Sorry about the image quality, I'm not sure why it came out so bad. By far my favorite assignment. I started on the background first for all of them to make sure my values wouldn't be messed up in later stages. I used the 'Multiply' layer for my values and 'Overlay' for colors. Sometimes I would add an 'Add (Glow)' layer for special occasions like #12. Then I would touch it up with a normal layer by adding gradients and strong rim lights when needed to really get the form to read. I struggle the most with ambient light. I had similar issues with ambient light when painting real faces in lesson 11 so any advice with how to tackle that would be really appreciated. Critiques always welcome

Pretty interesting lesson. This lesson was an introduction to shape design for me so I don't have any great advice other than use Kaloo's template (you can find it in the downloads). I would not have done nearly as much work without the template.

I'm very very new to art and its concepts! So forgive me if my questions seem very basic What exactly was the "bounce lighting" about ? Why would there be a highlight where the shadow should be? Thanks! -

Very fun assignment. Instead of using just the Alla Prima Technique I decided to explore different ways of rendering and styles. I especially like what @9brookskim (on Instagram) does for their process and tried it myself in the last portrait.

Feedback is appreciated =) I really enjoyed this assignment. I learned a lot through each portrait and experimented with a lot of different methods. I could definitely see myself studying a face from EarthWorld's website for a character. Everybody is incredibly interesting in their own way and the expressions are awesome. I eyeballed all the proportions except for the bottom left lady on the last sheet. I find my worst mistake when doing this is flattening the back of the head by bringing it closer to the face. I'm a little surprised looking back at all of them now and seeing how drastic it is.

I was pretty confused at the beginning so I chose some references that were simpler in terms of lighting. I really like this way of painting so I'm submitting my assignment as it is because I will continue practicing this technique in my personal work anyways. I just wanted to get the concept down. Things like proportions and getting the right shapes will come with practice.

Really really love this assignment. I'm going to start doing ~30 minute speed paints of master studies as my warm up. Speed-painting is really nice if you don't concern yourself with proportions and only focus on getting the correct colors, values and edges. But having such large proportional mistakes and unappealing shapes does bother me though... It really kills the piece for me. I'll continue doing 30ish minute speed-paints but I'll use the first 2 mins for a lay-in. I got sucked into the first painting and completely forgot to update my progress. Sorry! I posted 1 minute time-lapses of these 3 studies on YouTube. I'm not sure if I'm allowed to post links here but if you need to see the full progress my YT is linked on my Proko account Also, I should have really pushed the blurred edges on my speed-paints. Critiques always welcome

Here are notes I took of the entire lesson. The lessons are becoming more complex so I encourage you to take notes as well, don't just read my notes. Writing down what you find yourself will help you reinforce the ideas yourself. Here's the most important info before you start: The main purpose of the assignment is to learn brushwork, carving, and layering paint by studying masters. Extra things you will practice/learn:  1. Painting skin tones (wooooooo) 2. Practicing lay-ins 3. Squinting to find SIMPLE geometrical shapes 4. Utilizing blurred edges and sharp edges 5. Speed painting  6. How to study from masters you enjoy I see people in the unofficial discord confused with the purpose of this lesson. Keep the main purpose in the back of your head as you go forward with the lesson.

This was by far the most confusing lesson. I was VERY lost and even a little frustrated because of my confusion. I hope nobody after me becomes frustrated with learning so I'm including my personal process and MOST of the information I gathered. And keep in mind, my process will not work for everybody. It may not work for you, and it sure as hell doesn't work for every single reference. But its an overview and a base. Most importantly: what I say and paint isn't perfect. There will always be mistakes. I want you to learn from what I'm providing. And if what I'm providing includes mistakes, learn from those mistakes. Out of all the information, the most important thing Ahmed mentions and what helped me the most is focus on high contrast areas and brush economy (macro to micro). More information about what I learned and why I posted weird screenshots of my art is included in the text

Really fun assignment. Decided to learn how to use gradient maps with 15-20 and found out I don't really like using gradient maps Some advice I have is paint what you want to paint. Unlike previous lessons, you're not told what to draw or what colors to use so make art you personally enjoy. Also, don't be afraid to step outside of your palette to make the painting better. I didn't like the brown in #8 so I made it dark red... the desaturated yellow in #2 was meh so I made it look like gold instead... #10 didn't have any dark values so I added some based on what I had... #18 was (mostly) monochromatic but I added another hue for the hair. Find what works for you.

Completed the first of 20. Really like how this turned out. I'll post the rest in batches when I get them done (to avoid spamming the entire assignment page). Thanks for any critiques by the way, they're very helpful. Also, for the process. I did pretty much exactly what Ahmed did in the video. The only change I made was adding a higher value because I felt the piece needed it badly. Goodluck everybody!

32 little paintings. Each 5 minutes. The mouth and nose clicked for me once I got through some of them. The ear pretty much stayed consistent and the eyes are a mess. Never really understood where I was going wrong with rendering the eyes. Maybe my process was off? No idea. Anyways, I'd love to get critique on that. Thank you!

Here's my first assignment finished. I confused the cheek area under the eye at first. I thought it caves in but it just follows the curvature of the eye and then bulges out for whatever muscles are there. Also should have just simplified the forehead on #5 and taken more time on #6. If you're having trouble, look at yourself in a mirror or observe people in public. Seeing others in public is actually what resolved my misunderstanding with the cheek and eye. I'm also going to do the hardmode for this assignment and I recommend everybody else do so as well. The first exercise is great for familiarizing yourself with the form, but actually painting the forms is far more beneficial.

I was REALLY enjoying the lesson so I took it a step further and made a finished piece. Ended up changing the expression to be a little more menacing. Anyways, I'll post again here once I finish my assignment

Broke the monotony with some stylized stuff. Still looks rough but I didn't expect to master the anatomy with just this. This is a great exercise to manipulate the forms of the skull. I only feel like I have a basic understanding of it obviously so I will study from reference in the future. At least when I look at my first few pages I can see a TON of mistakes. That's a good sign that you've improved.. being able to spot mistakes and what not. This is tough so goodluck everyone (also should've blurred the shadow on the cranium in the last one.. completely forgot that tool existed whoops)

I did this a few days ago but forgot to post it. The last one doesn't fit the criteria but I couldn't pass up the opportunity to make a monster shadow apple thingy when I got the thought. Critiques welcome

Here are my apples. Definitely fun to do.

Here's my assignment. It's amazing how much you can pick up from painting something repeatedly.

For anybody having trouble like me or who haven't started yet, I recommend actually moving onto the next lesson and watching all the videos in "Skulls Without Reference." Ahmed goes over more in the next lesson about building the skull. Watch all those vids and then come back to do this lesson, don't skip this. You got this. Also check out 3D models of skulls online. There are some you can move around right in your browser. Proko has these models but they're apart of the portrait fundamentals course... not sure if they're unlocked free of charge but do go on the course page to see. Helps with understanding forms