Becca
Becca
Earth
julien Gaumet
Hi everyone ! Here is my first attempt before watching the demonstration video. I'll give the portrait a try later today 😃 Feel free to give me your feedback !
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Becca
Hi hi! These are really good, and I’m kind of jealous. The only critique I can come up with at this level is that I can see the line of your edge, and I think if you make that blend with your value shape, they’d be almost perfect. Very nice work! I wish my values were as clear as yours. 😊
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Becca
Ok, here is my 8th attempt, and I’m sick of this pear. I’m open to criticism. Thanks 😊
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Kartik Sharma
Its my attempt to assignment
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Becca
Hello! Your value scale is really good, and your pear looks good, too. I think all you need to do is make the shapes in your drawing match the value scale more. For example, your shadow shape isn’t quite as dark as the second darkest value on your value scale. Your dark mid tone in your drawing isn’t quite as dark as your third darkest value.  My only other thought is to take another look at the shape of the cast shadow. Otherwise, this looks great! 
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@forznoles
My attempt at Project - Simplify From Observation. I haven't moved forward with the next video(s) yet. I need better tools (I had no idea that quality pencil sharpeners were so important!). Thoughts appreciated.
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Becca
Hi there! I think you did a nice job with your proportions and your shadow shapes. You might try creating a value scale with your five values first and then trying to match those five values to your value scale. Instead of a crosshatch, try to create the value you want with just filling the shapes in with your pencil.  With the value scale in front of you (and right next to your drawing), it will be easier to see the contrast between values. In your drawing, your mid-tones are very close to the shadow tone, so the light parts and the shadow parts get a bit muddled. Also, maybe try to avoid outlining your edges so darkly. You did a great job with maintaining the sharp edges, though. Maybe just make sure the edge matches the value of the entire shape. 😊 I’ve drawn this pear 8 times so far, and still haven’t been satisfied, haha With respect to pencil sharpeners, I’ve tried a zillion of them and still haven’t found one I like. I use the ones that Stan hates - the ones that come free with every pencil set. They chew up my pencils, so he’s right about that, but they work ok for me in terms of getting my pencil to a sharp point. I have that black wing one that he likes - it’s expensive! (And not the only expensive one that I’ve tried) It worked great for about a month until a piece of graphite got caught in the blade. Even when I got the piece out, the thing won’t sharpen anymore. Rather than buy yet another expensive one, I just make the cheap ones work for me, and I don’t think it’s a huge deal. At some point, when I really know what I’m doing, I’ll learn how to do it with a blade. But right now, I can’t afford to ruin my pencils. 
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@anotherartdude
You've got a lot of good components in here but I think making sure they mesh well together should be a priority. For example I like your nose and the mouth you drew on their own. But when I look at them together, they don't look like they were drawn from the same reference in mind because of the angles.
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Becca
Thank you! This is so interesting to me! What about the nose and the mouth looks like they don’t go together?
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Leon ter Molen
Hi @Becca, Lovely drawing! I think that more focus on measuring the (main) proportions and construction would help improve the drawing. ;) Do you use the Loomis-head method when starting a portrait like this one? I like to keep the Loomis method 'in the back of my head' when drawing. I'm definitely not an expert on the method, but my basic knowlegde of the method often helps me to see, divide and 'deconstruct' a portrait in more simple shapes. Hopefully this helps a bit! -Leon
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Becca
Thanks so much, Leon.  I appreciate the response.  Yes, I use the Loomis method a lot, but to be honest, even when it works for volume and understanding the general proportions of the head, my proportions tend to still be way off. I didn’t use Loomis for this one (although you’re right that it always stays in the back of my head), and it’s really the first one of many that i didn’t.  I tried to use straight lines this time - just for proportions purposes per a book I have called, “Lessons in Masterful Portrait Drawing” by Mau Kun-Yim.  Anyway, I have a long way to go and sometimes posting here makes me feel discouraged more than anything, so I’m not sure if it’s better to just keep going on my own for awhile.  I wonder if there are specific measurements that seem off to you? I felt like I got this one right, at least with respect to measurements, but of course I can’t always see my mistakes. And of course, it has a lot of other problems, so maybe it’s that.  Anyway, I appreciate the feedback. Thank you very much. ☺️
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Becca
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Heads
2yr
I’m still working on heads. This one is better than before, but still has significant issues (obviously). I’m not posting the reference this time (from Pinterest) because I’m not focused on likeness yet, but any thoughts on what to work on first? thanks!!
