailed, or have too much form other than a basic shape to start out with. They are supposed to be some quick basic guidelines to help get your ideas down and go with them.
• Just rushing into a project works for some people, but not everyone, and doing so can lead to possibly overwhelming yourself or lower quality art. Giving yourself at least a basic idea can prove to be very helpful.
• Use outside references. If your pick a card to draw that might have resemblance to an animal head over to google and check out other images of that animal. See how that animal looks in all kinds of positions and poses to get a good feeling of it before you even start drawing. The same can be applied to anything, and looking at other images or similar images to your idea can be a good source of inspiration.
• Don't sweat the small stuff. If you make a line or two that goes out of place or doesn't flow how you want it to, don't spend too much time trying to fix it, especially for your rougher sketches. It can always be cleaned up or drawn over at a later point

This list is incomplete, and will always be as there is never a lack of hints and tips you can have. Everyone is different and benefits from different things so be sure to check back for any additions.

[vrt]

Let's bump this into the "Recent Unread" section; I'd say zero entries is a rather low amount.

[Tiko]

Ok, so why haven't I seen this Topic as unread before.. ?

Anyway, I'm real glad you decided to give it another shot, maybe you can get me grab a pencil for the second time too :] *sigh* Too bad I don't have a scanner anymore..

Also, maybe the deadline could be extended a bit, until enough participants realize the topic exists. Come on people, show some spirit and start making those sketches!

[vrt]

Good point. Post edited.

[vrt]

And we are now newspost-worthy! Go Art Class!

[Dart]

I'm a little busy but ill try and whip out some sketches this upcoming weekend.

I'm looking forward to seeing everybody's art!

[YoungSot]

This interests me. Unfortunately I'm feeling pretty busy atm with War and Battle and Sideboard all vying for time when I'm online, but hopefully I'll find some time to participate at some point.

[hailofink]

Hi there, this is my first post in this forum. : )

So here is a sketch for the Demon/Devil http://elementscommunity.org/forum/index.php/topic,26614 [nofollow]
[nofollow]

I just don't know if I'll continue and color/shade it.

Sorry for my mediocre English, I'm from Germany 

[vrt]

Hi there, this is my first post in this forum. : )

So here is a sketch for the Demon/Devil http://elementscommunity.org/forum/index.php/topic,26614


I just don't know if I'll continue and color/shade it.

Sorry for my mediocre English, I'm from Germany 

Welcome to the forums, and welcome to Art Class! Glad you joined up and posted your first sketch.

There's a few things I can see that you might consider. The first is the overall style; it seems like it's a rough lineart piece. I'm not a fan of working with lineart much if at all, but for a sketch, it can work - but you've got to keep it loose. This is very rigid, very defined, and probably took you longer than it should've. Try and draw with a loose hand: quick strokes to indicate shapes, coming back to refine on a second pass, and finally making it into a whole only when you start finishing it up. I'd also strongly suggest drawing a basic skeleton and muscle structure before laying down any definitive shapes - take a look here for a better example.

For your next sketch, try and work with these three criteria:
 - No text. I know, I know, the contract makes the story-telling easier, but it looks awkward being there and won't be very understandable when it's a small image (ie ingame).
 - Use a skeleton to try and create a more dynamic pose.
 - Spend 15 minutes or less and don't use an eraser.

If I sound harsh; remember, I really just want to try and help you get better. I think it's great to see someone is actually trying, for one!

[hailofink]

First of all, thank you!
I tried to follow some of your advice and made a sketch in about 30 minutes (i know i'm too slow : P ).
So here is the result:
[nofollow]

This sketch didn't took me as long as the first one, but I'm not really satisfied with the result either.
It isn't a sketch at all...
I really have to learn to concentrate on the basic shapes etc. instead of going to much into detail (at least for quick sketches).

I think I'll add some details, change the skull/background and finish the picture now, because this is pretty half-assed (am i allowed to use words like this? ).

Btw: is there a way to embed the pictures directly without the thumbnail? Couldn't find such an option.

[vrt]

I think the problem is you wanted to do too much too quickly, indeed.

Focus on the basics - anatomy and image balance. It's leaning to the left pretty hard. The proportions on most of him are off by quite a bit, as well. But what I think bothers me most, is how he just looks like a human with a helmet. It's a demon we're talking, a being of a place that has driven fear into people for thousands of years - let it show! Make something grotesque and fearful, make it downright scary!