[spooge demon]

I have been looking at the work of Richard Schmid a bit and it is interesting how he works. He starts with detail first, reasoning that why put down a stroke that you only have to modify later? Make a shape, and eye, etc. correct, and then relate further work to this one correct one. This way you are not getting a cascade of errors by relating elements to earlier elements that were not that well considered.

A by-product of this method is you are sometimes surprised at how little you have to do to make an image work.

Of course you need quite a bit of experience to work this way successfully. Most beginners work this way instinctively and teachers are always wrapping their knuckles about it. I know I had to break the habit.

It is fun to think that even the sacred cow of �block in the major areas first� can be inverted. This image was done with these first, basic shapes, but then just a few extra edges and details to finish it.

[Skeezer]

Hey spooge, awsome picture.

I've seen this effect in many of your paintings. How do you do such nice light rays. I've been experimenting, but it never quite looks right.

Any hints or tips from the master?

thanks

-Skeez

[ime]

some really detaily details on overall basic shapes are classics... big shapes are making it complete and one. details make it alive.
because when one is looking at something his eyes are catching overall shapes but he is usually focusing on some details...
eerhm sorry for my overall bad english... but my bad english has some good details in it

[sacrelicious]

spooge, I caught hell from my art teachers for starting a face with nothing but an eye, but that's what worked for me. It's cool to have a different sort of teacher who makes alternate techniques "okay" to use. And it's great to see someone I respect and admire willing to flip everything inside out and try something almost everyone else says is "wrong." Good work.

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mmm... sacrelicious

[Eckhardt]

Hi Spooge,

I know what you are talking about, last month I bought the book "Alla Prima: Everything I Know About Painting" by Richard Schmid.
Its a wonderfull book, I love his work and thinking.

But I think that his way of putting down directly the strokes and not modifying them later works best for his way of life painting.
But searching for a strong design, and drawing from imagination ask for the block in technic. Or am I wrong? If I dont have a clear picture in my mind how could I paint it directly.

What about you?

all the pictures I saw from you are wonderfull, the have something special, movement and life. I love that even when you only sketch out things. The same is with this soldier picture. Great work Spooge!

Yes, I too would love to see how you are working into the picture these wonderfull lights, like in the Columbus picture ,the candles or here with the soldiers.

cheers
Eckhardt

[silber]

wow moodish pic -I nearly think I can read their thought

detail-first-technique:
I couldn't use this technique for more complex pics -never

when I draw out of my mind it's realy rare that a pic looks at the end like I thought of it at the beginning
-->I often make some smaller or bigger changes
actually I think everybody is doing this
(if it's a pic done in your freetime)

hmmmm..whats with you spooge?
would be interested if you do so too



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-----silBer--
http://silber.atariflys.de

[micke]

I really like the picture. It's very interresting to see you break away from
old habits. It's a good way to stay fresh.
The technique is something similar to what i use sometimes(mostly on the Black& white stuff). It lesser time and you'll get away with much.
I have'nt been drawing much lately Gotta change that quick.
-Micke

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-Mikael Noguchi-

http://www.katode.org/noguchi/

[opticillusion]

Excellent pic - great lighting...it comes across as believable right away with how the mask is lit, and the details on the tip of the rifle. Your point was perfectly explained.

I often wonder what gives you inspiration for your images. Was this for a client? Or, did you just think you'll draw some soldiers today? Or does Richard Schmid have a work that you're trying to imitate? I often am stumped at what subject to draw or paint. I'm also very interested in learning new techniques because I haven't found ones I am confortable with yet.

So what you've done is you have the black and white silhoutte of the soldiers. This was made first. And then, you made the black a 50% gray, and added lights and darks? So you're pointing out that you can block in just the shape, getting that right, then little is needed to make the image successful. However it was done....excellent work!

[Sumaleth]

The Richard Schmid approach certainly is an unusual one, and it's interesting to see it applied in digital. But it's certainly not an approach that I could use.

