[Dr-Mad]

Hi,

I'm only 13 and I'm not too good at a drawer. I only do doodling which looks crapy. Plus I rarely have a art education. Besides a little.

My 1st question is that how do you professionals out there or artists know where to put shadings and maybe highlights.

My 2nd question is that where do u know where to put the folds in clothing. I know anime drawings sites has them but they really help me much at all. Any tips there wil be great.

My 3rd and last question for tonight would be for all you skinners out there for games... is how you people come up with these characters. Any advice to which classes to learn to realistic drawing and digial drawing would help me alot when I get into high-school.

P.S. Any ideas for my character in animation that I'm doing at school?

Thanx for your time and help

[Liser Studios]

hello
i'm not exactly what you would call a pro artist, i'm only a senior in high school and I'm only 18 (might sound old to a 13 year old, but trust me, you'll be 18 and a senior before you know it!) unfortunately i didn't start to really draw until i was 16. so, you got 3 years head start on me, so use it!
well, anyways. to understand where you would put your darks and lights, you have to understand light. I know this might sound boring, but try shading a lot of different shapes (like spheres, cylinders, cones,...etc.). A drawing/painting isn't just a bunch of lines and colors on paper. The artist has to know all about structure and form, and he has to know how light effects that 3 dimensional shape. Constantly think three dimensionally. Draw 3 dimensionally.
Also, there are different types of light. Start out drawing with a single light source (only one light in the room) then build up from there (two lights, open window with a bunch of lights,...etc.)
also, don't just copy from pictures when you're learning about light. it'll aid you in a picture, but i recommend drawing from life. a photo does everything for you, when it's from life you have to actually think about it. It's harder, but you'll learn a lot more.

Wrinkles. Ugh. I haven't studied wrinkles much yet. You have to learn to draw the body without the clothes on first (yes, i'm serious). Every picture I draw starts out with a skeleton, then the muscles, then block in the major parts of the body, THEN the details.
Meaning, don't draw straight in details. USE GUIDELINES. YOU HAVE TO USE GUIDELINES! lol
oh yeah, about folds (got off topic, sorry). I haven't studied them much, but I know there are only a few different types of folds. And they're effected by force. For instance, when wearing a long sleeve shirt, and you bend your arm, you should notice a bunch of wrinkles puckering up right around your joints. Also, you have the "pipe" shaped folds falling from your shoulder down to your elbow. Observe from life. Draw curtains and (the hardest thing i ever drew) a pillow. Make sure the pillow has LOTS of folds in it. You'll learn how to simplify the folds, keep the folds you want, eliminate the small ones that don't help the picture,...etc.
Basically, folds are all about "what's pulling this fold this way?" at least from what i have learned
again, there may (and probably will be) some pros that disagree with me. i'd listen to them above me, of course. I'm just giving you a temporary answer, I suppose.

[sunraven0]

Hey you guys,
I would suggest a couple of books to you.
How to draw the human figure (famous art school)
digital lighting & rendering (its a new riders book)
digital texturing & painting (also new riders)
These books help you develop your eyes to see things like shading, etc. You can get them at amazon or most book stores.

[sunraven0]

one more suggestion, to answer your "what to study in high school" question:
Of course, art, if your school offers it (mine didn't).
Anatomy & Physiology
and
Physics (especially if you are into gaming).
Take as many math courses as you can too, you'll be glad you did when you are trying to figure out ratios & other crap if you decide to do texturing in games.

[edible snowman]

what you take in highschool as far as art will most likely be useless. I don't know anything about the school you go to, but my art teacher is completely useless. Your artistic development in highschool will be mainly contingent on how much you draw on your own in and out of school. If you're doodling, instead of doodling random objects, try drawing the person in front of you. It will suck at first(believe me i know) but you will gradually get better at it. Outside of school, try to read a few books as well as draw from reference as much as possible. Life is preferable, but it's not always an option. Get magazines or download pictures or even take them yourself. When you draw these things, try to understand why you do what you're doing instead of just copying shapes. It's fine to ask people for tips or ask you they do something, but realize the only real method to become proficient at anything is study and practice.

well this is a lot of typing, but i remember what it was like when i was at this point, as it was not too long ago. this is stuff that might have been helpful for me to hear back then, but sorry if i'm just boring you.