Lost on heads

[ChaseNNN]

Hello

So I have been just completely lost on head proportions since I started trying to figure them out awhile back. I've tried again and again, making the eyes smaller,larger,head shapes, ect. and I can't make a breakthrough. Tried Loomis Approach, Hogarth, Block-in, same ol goofy unappealing proportions. Skulls of course are also in my studies. A lot of these have general errors such as a skewed effect apologies. I literally can not figure out what I am doing so wrong that is leading to these train wrecks and it's just so frustrating. I want solid, realistic proportions and all I get are atrocities  head after head after head. 


Thanks !

[Adam Lina]

Have you tried the Reilly abstraction? Memorize these rhythm lines and you'll start to see the rhythms  in peoples faces. Also practice the planes of the head https://www.google.com/search?q=planes+o...6ICh2KnAVg

[ChaseNNN]

 Here are some head plane studies I've been doing this morning, I've studied head planes before but maybe these will give some more insight to proportional problems I'm not able to comprehend at my current level ? That and of course more studies on these will no doubt help. I've also have studied the Reily Method briefly a bit back, but I've never have fully pursued it as a way for myself to draw the head... I use bits of pieces of the method sometimes, but never the full sequence, perhaps so. 

Thanks for the suggestions ! 

[Eyliana]

I feel you! Currently going through the same thing. At the moment I'm following the Loomis approach and that seems to be working out to get at least the basic proportions of the head right. Perspective on the features of the face are sometimes still difficult. Proko has a lot of on constructing the head and the features and how they relate to each other. I find it hard to see what goes wrong for you (I can't even see it in my own drawings :P), but maybe you can find some tips there.

[ChaseNNN]

I feel you! Currently going through the same thing. At the moment I'm following the Loomis approach and that seems to be working out to get at least the basic proportions of the head right. Perspective on the features of the face are sometimes still difficult. Proko has a lot of on constructing the head and the features and how they relate to each other. I find it hard to see what goes wrong for you (I can't even see it in my own drawings :P), but maybe you can find some tips there.

Yeah I've looked at Proko's stuff too. I'm starting to believe it's the way the shapes and features are approached when drawing a face that deems it realistic or not, something may be off in the way I draw features specifically and it may be your case as well ?  For instance really good caricature artists are able to make something look very realistic even though it looks malformed,namely the way they approach the features. While a cartoonist can rely on standard facial proportions and the way the draw the features specifically makes it look cartoony, even though they are locked into this position of realism it ends up cartoony if the features aren't handled with caution. Perhaps studying features themselves is the way to go, and perhaps it will lead to nothing and I'll start back where I was before with "I hate drawing heads." haha.

[Eyliana]

I personally think it is a combination of everything. We are so used to look at faces that we immediately notice if something is off, even if we can't exactly define what it is. With cartoonist and also caricature artists, they have of course a basic in anatomy, but they don't try to make it look 100% realistic. Caricatures are still recognizable because they exaggerate the features of a person. And I'm sure that our drawings are also recognizable as a head, just not a very pretty one ;).

And I think studying the features independently helps, because you get a better feel on how they are located on the head and the different planes that go with it. And then just figure out the relation between all of them and it should be fine right?

Also, I got feedback on my studies that I draw the eyes too high. They should be located around the middle of the skull. Looking at your studies, they are also located around the same height as I draw them.

[ChaseNNN]

I personally think it is a combination of everything. We are so used to look at faces that we immediately notice if something is off, even if we can't exactly define what it is. With cartoonist and also caricature artists, they have of course a basic in anatomy, but they don't try to make it look 100% realistic. Caricatures are still recognizable because they exaggerate the features of a person. And I'm sure that our drawings are also recognizable as a head, just not a very pretty one ;).

And I think studying the features independently helps, because you get a better feel on how they are located on the head and the different planes that go with it. And then just figure out the relation between all of them and it should be fine right?

Also, I got feedback on my studies that I draw the eyes too high. They should be located around the middle of the skull. Looking at your studies, they are also located around the same height as I draw them.

Exactly, it's little tiny things like shapes that can make or break it.