Ended up doing this one digitally (using a faux pencil brush and a paper texture), because the analog method of standing up and holding out my arm with the pencil etc. got so frustrating and physically uncomfortable for me. Measuring digitally felt a LOT easier, almost like cheating - though of course I still stuck to the intended method and didn't start actually measuring in exact pixels or whatever, and it did still take a few hours. I'm happy it did at least turn out as accurate as it did. Being able to just leave measurement lines and notes overlaid on the image instead of trying to keep track of everything mentally felt especially helpful. Eyeballed all the upper body clothing bits extremely quickly because I was feeling so Done by the end, lol.

Happiest with the hippo. After the fact I feel like I should've paid more attention to line quality even though that wasn't the focus, if just to "show my work" a bit better, and also in the future I'd do more than one to maybe find better shapes ... but right now I think moving along will keep me motivated in the long run. I can always come back later to drill down on projects, especially if I manage to actually catch up, and maybe do the Level 2 assignments while I'm at it.

Did my first two from Glen Keane. Happier with Pocahontas than Ariel, who ended up vertically stretched and a bit off in the face. The bigger problem is, while I can carefully construct something that's reasonably close, doing it so slowly and bit by bit makes me feel like I'm missing out on what actually drew me to Keane in the first place, even if I am managing to pick up some things about line weight organization and general observation and whatnot. Trying to emulate his confidence just goes so wrong that it feels pointless, especially working in analog at this small size, going back and forth with the eraser ... for now I'll probably end up picking someone else when I do more studies. Could also go for simply tracing his work instead to take some of the work off my plate, I suppose, trying only to get better lines down without hesitation until I'm more comfortable with it. Forgetting about resemblance would probably make the results look too demoralizing even for exercises.

Redid level 1 (printing + tracing), since after watching the demos and critique I was left feeling I kind of did it wrong. Old versions on the left, where for some reason I got into the mindset of using 3 very clearly distinct types of line _exclusively_, like even ignoring tapering the strokes and where one type might gradually change into another, and all other subtleties ... which of course would end up looking kind of cartoony and arbitrary. Much happier with the new versions, where I kind of just vibed with it.

Level 1. I think I overdid the eye area and nostril in the hierarchy of importance one, since I was trying to stick to three clear weights and thought that "conceptually" those bits were more important than the middle weight, but using the heaviest line emphasized them too much. Leaving it to just the eye itself would have probably been better. Might do the level 2 one using my own lines from observation at some point.

Googled "random animal" and used the site to give me some options -- ended up with this "jerboa" fellow.

Here's mine. A bit "lost" in a few places, maybe ...

Here's mine, before watching the demo. Got frustrated with the laces while drawing, but watching the demo and critique I realized I was taking a little too much care placing them (not that I got them especially "right" anyway). Looking at these with a clearer head, my lines also feel too variable for no reason, so that'll be something to work on. Like some lines I "got in one" and moved on, ending up effectively emphasizing the lines I was actually LESS sure of, since those I'd go over multiple times. And I just got lazy about sharpening the pencil and controlling its tilt. (plus I need to get more consistent lighting on my photos)

Getting started! I'd call myself "something short of intermediate" since my degree included a few minor art courses on the side, and I have done maybe a year's worth of independent drawing total, just kind of spread out over 10+ years of attempts that didn't amount to much, and it's been several years since the last one. Here's the first project: top one is before watching the demo, bottom one after, picking different pears. Definitely noticed the highlights are barely visible in the photos, and everything except the darkest shadow is a bit lighter than intended. In person I do think the values do stand out a little better from the paper and each other, but going forward I'll try and make them a bit darker and contrasting overall. I'll probably try doing the portrait as well to see where I land with it. (P.S. Is it better to post coursework into the lesson like this or on my personal profile?)