[Al Ian]

Well, that should of been placed in the form of a question. I've been pasting my artwork here for some time, and I just dont seem to draw the time of helpful coments others seem too.

There are a ton of awsome artists that roam these boards. Some with ability that just stagers the mind! So like many who visit here, I post my art hoping that not just one of these artests, but anybody with an opinion give out any helpful suggestion they can so I can improve as an artist.

Now wanting this just isant for attention (though, like many artists YES I do want that too.) but to have pointed out what I dont see about my own work. A few years ago I used to draw comic book style art, while I wasent the greatest I was rather happy with my work. Somebody who was a friend mentioned one time that my wrists looked like "tree trunks." At first I was like "what??" but after looking at my art, I could see how I was affected by the Rob Liefield (sp) virus or something and corrected it.

So my question is this, how can I as an artist help encourage coments on my artwork? I know posting half/totaly naiked girls works, I know some art is just so perfect and out there you cant help but to comment. I also know that having my art linked is probably not helping the situation. (cant afford a real host....)

Any suggestions would help!! However, if it turns out that those of you who browse this website just dont have a taste with my type of art (which is understandable, not being a big fan of photography myself for example.) Then my art is falling on deaf ears, and thats my fault. (know your audiance.)

Just a long winded question, cheers!
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http://jmarkey77.home.bresnan.net/

[Jezebel]

I think if you make it very clear in your subject/message that you're willing to take a good C&C, people will deal it out. Let everyone know that you have a tough skin, you want to improve and you can take whatever they can dish.

Not many things are more irritating than someone who begs for a critique and then shoots every bit of advice down. Especially when they use "style" as an excuse for their flaws. ;]

Personally I like giving crits, but I've gotten to the point where I don't waste my time with it as much anymore. I find that most people just say, "Yeah whatever." and really don't care, they were only looking for comments - hoping they would be positive things like "Wow you rawwwwk!!!"
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My Art.
My Photography.

[Ryknow]

sounds like you and i are in the same boat there al. I consider myself to be pretty good at the line art part but coloring kicks my ass and i would love to get feedback on my coloring or lighting but i am lucky to even get "that was a waste of my time" kinda comment. Well just thought i would throw in my two cents. BTW i rather like your art and your characters and havent really seen any thing i could comment on. I like your style!
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Say would you like a chocolate covered pretzel?

[shawnhud]

Hey, I feel you. I don't get the kind of feedback I would like either. I think alot of it is, and you addressed this, the fact that I am making them go the extra step of going to my site. It's too bad, but what are you gonna do? I like to think that my stuff is so good (yeah right), it doesn't need comment. That's just what I tell myself....
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Put a muzzle on her Turkish, before she gets bit. You don't wanna get bit, do you boy?

[AndyT]

About the image host...you can show the pictures you uploaded at deviantart with the image tag ... all for free.

IMHO

- You should read the comments and suggestions others get and learn that way.
- Read tutorials and threads first. The best way to improve is to learn by reading and practicing.
- Comment on other artists images and try to look at your own as if they were done by someone else.

I too hate that "yeah whatever" reaction.
You seem to be an ok guy however. (You complained in a nice way )
And comments won't always help you to improve. Not until you have reached a certain level. What kind of comments are there? The head is too big .... the perspective is off ... work on the anatomy ...
I guess people will only comment on pics when they see major flaws they have name for or if they find something intriguing about it (lighting / composition / idea)
Also comments in the WIP area will more likely be helpful than in Gallery / Finished Work.

Then again I saw your pictures after I wrote that ... you seem to know a lot of the basics ... if you want to reach the Sijun members you should now look at the art of great artists here and try to figure out what makes a picture worth commenting on.

About your pictures ... most of them don't seem professional because of the line art and the smudge tool and dodge / burn feel to them.


I like that one. If you don't want to give up the line art that's the way to go I guess. The lower arm shouldn't be that wide (Is it wide? My English sucks!)
Maybe post at the Drawing Board. I think that kind of art is more appreciated there.


