[Dalek Guiness]

I find that when I toil on my wacom on a pic, after a while I think "I need a rest let's start another one, Ive got new ideas anyway".
After that it becomes very difficult to go back to the first pic - as it's old story - but at the same time I have a fresh eye for it.
Im not asking for the email adress of a good head shrinker here, just wondering if any of you experienced people feel this way and if they have any advice.
**rush back to the wacom...doooh, soon Ill sleep with it!**
thanks a lot
Dalek Guiness aka MC

[Icannon]

yep. the reason you're probably getting bored with your original pictures is that you havn't excited yourself with them yet. in other words, you probably havn't given yourself any reason to continue, and so would rather try something completely different. but what in the hell do i know?

[Frog]

I find having a rest from an image and then coming back to it really improves my work on it. I'm quite a slow worker on the whole and I like to let things develop subconsciously before finishing them.

When you come back to an image you are far more critical than when you left it, and obviously seeing the flaws in it can be discouraging, but I'm so used to having to change and amend artwork due to client input that redoing a big part of a job is no longer daunting. Oddly enough I do still have problems getting started in the first place (on occasion) but maybe that's just down to being lazy

When I was learning animation I read a book by Shamus Culhane, who was a Disney animator, and when he described his methods he said that once he read the script he did absolutely nothing for a few days to let it all sink in and to mull over it subconsciously, and then right at the last minute he would do eveyrything in a bit of a frenzy. This is what worked best for him and produced the best results, a little different to what we were talking about but it illustrates the value of giving your ideas the time to evolve.

If you're having problems finishing your drawings there could be two problems:

1) your initial idea isn't really good enough to sustain your interest until the end of the piece, in which case you should try and think about them for a little longer and let the ideas mature before starting on them.

2) your idea is good but your execution isn't. Start again, it's always much easier and much better the second time You can treat your initial image as a study.

It isn't always easy to do good stuff, but without a little effort it cannot happen.

[beans]

I have so many unfinished pics sitting around, but my problem is a bit different...it's such a chore to try to work something to completion on my computer (not enough memory) that I tend to give up and do something else for a while. When I feel like working again, I'm so soured on the old pic I wind up starting a new one, only to get bogged down in lag and drag and freeze-ups that I give up again.

I'm hoping once my memory gets here (ordered some today) I'll be able to go back and finish all of those unfinished pieces, but I'm afraid I'm so sick of them I won't be able to. >_<

[Awetopsy]

Ive also got a ton of unfinished images. Im actually at this moment working on an image I started months ago.. for a "frazzeta girls" thread a while back. (not sure it was here at Sijun tho)

Alot of Artists start something then go back to it later one day when they happen across it while browsing old work.

[Jason Manley]

nice topic...

the words about exciting or inspiring yourself with your more finished imagery in order to keep interested were well put.

the shamus culhane book is what led me to do what I now do. Animation from script to screen was hugely inspiring to me. That book led me to life drawing as the foundation of animation which in turn led me to leave my animation studies to become a painter. a must read for young artists.

jason

[Dalek Guiness]

I quite understand, Jason, but if you are able to work on a 6 monthes old pic it's also probably because you are a artist who reach an advanced level (very advanced I should say ).
Im developing a lot and fast, when I look at a six monthes old pic I often - though not always - think "yuhk! was I ever THAT bad?"
The more advanced you are in an art form the slower is the progression, the less difference there is between the you of today and that of six monthes ago (I know that because Im a pro musician with years of experience so I can feel the difference between my musical progression and my progression in painting)

I love this place!!!!
MC