@gabbie_sucks_at_usernames
Hi! I'm in no way a professional artist so take what I say with a grain of salt ( I'm pretty sure that's the saying haha ) but I wanted to mention a few things I noticed while viewing your piece! First of all, I love the way you drew the hair and shirt, I think it looks really good. Some issues I noticed with your piece is that the face is too thin, this in turn makes all the facial feature look too big compared to the reference. Furthermore, some of the details in the drawing seem too focused upon, especially the smile lines. I feel like if you blend them out a bit more accurate to the study ( if that's what you are going for ). Overall, I think that the study was really strong, especially with the lighting ( which I think you captured well ). For next time, I think I would focus more upon the initial proportions so that the rest of your features in the drawing falls into place. I hope this post made sense and this helped even if it only helped a bit! Have a great day :)) ( Also I totally agree that there needs to be a name for the community haha )
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Becca
I am in no position to comment, but for what it’s worth, I love your drawing. I actually think you’ve captured something of the likeness, although you’re right about edge and shape. But, I also think you’ve captured the issues with edge that are also in the reference. It adds to the charm. 😊 Not that it’s easy (I’m struggling and failing with the same thing), but what I’m hearing over and over again is to work on the measurements. Of course, that’s much easier said than done, and I’m working on it too, but as far as I can tell, that’s where you might focus. Maybe this is what you mean by shape. I love it, though. 😊
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Sean Rogers
This is great. The shading on the egg white, particularly at the edges, make it feel very 3 dimensional. Same with the highlight on the yolk. You should be very proud of this. I wish I could give constructive critique, but I'm a beginner myself. I don't know how to make you better, but I don't think you should be embarrassed about sharing your stuff. This is a damn fine egg. :)
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Becca
Thanks so much! 😊
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Account deleted
2yr
That’s beautiful and it’s making me hungry. What were the results of your experiment? The highlight, mid tone, and form shadow on the yolk are super realistic. The egg white is goopy wet also so I’d expect to see highlights in places. Regarding not sharing “bad” art, @Stan Prokopenko mentioned on the Draftsman podcast something to the effect of ‘it’s what you’re here for’. That struck a bell with me and I decided to join Proko in order to learn by getting out of my comfort zone and getting some practical advice from fellow artists. Seeing your post made me feel less afraid, thanks.
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Becca
Thank you so much. I was trying to decide if it was worth it to post stuff here, even if it’s beginner and horrible. I decided, at least for now, that it is. I appreciate the compliment so much. Thanks. ☺️
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Serena Marenco
Hi Becca, for now, don't worry about volume but focus on shape and construction of the face and proportions. As with figure drawing, it's best to take one step at a time, and you'll see that when you manage to build the face correctly, with proportions and planes, your drawings will no longer appear flat, even if you don't apply shadows. :)
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Becca
Super helpful, thanks.
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Bryan Merton
These are really great first efforts! Draw A Box was excellent for me to get perspective right. The 250 box challenge was long but really helped. Drawing every day helps and putting in lots of time!
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Becca
Thanks so much, Bryan. The exercise of posting these has made me start to think about at what point it is appropriate to ask for feedback. I know what level I’m at and don’t really want to bother because there is still so much to learn, but I keep reading about how important it is to get critiques. I wonder if I shouldn’t wait until I have a little more skill first. But I very much appreciate the encouragement, and I’m really enjoying myself.
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@pfro
The angles and measurements are off. Try working on just one of those photos, concentrating on getting all the features blocked in before you do any shading. Post that sketch so you can get feed back sooner. Watch more then just the beginning videos on the Loomis Method, there is a great deal of info about angles and measuring of the features that will help you.
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Becca
Thanks, yes, there are a lot of proportion and measuring issues. I’m only 2 months in, so I think that will come with more practice. I’m working on it. Slowly. Thanks for the feedback.
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Ross Cline
HI Brecca, I have been looking at your pictures and I think you need to punch up the core shadows in order to create a greater sense of Depth. For instance, take the image of the woman with the short black hair. The shadow just under her jawline is darkest at the point where the neck meets the jaw. And just above the jaw is a reflected light that creates a border. These two effects work together to give the impression of depth. To learn more about shading and how to create depth check out Dorian Iten's great lessons on shading. watch his Youtube video and you will learn a whole lot.