That one is also great. Could be even better without lines and a different font. It also shouldn't be cropped like that. Have you posted that one here without getting many replys? That would be strange ...
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http://www.conceptworld.org

[Inspector Lee]

I don't want to sound like a broken record but if you want to increase your odds of getting comments, ask specific questions. The more specific the question the better the chance you will get a response. I know this doesn't help much with the flaws we can't see in our own work, but there is so much artwork here. Most stuff done by amatures is going to have a whole lot of problems and flaws (I'm not talking about you specifically) that are pretty obvious to the pros and semi-pros that post here. They run the gamut from anatomy and perspective, color, texture, composition, and value structure to too much dodge and burn or smudging. So where does one begin? You can't possibly list every flaw or problem, and there are three dozen other posts asking the same question. You can see it's simply a problem of time. So ask specific questions, Maybe just," hey what do I need to work on most?". And don't get discouraged.
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Smokey, this is not 'Nam this is bowling. There are rules.

[Ragnarok]

I'm with all the previous posters and I think their comments are right.

Still, I wanted to add something. You have a very stylized work and that makes comenting hard, because it's hard to know if any flaws we could see are made consciously.
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"Ever forward, my darling wind." -Master Yuppa
Seigetsu

[Ian Jones]

This thread is of particular interest to me as of a recent incident in the Gallery.

I was personally attacked by a faceless coward, one with a 1 post disguise alias. I wish I knew who the real member was. I have given them a chance to talk to me in private, yet no response (big surprise). Here is what they said about me.

Evil_Umpire said "I am suprised to find that Ian Jones has not added his critical comments which will just re-inforce some already over opinionated verbal jargon that was previously spoken in a similar thread."

Completely unwarranted attack on me. I had nothing to do with this particular thread, and do not wish to. If you believe it was warranted, plz let me know in a constructive manner via the private messaging system.

What I would like to know is, do ppl want me to critique or not? I am very near to turning my back on it all. I offer my time (a significant amount sometimes) and opinion, I try not to preach... I am polite and respectful to others and their work... I expect ppl to be intelligent enuf to work out if I am offering an opinion or a common response to a problem. Maybe I should have a statutory declaration informing possible readers of my ineptitued or opinionated response at the beginning of my posts. I am furious that I was treated in such an insulting way, and that such an attack from Evil_Umpire does nothing to help or improve our community. nothing of his conduct was constructive or respectful.

Why should I ever bother responding or offering my critique or opinion again?

Some ppl post in the gallery, I think (warning! incoming opinion! those at risk leave immediately!) just to get "wow, your elite" and then as Enayla said just disregard any critique. I repeat the fact that I said only some ppl. Personally when I critique I am selective and choose to critique a piece based on my respect for the artists effort, thirst for further knowledge or advice. I like to critique ppl based on whether I think they need or want help or deserve response for their obvious effort and enthusiasm. I am human and do also tend to critique an image I like. I also usually steer clear of any images that are linked, which is yet more downloading for my 56K modem and a potentially risky practice clicking on offsite hyperlinks.

What I would like to see is a system where I know whether you want a response or not.

Do you want and opinion? a technical critique? a critique of the image/s purpose or concept? subject matter? general response on aesthetic merit?

*a very disgruntled member*

ps. I apologize if you do not want my ranting in your thread, and can remove it if you would like.

[shawnhud]

[AndyT]

You click the submit button

Choose a title / select the file from your harddrive / choose a Category/Section (like: Indy Art->Miscellaneous) / Enter keywords (for the search function) and a description.

Then you click the "submit my deviation" button.

You should get the message that the picture was uploaded successfully and see a thumbnail preview of it. Click the thumbnail ... the image will appear in original size.
Rightclick->Properties ... Highlight the Address:(URL)
Rightclick->Copy

Now you have the address in your clipboard. Rightclick paste in your message and put the tag [IMG] infront of the address and [/IMG] at the end...

To find your images later go to the url http://yournickname.deviantart.com
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http://www.conceptworld.org

[shawnhud]

I know it's f'ing huge, but I got it!
Andy T., thank you so much, you brilliant son-of-a-bitch! I've been trying to get this done for a while now, I think you may have even helped me before. Thanks alot for all of your help.
Again sorry about the image size.
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Put a muzzle on her Turkish, before she gets bit. You don't wanna get bit, do you boy?

