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 Posted: Wed Dec 14, 2011 6:46 pm
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Hiya!
I love to draw people, animals, and all things pretty and cute. If you're interested in becoming a student of mine, just reply to this thread. Please include a link to your gallery (or sketchblog) and what you're hoping to learn from me. biggrin
- A little bit about me: I've been drawing most of my life, on and off. Right now I'm applying to medical school and working, so I'm a little busy. That said, I enjoy teaching and would be happy to help people out with what I know about art.
- Link: http://syrellium.deviantart.com/
- Timezone: Pacific Standard Time (PST)
- How often I'm online: Depends how busy I am. If I decide to mentor you, I'll share my MSN/AIM username as well as my e-mail address. That way you can reach me even if I'm not on Gaia.
- Things I'm best at teaching: Sketch/gesture/cartoon work, construction of figures and forms, life drawing and observation
- Things I'm not great at teaching: Finishing techniques, detail work, landscapes & scenery
- Level of mentee I can take: Any, though I'd probably have the most to share with beginners
- How many mentees I can take: Two for now |
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Posted: Fri Dec 16, 2011 4:39 am
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Posted: Fri Dec 16, 2011 9:34 am
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x shini-chan x I love cute things too! c:
*sits cross-legged on the carpet and smiles up to you*
Can I be your mentee, please?
I don't have a DA account yet, but I do have some sketches I can scan into it... The main thing I want to learn is how to do digital art without a tabbie (I'm saving for Wacom Bamboo Fun tablet - the one with Corell Painter, Photoshop cs5, etc). I currently have two programs to work with: Paint Tool SAI (the free fan version) and Photoshop cs4.
I take Art at school, but I want to draw anime and chibi instead of real life. I suppose that falls under the cartoon category, right?
I think it's safe to say I'm a newbie when it comes to digital art, but make that a knowledge-hungry newbie - like putty in a mentor's hands!
Thank you for taking the time to read this! yum_cupcake
Hiya! ^^
If you don't have an actual gallery yet, that's fine. Just post some of the scanned images so that I can get an idea of where you're at. It'll help me make up some assignments for you.
But before we get to that, there are a few things I need you to understand before we begin.
First off, you need to know that there's no magic method that will help you to draw chibis or anime or cartoons or any other form of stylized art. Sadly, it's true. You can take shortcuts by copying what other people do, but in order to really do it well, you gotta start from the basics. That means lots of practice and studying and learning basic drawing technique. In a nut shell, you'll need to learn how to draw the world around you.
You might be wondering, if all you want to do is draw chibis and other cute things, then why do you need to learn something like, say, perspective drawing or color theory?
Well, the answer is that stylized art is something of a special category. It is deceptively hard. I'd argue that it's even harder than producing photorealistic art, though that's just my opinion. When you watch a cartoon on TV, it looks like something that a child could do. It looks easy... But, in reality, it's very difficult to do it well. If you want to be good at stylizing your art, such as is required to make nice chibis, it will require you to work twice as hard. Learning to stylize effectively is all about first knowing the ins and outs of what something looks like (anatomy, proportions, etc) and then using that information to simplify and create something new (the tricky part).
Sound frustrating? Yep, it probably is. I find it quite rewarding though. ^^ And I think that you will too if you stick with it.
As for producing digital art...
Personally, I would recommend that you start working with pencil and paper first. You can always clean up your art digitally if you feel the need. Before I got a tablet, I would sketch on pencil and paper, scan the image, and then clean it up and add color in Photoshop. I would NOT recommend trying to learn how to draw digitally if you only have a mouse. It's like learning to draw with a big fat rock- not very effective! You just won't have enough control for most practical purposes. It's possible, but it'll be a very steep learning curve.
Similarly, if do buy a tablet, know that it takes some getting used to... it requires some hand-eye coordination and people can sometimes take a few weeks learning how to use it with the same confidence that they would a pencil or pen. It also isn't a magic tool and it will not improve your art simply by virtue of having one. In a lot of cases, it might actually make your art worse for awhile due to being unfamiliar with the tools. That's not unusual. It happened to me, so I'm speaking from experience.
