[Man With No Name]

Hello,
I've been working on this for quite some time... trying to take my artwork to the next level....

Any comments or direction would be appreciated..



thanks for your time.

[ February 17, 2002: Message edited by: Man With No Name ]

[dontfallin]

thats awesome - the face is great it looks like the hair needs some work, the arms are in rough shape and I also think you should find a good reference for the rendering. Im pretty sure your well on your way to your next level

[ February 17, 2002: Message edited by: dontfallin ]

[Man With No Name]

Whoops!,

Let me clarify..

I've only worked on the face so far...
I started blocking in values in her upper torso and hair, but It's FAR from being finished. The face is getting pretty close to where I'd like to have it. (Also note that I do realize there are anatomy probs... but I'd like to stick to painting technique if we can...)

Dontfallin, Thanks for the quick response... I'll make sure to put alot of work in the arms... (which are quite bad at the moment....) and I have yet to develop a good method for hair. You wouldn't happen to know of any good hair tutorials, would you?

Thanks!

[ February 17, 2002: Message edited by: Man With No Name ]

[Man With No Name]

Here's the first change....

This was suggested in a paint-over at another board... I REALLY like it. Not only does it hold true to the character from the video game, but it sets up a beautiful triangular composition that brings your eye right to her face! I can't thank Jlunar enough for this great crit!



note: paint-overs and crits are still more than welcome!

[chrono1]

Ok the 'near' arm's deltoid needs more defining and lengthing. The bicep/tricep also both need more refinement. The foreman is pretty good but the elbow needs 'some' work. The 'far' arm looked pretty good in the first picture, but is messed up in the second. The face, maybe it's me, but it looks just a bit long.

Other then that it's a really beauty of a drawing.

[Mb]

To me, the little wings on her head make an otherwise serious image look very goofy and cartoony. First of all, it seems like they could serve no real purpose (couldn't create much lift), so it's difficult to 'suspend disbelief' while viewing the picture. But if you want to include the wings, I think they would look better with something attaching them to the head ... some irregularity in the shape of the head. The hair as it is, perfectly undisturbed, again seems hard to believe.

This is my opinion; take it for what it's worth.

[vurx]

Your rendering technique is exquisite, and I don�t want to discourage you in the slightest. The subject you have chosen is way up on the difficult scale to pull off.

That said...

I know you said that you knew that there were anatomy problems... I just wanted to point out that the better you render the piece, the more deformed she will look. I have been tempted in the past to pizzazz my way out of a bad situation. "If I shade this perfectly, maybe no one will notice the mistakes..."

A tried and true method to check for errors your brain isn�t readily showing you is to flip the image. You might flip it in Photoshop from time to time just to make sure your brain is fresh.

My point: accuracy in anatomy is very important in an image such as this one. Every human with eyes can see errors in anatomy (instantly!), they might not be able to tell you or quantify exactly what is wrong, but they can see the problems. Aliens are fun to render out because who is going to tell you there is something wrong with it?



I drew a quick skeletal overlay to help you point out some errors I see, that I believe will only get more prominent if you continue without correcting them.

The first things that jumped out at me were: The neck and the (now) shoulder on the right are off. The mouth is a little crooked.

I make it a habit to actually draw the scull and the planes of the head when I am constructing a head. The same goes for the body, just drawing in the main bone structures. Getting in the habit of this can save you loads of headaches later.

I know the fun part is the rendering, but the important part is the planning.

Hope this helps, keep it up!
--vurx

[Man With No Name]

Ahh...

That helps alot, especially the skeleton over-lay... good idea.
The little wings on her head are staying (not my character, she's actually from the video game "Darkstalkers.") I'll see about making their conection a little more realistic.

I completely agree with the statement of anatomy first, painting second. I've been trying to preach that on the comic-book style boards for ever (funny how I broke my own rule here....) I'll keep working at her...

Thanks alot!