VENOM & BANE CRITS /HELP

[TK_EKS]

Im trying to learn how to color in my Black and white drawings and achieve a good color scheme. pretty much to make them look awesome and have that dynamic light concept art/ cover art has.

I have two drawings here my first one is a vemon drawing i have been fiddling with to get it tot he final level i want, unfortunately coloring it in is a new thing to me as i just recently started painting value first. Any suggestions for coloring technique, and how to go about final details for a polished look.

My bane drawing is a ongoing WIP , i have been experimenting with some new brushes i created. im looking for a fresh pair of eye to see it and give a crit to see where i can go from here.

[jake4nd3rs0n]

Hey. The venom one is nice. Good, dynamic composition. For the coloring, you are on your way, the base values have more or less been established, you just have to refine them a little bit. It might benefit you to take a look at yourself in that pose, and really take note how the strain of the neck affects the musculature of the body; right now, its a little tacked on. Looking at yourself in a mirror with a sketchbook in hand will help in more ways than one.
As for the Bane piece, I wouldn't go nuts experimenting with different brushes. I only paint with maybe 3-5 different brushes, and for most of what I do, I really only use one brush 75 percent of the time. His eyes wouldn't be that big, and his jaw is off a little bit. Again, this is a part where looking at you or someone else in that pose would help a lot. Put a cloth over your mouth and nose to see how fabric is pulled over the geography of the face and whether the shadow is soft, or hard, because it wouldn't be quite as hard as you currently have it. With illustrations, you want to nail down as much as you can before rendering because fixing them in the sketch phase is always quicker than fixing them down the road.

You're on the right track though. Just be mindful of reference and anatomy, and cross reference those with your work. Perhaps do some life drawing and still life value studies, as those will inform your brain immensely, making it easier to make the decisions an artist must in order to accurately depict the subject of his choosing.