So that's that. If you're up for it and I didn't just scare you away with a massive wall of text, I'd be happy to teach you what I know. I'm sure we could have some fun. ^^ heart |
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Posted: Fri Dec 16, 2011 10:17 am
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Awesome!! It sounds exciting!! And no, you didn't scare me away, I love reading! xp I don't want to buy just any tablet, I heard only Wacom tablets have the screen on the tablet... Hope it's the same with Bamboo Fun, what tablet would you suggest? Anyway, I've set up a DA account, but I haven't gotten the hang of it yet, so I think I'll open a thread here somewhere instead... But here's the link nonetheless. [x]You've got me really amped right now! I believe practice makes perfect, as well as understanding the secrets behind the techniques is that magic formulae! If you can do it well, then it works for you, right? I hope you think something of my sketches... I know they're not much, but I've been drawing for quite a while now. Other than that (since excitement is making me tongue tied) I'm really excited to begin! What shall we do first? |
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Posted: Fri Dec 16, 2011 4:45 pm
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x shini-chan x Awesome!! It sounds exciting!! And no, you didn't scare me away, I love reading! xp I don't want to buy just any tablet, I heard only Wacom tablets have the screen on the tablet... Hope it's the same with Bamboo Fun, what tablet would you suggest? Anyway, I've set up a DA account, but I haven't gotten the hang of it yet, so I think I'll open a thread here somewhere instead... But here's the link nonetheless. [x]You've got me really amped right now! I believe practice makes perfect, as well as understanding the secrets behind the techniques is that magic formulae! If you can do it well, then it works for you, right? I hope you think something of my sketches... I know they're not much, but I've been drawing for quite a while now. Other than that (since excitement is making me tongue tied) I'm really excited to begin! What shall we do first?
Hurray smile OK, I've added you to my devwatch. I got your reply earlier, but couldn't say anything because I was at work! Your drawings are cute. I think they'll be even cuter soon. And for that, it really just comes down to practice. ^^ I'm a firm believer in that "talent" is just code for hard work. Learning to draw is a skill just like any other.
As for a good tablet, the one that I've been using is just the Bamboo Pen. It's one of most basic/cheap ones! smile I like it for what it's worth though. The one with the screen on it is probably the Cintiq. Last I checked, it's really expensive... like $2,000. If you have that kind of money, you might be better off saving towards art classes or other supplies. But if you wanna buy it, then by all means go ahead. smile
As for getting started, I'm gonna PM you my contact info. I'll also be posting a lesson plan soon.
In the meantime, a good assignment would be taking your sketch pad and just drawing some of the things in your room. If there are any fruit or veggies around, try drawing those. ^^ Just pick some shapes that aren't too complicated. Don't worry too much about shading or drawing every little detail. Instead, focus instead on getting the contour and the basic shape correct.
Be sure to spend a few minutes really looking at whatever it is you're trying to draw. Drawing from observation is sometimes like trying to study an optical illusion-- your eyes are gonna play tricks on you! Your brain will automatically simplify what you see so that it's easier to process. So sometimes what happens is that you draw the "simplified" version. An unfortunate side effect is that it doesn't usually come out looking like it's supposed to. A key aspect of drawing is first learning how to pay close attention and constantly question what you're looking at. Don't immediately trust your eyes.
When you pick out what you want to draw and have studied it a bit, set a timer (on your phone, computer, or just use a clock). Draw what you see for two minutes. When the timer is up, stop what you're doing. Get a new piece of paper and try again. Rinse and repeat with different timer intervals. Some good starting points are 2, 3 or 5 minutes. If you want challenge, cut down the intervals.
The purpose of this exercise is to get you to look at what you see and also to get used to working quickly and under a time constraint. Sketching like this is a very useful tool. Draw big and draw loosely. |
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Posted: Sat Dec 17, 2011 6:47 am
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Posted: Sat Dec 17, 2011 6:50 am
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Posted: Sat Dec 17, 2011 6:51 am
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Posted: Sat Dec 17, 2011 6:53 am
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x shini-chan x Syrella Quick update~ I changed the time intervals because I decided that ten minutes was way too long. A few other notes, when you sketch, don't worry about making mistakes. Also, don't erase at this stage. If you mess up, correct it by drawing the fixes version or by starting over completely. These works will not be masterpieces and that's not the objective. so don't lose heart. I'll try to post some sketches of my own as samples. I have a lemon and an apple here before me... Should I draw them or something else?
