[Testament]

Hello everyone.

I was wondering if anyone could give me some tips on drawing portraits with pencil, form a picture. I know, a picture isnt gonna help me improve, but its not really for practice or anything, I'm being asked to do it by somone, I would turn it down, but I am being insisted on very much. I however, am not very good at drawing portraits by looking at pictures, or at somone in real life for that matter.

So if anyone could give me some tips, on how to start on....what to look for, how to minimize the margin of error...or anything that you think could help me. Think of me as if i was your student and you were teaching me for the first time how to do it.

I would greatly apreciate it, hanks a bunch people.

[Tomasis]

hmm... if you make many many errors then better, don't be afraid to make them. that makes you more complete artist.

one tip I come on recently. Try think an object as you can sculpt. Begin with a simple box then try paint SLOWLY and dont do without thinking and seeing

not much to say really only you make anything practically long as possible.

one thing I suggest really: avoid references and paint from life. I'm speaking from my experiences. When I began paint from ref then I was non thinking copy machine. That applies for beginners as me, which dont know how to sculpt exactly in the imagination,,,I think so.

[Testament]

Thanks a bunch Tomasis, really a preciate your help and your time.
I'll take your words into consideration and try and put them into work. So thanks agian!

[Jin]

Hi,

On another site the other day, someone asked about how to draw a face. though neither her question nor my response is exactly pertinent to your request, maybe some of this exerpt from my response will be helpful:

[ultrahsu]

sup there,

things to watch out for...

don't flatten things like a photo does, meaning, contrast your edges, soft vs hard.

photo's tend to flatten the values in the shadows, making it really dark... so concentrate the value where you want it, not where the photo says it is... ie, eyes, n features and stuff.

keep the lines fresh...

good luck.
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purE

[Testament]

I apreciate the help very much from you guys. I always try to sink this stuff into my head and try to remember it when i face a problem while drawing.

I have another question. I particulary have a bit of trouble when im drawing big....i mean,, i don't know. When itcomes to drawing, perhaps, a full figure in say even a mere copy paper sometimes i can have problems with proportions and such. I also have the problem when im redrawing something ive sketched in a smaller paper into a bigger ones, like B4 size. If anyone has any tips for this I would also greatly apreciate it.

I tend to lean in quite a bit and can get my face pretty close to the paper sometimes when drawing, could this be part of the problem?

What do you suggest is a good way when you redraw a pice into a larger size?
Do you usually block it all in with shapes? Then detail it up and erase those guidelines? Do you go at it line by line?

Might sound stupid, but you gotta understand , its hard for me to know this kind of stuff since where I live there pretty much no art community, no store ,nothing. I basicilly try to study myself, I get books and such. But they usually arent that helpfull, and don't adress problems i got.

I want to get into an artschool but I can't really afford it. Been drifting for a year + already. We'll see what happens in the future =/.

Sorry got a bit off topic there. Thanks again for the help!