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Becca
Thanks, Ross. I’ve seen the video, but I’ll watch it again. I can see what you mean about core shadows - in all of these. Honestly, I’m so new to this and there are so many problems to solve, that I’m just really happy to have someone help me identify somewhere to focus. I appreciate the feedback. 😊
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Dudts Draws
Hello @Weely Chen I will tell you about my experience as a beginner artist, as I have the chance to be guided though a program by an art instructor. The idea is to go to the next course once you finish the reps and assimilate very well what the course had to teach you. For me, I started training on the cubes and drew like 100 cubes before moving to gesture drawing - I guess it is the same thing as dynamic sketching- where I drew something like 100 poses. Actually after cubes and before gesture drawings I also trained on ellipses and cylinders. So after the first N reps* of the exercise, you can use it as warm up when you practice for the next course. For example, before I start my session of practicing the human structure / mannequinisation, I would spend 10 minutes drawing circles and ellipses, or doing quick gesture drawings. *N depends on the time of the rep, e.g.: N = 100 for cubes or gesture drawings, as one rep takes 2 to 5 minutes N = 5 for structure of human figure, or simplified anatomy of the human figure, as one rep would take 30 to 60 minutes Hope this can be helpful =) Let's keep in touch as I'm also a beginner artist, we could motivate each other ;) here my IG https://www.instagram.com/dudts_draws/
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Becca
Hi there, I’m a beginner too, and I think everyone starts out with something that they’re good at - maybe from practicing in childhood or something, but basically anyone who wants to draw has probably had some feeling of past success that makes them want to continue. In getting the fundamentals right, I think there isn’t really a beginning and an end where you just figure them all out. For that reason, I think you can jump around in fundamentals and work on lots of different things, almost in any order. I actually practice this myself because I get bored just grinding out exercises. I say take what you want whenever you feel inspired - with one exception.  The exception is when you start to get a little bit beyond fundamentals. I think it could be less useful to take a more advanced course before you feel somewhat comfortable with your fundamentals. For example, I wouldn’t take anatomy before you have basic gesture and figure structure kind of worked out.  I’m doing drawabox, and for me, one of the most important things I’ve learned was the 50% rule in Lesson 0. He says spend at least 50% of your drawing time without thinking about study. It should just be for fun and doing the best you can, enjoying the process. This has helped me tremendously to not get bored and frustrated and want to quit.  Hope this helps you to think about it. 😊
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Becca
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Flatness
2yr
Hi everyone, I’ve been trying to draw seriously for about 2 months, and I’ve been practicing heads. I know I have a lot to learn still, and I think the most obvious problem is with proportions, but I’m actually trying to figure out why they all look kind of flat and what I can practice to work on that flatness problem. I think it has something to do with getting the values right? Or maybe it’s a construction problem? I start them with the Loomis method. Here are some examples and the references, all of which came from Pinterest.  I’ve noticed this flatness problem in my drawings of other things, too (attempts at figures, objects around the house, etc.). I’m doing Drawabox too, and I’m at the 250 boxes exercise - in case that’s helpful to know. Thanks so much.
Becca
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Random Stuff
2yr
I’m a beginner, and I’m scared to post my bad art, so I thought I’d start with my easiest stuff. I’ve been drawing random stuff around my house, and this is the best so far. This is kind of an experiment. Any thoughts? I have a bunch of awful stuff i want feedback on, but I’ve never shared with anyone, so I thought it would be good to start with something I think came out ok.
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2yr
Hey, I’ve found that using a clutch pencil has helped a lot in this regard. Plus you’ll find that the weight, and size, of the pencil won’t change throughout the drawing, which helps with your overall control during the process. Faber-Castell TK 9400 range of clutch pencils are great. You can get them with 2B, or HB leads, and then simply switch it out when it’s worn down. Have the added benefit of being able to quickly change the length too, without time spent sharpening/worrying about breaking them. You will need to get a specific sharpener—Staedtler Mars is a really good one. But after you’ve got both you’ll only need to buy lead refills, instead of a whole new pencil. Hope this helps!
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Becca
Thanks. 😊
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Eva-Maria Steiner
I would say it is not that of an problem if they go down fast. Without any pictures its hard to say if it is because of the way you sharp or the way you draw. It is possible that you press to hard though. In my experience the differences of sharpeners are not that big. If your pencil is sharp at the end, its fine. If you are going to use a blade they will probably run down even faster because you will brake a few in the process.
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Becca
Thanks for the response. I’m a beginner, so I probably do press too hard sometimes, but it’s something I’m working on, so I’m not going to worry about it. I just wanted to make sure I’m not being wasteful with my sharpener. I’ll just get more pencils. Thanks!
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Becca
added a new topic
Drawing Pencils
2yr
Hi everyone, I am drawing about 1-2 hours per day with Staedtler Mars Lumograph pencils, and I'm going through them so fast! I bought an extender because they've become short in about 2 months, but I'm wondering if this is normal or if it has to do with the way I'm sharpening them (General's handheld cheap red sharpener) or the way I'm drawing with them or what? I'm too lazy to sharpen with straight blades - is this a big mistake? Can you recommend a better sharpener? If it matters, I have a lot of those little sharpeners, so I don't think the blades are bad.
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