Those will do just fine. The object doesn't matter so much at this stage. The point is to pick some objects that are simple at first and work up to more complicated things. |
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Posted: Sat Dec 17, 2011 8:20 am
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x shini-chan x My printer is a bit small and cropped the one image. Most of it came through, but I'm not going to scan it in individually, because it's the worst one... hehe sweatdrop Anyways, here's the apples: 5 minutes ~ [x]3 minutes ~ [x]2 minutes ~ [x]
Hurray! Apples ^^ I think they turned out nicely!
Two things I'm noticing... you may be drawing too dark and pressing too hard. Try changing up your grip on your pencil to that it almost feels like you don't have enough control. When you sketch, it's really important to draw lightly and loosely. It'll help you get more flow into your drawings, which will in turn help bring them to life.
The other thing is that I think you can improve your stroke economy a bit. You are using lots of little tiny strokes. Try using more broad, sweeping lines instead. Think in terms of using your entire arm and shoulder too, not just your hand and wrist. ^^
Edit: Also wanted to add that it might be worth investing in some charcoal sticks. They are messy (though super fun to work with), but they also go onto the page a lot darker than graphite. It's great if you are just sketching and it allows you do shade in your work easily (just use the flat edge!).
Later, if you work on the computer, you can always change the brush sizes to get a wide, flat edge. |
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Posted: Sat Dec 17, 2011 8:39 am
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Syrella x shini-chan x My printer is a bit small and cropped the one image. Most of it came through, but I'm not going to scan it in individually, because it's the worst one... hehe sweatdrop Anyways, here's the apples: 5 minutes ~ [x]3 minutes ~ [x]2 minutes ~ [x]Hurray! Apples ^^ I think they turned out nicely! Two things I'm noticing... you may be drawing too dark and pressing too hard. Try changing up your grip on your pencil to that it almost feels like you don't have enough control. When you sketch, it's really important to draw lightly and loosely. It'll help you get more flow into your drawings, which will in turn help bring them to life. The other thing is that I think you can improve your stroke economy a bit. You are using lots of little tiny strokes. Try using more broad, sweeping lines instead. Think in terms of using your entire arm and shoulder too, not just your hand and wrist. ^^ Edit: Also wanted to add that it might be worth investing in some charcoal sticks. They are messy (though super fun to work with), but they also go onto the page a lot darker than graphite. It's great if you are just sketching and it allows you do shade in your work easily (just use the flat edge!). Later, if you work on the computer, you can always change the brush sizes to get a wide, flat edge.
The reason it's so dark is because I used a 5B pencil. And I have a charcoal stick and I tried it, but the apple came out rather sticky... Too many straight lines I suppose. Should I use the 0.3 leaded pencil I usually draw with? |
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Posted: Sat Dec 17, 2011 8:57 am
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x shini-chan x Syrella x shini-chan x My printer is a bit small and cropped the one image. Most of it came through, but I'm not going to scan it in individually, because it's the worst one... hehe sweatdrop Anyways, here's the apples: 5 minutes ~ [x]3 minutes ~ [x]2 minutes ~ [x]Hurray! Apples ^^ I think they turned out nicely! Two things I'm noticing... you may be drawing too dark and pressing too hard. Try changing up your grip on your pencil to that it almost feels like you don't have enough control. When you sketch, it's really important to draw lightly and loosely. It'll help you get more flow into your drawings, which will in turn help bring them to life. The other thing is that I think you can improve your stroke economy a bit. You are using lots of little tiny strokes. Try using more broad, sweeping lines instead. Think in terms of using your entire arm and shoulder too, not just your hand and wrist. ^^ Edit: Also wanted to add that it might be worth investing in some charcoal sticks. They are messy (though super fun to work with), but they also go onto the page a lot darker than graphite. It's great if you are just sketching and it allows you do shade in your work easily (just use the flat edge!). Later, if you work on the computer, you can always change the brush sizes to get a wide, flat edge. The reason it's so dark is because I used a 5B pencil. And I have a charcoal stick and I tried it, but the apple came out rather sticky... Too many straight lines I suppose. Should I use the 0.3 leaded pencil I usually draw with?