[Jaeger]

It seems to me the Pros get the advice and comments because of their name (Artwork is still amazing obviously) while the new people really have to stand out to get anything.

[Al Ian]

Wow, alot of great information from everybody. I much apreciate it!

Jezebel

[Ragnarok]

Al, about the mouse, yes it's a bad tool to use when trying to paint, but it still is a tool.
If you scan a linework you can do some works with patience.
I made this a long time ago with mouse (note that the line drawing isn't mine).
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"Ever forward, my darling wind." -Master Yuppa
Seigetsu

[Enayla]

For the most part, I think that Sijun is sometimes a little too big, to expect constructive criticism on every picture one creates. Every time I come here (which is far more often than I comment on things) I see a full new page of pictures, of which I go in and leave a few comments on a few of them when I have the time.

I think that a lot of people do that - and it comes down to a lot of 'randomness'. Some won't bother to click more than one or two of the 'new' names, and of those, they might only leave a comment on one, if any at all.

Personally, I comment on things that I feel have a little depth. Pictures that I think have a lot of thought behind them - not just 'this is a picture of a girl', but something with a bit of a story or some effort. I think that I'm going to offer you some slightly different advice - aside from any anatomical issues, I think you need to put more of your self in what you do. I don't mean in an artistic, modern art kind of sense, now - just that your art would really benefit from a little more feeling behind it.

Try to picture something personal, or at least something with a story, the next time - and get the -idea- down, and then ask for help regarding the techniques that you used.

Just a thought =]
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furiae.com

[Mitz]

I think the best way to get C & C is, like somebody said, to ask questions. I think another really good way is comment on your own work. If we hear what the artist thinks about their own work, we can either agree, disagree, add to it, or even find something that they didn't see.

[Al Ian]

Enayla

[AndyT]

Al Ian - The pictures you show have a story behind them and only you can understand the emotions behind them. I think what Enayla meant was that the picture should tell a story when you just look at it.

Take this picture by Enayla for example ... you see how there are pictures that look like most of the pictures by amateurs and better pictures that "have soul" or something like that. Your lawn mower is a step in the right direction I guess.

Also a cool title might get more attention than "... c&c please"
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http://www.conceptworld.org

[Al Ian]

AndyT - LOL, Access forbiden LOL. I cant tell what you mean then
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http://jmarkey77.home.bresnan.net/

[AndyT]

Does that one work?
http://www.gfxartist.com/community/elite_gallery/8124
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http://www.conceptworld.org

[Novacaptain]

I think many fail to realize that C & C is not Cheers and Congratulations, it actually means Comments and Critique. So if a person asks for the "C&C" he better mean it too.

Ian Jones is one of the people along with many others that i really hope will offer some critique on my art because it is usually very good. Good critique is not praise, IMO, it's pointing out something that could be improved in the particular image and in future works. Of course, poitning out things that work and look good are also important.

A lot can be learnt by looking at other people's posts that contained some art similar to yours and reading the replies to that topic. When doing so, read it as if it were directed at yourself, and see if you're making the same 'mistakes'.

Don't get discouraged if you don't get the amount of "replies" you wanted when you post art. Read the ones you do get and work on them and then post again. People will notice your effort (because a lot of people do view the topic even if they don't reply) and perhaps next time you get more attention. I think a lot of people are just tired of wasting perfectly good and thouroughly thoughtful critique on someone just to hear their excuses, demands for more attention and ultimately see no effort being made. But to those that hang in there and demonstrate that the critique is being put to good use, the
C & C will come.

Or maybe that's just how I want it to be. I'll try to contribute more in any case.
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It's nice to be important, but more important to be nice - Scooter

[eyalyab]

those drawings are really something, mang!!
they both express SO much emotion, and reading your story that inspired them really adds. i think you should add that story to the jpeg itself.

i like the second one especially. its really sad, and i had tears just from looking at it. honest. (and i'm a man.. lol. man have tears too )

anyways, keep it like this. its great and emotional.

ps. i think you achieved in that seond drawing what many artists try to achieve and dont succeed. to connect to soemone (and to make him shed a tear).
good job