The way I make an image is to throw some lines and colors down as a starting point, and then just keep going over and over and over until it looks right. It's almost an interative process as I hone in on the desired image with each pass. (and I often compare it to sculpting rather than painting)

I even have difficulty doing a silhoette to start things off with since I don't yet have enough experience to be able to see what the silhoette will look like before I've actually drawn the whole character.

So I would find it very difficult to get it right on the first pass and I suspect that it's an approach that could really only be done successfully by artists that are already very competant in their skills.

I would probably compare it to the head-drawing exercise that Fred posted a few months ago - the one with the sphere, center lines, 1/4 line for the nose etc. This is something good for a learning artist to do but after a while they are able to skip that step altogether and still produce a good face. Likewise, Spooge here has leap-frogged all the middle work and gone straight to what the end result would have been anyway.

Am I rambling again? Back to work...

Row.

[Joachim]

looks great as always. . .
I'm amazed how you are so good at getting such rich volumetric feel in your pictures.

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Joachim's Place

[ook]

You know... I'm suddenly drawn back to the sheridan days when my life drawing teacher told us to do "many bad drawings".

I think one of the reasons Spooge does such nice work is that he does a LOT of work. If you do more pieces you learn a lot more lessons.

It's an easy concept to remember... Why don't I do it?

Ugh,

- Jeramy

>>>EDIT

Actually now that I think about it one of the reasons it's hard to do in pratice is that it's difficult to make bad art. It's a painful process to produce something that you don't like to look at. It's worth it though to improve.

EDIT<<<

[This message has been edited by ook (edited November 07, 2000).]

[Negative]

that thing about starting drawing from details is so true.. I sometimes begin drawing a face from the nose (it ussualy happens on a boring lesson) and then i add eyes, mouth, and in the end - the head, but those pictures don't look well. They are unproportional, unnatural, un.., un.. So stick to Basic shapes if you want to have a nice pic. I ain talkin' about wunderkinds like spooge demon.
How do you make those light effects? Do you set opacity to ~14, and multiply?
The pic is very very immpresive. With no small details it is very realistic, like a scene from the movie

Sorry for mistakes if any

[Negative]

BTW. Do you have a site, spooge ?

[This message has been edited by Negative (edited November 07, 2000).]

[immi]

Damnit soldier! Yes he has a site...get your ass over to www.goodbrush.com and give us 100 pushups for your insolence! On the double damnit!

[Void]

http://www.goodbrush.com

[Void]

Argh immi, you suck

-Stolln

[immi]

You're just jealous because I post with superhuman speed. Better luck next time sucka!

[Sumaleth]

100 pushups? Gee, he's getting off light. There are people on death-row for lesser crimes.

Row.

[Francis]

Ook, I've heard the same thing many times from many different people ("do many bad drawings"). I don't think the point is to intentionally do bad drawings, but more just to increase your mileage, so that you sort of work all the "bad" drawings out of your system so you can go on to do your "real/good" stuff.

Personally, I'm still in the bad phase. Can't wait til its over, haha.

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Francis Tsai
TeamGT Studios

[AliasMoze]

Interesting, Spooge. I remember reading about this in the Schmid book. Do you think the same applies to digital, where there's no media buildup and such a critical time issue? Just wondering.

[Negative]

heh ! Spooge Demon is Mr (or should i say prof ) Carig Mullins. Of course i know him, i know his wonderfull site So that's why the pic looked so familiair. It is big honor for me to criticise one of Craig's works

hehe you live and you learn. You never know what you'll meet tomorow ( it is obvious, isn't it ?)

[kaylon]

First post and first question....

Spooge...how many layers have you used in this image ?.

And a request if I may...

I might be going on a limb here...is there any chance that you may one day make one of your images "Photoshop format" with layers etc available for download from your site.....even if it were 100's of meg's I know I would grab it hehehe...

[Affected]

Francis: What if the 'do many bad drawings' bit really just means you'll never get good, every drawing will be bad?

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Affected

Democracy is a lie

http://affected.xs.mw