Hm... what do you mean by sticky? It could be a problem with the paper, possibly, if the texture isn't right.
And no, I wouldn't recommend going with a mechanical pencil. Mechanical pencils are more suited for detail and exact work, like drawing buildings or mechanical things... either that or line art. I wouldn't recommend it for regular sketching unless you're desperate.
I think you should just stick with the pencil. Just don't apply too much pressure. It should just lightly touch the paper enough to make a mark. It'll be darker than normal because it's a 5B pencil, but that'll also mean that you don't have to apply much pressure at all. Which is good.
When I say "draw lightly" I am speaking more about the pressure that you are using, not so much the actual darkness of the line. Does that make sense?
Edit: Oh and when working with charcoal, you can always change what edge you're working with and round off spots if need be. They have round charcoal sticks, for example. If you're using one of the square ones, just draw for a bit until it smooths out a bit. The hard edges are good for sharp contours. |
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Posted: Sat Dec 17, 2011 9:08 am
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Syrella Hm... what do you mean by sticky? It could be a problem with the paper, possibly, if the texture isn't right. And no, I wouldn't recommend going with a mechanical pencil. Mechanical pencils are more suited for detail and exact work, like drawing buildings or mechanical things... either that or line art. I wouldn't recommend it for regular sketching unless you're desperate. I think you should just stick with the pencil. Just don't apply too much pressure. It should just lightly touch the paper enough to make a mark. It'll be darker than normal because it's a 5B pencil, but that'll also mean that you don't have to apply much pressure at all. Which is good. When I say "draw lightly" I am speaking more about the pressure that you are using, not so much the actual darkness of the line. Does that make sense? Edit: Oh and when working with charcoal, you can always change what edge you're working with and round off spots if need be. They have round charcoal sticks, for example. If you're using one of the square ones, just draw for a bit until it smooths out a bit. The hard edges are good for sharp contours. Sticky as in block-ish... hehe sweatdrop And I find the mechanical pencil convenient because it never needs to be sharpened (I did mechanical drawings for 2 years). I also like it because then the construction lines are really light and easy to erase, but I suppose I got into the habit of applying too much pressure. Should I redo the exercise? Edit: Please tell me what I should pay more attention on? Reduce pressure, draw with whole arm, what else?
No need to redo anything. ^^ Just try it again, maybe with the lemon instead. I mean, getting more practice is never a bad thing. Ideally you should fill up entire sketchbooks with your work. But since it's probably not your only interest, then you can just spend a little time every day and still see improvement.
Mechanical pencils are where people start, often times. It's what I used to use, too, no matter what I did. It took me awhile to realize that they were actually hindering my progress, though. I mean, you'll have to find out what works for you. But if you're trying to drawing big with bold, confident strokes, the mechanical pencil isn't gonna be your friend. The lead will break and snap off or get snagged on the paper. When you are making chibis, though, it might work just fine. Different tools and different techniques for different aspects of drawing. ^^ Right now we're focusing on sketching, so that's why I'm making these recommendations.
As for what to pay attention to, just try to incorporate what you're learning when you are able to. It'll feel awkward at first, but then it'll become easier with practice. Next time, try sketching lightly with the whole arm motion. Just get an idea for how it feels. When that becomes more comfortable (or if you find another method that works better), then try using big sweeps of motion. Make a few arcs on the page, practice a few circles. Get a sense for how the lines work. If there's a circle, complete it in one stroke. If there's an arc, same deal. What you want to do is build up confidence and work on your eye hand coordination. It'll come in handy later. ^^
If speed is too much to worry about right now, then just work on going slowly and deliberately. Don't worry about timing yourself for a bit. |
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